NBA Player News

White registered 20 points (8-16 FG, 2-7 3Pt, 2-2 FT), four rebounds, four assists, two blocks and two steals across 31 minutes during Friday's 120-100 victory over the Mavericks.

Despite Jayson Tatum (Achilles) returning to the lineup Friday, White remained a focal point of the Celtics' attack and reached the 20-point plateau for the fifth time in his last seven games. While he provided elite defensive value with two blocks and two steals, White's overall usage may see a slight dip as Tatum fully reintegrates into the offense. Regardless of White's scoring ceiling, his ability to generate defensive stats from the guard position keeps his floor high.

Fox ended Friday's 116-112 victory over the Clippers with 19 points (9-18 FG, 1-8 3Pt), two rebounds, nine assists and one steal across 30 minutes.

The 28-year-old guard just missed recording his seventh double-double of the season. Fox has gone 13 straight games without reaching double digits in dimes as his usage has taken a small step back, and he's averaging 16.2 points, 6.0 assists, 2.8 boards, 1.6 threes and 1.2 steals during that time despite shooting 50.0 percent from the floor.

Champagnie closed Friday's 116-112 win over the Clippers with 20 points (6-10 FG, 5-8 3Pt, 3-5 FT), nine rebounds and one assist in 29 minutes.

The Spurs were down by 25 points early in the third quarter, but Champagnie was one the players who stepped up down the stretch to erase the deficit. The fourth-year forward has scored in double digits in six of his last seven games, averaging 14.6 points, 5.9 boards, 3.6 threes, 1.9 assists and 1.6 combined steals and blocks during that span while shooting 52.3 percent from the floor and a sizzling 54.3 percent (25-for-46) from beyond the arc.

Lopez amassed 26 points (11-19 FG, 4-8 3Pt), six rebounds, two assists and four steals across 34 minutes during Friday's 116-112 loss to San Antonio.

The 26 points represented Lopez's best scoring effort since Dec. 26, when he poured in 31 against the Trail Blazers, while the four steals tied his season high. The veteran center is still searching for some consistency since moving into the starting five in early February, but over the last 12 games Lopez is averaging 12.4 points, 5.0 boards, 1.8 assists, 1.7 threes, 1.3 steals and 1.0 blocks.

Jones (coach's decision) went unused off the bench in Friday's 128-117 loss to the Lakers.

After averaging 26.5 minutes per game while appearing in 11 straight games and making six starts from Feb. 3 through this past Sunday, Jones has now been removed from head coach Rick Carlisle's rotation entirely for the past two contests. The rookie's drop in playing time has coincided with the return of Aaron Nesmith (ankle), who has settled back into a starting role on the wing while playing 20-plus minutes in both of the Pacers' past two contests. While the lottery-bound Pacers remain likely to occasionally rest veterans like Nesmith over the final month of the season to open up playing time for younger players on the roster, Jones looks as though he'll be out of the mix for minutes when Indiana has all of its key guards and wings available.

Leonard finished Friday's 116-112 loss to the Spurs with 30 points (10-20 FG, 1-6 3Pt, 9-10 FT), nine rebounds, three assists and three steals across 37 minutes.

The veteran forward led all scorers on the night, but Leonard couldn't find one last push in the fourth quarter as San Antonio completed a comeback from a 25-point deficit. It's the fifth time in his last 11 games that Leonard has delivered 30-plus points, a stretch in which he's averaging 29.0 points, 7.4 boards, 3.8 assists, 2.2 threes and 1.9 steals.

Jones (shoulder) tallied two points (1-4 FG, 0-3 3Pt) and two rebounds across 10 minutes in Friday's 142-103 loss to the Knicks.

Jones was one of three Denver players to return from an injury Friday, as he checked back into action after missing three straight games due to a right shoulder strain, while Aaron Gordon (hamstring) and Cameron Johnson (ankle) played following 17- and two-game absences, respectively. The second-year player logged all 10 of his minutes between the second and third quarters before sitting out the fourth after the Knicks had turned the game into a runaway, but even if the game had been more competitive, Jones might not have been in line for any additional playing time. Jones will be a prime candidate to lose his spot in the rotation once the Nuggets get another key player back from injury in Peyton Watson (hamstring), who could be tracking toward a return to action as soon as next week.

Jokic closed Friday's 142-103 loss to New York with 38 points (14-21 FG, 1-7 3Pt, 9-10 FT), eight rebounds, five assists and two steals in 31 minutes.

The perennial MVP candidate led all scorers on the night, but Jokic didn't get a lot of help, especially after Jamal Murray (ankle) headed to the locker room after playing just 18 minutes and didn't return. Jokic has scored more than 20 points in 14 straight games, averaging 27.8 points, 13.7 boards, 9.3 assists, 1.4 threes, 1.2 steals and 0.9 blocks over that stretch.

Hart chipped in 18 points (8-12 FG, 2-4 3Pt, 0-2 FT), five rebounds and two assists in 25 minutes during Friday's 142-103 win over the Nuggets.

The veteran forward briefly left the Knicks' prior game, March 4 against the Thunder, due to back trouble, but Hart didn't seem hampered by the issue as he produced his best scoring performance since Feb. 8. He's scored in double digits in 10 of his last 12 games, averaging 11.3 points, 7.2 boards, 5.5 assists, 1.1 threes and 0.8 steals over that stretch.

Johnson (ankle) recorded 10 points (4-7 FG, 1-3 3Pt, 1-2 FT), five assists, three rebounds and one steal across 22 minutes Friday in the Nuggets' 142-103 loss to the Knicks.

Considering the limited run he received in the blowout loss, Johnson provided some solid all-around production, but it's difficult to be bullish about his outlook moving forward even though he's moved past the ankle injury that kept him out the previous two contests. In addition to Johnson, the Nuggets welcomed Aaron Gordon (hamstring) back from a 17-game absence Friday, and with Peyton Watson (hamstring) also closing in on a return, a depleted Denver forward group will soon be back to full strength. Johnson could struggle to settle back into a regular 25-plus-minute role once that happens, as Gordon and Watson have both handily outperformed him when healthy this season and may be prioritized ahead of Johnson when all three players are available. Even while averaging 30.6 minutes per game over his 38 appearances on the season, Johnson's per-game marks of 11.2 points, 3.8 rebounds, 2.4 assists, 1.8 three-pointers haven't been strong enough to make him a must-roster player in 12-team leagues.