In the penultimate week of the NBA's regular season, several former Blue Devils are finishing their years strong or setting their teams up for deep playoff runs.
Jabari Parker, Milwaukee Bucks
Parker has hit his stride just as the regular season winds down, putting together three consecutive 40-plus minute performances in games against the Orlando Magic, Chicago Bulls and Cleveland Cavaliers this week. Parker led all scorers with 26 points April 1 in the Bucks’ 113-110 win against the Magic, shooting 12-of-14 from the field and converting a tie-breaking layup with 11 seconds remaining. The former Blue Devil followed it up with a team-high 11 rebounds against the Bulls Sunday to go along with 24 points. Although Parker faltered at the end of his week—shooting 36.8 percent and grabbing just two rebounds in a blowout loss Tuesday against the Cavaliers—he has four games left to continue improving in his sophomore season for a Bucks team that is out of playoff contention.
Justise Winslow, Miami Heat
The Heat won three of four games during the week, dropping a road contest to the Portland Trail Blazers before returning home to beat the Detroit Pistons and the Chicago Bulls. Winslow played at least 29 minutes in all four games but continued to be inconsistent offensively, and the rookie shot just 4-of-21 across the last three games of the week. Winslow did manage 12 points on the road against Sacramento April 1, but made most of his contributions on the boards for the rest of the team’s contests, totaling 20 rebounds during the four-game stretch.
Rodney Hood, Utah Jazz
Hood continued his upward trend this week for a Jazz squad clinging to the eighth and final playoff spot in the Western Conference, tallying 17 points on 7-of-10 shooting last Friday against the Timberwolves before sinking six 3-pointers in a win against Phoenix Sunday. The former Duke guard finished the week on a personal high despite a team low, pouring in 23 points in a close home loss to the San Antonio Spurs to bring his scoring average in April up to 19.3 points per game. Hood led the team in assists in the final two contests of the week and tied his season high with seven helpers in Sunday’s win.
Kyrie Irving, Cleveland Cavaliers
Irving shot just 5-of-23 last Friday against the Atlanta Hawks, but still dished out seven assists and got to the free throw line enough to reach 20 points in a 110-108 overtime win. The dynamic point guard sat out Sunday's win against the Charlotte Hornets as the Cavaliers have already nearly locked up the top seed in the Eastern Conference, but returned to the floor for the last two games of the week and scored 26 points on 11-of-18 shooting in a loss against the Indiana Pacers Wednesday night.
J.J. Redick, Los Angeles Clippers
Redick corrected some of his errors from beyond the arc in his three games this week, draining six triples and shooting better than 40 percent in two of the three outings. The shooting guard contributed 24 points combined in two wins against the Los Angeles Lakers to close out the week. Redick tied for a team-high 15 points in Wednesday’s 91-81 win against the Clippers' crosstown rivals in a poor offensive outing for both teams—Kobe Bryant’s 17 points were a game high, and both teams shot worse than 30 percent from 3-point range. Redick may have bounced back from last week, but he is still in a considerable slump compared to his numbers from early March.
Mason Plumlee, Portland Trail Blazers
The Trail Blazers won three of four games, losing 136-111 to the Golden State Warriors Sunday after beating the Heat the day before. Plumlee has upped his contributions of late, shooting 8-of-10 against Miami en route to a 17-point performance, his highest output since he scored 19 points Jan. 6. After the loss to the Warriors, Portland responded with back-to-back wins against the Kings and Oklahoma City Thunder, with Plumlee adding 22 points, 15 rebounds and 10 assists total across the two games. The Trail Blazers—at 43-37—clinched a playoff berth in Thursday's win against the Thunder and have a chance to finish as high as fifth place in the Western Conference with two regular-season games remaining.
Seth Curry, Sacramento Kings
Stephen Curry garners much of the attention in today's NBA as his Warriors chase the single-season wins record, but the reigning MVP's younger brother quietly put together the most consistent week of his young career. Seth Curry shot 11-of-19 from beyond the arc in the Kings' four games this week and has now scored in double figures in seven of his last eight games after previously having just two career double-digit scoring games. The 6-foot-2 shooting guard matched his career-high with 21 points last Friday against the Heat before setting new career-highs with five assists Saturday against the Denver Nuggets and six rebounds Tuesday against the Trail Blazers.
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