Beast of the Night: Chris Paul finished with 24 points, 7 boards, 12 dimes, 5 steals, 2 turnovers and hit 3 threes. He shot 53 percent (9-17) from the field and 100 percent (3-3) from the line and though he’s playing second fiddle to LeBron James so far this season, there’s still a chance he could end up as the top fantasy player yet again.

Noteworthy Lines:
Lou Williams – 5-7 FG (71%), 4-4 FT (100%), 2 3ptm, 16 Pts, 2 Reb, 5 Ast, 1 Stl, 2 Blk, 2 TO; He came off the bench in this one but it didn’t affect his production. It’s obvious that Allen Iverson is limiting his value, but Williams still has good value in most leagues.

Rajon Rondo – 6-8 FG (75%), 4-6 FT (67%), 16 Pts, 7 Reb, 12 Ast, 4 Stl, 3 TO; He’s having a great month so far, though his lack of threes and miserable free-throw shooting clearly hurts his value.

Dwight Howard – 9-14 FG (64%), 9-11 FT (82%), 27 Pts, 15 Reb, 3 Ast, 6 Blk, 4 TO; The solid free-throw shooting was a bonus last night.

Rashard Lewis – 6-16 FG (38%), 3-3 FT (100%), 4 3ptm, 19 Pts, 5 Reb, 3 Ast, 2 Stl, 3 TO; He’s still struggling with his shooting, but Lewis has notched 15+ points in six straight games now.

Marc Gasol – 5-8 FG (63%), 9-13 FT (69%), 19 Pts, 8 Reb, 3 Ast, 4 Stl, 3 Blk, 4 TO; Little Gasol is averaging 2.7 steals and 3 blocks in his last three games.

Josh Smith – 9-16 FG (56%), 4-6 FT (67%), 22 Pts, 10 Reb, 1 Ast, 4 Stl, 4 Blk, 3 TO; This was his second game with 4+ steals and 4+ blocks so far this season for Smith, who has found some consistency lately.

Tony Parker – 9-14 FG (64%), 2-4 FT (50%), 20 Pts, 6 Reb, 8 Ast, 1 Stl, 1 TO; This was his fourth straight game with 20+ points. TP seems to be rounding into form.

Channing Frye – 8-15 FG (53%), 5 3ptm, 21 Pts, 3 Reb, 2 Ast, 2 Stl, 1 Blk, 1 TO; He did this in fewer than 28 minutes off the bench and while it’s clear that Frye will be inconsistent going forward, he remains worthy of owning in most leagues.

Carlos Boozer – 7-10 FG (70%), 7-7 FT (100%), 21 Pts, 20 Reb, 2 Ast, 3 Stl, 1 Blk, 1 TO; This was his first 20/20 game of the season. Boozer has definitely picked up steam in January after an up-and-down December.

J.R. Smith – 5-14 FG (36%), 2 3ptm, 12 Pts, 6 Reb, 3 Ast, 2 Stl, 1 Blk, 1 TO; The important thing is that he didn’t get handed a suspension from the Nuggets. Monitor his situation in Denver.

Waiver Wire Appeal:
Daniel Gibson – 15 Pts, 4 3ptm, 1 Reb, 1 Ast, 1 TO; He’ll get plenty of run in a depleted Cavs backcourt.

Rafer Alston – 10 Pts, 2 3ptm, 5 Reeb, 4 Ast, 1 Blk, 1 TO; Though he’s not consistent yet, Skip should get enough minutes to be productive the rest of the way in Miami.

Rasual Butler – 17 Pts, 2 3ptm, 2 Reb, 2 Ast, 2 Stl, 1 Blk, 2 TO; He’ll fill in nicely for however long Eric Gordon sits out.

Kyle Lowry – 10 Pts, 1 3ptm, 3 Reb, 4 Ast, 1 TO; Remains a nice all-around producer in deeper leagues.

Goran Dragic – 32 Pts, 6 3ptm, 3 Reb, 3 Ast, 2 TO; This followed a 20-point night for Dragic, who is tough to ignore right now. Don’t expect too much from him going forward.

Wesley Matthews – 21 Pts, 3 3ptm, 4 Reb, 5 Ast, 2 Stl, 1 TO; He shows up every now and then, but is only worth looking at in deeper leagues.

Arron Afflalo – 24 Pts, 6 3ptm, 2 Reb, 7 Ast, 1 Stl; He’s having a great January, and ‘Melo’s absence certainly helps his value.

Marcus Thornton – 19 Pts, 3 3ptm, 1 Reb, 1 Ast, 1 Blk, 2 TO; With Devin Brown out of town, the starting SG job is all his in New Orleans.

Rudy Fernandez – 12 Pts, 2 3ptm,7 Reb, 3 Ast, 2 Stl, 1 TO; He’s on right now, but Brandon Roy’s return looms.

Injuries:
Erick Dampier (knee): probable tonight

Jason Kidd (personal): should return tonight

Ben Gordon (groin): could return Wednesday

Will Bynum (ankle): game-time decision Wednesday

Monta Ellis (ankle): out tonight

Sebastian Telfair (groin): out four to six weeks with a ruptured groin (ouch)

Ron Artest (flu, plantar fasciitis): questionable tonight

Nate Robinson (hamstring): questionable tonight

Wilson Chandler (groin): ditto

Grant Hill (heel): check his status

Jon Brockman (hip): questionable tonight

For Tonight:
See if Chris Duhon can step it up for an injured Knicks squad as they host the Wolves.

Stephen Curry, Cartier Martin and C.J. Watson should all put up nice lines with Ellis out again.

Throughout the season, be sure to leave your questions, comments, concerns, trade offers, roster problems and more in the comments below.

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