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Most Improved Player: Larry Sanders

April 15, 2013  ·  9:09AM

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Welcome. The darts are on this table, the names are on that wall.

Choose Most Improved Player.

Several candidates will get votes, as is the case most years in this most-subjective of all postseason awards that requires weighing past impact as much as present value. Best reserve or top defender are about 2012-13, but this is the category that attempts to quantify a full body of work. Some among the writers and broadcasters who regularly cover the league from each NBA city will even consider expectations – the young player picked in the lottery was supposed to be this good and merely needed time to get there, unlike the guy that built a career from back in the pack.

How subjective?

One well-regarded coach – not Mark Jackson – said Golden State’s Klay Thompson would be his choice because of Thompson’s key role in the Warriors surging into the playoffs… and Thompson is a shooter whose shooting percentage dropped from last season. Most Improved can become a bottomless grab bag.

The choice here, after conversations with several people inside the game, is Larry Sanders of the Bucks in a very close call over Omer Asik (Rockets), Paul George (Pacers), Jrue Holiday (76ers) and Greivis Vasquez (Hornets), such a close call that the runners up are listed alphabetically to avoid making a split on top of the split. Kemba Walker (Bobcats), Tristan Thompson (Cavaliers) and Nikola Vucevic (Magic) also probably get support.

Each candidate from the lead pack has a sound argument, especially George and Holiday as All-Stars in an undeniable credibility boost. If coaches in their own conference say George and Holiday reached such a special level, that is impossible to dismiss.

But so is this: George’s shooting percentage overall and on threes is down from last season. Holiday’s overall accuracy will be about the same as 2012-13. Plus, they were already established, big-minute guys.

Sanders will go from 12.4 minutes a game last season, all as a reserve, to possibly finishing in the top 10 in the league in two categories, blocks (for sure) and rebounding (maybe). In a nod to his 27.3 minutes, not the typical starter’s work load, he could also end up in the top five in both departments per 48 minutes, and he has logged more time the second half of the season, a nudge that started soon after Scott Skiles was fired as coach.

This is the Sanders the Bucks envisioned when they picked him at No. 15 in 2010, five spots after the Pacers took George and 13 before Vasquez went to the Grizzlies. This is also the Sanders that Milwaukee imagined as part of the front line after trading center Andrew Bogut last season, albeit, the team hopes, while learning to control his emotions. That needs to become his next improvement.

The other top contenders:

Asik – For all the deserved attention on what the arrival of James Harden has meant for the Rockets, signing Asik as a free agent to be the once-and-for-all successor to Yao Ming at center became a direct hit of an acquisition. He became a big factor on defense at age 26 and they became a playoff team.

George – He turned the potential devastation of losing Danny Granger to injury into the positive of George blossoming in his third season as one of the best young wings in the game. Already well-established after starting 19 games as a rookie and all 66 in 2011-12, George became an All-Star who will score and rebound.

Holiday – The serious fade of 39.4-percent shooting in March and 26.6 percent the first five games of April hurts his case. But there is no denying the gains of 2012-13, all the way to the All-Star game. P.S.: He’s 22 years old.

Vasquez – The kind of out-of-nowhere candidate that can draw a lot of attention in this category. Holiday and George were full-time starters last season, and Asik had the headline of the free-agent move from Chicago, but Vasquez went from a lot of Jarrett Jack backup duty in 2011-12 to being on track to finish third in assists in 2012-13. Not third on the team. Third in the league.

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Streak Snapped, But Nuggets Make Case

March 26, 2013  ·  11:23AM

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HANG TIME SOUTHWEST – The absence of penetrating point guard Ty Lawson for a third consecutive game finally caught up to the Denver Nuggets and one streak is dead.

While the Miami Heat, surviving now two games without Dwyane Wade thanks to that fella named LeBron James, demolished Orlando for consecutive win No. 27 on Monday, Denver’s franchise-best 15-game win streak came to a miserable end in New Orleans. The Hornets, playing without their two best players, Greivis Vasquez and Eric Gordon, got hot early and rode it to a 110-86 romp.

Hey, it happens. What it reveals is the importance of the Nuggets’ previously sizzling point guard, who is out with a bruised and tender heel.

Denver squeaked past Philadelphia and Sacramento at home to keep the streak alive without Lawson, but at New Orleans, with little ball movement, the Nuggets shot just 37.9 percent and were outscored in the paint (44-38) for the first time since December. Denver averages 57.6 points in the paint per game, a league best by far.

What the loss should in no way diminish is Denver’s dominant play during the streak — eight wins by double-digit points and eight over current playoff teams — and the very real possibility that this supposedly star-less juggernaut could represent the Western Conference in the NBA Finals.

* Not only streak snapped: The Hornets became the first team to dump Denver since Feb. 22, and is also the first West team to beat the Nuggets since Jan. 16, ending the Nuggets’ 15-game roll against conference foes.

Denver’s more modest six-game road winning streak also came to an end, a run that dates back to Feb. 22 at Washington. For a team that exhausts opponents at home (32-3) but has trouble transferring its up-tempo attack on the road (17-20) — and with homecourt advantage in the first round still up for grabs — the six-pack of road victories should serve as a confidence boost.

As for the Nuggets’ snapped West streak, Oklahoma City had been the last to beat them, which makes sense since the Thunder own a conference-best 34-12 record against West teams. However, did you know that the Nuggets are second-best at 32-12? They’ve also handed the Thunder one-fourth of their conference losses, going 3-1 against the reigning West champs, including last week’s 114-104 runaway at OKC.

* Making case against West’s best: Against the West’s other seven current playoff teams, Denver is 18-6, including 9-4 against San Antonio (1-1) — where the Nuggets play Wednesday night — OKC (3-1), the Clippers (2-1) and Memphis (3-1). The Nuggets are 3-0 against Houston with one to go in Denver (April 6) and 6-2 against the Warriors and Lakers.

* Homing in on homecourt: With 10 games to go, the Nuggets are fourth in the West, essentially tied with the No. 3 Clippers in the standings, but one game back in the loss column. They’re one game ahead off No. 5 Memphis but tied in the loss column. Of their 10 games left, six are at home and five are against current playoff teams. However, Denver must travel to desperate No. 9 Utah (April 3) and has two left against surging No. 10 Dallas — one at home (April 4) and one on the road (April 12).

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Vasquez, Gordon Give Hornets Some Hope

January 9, 2013  ·  2:04PM

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HANG TIME SOUTHWEST – Greivis Vasquez deserves a raise — which he’ll get in due time — or the key to the city or, heck, just make him mayor of New Orleans.

The city, and its beleaguered basketball team, couldn’t ask for a better ambassador than the Venezuelan-born point guard who’s leaving his heart and sweat on the floor every night as he emerges as a top talent in the league.

“The biggest thing is I’m getting an opportunity,” said Vasquez, a recent player of the week recipient. “Still, people don’t know about me as much because I’m playing in a small market, which I love. I love this city, I love this team.”

Pretty refreshing stuff from a third-year player just starting to hit his stride for a franchise that’s endured it’s share of hard knocks in recent years — including a hard-luck 7-25 start to this season.

Yet as I wrote after Saturday’s 99-96 overtime win at Dallas, the season really started at that moment. Add Monday’s impressive thumping of the San Antonio Spurs in front of 11,599 that ended a seven-game home losing streak, and Wednesday’s fourth-quarter comeback against the previously streaking Houston Rockets, and the Hornets are on a roll with their first three-game winning streak of the season.

Why the reset on the season?

Because the ridiculously youthful Hornets finally got game-changer and now-healthy shooting guard Eric Gordon in the starting lineup Saturday. It allowed coach Monty Williams to make other changes and roll out the starting five he envisioned.

And this is where Vasquez’s ambassadorial value comes shining through. A 6-foot-6, bearded jolt of energy, smiles, enthusiasm and positivity, his team-first attitude is absolutely contagious. It’s critical to the evolution of this franchise, and no more so than as it relates to Gordon, the 6-foot-3 scoring machine deemed the future of the franchise when New Orleans acquired him in the painful CP3 trade 13 months ago.

“I have a good relationship with Eric and I tell you this, we have been talking a lot,” Vasquez said before Saturday’s comeback victory. “Eric is a pro. I feel him as a player too, because his knee was really bothering him. But now he feels like his teammates got his back, we all got his back. We all know he’s going to make us better and we’re going to make him better. And now, we talked [Friday] night, we’re going to make this situation a great situation. We’re going to start winning games.

“For a guy like that to say that to a guy like me, that means a lot. I’m sure he’s saying that on behalf of the whole team because we’re winners, we want to win and we work. And that has been the main thing of our team, we’re going to work regardless. Whether we lose or win tomorrow we are getting better because our vision is in the future.” (more…)

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Following The Script, Hornets’ Gordon Closes Out Mavs

January 6, 2013  ·  1:43AM

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DALLAS – As far as the New Orleans Hornets are concerned, the season started Saturday night, Jan. 5, with a 99-96 overtime victory over the Dallas Mavericks.

“It kind of is,” said Hornets guard Eric Gordon after his first start of the season and after he scored eight of his 14 points — and the Hornets’ final eight points — in the OT. “We’re still a little bit banged up health-wise and we’re still trying to get there, but I would say this is the type of win that kind of does something for us.”

No kidding.

Hey, 1-0 looks a whole lot better than the 8-and-20-whatever that the official standings will have you believe. But forget the standings when it comes to this scrappy, intruiging group of young kids trying to make it work in NOLA. Even before Saturday night’s big road win, as players dressed and stretched in the visiting locker room, a freshness and exuberance could be sensed.

For one, the 6-foot-3 Gordon was returning to the lineup for just his third game and his first start of the season. He was given the previous game off to rest after playing two games in his long-awaited comeback from a knee injury that followed him to New Orleans from the Los Angeles Clippers in the Chris Paul trade.

And whatever happened with Gordon after the trade, his lingering injury and his Phoenix-or-bust ambitions during the offseason mean nothing now to his growing teammates.

Second, Hornets coach Monty Williams, for the first time this season, trotted out the starting five he envisioned from the start: Emerging point guard sensation Greivis Vasquez, Gordon, Al-Farouq Aminu, Robin Lopez and No. 1 pick Anthony Davis. That quintet’s average age is 22.8 and allows Williams to utilize the 20-year-old Austin Rivers from his rightful spot off the bench.

Vasquez, remarkably the old man of the group in just his third season at age 25, and the reigning Western Conference Player of the Week, could barely control his enthusiasm to finally start — and finish — a game next to Gordon, a man of considerable scoring ability.

“What Eric is going to bring to the table is we have been in games without him and now he can close those games out for us,” Vasquez said prior to the game. “He can be our closer. That’s what he does for us.”

Cue the Gordon highlight reel.

After struggling through a rocky shooting night, Gordon rode the coattails of Vasquez’s monster, 15-point fourth quarter that rallied the Hornets to an 89-89 tie after regulation. The underrated Vasquez, stuffing the stat sheet again with 25 points, nine assists, seven rebounds and a lone turnover in 41 minutes, had a chance to win in it regulation, but a screen failed to set him free and he never got a clean look as the clock expired.

“He’s for sure underrated and he’s going to be a big-time playmaker,” Gordon said. “He’s definitely underrated and he’s just getting better and better with every game.”

Gordon, unfazed by a 1-for-9 shooting night in regulation, turned the final 1:49 into a clinic of late-game execution. His driving layup cut Dallas’ lead to 94-93. Then he drained a 3-pointer to put the Hornets up 96-94 with 1:18 to go. Mavs forward Shawn Marion tied it at 96-96.

After missing a 3-pointer for the lead with 39.9 seconds to go, Gordon got a reprieve when O.J. Mayo, cold all night, missed a pull-up jumper (plus two earlier open corner 3s in overtime). Gordon went to work on undersized Mavs point guard Darren  Collison.

Gordon pump-faked at the top of the circle and Collison bit. Gordon leaned forward, drew contact and heaved a shot that hit the backboard square and dropped in with 4.7 seconds to play. He completed the 3-point play to close it out just as Vasquez envisioned.

“Our record really doesn’t identify who we are,” Vasquez said. “We have been in games and because our inexperience really gets to us, teams have been able to beat us the last two minutes of the game. But it is a learning process. I tell you, we have this vision that we are going to be a great team, and that takes some time. In the NBA, it’s too cruel, it’s cold-blooded. You’ve got to understand that you have to have really a strong mindset because it’s not going to be easy. We’re going through that.”

And on this night they persevered when they could have folded multiple times. After leading 25-19, Dallas bridged the first and second quarters with a 13-0 run. The Mavs led by 11 in the third quarter and with Dirk Nowitzki having made his debut in the starting lineup in his seventh game back, they looked to be salting away a game they desperately needed before embarking on a three-game road trip.

But Nowitzki, who finished with 20 points, would be held to three points on 1-for-5 shooting in the fourth quarter and overtime. Instead it was Vasquez and the 24-year-old Gordon taking charge.

Asked before the game what he hoped to get from his first-time starting five, Williams, the Hornets’ impressive 41-year-old coach said,  “Wins.”

He got one. More importantly his young, clawing team finally got rewarded for their effort and got a glimpse for once of what a closer looks like on their own squad. For the first time in the 20th game this season that New Orleans trailed after three quarters, they pulled one out.

“Eric is a player that most people on the East Coast and even here don’t get to see because the Clippers didn’t play on TV as much, or at all when he was there,” Williams said. “But he’s a guy that can score the ball. He can shoot 3s, he can attack the basket, he can get to the free-throw line.”

Gordon did all three in the final 1:49 Saturday night, the first night of the rest of the Hornets’ season.

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Faves Roll At Americas’ Second Round

September 5, 2011  ·  10:45PM

HANG TIME HEADQUARTERS (NEW JERSEY BUREAU) – The second round of the FIBA Americas Championship 2011 in Mar del Plata, Argentina got underway on Monday, but it was marred by a gruesome injury to Dominican Republic point guard Edgar Sosa.

The four matchups were all pretty straightforward, with the favorites to make the semifinals all cruising to comfortable victories. Tuesday’s games should be similar, and we’ll have to wait until Wednesday before we see the heavyweight squads on the floor together.

Trending up: Dominican Republic (4-1)
Trending down: Canada (2-3)

Dominican Republic 92, Panama 68 (Boxscore)

The good news for the Dominican Republic is that they took care of business against a weak opponent (they led by 26 at the end of the third quarter) and that Charlie Villanueva (13 points, five rebounds, 5-for-13 from the field) looked better than he did in the first round.

The horrible news is that Sosa suffered a career-altering injury in the final minute of the game. On a drive to the basket, Sosa took some contact and fell hard to the floor. When he looked down at his right leg, he saw that it was bent in the middle of his shin.

It was an awful sight for anyone watching and the players on both teams were visibly shaken. After Sosa was taken off the floor in a stretcher, Panama respectfully dribbled out the clock and both teams gathered at center court in prayer.

Going forward, the absence of Sosa puts a lot of pressure on back-up point guard Ronald Ramon, who hasn’t made much of an impact through the first five games.

Puerto Rico 94, Venezuela 82 (Boxscore)

This was the matchup with the most potential for a close game and Venezuela was down by just two midway through the third quarter. But then they got hit with a 17-0 Puerto Rico run that decided the game.

Carlos Arroyo had another solid game, but J.J. Barea had another underwhelming performance. And it was Daniel Santiago that made the difference for Puerto Rico. Venezuela’s bigs couldn’t match up with Santiago’s size and the FIBA veteran led all scorers with 22 points on 8-of-9 shooting. He even beat Venezuela down the floor in transition a couple of times.

Santiago’s dominance inside freed up Alex Galindo on the perimeter. Galindo hit three of his five attempts from 3-point range and finished with 18 points.

For Venezuela, Greivis Vasquez had a rough day, shooting just 1-for-7 from the field. And after his huge 28-point game against Canada, Hector Romero came back down to earth. Romero failed to score on Monday, missing all seven of his shots.

Unfortunately, like the previous game, this one was marred by an incident in the closing minutes. With 5:37 left in the fourth quarter, Vasquez fouled Renaldo Balkman hard in the post and Balkman retaliated by head-butting Vasquez in the cheek. Then Nestor Colmenares shoved Balkman to the floor. Both Balkman and Colmenares were ejected.

Argentina 79, Canada 53 (Boxscore)

Like most of Argentina’s games, this one was over early. Canada got to within nine late in the third quarter, but there was never any doubt that Argentina would remain unbeaten.

Argentina’s offense is a thing of beauty and Canada’s offense is pretty much the opposite. Canada shot just 28 percent from the field and had 18 more turnovers (22) than assists (four). Kelly Olynyk (19 points and 12 rebounds) was their lone bright spot.

Luis Scola led all scorers with 22 points on 7-for-15 shooting, while Manu Ginobili had 16 points, six rebounds, five assists and three steals.

Argentina should get a tougher test on Tuesday against Venezuela. Canada, meanwhile, probably needs to upset Puerto Rico in the early game to have a shot at finishing in the top five and qualifying for next year’s Olympic qualifier.

Brazil 93, Uruguay 66 (Boxscore)

Brazil put this one away with a 28-12 third quarter. The potency of their offense was on full display as they connected on 58 percent of their shots, including 10 of their 18 attempts from 3-point range. Tiago Splitter got plenty of rest, scoring nine points and eight rebounds in just 21 minutes.

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Venezuela Picks Up Big Win As First Round Wraps Up

September 3, 2011  ·  10:26PM

HANG TIME HEADQUARTERS (NEW JERSEY BUREAU) – On the final day of first round action at the FIBA Americas Championship 2011 in Mar del Plata, Argentina saw just one matchup of any interest. But it was a very important game regarding the standings and Olympic qualifying.

After a day off, the eight teams remaining will proceed with the second round on Monday. There’s still a lot to be determined, but a clear hierarchy has begun to develop.

Trending up: Venezuela (2-2)
Trending down: Canada (2-2)
Going home: Cuba (0-4), Paraguay (0-4)

Venezuela 103, Canada 98 (OT) (Boxscore)

Other than the two semifinal games next Saturday (which will determine which two teams qualify for the Olympics), this was probably the most important game of the tournament. Here’s why…

  • The teams that finish third, fourth and fifth in the FIBA Americas tournament qualify for next summer’s Olympic qualifying tournament, where the top three teams (of 12) will qualify for the Olympics. A berth in that tournament would be a big step forward for either Canadian or Venezuelan basketball.
  • Now that the first round is over, the top four teams from each group will each play the top four teams from the other group in the second round. So Canada and Venezuela will each play two teams they should beat (Uruguay and Panama) and two teams they shouldn’t (Argentina and Puerto Rico).
  • After the second round, only the top four teams qualify for elimination-round play. Those four teams should be Argentina, Brazil, the Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico. Fifth place (and that final spot in next year’s qualifier) will be determined only by the round-robin results.
  • A Canada win would have put them two games ahead of Venezuela in the standings and virtually ensured them of that fifth spot. But a Venezuela win ties them with Canada in the standings and gives them the head-to-head tiebreaker, putting them in the driver’s seat for fifth.

Appropriately, this was the most exciting game of the tournament. There was an ugly stretch in the second quarter and both teams botched their final possession of regulation, but it was otherwise entertaining.

In the end, it was probably Canada’s mistakes that made the difference down the stretch. They committed four turnovers in the fourth quarter and another two in overtime. They were down by just one when Greivis Vasquez fouled out with less than three minutes to go, but Venezuela scored on each of its next five possessions to go up six and pick up the win.

  • Vasquez had another huge game, scoring 29 points on 8-for-18 from the field. At one point in the second quarter, he had 15 of his team’s 30 points and had a hand in another seven via three assists.
  • But Vasquez got a lot more help in this game than he did in Venezuela’s previous three. David Cubillan dished out 10 assists and hit a huge three in overtime. And Gregory Echeniquerecorded a double-double that included a couple of put-back dunks down the stretch.
  • But the player of the game for Venezuela had to be Hector Romero, who scored 28 points on 7-of-9 from the field and 11-of-14 from the line. Romero finished great around the basket all night and even drained a three early in overtime. His biggest play was an interception of an Andy Rautins cross-court pass that he took the other way for a dunk that gave Venezuela a six-point lead with two minutes to go.
  • That costly turnover was just part of Rautins’ rough afternoon. He shot just 3-for-9 from the field and missed three crucial 3-pointers down the stretch.
  • Carl English carried Canada in the first quarter, but Jermaine Anderson took over after that. Anderson scored more points on Saturday (28) than he did in Canada’s previous three games combined (23).
  • Joel Anthony had a couple of Canada’s late turnovers, but his defense around the rim was critical in getting them to overtime. Anthony finished with nine points, nine rebounds and four blocks.

Uruguay 79, Paraguay 66 (Boxscore)

Uruguay may be the team that can take that fifth place standing away from Venezuela. And they’ll get a chance in the next round after finishing third in Group B. Esteban Batista recorded his third straight double-double in this game that was never really close after Uruguay took an 11-point lead early in the third quarter.

Paraguay finished 0-4 and can look back at Guillermo Araujo‘s missed free throws at the end of Thursday’s loss to Panama as the reason they’re going home.

Brazil 93, Cuba 83 (Boxscore)

The final score of this was closer than it should have been, but the result was never in doubt. Brazil led by 15 at the half and by 22 at the end of the third quarter, allowing both Tiago Splitter (four points in 10 minutes) and Marcelo Huertas (six assists in 15 minutes) to get plenty of rest.

Like Paraguay, Cuba goes home without a win. They lost their four games by an average of 24.8 points.

Argentina 90, Panama 71 (Boxscore)

This was another game that was never in doubt and another display of Argentina’s terrific teamwork. The hosts didn’t shoot particularly well, but had five guys in double figures and assisted on 24 of their 34 field goals. Luis Scola led the way with 19 points and 14 rebounds and Pablo Prigioni made Panama pay for leaving him alone on the perimeter, connecting on five of his seven attempts from 3-point range.

Panama advances to the second round thanks to that narrow escape over Paraguay on Thursday, but looks destined to finish eighth in the standings.

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Canada Pulls Off An Upset

September 1, 2011  ·  11:01PM

HANG TIME HEADQUARTERS (NEW JERSEY BUREAU) – Day 3 of the FIBA Americas Championship 2011 in Mar del Plata brought us our first upset of the tournament. It also brought us some upset Paraguayans.

Trending up: Canada (1-1)
Trending down: Dominican Republic (2-1)

Panama 89, Paraguay 86 (Boxscore)

There are 10 teams in this tournament, and after four first-round games, eight of them (four from each group) will reach the second round. There are four solid teams in Group A and we don’t have any problems with Canada or Venezuela playing three more games next week.

But after Argentina and Puerto Rico, there’s a big drop-off in Group B. Of the Panama-Paraguay-Uruguay group, two of those teams will advance to the second round, so this matchup meant a lot to both teams.

Panama was in control, up 70-55, after the third quarter. But Paraguay came all the way back and had a chance to tie the game or take the lead with 19 seconds left. Enrique Martinez found Guillermo Araujo under the basket with five seconds left and Araujo was hammered hard by Ruben Garces.

The Paraguayans were looking for an unsportsmanlike foul call (which would have resulted in two shots and the ball back), but they only got a standard foul. Still, Araujo had the opportunity to send the game to overtime.

But he missed both freebies and Panama escaped with the win.

(more…)

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Argentina, P.R. Continue To Dominate

August 31, 2011  ·  10:12PM

HANG TIME HEADQUARTERS (NEW JERSEY BUREAU) – Day 2 of action at the FIBA Americas Championship 2011 in Mar del Plata, Argentina, featured a near-upset, a couple of blowouts, and a critical game between two teams who have a shot at the top five (and a spot in the Olympics or the Olympic qualifying tournament next summer).

Trending up: Venezuela (0-2)
Trending down: Dominican Republic (2-0)

Dominican Republic 92, Venezuela 89 (Box Score)

For the second straight day, Venezuela looked poised to pull off an upset. This time, they were up by as many as 17 points early in the third quarter and by 11 heading into the fourth. But the Dominican Republic turned up the defensive intensity in the final 10 minutes, swarmed Greivis Vasquez whenever he came off a pick, and pulled out a three-point victory.

More notes from Dominican Republic vs. Venezuela:

  • For most of the game, the Venezuela zone kept Edgar Sosa out of the paint and Al Horford out of the post. But Horford was able to find opportunities near the rim by moving without the ball. He finished with 19 points on 6-for-7 shooting, adding 10 rebounds.
  • Jack Michael Martinez, the Dominican’s starting center and their version of Ben Wallace, added 18 points and 14 rebounds. A lot of those points followed his seven offensive boards.
  • The Venezuela offense was a little more balanced than it was on Tuesday, but Vasquez still filled the box score. He came one assist short of a triple-double, finishing with 16 points, 10 rebounds and nine dimes.
  • Once again, both Francisco Garcia and Charlie Villanueva were largely disappointing. Garcia was mostly invisible and Villanueva looked sluggish. There’s talk of Villanueva being under the weather, but the only good thing about him through these first two games has been the way the FIBA announcer pronounces his name.
  • With the game going down to the wire, neither Garcia nor Villanueva were on the floor for the Dominican Republic.
  • Luis Flores was on the floor, and he hit two big jumpers in the closing minutes.
  • After trailing by six with 45 seconds left, Venezuela had a chance to tie with a three on their final possession. But the play that ex-Warriors and Kings coach Eric Musselman drew up in the timeout was not executed on the floor and Vasquez drove baseline and had no one to pass it to.
  • By playing well against both Brazil and the Dominican Republic, Venezuela has been a pleasant surprise in this tournament. They might have a shot at finishing fifth, but they need to start turning those fourth-quarter leads into Ws. They’ve got Cuba on Thursday and then a huge game against Canada on Saturday.
  • The Dominicans looked strong against Cuba on Tuesday, but took a step backward on Day 2.

Puerto Rico 101, Paraguay 55 (Box Score)

Not much to see here. Neither Carlos Arroyo nor J.J. Barea needed to play more than 20 minutes in this blowout. Through two games, Puerto Rico has an effective field goal percentage of 0.582. They’ve got another mismatch (Uruguay) on Thursday before facing Argentina on Friday night.

(more…)

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Horford, Splitter Stand Out On Day 1

August 30, 2011  ·  10:28PM

HANG TIME HEADQUARTERS (NEW JERSEY BUREAU) – With the United States already holding a ticket to London next year and happy to sit out the event for the second straight time, the FIBA Americas Championship 2011 got underway in Mar del Plata, Argentina on Tuesday.

The top two finishers in the tournament will qualify for next year’s Olympics in London. The third, fourth and fifth-place finishers will qualify for the 12-team qualifying tournament next July. The top three finishers in that tournament will qualify for the Olympics.

Eight of the FIBA Americas’ 10 teams were in action on the first of five days of preliminary-round action. Here’s a rundown…

Dominican Republic 90, Cuba 60 (Box Score)

Of the three NBA players on the D.R. roster, Al Horford clearly stood out. After a slow start (two points on 1-for-5 shooting in the first 8:58), he dominated the action in the Dominican’s easy win.

Horford’s 24 points came mostly in the post, where the Cuban big men were completely overmatched. But he did have a handful of buckets on the move and on the break. The highlight was a fast-break alley-oop throw down off a toss from Edgar Sosa midway through the second quarter.

After that 1-for-5 start, Horford connected on 11 of his final 13 shots. He added nine boards to his 24 points.

(more…)

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Can Thunder, Grizzlies top that?

May 11, 2011  ·  10:20AM

OKLAHOMA CITY – Every player in the Thunder locker room is weary.

The Lakers and Spurs are out.

Every last man on the Grizzlies roster is exhausted.

The Magic and Knicks are gone.

Go ahead. Try to tell us what’s going to happen next.

Conventional wisdom, not to mention statistics provided by Elias Sports Bureau, says Oklahoma City is now in control. In series tied at 2-2, the team that won Game 4 prevailed 73.9 percent of the time in the past.

But what does that past have to do with the Thunder blowing a 16-point lead in the third quarter of Game 3 and losing to the Grizzlies in overtime? What does the past have to do with the Grizzlies blowing an 18-point lead in the first half and coming back from being 10 points down with five minutes left in regulation of Game 4? What does the past have anything to do with all of the insanity that happened through three mind-bending overtimes?

“I’ve kind of always felt like momentum isn’t a real thing. It’s not a tangible thing,” Thunder forward Nick Collison said. “I think the way this series has gone, you just have to come out and play each game.

“We’ve played great and we’ve played terrible in this series at different times. So we know that we’re capable of winning and we’re capable of dropping a game. Our mindset is we have to be ready to play in Game 5. I’m sure theirs is the same way. The stuff that happened in the past isn’t going to matter.”

If this is a so-called chess match, then the grand masters on the benches are out of moves. Lionel Hollins went small with his Grizzlies. Scott Brooks went small with his Thunder. Hollins went big. Brooks went big. In Game 4, they went until just short of 1 a.m. in what practically became an all-night pick-up game.

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Posted in 2011 Playoffs, Uncategorized / Comments (67) /

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