February is the shortest month of the year, and even with the NBA All-Star break, there was plenty of action on the hardwood. And due to some trades, there are some new faces in new places.

Besides Valentine’s Day treats (the Memphis Grizzlies and Minnesota Timberwolves, and Donovan Mitchell and Dillon Brooks probably didn’t exchange gifts, see below), what’s the benefit of this month being the shortest? You get February’s best NBA photos sooner.

Catch a glimpse of some of the action in this month’s photo gallery. What are your favorites?

Does it ever get old watching Ja Morant of the Grizzlies take flight? No, unless you’re the Trail Blazers or another NBA opponent.

It’s not against Morant or the Grizzlies, but the Trail Blazers played defense near the rim as Drew Eubanks blocks a shot by Deni Avdija of the Wizards in Washington, D.C.

Julius Randle of the Knicks goes for a ride after a dunk against the Heat in Miami.

This altercation between Austin Rivers of the Timberwolves and Mo Bamba of the Magic resulted in five players being ejected during the second half in Minneapolis. Rivers, Jaden McDaniels and Taurean Prince were thrown out for Minnesota. Jalen Suggs was tossed along with Bamba for Orlando.

Sticking with that theme, Donovan Mitchell of the Cavaliers and Dillon Brooks of the Grizzlies scuffle as referee Jonathan Sterling tries to separate them in Cleveland. Both players were ejected.

In Los Angeles, LeBron James of the Lakers shoots and scores against the Thunder to pass Kareem Abdul-Jabbar as the NBA’s all-time leading scorer.

Davion Mitchell of the Kings falls over Bruno Fernando of the Rockets (and now Hawks) while pursuing a loose ball in Houston.

Luke Kornet of the Celtics gets punished for dunking over James Wiseman of the Pistons in Boston.

Precious Achiuwa of the Raptors rejects this shot attempt by Mike Conley of the Jazz in Salt Lake City.

Chris Paul of the Suns can’t bear watching this dunk by Dejounte Murray of the Hawks in Phoenix.

Joe Ingles of the Bucks isn’t known for his defense, but this approach isn’t working against Paul George of the Clippers in Milwaukee.

Tobias Harris of the 76ers celebrates with the Philly faithful after making a 3-pointer late in the fourth quarter against the Grizzlies.

Isaiah Hartenstein of the Knicks isn’t happy as he fumbles the ball out of bounds against the Clippers in New York.

Despite a height disadvantage, Ish Smith (6 foot) of the Nuggets challenges Rudy Gobert (7 foot 1) of the Timberwolves on Gobert’s dunk attempt in Minneapolis.

Walker Kessler of the Jazz, another 7-foot-1 player, perfectly times this shot by McKinley Wright IV of the Mavericks in Salt Lake City.

Another Precious sighting! Achiuwa just gets this flush past Jaren Jackson Jr. of the Grizzlies in Memphis, Tenn. Jackson Jr. is averaging 3.3 blocks per game this season, which leads the league … by a lot.

Kyrie Irving of the Mavericks dribbles through the defensive tunnel created by Kings defenders Harrison Barnes (left) and Kevin Huerter in Sacramento, Calif.

As he delivers a pass, Giannis Antetokounmpo of the Bucks gets sandwiched between Robert Williams III and Mike Muscala of the Celtics in Milwaukee.

Franz Wagner of the Magic needs help after being surrounded by Caleb Martin of the Heat in Orlando, Fla.

Yikes! Who’s been guarding Nikola Jokić of the Nuggets: Edward Scissorhands and Freddy Krueger?

Brandon Clark of the Grizzlies soars high for a slam over Rudy Gobert of the Timberwolves in Memphis, Tenn.

Isaiah Livers of the Pistons almost takes off too far away on this jam, which just got by Jakob Poeltl of the Raptors in Detroit.

One final defensive gem for this month’s gallery: Isaiah Jackson of the Pacers denies this shot by Lauri Markkanen of the Jazz in Indianapolis.

Damian Lillard have yourself a game! The Trail Blazers guard, dunking over Jabari Smith Jr. of the Rockets on Sunday in Portland, Ore., set franchise and career marks with 71 points, tying him for the most in the NBA this season. He also connected on 13 3-pointers in the Trail Blazers’ 131 -114 victory. By halftime, Lillard had 41 points and eight 3-pointers. Overall, he made 22 of 38 shots from the field and was 14 of 14 from the free-throw line. Lillard tied Donovan Mitchell, Elgin Baylor (1960) and David Robinson (1994) for the eighth-most points scored in a game in NBA history. Wilt Chamberlain scored 100 points for the Sixers in 1962. Mitchell scored 71 points for the Cavaliers in a win over the Bulls on Jan. 2.

Parting shot

Mac McClung didn’t disappoint during the All-Star Game festivities in Salt Lake City. The 76ers high-flying guard won the NBA Slam Dunk Contest with incredible and entertaining slams like this one.

(Top photo of Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and LeBron James: Gary A. Vasquez / USA Today)

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