Power Rankings: History happening in two places, Are we on pace to see two 70-win teams this season in the Spurs and Warriors? Maybe.

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The San Antonio Spurs are 50-9, on pace for 69 wins, a number that only one team in NBA history has eclipsed. They've outscored their opponents by 13.6 points per 100 possessions, a bigger differential than that of the 1995-96 Chicago Bulls or any other team of the last 40 years.

All three teams that have won at least 69 games and eight of the 10 that have won at least 67 have gone on to win the NBA championship. All four teams that have recorded a regular-season NetRtg of better than plus-10.0 have won the title.
But in 2015-16, 50-9 is somehow second best, because the Golden State Warriors are something we've never seen before.
The champs topped themselves again on Saturday, coming back from 11 down with less than five minutes to go in Oklahoma City to beat the Thunder in overtime on Stephen Curry's ridiculous game-winner. Amazingly, we wouldn't have gotten there if Kevin Durant didn't throw the ball away or if Andre Iguodala (9-for-30 on fourth quarter free throws in last year's playoffs) didn't hit two freebies with a second to go in regulation.
The Spurs got waxed by the Warriors in their only head-to-head meeting a month ago. It'll be another 20 days before they get them at home (where San Antonio is still undefeated), and there are two more meetings in April. Maybe the champs will knock the Spurs off their win pace, and maybe the Spurs will keep the Warriors from getting 73 wins.
At this point, they're both set to make history, but only one will still be playing in June.

Curry hits winning 3, sets record as Warriors beat Thunder

Curry hits winning 3, sets record as Warriors beat Thunder

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By CLIFF BRUNT
Posted Feb 28 2016 2:04AM

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) Stephen Curry had no clue how far from the hoop he was. He just knew it was time to shoot.
His 3-pointer from well beyond 30 feet with 0.6 seconds left in overtime gave the Golden State Warriors a 121-118 win over the Oklahoma City Thunder on Saturday night.
"Honestly, I don't know exactly where I am, so it's not like I'm calibrating in my head, all right, 38 feet, 37, 36," he said. "Just literally, you've got a sense of - I've shot the shot plenty of times, you're coming across halfcourt and timing up your dribbles, and you want to shoot before the defense goes in. And that was pretty much my only thought."
Golden State, with the best 58-game record in NBA history at 53-5, became the first team since the 1987-88 Los Angeles Lakers to clinch a playoff spot in February, a Warriors spokesman said.
The postseason berth was secured about an hour before Curry's scintillating shot, when Houston lost to the San Antonio Spurs. That assured Golden State will finish no lower than eighth in the Western Conference.
Curry finished with 46 points, and his winning shot was his 12th 3-pointer, tying the NBA single-game record.
Warriors forward Draymond Green thought Curry had time to get closer to the hoop before the release.
"What was that, 40 feet?" Green asked. "That's absurd."
Golden State guard Klay Thompson is beyond the point of being surprised anymore.
"Everybody in this locker room, we've seen him practice from that range every day," Thompson said. "He's got the greatest range I've ever seen. He makes it look so effortless."
Curry also broke his own NBA record for 3s in a season, leaving the new mark at 288.
"I never would have thought at this point in the season I would be closing in on 300 and all that kind of stuff," he said. "That doesn't make sense to me. I've always tried to push the envelope and keep getting better, but a lot has to go right to get to this point."
Thompson scored 32 points and Green had 14 assists for the Warriors, who won their fifth straight.
Curry, the league's scoring leader and reigning MVP, missed about six minutes of the third quarter with a left ankle injury. He drove to the basket and rolled the ankle before Thunder guard Russell Westbrook stepped on it.
"It was a little nerve racking," he said. I wanted to make sure I was OK. I had to get it re-taped. It was painful."
Kevin Durant led the Thunder with 37 points, but he fouled out in the first minute of overtime. Even without him, Oklahoma City was in position to win. The Thunder played one of their better defensive games of the season and shut down the other Warriors players from beyond the 3-point line.
"I thought all of the guys really played their hearts out and did a lot of good things," Oklahoma City coach Billy Donovan said. "It's disappointing to come up short like that, but I think there is a lot we can take from it in terms of what we can do and what we are capable of doing defensively with a tremendous amount of energy and focus."
Westbrook had 26 points and 13 assists, and Serge Ibaka had 15 points and 20 rebounds for the Thunder.
The Warriors won the previous meeting with the Thunder 116-108 at home on Feb. 6. The teams play again Thursday at Golden State.
Oklahoma City led by 12 in the fourth quarter, but the Warriors rallied. Thompson made a 3 from the left corner to cut Oklahoma City's lead to 100-99. It was the first 3 of the game for any Warriors player other than Curry.
Durant responded with a 3-pointer with 14.5 seconds left to put the Thunder up 103-99.
Thompson quickly scored a layup, then the Thunder turned the ball over, and Andre Iguodala was fouled with 0.7 seconds left. Iguodala made both free throws to tie the score at 103 and force the extra period.
STAT LINES
The Thunder lost despite outrebounding the Warriors 62-32.
QUOTABLE
Green, on Curry's mentality before the final shot: "When he pulled up, he looked like, `Ah, whatever, it's going in,"' Green said. "
TIP-INS
Warriors: Curry has made a 3-pointer in an NBA-record 129 straight games. ... C Anderson Varejao played in his third game with the Warriors. The Cleveland Cavaliers traded him to Portland and the Trail Blazers waived him, allowing Golden State to pick him up.
Thunder: Durant has scored 20 or more in 44 straight games. ... Durant was presented with the Western Conference Player of the Month award for January before the game. ... Oklahoma City scored the game's first eight points. ... Durant fouled out for just the fourth time in 621 career regular-season games.
UP NEXT
Thunder: At Sacramento on Monday.
Warriors: Host Atlanta on Tuesday.

Rose out again, Butler improving

POSTED: Feb 27, 2016 7:42 PM ET

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CHICAGO (AP) — Bulls star Derrick Rose missed his third consecutive game Saturday, while Jimmy Butler got an encouraging report on his injured left knee.
Rose sat out against the Portland Trail Blazers because of tendinitis in his right hamstring. Coach Fred Hoiberg says the 2011 MVP is improving but still experiencing pain when he "tries to explode off" his leg.
Chicago's next two games are at Miami and Orlando on Tuesday and Wednesday.
As for Butler, Hoiberg says an MRI on Saturday showed the swelling in his left knee is "significantly down." He says the Bulls will have a better idea on a return date for the two-time All-Star once he starts scrimmaging.
Butler has been sidelined since Feb. 5 by a strained left knee.

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About Kobe Bryant

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I think for a number of years, MJ, the things that he's been able to accomplish on the court, has kept Kobe going. Because he's so competitive that he wanted to see if he could beat somebody that he has so much respect for.

– Lakers coach Byron Scott

Pekovic out indefinitely to rehab repaired Achilles

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MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Minnesota Timberwolves center Nikola Pekovic has been ruled out indefinitely as he recovers from right Achilles tendon surgery last April.
Pekovic has missed eight straight games with discomfort and played in only 12 games this season after having a procedure that was viewed then as a last-ditch effort to relieve chronic pain in his right foot. The Timberwolves view his latest issue much differently, with the pain an expected side effect that comes after returning to the court from a long absence.
Timberwolves Vice President of Sports Performance Arnie Kander said the pain now is in Pekovic's heel because of weakness in his calf that is the result of that surgery. If all goes well during a period of rest and strengthening, Pekovic could return to play this season.
"He will be fine," Kander said. "He will be Nikola Pekovic again."
Kander's confidence comes in the face of foot issues that have limited Pekovic to 97 of a possible 221 games over the last three years.
Pekovic's Achilles tendon is in good health now, and the Timberwolves are not concerned that this latest problem is a recurrence of the same injury, which would have been a very ominous sign for a player who still has two years remaining on the five-year, $60 million contract he signed in 2013.
"It's not the Achilles," Kander said. "It's strictly the heel from the pounding from the weakness that's causing the issue."
Kander said the typical recovery time for Achilles surgery is between nine and 15 months. But Pekovic did not need a full repair of a rupture like Detroit's Brandon Jennings and Dallas guard Wesley Matthews required. Instead, surgeons performed a debridement procedure that was aimed at removing some debris in the area that was causing constant irritation in his foot.
Jennings and Matthews are guards, but Pekovic is a center who weighs 300 pounds, which brings more challenges for his recovery.
Pekovic spent nine months rehabbing the injury and returned to the court in early January. The main goal during his rehab work was to rebuild strength in his legs to at least 90 percent of what it was before the surgery. Once January rolled around, Pekovic was registering at 85 percent in the exercises and performing well enough that the Wolves put him back on the court with a strict minutes limit.
When Pekovic again had some pain in his foot, the Wolves decided to shut him down and work to return his strength levels in his calves to take some of the pressure off of his foot. The new goal is to get him to 95 percent from a strength standpoint.
The Timberwolves sorely miss him. When healthy, Pekovic was one of the best offensive centers in the game, with soft hands around the basket, an ability to use his burly physique to run the pick-and-roll to perfection and a feathery touch from 15 feet and in. Those skills are what persuaded Wolves brass to splurge on Pekovic in 2013, envisioning him as the perfect complement to Kevin Love in the frontcourt.
But Love was traded to Cleveland before last season, Pekovic's foot problems emerged before that and the Wolves have rebuilt their frontcourt around rookie Karl-Anthony Towns and Gorgui Dieng.
Ideally, Pekovic could serve as a much-needed third big man in that rotation, playing 15-18 minutes a night and giving the second unit a reliable scoring option in the post. But his ability to stay healthy and fill that role for the long term remains in question.
"He's just got to stay strong," Wolves guard Zach LaVine said. "We're all proud of him for working his way back. That's a traumatic injury. ... He's going to be OK. He's a tough-minded person. We all feel for him, but we support him."

Heat lose Udrih for remainder of season

MIAMI (AP) — Beno Udrih needs season-ending surgery, and the Miami Heat roster is about to take another hit.
The reserve point guard will have a procedure this week to repair a right foot problem, a person with knowledge of the situation told The Associated Press on Tuesday night. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because neither the Heat nor Udrih had revealed anything publicly, and the exact nature of the surgery has not yet been disclosed.
Yahoo Sports first reported Udrih's need for surgery.
Udrih was apparently hurt in the second quarter of Miami's win over Indiana on Monday night. Udrih was limping slightly right before he was taken out of the game and X-rays performed that night were negative. But an MRI on Tuesday showed the need for surgery, which - barring a move - would leave Miami with 10 players available.
Chris Bosh is out while he deals with a blood clot, Tyler Johnson could miss the remainder of the season because of shoulder surgery and the Heat have two open roster spots after a series of trades helped them get under the luxury tax threshold. Miami has enough room below the tax line to add a player, though may have to wait a bit longer in order to avoid going back into taxpayer territory.
Udrih was acquired in a trade from Memphis earlier this season. He averaged 4.4 points and 2.5 assists in 36 games with the Heat, primarily as the backup to starting point guard Goran Dragic.
With Udrih out, the backup role now will partly fall to rookie Josh Richardson.
"He understands what we're looking for," Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said earlier Tuesday of Richardson, speaking before the Udrih news was known. "He fits defensively on that side of the floor already."
Miami hosts reigning NBA champion Golden State on Wednesday.
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