Posts Tagged ‘Dirk Nowitzki’

< Older Entries
Newer Entries >

Time To Back Off Knight And Terry

March 20, 2013  ·  2:17PM

 

HANG TIME SOUTHWEST – Really, this is how low we’ve sunk as sports fans, that we make ourselves feel better by further humiliating the loser rather than being satisfied by marveling at the victor?

Boston’s Jason Terry joined Detroit’s Brandon Knight in Twitter and YouTube infamy on Monday night as unfortunate victims of vicious dunks. Because each guard, both standing no taller than 6-foot-3 and barely a buck-ninety soaking weight, chose to challenge LeBron James and DeAndre Jordan as they launched their massively larger bodies toward the rim like heat-seeking missiles, rather than take the easier matador approach, Terry and Knight have become Internet punch lines.

The 6-3, 189-pound Knight found himself in a helpless position when Jordan, the 6-foot-11, 265-pound Clippers center, caught a lob from Chris Paul with his right hand, seemed to freeze in mid-air with his legs spread as if in a dead sprint and his arm cocked back ready to fire. In an instant, Jordan slammed it home with Knight caught in the middle trying to contest, practically stuck to Jordan’s chest only to be squashed like a bug on the grill of an 18-wheeler.

A dunk to behold for sure. So how come just hours later, someone tweeted that Knight, and not Jordan, was trending on Twitter? Why is it more gratifying for us to kick someone around than lift someone up?

“I give credit to Brandon Knight,” said Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban, asked the other day about the Jordan dunk. “DeAndre Jordan can dunk, there’s nothing special there. It takes guts to say, ‘OK, I’m playing basketball,’ and think basketball first, so I give [Knight] a lot of credit. It’s like that old Tracy McGrady and Shawn Bradley dunk. It wasn’t that Tracy McGrady dunked on him, it was that Shawn Bradley cared enough about the game to try to contest it. So DeAndre just did what DeAndre does, there was nothing spectacular or special about what he did, he does it every day, right? But a guy who’s willing to just not care what anybody says, that’s special. To me, the best player on that play was Brandon.”

James, who has shown so much maturity since losing in the 2011 Finals to Terry’s old Mavs (remember when a disappearing James and Dwyane Wade mocked an ill Dirk Nowitzki with fake coughs and sneezes?) couldn’t leave Monday’s tomahawk jam over Terry alone. Not only did James dunk on Terry, he earned a technical foul for standing over him as if ready to take his scalp along with his dignity.

James told reporters Wednesday after Miami’s shootaround that he’s had a chance to look over his massive, one-hand jam and not only did he find it to be one of his best, but he said he’s glad it happened to Terry, a personal nemesis.

Again, let’s return to the ’11 Finals. James had taken on Jet as his personal defensive assignment in the fourth quarters and had shut him down through the first three games as the Heat took a 2-1 lead. Nowitzki called out Jet for his lack of scoring punch and Jet, never one to bite his tongue stated: “Let’s see if [James] can defend me like that for seven games.”

Terry went on to average 21.7 points in Games 4, 5 and 6, busted a late-game 3 over James for the pivotal Game 5 win and a 3-2 series lead, and then dropped 27 points in the deciding Game 6 on the Heat’s home floor.

What’s been lost in Monday’s sequence during an intensely competitive game in Boston that Miami pulled out for its 23rd consecutive victory, is that Terry had just made a fine defensive play, getting a steal and then heading the other way. Only he didn’t see Wade behind him and he got stripped.

Wade got the ball got to Mario Chalmers, who found Norris Cole, who had just committed the turnover. Cole could have scored the layup, but instead set up James for the massive slam with an underhand lob. Terry, seven inches shorter and some 70 pounds lighter than James, had retreated as Boston’s only line of defense, bouncing from Chalmers to Cole to going up against the barreling James to try to at least get in the way.

Which he did. James’ 250 pounds (at least) careened into Terry in mid-air. James slammed it home as Terry crashed to the floor.

And as with Knight, it seems Terry is garnering more heat for getting dunked on while trying to make a play, than James is receiving accolades for the actual dunk.

“Guys in this league can dunk,” Cuban said before Terry’s misfortune. “So you know they’re going to try to dunk, but the guys who play the game and do what’s right for the team regardless of what it might look like, those are the guys that deserve the credit. Those are the guys I get excited about it.”

This drama surely isn’t over. The Jet will certainly let his tongue flap after hearing James tomahawk him again, only this time verbally.

Tags: , , , , , , , , , ,
Posted in HT News / Comments (96) /

Duncan, Spurs Extend Amazing Streaks

March 15, 2013  ·  10:40AM

 

HANG TIME SOUTHWEST – Maybe it’s time to change Tim Duncan‘s nickname from “The Big Fundamental” to “The Big Immortal.”

Duncan turns 37 next month, yet he is having a renaissance season of sorts that is cementing what was already a Hall of Fame career. At one point during the San Antonio Spurs’ 92-91 win over the Dallas Mavericks Thursday, the TNT broadcast put up one of those State Farm-sponsored poll questions. It read: Will Tim Duncan finish with 20 points and 20 rebounds?

Even though 55 percent of those who responded said he would, it certainly seemed like a stretch. Duncan’s been terrific, sure, but 20 and 20? He had 25 double-doubles coming into the game, but just one 20-rebound game back on Dec. 12 and the last time Duncan scored 20 was on Jan. 21.

And so the 55 percent who voted yes to Duncan notching 20 and 20 were, predictably, wrong. OK, halfway wrong. OK, barely wrong.

Duncan “The Immortal” finished with 28 and 19.

“Timmy played great,” Spurs guard Gary Neal said. “Timmy was phenomenal. Normal Timmy.”

Maybe not normal at this stage for the 14-time All-Star, now in his 16th season. But what the Spurs accomplished in the process of hanging onto the victory over their Texas rival certainly was.

San Antonio became the first team in the Western Conference to clinch a playoff spot (yeah, and taxes are due in a month). It’s the 16th consecutive season that the Spurs have advanced to the postseason, the longest active streak in the NBA dating back to the 1997-98 season, not coincidentally Duncan’s rookie year.

The next-longest playoff streak belongs to the Mavs, who dropped to 30-34 as their four-game win streak was snapped. Dallas isn’t out of the playoff hunt just yet, but their franchise record of 12 consecutive playoff appearances is on life support. San Antonio has been a particular thorn, sweeping the season series for the first time since Duncan’s first season and, not coincidentally, the year before Dirk Nowitzki landed in Dallas.

The Spurs (now 4-2 without injured point guard Tony Parker, who coach Gregg Popovich said Thursday is progressing well from a sprained ankle and could beat the four-week prognosis that had him returning in early April) extended another amazing streak Thursday night, notching a 50th win to make it 14 consecutive seasons with at least 50 (and that included last season’s 66-game lockout shortened season).

Again, the Mavs were closest in this category of consistency until their run of 11 in a row ended last season with a 36-30 record (well below the .610 winning percentage of a 50-win campaign).

The absurdity of the Spurs’ consistency during the Duncan era, which is aligned with Popovich’s tenure, is striking when considering the next active streak of winning at least 50 games is the Chicago Bulls with two. And, at 35-29, there’s much work to be done for it to get to three.

These are two streaks that won’t be touched for years to come, if ever.

Now, back to Duncan, who’s averaging 16.9 ppg and 9.8 rpg in less than 30 mpg. He might have a beef with Popovich for preventing him from nabbing a 20th rebound and fulfilling his second 20-20 night of the season. With 8.7 seconds left in the game and the Spurs clinging to a one-point lead and Dallas with the ball, Popovich pulled his 6-foot-11 power forward, opting for a smaller, quicker lineup.

It worked. Mavs guard Vince Carter missed a 3-point attempt. Manu Ginobili grabbed what could have been Duncan’s 20th board. Not that Duncan was counting.

“It’s always tough to sit in that position,” Duncan told the San Antonio Express-News. “It is what it is. He’s got a game plan, a system in those times to go smaller. If they go smaller or have a shooter in there, he likes to put someone a little more mobile in. You’ve got to respect it.”

That about sums of Duncan and the Spurs: Respect.

Tags: , , , , , , ,
Posted in HT News / Comments (19) /

Shaqtin’ A Fool: Vol. 2, Episode 19

March 15, 2013  ·  2:34AM


-

-
This week Shaq puts Dwight Howard, the Raptors’ mop boy, Dirk Nowitzki, Russell Westbrook and everyone who missed a layup on notice. Vote for your favorite Shaqtin’ A Fool moment!

#shaqtin
–

Tags: , , , ,
Posted in Shaqtin A Fool / Comments (28) /

End Of Era: Only Beards Grow In Dallas

March 4, 2013  ·  1:41PM

.

HANG TIME, Texas — Pity poor Jessica Nowitzki, who is not a fan of the Mavericks drive-for-.500 beards.

“It’s not a good look,” husband Dirk admitted the other day. “My wife doesn’t like it that much. But I guess we’ve all got to suck it up and reach our goal.”

It might be time to wonder how tolerant Mrs. Nowitzki will be by October, when the Mavs have a more realistic shot to reach the break-even mark after their spectacular 136-103 flameout in Houston? By that time Dirk and his teammates could look like so many Rip Van Winkles or extras from the cast of “Lincoln”.

The Mavs hardly resemble a team that is sharpening its razors or its playoff claws as a lost season staggers toward the finish. They couldn’t defend, get enough shots for their biggest gun or do much of anything right against the Rockets.

“At the clip, we’re losing and losing (close) games at home, and those are the games you have to win if you want to be in the playoffs,” Nowitzki said. “We haven’t shown consistently that we can big games. We have to fight and we have another game on Wednesday and we’ll see what we got.”

What they’ve got is a season that jumped off track when Dirk missed the first 27 games following knee surgery and has never developed a sense of rhythm or direction. Now a team that has not won more than three consecutive games all season would have to go 15-8 over the final six weeks just to get to the .500 mark and it’s unlikely that 41-41 would be good enough to make the playoffs anyway.

It’s the end of an era. Assuming there is no postseason basketball in Dallas this spring, it will bring an end to the best stretch of basketball in franchise history, ending a playoff streak that stretches back to 2001, the first full season under Mark Cuban’s ownership.

The Mavs string of 12 consecutive playoff appearances is tied for the 13th-longest in league history and is the second-best active streak in the NBA, trailing only San Antonio’s 15 and counting.

The highlight, of course, was the 2011 championship, but more than a decade of always reaching the playoffs is a worthy feat that marks consistency and constant striving by what has become a model franchise.

How long has it been? Consider that the first year of the playoff streak, coached by Don Nelson (53-39), had a roster that included Shawn Bradley, Christian Laettner, Juwan Howard, Vernon Maxwell, Wang Zhizhi a rookie named Eduardo Najera and a 27-year-old Steve Nash, along with Nowitzki who was in his second NBA season.

Now only Dirk remains as the Mavs close in on coming full circle to his non-playoff rookie season.

“If you want to be in the playoffs we haven’t showed consistently we can win big games,” Nowitzki said. “It was a nice win in Brooklyn [on Friday], and we can’t follow it up.

“Not consistent enough even over one game. A decent half, a decent three quarters here and there, and one garbage quarter. It’s never consistent enough to really be a playoff threat.”

It was a long road and long climb by the Mavs to get to the top of the mountain, but the only thing getting longer these days is those beards.

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
Posted in HT News / Comments (10) /

Time Running Out On Mavs’ Playoff Streak

February 27, 2013  ·  10:34AM

.

DALLAS – It appears that Dirk is back and the Dallas Mavericks are done.

In consecutive games, Dirk Nowitzki has put up a combined 51 points and 33 rebounds, yet his team squandered fourth-quarter leads at home in both. Sunday’s loss to the Lakers felt like a gut punch; Tuesday’s 95-90 loss to Milwaukee, with Nowitzki going for 21 points and 20 rebounds — his first 20-20 game in a decade — was like a dagger to Dallas’ diminishing playoff hopes.

A 14-4 closing run by the Bucks sealed the game and just might have finished the Mavs’ franchise-record streak of 12 consecutive playoff appearances, the second-longest active streak behind the San Antonio Spurs (15 in a row).

“Yeah, I mean, it’s not looking good for sure,” Nowitzki said, his beard growing thicker as .500 drifts farther from Dallas’ reach. “Obviously this league is crazy and I’ve seen a lot, but this is definitely getting tight, and if we want to make a push we’ve just go to find a way to win those close games.”

With its 20-turnover loss Tuesday, Dallas (25-31, now five games behind eighth-place Houston) ended a critical stretch of seven of eight games at home. They went 4-3 there with their lone win over a winning team coming against sliding Golden State. Losses to Atlanta, the Lakers and Milwaukee came by four, four and five points, respectively. Late-game execution, an Achilles’ heel all season, was the culprit in each crushing defeat.

Nowitzki, who saw his All-Star Game streak snapped this season at 11 in a row, knows his chances of missing the playoffs for the first time since 2000 are rising.

Now comes a stretch of seven of their next eight games on the road, starting tonight at red-hot Memphis (8 ET, League Pass).

“If we can’t pull it out at home, then what’s the confidence level going on the road?” Nowitzki said. “We’ve got eight of our next 10 on the road, so we haven’t shown that we really can consistently pull close games out at home, so it’s going to be tough on the road. We’re going to try, I mean I’m going to give it everything I’ve got, keep pushing and hopefully one of these days we can pull one out and it can get us going.”

Prior to the game, owner Mark Cuban acknowledged that this season has been his toughest. After the game, coach Rick Carlisle, hoping to avoid only his second losing season in his 11th as a  coach, tried to drum up optimism.

He stressed that the Mavs haven’t been able to sustain intensity and focus to finish off games. Asked if he believed that can change on the road (where Dallas is 9-19), a mostly soft-spoken Carlisle perked up.

“Listen, we’re due, we’re due,” he said. “Nobody in this league has set themselves up for most improved more than us. Really, I’m going to keep believing in these guys, all right? That’s not going to change. My enthusiasm’s not going to change. What has to change is decision-making on the floor, and I’ll keep perusing the whole thing and I’ll figure out what I got to do.

“Maybe I’ve got to sub a little differently, I don’t know. But whatever it is, we’ve got another game in 22 hours and I’m fired up for that one.”

Hopefully his team is, too.

Tags: , , , , ,
Posted in HT News / Comments (9) /

Dirk Loves Big D, Awaits ‘Big Summer’

February 26, 2013  ·  12:27PM

DALLAS – Dirk Nowitzki got to talking about playing into his late 30s the other day. No one should doubt his ability to do so, or his desire to do it all with the Dallas Mavericks and the high probability that he will.

He’s on record saying as much practically more times than he’s taken the floor over 15 seasons, and with tonight’s game against Milwaukee that makes 1,082 times.

Nowitzki acknowledged that the slow trudge back from October arthroscopic knee surgery put some doubt in his mind as to his longevity. But he’s feeling and playing more like his old self now as 30 points and 13 rebounds showed Sunday against the Lakers. After that game he said he plans to play two or three more seasons once his current deal expires after next season. The ripe, old age of 40 even came up. 

“But I always say it’s got to be fun,” Nowitzki said. “If it gets to the point that the fun is gone and I’ve got to go to work, I’d rather just retire. I’ve got this year and next year under contract, so I’ll be 36 and for sure play a couple of more years.”

It is assumed that when Nowitzki, 34, signs his next deal he’ll do so seated next to smiling owner Mark Cuban, who once said he’d sign the German when he’s 73 if he can still shoot. Yet when Nowitzki discusses his future these days, he’s quick to reiterate his staying power in Dallas, but he also continually delves into the current uncertain state of the franchise, a little caveat that leaves the window cracked ever so slightly for a potential change of scenery in his final seasons.

“Once you’ve won it all and had that feeling, that excitement in the city and the franchise, you don’t want to play basically for the eighth seed two straight years,” Nowitzki said. “So it’s been tough. We made some business decisions obviously we all know about, so we’ll see what we get out of this. We have cap space for the first time in a long time. We’ll see if we can make something happen this summer.”

Actually, as Nowitzki knows, the franchise had cap space last summer, too, but swung and missed on Deron Williams. The whiff ushered in a second season of constructing a short-term roster of mostly expiring contracts, a scenario Nowitzki doesn’t view as a winning formula.

So then came this answer, the caveat, when asked if he expects to continue to make Dirk-like, or superstar, coin on his next deal. Nowitzki is owed $20.9 million this season and $22.7 million next season.

“Well, I think it’s a little too early to look, honestly,” Nowitzki said. “Basically the last couple of times, there was not much negotiating going on. It was, ‘Give me money and I’ll stay,’ right? I gave him [Cuban] a little discount last time. The CBA’s changed. We’ll talk about that when it gets to that point. I still have this year and then the full next year. We’ll see what happens and where this franchise is. Like I said, it could all depend; this is a big summer. This is a big summer.”

Since raising the Larry O’Brien Trophy, the Mavs are 61-60, plus a first-round sweep out of the playoffs for the first time in Nowitzki’s career. Now the franchise’s record 12 consecutive playoff appearances is in jeopardy. The pressure is on Cuban and president of basketball operations Donnie Nelson to come through this summer with a significant free agent to ease Nowitzki’s burden in his twilight years, or to formulate a trade that lands impact players.

Do so and no doubt Nowitzki, who will have earned more than $200 million by the end of his current contract, will cut a cap-friendly deal. But if he’s still the lone star in the summer of 2014, his asking price might just go up, potentially making things a bit uncomfortable for Cuban. Or, if Dallas remains a revolving roster, perhaps a more enticing situation elsewhere presents itself as the CBA promises more salary-shedding and roster shakeups across the league.

“We’ll make it work,” Nowitzki said. “Cube’s obviously said his bank’s open, so we’ll see what happens this summer. It’s going to be a big summer for us. We want to get back to winning ways. We always competed and were part of the playoffs, so we’ll see what happens this summer. It’s going to be a big summer for this franchise.”

Tags: , , , ,
Posted in HT News / Comments (37) /

Kobe To Cuban: ‘Amnesty THAT’

February 24, 2013  ·  10:18PM

a

a
DALLAS – After torching the Dallas Mavericks for 38 points, 12 rebounds and seven assists to get the Los Angeles Lakers a key win, Kobe Bryant shot back at the Mavs owner who days earlier suggested the Lakers should consider using their amnesty clause on their 17-year superstar.

Via Twitter, Kobe wrote:

Cuban, talking on a local sports talk radio show Friday, immediately followed his amnesty comment by saying he was speaking hypothetically and that the Lakers would never do such a thing. It didn’t stop the Lakers organization from getting ruffled, calling Cuban’s comments “inappropriate,” in an official statement and suggesting it would not oppose the league stepping in with a fine.

That’s not likely to happen.

Cuban, whose team fell to 25-30 and suffered another blow to its diminishing playoff chances, was amused enough by Bryant’s Twitter response to tweet back:

On the radio show, Cuban was asked if he’s surprised at the state of the Lakers. Early in the season, Cuban said he hoped the Lakers “suck.” He said the Lakers’ struggles have surprised even him, and then he steered the conversation back to the topic of the CBA.

“If you look at their payroll, even if Dwight [Howard] comes back, you’ve got to ask the question: Should they amnesty Kobe?” Cuban said on the show. “You just don’t know, right? It’s the same reason I wouldn’t get rid of Dirk Nowitzki.

“I’ll take a hit for a season rather than get rid of Dirk. That’s just it. I’ve made that commitment to him over the years, and he’s returned that commitment. Maybe that’s selfish, but that’s just the way it is. So I’m just saying that hypothetically. When I say, ‘amnesty Kobe’, I don’t think they’d do it, but they’ve got some choices to make. Now, they’re in a big market, but they’re still limited. The Knicks, the same thing. Boston, same thing.”

Prior to Sunday’s game, Cuban reiterated that he was simply giving a hypothetical as an example to make a point.

“Any time you try to explain the CBA, it’s hard to do without giving an example,” Cuban said. “Whenever the commissioner or anybody talks about the CBA, they talk about Dallas and Tyson Chandler or Dallas and Dirk or whatever. You’ve got to use examples.

“I was clear saying it was hypothetical and I didn’t expect it to be that way, but it was a good example because they have the highest payroll and the highest-paid player in the league. That’s the end of the story.”

At the end of Sunday’s story, it was Kobe with the last laugh — or last tweet as it were.

Tags: , , , , , ,
Posted in HT News / Comments (132) /

Grumpy Kobe Delivers Win, Message

February 24, 2013  ·  7:14PM

a

a
DALLAS – Of scoring 78 points to pull out two mandatory, down-to-the-wire wins in the last three days, Kobe Bryant said he’s now transitioned into “grumpy mode.”

“And that’s probably not going to change until after June,” said Kobe, who dropped 14 of his game-high 38 points in Sunday’s fourth quarter against the equally desperate Mavericks. “It’s not good for those who are around me frequently, but hopefully the result will be a good one.”

Hey, no need to tell Dwight Howard. Kobe’s been kicking over his sandcastle since October.

Even when Kobe’s answering a question that has nothing to do with the Lakers’ big man, it seems the Mamba has a message to deliver, however indirectly. That appeared to be the case after the 103-99 win when Kobe was asked if he’s appreciative of the way the Lakers have committed massive money under this more punitive collective bargaining agreement to try to maximize his final seasons — a noted contrast to the strategy Mavs owner Mark Cuban has taken with his club.

“Very appreciative,” Kobe started.

And then Kobe sensed an opening, it seemed, to fixate on the 6-foot-11 potential Lakers cornerstone talking to reporters at the other end of the visitors locker room.

Kobe continued:

“This is one of those franchises, they really take care of their own. They make it a family atmosphere and they really, for those who sacrifice for the organization, play well for the organization, play hard, commit to them, they really do a good job of returning the favor.”

But hey, maybe Kobe was just speaking in generalities, you know, to future free agents who might come aboard.

In the same breath, Kobe complimented Howard’s effort Sunday even though he struggled with early foul trouble and never got going offensively with nine points on 2-for-9 shooting. Howard, who did make three of four free throws late, played solidly on the defensive end, getting two steals and a block, altering other shots and grabbing 13 rebounds in 33 minutes.

“He was fantastic,” said Kobe, who had 12 rebounds and fell three assists shy of a triple-double. “Offensively, we all have a tough night shooting every now and then. He was getting bumped down low and I felt like there were calls being overlooked, but the ball just didn’t go in for him tonight. But he gets those looks the majority of the games, he’s going to put those in the hole. But still, in all, he competed, chased a lot of shots, very active in the screen and roll.

“Dwight really altered the game for us defensively.”

So maybe, just maybe, there’s some budding, if not begrudging, camaraderie going on here. And maybe this little run the Lakers find themselves on, winning three in a row and 8-3 in February to climb to one game under .500 (28-29) for the first time since being 15-16 on Jan. 1, can be trusted.

Grumpy Kobe: “We’re there now. It’s just a matter of putting it together in time to make a good run.”

Coach Mike D’Antoni, acknowledging concern because of the deep hole his team dug, still puffed out his chest: “I’m confident enough, like the rest of them in that locker room, that we can beat anybody any time, anywhere.”

It sounds good, but the Lakers still needed some good fortune at home to fend off Portland, a non-playoff team that’s fast sliding down the West standings. And although the Mavs (25-30) have been winning more recently and Dirk Nowitzki, who had a season-high 30 points and 13 rebounds Sunday, is playing much better, Dallas didn’t look particularly playoff-ready in its two previous wins against bottom-feeders Orlando and New Orleans.

So maybe Steve Nash, adjusting to his own strange season playing off the ball almost has much as he’s got it, is the realist here with 25 games to go and still 2 1/2 games to make up on the eighth-place Rockets.

“I don’t think we’ve really found an identity yet,” said Nash, who played through back pain Sunday and had four assists with 20 points, including a critical 3-pointer when Kobe passed out of a double-team with 1:44 to go for a 99-95 lead. “We have a number of different ways that we play and we’re still trying to find our identity.”

Monday night, the Lakers end a daunting back-to-back in Denver’s thin air where the Nuggets will look to make the Lakers’ lungs burn more than the L.A. smog. Then come home games against down-and-out Minnesota and Atlanta before another a big road challenge at Oklahoma City on March 5.

“They’re all playoff games for us,” Kobe stressed.

This odd season has brought us Kobe the volume scorer, Kobe the facilitator and now Kobe the grump. The latter has carried the Lakers to these last two wins, and apparently isn’t going anywhere anytime soon.

“It’s just what I’m supposed to do, honestly,” Kobe said. “It’s about that time. I’m kind of going through a process of facilitating and things like that, and now it’s time to put the whole thing together.”

We shall see.

Tags: , , , , , , , ,
Posted in HT News / Comments (51) /

Dirk Passes Wilt In Free Throws Made

February 10, 2013  ·  12:32PM

a

HANG TIME SOUTHWEST – Dirk Nowitzki moved past Wilt Chamberlain Saturday night and into 15th place on the NBA’s all-time free throws made list.

In his 1,076th career game, Dirk collected eight more free throws to total 6,059 on 6,910 attempts. That’s 87.7 percent, currently good for a tie for 13th all-time with Jeff Hornacek. Only four active players have better career free-throw percentages — No. 1 Steve Nash (90.4), No. 5 Chauncey Billups (89.4), No. 6 Ray Allen (89.3) and No. 12 Kevin Durant (88.2).

But back to Wilt’s free throws and a little comparison to Dirk because these numbers are really mind-blowing:

* In 1,045 games — 31 fewer than Dirk has played to this point — Wilt made two fewer free throws (6,057) on 4,952 more attempts.

* Dirk has averaged 6.4 free throws a game; Wilt averaged 11.4.

* Dirk, 18th on the NBA’s all-time scoring list (24,442 career points), has missed 851 free-throw attempts.

* Wilt, fourth on the all-time scoring list (31,419), missed 5,805 free- throw attempts.

Dirk’s percentage has dipped a bit this season. After going 8-for-11 from the free-throw line in Saturday’s blowout win over the Golden State Warriors, Dirk is shooting just 78.5 percent from the free- throw line, his low-water mark by far since finishing his rookie season at 77.3 percent.

The slippage is rather stunning considering Dirk finished six of the last seven seasons at 89.0 percent or better (the other season was 87.9 percent).

The only conclusion is that the Oct. 19 athroscopic surgery on his right knee that sidelined him for the first 27 games of the season has taken a toll on a player who has always featured a pronounced knee bend in his shooting form (his 40.7 field-goal percentage is also the lowest since his rookie season).

That aside, Dirk remains one of the game’s all-time great free-throw shooters and he needs to average just under 4.0 made free throws in the final 32 games of the regular season to pass Bob Pettit (6,182) and move into 14th place.

In any other season, that would seem automatic, but this season Dirk is averaging just 2.9 made free throws a game. Prior to this season, he averaged 5.7 made free throws a game. 

Whether it happens this season or next, it will happen. In fact, by the second half of next season Dirk should take his place in the top 10 all-time for most free throws made.

He’s just 317 away from overtaking No. 10 Allen Iverson (6,375), who despite his preference, doesn’t appear headed to an NBA free throw line ever again.

Tags: , , , , , , , , ,
Posted in HT News / Comments (18) /

No Room For Emotion in Mavs’ Rebuilding

February 9, 2013  ·  11:07AM

a

HANG TIME, Texas — The trade deadline is less than two weeks away and that means general managers are spending endless days on the phone and many veterans are spending sleepless nights on edge.

On one hand, athletes get to plead the case that they’re the only professional group in today’s modern age that can be swapped like heads of lettuce at a farmer’s market, having their homes and their lives relocated on short notice.

On the other, the rest of the world outside those well-paid lives usually get only a handshake and a pink slip when they’re no longer wanted or needed.

So here is 14-year-veteran Shawn Marion telling Tim MacMahon of ESPNDallas that he won’t necessarily show up in a new city and play if the sinking Mavericks trade him.

“If I’m going to get traded, they’re going to tell me what’s going on and where I’m going,” the 14-year veteran said. “Because if I’m going to a (expletive) situation, I’m not going. It’s just that simple.

“At this time, I’m too old to be trying to go through and be a, you know what I’m saying, not have a chance to do anything. I’m at a point where I want to be playing for something right now.”

Certainly it is easy to understand the emotional and professional viewpoint of Marion. It was just 20 months ago that The Matrix was playing in The Finals and playing a key role on a team that would win a championship. He figures he’s paid his dues over the years, jumping from Phoenix to Miami to Toronto to find a place in Dallas where he has been comfortable and appreciated.

And all that just goes out the window because Dirk Nowitzki missed the first 27 games of the season following knee surgery, the Mavericks plummeted in the standings and now team owner Mark Cuban must start looking toward the future?

Well, yes.

Perhaps somebody could cue up the Lion King music for Marion, because this is just the circle of life. For all that he has done in Dallas over the past 3 1/2 years, the Mavs are probably hopelessly out of the race for even the No. 8 seed in the Western Conference and must begin to look ahead.

Of course, things would have been radically different if Cuban would have been able to reel in star free-agent point guard Deron Williams or made a deal for center Dwight Howard.

But that is the past and it’s time for Cuban, team president Donnie Nelson and coach Rick Carlisle to build for the future. Can they somehow convince Chris Paul, the free agent next summer, to leave all that he’s built with the Clippers? Can they talk Howard into leaving money on the table with the Lakers to start fresh in Dallas?

They Mavs at least have to try and that means making tough choices, namely moving veterans such as Marion or Vince Carter in hope of getting draft picks, young prospects or just to clear out salary space. Marion will be owed $9.3 million next season, Carter nearly $3.2 million. Those elder statesmen are the most logical — and valuable — trade chips for a team that has to get much better real soon so they don’t squander what’s left of Nowitzki’s career.

Marion is hardly alone on the hot seat. Atlanta is evidently willing to talk to anyone about veteran Josh Smith. Despite all the claims to the contrary from Lakers G.M. Mitch Kupchak, Pau Gasol listened to the talk all season until getting sidelined by his foot injury.

By the way, from a historical perspective, players refusing to report to an undesirable location is hardly a modern phenomenon. As far back as 1950, Bob Cousy was the No. 3 overall pick in the draft by the Tri-Cities Blackhawks, but would not sign and was later picked up by the Celtics. Six NBA titles later, that worked out well for Cousy.

Marion, of course, can only hope that Dallas would send him to a place where he can compete for another championship come June. But if not, the Mavs owe less to him than they do to themselves and their fans.

After a decade of excellence that included annual trips to the playoffs, culminating with the 2011 championship, it is time to move on in Dallas.

The circle of life in the NBA.

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
Posted in HT News / Comments (38) /

< Older Entries
Newer Entries >