Mike Conley had a season-high 26 points, seven assists, five steals and three rebounds as the Grizzlies knocked off the New Orleans Hornets. Conley has found his stroke and is suddenly playing with extreme confidence on the offensive end. Over his last four games, he’s averaging 17.5 points on 60 percent shooting. Consider this a simple hot streak as we don’t think Conley’s offensive game has turned the corner yet.

Elsewhere around the NBA:

Sacramento: Tyreke Evans went 4-for-22 from the field on Wednesday night, but the Sacramento Kings won in Houston anyway. Evans field goal percentage coming into this game stood at a surprising 46.6 percent as he defies critics of his jumper. Consider tonight a mere blip on the road during his ROY campaign.

Sacramento: Beno Udrih started on Wednesday and had 13 points, four rebounds, three assists and a trey in 37 minutes of action Wednesday night. This was Udrih’s fourth straight start as coach Paul Westphal has been true to his word about sticking with Beno. Considering the Kings shockingly won this game in Houston, Beno’s leash just got a lot longer.

Minnesota: Corey Brewer had 24 points, seven boards, four assists, two steals and two 3-pointers in Wednesday’s close loss to the Mavericks. He’d scored 10 or less points in his previous four games, and like most of his teammates on the Wolves, is simply unreliable playing under Kurt Rambis.

Minnesota: Darko Milicic started at center for the Minnesota Timberwolves on Wednesday, but only played 14 minutes. He had six points, two boards and zero blocks, and this is why we stopped trusting Darko long ago. No matter how good things are looking for him, he rarely answers the call.

Charlotte: Emeka Okafor struggled with foul trouble and ineffectiveness on Wednesday night en route to just 10 points, one rebound and one block.

Boston: Nate Robinson hit 5-of-8 shots and four more 3-pointers for 16 points, four rebounds and three assists in an easy win over the Charlotte Bobcats. Robinson posted an eerily similar line in Tuesday’s win over the Pistons, but the only problem is the minutes. He played 20 or less in both games and things are not going to be so pretty on nights when his long ball isn’t falling.

Shaquille O’Neal left Thursday’s game against the Boston Celtics during the second quarter after taking a hard foul, has suffered a “significant right thumb sprain” according to TNT’s David Aldridge, and will not return to the game. Shaq’s short-term future doesn’t look bright, and Anderson Varejao and J.J. Hickson are worth a look if Shaq is out. Varejao has better size for the position, and projects to be a more consistent option than Hickson, who will provide more upside and scoring possibilities. Both will struggle with foul trouble.

Elsewhere around the NBA:

Boston: Coach Doc Rivers said Thursday that Paul Pierce’s thumb is not healthy enough to sustain contact during a game, and that he could miss “a couple of games of for sure.” “We just want to get him to the stage where if someone hits it he can sustain the hit, and right now if someone hit it it would go right back to where it was at,” said Rivers.

Oakland: C.J. Watson will miss Thursday’s game due to the flu and a possible appendicitis according to team officials. The Golden State Warriors are decimated by injuries, which means that Monta Ellis and Stephen Curry are strong candidates to play close to a full game, and Anthony Morrow and Anthony Tolliver will get more touches.

Utah: Andrei Kirilenko made it through Thursday’s practice and is expected to play Friday against the Sacramento Kings.

Sacramento: With Jason Thompson out for up to two weeks with a back injury, Kings beat writer Ailene Voisin reported that Spencer Hawes worked with the first team during the portion of Thursday’s practice that was made available to the media. His status for Friday’s game against the Jazz is still unknown, although beat writer Sam Amick said he would be surprised if he didn’t suit up.

Sacramento: Jason Thompson will miss up to two weeks with two non-displaced transverse processes fractures in his lower back, which were confirmed by X-rays taken Thursday.

Chicago: Joakim Noah missed Thursday’s practice due to a prescheduled doctor’s appointment about his plantar fasciitis.” No worries,” Noah said. “I’m just trying to get back as much as I can and help this team. I’m hurting, obviously, but it’s the end of the season right now and I want to be there for my team and I want to be as ready as possible come playoff time.”

Kobe Bryant returned to action after a five-game layoff due to an ankle injury on Tuesday, and quickly resumed being the deadliest closer in the league by scoring the Lakers’ last nine points including a 30-foot game-winning 3-pointer. He finished with 32 points on 13-of-19 shooting (including three 3-pointers), seven rebounds, six assists, three steals, and two blocks in 40 minutes of run. With 18 days of rest under his belt, he’s rested, and may be as dangerous as anybody not named LeBron for the rest of the year.

Elsewhere around the NBA:

Sacramento: Sacramento Kings’ big man Spencer Hawes was inactive for Tuesday’s game. Head Coach Paul Westphal said he is helping Hawes to learn his “role.” This takes being in a coach’s doghouse to another level, as Westphal seems intent on breaking his young pup of a center.

Sacramento: The Kings have waived Larry Hughes, a source tells Adrian Wojnarkowski of Yahoo! Sports.
Hughes was only part of the Tracy McGrady deal to make the salaries work. He was never going to play for the Kings. Hughes can still give a little ball handing and scoring off the bench for a contender.

Miami: Miami Heat swingman Dorell Wright scored a season-high 26 points on 9-of-11 shooting off the bench on Tuesday, including 6-of-7 shooting from downtown. He also had seven rebounds, two steals and three blocks in 30 minutes. It’s important to remember that Dwyane Wade was sidelined, boosting Wright’s playing time well above his 19 minutes average.

Charlotte: Hornets backup guard Marcus Thornton unleashed a career-high 37 points on 15-of-22 shooting vs. the Cavaliers on Tuesday, adding three 3-pointers, two assists and two steals in 31 minutes.

Thornton scored a franchise-record 23 points in the second quarter alone, but didn’t start the second half despite his out-of-body experience. He lost his starting gig to veteran Morris Peterson (two points in 21 minutes) when he got injured a few weeks ago, but may have taken it back tonight.

Portland: Nicolas Batum has taken over for Martell Webster as the Portland Trail Blazers starting small forward. It’s a changing of the guard for the Blazers. Batum has been shooting it well enough lately to not be a liability on offense, and we know what he does defensively.

After a solid showing in Sunday’s game, coach Mike Brown told reporters after the game that Antawn Jamison will probably be a starter for the Cleveland Cavaliers at some point. “At the end of the day, he’s probably going to be a starter for us, he’s a starter in this league,” Brown said. “I’ve just got to figure things out and we’re in the process of doing that right now.” It sounds like he’ll be a starter very soon, and the doomsday scenario for him appears to be averted.

Elsewhere around the NBA:

Sacramento: Carl Landry had the best game of his short Sacramento Kings career on Sunday, scoring 18 points on 6-of-15 shooting with seven rebounds, two assists, two steals, and one block in 37 minutes.

Oklahoma City: Russell Westbrook triple-doubled in Sunday’s 109-107 win over the Wolves, scoring 22 points on 9-of-19 shooting with 10 rebounds, 14 assists, and two steals. Wow. The Russell Westbrook Experience continues to reach new heights, Jeff Green had a meaty 17-point, 14-rebound double-double, and Kevin Durant had his 28th straight game scoring more than 25 points.

Detroit: Richard Hamilton continued his tear against the San Antonio Spurs on Sunday, scoring 27 points on 9-of-19 shooting (9-of-9 from the foul line) with five rebounds and three assists. He has now hit 46 straight free throws, but even more impressive are the scoring totals of 36 and 29 points in the two games entering tonight.

Boston: Reporter A. Sherrod Blakely who covers the Boston Celtics for Comcast, calls the thumb injury Paul Pierce suffered Thursday against the Lakers “a problem,” and adds that he’s “definitely questionable” for Tuesday’s game against the Knicks. This injury has flown under the radar, but judging by his recent play it makes sense.

Minnesota: Darko Milicic debuted as a member of the Wolves on Sunday, and surprised everyone with eight points on 4-of-7 shooting with eight rebounds, two assists, and a block in 19 minutes off the bench.

Minnesota: Kevin Love posted a solid double-double against the Thunder on Sunday, scoring 19 points on 7-of-13 shooting (including a three) with 14 rebounds, three assists, a steal, and a block in 31 minutes off the bench. Love, to some degree, has been in coach Kurt Rambis’ doghouse, and has come off the bench and gotten less than starter’s minutes.

Lakers G Kobe Bryant tied his season-high with 44 points on Monday (making 16-of-28 FGs, 4-of-7 threes, and 8-of-13 FTs) and in the process he passed Jerry West as the all-time leading scorer in Lakers’ history. Kobe now has 25,208 points for his career, incredible by any standard. His competitive fire continues to elevate his game even when nagging injuries (ankle, finger, elbow) are conspiring to bring him down. Bryant has proven himself to be one of the best players in NBA history.

Elsewhere around the NBA:

Washington: Antawn Jamison was bothered by a sore left knee during warmups on Monday, but played 40 minutes but shot just 2-of-17 from the field. Jamison was frustrated all night and thought he deserved more foul calls than the referees gave him.

Utah: As expected, Paul Millsap exploded for 25 points, nine rebounds and four blocks on Monday, while starting in place of injured Carlos Boozer (calf). There’s a reason money-conscious Utah Jazz lavished a four-year, $32+ million contract on Millsap this summer. Boozer could return this week but coach Jerry Sloan has already said he’ll find more minutes for Millsap in the rotation.

Dallas: Josh Howard played a season-low 11 minutes off the Mavericks bench on Monday, contributing just two points, three rebounds, two turnovers and three personal fouls.

Charlotte: Hornets rookie Marcus Thornton got hot in the second half on Monday, finishing with a team-high 25 points on 10-of-21 shooting (including 5-of-9 from downtown). He added four rebounds, four assists and one steal in 39 minutes. Chris Paul is sidelined indefinitely with a knee injury that likely will require surgery, which means Thornton will earn minutes at backup point guard.

Charlotte: Charlotte Hornets rookie Darren Collison racked up 16 points, four rebounds, 14 assists, one steal and four turnovers in another start for injured Chris Paul (knee) on Monday.

Sacramento: Kings center Spencer Hawes scored 23 points on Monday, making 10-of-18 FGs with seven rebounds, three assists and one block in 40 minutes of action. As the saying goes, “What goes up must come down.” He had played sub-20 minutes in four of the past seven games, and his erratic role changes depending upon matchups.

Denver: Kenyon Martin’s uncanny streak of double-doubles continued on Monday — he posted 24 points on 10-of-15 shooting, 12 rebounds, three assists, one steal and two blocks in a win over the Sacramento Kings. Kenyon looks spry and rejuvenated lately, and this is the healthiest he’s been since missing just five games in 2002-03.