NBA schedule: Deron Williams drains 11 threes, Nets blow out Wizards

• Are advanced stats good for fans?

• Ziller: Are the Nuggets championship contenders?

• Are advanced stats good for fans?

• Ziller: Are the Nuggets championship contenders?

Here’s Williams’ shot chart for the evening, via NBA Stats. It is rather green:

Still got that record for a half, Deron. And the win. That’ll do.

Look at this:

(Video via The Brooklyn Game, shot chart via ESPN)

While Rose has cleared one important hurdle in his recovery, the former MVP still doesn’t plan to return to action until he can “confidently dunk off his left foot,“ according to an ESPN Chicago report.

At the moment, that sounds like a difficult timetable to predict and the Bulls certainly can’t afford to spend their time guessing Rose’s return date as they look to avoid their first three-game losing streak since mid-November.

Since the All-Star break, Smith has been headed in the opposite direction as Horford. He has had trouble finding his groove despite all of the trade chatter being put to rest. (That is, until he’s a free agent this summer). In the nine games the Hawks have played since returning to action, Smith is averaging 15.7 points on 43.6 percent shooting from the field while hitting only 22.6 percent from beyond the arc.

Game time: 8 p.m. ET on ESPN

There will be 12 NBA games on Friday night, only three of those games feature head-to-head matchups between current playoff teams. Two of those premium games will be televised on ESPN as part of a Friday night doubleheader. Here is a look at the schedule for the evening.

The only other matchup between playoff teams is yet another game Lakers fans will likely follow throughout the night. The Bulls host the Jazz, and Utah has dropped six of 10, including two heart-breaking losses this week. The Jazz are just 1.5 games up on L.A., and their playoff odds have dipped in the past week. Chicago hasn’t been playing well either, so this one could get ugly as both teams are desperate for a win.