RealGM Wiretap
The West has yet to be won with less than a week left in the season. The Hornets maintained a two-game lead over a host of Western competitors on Wednesday night with a big win over the Timberwolves. Read about the tight race in the West and more in the RealGM Daily Rundown for April 9th?s games!
The Cleveland Cavaliers used a 28-9 fourth quarter advantage to knock off the New Jersey Nets on Wednesday night. LeBron James posted 33 points, 8 assists and 7 rebounds and Wally Szczerbiak added 14 points off the bench for the Cavs, who shot 44% from the field and outrebounded New Jersey by six. Vince Carter had 19 points and 6 assists and Richard Jefferson tallied 15 points and 6 boards for the Nets, who struggled from the field and turned the ball over sixteen times. The loss essentially eliminated New Jersey from the playoff race.
Game FIC Scores
LeBron James, CLE ? 28.6
Daniel Gibson, CLE ? 14.4
Vince Carter, NJN ? 12.8
Devin Harris, NJN ? 4.8
The Orlando Magic used a 21-point edge in the final twelve minutes to down the Chicago Bulls last night. Dwight Howard posted 30 points and 14 rebounds and Rashard Lewis added 21 points and 7 boards for the Magic, who hit 50% of their shots and scored 21 points off Chicago miscues. Kirk Hinrich led with 19 points and 4 assists and Ben Gordon contributed 13 points off the bench for the Bulls, who were outrebounded by seven and went 4-for-17 from behind the three-point line. Locked into the third spot, the Magic cannot move up or down in the East playoff order.
Game FIC Scores
Dwight Howard, ORL ? 22.6
Rashard Lewis, ORL ? 14.4
Tyrus Thomas, CHI ? 12.4
Kirk Hinrich, CHI ? 11.8
The Philadelphia 76ers came out of a tight battle against the Detroit Pistons with a win on Wednesday night. Andre Iguodala posted 25 points, 6 assists and 5 rebounds and Samuel Dalembert tallied 20 points and 13 boards for the Sixers, who hit half of their field goal attempts and outrebounded Detroit by four. Chauncey Billups had 18 points, 5 rebounds and 5 assists and Juan Dixon added 13 points off the bench for the Pistons, who shot just 43% from the floor and once again rested a majority of their starters. Twelve players scored for Detroit in the loss. The 76ers are just one game behind the Wizards for fifth seed, while they have only one game on the Raptors for the sixth slot.
Game FIC Scores
Andre Iguodala, PHI ? 23.9
Chauncey Billups, DET ? 19.5
Samuel Dalembert, PHI ? 16.5
Louis Williams, PHI ? 14.5
The Washington Wizards used a strong third quarter to hand the Boston Celtics just their sixteenth loss of the season. Antawn Jamison starred with 27 points and 11 rebounds and Caron Butler contributed 13 points, 10 assists and 7 boards for the Wizards, who shot 51% on the night and scored 30 points off Boston turnovers. Paul Pierce scored 28 points and dished 7 assists and Kevin Garnett added 22 points and 14 rebounds for the Celtics, who outrebounded Washington by ten but committed twenty turnovers. The Wizards are two games behind Cleveland for the fourth seed in the East, but have both the 76ers and Raptors on their tail for the fifth slot.
Game FIC Scores
Kevin Garnett, BOS ? 22.1
Antawn Jamison, WSH ? 19.6
Paul Pierce, BOS ? 19.0
Caron Butler, WSH ? 15.3
The Toronto Raptors used a 16-point second half edge to defeat the Milwaukee Bucks on Wednesday night. Chris Bosh notched 32 points and 11 rebounds and T.J. Ford added 14 points and 7 assists for the Raptors, who shot 54% from the floor and scored 24 points off Milwaukee miscues. Charlie Villanueva led with 38 points and 12 rebounds and Bobby Simmons contributed 11 points and 6 boards off the bench for the Bucks, who hit just 42% of their shots and attempted nine fewer free throws than Toronto. The Raptors will face the Nets on Friday night as they look to move up in the Eastern Conference.
Game FIC Scores
Chris Bosh, TOR ? 29.4
Charlie Villanueva, MIL ? 24.9
Anthony Parker, TOR ? 13.8
Andrew Bogut, MIL ? 12.0
The New York Knicks held off a late charge by the Charlotte Bobcats last night to record their twenty-third win of the season. Zach Randolph posted 13 points and 11 rebounds and Wilson Chandler tallied 12 points and 6 boards in a reserve role for the Knicks, who outrebounded Charlotte by seven and attempted just nine free throws. Jason Richardson led with 25 points and 10 rebounds and Raymond Felton tallied 24 points, 8 assists and 6 boards for the Bobcats, who hit 48% of their shots and used an eleven-point third quarter edge to get back in the game after a poor second half.
Game FIC Scores
Jason Richardson, CHA ? 19.5
Emeka Okafor, CHA ? 16.6
Zach Randolph, NYK ? 15.0
Wilson Chandler, NYK ? 10.1
The New Orleans Hornets used a 41-point third quarter to distance themselves from the Minnesota Timberwolves last night. Chris Paul had 19 points and 16 assists and Peja Stojakovic contributed 24 points and 5 rebounds for the Hornets, who hit 55% of their shots and scored 21 points off Minnesota turnovers. Rashad McCants led with 23 points and Al Jefferson added 14 points and 8 rebounds in the loss for the Wolves, who forced just five New Orleans turnovers and went 10-for-19 from behind the three-point line. The Hornets have a two-game lead over the Spurs, Lakers and Rockets for the top seed in the Western Conference.
Game FIC Scores
Chris Paul, NOH ? 27.4
David West, NOH ? 18.3
Randy Foye, MIN ? 10.5
Rashad McCants, MIN ? 10.3
Trailing by five after the first quarter, the Houston Rockets outscored the Seattle Supersonics by twenty-eight points over the final three quarters to notch an important win. Luis Scola had 13 points and 12 rebounds and Rafer Alston added 18 points and 5 assists for the Rockets, who shot 52% on the night and outrebounded Seattle by eight. Kevin Durant scored 26 points and Earl Watson added 16 points and 8 assists for the Sonics, who shot just 36% from the floor and received little help from their bench. The victory kept Houston?s hope of earning the first-overall seed alive, with battles against Phoenix, Denver and Utah over the next five nights.
Game FIC Scores
Luis Scola, HOU ? 19.5
Nick Collison, SEA ? 15.0
Earl Watson, SEA ? 14.5
Chuck Hayes, HOU ? 14.0
The Phoenix Suns used a very strong second half to pull away from the San Antonio Spurs last night after the two teams were deadlocked at the half. Amare Stoudemire had 21 points and Shaquille O?Neal contributed 16 points and 9 rebounds for the Suns, who shot 51% from the field and outrebounded San Antonio by four. Tim Duncan led with Spurs with 23 points and 10 rebounds, while Tony Parker notched 20 points and 4 assists in the loss. Both teams locked up playoff berths last week, but can move up in the very tight West over the final week of the season.
Game FIC Scores
Steve Nash, PHX ? 16.5
Amare Stoudemire, PHX ? 13.6
Tim Duncan, SAS ? 9.8
Tony Parker, SAS ? 8.6
? RealGM calculates the Floor Impact Counter using the following formula: (Points + .75 Defensive Rebounds + Offensive Rebounds + Steals + Assists + Blocks - .75 Field Goal Attempts - .375 Free Throw Attempts - Turnovers - .5 Personal Fouls)
( )'s indicate a negative FIC score.
It is also used to rank players and to determine their `Reina Value.'
Click here to view the player rankings with the Reina Value for the current season