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Morning Shootaround — March 4

March 4, 2013  ·  7:27AM

Missed a game last night? Wondering what the latest news around the NBA is this morning? The Morning Shootaround is here to try to meet those needs and keep you up on what’s happened around the league since the day turned.

The one recap to watch: Another great night of games league-wide, starting with the Heat extending their win streak to a team record-tying 14 games, the Pacers taking a key division game against the Bulls, the Thunder sweeping the Clips and the Spurs showing they’re more than just the Tony Parker show. All that said, it’s hard to pick against the Hawks-Lakers game from Staples Center last night. As our man Sekou Smith pointed out, Kobe Bryant not only was in “Black Mamba” mode, but apparently in “#Vino” mode, too. Aside from a classic Kobe jam on poor Josh Smith in this one, this was a good back-and-forth game that saw Bryant deliver the heroics down the stretch and get L.A. back to the .500 mark that so many of us thought they’d be well above by this point of the season.

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News of the morning

Ginobili eyes two more years in NBA? | Vogel gets milestone win vs. Bulls | Smith thinks Howard will stay in L.A. | Stoudemire unfairly benched?| Bynum pondering arthroscopic surgery

Ginobili eyeing next contract, future — Spurs swingman Manu Ginobili is a free agent this summer and, barring a total surprise, will likely be back with the only NBA team he’s known for 2013-14. Still, as likely as it is that Ginobili will be a “Spur for life” (like fellow teammate Tim Duncan called himself a few years ago), how many more seasons of Ginobili will Spurs fans get? Buck Harvey of the San Antonio Express-News caught up with Manu for some thoughts on his future and more:

Ginobili will be back next season, though he says there are no guarantees. At his age, he says, it’s year to year.

“But ask me right now,” he said Sunday, “and I’d like to play two more years for sure.”

His fans would prefer 10 years, but at least his timeline fits with others. Tony Parker and Tim Duncan, for example, currently have contracts through 2015.

Ginobili’s contract ends this summer. And while he’s currently the highest-paid Spur, it’s likely a hometown compromise could be reached with him as it was with Duncan before.

He acknowledged Sunday he feels the years. “Little things” that wouldn’t have physically bothered him before now do. Given that, he eats better, and he stretches more, and he says he’s “less crazy” than he was eight years ago.

Less crazy?

He smiled, acting out how he pulled back against the Pistons, when there were few signs he actually did. After his only turnover, for example, he sprinted back to draw a charge.

Still crazy after all these years. “And I love that,” Stephen Jackson said. “I’d rather play with someone like him, who plays hard and gets hurt, than someone who is afraid.”

…

But if he’s always been crazy, he’s also always found his game after injuries. That’s why the next few weeks, in Parker’s absence, will give better evidence of where Ginobili is in his career.

Still, even if he can only play in bursts from now on, there will always be a place for the Ginobili who played Sunday.

Pacers’ Vogel gets win No. 100 — Crack open the Indiana Pacers record book and you’ll see Larry Bird as the club’s all-time coaching winning percentage leader. The guy right behind him? Larry Brown? Slick Leonard? Isiah Thomas? Nope. It’s none other than the current man stalking the sidelines, Frank Vogel, who got career win No. 100 in last night’s nail-biting victory over the Bulls. Bob Kravitz of The Indianapolis Star has more on Vogel, the win and his still-surprising rise to NBA coach:

How lucky did the Indiana Pacers get when they plucked the no-name assistant off Jim O’Brien’s 21/2 years ago and made him an interim head coach?

And how fortunate does Vogel feel after starting his career as a Division III point guard at tiny Juniata (Pa.), then heading to Kentucky, where he talked his way into a job as a manager?

“I never could have imagined I would be in this position,’’ Vogel said Sunday. “Just getting the opportunity to be a head coach, that’s so rare. And then to have such a good and ready basketball team, that’s an absolute blessing.’’

The 39-year-old Vogel is a rising star in the business, a come-from-nowhere guy – well, Jersey, actually – who has a chance to be a long-term answer for this franchise. The Pacers were smart enough to extend his contract earlier in the year, and after a chorus line of three- and four-year stays by previous Pacers coaches, Vogel has shown he can be the rarest of all birds: An NBA coach with staying power.

In 21/2 years, his winning percentage is .608, behind only Larry Bird in the history of the franchise.

…

He changed the culture almost overnight, infusing the team with a newfound passion and direction.

“The first thing he did was preach positivity,’’ said Danny Granger, who left Sunday’s game early with knee soreness. “At first, honestly, a lot of people didn’t believe it, but then we started playing the way he wanted us to play. This league is all about confidence and when your coaches expresses confidence in you, it spills over onto the court.”

…

Nobody benefited more from the O’Brien-to-Vogel change than Roy Hibbert who, by the way, is starting to come out of season-long offensive funk in recent weeks.

“He’s a players’ coach,’’ Hibbert said after a double double (18 points, 10 rebounds and three blocked shots). “He lets us go out there and have fun, but we take things seriously when we go through practice. But he lets us enjoy more. Now we have a voice in the locker room, which we didn’t have before.’’

Hawks’ Smith thinks Dwight will stay put — The friendship between Hawks forward Josh Smith and Lakers center Dwight Howard has been well documented, so it’s only natural that some would go to Smith to pick his brain on whether Howard, a free agent this summer, will stay with the Lakers. Smith provided his own speculation on L.A.’s star big man when he spoke with Mark Medina of the L.A. Daily News before last night’s Hawks-Lakers game:

First, Smith says he has a good idea on whether Howard will stay with the Lakers once he becomes an unrestricted free agent this offseason.

“I can’t pick his brain and be in his head but to me, I don’t see him going anywhere,” Smith said before the Lakers hosted the Hawks at Staples Center. “It would be a shock to me.”

Why?

“Dwight is a loyal athlete and loyal person,” Smith said . “He’s not a quitter and doesn’t run from situations. That’s why I believe with this franchise and the way he’s talked so well about it, I can’t see him going anywhere.”

…

Still, Howard’s encountered frustrations on his first season with the Lakers. That’s included rehabbing from 10-month old back surgery, a torn labrum in his right shoulder, a relatively diminished offensive role and larger media scrutiny.

“He’s grasping that,” Smith said. “He’s trying to find his way on this team and trying to get back healthy. That’s the biggest thing he’s doing and worrying about. He’s getting his legs back under him and he’s starting to block more shots. It’s going to take some time.”

Howard and Smith grew up together in Atlanta and played together on the same AAU team. To this day, they often talk about eventually becoming teammates again.

“Situations like that are far fetched so it’s more, ‘What if we play with each other?’” Smith said. “In AAU basketball, we had a ton of success. You never know what the future entails. But we can talk about it. It might not necessarily happen. But it’s a good conversation.”

But Smith stressed neither he or Howard are actively trying to ensure that outcome.

“If it happens, it’ll be crazy,” Smith said. “But you never know. “

Stoudemire sits as Knicks fall to Heat — Knicks reserve big man Amar’e Stoudemire had 12 points in last night’s loss to the Heat, but only three of those 12 game in the second half. Down the stretch of a tight game with Miami, coach Mike Woodson opted to play fellow reserve J.R. Smith some big minutes while Stoudemire found himself stapled to the bench for the final 7 minutes and 56 seconds of the game. That move hasn’t made some folks in New York happy, starting with Mitch Lawrence of the New York Daily News:

Too much James at the Garden, not enough Knick scoring in the second half, and the last eight minutes in particular, and this is why Mike Woodson now has an Amar’e Stoudemire problem on his hands.

Woodson created it by sitting Stoudemire for the last 7:56 of the Knicks’ 99-93 loss to the Heat. As James and the Heat put the finishing touches on their first win over New York this season, Stoudemire was bolted to the bench, LeBron was locking up Anthony and the Knicks were doomed.

Know this: The Knicks weren’t necessarily going to win if Woodson had called Stoudemire’s number. Not the way James had it going in the final quarter, with 12 points and the best man-to-man defense that Carmelo Anthony has faced this season.

But Woodson made a big mistake by putting his fate in Smith’s hands and not at least trying to get some offense with a proven scorer. Which Smith isn’t, as Woodson readily admitted after the Knicks saw their home record in their last 20 games fall to 11-9.

…

The idea that Smith needs to learn, while Stoudemire already has the credentials as an accomplished All-NBA selection — because of his scoring prowess, first and foremost — made more than one Heat player chuckle in the postgame locker room.

After seeing his team totally outplayed in the second half by a Miami team that shouldn’t have its 14-game winning streak broken any time soon, Woodson admitted that he didn’t even think about putting Stoudemire back in.

…

Not even a little bit, Coach?

“No, at that particular time, I didn’t because they were small and I wanted to go with Tyson (Chandler) against (Chris) Bosh and they played small around Bosh,” he said. “So we just tried to keep the matchup.

“I’m not saying he (Stoudemire) wasn’t a good fit,” Woodson added. “I’m saying that’s the way I decided to go. They were small.”

Knowing a controversy when they see one, Knicks officials wisely ended Woodson’s interview right then and there.

But the controversy isn’t over, no sir. Remember, Woodson was the one who boldly stated that he could make the Anthony-Stoudemire pairing work. But he didn’t even try, on a day when it might have been the best way to go.

Bynum considering arthroscopic surgery on knee — On Friday came the news from Philadelphia that injured center Andrew Bynum said he would be OK with missing the entire season to tend to his still-recovering right knee. While the prospect of a Bynum-less campaign is nothing the Sixers or their fans want to think about, the likelihood of it may be becoming more real based off a report from Jason Wolf of the The (Wilmington) News Journal. Sixers GM Tony DiLeo says the team is waiting to hear whether or not Bynum will have arthroscopic surgery on his knees, which will affect Bynum’s long-term future in Philly:

Sixers general manager Tony DiLeo said that Andrew Bynum is considering arthroscopic surgery on his balky knees and that the organization has yet to decide whether to attempt to sign the one-time All-Star center once he becomes a free agent after this season.

But building around Bynum remains the team’s preferred option, if he’s healthy.

“He is Plan A,” DiLeo said Sunday before the Sixers played the Washington Wizards at the Verizon Center, speaking publicly for the first time since Bynum announced a setback in his rehab from what could be career-threatening knee injuries on Friday.

“Until we get the answers, until we make a decision, whether like you’re saying it’s a calculated decision or a risk management decision, that’s something we’ll have to make at the end of the year, going into free agency, and that’s something he also has [to figure out],” DiLeo said. “He’s unrestricted, he can go anywhere he wants to and it’s his career. And he’s only 25 years old. That’s just something we’ll have to see. We just don’t have all the information now.”

…

Bynum was originally diagnosed with a bone bruise in his right knee in September and with a “mirror issue” in his left knee in November, when a piece of cartilage broke loose and his joint swelled after going bowling. While Bynum said his right knee felt “phenomenal” in February, his left knee remained problematic as he continued to experience pain and a locking sensation in the joint. Now, once again, the right knee is an issue.

Arthroscopic surgery to clean the loose cartilage out of Bynum’s knees would ensure he does not play for the Sixers this season.

…

It remains to be seen whether Bynum’s knee pain can be managed effectively, allowing him to resume his career.

“We haven’t seen him out on the court,” DiLeo said. “So we don’t have all the answers, and hopefully we’ll get some answers. It’s always been our goal to see him healthy, out on the court with us. So far we haven’t been able to see that.”

ICYMI(s) of the night: Gotta love that trip into the wayback dunk machine Kobe Bryant took last night, but you’ve also gotta love this fantastic pass from Manu Ginobili to Kawhi Leonard:

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Horford, Hawks Soaring Post Deadline

February 26, 2013  ·  10:43AM





HANG TIME HEADQUARTERS – In the moments after last Thursday’s trade deadline, when Hawks general manager Danny Ferry emerged from the team’s war room without anything major to report, he laid out a reasoned plan for why the Hawks didn’t do anything significant.

His explanation for not trading Josh Smith, who had been the subject of most of the biggest and best trade rumors heading into the deadline, probably sounded cliché to most.

But Ferry was just speaking the truth — as he sees it — when he made his case.

“We were in an unusual situation with Josh’s contract, our cap space and flexibility going forward, having a good team right now,” Ferry said. “There were a lot of factors that played into this. The main factor is we value Josh. He’s been important to our group this year and we want to finish the year strong. Hopefully, we play well and we’re a solid playoff team in the future.”

Ferry wasn’t necessarily referring to the Hawks’ immediate future. But the players obviously got the message after nothing major happened on deadline day. They’ve won three straight since the deadline, six of their last seven games and have moved into a tie for fourth place with the Brooklyn Nets in the Eastern Conference playoff chase.

Al Horford, still smarting from not making the All-Star team, posted his career-best sixth straight game of 20 or more points (23) and grabbed a career-high tying 22 rebounds in Monday night’s win over the Detroit Pistons. Smith added 23, Jeff Teague 20 and 12 assists and role players Kyle Korver (15 points) and Devin Harris (11) chipped in again with big contributions off the bench.

The Hawks are playing with the same energy that drove them earlier this season. Fueled by doubts that they would remain in the playoff mix after Joe Johnson (Brooklyn) and Marvin Williams (Utah) were traded away in the offseason, they smashed the competition early, scoring big road wins over Oklahoma City and Memphis in the first few weeks of the season.

They struggled in January as the trade rumors heated up around the same time they lost Lou Williams, the team’s biggest offseason acquisition, for the season with a knee injury.

But like they have done so many times the past six seasons, the Hawks continue to do what no thinks them capable of, and that’s grind away against all odds. Coach Larry Drew has done an impressive job of holding things together with a roster filled with players who are probably not in the Hawks’ long-term plans.

That stubbornness/resilience is part of what makes this mismatched group so intriguing.

“We are playing with an edge,” Smith told reporters after the win over the Pistons. “We are playing confident. Whenever we are playing confident like that and just having fun out there, it’s fun to be a part of.”

Getting Smith to buy in for the remainder of this season, and perhaps beyond, is one of Ferry’s main objectives in the coming weeks and months. There were trades on the table for the Hawks, names like Paul Pierce and Amar’e Stoudemire were tossed around, but nothing that included the complete package of assets Ferry was looking for in exchange for a player he values the way he does Smith.

“You weigh everything as you make decisions with your roster and with trades,” Ferry said. “I understand the media and the bloggers and the people who are NBA junkies, it was a very Josh-focused trade deadline here in Atlanta. But we talked about a lot of different things. We did a couple different things. We weighed the positives and negatives of each of our opportunities, and with our situation we felt the best decision was to stand pat, based off some of the things we were looking at.”

The Hawks are looking at nothing but opportunity right now. They are two games behind the New York Knicks for the third spot in the Eastern Conference, and just 2 1/2 games behind the Indiana Pacers for No. 2. The Miami Heat have a comfortable cushion over the rest of the field.

But that No. 2 spot could very well be up for grabs over the next two months. And the Hawks should be right in the middle of that chase, provided they keep doing what they’ve been doing of late.


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Morning Shootaround — Feb. 25

February 25, 2013  ·  7:25AM

Missed a game last night? Wondering what the latest news around the NBA is this morning? The Morning Shootaround is here to try to meet those needs and keep you up on what’s happened around the league since the day turned.

The one recap to watch: When the Grizzlies traded Rudy Gay to Toronto as part of a three-team swap, we had our questions before the deal went down as to why Memphis would even ponder such a move. Teams in their pecking order in the West didn’t lose too much sleep over what the Grizz did (the Warriors, in particular, had clear thoughts on the deal) and a 1-3 start to the post-Gay era didn’t engender much hope in Memphis’ future. But as we detail below, Memphis is back to its grit-and-grind self. That makes last night’s Nets-Grizzlies recap as one to watch (particularly if you enjoy seeing Memphis play its unique style of basketball).:

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News of the morning

Report: Thunder bring back Fisher | Jackson praises Jack’s leadership | Grizz getting back on track | Stoudemire delivering for Knicks | Pistons get good news on Knight

Report: Thunder bring back Fisher — In one of the more surprising trade deadline moves in recent memory, the Lakers dealt stalwart defensive point guard Derek Fisher to Houston last season for Jordan Hill. After Fisher was sent to Houston, the Rockets agreed to a buyout of his contract so he could sign with a contender, which he did, joining the Oklahoma City Thunder for the final 20 games of the season and the playoffs. The Thunder opted not to re-sign Fisher in the offseason and he played nine games with the Dallas Mavericks before being waived on Dec. 22. Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports reports that Fisher is headed back to OKC and will sign his deal with the Thunder on Monday:

The Oklahoma City Thunder have reached agreement to sign veteran guard Derek Fisher for the remainder of the season, league sources told Yahoo! Sports.

Fisher arrived in Oklahoma City Sunday night and will sign his contract on Monday.

Fisher, 38, signed with the Thunder late last season and helped Oklahoma City make its push to the NBA Finals. He joined the Dallas Mavericks early this season and played nine games in December before suffering a knee injury. He asked the Mavericks to release him, so he could spend more time with his family.

The Thunder have room for another guard after trading Eric Maynor to the Portland Trail Blazers on Thursday. Reggie Jackson is receiving most of the backup point guard minutes behind Russell Westbrook.

Fisher joined the Thunder last March after the Los Angeles Lakers traded him to the Houston Rockets and he negotiated a buyout. He averaged 6.3 points and 1.3 assists in 20 playoff games for the Thunder last season.

Fisher has remained president of the National Basketball Players Association, which recently ousted Billy Hunter as its executive director.

ESPN.com first reported that Fisher was close to the signing with the Thunder.

Jack praised as Warriors’ leader – For the Golden State Warriors, David Lee is the 2013 All-Star member, Stephen Curry is the thrilling, do-it-all point guard, Klay Thompson is the enticing shooting guard prospect and Harrison Barnes is the high-flying rookie. Although this doesn’t fully encompass the Warriors’ talent base — we’re leaving Andrew Bogut and some others out here — these are the names most think of with the team. But the player who has made the biggest impact for Golden State in terms of leadership, clutch playmaking and veteran know-how is Jarrett Jack. Warriors coach Mark Jackson had nothing but praise for Jack, who was instrumental in Sunday’s win over the Timberwolves, writes Rusty Simmons of the San Francisco Chronicle:

Jarrett Jack will be praised for giving the Warriors their first fourth-quarter lead with a three-pointer in the final two minutes Sunday and for setting up the bucket 40 seconds later that resulted in a lead they would not relinquish.

Jack actually started leading the Warriors to their 100-99 matinee victory over Minnesota an hour before the game tipped off at the Target Center.

When two of the team’s rookies wanted barbecue sandwiches and fries in the pregame locker room, Jack reminded the first-year players that the game started in an hour. They quietly switched their orders to chicken sandwiches with no fries.

“That’s who he is for us,” Warriors head coach Mark Jackson said. “He’s been a leader, and he’s been a no-nonsense guy with a tremendous voice.”

And Jack has been pretty stinking good on the court, too. Jack had team highs with 23 points and eight assists, provided the Warriors with their only energy in the first half, and then made all of the clutch plays down the stretch.

…

“We try to have resolve, man,” Jack said. “We’ve got resiliency and fight. The one thing we respect above all is effort, and through it all – the turnovers, missed shots and everything that wasn’t going our way – we still played hard.”

The Warriors (33-23) have won three in a row after a season-worst, six-game skid to move 1 1/2 games back of Denver for the fifth spot in the Western Conference. Seventh-place Utah is two games behind the Warriors, followed by eighth-place Houston (three games back) and the ninth-place Lakers (5 1/2 games back).

It’s a good thing for the Warriors that they were playing the Timberwolves (20-33), who have lost 18 of their past 22 games and 18 of their past 23 against Golden State, and it’s a good thing the Warriors have Jack.

…

Jack is the NBA’s first player to come off the bench to record at least 23 points and eight assists in consecutive games since Clyde Drexler did it for Portland in 1985-86. Jack is the first Warriors reserve to score 20 points in three straight games since Corey Maggette accomplished the feat in 2009.

“Having someone like coach Jackson and these teammates, who have a world of confidence in me, goes a long way,” said Jack, who said he has never experienced a stretch like this in the NBA. “Confidence is the No. 1 thing in this game. I’ve always believed in myself, but they continuously show that they believe in me to handle the ball at the end of games, giving me big shots and putting me in huge situations.”

On-court stuff is way easier than handling the rookies’ eating habits.

Grizz keep on rolling — Talk of the sky falling in Memphis after the Rudy Gay trade was a popular topic and Memphis, for its part, did little to quell that by going 1-3 immediately after the deal. But if you haven’t been paying attention, the Grizzlies boast the NBA’s second-longest win streak (behind Miami’s 11-game run) with a seven-game win streak. Not surprisingly, the Grizz are getting it done with a healthy dose of defense. As well, one of the players they got in the Gay deal – Tayshaun Prince — has fit in well with Memphis’ defense and was crucial in Sunday nights road win against the Nets, writes Ronald Tillery of The (Memphis) Commercial-Appeal:

There were questions when the Grizzlies’ revolving door stopped spinning — doubts about how quickly and how soon a collection of new players would mesh.

A bit of suspicion even crept in as the Griz began to build a winning streak that is now close to their season-best mark established in November. After all, Memphis’ previous five opponents before Sunday own a combined winning percentage of .354.

However, the Grizzlies’ 76-72 victory over the Brooklyn Nets before 17,098 in the Barclays Center provided more evidence that there still is one constant amid change, quality of opposition and venue.

Like a picture in a frame, the Grizzlies’ defense remains the same. The Griz dominated without the ball when it mattered most as their winning streak swelled to seven games.

“This was a test game to see if we are playing well or not, and to come in and beat a very good team on the road says a lot,” Griz point guard Mike Conley said. “It says a lot about our integrity and ability to step up in big games.”

That, and how stingy the Grizzles can be.

The Nets didn’t score in the final 2:50. Griz center Marc Gasol had two blocks, guard Tony Allen added another and Tayshaun Prince grabbed a steal as the Griz closed the game on a 9-0 run.

No play was bigger than Allen’s block on a shot by Nets guard Deron Williams with the score knotted at 72 and 26.9 seconds left. Williams drove by Allen but was met at the basket by Zach Randolph. Allen recovered to reject Williams’ shot from behind.

“I just had my antennas up and was ready to be aggressive,” Allen said. “And I thank Zach for being there to stop his angle. Once he cocked the ball back I was able to get my hand on the ball.”

Stoudemire stepping up more and more — As Amar’e Stoudemire recovered from offseason knee surgery and the Knicks got out to an 21-9 start without him, talk in New York and around the league was how he’d fit in to what New York is doing once healthy. Although the Knicks are 6-6 since Stoudemire returned and had a four-game win streak entering Sunday’s game against the Sixers, New York seems to be working their big man back into the mix. He came through with a solid performance in a win last night and is getting more and more into a flow, writes Barbara Barker of Newsday:

While he sat out the first two months of the season recovering from knee surgery, many wondered if he ever would be a big-time player again. Their fears seemed to be confirmed when he returned from injury and coach Mike Woodson decided that the best thing to do with him — the best thing to do with the fourth-highest-paid player in the NBA — was to bring him off the bench.

Suddenly, however, it appears to have been a wee bit early to throw Stoudemire into the has-been heap. Since returning from the knee injury on New Year’s Day, he has been getting stronger and stronger.

…

“I thought Amar’e was solid,” Woodson said. “He was catching the ball on the block, he had a couple of offensive putbacks, he made his jump shots. He did a little bit of everything. That’s what we’re going to need him to do the rest of the way.”

It was Stoudemire’s first 20-point game of the season and even featured a very athletic reverse dunk that thrilled the Garden crowd.

It may have been his best game, but it wasn’t his only important one. Since coming back from the knee injury, Stoudemire has averaged 13.7 points and 5.0 rebounds despite playing limited minutes. And he seems to be getting stronger.

“I’m 100 percent. I feel strong in every aspect,” he said after the game. “I think the limited minutes are great for me so far. It’s keeping me fresh and I feel great.”

…

Stoudemire was careful and diplomatic Sunday, however, when asked if it is hard for him to accept his role as a reserve when he is playing this well. He said he wants to do whatever the team needs him to do.

Stoudemire did admit, however, that it is difficult to be on the bench at the end of games.

“As long as we’re winning, it’s not hard,” he said. “When we start losing a bit, it gets you thinking about it.”

Pistons’ Knight gets some good news — Pistons second-year guard Brandon Knight suffered a knee injury against Charlotte last Wednesday and many around Detroit were hoping that it wasn’t anything serious. The good news for the Pistons, writes Perry A. Farrell of the Detroit Free Press, is that Knight’s MRI came back negative. But the Pistons are also expecting Knight to miss a few games while he recovers from the hyperextended knee:

Pistons doctor Ben Paolucci visited Knight before Friday night’s game with Indiana, but coach Lawrence Frank said he’s day-to-day and won’t play again until he’s 100%.

Knight suffered an injured knee and ankle in the victory against Charlotte on Wednesday and missed Friday night’s game. The MRI showed swelling but no damage.

“He has fluid behind his knee,” Frank said. “You can see it. He can’t really jump, and he just doesn’t have total confidence in it. The MRI, like I said, was more for precautionary reasons. It didn’t show anything other than what we already diagnosed. It’ll be day-to-day. He’ll be taking some medication and just kind of see how he does in terms of trying to get the swelling down.”

Knight said he felt fine before the game as he rushed to the court to put up some shots.

There’s no rush to get him back into the lineup, especially with the way the team is struggling.

Knight had one of his better games against Charlotte when the injury occurred. He finished with 21 points.

…

“He was in the facility all day today getting treatment and shooting some shots to see how he felt,” Frank said. “They’ll give him whatever medication they’ll give him, but until he’s cleared he won’t be doing anything.”

ICYMI of the night: The healthier Ricky Rubio gets, the more we get to see plays like this amazing behind-the-back dime to Andrei Kirilenko on the fast break … :

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Signing K-Mart Low Risk, Some Reward?

February 23, 2013  ·  1:39PM

If caveats were fish eggs, the New York Knicks would be awash in swanky hors d’oeuvres.

But Kenyon Martin‘s signing to a 10-day contract has nothing to do with caviar and everything to do with questions that hang over his preparedness and concentration for the task at hand. They’re the same qualifiers that would come up for any 35 year old who has played only portions of the past five NBA seasons.

Consider all the “if-then” clauses built into old Denver teammate Carmelo Anthony‘s assessment of Martin’s possible value to New York, as quoted by Frank Isola in the Daily News:

“The way I look at it, if he’s in shape, he’s ready to play and he’s locked in then I really think he’s a big attribute to this team,” Anthony said before the Knicks’ skid hit four with a 100-98 loss in Toronto. “I was able to play with him in Denver for multiple years and know from a basketball standpoint what he brings to a game when he’s locked in, when he’s focused.

“I haven’t talked to him. I haven’t seen him. People that I know that know him tell me he’s in shape and he’s ready and he’s focused. As long as that’s the plan, we’re all for it.”

Amar’e Stoudemire is a power forward whose minutes already have been dinged by coach Mike Woodson‘s use of Anthony at that spot. Adding Martin to the mix worsens the logjam. But Stoudemire was another one firmly in the wait-and-see camp, telling the News:

“I haven’t seen him in a year. We’ll see what type of shape he’s in and what he can do.”

Martin has missed all of the preseason and nearly four months of the regular season, and rumors that had him signing earlier with Miami never came to pass. Last year, the veteran headed to Japan during the lockout, than returned in February for a $2.5 million deal and a supporting role with the Clippers (5.2 ppg, 4.3 rpg, 22.4 mpg off the bench).

He is nine years removed from his lone NBA All-Star appearance and his production per 36 minutes has declined, hastened by injury, for the past seven years. At this point, the idea of Kenyon Martin seems greater than the reality, though the cost of a 10-day to the Knicks is low and Woodson was expected to meet with the power forward Saturday before he suits up, presumably in time for Sunday’s game against Philadelphia. Reported Isola:

After watching film of Martin from last season, Woodson said: “If he’s got anything left in his tank I think he can still help us.”

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Schedule Turns Favorable For Knicks

January 27, 2013  ·  1:06PM

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HANG TIME SOUTHWEST – Raymond Felton‘s prize for his first game action in a month was a recurring blur named Jrue Holiday.

The Philadelphia 76ers point guard and first-time All-Star ripped Felton and the New York Knicks on Saturday night for 35 points in a game that was never close and the Sixers won 97-80.

Felton’s return as the Knicks dropped to 26-15 in reaching their official 41-game halfway point, gave New York as close to a fully healthy roster as it’s had all season. Iman Shumpert played his fourth game back and Amar’e Stoudemire, in his 11th game back, posted his first 20-point game, getting 20 on 8-for-13 shooting.

Just .500 in their last 10 games, the Knicks are now sort of in re-start mode, although a jump-start was needed in Philly.

With only Rasheed Wallace still out, coach Mike Woodson is now charged with meshing Felton and Shumpert — Saturday was their season debut together — figuring out the best way to limit Jason Kidd‘s minutes and the best lineups to play him with, as well as determining if the improving Stoudemire is best suited to keep coming off the bench — although Woodson has said he likes Stoudemire off the bench with J.R. Smith and Steve Novak.

Against the Sixers, Woodson opted for a three-guard starting lineup with Felton, Kidd and Shumpert. Kidd, overplayed during Felton’s absence, was scoreless in under 15 minutes, limited by a bad back.

Felton, playing for the first time since breaking his right pinkie on Christmas Day, was rusty, missing six of his eight shots and he was a step slow against Holiday, which was true for the entire Knicks team.

And it’s not like Felton was the only offensive culprit either. Shumpert missed all six of his shots and Smith’s struggles took him to 0-for-8 overall and 0-for-4 from beyond the arc. Carmelo Anthony needed 28 shots to score 25 points.

So where are the Knicks as they begin the second half tonight back at home against the Atlanta Hawks?

That’s to be seen.

The Knicks at least have their point guard back. Before Saturday’s game, they were 20-8 with Felton and 6-6 without him. They’ve got Shumpert back. They’ve got Stoudemire back.

In addition, the schedule turns favorable with the start of a five-game homestand, and only two of their next seven games are against teams with winning records.

Now it’s a matter of how long it will take for the team to mesh and to get back to the higher rate of winning Knicks fans were getting used to.

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Celtics’ Sounds Of Silence Speak Loud

January 25, 2013  ·  10:59AM

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HANG TIME, Texas – It was a two-point game with three minutes left to play. There was all the set-up for another contested and contentious finish.

After their squabble from 17 days earlier, would either Kevin Garnett or Carmelo Anthony wind up down on the floor?

As a matter of fact, K.G. did hit the parquet at T.D. Garden. But there was a pleasantly accommodating ‘Melo to lend a helping hand to get a brother back onto his feet.

The only thing missing was a chorus of “Kumbaya” in place of the national anthem as the Knicks-Celtics blood feud tip-toed quietly into the night, according to Brian Windhorst of ESPN.com:

“There’s no grudges between myself and KG,” Anthony said. “He fell, and I helped him up.”

No one knew exactly what to expect, but an outbreak of politeness and a tepid home crowd were not on the menu. Other than a few benign shoves between Garnett and Tyson Chandler in the midst of the fourth quarter and a handful of rogue heckles referencing Garnett’s supposed infamous insult, there was nothing extraordinary.

“I was expecting it to be a hostile environment,” Anthony said. “It was kind of quiet.”

Said Amar’e Stoudemire: “I was thinking the crowd was going to be a little more rude.”

This could be either the city of Boston rejecting hundreds of years of reputation or — and this is much more likely — a fan base and a Celtics team that had bigger worries than meting out retribution for a guy who stood half-menacingly in a loading dock surrounded by a dozen security guards as Anthony did back on Jan. 7.

In other words, rather than the anticipated clamor of a Melo-K.G. Showdown II, was this the sighing sound of the Celtics running into reality while the Knicks gallop onto bigger things?

At this point, these are two teams circling in different orbits. Boston lost its fifth straight game, is under .500 and walking with one foot in the gutter of the 8th seed in the Eastern Conference playoff race.

So much for the effect of coach Doc Rivers flipping his usually cool lid and threatening to buy one-way tickets out of town for any of his players who didn’t buy into the program and start playing better.

A lot of us have been looking at that storied name across the front of those green-and-white jerseys, read the famous and accomplished names across the back and been trying to convince ourselves that it was only a matter of time before Boston shifted into gear.

But maybe this is as good as it gets for the Celtics. While Rajon Rondo put up a triple-double and Paul Pierce played showed some of the old fire, the reason that the Garden was so quiet — dare we say it, so meek? — was perhaps the fans understand that there is no torch to be passed. It has already been extinguished.

On the other hand, after four losses in six games, the Knicks could be out of their funk and back in the business of resuming their chase of Miami for the role of top dog in the East (while holding off the charging Nets).

Even with a loss on Monday night, the Knicks still split the season series with Brooklyn and got their best game to date from Stoudemire. They could get Raymond Felton (broken finger) back in the lineup as soon as Saturday at Philly.

Coach Mike Woodson’s new challenge could be finding time and space for all of his healthy players and, according to Frank Isola of the New York Daily News:

Felton’s return will result in the Knicks having all their guards healthy for the first time all season.

Shumpert is expected to remain in the starting lineup, and Woodson hinted that he may play Shumpert at small forward and start Felton and Kidd in the backcourt.

“I don’t know,” Woodson said. “I’ll have options when Raymond comes back. And I’m not saying that Kidd’s possibly going to go to the bench.”

The original plan was to use Kidd as the first guard off the bench while limiting his minutes. In all likelihood that’s what Woodson will do, because a starting lineup with Anthony, Shumpert, Kidd and Felton makes the rebounding-challenged Knicks small.

“I’m killing Kidd in terms of not having Raymond in a uniform, playing him a lot of minutes,” Woodson said. “We need Kidd for the long haul.

“If it means starting him or coming off the bench, Kidd’s going to play.

“I don’t care if he starts or if he comes off. I don’t think it really matters to him either. He’s going to play because he’s a big piece to what we do.”

Of course, those are the good kinds of problems to have in New York. Plus, it’s far different from what’s going on in Boston, where the sounds of silence speak volumes.

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Blogtable: Trades We’d Like To See

January 23, 2013  ·  11:28AM
Pau Gasol, by Noah Graham/NBAE via Getty Images

Pau Gasol, by Noah Graham/NBAE via Getty Images

Each week, we’ll ask our stable of scribes to weigh in on the three most important NBA topics of the day — and then give you a chance to step on the scale, too, in the comments below.

Week 13: First-half blindside | Knicks or Nets? | Trade me!

A month from trade deadline: Give us a trade you’d like to see.

Steve Aschburner: Utah needs to break up that logjam of power forwards, with Al Jefferson my preferred choice for a fresh start. But no one needs a fresh start more than Pau Gasol, who would be way better off getting out of L.A. and shedding the Lakers’ scapegoat role. Gasol for Amar’e Stoudemire? Gasol in a package to Atlanta for Josh Smith (scratching two trade itches at once)? Gasol is getting older, he’s fragile and he’s got a big contract, but the skilled and classy big man deserves better than the demotion and snide treatment he’s dealt with lately.

Fran Blinebury: I’m ready to trade the Quizmaster for next season’s lease at empty Sleep Train Arena in Sacramento. But barring that, let’s swap Pau Gasol for Josh Smith.  It gets Pau out of toxic Lakerland for his own good and lets him pair up nicely with All-Star big man Al Horford. Smith could make a big splash in L.A. and save the season or be permitted to walk off into free agency. If that happens, it’s addition by subtraction, since coach Mike D’Antoni and the stats show that Gasol and Dwight Howard do not work effectively together.  Lakers have to take the baggage of Johan Petro, DeShawn Stevenson and Ivan Johnson to make it work.

Jeff Caplan: The Lakers have 2 choices: Trade Pau Gasol or trade Dwight Howard. At this point the right call might just be to trade D12. The Nets would probably take him today and the Lakers can move on with some pretty nice players, including team-oriented Brook Lopez, who can score like Dwight, although he won’t rebound or defend quite like Dwight, even this Dwight after back surgery. Gasol is a bit more difficult to trade and get back as much quality. On paper, it’s a no-brainer that you keep Howard and trade Gasol. But Howard’s immaturity and inability to assume responsibility seem to stretch to new levels with every passing game.

Scott Howard-Cooper: DeMarcus Cousins for anybody. Because if Kings fans are about to lose their team, they shouldn’t have to also lose their mind in frustration in the process. (Not going to happen, though. Every Cousins rumor that popped up the last several weeks was mostly bad fiction writing.)

John Schuhmann: This is kind of a simple idea, but I’d like to see the Nuggets trade Corey Brewer and a pick to Atlanta for Kyle Korver. Both guys are on reasonable, expiring contracts, so the deal wouldn’t affect future cap space at all. Denver desperately needs perimeter shooting to complement their speed and athleticism, and Korver could put them in the top-five offensively and in the upper echelon of the Western Conference. And with the return of Wilson Chandler, Brewer is now expendable. I’ll admit that it would help if Anthony Morrow (or Lou Williams) was healthy, so that the Hawks weren’t so reliant on Korver’s shooting.

Sekou Smith: I’d like to see the Lakers put Pau Gasol out of his misery and move him somewhere he can rediscover the role he played three seasons ago, before that playoff meltdown against the Mavericks that started his current career slide. Even with these rumblings about the Lakers considering Dwight Howard trades, Gasol is the big man the Lakers have to move. Gasol still has enough tread left on his tires to help anchor the low post somewhere other than Los Angeles. And it’s clear, now that he’s been relegated to a reserve role in favor of  Earl Clark, that Gasol isn’t in the Lakers’ plans.

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Blogtable: First-half Blindside

January 23, 2013  ·  11:28AM

Each week, we’ll ask our stable of scribes to weigh in on the three most important NBA topics of the day — and then give you a chance to step on the scale, too, in the comments below.

Week 13: First-half blindside | Knicks or Nets? | Trade me!

Besides the Lakers, what’s one thing you didn’t see coming this season?

Steve Aschburner: The Golden State Warriors. No way, no how did I see these guys winning more games by the midpoint than they won last season (23 in 66 vs. 25 in 40), being 12-5 against winning teams, ranking among the top contenders in both offensive and defensive field-goal percentages, showing such road chops, boosting their rebounding diligence and on and on. The personnel changes have been modest but surgical – Landry, Jack, Barnes, Ezeli – while much of the improvement has come from within, with the chemistry and continuity of coach Mark Jackson‘s second season. (Even now, it feels weird writing that whole paragraph.)

Golden State's Mark Jackson, by Rocky Widner/NBAE via Getty Images

Golden State’s Mark Jackson, by Rocky Widner/NBAE via Getty Images

Fran Blinebury: The Clippers challenging for the best record in the league and home-court advantage all the way through the NBA Finals. There was no doubt that Chris Paul and Blake Griffin had them moving forward.  But after last spring’s playoff sweep by the Spurs, this is a Bob Beamon-like leap ahead.  Jamal Crawford has been a turbo-charger and Eric Bledsoe makes the backcourt an embarrassment of riches.  Their offense and defense rank in the top five, they are 17-7 against teams with winning records, 13-6 on the road and 22-7 against the West.

Jeff Caplan: I could go negative here and say I didn’t see Boston struggling to this degree, although I was never one who thought they’d barnstorm through the season either. So, allow me to spread sunshine across the land and praise Mark Jackson’s Golden State Warriors, who are 25-15 and playing a total team game that’s entertaining as heck to watch. Oh, and they haven’t even seen Andrew Bogut yet.

Scott Howard-Cooper: Didn’t see these Knicks coming. If anything, I saw them going: going down a notch in New York City thanks to the Nets’ arrival, going away while relying on a lot of AARP members, Raymond Felton and Amar’e Stoudemire. Instead, they’re keeping the pressure on for the top spot in the East. Surprise, surprise.

John Schuhmann: If you told me before the season that the Warriors would win 25 of their first 40 games, rank 12th defensively and rank sixth in rebounding percentage, my response would have been, “Wow, I’m looking forward to seeing Andrew Bogut healthy and playing well.” That they’ve done all that without Bogut is pretty incredible to me. Mark Jackson and Mike Malone deserve credit for devising a defensive system that works for their personnel, and Stephen Curry and David Lee deserves credit for improving on that end of the floor. I’m still looking forward to seeing Bogut healthy and playing well.

Sekou Smith: The Knicks. Given the way they finished last season (getting trounced in that first round matchup against the Heat), I honestly didn’t see a top-two team in the East coming from whatever the Knicks cobbled together over the summer. I didn’t see “Carmelo Anthony, MVP” coming either. But he shut his critics up with some of the best basketball of his career through the first half of this season. The Knicks basically had the first half I was expecting from the Lakers.

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Blogtable: Who Ya Got, Knicks Or Nets?

January 23, 2013  ·  11:28AM




Each week, we’ll ask our stable of scribes to weigh in on the three most important NBA topics of the day — and then give you a chance to step on the scale, too, in the comments below.

Week 13: First-half blindside | Knicks or Nets? | Trade me!

Who wins the Atlantic, Knicks or Nets?

Steve Aschburner: So we’ve given up on Boston, eh? The Celtics were my pick coming in. The Knicks and the Nets both are flawed teams, too. They’re led by stars (Carmelo Anthony, Deron Williams) with shaky reputations as winners. Each has a big man (Tyson Chandler, Brook Lopez) performing at an All-Star level. Each relies in part on a former knucklehead (J.R. Smith, Andray Blatche), each has oldsters and so on. I’ll take New York, narrowly, for three reasons: I like their chances of playing defense to coach Mike Woodson‘s specifications the rest of the way, I think Amar’e Stoudemire can bring real second-half help and I think the Woodson bump that Brooklyn has gotten from coach P.J. Carlesimo will be hard to sustain over another 40 games.

Fran Blinebury: Never thought the 3-ball attack that was so much a part of the Knicks’ red-hot start was going to carry them through a full season. P.J. Carlesimo has tapped into Deron Williams, Brook Lopez is rounding into form and Joe Johnson is stepping up. I’ll take the Nets in a hot Battle of the Boroughs race.

Jeff Caplan: You know what? I like what the the Nets are doing. These guys have shown a real maturity in allowing P.J. Carlesimo to take over and do his thing. It’s actually darn inspiring considering what’s gone on in Los Angeles with that third coach over there. The Nets’ win at the Garden the other day was big for those guys. With the Knicks, injuries are a real issue right now and it could really have a negative effect on Jason Kidd down the stretch. Give me the boys from Brooklyn.

Scott Howard-Cooper: I picked the Nets at the start of the season to win the Atlantic. I’ll stick with that, partly because it’s too easy to make a bunch of switches during the season (Lakers to win the West!) and partly because the Nets have had some bad moments and are still on the Knicks’ heels.

John Schuhmann: It’s a tough call. The Nets have been the much better team of late, but they have a slightly tougher schedule (fewer home games, more back-to-backs) going forward and I imagine both teams will have their highs and lows over the final three months. I believe the Nets were underachieving offensively early on, but I also believe that the Knicks’ ability to take care of the ball (lowest turnover rate in NBA history) and the eventual return of Raymond Felton will help them sustain offensive success.

If either team had shown sustained defensive success in the first half of the season, I’d believe in them more. The Knicks defended well for the first few weeks of November, but have been pretty awful there since. And though they’re 11-2, the Nets have ranked just 12th defensively in P.J. Carlesimo‘s time on the bench.

So yeah, I think it’s really even. And I’ll give the Knicks the slight edge, because they already have a two-game lead in the loss column.

Sekou Smith: Two weeks ago, I’d have told you the Knicks … easy. Then, P.J. Carlesimo showed up and started coaching like he did at Seton Hall. My gut says the Knicks have another roll or two in them between now and the end of the regular season. But the Nets have the balance and some wicked momentum right now on their side. Barring anything crazy happening at the Feb. 21 trade deadline, this thing goes down to the final days of the season with the Nets clipping the Knicks at the tape.

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Gasol And Howard A Bad Mix Under D’Antoni … Sound Familiar?

January 22, 2013  ·  12:36PM

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HANG TIME NEW JERSEY – Mike D’Antoni is right. The Lakers have been much better with only one of their two $19 million big men on the floor than with both of them together.

That was D’Antoni’s explanation when he said before Monday’s game in Chicago that Pau Gasol would be coming off the bench until further notice. And the numbers back D’Antoni up, even after the Lakers lost to the Bulls by 12 in a game in which Gasol and Dwight Howard played just seven minutes together.

Lakers efficiency with Gasol and/or Howard on the floor

On floor MIN OffRtg DefRtg NetRtg +/-
Gasol + Howard 612 102.7 103.5 -0.8 -14
Gasol only 329 110.7 101.0 +9.7 +61
Howard only 736 108.1 100.5 +7.5 +83
One of the two 1,065 108.9 100.7 +8.2 +144

OffRtg = Points scored per 100 possessions
DefRtg = Points allowed per 100 possessions
NetRtg = Point differential per 100 possessions

Offensively, with both Gasol and Howard on the floor, the Lakers have scored at a rate that would rank 12th in the league. With only one of the two on the floor, they’ve scored at a rate that would rank second.

Defensively, with both Gasol and Howard in the game, the Lakers are defending at a rate that would rank 19th in the league. With only one of the two in the game, they’re defending at a rate that would rank ninth.

Overall, with Gasol and Howard on the floor together, the Lakers have the point differential of a 37-win team. With only one of the two on the floor, they have a point differential of a 61-win team.

The question, of course, is why the Lakers can’t play well with two of the best big men in the league on the floor together. And it’s hard not to point at the coach, because things were OK before D’Antoni took over.

Lakers efficiency with Gasol and Howard on the floor together

Coach GP MIN OffRtg DefRtg NetRtg +/-
Brown 5 135 110.8 95.4 +15.5 +41
Bickerstaff 5 130 105.4 100.8 +4.6 +6
D’Antoni 18 346 98.6 107.7 -9.1 -61

Five games apiece for Mike Brown and Bernie Bickerstaff are small sample sizes, but it’s clear that the Lakers’ early issues weren’t with their bigs. When they got off to a 1-4 start under Brown, the bench was more of a problem.

The big man issues under D’Antoni are on both sides of the ball. Offensively, Gasol is a different player when he’s on the floor with Howard. In those 612 minutes, just 44 percent of his 208 shots have come from the paint. With Howard on the bench, 67 percent of Gasol’s 109 shots have come from the paint.

D’Antoni’s system calls for three shooters around a point guard (who can also shoot) and a pick-and-roll big man. And Gasol can’t space the floor like a true stretch four.

Gasol’s shooting with Howard on and off the floor

Howard on/off FGM FGA FG% %FGA paint
Howard on floor 83 208 39.9% 44.2%
Howard off floor 54 109 49.5% 67.0%

Here’s the thing: Gasol played 5 1/2 seasons with Andrew Bynum. And with Bynum on the floor, Gasol still took 66 percent of his shots from the paint, because Phil Jackson‘s offense allowed for two post players. The Lakers were a very good offensive team with the two bigs on the floor together.

Defensively, the Lakers have breakdowns all over the place this season, mostly with guards Steve Nash and Kobe Bryant. But there’s no clear explanation why they’re much better with only one of the two bigs on the floor. It may be a foot speed issue, and they may just be able to recover better with a smaller, quicker player at the four. Under Jackson, they were better defensively with Lamar Odom at the four than with Bynum and Gasol out there together.

Still, this is all kind of ridiculous. And it’s all too familiar. On the last team D’Antoni coached, he had two guys making about $40 million combined who couldn’t play well together either.

Under D’Antoni, the New York Knicks were a minus-137 and absolutely awful defensively in 1,506 minutes with Carmelo Anthony and Amar’e Stoudemire on the floor together. The coach’s inability to get his two stars on the same page is a big reason he isn’t in New York anymore. Under Mike Woodson, the Knicks are even (plus-0) in 497 minutes with Anthony and Stoudemire on the floor together.

The Lakers probably aren’t going to be making another coaching change. Instead, Gasol is probably on his way out the door. And we can only wonder what might have been had L.A. hired Jackson when they let go of Brown in November … or if they had just kept Brown.

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