Cuttino Mobley, Clippers
99-98 win at Heat
29 pts, 11-15 FG, 2-2 3-pt FG

Ray Allen, Celtics
100-86 win at Sixers
21 pts, 8-12 FG, 4-6 3-pt FG

Mike Bibby, Hawks
123-112 loss at Magic
23 pts, 9-13 FG, 5-6 3-pt FG

It's time for fans to pick up their pens, actually keyboards and start flooding the Race to the MVP mailbag with letters supporting LeBron James. After averaging 41 points over his last four games, the King of Cleveland's court changed up his pace and gave a more balanced effort Monday. The Cavs' All-Star notched his seventh triple-double of the season with 24 points, 10 rebounds and 11 assists to help his squad pull past Portland.

Louis Williams, Sixers
100-86 loss vs. Celtics
10 pt, 3-15 FG, 0-4 3-pt FG

James Jones, Blazers
88-80 loss at Cavaliers
3 pts, 1-7 FG, 1-4 3-pt FG

Nate Robinson, Knicks
108-79 loss at Mavericks
5 pts, 2-14 FG, 1-5 3-pt FG

When Yao Ming went down for the season with an ankle injury the road for the Rockets to the playoffs was supposed to get harder. Instead, it appears Houston has no problem getting wins these days. Tracy McGrady led the way for the Rockets racking up 19 points in less than three quarters of action as they rolled over the Nets on Monday, becoming the fourth team in NBA history to notch 19 consecutive victories. It was also Houston's 10th straight triumph by double digits, matching an NBA record last set by the Nets in 2003-04. "I told them they have a double whammy going," coach Rick Adelman said. "Not only do you have a chance to do something remarkable and get this streak going and keep it going, but also, every time you win, you keep shortening the season and you keep that lead that you have over other people and you're moving up the standings." With the win the Rockets moved within one game of the Lakers and Spurs for the top seed in the West.

This was not the way this season was supposed to go for Miami. Last year was the fluke. This season Dwyane Wade and Shaquille O'Neal were going to relive the 2005-06 campaign and bring the Heat back into championship contention. Instead, O'Neal showed his age early and got shipped to Phoenix and Wade failed to stay healthy, culminating in an early end to his season on Monday. Miami revealed that their young All-Star will undergo OssaTron treatment (Shock wave therapy) on his left knee later in the week. Although the procedure is not surgical in nature it will take approximately 30 days for Wade to return to basketball activites. "I'm doing what's right," Wade said. "I would love to be out there with my teammates, but in the long run, I think my teammates would love for me to be healthy and be out there with them when we're fighting to get in the playoffs again." The Heat dropped their first decision without Wade, losing to Clippers in the final seconds.

When all is said and done the second-best deal near the trading deadline could be Kurt Thomas to the Spurs. At the time, Thomas seemed like the perfect fit. A veteran that possesses toughness, court awareness and plays tight defense. But on Monday the 13-year veteran displayed another characteristic that allows him to perfectly blend in with the Silver and Black: He hits the big shots. San Antonio scored 23 points in the final session, but none was more important than Thomas' bucket with exactly a minute to go. Thomas stepped to his sweet spot at the top of the key and drained a jumper to put the Spurs up four and out of reach of a pesky Nuggets squad.

Thanks to a 10-turnover performance last Sunday, for the first time in what seems like forever Al Thornton slipped in the latest version of NBA.com's Rookie Rankings. But with a new list set to come out within the next few days, Thornton took advantage of his opportunity to rebound Monday. The Clippers young star poured in 22 points on an efficient 9-of-14 shooting night from the field and grabbed 10 rebounds to help the Clippers edge the Heat. He took care of the ball, giving it away on only four occassions. With 2.6 seconds left on the clock, Thornton deferred to Cuttino Mobley who sank two free throws to give Los Angeles a victory. Mobley finished with a game-high 29 points.

Eric Osmundson has never been known as a scorer. In his two-season stint with the D-League, Colorado's guard has averaged a mere 6.5 points per game. Even in college Osmundson failed to light up the boxscore. During his four-year stretch with the Pennsylvania Quakers, he put up an average of 5.5 points per contest, never eclipsing the double-digit mark for an entire season. But you would have never known it watching him play Monday. The 14ers guard erupted for a career-high 32 points, draining seven treys on 13 tries. He scored 17 in the second half to help Colorado surge past the Vipers. Desmon Farmer fired off 40 points in the defeat.