The past week in the NBA saw the Brooklyn Nets do something they hadn't previously done since February 9... lose a game.
Brooklyn's defeat to the Dallas Mavericks gave a boost to their rivals for the top seed in the Eastern Conference, headed by the Philadelphia 76ers.
The Milwaukee Bucks, another of those competitors, enjoyed a superb week with reigning MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo unsurprisingly coming to the fore.
Meanwhile, out west, Devin Booker strung together a series of performances that justified his place in the All-Star game.
By contrast, two players significantly more familiar with that contest suffered dips in form.
Here we take a look at some of the best and worst performers across the past week, aided by Stats Perform data.
RUNNING HOT...
Giannis Antetokounmpo
The Bucks are firmly back in contention for the top seed in the East after stretching their winning run to five games, with three of those victories coming in the past week.
Antetokounmpo was predictably pivotal to their success, tallying over 30 points in each matchup to extend his streak to four games in that regard.
He finished the week with back-to-back double-doubles against the New Orleans Pelicans and Los Angeles Clippers, scoring 36 points in the latter game.
His points per game average jumped from 28.37 to 37, Antetokounmpo and the Bucks sending a message that they are still very much a contender for the title.
Devin Booker
The All-Star snub who was later added as a replacement showed why he deserves his place in the showcase this past week.
Booker averaged 33 points across the Phoenix Suns' three games, an impressive improvement on his previous season-long average of 24.28.
He capped it in stunning fashion, dropping 43 in the win over the Minnesota Timberwolves, which saw him go 15 for 26 from the field.
At 22-11, the Suns will loom as a dangerous playoff team should he continue that kind of form.
James Harden
Brooklyn may have finally seen their eight-game winning streak come to an end, but it was a positive week for Harden individually.
Absent the other two members of the Nets' big three, Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant, Harden could not prevent them from falling to defeat to the Mavericks.
However, he was more prolific from beyond the arc this past week, averaging 4.67 made threes having entered the week putting up 3.08 per game.
Harden is converting threes at the highest rate of his career. He is shooting 39.7 per cent from beyond the arc and 41.8 per cent since his trade to Brooklyn from the Houston Rockets.
But he is attempting only 8.2 a game, the fewest since the 2015-16 season (8.0). If he continues to shoot more from deep and maintains his consistency in converting those attempts, a loaded Nets team will have yet another dimension.
GOING COLD...
Paul George
An up-and-down week for the Clippers started brilliantly for George, who racked up 30 points in a win over the Washington Wizards, going six of seven from three-point range.
But he tailed off thereafter, following up two 13-point efforts against the Memphis Grizzlies with a mediocre 16-point display in the loss to the Bucks.
His points per game average fell from 24.36 entering the week to 18 over the past seven days, and the Clippers will need a lot more from him if they are to earn a top-two seed in the West.
Terry Rozier
The man known as 'Scary Terry' did little to terrify opponents over the past week.
Rozier entered the week averaging a career-high 21.15 points per game but that dipped to 13.5 over the four games the Charlotte Hornets contested in the last seven days.
He put up 24 points in a loss to the Golden State Warriors but could not manage more than 12 in his other three outings.
Still averaging 20.2 a game for the season, the Hornets will want Rozier to deliver the kind of performance he did against Golden State consistently as they seek a first playoff berth since 2015-16.
Stephen Curry
Among the players to suffer the biggest decline in three-point shooting this past week was the man most consider the greatest shooter of all time.
Curry had been converting 5.03 three-pointers a game for the season but hit on an average of 3.25 a game as the Warriors won three of four last week.
He still enjoyed a 37-point outing against the New York Knicks, scoring seven triples in that triumph, but was one for 11 from deep versus the Indiana Pacers and two for seven in Sunday's loss to the Los Angeles Lakers.
However, with Curry experiencing a season in which he is averaging his highest points per game tally (29.5) since his unanimous MVP season of 2015-16 (30.1), the smart money says he will soon return to form from beyond the arc.
Morant expected to make Grizzlies return on Wednesday against the Rockets
Memphis Grizzlies head coach Taylor Jenkins is "hopeful" All-NBA point guard Ja Morant will make his return on Wednesday after completing an eight-game suspension.
Morant, 23, was suspended after a March 3 road game against the Denver Nuggets for "conduct detrimental to the league".
The NBA was forced to investigate after Morant appeared to brandish a gun on social media while at a nightclub.
Morant was "holding a firearm in an intoxicated state", the NBA said, but it did not prove the gun was owned by the Grizzlies star, or that he took it on the team flight or into any league facility.
When asked prior to Monday's game against the Dallas Mavericks, Jenkins said Morant had "a good first day back" with the team, which included addressing his team-mates and coaches after spending a brief stint in counselling.
Despite missing Morant's 27.1 points, 8.2 assists and 6.0 rebounds per game, the Grizzlies have gone 5-3 during his eight-game absence.
It was a similar story last season when they went 20-5 in the 25 games their star spent on the sidelines.
"What the group's done in his absence has been phenomenal from a defensive standpoint, offensive standpoint, execution standpoint, togetherness standpoint," Jenkins said.
"That's obviously our expectation with Ja reintegrating with the team. He's been connected with us player-wise, staff-wise, he knows what we're doing.
"He's excited to be a part of the group and get back and help his team [reach] our ultimate goal.
"I think it's going to be a seamless reintegration. We know how important he is to us. We know how important he is, he knows how important his team-mates are to him."
At 43-27, Memphis are tied for the second seed in the Western Conference, and they have 12 games remaining to overtake the Sacramento Kings, or even make a run at the top-seeded Nuggets (48-24).
Texans sign Schultz and Singletary
The Houston Texans are still over a month away from picking their quarterback of the future, but they are continuing to build around him.
On Monday, the Texans added a starting tight end to their roster, signing Dalton Schultz to a one-year deal worth up to $9million, according to NFL Network's Tom Pelissero.
Schultz did not have the market he might have anticipated after his contract with the Dallas Cowboys expired, but he will have the chance to cash in next offseason if he can thrive in Houston playing with the quarterback whom the Texans will almost certainly select with the second overall pick in the NFL Draft.
Last season, Schultz finished with 577 receiving yards and five touchdowns, having racked up 808 yards and eight touchdowns in 2021.
His 13 receiving touchdowns over the last two seasons rank fifth among tight ends.
Houston also added to their backfield, signing former Buffalo Bills running back Devin Singletary.
Singletary is unlikely to be the starter following the emergence of Dameon Pierce, who had 939 rushing yards and four touchdowns on the ground as a rookie.
Also arriving on a one-year deal, according to multiple reports, Singletary gives the Texans versatile depth at running back.
He has produced over 1,000 yards from scrimmage in each of the last two seasons. In 2022, he finished with 819 yards rushing and five touchdowns, as well as 280 yards receiving and a further touchdown through the air.
Singletary has 2,197 scrimmage yards since 2021, putting him 20th among running backs across that span.
Hall of Fame coach Rick Pitino hired by St. John's
Hall of Fame coach Rick Pitino has been hired by St. John's to revitalise a storied programme that has not won an NCAA Tournament game in more than two decades.
The school announced the hiring on Monday, and the deal is reportedly for six years.
"Coach Pitino is one of the most brilliant minds in the history of the game and has won at the highest levels everywhere he has coached," St. John's athletic director Mike Cragg said in a statement.
"There is no doubt in my mind he will restore a championship-level programme and culture for St. John's Basketball."
Pitino spent the last three years coaching at nearby Iona – leading the mid-major to a pair of NCAA berths – and this will be the 70-year-old's third coaching job in the Big East after stints at Providence and Louisville.
He guided Kentucky (1996) and Louisville (2013) to national titles, has been to seven Final Fours and has coached five schools to the NCAA Tournament, beginning with Boston University in 1983.
Pitino went 64-22 during his three seasons with Iona and takes the St. John's job three days after the 13th-seeded Gaels lost to UConn 87-63 in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.
Now he is tasked with turning around a St. John's programme that has appeared in only three NCAA Tournaments over the last two decades – most recently in 2019 – and has not won a tournament game since 2000.
The Red Storm went 18-15 in 2022-23 and finished eighth in the Big East, leading to the firing of Mike Anderson on March 10.
In 34 seasons as a head coach, Pitino has an unofficial record of 834-293 (.740) – but 123 wins at Louisville have been vacated by the NCAA, including the 2013 national title, for recruiting violations.
Pitino was dismissed at Louisville in 2017 over corruption and allegations of NCAA violations.
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