BBNBA: Bam Adebayo, Devin Booker lead first-place teams to victory

Happy Tuesday afternoon, BBN! With just over a week until the NBA All-Star break, teams are making their midseason pushes — and many of them are led by former Wildcats. Let’s see who.

Booker and Suns bring the heat to Chicago

Devin Booker has once again led the Phoenix Suns to an impressive win. This one came Monday night over the Chicago Bulls, where the Suns closed out a close 127-124 win over Chicago, the No. 2 team in the East.

Booker ended with 38 points, four rebounds and five assists. It was his third 30+ point game over his last five, where he is averaging 28.8. He was recently named an NBA All-Star for the third time, where he will serve as a reserve alongside teammate Chris Paul. Not everyone is happy for him, though.

Devin Booker’s lucky United Center security was able to hold Benny the Bull back pic.twitter.com/mSwEMfUX30

— Barstool Chicago (@barstoolchicago) February 8, 2022

The other four Suns starters scored in the double digits as well. Paul had 19 along with 11 assists. Jae Crowder posted a double-double as well, ending with 10 points, 10 rebounds and six assists. Javale McGee added 16 points and eight rebounds off the bench.

The Suns led 102-83 to start the fourth quarter, but Chicago managed an impressive comeback to pull within five with just under half a minute remaining. Unfortunately for them, it was too late. DeMar DeRozan scored 38 points in the effort, followed by 32 from Zach LaVine. Nikola Vucevic had 13 points and 12 rebounds.

Adebayo and Heat stay atop East with win over Wizards

The Miami Heat are just that — hot. They are sitting at No. 1 in the Eastern Conference right now with a two-game lead over the Bulls thanks to a 121-100 over the Wizards win in D.C. last night. It was Miami’s third straight win.

Former ‘Cat Bam Adebayo scored 21 points for Miami, along with seven rebounds and four assists. 14 of Adebayo’s 21 came in the third quarter. Jimmy Butler scored 19. Gabe Vincent and Caleb Martin came off the bench to add 16 and 15, respectively. Tyler Herro was out with right knee soreness.

Third quarter belongs to Bam 🔨 pic.twitter.com/Cei91La1yO

— Miami HEAT (@MiamiHEAT) February 8, 2022

Washington’s Corey Kispert tied his career-high with 20 points in the contest. Aaron Holiday and Montrezl Harrell had 14 and 13, respectively. It was the long ball that proved troublesome for the Wizards, though. They made just seven of their 31 3-point attempts, as opposed to Miami’s 18 of 32 clip from beyond the arc.

Hornets drop fifth straight game

After showing some promise earlier in the season, the Charlotte Hornets have found themselves in a mid-season rut. Last night, the Hornets lost their fifth straight game to Toronto, falling 116-101 at home.

All five of Toronto’s starters scored in the double digits, led by Gary Trent Jr. and Pascal Siakam with 24 each. Siakam had 11 rebounds and eight assists as well. Fred VanVleet and OG Anunoby had 20 each while Scottie Barnes added 15.

🚨 OG OH MY 🚨 pic.twitter.com/NoJYzjzqQh

— Toronto Raptors (@Raptors) February 8, 2022

Miles Bridges led the Charlotte effort with 25 points, along with six rebounds, five assists and three steals. Former Louisville Cardinal Terry Rozier added 20 of his own. LaMelo Ball and P.J. Washington Jr. each had 15. Ball, who averages 19.6 points per game on the season, was named an injury replacement for Kevin Durant in this year’s NBA All-Star game earlier today.

Hornets starter Gordon Hayward was injured just minutes into the game after he fell awkwardly over Gary Trent Jr. while battling for a rebound. Hayward, who was benched for a large chunk of last season with various injuries, is averaging 16.4 points this year.

Full stats from last night’s games:

Player	Result	Points	FG (3PA)	Rebounds	Assists	Steals	Blocks	Turnovers	Minutes	+/-
Devin Booker (PHX)	127-124 W over Bulls	38	14-23 (5-10)	4	5	1	0	1	38	+7
Julius Randle (NYK)	113-104 L to Jazz	30	10-20 (2-5)	6	5	1	0	5	38	-3
Bam Adebayo (MIA)	121-100 W over Wizards	21	7-11	7	4	1	0	3	24	+10
P.J. Washington Jr. (CHA)	116-101 L to Raptors	15	7-14 (1-6)	9	2	1	1	0	32	-5
Immanuel Quickley (NYK)	113-104 L to Jazz	5	2-9 (1-5)	5	4	0	0	3	24	-20
Nerlens Noel (NYK)	113-104 L to Jazz	0	0-1	3	0	1	0	1	12	-16

Today in the NBA:

7:00 p.m. – Suns (Booker) at 76ers (Maxey)

7:30 p.m. – Pacers (Jackson) at Hawks

7:30 p.m. (TNT) – Celtics (Freedom) at Nets

8:00 p.m. – Clippers (Bledsoe, Boston) at Grizzlies

8:00 p.m. – Rockets (Wall) at Pelicans

8:30 p.m. – Pistons (Diallo, Lyles) at Mavericks

9:00 p.m. – Knicks (Quickley, Noel, Randle) at Nuggets (Murray)

10:00 p.m. (TNT) – Bucks at Lakers (Monk)

10:00 p.m. – Timberwolves (Towns, Vanderbilt) at Kings (Fox)