Bucks 83, Knicks 67

After the deadline, the Knicks played with a lot of energy in their first game, against the red-hot Thunder. Well, that energy was absent in this one as the Bucks beat the Knicks pretty handily. Rather than bash the Knicks for sucking, I think most can agree to chalk this up to dealing with new players getting used to each other and Coach D’Antoni’s system. It also didn’t help New York that Andrew Bogut had 24 points and 20 rebounds. Tracy McGrady had a solid 15 points, but the rest of the Knicks were silent on the anniversary party of the 1969-70 NBA Champion Knicks.

Mavericks 91, Pacers 82

Caron Butler was the big name in the trade that sent him from Washington to Dallas, however Brandon Haywood played a spectacular game with 13 points, 20 rebounds, and 3 blocks. The Mavs are 4-1 since the All-Star break and seem to be meshing very well. It will be interesting to see if Haywood can keep this play up, because Dallas could be a force down the stretch. The Mavericks will face a solid test as they face the Lakers Wednesday, with Kobe Bryant slated to play.

Hawks 105, Jazz 100

The Jazz had a huge comeback win in Portland last night that was a statement to the rest of the league. That being said, thanks to a good old NBA Back-to-Back, the Jazz had to play the Atlanta Hawks. It seems like Utah was almost willing to lose this one, as they sat Deron Williams due to a right quad contusion. Even without Williams, the Jazz almost came away with the win, but Joe Johnson wouldn’t let that happen, filling up the box score with 28 points, 6 rebounds, and 6 assists. Jamal Crawford continued his campaign for Sixth Man of the Year, putting up 17 off the pine.

Wizards 101, Bulls 95

I think its hilarious that the Wizards are 3 and 1 since dealing away Antawn Jamison and Caron Butler to Cleveland and Dallas respectively, among others. Part of their success is due to the great play of F/C Andray Blatche. Blatche had 25 points and 11 rebounds tonight, which are coincidentally his averages since the trades went down. Ex-Clipper Al Thornton chipped in 17 points off the bench, as it seems like the new scenery is serving him well. Funny story about this situation is that in our fantasy league, I went to go pick up Blatche figuring noone had signed him. Too bad fantasy guru JB was way ahead of me.

Clippers 98, Bobcats 94

The Bobcats have struggled on the road all season and today wasn’t different. Stephen Jackson made one basket. I can promise you when Stephen Jackson makes one field goal, the Bobcats will lose. Gerald Wallace had 29 points and 12 rebounds in the losing effort, while six Clippers scored in double figures. Deandre Jordan posterized Theo Ratliff (yes, he still plays). I will find this video for tomorrow if it kills me!!

-G