With the playoffs starting April 18, the race for final postseason berths and seeding is heating up:
Kyrie Irving, Cleveland Cavaliers: Irving has raised his level of play lately, averaging 22.0 points per game in Cleveland's last five contests. The Cavaliers are 4-1 in that stretch, including a 114-88 drubbing of Miami Thursday in which Irving had 23 points, five assists and four steals. Cleveland has a 3.5-game lead for the No. 2 seed in the Eastern Conference with only six games remaining, so it looks like Irving will be gearing up for a long playoff run unless something unexpected happens in the early rounds.
J.J. Redick, Los Angeles Clippers: Redick has been on fire late in the season, scoring 17 or more points in five of his last six games, including a 27-point performance Sunday against Boston on 11-of-15 shooting and a 25-point effort Wednesday in a win against Portland. The sharpshooter made five 3-pointers in both games. Redick is enjoying a career year, averaging 16.2 points per game and shooting 43.4 percent from 3-point range. The 6-foot-4 guard will look to continue making defenses pay from the perimeter in the playoffs as the Clippers look to make a deep run, currently in the No. 5 spot in the Western Conference.
Luol Deng, Miami Heat: Deng has been battling knee soreness lately and missed Tuesday's game against the Spurs after seeing his previous contest against Detroit Sunday cut short. The small forward returned for Thursday's game against the Cavaliers and scored 17 points and had eight rebounds, but Miami was still blown out. Deng has scored in double figures in four of the team's last six games despite the knee soreness, but the Heat are just 2-4 during that stretch as they continue to battle Boston for the eighth and final playoff spot in the East.
Gerald Henderson, Charlotte Hornets: Henderson has raised his game late in the season as the Hornets battle for their playoff lives, averaging 17.0 points and 5.6 rebounds per contest in his last five games. But his teammates have not fared as well and Charlotte is only 2-3 in the stretch and sits 1.5 games behind Boston and Miami—the two teams tied for the final playoff spot in the East with the Heat holding the tiebreaker—needing to make a move late in the season.
Mason Plumlee, Brooklyn Nets: Plumlee is still coming off the bench for the Nets, but Brooklyn looks to be peaking at the right time. The Nets have won five games in a row, with Plumlee still playing 12-24 minutes per contest and not scoring more than seven points. Brooklyn is now 34-40 and in the No. 7 spot in the Eastern Conference, 0.5 games ahead of Miami and Boston in the battle for the final two playoff spots. If the Nets continue surging, Plumlee will get a chance to make an impact in the playoffs off the bench.
Mike Dunleavy, Jr., Chicago Bulls: After failing to score in double figures in three consecutive games, Dunleavy has scored 10 or more points in his last two games. The sharpshooter will look to keep breaking out of his slump as playoff time rolls around with the Bulls needing all of the offense they can get with Derrick Rose still out. But with Taj Gibson and Jimmy Butler now back, Chicago has a chance to make a deep postseason run and Dunleavy's outside shooting could be an x-factor for the team.
Austin Rivers, Los Angeles Clippers: Rivers exploded for 21 points on 9-of-10 shooting against the Knicks last Wednesday and combining for 20 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists in his next two games, the streaky guard has cooled off in his latest two performances. Rivers combined for just 10 points and struggled to make an impact in the contests and will look to get back on track off the bench for his father's team.
Kyle Singler, Oklahoma City Thunder: Singler has struggled on his new team and still has yet to score in double figures despite seeing 15-25 minutes per game most nights with Kevin Durant out for the season due to his foot injury. The swingman will look to get comfortable and help the Thunder retain the No. 8 spot in the Western Conference in the coming weeks, with a chance to make an impact on a playoff team for the first time in his young career.
Rodney Hood, Utah Jazz: After finally overcoming a foot injury to have several nice games off the bench for the Jazz, Hood is back to battling health concerns and has missed two consecutive games with a concussion. The southpaw took an elbow to the head in Monday's game against Minnesota and will look to get healthy again so he can build momentum entering his second season with the team next year.
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