Every morning, we will give you five things from the night before in the NBA to start your day.
1: Onward
Doc Rivers knew before tip off what the news was. Rajon Rondo had torn his ACL and would likely miss the rest of the season. His team did not and the press did not know for sure until just after halftime. The news spread and distracted from the game. It seemed like Boston's season was over.
Doc Rivers was not about to write off the season though. And maybe unknowingly, the Celtics were not doing that either.
Sure, LeBron James tied the game to send it to overtime with a 3-pointer with seven seconds left. However, it was Paul Pierce taking over in overtime, hitting a key pull-up jumper to give Boston a two-point lead and a confused Miami unable to execute on offense in the final moments. The Celtics snapped their six-game losing streak with a 100-98 victory over the Heat in double overtime.
Miami was never able to pull away and was never able to get perfectly in rhythm. Boston played one of its best games in a long time. The defense was strong with only LeBron James going off for a big game. Kevin Garnett picked Miami apart with his size in the pick and roll.
For one afternoon, the Celtics looked like they could still compete. That becomes the question now that Rondo is out.
2: Melo in a nutshell
Sunday's game was Carmelo Anthony in a nutshell. It was all the reasons we are frustrated with Anthony and love watching him play.
Atlanta had the lead when Carmelo Anthony was raked across the eyes. He slammed the ball in frustration and received a technical foul. It seemed like that one point would be the difference in the game for a long while. Anthony though stepped up and ensured a victory. He drew an and-1 on Josh Smith and gave the Knicks a 106-104 victory at Madison Square Garden.
Anthony scored 42 points, hitting 9 of 12 3-pointers in a display of offensive mastery. That is always what you expect from Anthony. He can score in so many ways, he is a nightmare for defenses. That was already what was known about Anthony.
The thing that has developed is Anthony's leadership and defense. This was not the game for that as Atlanta shot 60.0 percent from the floor and New York had an unbalanced scoring load — only seven of the 12 players scored and four of those were in double figures with the other three scoring no more than six points.
This was Melo's night though and he made good on his late-game mistakes.
3: HIGHLIGHTS!!!
Shawn Marion putback jam
Gratuitous Blake Griffin dunk
Will Bynum over the shoulder
4: Line of the Night: Carmelo Anthony — 42 points, 15/28 FGs, 9/12 3FGs
We know Anthony is an offensive wizard, but he is rarely the picture of efficiency. In Sunday's game, Anthony posted a 69.6 effective field goal percentage. That is not what Anthony usually does. The Knicks needed every point too in an odd win.
5: You can quote me on that
It's going to be great once my career is over and I see how many points I scored, but right now I'm just trying to get myself going more. I feel better and better from game to game.
–Dirk Nowitzki on passing Allen Iverson on the NBA's all-time scoring list.
You always need a win; it's always good especially at home, especially coming off four [losses] in a row.
