Around the Association: Morant Detonates, Fultz Debuts, Heat Make A Statement

This article is part of our NBA Daily Recap series.

Welcome to Around the Association! Four days per week (Monday through Thursday), this article will serve as a comprehensive recap of the previous night's NBA action, taking you through all of the biggest performances, notable box scores, injury updates and any other fantasy-relevant headlines from around the league.

It was a busy Monday night -- here is all you need to know:

Morant detonates on Spurs

• Ja Morant did it all during Memphis' 118-105 win over the Spurs. The emerging superstar obliterated Jakob Poeltl with a signature poster, miraculously drilled a full-court alley-oop halftime buzzer-beater and finished with a new career-high 52 points (22-30 FG, 4-4 3Pt, 4-7 FT), seven rebounds and two assists across 34 minutes.
  • Morant is averaging an absurd 40.5 points, 6.0 rebounds and 5.0 assists over his last four outings and is firmly placing himself into the MVP conversation as the season winds down. 
  • Morant did most of the scoring damage for Memphis in the win. Kyle Anderson was efficient off of the bench with nine points (4-7 FG, 1-1 3Pt), nine rebounds, six assists and one block over 24 minutes.
• One player on the Spurs who is continuing to impress me and go a bit under-the-radar is Lonnie Walker. The fourth-year pro ended the game with a team-high 22 points (9-18 FG, 2-7 3Pt, 2-2 FT), two rebounds and three assists over 25 minutes. Walker is averaging 22.3 points per game in San Antonio's first three games back from the All-Star break. The uber-athletic guard is still just 23 years old and loaded with potential 
  • Dejounte Murray finished the loss with 21 points (8-20 FG, 1-4 3PT, 4-5 FT), three rebounds, eight assists, three steals and one block in 35 minutes before getting ejected in the fourth quarter.

Wolves rally against Cavs

• The Cleveland Cavaliers got off to a quick start against the Timberwolves, but Minnesota was able to storm back en route to a 127-122 win. Karl-Anthony Towns sealed the deal with a clutch three-pointer in the final minute of the game while finishing with 17 points (7-13 FG, 1-4 3Pt, 2-2 FT), four rebounds, three assists, one steal and one block over 34 minutes. The Timberwolves are looking more and more legit as they sit at 33-29, currently good for seventh in the West.
  • D'Angelo Russell was also impressive down the stretch for Minnesota. The 26-year-old guard totaled 25 points (8-17 FG, 4-8 3Pt, 5-6 FT), four rebounds, three assists, one block and one steal across 35 minutes. Russell has been hot since returning from the All-Star break, averaging 27.7 points per game over his last three outings. 
• This game made it evidently clear how much Darius Garland (back) means to this Cavaliers team. The All-Star guard has missed the team's first three games post-All-Star break as Cleveland has gone 1-2 in that span. Brandon Goodwin had a solid outing starting in his place, finishing with
  • Kevin Love continues to impress off the bench in his 14th season. The veteran forward ended with 26 points (7-14 FG, 5-10 3Pt, 7-7 FT), five rebounds, four assists and one steal over 26 minutes. Love has now made at least five three-pointers 11 times this year. 

Fultz makes his debut

• Markelle Fultz last touched an NBA basketball court nearly 14 months ago due to an ACL tear, but the former No. 1 overall pick made his season debut last night.
  • Fultz ended with 10 points (5-7 FG), two rebounds and six assists across 16 minutes off of the bench as Orlando eased to a 119-103 win over Indiana. It will be quite interesting to see how the return of Fultz affects the Magic's rotation. All of a sudden, Orlando is quite bolstered at guard due to the likes of Fultz, Jalen Suggs, Cole Anthony, Gary Harris and R.J. Hampton.
  • I was impressed with Jalen Suggs in the win. The rookie ended with 14 points (5-9 FG, 2-4 3Pt, 2-4 FT), three rebounds, 10 assists and two steals over 27 minutes. Suggs continues to get more comfortable as of late, averaging 13.5 points, 3.5 rebounds, 5.7 assists and 1.7 steals per game over his last six outings.
  • Wendell Carter: 21 points (8-10 FG, 1-1 3Pt, 4-6 FT), 12 rebounds and one assist over 27 minutes.
• Tyrese Haliburton had yet another impressive outing even with the loss. The recently acquired guard ended with 23 points (7-13 FG, 3-7 3Pt, 6-6 FT), five rebounds, seven assists and two steals across 33 minutes. Impressively, the 22-year-old became the youngest player to record 450 assists and 100 steals within a season's first 60 games since Chris Paul in 2007. Haliburton is averaging 20.3 points, 4.4 rebounds, 10.1 assists and 2.0 steals per game over his first seven outings with the Pacers. 
  • Chris Duarte exited the game with a toe injury and did not return.
  • Malcolm Brogdon did not play for Indiana on the second night of a back-to-back.

Heat handle the Bulls

• In a clash between two of the top teams in the Eastern Conference, the Heat were able to roll to a 112-99 win over the Bulls. It was quite a balanced team effort for Miami as they improved its record to 41-21, good for first in the East. Tyler Herro did his thing off of the bench, tying for a team-high 20 points (7-13 FG, 1-3 3Pt, 5-5 FT) to go with six rebounds and five assists over 30 minutes. 
  • Jimmy Butler: 15 points (4-13 FG, 7-10 FT, 0-1 3Pt), seven rebounds, four assists and four steals over 28 minutes. 
• All good things must come to an end. DeMar DeRozan finally snapped his 30-point scoring stretch as he finished with 18 points (7-16 FG, 0-2 3Pt, 4-5 FT), seven rebounds, three assists, three steals and one block over 33 minutes. While Chicago does remain short-handed, they continue to alarmingly struggle against the true contenders of the East.
  • Zach LaVine: 22 points (8-16 FG, 2-8 3Pt, 4-6 FT), four rebounds and four assists over 32 minutes. 

Best and Worst of the Night

• Best of the Night: Ja Morant - 52 points (22-30 FG, 4-4 3Pt, 4-7 FT), seven rebounds and two assists across 34 minutes.
• Worst of the Night: Ziaire Williams - Zero points (0-3 FG, 0-2 3Pt), two rebounds and one assist over 26 minutes.
• Rookie of the Night: Scottie Barnes - 28 points (12-14 FG, 1-1 3Pt, 3-4 FT), 16 rebounds, four assists, one block and five steals over 34 minutes. 

Quick Hitters

• Scottie Barnes took over against the Nets as the Raptors rolled to a 133-97 win on the road. The rookie finished the contest with 28 points (12-14 FG, 1-1 3Pt, 3-4 FT), 16 rebounds, four assists, one block and five steals over 34 minutes. 
  • Precious Achiuwa: 20 points (8-14 FG, 3-5 3Pt, 1-2 FT), eight rebounds and four assists over 23 minutes off of the bench.
  • Fred VanVleet missed the game due to a knee injury and is questionable for Toronto's contest against Brooklyn on Tuesday. 
• LaMarcus Aldridge was one of the only Nets' players to have a spark offensively during the loss. The veteran forward ended with 15 points (5-8 FG, 1-3 3Pt, 4-4 FT), three rebounds, one assist and one block across 20 minutes.
• De'Aaron Fox snapped during the Kings' 131-110 win over the Thunder as he totaled 29 points (10-20 FG, 1-5 3Pt, 8-14 FT), four rebounds, 10 assists, one block and two steals in 41 minutes. Fox is averaging 25.0 points and 8.0 assists per game in his first three appearances post-All-Star break.
  • Trey Lyles: 24 points (10-14 FG, 1-4 3Pt, 3-3 FT), six rebounds and two assists over 31 minutes
• Shai Gilgeous-Alexander continues to impress since returning to action after the All-Star break ended. The  23-year-old ended with 37 points (12-16 FG, 3-3 3Pt, 10-14 FT), seven rebounds, 10 assists and three steals in 33 minutes during OKC's loss to Sacramento. SGA is averaging 35.0 points per game over his last three contests. 
• Giannis Antetokounmpo carried the Bucks to a massive 130-106 victory over the Hornets, totaling 26 points (6-10 FG, 0-2 3Pt, 14-14 FT), 16 rebounds, six assists, four blocks and two steals across 28 minutes. Antetokounmpo averaged 32.1 points, 12.2 rebounds, and 7.0 assists over the month of February.
  • Jrue Holiday: 21 points (7-15 FG, 5-8 3Pt, 2-2 FT), six rebounds and eight assists over 25 minutes
• LaMelo Ball had a decent outing in the loss to Milwaukee. The All-Star guard finished with 24 points (9-18 FG, 4-7 3Pt, 2-2 FT), four rebounds, two assists and one steal in 30 minutes.

A Look Ahead to Tuesday Night:

• The Celtics look to keep hot when the Hawks come into town
• The emerging Timberwolves look to handle Stephen Curry and the Warriors in Minnesota
• Can the Lakers figure it out against Luka Doncic and the Mavericks?