Brand New Ice
Carmelo Anthony (photo. Mannion)Don’t let the banged-up elbow or the presence of Chauncey and J.R. Smith fool you: Carmelo can still get buckets like almost none other. ‘Melo topped his season-high of 30 points last night against the Wolves, dropping 33 IN THE THIRD QUARTER ALONE, tying Iceman Gervin‘s League record for points in a quarter. We’re not sure if he was aware of the Gervin correlation, but at one point ‘Melo — who finished with 45 in the win — was sitting on the bench with his arm wrapped in ice like he was C.C.Sabathia after a complete game. Would this be one of those times where Minnesota misses Corey Brewer? … After losing to the slumping (and generally terrible) Kings on Tuesday and barely edging out short-handed Phoenix last night, should we be worried about the Lakers? If nothing else, Kobe (18 pts) is becoming adept at making lame excuses; in Sacramento he was thrown off by the lack of fans, and yesterday Kobe said, “That’s what always happens when a team has eight players, nine players. They always come out with a lot of energy.” He must be watching the Knicks a lot lately … The Suns played without Shaq (family funeral) and without the acquisitions from Wednesday’s big trade. But at least Matt Barnes got to say he took 20 shots in an NBA game once … Could you tell that Andrew Bynum feels like he owns Amare? It seemed every time he got the ball and felt Amare on his back, Bynum (17 pts, 11 rebs) was looking to score. This must date back to Christmas ’07, when he dropped 28 on Amare … It wasn’t a rout, but LeBron (29 pts) and the Cavs stretched the win streak to 10 in Philly. They might need to be on upset watch, too. Boobie (toe) is already out for two weeks, and Big Z hurt his ankle last night … You know when LeBron is in town all the celebs come out, and Philly is no different. Bernard Hopkins, Jimmy Rollins and Brian Westbrook were among those in the stands … When they weren’t busy getting blitzed, the Raptors finally got to show what Jay Triano wants to do: more running, less half-court, tougher defense. (Which is all anyone wanted from Sam Mitchell, really.) And it was actually the D that proved the difference in beating the Pacers, i.e. forcing guys who shouldn’t be taking a lot of jumpers (Marquis Daniels, StephenJoey Graham, T.J. Ford) into taking jumpers. Meanwhile, during a decisive 14-0 run in the second quarter, the other Graham twin and Jamario Moon — who later had a tip dunk where he damn near jumped over Danny Granger‘s head — looked like scoring savants. Indiana was stuck in the 70′s well into the third quarter and got blown out despite a monster night from Troy Murphy (20 pts, 20 rebs, 4 threes) … From an individual standpoint, Jermaine O’Neal‘s first game against his former squad was uneventful. A minute and a half into the first quarter, J.O. was on the bench with two fouls, and he ended up with 10 points, nine boards and three blocks …
Chris Paul (photo. Zach Wolfe)Chris Paul had one of those Stockton/Rodman/Mutombo nights, dominating Hornets/Bobcats while hardly shooting the ball. Scoring 15 points on just five shots, CP controlled the tempo, handing out 15 dimes in a rout. The Hornets were rocking the old New Orleans Buccaneers ABA jerseys, which were kinda dope … OKC’s play-by-play guy put it best as the Grizzlies put the finishing touches on another Thunder loss: “It seems like every night, the Thunder bang their head on a different part of the ceiling.” Kevin Durant dropped 28 points, his team shot 51% from the field, and they were ahead by 21 before blowing the lead. Going into the fourth, OKC was up seven and the announcer went into this long-winded speech about how Nick Collison‘s playoff experience with the Sonics will help the Thunder, how now it was time to “stand and deliver.” Next thing you know, Greg Buckner and Quinton Ross were getting buckets, OKC couldn’t hang onto the ball, and the Grizzlies had the lead … Marc Iavaroni kept Rudy Gay and O.J. Mayo on the bench for most of the fourth (for defensive purposes, we’d imagine), and O.J. actually never got off the bench in that final stretch. Right before Rudy came back in during the final few minutes, OKC’s color analyst decided that maybe it was best to keep Buckner and Ross on the court. A minute later, Rudy hit a baseline fadeaway that Buckner couldn’t make if he were in a gym by himself for two hours … Or maybe Iavaroni put Rudy in by himself to boost his confidence that he’s still The Guy. Earlier in the game, Rudy made a silly mistake and O.J. chewed him out, prompting one of the announcers to say, “If Rudy Gay doesn’t get his act together, Mayo can make sure he doesn’t see the ball the rest of the night.” … We’ve got another ballplayer lined up for our “Post Up” feature. Kenyon Martin answered Dime reader questions the other day, and we’ll have Josh Childress‘ answers later today. Next up: Shane Battier. If you’ve got a question for Shane about anything from the Rockets, the NBA, life, or whatever else, ask him HERE … We’re out like Raja …
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December 11th, 2008 at 4:37 am
Sambuu says:
neg
December 11th, 2008 at 4:52 am
K Dizzle says:
Kobe can talk any mess he wants if we keep winnin.
Part VI – Bynum or Oden…….Bynum. That alley oop and-one is becomin the signature
I’m out like my Lakers losin 2 in a row…..and Melo haters – that was ridiculous
December 11th, 2008 at 5:01 am
the_don_mega says:
“If Rudy Gay doesn’t get his act together, Mayo can make sure he doesn’t see the ball the rest of the night.”
… priceless!
December 11th, 2008 at 6:14 am
YOUNGFED..."I'm at the call of duty but my metal gears solid" says:
Mayo is the leader and everybody knows this. Thats why he but Rudy in check last night.
YOUNGFEDS BANGER OF THE DAY: Ludacris
http://www.xxlmag.com/online/?p=31415
December 11th, 2008 at 7:02 am
Ashlov says:
I see a trade demand in the future for Gay.
December 11th, 2008 at 7:24 am
Three Stacks says:
Lakers have been playing uninspired basketball for about two weeks now, and I am officially starting to worry. Yeah, they’re still the best team in the West, top 3 in the L no matter how you look at it…but they’re not beating the Celtics playing like this.
Some of the players don’t seem into the game at times. Kobe is not shooting very well, 2nd unit turns the ball over way too much, defense is failing in 4th quarters, etc. They need to play better if they want the chip.
December 11th, 2008 at 7:34 am
Toan says:
@Three Stacks…i agree but the problem is that they are still winning games…they need better competition. they need 2 3 good teams in a row. and when they play like this then there will be a losing streak and maybe then they will get more active.
December 11th, 2008 at 7:44 am
Dumbfounded says:
Who gets chewed out by a rookie? How much self-respect do you lack when a rook can come in and take your team over?
December 11th, 2008 at 8:09 am
vinny says:
no love for the jersey boys killing the nets??
December 11th, 2008 at 8:19 am
rangerjohn says:
oh come on dime the freak THUNDER are getting more run the nthe spurs these days!!! was an ugly game htough, spurs damn near gave it up and how about parker sitting most of the 4th? he played like ASS!
December 11th, 2008 at 8:19 am
that's whats up says:
I watched Vernon Headcase Maxwell drop 30 in a quarter as a Rocket, but I didn’t think anyone could really tie up the Iceman.
Props to Melo.
Oh wait, they were playin’ the Timberwusses???? sheeeeiiiiiitt
December 11th, 2008 at 8:31 am
Russ says:
There goes your theory about 20 pt 20 rebound games and always winning!
December 11th, 2008 at 8:39 am
John says:
I´m not a Kobe hater, but he´s shooting 45% from the field and 27% from 3 pt. When you play on a team that are winning by 25 every game, aren´t you supose to have good fg% ? I undestand if you have to shoot 30 times the ball because you are the only good thing on the team, but he´s having a very good suporting cast, he´s playing 1×1 and still doesn´t get 50% from the field. Ok, ok, the Lakers are winning, but as someone said, that will not be enough against the Celtics in the finals, damn, I think that a healthy and motivate Suns can beat this Lakers . Peace
December 11th, 2008 at 8:44 am
GEE...What up Home Skillet! says:
Houston up!
First props to Melo! Dude didn’t look like his old self. I wish he would play with that much energy and get up always. If there is one player outside of Sheed that I think takes days off it’s Carmelo.
He has such great ability. Perhaps he is a guy who has to be motivated. Like he said Chauncy told him “You go get it”.
Either way it was great to see and hopefully this will spark him to get after it more.
The Suns might as well change their name to the Phoenix Problems. Cause that’s all that is coming to other squads.
Matt Barnes is wack I don’t care how many points he scores.
Props to San An for pullin out that win after playing that hard double ot. Hawks got to do better (that was for my wife).
December 11th, 2008 at 8:58 am
Kobeef says:
So much for Kevin McHale’s theory that Rashad McCants is a starting SG. We’re only 2 games into MCHale’s reign as coach but I think he is starting to understand that the team he put together really sucks.
December 11th, 2008 at 9:00 am
srb says:
last night I saw a guy in a Connecticut prison who looked exactly like Glen Davis. So I asked him if he ever heard that before, but he had no clue who Big Baby was. (I’m assuming because he’s been locked up since 2004).
The funny thing was that he pulled a snack out of nowhere, just like I would expect Glen Davis to do.
December 11th, 2008 at 9:25 am
justice(knicks fan) says:
dude last night they got night visits in prison connecticut? or u work there?
December 11th, 2008 at 9:35 am
calvin brodus says:
Where the Melo haters at? Nugs are coming out tops in the northwest. P-Town is legit, and they may finish over .600, but nugs will best that. Last season the nugs would laid down and lost the home game to the shitty t-wolves after being down by 12 at the half. Not this year. Last night Melo loc’d the fuck out and killed that shit after a bad first half. “No one on the corner got swagger like us.” Thank God for that Chauncey trade. There is no way we would be playing like this if we stuck with Ivy. I love AI, but I’m glad he’s living in Philly these days.
December 11th, 2008 at 9:43 am
ERIC says:
Talking about OJ Mayo not in the game in the 4th, OKC’s announcer said “there’s not Mayo on this sandwhich”..haha i thought that was funny.
AND OKC needs a coach who knows how to run plays through Durant. KD should be what Kobe/LeBron/Wade are to their respective teams, but I was watching the game and there would be stretched 4-5 times down the floor in a row where Durant wouldnt even touch the ball.
December 11th, 2008 at 9:57 am
Ansonious says:
Anyone else think the Jazz should trade Boozer? I think Millsap has proven he is the replacement for him and the Jazz should cash in while they have the chance. Gay for Boozer? @ dime your thoughts on this subject?
December 11th, 2008 at 10:40 am
LakeShow84 says:
Kobe should’ve had Surgery.. His 3 point shit is seriously off..
December 11th, 2008 at 10:42 am
Kobeef says:
Forgot to mention this but Jason Kopono went off last night in the raps win. Who knew that guy could do anything other than shoot spot-up threes?
Seriously, if I was the raps coach I would move Kopono to the starting lineup. He was awesome.
December 11th, 2008 at 10:44 am
that's whats up says:
Jason Richardson sent Steve Nash a text message last night that said “I’m open”
December 11th, 2008 at 10:44 am
Kobeef says:
Kopono’s line from last night
11-16 Fg (3-7 3pt) 25 pts, 8 reb (!) 2 assists.
Who knew Kopono had that in him? Rebounds???!!
December 11th, 2008 at 10:48 am
that's whats up says:
…and I’m out like Steve Nash ever getting the ball back
December 11th, 2008 at 11:15 am
rangerjohn says:
LMAO @ thats whats up
December 11th, 2008 at 11:17 am
Drink the Haterade (KB24 Chip 09) says:
Lakers might be winning, but barely as Three Stacks said ” they will not beat the Celtics playing like this”
He’s right! We need to get tougher, more physical and better defense needs to be played.
I say we trade LO for Felton and Crash. Or we could trade for Nocioni and Kirk. Something, Damn! We need to do something.
December 11th, 2008 at 11:19 am
Austin Burton says:
@Drink the Haterade — How would Phil work out the three-PG rotation with Fisher, Farmar and Felton/Hinrich?
December 11th, 2008 at 11:49 am
Drink the Haterade (KB24 Chip 09) says:
The Lakers would have to trade away Farmar as well for that to work. I like the kid, but sometimes he just settles way too much for that jumper, maybe we could package him in a trade or something. But I fell we need a better PG, both of those guys are better than Farmar and we need to do something to be a tougher team, insert Crash or Nocioni and there you have toughness. It’s like the Lakers are scared to guard somebody, F That! If the dude goes up for the shot on the lane, what’s the rule NO EASY buckets, they give up way too many.
December 11th, 2008 at 11:50 am
Monkey says:
the lines about lakers just couldn’t be more ridiculous..
December 11th, 2008 at 11:58 am
Mamba says:
Lake Show will be fine, its to early for the hootin and hollerin,
They really have yet to find a stride, I thought that was a great point one of the posters put about Kobe not having the surgery though, perhaps that could be a nagging issue? or maybe its nothing, who knows,
At any rate Im not to concerned at this point, they havent played anyone in the last few games and need a challenge to rise up to….oh wait!….its coming on Dec. 25th
I will be propped up in front of the flat screen with a nice Goose on the Rocks, time for the karma to come to the Celts! – Lakers will be fine, See you in June Boston
December 11th, 2008 at 12:02 pm
dapro says:
The same thing that caused the Lakers to lose in the finals will be the reason they won’t win this year
Defense and toughness
The EAST thrives on Defense and toughness
Cleveland and Detroit will have off shooting nights but the defense will remain solid for majority of the game meanwhile the Lakers will struggle against physical teams that impose their will defensively
December 11th, 2008 at 12:39 pm
Big V says:
No mention of Q. Rich’s skying on the alley-oop against the Nets?? I’m disappointed.
December 11th, 2008 at 12:44 pm
K Dizzle says:
Some o you suspect Laker fans need to calm down. When we were bustin on teams by 30 and Kobe was sittin out 4th quarters, there was silence.Now dudes are goin straight into panic mode. Back to reality. We lost to a good detroit team who had a great game cuz like most teams, they got up for the Lakers then been shit ever since. Then Indiana got lucky with a bs tip at the buzzer. The sacramento game was trash, but I saw Jordan’s 72-10 team lose to the Vancouver Grizzlies so that shit just happens. Instead of talkin all this mess about tearin up the strongest bench in the l, try to see that Gasol and Bynum are meshin better than all the haters who posted the “Bynum won’t be shit. Him and ‘Gasoft’ won’t be able to play together. Odom won’t be able to come off the bench blah blah blah.” Sorry, but Kobe ain’t gettin up for Matt Barnes and AB and Pau were killin. Lamar had a solid game, Sasha came off the bench to get 15 efficiently on 5 shots and Fisher hounded Nash. Who cares if Farmar had a bad game or Kobe ‘only made shots at crunchtime again’ It’s a win. At least we winnin the ugly ones. Get the digits off the panic button. We the only 18-3 team that gets fans losin it after a win
Damn
December 11th, 2008 at 1:08 pm
Three Stacks says:
Ummm, I’m not sure about the rest of them, but I never felt confident the Lakers were winning a title because they blew teams out be 30 in the first two weeks of the season.
This has nothing to do with record, if you scrutinize the past few Laker games, the team is not playing well.
And this doesn’t mean the Lakers aren’t a good team, they are a great team. But if your defense fails on you consistently in 4th quarters, as it has been doing the past two weeks, I’d say that’s something that needs to be addressed ASAP.
December 11th, 2008 at 1:08 pm
dapro says:
K Dizzle
Point is you have to beat the teams your supposed too and dominate them
You can’t let teams hang around and expect to turn it on at will
It’s a lack of defensive intensity, when the Lakers can’t make buckets then they’re in trouble
Playoff time will show every teams flaws not just the Lakers
December 11th, 2008 at 1:13 pm
John says:
I´m not a Lakers fan, but a team or a player can not simply “turn it on” when the time comes (I´m talking to you Shaq). Lakers doesnt need trades, they just need someone to push them to the limit. And I blame Phil Jackson for this, the guy have 10 rings (6 bulls, 3 lakers, 1 knicks ??? I think) and he doesnt seem hungry ,,, I rather have Popovich , and by the way, I am a Heat fan, not a Spurs ,,,
December 11th, 2008 at 1:14 pm
doug says:
John if you start a blog by saying your not a Kobe hater, chances are your probably a kobe hater.It’s like the guy who prefaces every statement with,”i’m not trying to offend anyone” but he’s constantly offending people.It’s an admission more than anything to your hating and it’s punctuated by you saying a motivated Suns team can beat the Lakers. You definitely have all the symptoms of hatred, 1.)Prefacing your blog with i’m not a kobe hater 2.)Logical thinking and common sense are impaired due to your hatred for a particular player or team, case and point your statement that the suns could beat the Lakers…your delusional John and you should go get checked out. K-Dizzle i’m with you these cats are all freaking out, the Lakers are fine 15 games of .500 is just fine, people don’t understand how hard it is to sustain motivation and intensity over an 82 game season especially with roll over and die teams like the Kings and the Pacers that’s why these teams sneak up on people.
December 11th, 2008 at 1:16 pm
doug says:
John Heat & Dwayne Wade fan = Kobe Hater, your d-wade fans are always trying to put him in the same class with Kobe even Pat Riley when he was coaching the heat the year they won there ship said Kobe is in a different class and that LeBron,D-wade,Carmello are all still trying to get to that level.
December 11th, 2008 at 1:31 pm
K Dizzle says:
@ 3 Stacks – my point is when we actually start losing these really meaningless games then I’ll worry.
It seems like a lotta dudes are nit-pickin. Blow up the bench is a little extreme cuz Phoenix played us close. It’s Phoenix and that’s how they do. Barnes and Hill gettin 25 and 23 probably helped, but am I worried about the Suns in a 7 game series? no.
Nobody mentions that in the cav’s win streak, only one team has been over .500 and Indy beat the Celts and Ray Allen saved them from an embarrassment in overtime. I don’t see Cavs and Celts fans panickin.
one more thing at John or post 13 I think:
Kobe shootin 45% is actually good for the number of jumpers he takes. Just to make my point tho, Paul Pierce is shootin .397…….just sayin
December 11th, 2008 at 1:33 pm
Three Stacks says:
I think compared to the way doug’s lips are superglued to Kobe Bryant’s nuts, everyone would be considered a Kobe hater.
December 11th, 2008 at 1:39 pm
Three Stacks says:
@ K Dizzle
I’m not sure “worry” would be the correct term for me, I’m just concerned. I don’t think the Lakers should trade anyone, or blow up the bench, and definitely not for Felton or Hinrich. They’re a better team than they’re showing now, obviously, but bad habits tend to stick around.
If it’s a matter of effort, I’m okay with giving up a few games here and there. I know it’s hard to keep the intensity for a whole season, and they could be going the Spurs route (turn it on in February). But I’m concerned there’s something fundamentally wrong with the defense that’s making it collapse in the 4th, giving up so many offensive boards and transition buckets and such.
December 11th, 2008 at 1:50 pm
srb says:
is hating kobe the same thing as being a kobe-hater?
December 11th, 2008 at 2:04 pm
BDK23 says:
Rudy Gay traded to the Toronto Raptors for kapono,graham,parker…
December 11th, 2008 at 2:05 pm
BDK23 says:
sigh..if only something ever went right for the raptors…
December 11th, 2008 at 3:05 pm
Austin Burton says:
@KDizzle (and any L.A. fan who feel the same way) — Everyone says the Pacers win was “lucky,” but why was L.A. in that position in the first place? You had a 16-point lead in the 4th quarter. Was that luck that Indy made up the difference?
December 11th, 2008 at 3:08 pm
Three Stacks says:
@ AB
You couldn’t be more right. We lost that game with ten minutes left in game, not on a last second tip shot. The Lakers 2nd unit went on like a 15-0 run to end the 3rd quarter, then they stopped playing.
December 11th, 2008 at 3:22 pm
doug says:
three stacks your an idiot hate is hate no matter what player you throw out there, If you make a statement like a motivated suns team can beat the lakers your a hater, if you preface your sentence by saying i’m not trying to hate, the reality is your preparing the person your saying that too for some hatred. Wise up threestacks..your a clown man, the world would be a better place with out the likes of your ignorance…i don’t know you and you don’t know me.
December 11th, 2008 at 3:38 pm
Three Stacks says:
@ doug
I think you are probably a bigger hater than those you accuse of hating. Hating on people you think hate the people you love, like you said if hate is hate than your hate qualifies as hate as well, right?
Hate, hate, hate…
P.S. Lucky you just gotta type this shit and not speak it, cause your lips are still superglued to Kobe’s nuts.
December 11th, 2008 at 3:54 pm
doug says:
Threestacks there you go blogging about your fantasies my man theres tons of forum for that stuff this isn’t the place. As far as your accusation that I hate on people your wrong man, I call it what it is, I give people there respect. I don’t hate the people that hate Dr.Phil,your getting really deep with this and the more you type the more ignorant you sound. I’m trying to stop the hate be it D.Wade,Kobe,Bron etc.it doesn’t matter who it is. Again man, I don’t know you, you sound real bold over the internet waves with your tough talk. I’m not sure if you use this as a forum to maintain some type of self-esteem because your boss is in you at work or your girl is cheating on you with like 12 of your homies but you’ve chosen the wrong dude to try to regain your self confidence and self esteem on, all i’m going to do is hold the proverbial mirror to your face and make you feel that much worse about your horrible and miserable existence, you waste of DNA…go play somewhere i’m busy.3 stacks? who is this cat?
December 11th, 2008 at 4:23 pm
Three Stacks says:
@ doug
I’m not sure why you feel so threatened by what I said. I didn’t threaten to harm you or fight you in any way, so why even go there?
You might not realize it, but when you jump all over someone for something you THINK they meant, calling people idiots and haters while claiming you yourself are above all that…well, you come off like a giant douchebag.
My self-esteem is fine, it’s yours I’m worried about. It’s okay if I don’t agree with you, that doesn’t mean you’re worthless. There’s more to life than Kobe’s nuts, so good luck with that.
December 11th, 2008 at 4:48 pm
srb says:
guys, you only have to make a point ONCE
December 11th, 2008 at 5:05 pm
K Dizzle says:
@ Austin
Yeah, the Pacers got lucky. The Lakers did give up the lead, but Kobe hit the big shot to take the lead and if you saw the game, you should be shakin your head at the Pacer’s weak execution.Guys missin everything with passes, and a junk shot followed by a Murphy swipe that went in. That whole gong show was why Bynum snapped at Phil for takin him outta the game during crunch time. Bynum’s in that game, the Pacers never get that rebound. Phil outsmarted himself thinkin Murphy would take AB outside instead of leavin him in to board. Phil got cocky. Pacers got lucky.
December 11th, 2008 at 5:27 pm
Three Stacks says:
@ K Dizzle,
Bynum was in the game for the last possession against the Pacers, I remember he checked in after Indiana called a timeout to advance the ball. This was after Kobe missed a jumper to make it a 3 point game.
That last play was all over the place, an obviously broken play that had 3 people going after a loose ball. But I remember specifically Bynum overpursued Marquis Daniels when he went to the rim, which let Murphy get open enough to tip the ball in.
December 11th, 2008 at 5:57 pm
K Dizzle says:
my mistake
December 11th, 2008 at 7:35 pm
baron von faulk says:
@Ranger – Tony played like ass cuz dude was “assed out” from playing that double OT. And who closed the game down the stretch? GINOOOOBILIII! (see my post yesterday, he is still the top closer in the game)
And so what Dime didn’t mention them yet again? goto mysa.com and click the Spurs section like the rest of us hafta bro!
@GEE – How in the hell could you leave Elie off that list yesterday, yet you had Ron on there…don’t recall but if Pippen was there you gotta take him off and put Glide there, HOUSTON UP