Milwaukee Bucks superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo will miss Tuesday's game against the Golden State Warriors due to knee soreness.
Antetokounmpo was initially listed as probable for the Warriors showdown after being ruled out of Saturday's one-point win over the Sacramento Kings.
But two-time reigning NBA MVP Antetokounmpo will sit out back-to-back games, the Bucks announced prior to tip-off.
Antetokounmpo has been averaging 28.8 points, 11.4 rebounds and 6.2 assists per game this season.
The Bucks (32-17) – eyeing their first championship since 1971 – have won three consecutive games to sit third in the Eastern Conference.
James Harden will miss over a week due to a hamstring strain, but superstar Brooklyn Nets team-mate Kevin Durant is likely to make his long-awaited NBA return against the New Orleans Pelicans.
Harden was forced out of Monday's 114-112 win over the New York Knicks after just four minutes, with an MRI revealing a strained right hamstring, the Nets announced on Tuesday.
MVP hopeful Harden – who has been averaging 25.2 points, 10.9 assists and 8.0 rebounds per game this season – will be re-evaluated by the star-studded Nets in approximately 10 days.
While Harden is set for a stint on the sidelines, fellow former MVP Durant is poised to make a comeback.
Durant has not played since February 13 but is listed as probable for Wednesday's clash with the Pelicans.
A hamstring strain has plagued Durant, who was also forced to sit out last month's All-Star Game in Atlanta.
Durant is averaging 29.0 points, 7.3 rebounds and 5.3 assists per game for the Nets in 2020-21.
Steve Nash's Nets (35-16) top the Eastern Conference, ahead of the Philadelphia 76ers (34-16).
DeMarcus Cousins wasted little time in getting to work with the Los Angeles Clippers after signing a 10-day contract with the team.
Cousins was a free agent after being waived by the Houston Rockets in February, the center having averaged 9.6 points, 7.6 rebounds and 2.4 assists this season.
Now the 30-year-old has the chance to impress the Clippers, who sit third in the Western Conference with a 33-18 record and may want to add depth to their roster ahead of the postseason.
The franchise released pictures on social media of their latest acquisition already hard at work in the gym, potentially ahead of a debut against the Portland Trail Blazers on Tuesday.
The four-time NBA All-Star is back in Los Angeles, having signed for the Lakers prior to the start of the 2019-20 season. However, he missed the entirety of their title-winning campaign due to a serious knee injury.
Selected by the Sacramento Kings with the fifth overall pick in the 2010 draft, Cousins has played in 590 games in his NBA career.
Twice selected on the All-NBA Second Team during his time with the Kings, he was eventually traded to the New Orleans Pelicans in February 2017.
There has also been a stint with the Golden State Warriors that was hampered by a torn quadriceps muscle. He had signed a one-year deal with the Rockets in 2020, yet played just 25 games for them.
For his career, Cousins averages 20.8 points, 10.7 rebounds and 3.2 assists.
Luka Doncic says the Dallas Mavericks just have to "keep rolling" after scoring an impressive win over the Utah Jazz on Monday.
The Jazz, who hold the best record in the NBA this season, saw a nine-game winning streak halted as the Mavericks ran out 111-103 victors behind 31 points, nine rebounds and eight assists from Doncic.
Dorian Finney-Smith had 23 points to go alongside six rebounds and four assists, while Jalen Brunson (20 points), Josh Richardson (17 points) and Tim Hardaway Jr (16 points) all contributed in the absence of Kristaps Porzingis, who was missing with a wrist sprain.
The Mavericks, seventh in the Western Conference, are now on a five-game winning run and are 7-3 over the past 10, with Doncic admitted their latest result helps build confidence as the season moves into a critical stage.
"I mean win every win is a confidence win, every NBA team can beat you," he said.
"Every win is a confidence win here, obviously this one they're first in the West or second, so obviously it's a big win. We just have to keep rolling, I guess."
The Mavericks impressed in the long-range game, going 23 for 49 from three-point range. Prior to the game, Utah led the NBA in three-point attempts (17.1) and second for success rate (39.8 per cent), but they were 12 from 44 (27.3 per cent).
"To hold these guys to 103 is a hell of a job," Dallas coach Rick Carlisle said.
"The difference was we just came out and we were much more physical than we were last time we played them. That was a long time ago; that was light years ago."
Kyrie Irving stepped up with 40 points after James Harden went off injured early in the Brooklyn Nets' 114-112 victory over the New York Knicks on Monday.
In his first game back following hamstring tightness, Harden left the court after four minutes with an issue with the same hamstring and did not return.
The Nets were already without Kevin Durant, Tyler Johnson, Landry Shamet and Blake Griffin but their star point guard lifted when his side needed him, improving Brooklyn's record to 35-16 and moving them top in the East.
Irving finished with 40 points, including five three-pointers and seven assists, while Jeff Green contributed 23 points.
The Utah Jazz's nine-game winning run was halted by Luka Doncic and the Dallas Mavericks in a 111-103 win.
Doncic went close to a triple-double, finishing with 31 points along with nine rebounds and eight assists for the Mavs.
Booker on fire, Westbrook dominates in defeat
Devin Booker dominated again with 36 points for the Phoenix Suns, who won 133-130 over the Houston Rockets to move to 35-14.
Booker has had a hot hand lately and delivered when it mattered, with 18 final-quarter points getting the Suns past the Rockets.
Chris Paul had 11 assists for Phoenix, becoming the fifth player in NBA history to reach 10 or more assists 500 times.
Russell Westbrook had another triple-double with 23 points, 14 rebounds and 11 assists but the Washington Wizards lost 103-101 to the Toronto Raptors after Gary Trent Jr's buzzer-beater.
Darius Garland scored a career-high 37 points as the Cleveland Cavaliers won 125-101 over the San Antonio Spurs.
Harden hurt again
Brooklyn's MVP candidate Harden did not last long in his return game after hamstring tightness, failing to score before being benched and tested in the locker room for a re-injury. Nets coach Steve Nash said: "Very similar to last time. He's got an awareness that something isn't right in his hammy."
Trent's buzzer-beater
Trent hit a clutch three-point buzzer-beater to earn the Toronto Raptors a dramatic victory over the Washington Wizards, completing a 19-point comeback.
Monday's results
Minnesota Timberwolves 116-106 Sacramento Kings
Detroit Pistons 132-108 Oklahoma City Thunder
Cleveland Cavaliers 125-101 San Antonio Spurs
Toronto Raptors 103-101 Washington Wizards
Dallas Mavericks 111-103 Utah Jazz
Brooklyn Nets 114-112 New York Knicks
Phoenix Suns 133-130 Houston Rockets
76ers at Celtics
There are a bunch of big match-ups on Tuesday but the biggest is in the East when the Boston Celtics (25-25) host the Philadelphia 76ers (34-16), who have Joel Embiid back from injury.
Brooklyn Nets coach Steve Nash concedes James Harden's hamstring issue which forced him out of Monday's 114-112 win over the New York Knicks may linger.
Harden only played four minutes for the Nets before being benched in his first game back after missing the previous two with right hamstring tightness.
The latest issue was to the same hamstring, with Nash clarifying that they could not yet identify the problem.
"Very similar to last time. He's got an awareness that something isn't right in his hammy," Nash said post-game.
"His scan was clean as we reported. His strength tests when he came back in the locker room were normal.
"It's something where we have to protect him. We have to trust him. It's very frustrating for James.
"We can't risk it if we can afford not to. That depends on trust between us and James and making sure he feels comfortable in the decision. I thought tonight the right decision was to not take any risk with him.
"Who knows? This may linger. It may be all behind us like we thought it was before the game.
"It's one of those things where the scan is clean, his strength tests are clean but he feels something so we're going to err on the side of caution."
Nash added that Harden underwent further strength tests in the locker room during Monday's game.
"When he went back, they tested his strength," he said. "The report was that they couldn’t declare there was anything.
"He's feeling something. We believe him. It's frustrating. We don't have any indicator that this is a long-term thing or he's done any damage.
"We just have to proceed day by day and monitor it and hopefully it's a very short-term thing."
Kyrie Irving stepped up with 40 points and seven assists, while Jeff Green had 23 in Harden's absence as the Nets improved to 35-16.
It is safe to say Jrue Holiday enjoyed himself in the NBA last week.
The former All-Star sparkled for the Milwaukee Bucks before the weekend brought news of a four-year, $160million extension.
On the evidence of his performances since last Monday, it was a well-earned reward.
Holiday leads this week's NBA Heat Check, powered by Stats Perform data, alongside a man he might have counted as a team-mate this season.
RUNNING HOT...
Jrue Holiday
The Bucks paid a big price to get Holiday from the New Orleans Pelicans in a bid to persuade Giannis Antetokounmpo to stay. It was a move that worked in that sense and is increasingly showing its merit on the floor, too.
Milwaukee may have tumbled to third in the East this season, but they are showing signs they might finally provide a threat in the playoffs.
Holiday will be key to that, as he was during a three-game winning run last week. After starting their road trip with defeat at the Los Angeles Clippers, in which Holiday scored 24 points, the point guard tallied 28, 22 and 33 respectively in victories over the Los Angeles Lakers, Portland Trail Blazers and Sacramento Kings.
An average of 26.8 over those seven days lifted Holiday's seasonal mark from 15.9 to 17.0.
Bogdan Bogdanovic
As the Bucks desperately sought reinforcements to prove their ambition to Antetokounmpo, a deal for Bogdanovic from the Kings was reportedly struck. Instead, however, he signed for the Atlanta Hawks.
Milwaukee are certainly a more serious prospect than Atlanta, but the Hawks are belatedly finding some form with the help of Bogdanovic.
The forward had just two starts for the season until late March but has since been in the lineup for six successive games, including a run of three wins last week that started with his 28-point display against the San Antonio Spurs in which he shot 70.6 per cent from the field.
Gary Trent Jr.
Last week allowed teams around the NBA to get a good look at the players they traded for before the deadline, and the Toronto Raptors could only be pleased with Trent's output.
He averaged 23.3 for the week, albeit the Raptors only won once. Trent had a staggering plus/minus of 54 in that demolition of the Golden State Warriors.
Norm Powell, the man Trent was traded for, tallied 13.7 points across three Portland games, although the Blazers won two of them.
GOING COLD...
Victor Oladipo
While Trent has had an instant impact, the same certainly cannot be said for Oladipo.
The two-time All-Star was the Miami Heat's most notable signing as a move for Trent's new Toronto team-mate Kyle Lowry did not materialise, while LaMarcus Aldridge headed for the Brooklyn Nets after agreeing a buy out with the Spurs.
On his third team of 2021, Oladipo was averaging 20.8 points for the season prior to his Heat debut but then tallied a measly total of 14 points across his first two games as a Miami player.
Zach LaVine
Oladipo's is not the only switch yet to prove profitable, with the Chicago Bulls making a big move to bring in Nikola Vucevic to pair fellow All-Star LaVine.
But LaVine, previously scoring 27.9 points in 2020-21, averaged an underwhelming 20.0 last week.
No player in the NBA saw a greater decrease in their made shots from three-point range - 3.5 previously but just 1.3 last week - and LaVine was among three Bulls in the top five in that unwanted table (also Vucevic and Lauri Markkanen).
DeAndre Jordan
Like LaVine, Jordan was not on the move ahead of the deadline. But he was still negatively impacted.
When Aldridge chose Brooklyn over Miami, the Nets center - already struggling to hold off surprise star Nicolas Claxton - saw his opportunities decrease further.
Jordan played in only two of his team's four games last week, appearing for less than 12 minutes in each and averaging 1.5 rebounds down from 7.5 for the season.
SportsMax is the Caribbean sports channel of choice, committed to providing sporting content of the highest quality to the Caribbean, delivered by a team of highly innovative, passionate and qualified professionals.
(876) 619-7629
digitalmedia@sportsmax.tv
