Rumors, moves, injuries and newsmakers...

Nuggets and Warriors meet in key clash Saturday; Bosh dominates again for Raptors; Two out of three good enough for Celtics; Murphy dominates all over; Vinsanity still rolling; Gasol return on the horizon; and more...

GOING DEEP 
In any playoff race, depth is a key factor. But in a playoff race as tight as the West is right now, it's probably critical. Which is why the Warriors and Nuggets have to be happy with how their reserves are playing lately.

As Golden State travels to Denver Saturday, two of the NBA's hotter benches will likely be counted on heavily in a huge game for both team. Separated by just half a game in the West standings currently seeded No.8 and and No.9, the Warriors and Nuggets will need production from top to bottom to get an edge. In Kelenna Azubuike, Matt Barnes, and Brandan Wright, the Warriors have been getting scoring, defense, and youthful energy (respectively) of late. Meanwhile Denver's Linas Kleiza and J.R. Smith provide instant offense off the pine, and stalwart Eduardo Najera remains a gritty rebounder and pesky defender.

Moreover, bench strength is especially important to these two teams because the wide-open style both play requires regular substitutions. In Saturday's super-charged West showdown, which team will temporarily wind up in the West playoffs winner's seat?

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'BIG TWO' ENOUGH FOR BOSTON 
The Hornets did a decent job slowing down Ray Allen on Friday, but were not so lucky with either Kevin Garnett or Paul Pierce as Boston won 112-92. While Pierce had 27 points (hitting all 13 attempts from the charity stripe), nine assists and six rebounds, the Big Ticket notched 21 points and added 13 boards. INTEL: Impressive nights from each player contributed to Boston's pulling away late in big cross-conference match-up. Garnett in particular also helped shut down David West on the defensive end (limiting the all-star to only 14 points).

BOGUT HURTING AGAIN 
The Milwaukee Bucks were without the services of center Andrew Bogut against Orlando Friday night, following surgery to repair a broken nose. The injury occurred Wednesday night in Atlanta when he caught an accidental elbow. INTEL: Another setback for Bogut, who missed some time earlier this month with a thigh injury only to return and put up three straight monster games. The Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel states that he's considered day-to-day starting Saturday's affair against Chicago.

BOSH BACK TO BRINING IT 
In his best game since he returned from a knee problem, Chris Bosh lead the Toronto Raptors to a 103-95 victory over the Knicks. CB4 put up 29 points to go along with ten rebounds. INTEL: Bosh also played 47 minutes, indicating that his conditioning is where it needs to be after his recent 10-game layoff caused by a sore knee. He even pitched in a rare three-pointer Friday, and should continue to perform at an all-star level as the season winds down.

FORD STARTS AGAIN  T.J. Ford once again got the start at the point for the Raptors on Friday in their win over the Knicks. He had 10 points and nine assists in 31 minutes and did not commit a turnover. Jose Calderon had only three points coming off the bench, though he did snag four rebounds and dished out six assists. INTEL: Despite Calderon's near all-star level play early in the year, Ford has almost always been the main point man when healthy. There's no reason to expect him not to start the rest of the way. Calderon played 23 minutes Friday and 26 in Ford's previous start, so once he regains his familiarity as a reserve he should get enough time to supply some decent stats.

MURPHY DOMINATES INSIDE AND OUT 
The New Jersey Nets had no answers Friday for Indiana's Troy Murphy. In only 28 minutes, in the paint Murphy grabbed a season-high seventeen rebounds, while behind the arc he nailed four of five from deep. INTEL: Murphy had been hot before missing the Pacers last game with a strep throat, and certainly showed no lasting effects. He has raised his game significantly in the second half, moving from 10.7 points and seven boards per game before the All-Star break to 16.5 and seven after it.

VC STILL FLYING HIGH 
His team fell to the Pacers but Nets shooting guard Vince Carter continued his excellent individual play on Friday with 33 points and nine rebounds. He has scored 27 or more points or in five of of his past six outings. INTEL: The most impressive aspect of Carter's surge is that he has raised his game despite losing premiere playmaker Jason Kidd as his backcourt mate. Instead he's quickly developing a nice chemistry with Devin Harris (who had 27 points and nine dimes on Friday), excellent news for a team still battling hard this season.

FISHER PLAYING THROUGH THE PAIN 
The Los Angeles Times reports Derek Fisher plans to play out the remainder of the season with a partial tear of a tendon in his right foot. INTEL: Fisher has started all 72 of the Lakers' games this season, averaging 27.5 minutes per conest, but the foot problem will likely limit him a bit going forward. Expect his playing time to be affected somewhat, consequently raising the involvement of Jordan Farmar and possibly Sasha Vujacic.

JACK STARTS FOR BLAZERS 
In the Blazers' first game since Brandon Roy's recent groin injury, point guard Jarrett Jack started against the Warriors Thursday night. Jack had 19 points and an assist in 41 minutes of the 111-95 loss. INTEL: Jack should put up better all-around lines until Roy returns, especially if he keeps playing more than 40 minutes per outing. While Roy is a shooting guard he leads the Blazers in assists (at 5.7 per game) so replacing him with a point guard is a natural move for head coach Nate McMillan.

GASOL READY FOR THE WIZ? 
As expected, Lakers forward Pau Gasol sat out his eighth straight game Friday night as L.A. challenged Memphis. However, a report in the Los Angeles Times indicates the star center may be ready to play as soon as Sunday against the Washington Wizards. INTEL: The injury means Gasol missed out on a chance to face his old team, but he will have plenty of future opportunities for that so long as he remains in the Western Conference. He reportedly hopes to attempt a full practice Saturday, so his status for Sunday should be clearer by game-time.