It was the night of the triple-double. Perennial MVP candidates, Russell Westbrook and LeBron James, each notched a triple-double to lead their teams to victory.
Westbrook added 25 points, 19 assists, and 12 rebounds for his third straight triple-double, all of which are Thunder victories. It was Westbrook’s 33rd triple-double of the season, who remains just 8 shy of tying Oscar Robertson’s NBA record of 41 in a season.
For LeBron, he needed just 28 minutes to post 16/11/12 against the Pistons, a team he seems to dominate since his unforgettable 48-point performance in the 2007 Eastern Conference Finals. He wouldn’t be denied and knocked over anything in his path, including teammate Kyrie Irving:
The Cavs were in a bit of a slump, losing 4 of 5, heading into their matchup with the Pistons. With the Cavs just 2.5 games up on the Celtics, hopefully James will finish the year on a tear. It was James’ 10th triple-double of the season and third in the last four games.
Now onto the rest of the nightly notables:
Taj Gibson – Gibson had his best game as a member of the Thunder, posting 17 points, 8 rebounds, and 1 block.
Victor Oladipo – After dropping 21 points, 3 rebounds, 4 steals, and 3 threes against the Nets, Oladipo has now scored 20+ points in three straight games.
Enes Kanter – Kanter has been on a roll since returning from injury, finishing with 17 points, 5 rebounds, and 2 assists. He’s been seeing fewer minutes with the Taj Gibson trade, but has still been effective, scoring double figures in 9 straight games.
Alex Abrines – The three-point specialist saw 26 minutes off the bench in the blowout, finishing with 13/3/3 with 3 threes and 2 steals. There are better guys to trust if you need help from beyond the arc.
Brook Lopez – What a waste that he’s spending the prime of his career in Brooklyn. Lopez went for 25 points, 6 rebounds, and 3 threes.
Jeremy Lin – Those who waited patiently for Lin to return from injury, have been rewarded handsomely. He scored a season-high 24 points, 5 assists, and 2 threes.
Caris LeVert – Caris LeScored 16 points, 5 rebounds, and 3 steals for the Nets on Tuesday.
Dario Saric – Saric has really picked up the scoring slack since Joel Embiid was shut down for the season. He did a little bit of everything on Tuesday, posting 25 points, 6 assists, 7 rebounds, 3 steals, 2 blocks, and 2 threes and has been a top 50 player over the last month.
Jahlil Okafor – I expected Okafor to benefit from Embiid’s injury as well, but he’s been more up and down than Saric. He’s proving useful again after missing 2 games in early March. Against the Warriors, he scored 22 points, grabbed 6 rebounds, and swatted a season-high 4 blocks.
T.J. McConnell – The assist machine nearly posted a triple-double with 7 points, 7 rebounds, and 10 assists. He’s a cheap source of assists and steals for teams in need.
Richaun Holmes – The backup big man posted 14 points, 8 rebounds, and 2 blocks off the bench.
Draymond Green – After being rested during Saturday’s game against the Spurs, Green was everywhere on Tuesday posting a 20/8/8 line with 4 steals and 6 blocks. He was just 1 steal shy of the rare 5×5.
Stephen Curry – Celebrating his 29th birthday, Curry scored 29 points to go along with 6 rebounds, 5 assists, 3 steals, and 5 threes.
Klay Thompson – Thompson scored 28 points, (10-22 FG, 5-9 3PT), but did little else with 2 rebounds and 1 assist.
Matt Barnes – 10 points, 9 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 threes and 1 steal/block each. It was a good game for Kevin Durant’s injury replacement, but Barnes should only be used only when the starters are rested.
DeMarcus Cousins – Cousins bounced back from an 11-point outing on Saturday to post 22 points, 9 rebounds, 3 assists, 3 steals, and 2 blocks. He hasn’t been the fantasy stud he was with the Kings, but still remains very useful.
Anthony Davis – AD posted a 15/15 double-double with 2 steals, 3 blocks, and this beautiful alley-oop from Cousins:
Jordan Crawford – Crawford continues to come from nowhere to score buckets. He hit double figures for the 4th straight game since being signed, scoring 13 points and 2 threes.
Damian Lillard – It was a forgettable game for the Trail Blazers, as they were blown out by 23 in NOLA. Lillard was the lone bright spot: 29 points, 3 rebounds, and 4 threes.
Carmelo Anthony – Melo netted a double-double with 22 points, 13 rebounds, and 3 threes.
Derrick Rose – 16 points, 4 assists, and 2 rebounds for the first year Knick. Rose continues to remove the 3-point shot from his repertoire, improving his FG% from 42% to 46% this season.
Willy Hernangomez – Wet Willy was wet from the field, knocking down 6-12, on his way to 13 points, 16 rebounds, 4 assists, and 3 steals. With Kristaps Porzingis (11/3/3 line) leaving with a thigh contusion, Hernangomez saw 31 minutes and closed out the game at PF. KP downplayed the injury so the extra minutes may be short lived for Willy.
Paul George – PG-13 hit a double-double for the 4th time in the last 5 games, posting 22 points, 10 rebounds, and 3 threes in a loss to the Knicks.
Myles Turner – After hitting a scoring slump to begin March, Turner is back at it with 17 points, 12 rebounds, and 3 blocks.
Kyrie Irving – Uncle Drew scored 26 points and dished out 6 assists for the Cavs.
Iman Shumpert – The defensive specialist scored a season-high 18 points, 5 rebounds, and 2 threes. While the scoring is nice, he really needs to collect some more steals. He has only 1 in 8 March games and is currently averaging less than 1 per game for the first time in his career.
Cavs’ Bench – With the blowout, the Cavs’ bench saw some extra run. Derrick Williams (13 points, 3 threes), Deron Williams (13/2/3/ line), and J.R. Smith (12 points, 5 rebounds, and 3 threes) all reached double figures. Of the three, Smith is the only one that I’d keep an eye on. He was starting earlier in the season, before missing most of the season with a thumb injury.
Tobias Harris – Deling with a sore knee, Harris played through the pain on Tuesday, finishing with 17 points, 2 rebounds, and 2 assists.
Andre Drummond – Drummond shot 4-12 from the field for 8 points and 14 rebounds. We’re used to that kind of shooting from the free throw line, but not from the field. He’ll bounce back for the next game.
