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Knicks forward Julius Randle scores career-high 46 points

Knicks forward Julius Randle scores career-high 46 points in a big win over the Kings Monday that featured 83 NY points in the second half. Via the New York Post:

Julius Randle got fined by the NBA Sunday and then got even.

This time it was the Knicks’ turn to rally from a big deficit and capture a desperately needed victory.

Randle exploded for a career-high 46 points to lead a 44-point third-quarter barrage as the Knicks rallied from 19 points down in the first half to knock out the Kings, 131-115, in a Wild West shootout at Golden1 Center.

“When he plays with that type of intensity, it lifts everyone,’’ Tom Thibodeau said. “He was attacking the basket, shooting the 3, making hustle plays. It was a great all-around game from him.’’ …

The Knicks exploded for a 35-17 start to the second half to erase their 15-point halftime hole. They finished the half with 83 points, the most by a Knicks team after intermission since 1969.

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Timberwolves beat Trail Blazers by 43 points

The Minnesota Timberwolves enjoyed a 43-point win tonight. Here’s the Star Tribune on it:

Two of the Timberwolves three best players, the injured Anthony Edwards and D’Angelo Russell, sat toward the end of the bench Monday night and never bothered to take off their coats.

They probably knew their team wasn’t going to have to sweat this one out. That was the case pretty much from the start as the Wolves downed a severely shorthanded Portland team 124-81.

The Trail Blazers, who were without many players including Damian Lillard and Jusuf Nurkic, were already shorthanded when the teams met Saturday. Then they came into Monday without Anfernee Simons, who scored 38 on Saturday. The Wolves did what they should against a roster better suited for March Madness.

The Wolves didn’t even play particularly well. They shot just 8-for-22 as they built a 31-15 lead after the first quarter. That’s because Portland shot 5-for-25. They didn’t have to focus particularly well, and given their busy schedule of late they could use a night where they could just turn their brains off.

Karl-Anthony Towns made quick work of Portland with 27 points and 13 rebounds while Malik Beasley had 19 as the Wolves won their fifth straight game.

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Warriors forward Draymond Green aims to return next week

Here’s the San Jose Mercury News with a report direct from Warriors forward Draymond Green that he expects to be back in action soon:

The Warriors had no target date for the return of Draymond Green Monday night, but Green has one in mind.

Green went further than coach Steve Kerr would on his podcast “The Draymond Green Show.”

“By the way, I am targeting my return next Monday, the 14th, vs. the Wizards. That is the date that I have targeted,” Green said. “I’m as excited as hell. It’s been two months, almost two and a half by the time I play. I have never missed that much time during a season. I once had an ankle injury that kept me out for a long time in high school. This is something different for me. I’m extremely excited to get back out there with my guys to try to help right this ship.”

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Should the Lakers use Russell Westbrook as a reserve instead of as a starter?

As the NBA regular season starts to wrap up over the next month, the Lakers still face all sorts of challenges and questions to answer, including exactly how to make the most of Russell Westbrook’s talent. Here’s the OC Register:

There are only 19 games left in the season, and Westbrook is still disgruntled about his shifting role. After Thursday’s loss, Westbrook took a shot at the coaching staff again: “My role and what I’m doing has changed every single night, so I’m just trying to figure that out as I’m playing and to be able to benefit and help my team.”

Not long after, ESPN reported that Coach Frank Vogel was facing internal pressure to bring Westbrook off the bench, including a report of a tense Friday film session between Vogel and Westbrook. So far, according to ESPN, Vogel has resisted making the move. The report cites that the push is coming “among many in the Los Angeles Lakers organization,” which is deliciously vague.

Said Vogel on Friday: “We have discussions, just like the front office has thousands of trade discussions every deadline, and they don’t discuss every one of those. Most of them don’t come to fruition. And that’s where we’re at with Russ. Is there a path where that’s the better option? We have talked about that. We’ve talked about everything we can do with our team. We’re not there.”

The interesting mental exercise comes from imagining what would change for the Lakers by bringing Westbrook off the bench. Westbrook would be out of the Lakers’ starting lineup, which presumably would feature LeBron James and more active defenders and long-range shooters more prominently. Westbrook would play fewer minutes of his inefficient style that has not meshed well, particularly with James. He might get more free reign in those secondary units as the point guard, which could theoretically help him find his offensive rhythm.

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The latest on the Raptors

For the latest on the Toronto Raptors, here’s the Toronto Sun reviewing a pretty basic yet essential thing basketball teams must do to win:

In a make-or-miss league, the Raptors have been woefully amiss with their ability to drain shots.

Not surprisingly, they haven’t been able post wins of late.

With two critical pieces are unavailable in the wake of injuries, the margin for error is slimmer for a team whose depth has always been an area of concern.

In Sunday’s loss to the host Cleveland Cavaliers, the first of a six-game trip for the Raptors, the only bench player to score for the visitors was Precious Achiuwa, who would end the night with a negative-28 rating.

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Jayson Tatum scores 54 points in Celtics win over Nets

Boston Celtics forward Jayson Tatum had himself quite a game today on national TV in a win over the Brooklyn Nets. Here’s Boston.com:

As Jayson Tatum stepped to the line late in Sunday’s matinee game against the Nets, chants of “M-V-P” rained down from the rafters.

How can you argue with them? Tatum’s free throws were his 53rd and 54th points in the Celtics‘ 126-120 victory over a Nets team that was nearly whole — missing only Ben Simmons. Tatum rose to the occasion against Kevin Durant, who has arguably been the best player in the world for much longer than he gets credit. He beat double teams. He worked his way to the free-throw line 17 times. He buried eight of his 15 3-point attempts.

“Obviously, when you kind of get in that zone, the basket just seemed to be a little bit bigger,” Tatum said after the game.

Perhaps most importantly, when the Nets forced the ball out of his hands, he was a willing passer. The biggest shot of the game was Jaylen Brown’s back-breaking corner triple with 39 seconds remaining which was assisted by Marcus Smart, but the advantage was created when the Nets double-teamed Tatum.

“[Tatum] was unstoppable,” Brown said afterward. “I think that helps with your offense, right?”

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Raptors guard Malachi Flynn out with hamstring strain

Toronto Raptors guard Malachi Flynn sustained a strained left hamstring in Friday’s game against the Orlando Magic.

Flynn had started the previous four games for the Raptors, averaging 16.0 points, 5.5 assists, 4.0 rebounds and 35.6 minutes during this stretch. He scored a season-high 20 points and tied a season best with eight assists in 39 minutes against the Magic.

Flynn is out indefinitely, and his condition will be updated as appropriate.

Knicks forward Julius Randle fined by NBA

New York Knicks forward Julius Randle has been fined $50,000 for initiating an on-court altercation by forcefully shoving Phoenix Suns forward Cam Johnson, making contact with a game official in his attempt to get at Johnson, and for his noncompliance with an NBA investigation, it was announced today by Byron Spruell, President, League Operations.

The incident, for which Johnson was assessed a technical foul and Randle was assessed two technical fouls and ejected, occurred with 2:40 remaining in the third quarter of the Suns’ 115-114 victory over the Knicks on Mar. 4 at Footprint Center in Phoenix.

Raptors sign Armoni Brooks to 10-day contract, and release D.J. Wilson

The Toronto Raptors have signed guard Armoni Brooks to a 10-day contract.

And in a corresponding move, the Raptors have released forward D.J. Wilson.

Brooks, 6-foot-3, 195 pounds, is averaging 6.2 points, 2.0 rebounds and 16.8 minutes in 41 games (eight starts) with Houston this season. He is shooting .347 (87-251) from the field and has scored in double figures 10 times, including a season-high 21 points Dec. 10 at Milwaukee. The Rockets waived Brooks at the NBA trade deadline who also appeared in two games with College Park in the NBA G League earlier this month.

A native of Waco, Texas, Brooks holds career averages of 7.8 points, 2.4 rebounds and 19.8 minutes in 61 games (13 starts) with Houston (2020-22). He signed a two-way contract with the Rockets in April 2021 following two seasons in the G League with College Park (2019-20) and Rio Grande Valley (2020-21). Brooks is averaging 12.4 points, 3.5 rebounds and 23.7 minutes in 60 career G League contests.

Prior to the G League, Brooks played three collegiate seasons at Houston (2016-19) where he was named All-AAC Second Team as a junior. He went undrafted in 2019.

Injured Clippers swingman Paul George remains out, but seen shooting around

The Clippers remain without injured stars Kawhi Leonard and Paul George, but at least there was a positive PG13 sighting. Per the OC Register:

Paul George hasn’t been cleared for takeoff, so don’t bother checking the departure board, not just yet.

But the Clippers’ star wing looked characteristically fluid as he put up shots – with his right hand – Saturday before the team’s practice at Honey Training Center.

The seven-time All-Star has missed the past 33 games – a span in which the Clippers are holding steady, at 17-16 – since being shelved with a torn ulnar collateral ligament in his right elbow.

It’s the type of injury that often sidelines baseball pitchers for a year following Tommy John surgery to repair it, but that operation is relatively unheard of for basketball players, according to Dr. Alan Beyer, executive medical director at Hoag Orthopedic Institute in Irvine.

George underwent an MRI on Feb. 25, which indicated, Coach Tyronn Lue said that day: “Just that he feels better. He’s making progress, but he’s gonna need more time.”

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