With less than 20 games left in the regular season, the NBA playoff race is heating up, just like Kyrie Irving, who dropped a career-high 57 points at San Antonio Thursday night:
Kyrie Irving, Cleveland Cavaliers: After scoring 50 points in his first three games of the week, Irving put on one of the most spectacular regular season shows in NBA history Thursday night in San Antonio, scoring 57 points on 20-of-32 shooting to will his team to a 128-125 win in an instant classic. The dynamic point guard went 7-of-7 from 3-point range, 10-of-10 from the free throw line and scored nine points in the final minute of regulation to help his team overcome a six-point deficit. He also hit a buzzer-beating 3-pointer at the end of regulation over two defenders, one of many incredible highlights he racked up during the historic performance.
Irving became the fourth player in the last 30 years—joining Kobe Bryant, Michael Jordan and Tom Chambers—with multiple games of 55 or more points in a season, backing up his 55-point effort from Jan. 27. He also broke Cleveland's single-game scoring record and scored the most points against a Gregg Popovich-led team. Considering Irving turns 23 March 23, the future looks bright for the second-seeded Cavaliers.
J.J. Redick, Los Angeles Clippers: Irving wasn't the only former Duke standout on fire this week, as Redick averaged 23.0 points per game in three contests this week on 53.3 percent shooting. The 6-foot-4 sharpshooter knocked down eight triples in the games and also grabbed 11 rebounds and had nine assists in the three games, in which the Clippers went 2-1. Redick had 26 points and five rebounds against Minnesota Monday and had 25 points, seven assists and five rebounds in Los Angeles' big win at Oklahoma City Wednesday.
Rodney Hood, Utah Jazz: Hood is closing his rookie campaign strong after battling a foot injury for much of the season and made another start Thursday. The southpaw scored 17 points against the Knicks Tuesday and backed up the effort in the starting lineup against the Rockets Thursday, when he scored 20 points on 8-of-16 shooting. Hood's resurgence has coincided with one of Utah's best stretches of the season—the Jazz have won four games in a row.
Luol Deng, Miami Heat: Listed as day-to-day due to a number of ailments, Deng missed two games last weekend as he nears the end of his 11th season. The small forward returned to play contests against Boston and Brooklyn Monday and Wednesday, but scored just 21 points combined on 6-of-19 shooting in the two games. The Heat are clinging to the eighth and final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference, but have a tough road ahead if Deng continues to struggle with Chris Bosh out for the season.
Mason Plumlee, Brooklyn Nets: The wheels are coming off the wagon in Brooklyn, as the Nets have dropped five straight games and are now 3.5 games behind Miami in the race for the final playoff spot. Plumlee's minutes and production have both taken a huge hit during the slide, with the big man only scoring 16 points in four games this week and failing to log more than 17 minutes in any of the contests. After averaging more than 12 points and eight rebounds per game in December and January, Plumlee has seen seen his minutes drop with Brook Lopez's return and the results have also not been good for his team.
Austin Rivers, Los Angeles Clippers: Rivers had another strong week, scoring 41 points in three games, including a 22-point effort against Golden State Sunday on 8-of-14 shooting. The 6-foot-4 guard has found a nice niche playing for his father on a playoff team and has taken on more of a role with Jamal Crawford banged up. Rivers will look to continue providing a spark off the bench as his first postseason action draws nearer.
Gerald Henderson, Charlotte Hornets: The Hornets are only 0.5 games back of the Heat for the No. 8 seed in the Eastern Conference and Henderson is doing everything he can to get them back to the playoffs. The shooting guard scored in double figures in three of the team's four games this week, including a 17-point, 11-assists, six-rebound performance Wednesday against Sacramento. Henderson will look to continue his strong play, as the 6-foot-5 guard has scored 10 or more points in eight of his last nine games.
Seth Curry, Phoenix Suns: Curry made another jump into the NBA on a 10-day contract this week, getting signed by the Suns after a strong campaign with the Erie BayHawks of the D-League. The 6-foot-1 guard ranked second in the D-League in points per game and free-throw shooting percentage and led the league in 3-point shooting percentage, averaging 23.5 points per game on 48 percent shooting from the field, 48.2 percent from distance and 91.9 percent from the charity stripe. Curry played for the Suns in the Summer League and will look to earn another 10-day contract by competing on his new team.
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