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While Cameron Johnson appears to be back to playing at the high level he reached before missing three games with an ankle injury and Danny Green returned after missing seven games, Nassir Little’s breakout season is likely over. An MRI revealed that Little suffered a left shoulder labral tear late in Tuesday’s loss to Minnesota. Portland didn’t announce a timetable for his return, but a team source told The Oregonian that Little would be out for the season.
When coaches go through the final seasons of their careers, it often becomes a retirement tour with gifts handed out at each stop. That won’t happen on Feb. 5 when Duke’s Mike Krzyzewski coaches his final game at the Smith Center.
The only people who like 9 o’clock starts are television partners, so whenever one of those games gets moved earlier, it’s a good day. Thursday is a good day.
Harrison Barnes and Cole Anthony both played well on Wednesday night but, as with many nights with their struggling teams, the efforts came in defeats. One night after scoring four points in one of his worst games of the season, Barnes rebounded with 28 points in the Kings’ 121–104 loss at Atlanta for their fifth consecutive defeat and 10th in a row on the road.
Finding North Carolina’s Wednesday home game against Boston College on television may be a challenge for some fans. Although you might see it listed as an ESPN3 offering, it will be blacked out in all areas, including North Carolina, where the game is offered on a regional sports network.
Nassir Little keeps battling injuries but they don’t seem to be slowing him down. He was dealing with a right knee contusion coming into Tuesday’s 109–107 home loss to Minnesota and sprained his left shoulder, appearing to be in a lot of pain, with eight minutes left. Little, who returned briefly in the final minute of the game, finished with 20 points, four 3-pointers, eight rebounds and two assists after scoring 19 points at Portland in his previous game.
After struggling to find a rhythm in his first three games after returning from a sprained left ankle, Cameron Johnson found it big-time on Monday night, just when the Phoenix Suns need it. In his first start since Jan. 6, Johnson scored 20 points and tied career-highs with five 3-pointers and three steals as the short-handed Suns earned a big 115–109 home victory over the Utah Jazz for their seventh consecutive victory.
CHAPEL HILL — Armando Bacot said last week that he was desperate to turn Carolina’s season around.After a demoralizing loss at Wake Forest, he took it upon himself to get things started right for the Tar Heels on Monday night in their 78–68 victory over Virginia Tech.
In a battle of the previous two starting Carolina point guards, Cole Anthony won the game but Coby White had better statistics. Anthony collected 11 points and five assists as Orlando snapped a four-game losing streak with a 114–95 home victory over the short-handed Chicago Bulls. It was the Magic’s first win in three tries against Chicago this season but Anthony didn’t play in the earlier Bulls wins on Nov. 26 and Jan. 3.
Centers Garrison Brooks, Walker Miller and Walker Kessler all scored in double figures in league victories over the weekend and Brandon Huffman just missed a double-double in a victory. Kessler collected 19 points, seven rebounds and two blocks as No. 2 Auburn topped No. 12 Kentucky 80–71 Saturday at home and made the case to be ranked No. 1.
Thanks to Harrison Barnes, the Sacramento Kings had a shot at pulling the road upset of reigning NBA champion Milwaukee Bucks on Saturday night. Barnes had his second-best game of the season with 29 points, six rebounds and three assists but it all wasn’t enough as the Kings lost 133–127 for their third consecutive defeat.
WINSTON-SALEM — In a season-long struggle to figure out how to play better defense, Carolina found no answers Saturday night. Wake Forest (16–4, 6–3 ACC) took advantage of careless turnovers, ran in transition with ease and shot well as the Demon Deacons overwhelmed UNC 98–76 at Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum, leading the fans to storm the court.
After getting off to the best start in program history at 10–2, Coach King Rice’s Monmouth team has hit a rough stretch but showed signs Tuesday night of rebounding. The Hawks (10–6, 2–3 MAAC) went on a COVID-19 pause after a loss to Hofstra on Dec. 22 and didn’t play again until last Friday. Two losses this week extended Monmouth’s losing streak to four, but an 86–85 overtime home loss to Iona on Tuesday was encouraging.
With news suggesting that Coby White may continue to start for Chicago for a while, he played well again and helped the short-handed Bulls snap a four-game losing streak. White scored 16 points and tied his career-high with four steals as Chicago took a 117–104 victory Wednesday over the Cleveland Cavaliers. He pulled down four rebounds and dished out three assists.
Rasheed Wallace joined the Memphis staff of head coach Penny Hardaway in the offseason but now is in “a consultant’s role,” Hardaway said on Wednesday. Hardaway said that Wallace is “still a coach,” but that his absence is a mutual decision based on “health and safety” concerns, according to The Commercial Appeal in Memphis.
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