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The Golden State Warriors finished off their six-game road stretch. They ended up going 3-3, which may be considered disappointing by Golden State standards. The week didn’t start off well, as they were the victims in LeBron James’ 42-point explosion. James rose the occasion and was in complete control of the Warriors. Andrew Bogut struggled to get involved, as he was limited to just 21 minutes of actoin. Bogut had six points, five rebounds, and two blocks in a disappointing game. James got into the lane far too easily on various occasions. With Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson both shooting under 40 percent from the field, Golden State was bound to fall short in a 110-99 defeat.
Golden State bounced back in a major way against Toronto on Friday. They decimated one of the best teams in the Eastern conference from a 113-89 defeat. Bogut was limited to just 19 minutes of action, as the game was essentially over at halftime from the 54-31 score. The Warriors forced them into 19 turnovers and once again displayed their outstanding ball movement. Andrew had five points and eight rebounds in a matter of three quarters. When Thompson and Curry shoot over 50 percent from the field, Golden State is practically impossible to beat. That has become a well-known fact.
The hectic schedule seems to have derailed Bogut to an extent. In just 19 minutes of action against Boston, Bogut shot one for six from the field. While having ten rebounds is a great total for him, his movement seems slower than in recent weeks. From rotating on defense to keeping up with teams that like to play in transition, the seven-foot center seems to be off pace. Andrew was on the receiving end of a highlight-reel dunk by Brandon Bass as well. That will surely be on a poster in the upcoming days. After suffering from a 16-point deficit at halftime, Golden State came back to win 106-101 in spectacular fashion.
It was expected that Bogut would receive the night off against Brooklyn. It was another back-to-back game, yet Steve Kerr chose to keep him in the starting lineup. That benefited Golden State greatly, as Bogut had one of his best games of the season. Andrew put together a stat sheet of 16 points (all in the first half), eight rebounds, and three blocks in 25 minutes of action. It was an eventful game that gave Bogut several opportunities to score inside the paint. Despite dealing with foul trouble, Curry found him open on numerous occasions. Draymond Green found him on a particular assist that led to Bogut dunking on Mason Plumlee. The battle became heated between both centers, when Plumlee irritated Bogut to the point of shoving him twice. Jarrett Jack ended up getting the last laugh against his former ball club. Brooklyn won 100-98 from Jack’s jumper with just a mere second left. A shocking defeat for what seems to be a fatigued Warriors team.
Bogut puts Plumlee on a poster
It will be another busy week ahead for the Warriors, as they hold onto first place in the daunting Western conference. A three-game home stretch begins against Milwaukee tonight. They end up playing back to back nationally televised games on the weekend. An injury plagued Dallas team comes into Golden State on Friday, then the Los Angeles Clippers on Sunday. The week ends on Monday at Phoenix, which could possibly be a game that Bogut sits out. March is usually the time, where veterans begin to sit out to stay fresh for the playoffs.
Fromrussiawithdunk.com
It has been another strange week for Bojan Bogdanovic and the Brooklyn Nets. As Bogdanovic was forced to miss games against New Orleans and Houston, both games resulted in close defeats. The ankle injury seemed to have a longer affect on him than expected. Bojan was back on the court on Saturday against Dallas and was fairly limited in 11 minutes of action. After one missed shot and three turnovers, Lionel Collins realized that it wasn’t his night. An injury ravaged Dallas team was ripe for an upset and Brooklyn took advantage of it. They out-rebounded them by a 48 to 37 margin in a 104-94 victory.
The upsets continued for Brooklyn, as they beat Golden State 100-98 in thrilling fashion on Monday. Bogdanovic remained on the bench, but received 17 minutes and made the most of it. Bojan connected on three of his four shots, which led to a seven point and three rebound effort. Lionel Hollins continues to be unpredictable with his starting lineups, as Markel Brown started at shooting guard on Monday. There is no telling on who will start on a nightly basis, yet Brooklyn continues to stay in the playoff hunt.
Brooklyn has a busy week ahead in continuing their five-game home stretch. It starts tonight against the Charlotte Hornets. Then a rare nationally televised game will happen on Friday against the Phoenix Suns. The week ends with home games against Utah on Sunday and New Orleans on Tuesday. This is a fairly good stretch for Brooklyn to put together a few wins. Home games need to be taken advantage of against mediocre teams. Besides New Orleans that is currently rattled with injuries, all of the rest of those teams are mediocre at best. Brooklyn remains a half game ahead of Indiana and Charlotte for the final playoff spot in the Eastern conference.
Brent Smith-AP Photo
The Indiana Pacers had another positive week in winning both their games. It started by taking advantage of a wounded Cleveland Cavaliers team. Without LeBron James and Kyrie Irving playing, Indiana propelled in a 93-86 victory. The win was from playing at their pace in keeping the tempo slow and holding Cleveland to 35 percent shooting. Damjan Rudez was limited to just twelve minutes of action in converting on one of his two shots from three-point range. With Cleveland play smaller, it allowed Indiana to keep play maker Rodney Stuckey in for extensive minutes.
Indiana continued their winning ways in a 94-74 victory over the lowly Philadelphia 76ers. Rudez actually received his first career start, due to C.J Miles dealing with foot soreness. The brief promotion didn’t result in anything spectacular, as Rudez played just 14 minutes and scored three points. Eventually Miles recovered from his foot issue and played his usual starter minutes. The Pacers are now at 25-34, which makes them just a half game out of the final playoff spot in the Eastern conference.
With the playoffs starting in less than two months, a significant amount of games will begin to occur for every team. Indiana is no exception in playing four games this week. It starts with two games at home starting with the lowly New York Knicks tonight. That will be followed by a showdown against the Chicago Bulls on Friday. They quickly have to travel to play the Knicks again on the following night. The week ends on Tuesday at home against the Orlando Magic.
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Justin Hamilton continues to look on from the bench. Since the trade to the New Orleans Hornets, he’s yet to see any playing time. Unless Omer Asik or Alexis Ajinca get injured, it’s safe to confirm that Hamilton won’t see any meaningful minutes anytime soon.
Twitter: @Allen_Strk
Another successful week for Porcelain doll Bogut as he avoided injury.