Shaquille O’Neal (photo. Chenoa Maxwell)Although the elements played an obvious factor, most noticeably in the second half when the temperature started to drop and the wind picked up, the Nuggets/Suns outdoor exhibition game last night was pretty damn cool. Even without ‘Melo (hand) and A.I. (knee) in the lineup, Denver still pulled out the W in a low-scoring affair, 77-72, as J.R. Smith and Mateen Cleaves has a team-high 12 points apiece. Both teams struggled shooting the ball — neither cracked 37 percent from the field, they were a combined 3-for-27 beyond the arc, and the Nuggets made 47 percent from the stripe. And as the game went on, not only were the fans bundling up in the stands, you saw players on the bench wrapped up in towels and warm-ups to keep from freezing. (Meanwhile, somewhere out there, the playground lifers were shaking their heads at how soft the NBA guys are.) … At one point Shaq was sharing the court with Goran Dragic, Alando Tucker, Louis Amundson and Matt Barnes (or “Matt Burns” according to Charles Barkley), and they inexplicably wouldn’t get him the ball. Chuck rightfully called them out. “This is a bunch of Tito Jacksons out there with Michael Jackson,” Barkley said … One of the Dime crew sent along this e-mail in the first half: “I’m officially jumping on the Nash bandwagon. Last year I jocked Kobe, but watching Nash run the break is so exciting, even when it’s Louis Amundson on the wing.” … Are the Lopez twins about to mess around and actually succeed at this level? We haven’t seen Brook outside of the summer league setting (where he played well), but Robin did his thing last night, putting up 8 points and blocking 7 shots. Offensively, “The other Lopez” has good hands and finishes at the rim; he never stops going 110 percent; and he’s got GREAT timing when it comes to blocking shots. In one sequence Lopez stuffed Nene as he was going in for what he thought was a dunk, then a couple plays later sent K-Mart to the deck when he rejected one of his dunk attempts. Lopez isn’t so much of a Dwight Howard-type who spikes the ball out of the sky and into the fourth row — he’s more someone who gets the ball just as it’s leaving the shooter’s hand and does it without fouling. Robin does need to step up his interview game, though; at halftime he sounded like Gheorge Muresan coming off the court … TNT’s announce team of Marv Albert, Reggie Miller and Barkley are perfect for a preseason game. At those times when it’s easy to stop paying attention — like when Ruben Patterson vs. Alando Tucker is the most intriguing matchup on the court — Marv, Reggie and Chuck are hilarious with their side stories and discussions about everything from the economic crisis to streetball to sexism … Blame it on the weather if you want, but Matt Barnes and Anthony Carter were in rare form putting dents in the rim. And Birdman Andersen should never be allowed to shoot a three. Ever. Never. We’re calling for George Karl to be fined the next time it happens … The bigger story surrounding Monta Ellis‘ unpaid 30-game suspension, which the Warriors hit him with yesterday, is what the decision says about Golden State’s front office. Reportedly Chris Mullin and Nellie didn’t want to punish Monta, but GS owner Chris Cohan and president Robert Rowell pulled rank, signaling a rift between the higher-ups. With Mullin and Nellie in the final year of their contracts, it’s something to keep an eye on. Monta’s suspension probably won’t cover any games he could play in after he’s healthy, so the point really was to take away his paycheck as punishment … Meanwhile, the rest of the Warriors 20-pieced the Thunder last night, getting 22 points from Marco Bellineli and 18 from DeMarcus Nelson. Damien Wilkins led OKC with 23 points, while Kevin Durant had 16 and 14 boards … The Celtics’ win over the Rockets last night was pretty identical to their win over the Cavs from Friday night. Gabe Pruitt hit the go-ahead bucket on a fadeaway banker with six seconds left, then Darius Miles blocked Luis Scola’s attempted game-winner on Houston’s last try … On one Boston possession in the first half, Bill Walker was cutting through the lane when T-Mac shoved him (with same arm as his injured shoulder) and Walker went flying like he’d been thrown out of the house by Uncle Phil. That kicked off an incident between the teams, during which Eddie House and T-Mac almost got into a fight … Detroit’s backcourt of the future looked like future All-Stars against the Bucks; Arron Afflalo dropped 28 points (10-for-12 FG’s), while Rodney Stuckey put up 15 points and 10 assists. Chauncey Billups left the game in the third quarter with an ankle injury, but he said it’s nothing too serious … Your Lamar Odom vs. Phil Jackson update: Odom practiced mostly with the second unit on Saturday, but Phil said he’s not sure yet if he wants to bring L.O. off the bench … We’re out like Birdman getting the green light …
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October 12th, 2008 at 4:45 am
Big Sneezy says:
Mopeds are a bitch, then you die.
October 12th, 2008 at 4:47 am
Flying-Aussie-Dutchman says:
Marco Bellineli looks like a skinny Sylvester Stallone
October 12th, 2008 at 5:23 am
smity far away says:
@ Big Sneezy
nice…Nas and Az feat Monta
October 12th, 2008 at 5:23 am
alf (from melmak) says:
if i follow sir charles’ logic, it would mean that shaq also has a thing kids? man, if that was the case, it would be the biggest scandal for 2008.
October 12th, 2008 at 6:20 am
Steve Nasty says:
“being trown out the house by Uncle Phil” …classic
October 12th, 2008 at 6:29 am
Wes says:
How many dunks did JR Smith have against the Suns??
http://ezinearticles.com/?JR-Smith-NBA-Or-How-To-Dunk-A-Basketball&id=839124
October 12th, 2008 at 8:42 am
miamiVIS3 says:
That Stuckey Afflalo backcourt is gonna be scary.
October 12th, 2008 at 8:44 am
YOUNGFED says:
FEDRODOMOUS PREDICTS: Michael Curry for Coach of the Year.
Also is it me or is this shaping up to be best rookie class since the the Melo, Bron, Wade, Bosh and Darko (lmao) era.
October 12th, 2008 at 8:50 am
YOUNGFED says:
Almost forgot the Pistons are looking CRAZY good. I didn’t know Afflalo good put up numba’s like that. Even Kwame hushed his haters last nite. Curry will be the new Zen Master if he figures out how to maximize this team. Hell we’re so good that can’t even get Hermann minutes and he could probably be starting somewhere.
October 12th, 2008 at 9:07 am
it ain't easy being green says:
Imma start off by saying I’m a huge bill walker fan. The guys got crazy athleticism. He’s a finisher. I’m also expecting big things out of tony allen off the bench this year. Hopefully the knee holds up. Affallo and stuckey worry me quite a bit. These two, along with maxiell are gonna keep the D in the upper echilon of the east for a while longer.
@ dime - that uncle phil shit was good
October 12th, 2008 at 9:32 am
FK in T-Oh says:
Robin Lopez is Anderson Varajao West
October 12th, 2008 at 9:39 am
Jei says:
I love the way Phil is messing with LO’s mind!
October 12th, 2008 at 9:45 am
rodnets says:
I used to play in a playground in south Argentina with temperatures below 0. This NBA players are paid so much that a court in the pole should be installed and they should act like its miami or something.
Poll of the day. Who is the scariest?
Robert “Englund” Swift
or
Chris “Birdman” Andersen
Peace
October 12th, 2008 at 9:58 am
NC says:
I was once playing in shorts and a t-shirt in minus 15 celcius weather…& when my teammate and I decided to quit, the guy on the other team said, “For the first time we have quiters on the court.” Me and my boy grabbed the ball and said, “Check that up. NOW.”
October 12th, 2008 at 11:09 am
sxrs says:
Just a little remark; the 2k9 add is messing up the otherwise neat layout of the site
October 12th, 2008 at 11:47 am
rodnets says:
Chris Kaman, another scary dude for the poll
October 12th, 2008 at 11:53 am
miamiVIS3 says:
yeah sxrs is right I’m down with 2k9 but u gotta fix that
October 12th, 2008 at 11:58 am
Dagomar says:
Larry Hughes is pretty damn scary too. Who would have guessed a Suns/Nuggets game would go to the team that scored 77 points?
October 12th, 2008 at 1:16 pm
parinaz suns says:
ppl always say how suns fans whine too much but its bc whenever there is a nationally broadcasted game they ALWAYS bring up the horry shove like they did again last night. but lopez looks like he is really going to bring something to the suns. probably the only good thing kerr has done to the suns…
October 12th, 2008 at 1:51 pm
QuEsT??? says:
@ dime nice reference to the fresh prince
October 12th, 2008 at 3:22 pm
barons beard says:
That Uncle Phil ish was hilarious!!
October 12th, 2008 at 3:31 pm
hoopsguru says:
As much as I love the NBA, whats with the whinning about being outside? And a preseason game to boot without AI and Melo???? The NHL plays outdoors, regular season mean something game! I can understand not playing on cement, but have this game mean something!
October 12th, 2008 at 5:06 pm
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! says:
Yea the game being pre-season made it weak to watch…good to see Balkman on the Nuggets I forgot they picked him up. Hated to see Karl out there still
October 12th, 2008 at 8:53 pm
Tim says:
Billups / Hamilton
Stuckey / Afflalo
I’m glad to see Afflalo have such a break out game…granted it was preseason and it was the bucks…but if he can consistently get less than half of those points a night…it’ll be fantastic…there seems to be a new Piston breaking out each preseason game…maybe Kwame will be next…although he wasn’t too bad, some points boards and blocks…thats all we need from him.
Seriously, if the Pistons are 100 percent healthy, with this deep a bench, I dont think Boston or Cleveland can hang…oh and Sheed has to be playing focused too…almost forgot that haha…
100% healthy Pistons team and focused Sheed equals easy wins against both.
hey YOUNGFED
How you feeling about Amir starting so far? the one game on TV, he looked decent…his stats didn’t show it…but I think he’s gonna be good
October 12th, 2008 at 8:56 pm
Tim says:
oh and one more thing…If Chauncey’s ankle is bugging him…it’ nice to know we have Stuckey on the bench to take over and dominate…
October 12th, 2008 at 9:31 pm
kowtz says:
“The NHL plays outdoors, regular season mean something game! I can understand not playing on cement, but have this game mean something!”
Hahahahaha… you serious?
1. whether outdoors or indoors, NHL must play on ice right?
2. whether outdoors or indoors, NHL players do play in the freezing cold right?
What’s the difference?
Side Noe: I hate OKC unis… I think they’re like saving the good design when OK people are not that interested in a losing team anymore…
Then they release new unis… getting income out of it…
I mean check the history… teams who don’t get much love from fans regularly change unis to jack up jersey sales…
October 13th, 2008 at 9:34 am
MSkittle says:
You guys didn’t mention Scola’s game-winner attempt. With only .4 seconds to go, why was his release so slow!
October 13th, 2008 at 10:56 am
QQ says:
Haha, Chuck’s the best. And damn, that young DETROIIITTT!!! guards are fine, hope it translates to season and playoffs play.
October 13th, 2008 at 7:52 pm
hoopsguru says:
KOWTZ
1) yes i am serious……duh they play hockey on ice, I said, i understand not playing the NBA game on cement…and no, it’s not FREEZING cold, have you never been to a hockey rink? It’s not FREEZING, cold yes, freezing no.
All i stated was that the game should have meant something, make it a regular season game, so the fans have a reason to go, not just to watch a bunch of pine riders or to see to of the highest scoring teams in the league hit for 77-70.