While Day 2 of the NCAA Tournament wasn’t as wild and crazy as Day 1, it wasn’t without drama. But we’ll get to that in a little bit … Apparently not worried about the college competition, the NBA had an 11-game schedule that included some good matchups. Hawks/Bobcats featured the return of Joe Johnson, who’d missed a couple games with an Achilles injury. As Michael Jordan (Joe’s boss at Jordan Brand) sat courtside, Joe had only two points through three quarters, then he dropped buckets unexpectedly like bird s***, dominating the fourth and overtime. Read More »
For the most part, opinions were split when Ben Gordon signed a five-year contract with the Detroit Pistons last summer reported to be worth $55 million.
On one hand, the 26-year-old BG was just coming off the best season of his pro career, which he capped by averaging 24.3 points and hitting a slew of clutch shots in a close playoff series loss to the defending champion Celtics. On the other hand, was it smart for the rebuilding Pistons to give All-Star type money to an undersized two-guard (with zero All-Star nods) who is widely regarded as a one-dimensional scorer? Read More »
Down 10 going into the fourth quarter against the reigning Eastern Conference champs, it seemed Kobe was just waiting for the perfect set-up to steal another team’s heart. Scoring a modest 16 points through three quarters, Kobe hit back-to-back jumpers to open the fourth, then later went on a personal 7-0 run to cut Orlando’s lead to two with about 4:30 remaining. Read More »
For some inexplicable reason, while the ESPN announcers were recapping last night’s Cavs/Pistons game as Cleveland was putting the finishing touches on another W, they failed to explore the possibility that Detroit was shaken up by what had happened to Rodney Stuckey, or go into how it affected their play … During a timeout late in the third quarter, Stuckey was coming of the court and said he felt dizzy. He then collapsed on the bench right next to the Pistons’ trainer, and had to be rushed away in ambulance. After that, there was a somber, strange vibe in the arena that even translated through the TV. Read More »
The best play I saw Wednesday night didn’t crack NBA.com’s Top 10 list — probably because the OKC Thunder were too busy getting flogged in Denver for anybody to remember a highlight on their end.
It happened in the first half: Russell Westbrook split a double-team on the perimeter, got to the rack 0.2 seconds later and barreled over Nene, which caused Birdman to fall down on the domino effect, then Westbrook dropped off a pass to Serge Ibaka for a dunk. There was nothing particularly special about the dish or the dunk — I was more amazed that, on one play, Westbrook had left four bodies in his wake. Read More »
As the League pulls into the All-Star break, we rank each team from worst to first…
30. New Jersey Nets (4-48)MVP: Brook Lopez (18.8 ppg, 9 rpg, 1.9 bpg)
We know Louisville isn’t having the best year, and Rick Pitino has some skeletons falling out of the closet down there, but does he really want to get involved in this mess? Jersey seems like more of a job for Whoopi Goldberg.
29. Golden State Warriors (14-37)
MVP: Monta Ellis (26.2 ppg, 5.4 apg, 2.1 spg)
With their collection of D-League call-ups, guys in and out of the lineup with injuries, national college sweetheart Stephen Curry prominently involved, and perhaps the League’s most passionate fan base, the Warriors would be a feel-good story on par with the Rockets — if only they could win some games. Read More »
Beast of the Night:Stephen Curry was bananas last night, as he destroyed the Clippers with 36 points, 7 threes, 10 rebounds, 13 assists and 3 steals. He shot 50 percent (11-22) from the floor, 88 percent (7-8) from the line and had 6 turnovers. Curry clearly benefited from Monta Ellis’ absence, but has been a fantasy whiz even with Ellis in the lineup. Read More »
For a No. 2 pick, Hasheem Thabeet is having a horrible season. And I’m sure this dunk didn’t help him feel good about himself either. Even though the Pistons are not going to make the playoffs (and the Grizzlies very well could), Rodney Stuckey can throw this poster up on his fall as he dunked on the 7-3 rookie.
