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Didn't see the majority of this game, followed at times on ESPN (was away and watched the final 4 game), but please, please, tell me what Bazemore brings. Really. He came in and even before that foul at the end, the Bulls started scoring very easily on offense. If he doesn't come in and stay in, I would like to bet that it wouldn't have been as easy offensively. That's pretty much going to do it if Cleveland decides they're going full strength. The Hawks are in legit, legit danger of dropping out of the playoffs, the only game that should be a gimme that is left is Brooklyn.

We're on a collision course to my worst case scenario possible or second worst case scenario possible.

All I'm saying is it takes two to tango. Dwight sometimes doesn't roll hard on PNR, when he does he's often played tight to prevent a lob and as a result, the guard has to score or kick it out because there isn't room for cuts to the basket when Dwight rolls. And with the former above^^, you often see missed lobs from everyone, not just the PG. It's the guards (sometimes SFs) silently crying "Roll hard to the rim!" I'm going to get hate for saying so, but the offense looks how it should when Millsap is the PNR roll man. Because today it has to be more than just an occasional roll guy from the big. Utah has shown that you don't necessarily need passing big men on floor, but even so, your non passing big has to be a very willing active big on the PNR instead of just stand there at times. But Millsap is versatile and Dwight is not. Millsap will roll, hit jumpers, and pass as the roll man.

Transition D is on more than just the wings....

This isn't putrid Philadelphia like the last couple of seasons, even without uber prospect (if he is able to stay healthy) Embiid. You can make a good argument that they're quite a bit better than Brooklyn and Atlanta recently finished a blowout loss vs Brooklyn, so... I am not saying that they are a good team though, they're bad and the Suns game was inexcusably bad and is a loss vs the rest of the league. The Wizards and Bucks games were mainly about young guards not knowing how to close a game well, alone. They may have been losses, but they were much better games than the last two. They were bad games. Rock bottom type games for three straight.

The Cavs have issues all over the place and it may not matter in the East. If there's a team that beats them, it's going to have me being proven wrong (The Wizards, unless they blow it up, are not going to beat the Cavs in a playoff series--me in 2015). It doesn't look like a typical LeBron team that I've talked about. I think all you need is to have your focus so you don't turn the ball over too much and to execute what you need to do offensively, which is to involve Irving and Love in PNR. Doing that is a bucket.

Dennis would be much better if he got to play with a versatile PNR big man, and he did some with Millsap but now he's gone. His only strength in actual BASKETBALL is the PNR and he needs versatility to be good in it, not just a lob catcher. Wait a minute, some of y'all are as bad as AJC with Dwight. I'm not an Al lover but Dwight is badly, badly overrated. He and the team would not be world's better if Jeff were here, it'd be a win here and a win there but not worldly different.

Against Robin Lopez, it will return to normal. Dwight will struggle on the block unless he's well into the paint and his activity level on the PNR will waver. The fact that you see a lot of missed lobs has two sides to the factor, not just the side of the guards, but the side of Dwight won't always roll hard. If it's not a blowout, like one of the Chicago games, Dwight will just see the ball twice to three times on the block and if he doesn't roll hard on PNR, his shots will return to under 10, even with Millsap gone.

Believe it or not, but Richaun Holmes being 6'8" had a factor into Dwight being more active. Dwight getting more shots has usually NOT correlated to the Hawks playing well, NOT.

The Raptors will beat the Celtics if they see a series with them. That's most likely going to be the case even if the Hawks play well again and have Millsap return in form with the history we've seen in the playoffs for the Hawks. I hope I'm wrong.

Also: Dennis is really really bad at trying to be pass first. This is a full game of it and he has 8 turnovers. And you're OK with it? It's simply not his game.

This is one of the few teams in which Dwight Howard actually has an advantage.

I didn't think the Suns would bench Booker and even in a win it was a really bad game that gets you a loss against every other team.

If this game can't lift the weight of the young guards' shoulders and help them relax, there's a very real chance this is the only win without Millsap and it was with the Suns trying to lose. Both of them look like they're in a very bad spot, nervous, and pressing.

While Hardaway Jr has mostly been good, these games are why I'm not sure.

Tank-itis If this isn't a win, this team won't win a game without Millsap this season.

Phoenix looked at how bad the Hawks have been looking and are going to try to pull a tanking move.

Bench Prediction: Malcolm Delaney: 0-7, 2 assists, 4 turnovers, -20 +/- 13 mins Mike Dunleavy: 0-2, 1 assist, 1 turnover, -25 +/- 15 mins Mike Muscala: 1-4, 2 boards, 1 assist, 2 points, -30 in 18 mins Kris Humphries: 3-7, 6 boards, 1 assist, 7 points, -15 in 14 mins oh yea, Devin Booker gets 32 points and the Suns win by 8.

Paul Millsap and Thabo Sefolosha were overextended as they were the top two actual impactful players on the team. And now both are hurt. I almost think I want to try the idea of having more depth>having an All Star caliber player. I don't see either being back this year. And thus this team is boned depth wise. Starters will have to play 38+ and perform or it's going to be tough.

Point differential has it as the worst team in the league without Millsap by a wide margin.

No. I'm not clamoring for Horford, but the simple thing is, this is the worst team in the league without Millsap. It was lowkey but now we're seeing it, dead red.

The chance of this team getting swept a third season in a row against the Cavs in a lower round is pretty high. Seriously, this team without Millsap is bad enough to drop every single game left, I don't think it's going to happen, but this isn't going to be pretty, it's going to take an extremely hot game by one of the guards in which they say f*** it, I'm sick of this, orrrrrrrrrrr.... I think the guards play well tomorrow and we maybe see another good Prince game but the team loses anyway.

Reading in between the tea leaves, I don't think Millsap is going to be back for a while and if he returns at all this spring he's not going to be as positively impactful as he can be (The second Spurs game and second Grizzlies game are my references). I think Millsap injured his knee sometime before the second Spurs game as he weirdly was invisible most of that game.

As I suspected it wasn't knee tightness but it wasn't what I thought it was. Synovitis is inflammation in a joint and it can cause pain and stiffness in the joint. I was thinking it was something like an MCL strain.

Toronto isn't freakishly athletic, their thing is their ability to put 3 guards on the floor that can beat you off of the dribble, and that negates the advantages that Korver brings you.