Starting Lineups: Jan. 25
A wild week in the NBA - mostly thanks to an unfortunate rash of injury news - closes out Sunday with a very busy, 11-game schedule.
Things get started early with the return of Luol Deng to Chicago, which has Trey Kerby on his Tweet game proper:
Kind of hope Luol Deng's video tribute runs longer than it should and breaks down near the end. Would be ultra fitting.
— Taco Trey Kerby (@treykerby) January 25, 2015
Emotional though that may be, it's simply a curtain-jerker for a must-see battle between the league's most recent MVPs, as Kevin Durant and the Thunder visit LeBron James and the surging Cavaliers.
Later, the Hawks will look to extend their winning streak to 16 games, Anthony Davis will try his hand at guarding Dirk Nowitzki, the suddenly Brandon Jennings-less Pistons visit the struggling Raptors and Dwight Howard may or may not take on his former Lakers squad, sans Kobe Bryant.
Here are Sunday's projected starting lineups:
Miami Heat at Chicago Bulls, 1 p.m. ET
| Position | Heat | Bulls |
|---|---|---|
| PG | Mario Chalmers | Derrick Rose |
| SG | Dwyane Wade | Tony Snell |
| SF | Luol Deng | Jimmy Butler |
| PF | Chris Bosh | Pau Gasol |
| C | Chris Andersen | Joakim Noah |
Heat C Hassan Whiteside (ankle) will play
Heat PF Josh McRoberts (knee) remains out
Bulls SF Mike Dunleavy (ankle) remains out
Oklahoma City Thunder at Cleveland Cavaliers, 3:30 p.m. ET
| Position | Thunder | Cavaliers |
|---|---|---|
| PG | Russell Westbrook | Kyrie Irving |
| SG | Andre Roberson | J.R. Smith |
| SF | Kevin Durant | LeBron James |
| PF | Serge Ibaka | Kevin Love |
| C | Kendrick Perkins | Timofey Mozgov |
Thunder PF Mitch McGary (leg) remains out
Thudner C Steven Adams (migraine) not in starting lineup
Cavaliers C Anderson Varejao (Achilles) remains out
Los Angeles Clippers at Phoenix Suns, 6 p.m. ET
| Position | Clippers | Suns |
|---|---|---|
| PG | Chris Paul | Eric Bledsoe |
| SG | J.J. Redick | Goran Dragic |
| SF | Matt Barnes | P.J. Tucker |
| PF | Blake Griffin | Markieff Morris |
| C | DeAndre Jordan | Alex Len |
Suns C Brandan Wright (heel) will not play
Dallas Mavericks at New Orleans Pelicans, 6 p.m. ET
| Position | Mavericks | Pelicans |
|---|---|---|
| PG | Rajon Rondo | Tyreke Evans |
| SG | Monta Ellis | Eric Gordon |
| SF | Chandler Parsons | Dante Cunningham |
| PF | Dirk Nowitzki | Anthony Davis |
| C | Tyson Chandler | Omer Asik |
Pelicans PF Ryan Anderson (ankles) is questionable
Pelicans PG Jrue Holiday (leg) remains out
Minnesota Timberwolves at Atlanta Hawks, 6 p.m. ET
| Position | Timberwolves | Hawks |
|---|---|---|
| PG | Mo Williams | Jeff Teague |
| SG | Andrew Wiggins | Kyle Korver |
| SF | Thaddeus Young | DeMarre Carroll |
| PF | Gorgui Dieng | Paul Millsap |
| C | Nikola Pekovic | Al Horford |
Timberwolves PF Anthony Bennett (knee) available to play
Timberwolves PG Zach LaVine (elbow) available to play
Timberwolves SG Kevin Martin (wrist) will not play
Timberwolves PG Ricky Rubio (ankle), PF Shabazz Muhammad (oblique) remain out
Hawks PG Shelvin Mack (calf) remains out
Indiana Pacers at Orlando Magic, 6 p.m. ET
| Position | Pacers | Magic |
|---|---|---|
| PG | C.J. Watson | Elfrid Payton |
| SG | Rodney Stuckey | Victor Oladipo |
| SF | Solomon Hill | Aaron Gordon |
| PF | David West | Channing Frye |
| C | Roy Hibbert | Nikola Vucevic |
Pacers PG George Hill (groin) is probable
Pacers SG C.J. Miles (groin) will not play
Pacers SF Paul George (leg) remains out
Milwaukee Bucks at San Antonio Spurs, 7 p.m. ET
| Position | Bucks | Spurs |
|---|---|---|
| PG | Brandon Knight | Tony Parker |
| SG | Khris Middleton | Danny Green |
| SF | Giannis Antetokounmpo | Kawhi Leonard |
| PF | Ersan Ilyasova | Matt Bonner |
| C | Zaza Pachulia | Tim Duncan |
Bucks PG Kendall Marshall (knee), SF Damien Inglis (foot), PF Jabari Parker (knee), C Larry Sanders (suspension) remain out
Spurs SF Marco Belinelli (groin) remains out
Detroit Pistons at Toronto Raptors, 7 p.m. ET
| Position | Pistons | Raptors |
|---|---|---|
| PG | D.J. Augustin | Kyle Lowry |
| SG | Kentavious Caldwell-Pope | Greivis Vasquez |
| SF | Kyle Singler | DeMar DeRozan |
| PF | Greg Monroe | Amir Johnson |
| C | Andre Drummond | Jonas Valanciunas |
Pistons PG Brandon Jennings (Achilles) will not play
Boston Celtics at Golden State Warriors, 8 p.m. ET
| Position | Celtics | Warriors |
|---|---|---|
| PG | Evan Turner | Steph Curry |
| SG | Avery Bradley | Klay Thompson |
| SF | Jae Crowder | Harrison Barnes |
| PF | Brandon Bass | Draymond Green |
| C | Jared Sullinger | Andrew Bogut |
Celtics PG Marcus Smart (personal) will not play
Celtics SF James Young (illness) will play
Celtics C Kelly Olynyk (ankle) remains out
Warriors C Festus Ezeli (ankle) remains out
Washington Wizards at Denver Nuggets, 8 p.m. ET
| Position | Wizards | Nuggets |
|---|---|---|
| PG | John Wall | Ty Lawson |
| SG | Bradley Beal | Arron Afflalo |
| SF | Paul Pierce | Wilson Chandler |
| PF | Nene | Kenneth Faried |
| C | Marcin Gortat | Jusuf Nurkic |
Nuggets PG Ty Lawson (legal) did not play Friday
Nuggets C JaVale McGee (leg) remains out
Houston Rockets at Los Angeles Lakers, 9:30 p.m. ET
| Position | Rockets | Lakers |
|---|---|---|
| PG | Patrick Beverley | Jordan Clarkson |
| SG | James Harden | Wayne Ellington |
| SF | Trevor Ariza | Ryan Kelly |
| PF | Donatas Motijunas | Jordan Hill |
| C | Joey Dorsey | Robert Sacre |
Rockets C Dwight Howard (ankle) will not play
Rockets PF Terrence Jones (leg) remains out
Lakers C Tarik Black (ankle) is available
Lakers SG Kobe Bryant (shoulder), PG Steve Nash (back), PF Julius Randle (leg) remain out