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On The Clock: Finding Order In The Chaos

April 8, 2013  ·  9:42AM





HANG TIME HEADQUARTERS – Nine days.

That’s all the time we have left in the NBA regular season to sort out all of the issues facing us. And, Naismith knows, we have plenty of them.

Nine more (game) days to weave through the months of drama and finalize the playoff order in both the Eastern and Western Conferences, to see who will snatch this season’s scoring title, to see if the Los Angeles Lakers can salvage the dumpster fire that their season has been since training camp … there’s a host of other loose ends that need to be tied up before the postseason tips off.

We already know the eight players in the Eastern Conference. The Miami Heat, New York Knicks, Indiana Pacers, Brooklyn Nets, Chicago Bulls, Atlanta Hawks, Boston Celtics and Milwaukee Bucks have clinched their playoff bids. All that’s left is to firm up the order beneath the Heat, who have a 10-game cushion in the standings.

The Knicks and Pacers are battling for the No. 2 seed (just 2.5 games separate the two). The Knicks surged ahead on the strength of their current 12-game win streak, fueled by their MVP candidate Carmelo Anthony and the streaky J.R. Smith.

The Nets are doing whatever it takes to hold on to their top four spot in the standings, and the coveted home-court advantage that comes along with it.

But at least the pecking order is pretty much set. Not so in the other half of the bracket.

SORTING OUT THE BOTTOM OF THE WEST …

The order in the West remains a bit muddled. The San Antonio Spurs, Oklahoma City Thunder, Denver Nuggets, Clippers and Memphis Grizzlies are playoff locks. The Spurs have already wrapped up the Southwest Division crown and the Clippers secured the first Pacific Division title in franchise history with their win over the Lakers Sunday at Staples Center.

“It just feels like something we were supposed to do,” Chris Paul said after shredding the Lakers for 24 points and 12 assists. “It means we’re headed in the right direction. We’re not satisfied. We understand this is something small compared to the big picture.”

The bottom of the standings in the Western Conference will come into a clearer focus in the last nine days. The Jazz have a half-game lead over the Lakers for the eighth and final spot in the playoff chase, courtesy of their huge win Sunday night over the Golden State Warriors.

The Jazz have four games remaining: against Oklahoma City on Tuesday, against Minnesota on Friday and in Minnesota on April 15, and at Memphis on April 17, the final night of the regular season.

The Lakers have a slight schedule advantage. Of their five remaining games just one (Wednesday night’s tilt in Portland) will come away from the Staples Center. But their last three will be against playoff teams; Golden State on Friday, San Antonio on Sunday and Houston on April 17.

The Jazz own the head-to-head tiebreaker, the Lakers the favorable schedule. As suspected, this one could come down to the final night of the season.

WHAT RACE FOR THE SCORING TITLE?

The three-time scoring champ doesn’t want a fourth title. Not right now.

Thunder superstar Kevin Durant said as much about his battle with Anthony for the scoring crown.

“He can have it,” Durant said last week, before admitting that he is rooting for Anthony to snag his first scoring title in his 10th NBA season.

Durant obviously has more pressing matters to occupy his time, namely the Thunder’s battle with the Spurs for the top overall seed in the Western Conference. OKC’s loss Sunday to Anthony and the Knicks didn’t help that cause.

Best guess: Anthony gets the scoring title (he’s scored 36 or more points in four straight games) and the Spurs get the top seed in the West.

EAST MATCHUPS UP FOR GRABS, AFTER HEAT-BUCKS 

If form holds in the Eastern Conference, the No. 1 Heat will face off with the No. 8 Bucks, a matchup tilted heavily in favor of the league’s best team.

Everything else after that, however, is literally up for grabs.

The difference between the six other teams is negligible on any given night. With experienced playoff teams like the Bulls, Hawks and Celtics lurking in the bottom half of the East bracket, the higher seeds have to be extremely careful with home-court advantage.

The Celtics and Bulls, in particular, are teams adept at ignoring the obvious and playing above their heads in the playoffs. Two physical teams like this, built with defense in mind — teams that have shown themselves capable of pushing the Heat to the edge (remember the Bulls snapped the Heat’s 27-game win streak) — should have no problem making life difficult for higher seeds in the first round of the playoffs.

STILL HOPE FOR ROSE …

The Bulls have the one variable in the playoffs that could change the entire postseason landscape in former MVP Derrick Rose, who made it clear over the weekend that he has not abandoned the idea of suiting up this season.

Time is obviously not on his side. But that doesn’t seem to be an issue for Rose or the Bulls, who would surely welcome back their All-Star — their best player — to a team that has survived without him quite well.

With just six games left, Rose will have to accelerate his decision-making process and come up with an answer sooner rather than later. After weeks of speculation to the contrary, might Rose actually be ready for a return?

It certainly seems that way based on what Rose told K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune:

“Oh, no,” Rose said, when asked if he’d announce he’s sitting out this season. “I’m keeping it open.”

After Sunday’s game against the Pistons, the Bulls have just six regular-season games remaining.

“I’m not trying to think about that right now,” Rose said. “I’m just trying to get better. I’m just trying to help my teammates, give them confidence to go out there and play hard. I’ll play whenever I’m ready to play. Who knows when I’m ready to? Right now, all I can do is just cheer on my teammates.”

Rose first scrimmaged on Feb. 18 and has said whether he returns is as much a mental hurdle as a physical one at this point. Playing on a minutes limit wouldn’t bother him.

“I wouldn’t mind at all,” he said. “Of course I want to play more. But it’s not that big. I’m going to play whenever I’m ready. I don’t care if it’s 15 or 40 (minutes). I just love the game too much. Like I said, I’m just waiting and praying about it. And hopefully I’ll be out there soon.”

Bulls fans are waiting and praying as well, hoping that not only can Rose return but that he can thrive on his surgically repaired knee.

VUCEVIC CHASING HOWARD FOR REBOUNDING TITLE

No one gets a fancy trophy for winning the league’s dirty work award, the rebounding title.

But wouldn’t it be something if Orlando’s Nikola Vucevic (11.8 rebounds per game) was able to catch and pass former Magic and now Lakers big man Dwight Howard (12.5) for the top spot? Vucevic has turned out to be the surprise gem of the multiple-player and multiple-team deal that sent Howard to Los Angeles and Andrew Bynum to Philadelphia.

Raise your hand if you saw that coming …

TROUBLE FILLING OUT YOUR ALL-NBA BALLOT?

If you are struggling with who goes where on your All-NBA first-team ballot, welcome to the club.

Outside of LeBron James and Paul, there are some extremely difficult choices that have to be made. Who gets the nod between Anthony and Durant at the other forward spot? And do you go with Marc Gasol at center and Kobe Bryant at shooting guard?

That relegates worthy candidates (based on the position-specific nature of the All-NBA team) like Tony Parker, Russell Westbrook, Howard and Tim Duncan to the second team, even though you could make a compelling case for each of them, too.

At least we have time to think about it … well, nine game days.


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Angry Pop: Spurs Don’t Have It Right Now

April 7, 2013  ·  10:10AM

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HANG TIME  SOUTHWEST – Coach Pop dropped some strong language on his team Saturday night.

San Antonio Spurs coach Gregg Popovich is not an easy man to please and he was rather disgusted when reporters gathered to hear his assessment of the game. A game the Spurs won 99-97. Against the East’s sixth-seeded playoff team. And did so without Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili.

Upset that his team nearly coughed up a late lead at home, and annoyed by its general lackluster play other than Tim Duncan‘s huge night (31 points, 14 rebounds, four blocks and three assists) and Kawhi Leonard‘s second consecutive 20-point game (23 points, six rebounds, four assists, two steals and two blocks), Pop, whose club is 4-4 in its last eight and lost its grip Thursday night on the West’s No. 1 seed, put out this warning flare:

“Other than Timmy, in a lot of ways, it was a pathetic performance. That kind of play isn’t going to get us very far. And it’s not the first time we’ve played like that in the last few weeks. This team needs to get its head around itself and understand what it takes to be there because as a group, they don’t have it right now.”

The bluster  was a reminder of one of Pop’s more memorable playoff sound-offs when, following a 100-94 Game 1 loss at Dallas in the 2010 first round series the Spurs would win in six games, he said: “We’ve got to have a few more people step up and play worth a damn. I thought we had a lot of guys that played like dogs.”

Or the line that became an instant YouTube classic from last year’s West finals opener against Oklahoma City when, miked-up during a timeout on the TNT broadcast, Pop sarcastically asked his struggling team if they were having fun yet, and then implored: “I want some nasty!”

Saturday’s rant won’t go viral or become a T-shirt slogan, but he did let his disgust be known to a team that outside of Duncan, in terms of players that actually took the court against the Hawks, exactly one owns a Spurs championship ring: Matt Bonner.

It’s been six years since the Spurs swept LeBron’s James‘ Cleveland Cavaliers. How time flies. And don’t think Pop, who has witnessed this Big Three grow older and suffer a litany of ill-timed injuries, doesn’t know this.

And now time is running out on this regular season, the franchise’s 15th in a row with 50 wins. San Antonio is headed for a 16th consecutive playoff appearance with hopes of a fifth title pinned to the health of Parker and Ginobili.

They don’t want a repeat of 2011 when the eighth-seeded Grizzlies popped the Spurs and a less-than-optimal Ginobili, who injured his right elbow in the regular-season finale, missed Game 1 and then gutted through the rest of the six-game, first-round upset wearing a heavy elbow brace.

Ginobili, who missed his fifth consecutive game Saturday with a hamstring injury, might not be back for the start of the playoffs now just two weeks away. Parker is listed as day-to-day as he nurses multiple injuries. Two nights after he limped off the floor at Oklahoma City with Popovich saying afterward he was “very concerned” that Parker might be dealing with tendinitis in his shins, the team listed their All-Star point guard and top five MVP candidate as out of the Atlanta game with a neck injury.

Getting through the West won’t be easy, starting in the opening round when the Spurs’ most probable opponent will be either the young, but dangerous Houston Rockets, or the unpredictable, but star-laden and Kobe Bryant-driven Los Angeles Lakers.

“Playing like we did right now, no,” Duncan told reporters when asked if his team is playoff-ready. “Playing at the health level we were tonight, no. Luckily, we have a little while to try to get everybody back on the court.”

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Morning Shootaround — April 4

April 4, 2013  ·  7:31AM

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 a player has 90 points over his last two games, it’s a sure bet his game is the must-watch recap of the morning. That being said, what Carmelo Anthony did against the Hawks last night in Atlanta was a thing of beauty (unless, of course, you’re a Hawks fan). ‘Melo systematically picked apart the Hawks’ defense with some nice passes and since Atlanta opted to not double team one of the NBA’s best scorers (and a man on a hot streak of late), he torched them for 40 points for good measure. The Hang Time Podcast crew gets into a good debate/discussion about what all this regular-season scoring means for a player who has yet to have more than one deep playoff run. It’s a worthy discussion to listen to, but if you don’t have time, just watch the Knicks’ No. 1 option go to work on the Hawks.

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News of the morning

D-Will not planning on more cortisone shots | Clips’ Hill leaning toward retirement? | Different kind of beard pact in Oakland | Garcia feels for Kings fans

Report: Williams plans to forsake more cortisone shots — Deron Williams‘ season can basically be broken into two categories: the pre-platelet-rich plasma injections portion and the post-PRP portion. The former occurred up until mid-February, which is when Williams decided to have the PRP treatment done on his bothersome ankles and since then has looked more and more like the All-Star/superstar guard he has been throughout his career. While there was a notion that Williams would need cortisone shots for his ankles just before the playoffs begin, D-Will is scrapping those plans, writes Stefan Bondy of the New York Daily News:

When the playoffs roll around, Deron Williams says he won’t need the high dosage pain killers that helped salvage his season.

The point guard plans to ride this out cortisone-free.

Having braced himself for continued ankle pain and a fourth round of shots just before the playoffs started, Deron Williams told the Daily News on Wednesday that his treatments in February were so successful that injections aren’t necessary prior to the postseason in late April.

It’s a welcome development for Williams, who is aware of the longterm dangers of injecting too much cortisone – a hormone steroid which, used liberally as an anti-inflammatory, can weaken cartilage in the joints, leaving it susceptible to damage or ruptured tendons.

Doctors typically recommend athletes don’t take more than four injections per year, and Williams is happy he doesn’t have to test the limits with a fourth round.

“That’s a good thing,” said Williams, who indicated in February that he “probably” will receive injections before the playoffs.

…

Williams originally injured his left ankle during training camp for the Olympics, just after signing a five-year, $98 million contract with the Nets. At some point he injured his other ankle, and underwent his first round of cortisone shots in October.

By the time he received his third round in February, Williams was hobbling around the court and undergoing his worst season as a professional. His last cortisone shots were preceded by PRP injections to both ankles about a week prior.

Not coincidentally, Williams’ season turned around after the All-Star break. He’s also 20 pounds lighter, quicker, averaging more points, more assists, less turnovers and shooting at a better percentage.

Williams has said his latest cortisone injections were “finally in the right spot.”

Clippers’ Hill might retire after season — When the Suns decided to embark on their (somewhat puzzling) rebuilding plan, it meant bringing back Grant Hill for a sixth season in Phoenix was a long-shot-at-best proposition. Hill didn’t sit on the summer’s free-agent market for long once he and Phoenix couldn’t reach a deal, as he signed a two-year deal with the Clippers and looked like a piece that would bolster an up-and-coming squad. However, a bone bruise on his right knee kept Hill off the court until Jan. 12 and, since finally playing, he’s averaging career lows across the board. With the injury problems in mind and given Hill’s age (40), the former Rookie of the Year winner tells Paul Coro of The Arizona Republic he might hang it up after this season:

Hill expected to return to Phoenix for a sixth Suns season when he stayed in the Valley to train last summer. The Suns made a one-year, minimum-salary offer of $1.35 million and the Clippers came with a two-year, $4 million one while Oklahoma City and Chicago also pursued him.

Hill, 40, joined the Clippers, began the season on the inactive list after suffering a bone bruise to his right knee, the one which underwent two arthroscopies since 2011 in Phoenix, and did not play until Jan. 12. Hill likely will not make it to that second contract year and opt to retire this summer.

“Strong chance,” Hill said. “I’m leaning toward it. I want to get to the end of the year and off-season and think about it but I’m pretty confident that’s where my mind is right now. I’ve enjoyed it.”

Except for a brief 2008 experiment under then-Suns coach Terry Porter, Hill always had started in his career until this season, when he often is not in the 10-man rotation.

“That knee injury (bone bruise) set me back a bit in terms of staying healthy and getting in the rotation so that hasn’t been good,” Hill said. “But I wouldn’t change it one bit other than to be hurt early in the year. I like the situation. I like my teammates. We’ve had an up-and-down season. We’ve experienced every emotion you can. We’re still battling for that third spot. We haven’t played well of late but we still have a chance to correct it. We have the ability and the talent to beat anybody. I have no regrets. It’s been a great experience.”

Much like with friend Steve Nash’s summer departure from Phoenix to Los Angeles, Hill did not receive the interest he expected or wanted from Phoenix and chose Los Angeles to stay competitive and close to his kids in the Valley. Hill takes trips home on off-days and will return to the Valley when the season is over.

There have long been hopes by many in the Suns organization that Hill would return in a front-office role when he retires.

“I’ve really just focused on enjoying the last year, if this is the last year, and not focusing on the future,” Hill said. “We’ll get to the end and once the end’s over, I’ll start worrying about what I’m going to do from there.”

Warriors make their own beard pact — In case you’ve been living on another planet for a few months, you might have been oblivious to the much-reported fact the Dallas Mavericks started growing beards as a show of unity that they pledged to keep until they reached .500. The Warriors, who are well above .500 and headed for their first playoff berth since 2007, are also growing beards themselves — even if everyone isn’t on board with the plan. Marcus Thompson II of The Oakland Tribune has the details:

The Warriors have made a pact that everyone will grow beards until they clinch a playoff spot. No shaving. No trimming.

“The worse it looks, the better it is for the team,” David Lee said.

From the looks of it, though, Andris Biedrins isn’t on board. He looked cleanly shaven Wednesday. And the patch on rookie Harrison Barnes‘ chin looked well groomed.

Coach Mark Jackson is even in on it. His shadow was turning into some rough real estate at practice, highlighted by some gray strands. But he had his facial mane neatened.

There was talk about extended the beard pact through the playoffs. But Stephen Curry wasn’t a fan of that idea.

“This thing,” he said at Wednesday’s shootaround, scratching his grizzled neck. “I’ve already got lint all in it.”

Garcia has empathy for Kings’ supporters — Rockets swingman Francisco Garcia has played 473 games over eight seasons in the NBA, with 462 of those games played coming as a member of the Sacramento Kings. As a rookie, he was a member of the last Sacramento squad to make the postseason and spent the bulk of his younger years in the NBA in California’s capital city as the Kings trudged through losing season after losing season. He also hasn’t been oblivious to the potential sale of the Kings to a Chris Hansen and a Seattle-based group that wants to buy the team and rebrand them as the Seattle SuperSonics. Yesterday, groups from both Sacramento and Seattle presented their proposed bids to Commissioner David Stern and other league officials and although no decision on the Kings’ future is expected for a while (our own David Aldridge has the full details), Garcia is watching and feels for Kings fans, writes Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle:

He could have anticipated he would return to Sacramento for the first time with another team. He never could have imagined the possibility it could be his last time as well.

“My first years were great,” Garcia said. “There was a sellout every game. There’s not a lot of cities that were like we were when I first got there.”

While Garcia and the Rockets prepared to go against the Kings on Wednesday night, Sacramento Mayor Kevin Johnson was in New York to present the offer of a local group to purchase the Kings from the Maloof family and prevent the sale to a group that would move the team to Seattle.

After spending most of the last two seasons in the heart of the battle, from the near move to Anaheim through the handshake deal to remain in Sacramento and finally the Seattle-Sacramento tug of war to be decided by the Board of Governors meeting April 18 and 19, Garcia can’t begin to handicap how the competition will end.

On Wednesday, the groups vying for the Kings — Steve Ballmer and Chris Hansen are seeking to buy them and move them to Seattle; Ron Burkle, Mark Mastrov and Vivek Ranadive are bidding to buy them and keep them in Sacramento — made the presentation to a Board of Governors sub-committee, which later will make its recommendation.

Garcia could not help but feel empathy for the fans who supported the Kings so faithfully through much of his career.

“I don’t know what’s going to happen,” he said. “One guy is saying this; another guy is saying that. I don’t know. I’d be sad (if the Kings leave Sacramento). It’s such a great city. They’re great fans. They’ve been supporting the team for a long time.

“It’s great. It’s a great city. I have nothing but good things to say about Sacramento. I had a great eight years there.”

ICYMI of the night: Trevor Ariza shows the kids at home why the pivot foot is important … and that having a little luck is important, too… :

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Blogtable: Primed To Pull Playoff Upset?

April 3, 2013  ·  10:21AM

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 23: Taking Spurs or Thunder? | Pacers or Knicks No. 2 in East? | Team ready to pull a playoff upset?

Tell us which 6, 7 or 8 seed, as they stand now, is most primed for an upset. And why?

Steve Aschburner: Scanning all the likely lower-seeded teams, my conclusion is: In Thibs I trust. If the Chicago Bulls draw anyone but Miami or Indiana in the East, my hunch is they can advance even without Derrick Rose available. One of the Bulls’ biggest problems this season has been letdowns against dubious opponents. Another has been lapses in concentration due to schedule turnarounds. Neither of those will be present in the postseason. Assuming Chicago doesn’t suffer anything as traumatic as Rose’s injury last spring and Joakim Noah‘s subsequent ankle sprain that doomed it against Philadelphia, I think coach Tom Thibodeau‘s ability to lock in and game-plan defensively will thwart the higher-seeded Knicks, Nets or Hawks.

Fran Blinebury: I don’t know that any of them are actually “primed” for an upset. But if I had to pick one team — as the standings are today — I’d go with the Celtics, simply because you can’t count out the veteran know-how and determination of players such as Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce. Of course, the same would apply to the Lakers if they squeeze past Utah for No. 8 in the West. A team with Kobe Bryant, Dwight Howard, Pau Gasol and Steve Nash is not the kind of reward either the Spurs or Thunder would be happy to get for finishing first in the West.

Jeff Caplan: In the question about the Pacers and Knicks, I’ve already suggested that a 3-6 Knicks-Bulls matchup could provide an upset. In the West, how can anyone not think that the Rockets in a potential 2-7 matchup with San Antonio couldn’t make that very interesting? The Spurs might not have Manu Ginobili against the high-scoring Rockets and that’s a huge blow. Obviously the edge goes to the Spurs, but for potential upsets I like it. I don’t think the Rockets could take down the Thunder in another potential 2-7 series, but it sure would be a fascinating series with James Harden against his old mates. I also don’t think the Warriors, if they face Denver in a 3-6 matchup, have enough to get past the Nuggets, although the Ty Lawson injury factor is significant.

Scott Howard-Cooper: The Bulls. What a brutal draw for the supposed favorite in a 3-6 first-round series. The Bulls aren’t far from being a No. 3 themselves, and that defense, rebounding, toughness and coaching makes them a tough out. The Heat would definitely be favored against Chicago. Anyone else in the East and there are small margins.

John Schuhmann: Chicago. Of any potential 6/7/8 seed, the Bulls have the best defense and the best road record. They’ve proven to be resilient in the face of several key injuries and are also 5-1 against New York (3-0) and Brooklyn (2-1), having held those two potent offenses under a point per possession over the six games. The Celtics’ chances of pulling off an upset obviously depend on Kevin Garnett’s health and their ability to avoid the 8 seed. If they face the Knicks with KG ready to go, I think they have a decent shot to get to the next round. But in the West, I just don’t think any 6/7/8 seed is good enough defensively to pose much of a threat to San Antonio, Oklahoma City or Denver/Memphis.

Sekou Smith: If by “primed for an upset” you mean poised to ruin the postseason for a top seed, I’m going with Chicago in the East and Golden State in the West. The Bulls, as they showed in stopping the Miami Heat’s win streak at 27 games, can crank their game up to another level than what we’ve seen from them on a consistent basis during the regular season. Even without Derrick Rose they are a dangerous group in a playoff setting. The Warriors are the ideal playoff wild card with their streaky 3-point shooting abilities. That said, if the Los Angeles Lakers make the playoff field, they could turn the postseason upside down in a first round matchup against either the San Antonio Spurs or Oklahoma City Thunder. Kobe Bryant and Dwight Howard are playing at a high level right now and if they get in, they’re going to be a major problem in the playoffs.

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What’s Wrong With The Clippers?

April 2, 2013  ·  10:26AM





HANG TIME HEADQUARTERS – That rant Vinny Del Negro unleashed on his team after Saturday night’s blowout loss to the Houston Rockets (sans James Harden) was not an elaborate pre-April Fool’s Day ruse. It was real.

“They played harder than we did,” Del Negro said. “We were terrible. Our effort was terrible, our attitude was terrible, our urgency was terrible. Very disappointed. I didn’t see the fight in us tonight, and we need guys to step up.”

“We’re fighting for a spot, and we come out with that second-half — pretty much the whole game — effort. It was poor.” Del Negro said. “I know it’s the fourth game in five nights, but that’s no excuse. We’ve got plenty of depth. No excuses. I don’t believe in that.”

The vitriol … the disappointment … all of it was real.

With seemingly everything to play for — a top-three seed in the Western Conference playoffs, home-court advantage in the first round of the playoffs, simple professional pride — the Clippers cannot find the energy to finish the season the way they started (with a bang).

The Clippers have fallen off the mark in the second half of the season, squandering a league-best 32-9 start by stumbling their way to a .500 finish (17-17) with seven games remaining in the season. Chris Paul‘s MVP turn during All-Star weekend might very well serve as the lone highlight for the Clippers during the season’s stretch run if they can’t shake out of their funk.

They managed a 7-7 record in March and didn’t exactly get off to a rousing start to this final month of the regular season with Monday night’s home loss to the Indiana Pacers, a game that saw the Clippers trail by as many as 24 points before closing the gap late in a 109-106 loss.

Deciphering exactly what’s wrong with the Clippers from a schematic standpoint is basically a waste of time. They have certain deficiencies that cannot be cured this season unless both Blake Griffin and DeAndre Jordan magically locate reliable post moves overnight. That’s not meant as a slight to either of the talented young big men, it’s just a fact.

The Clippers are not capable of playing inside-out for long enough stretches to make other high-level teams uncomfortable. Kicking off a crucial, four-game home stand with a deflating loss to the Pacers is no way to inspire confidence. And when Paul, Jamal Crawford and the rest of the Clippers’ perimeter stars are taking turns struggling as well, it confirms all of the fears we’ve been expressing about this team since their second-half struggles began.

This is code red time for the Clippers. They’ve lost four of their last five games and the finger-pointing (direct and otherwise) has already begun. The effort and energy from the players seems to be lacking, suggesting an underlying issue between the players and the coach that is undefeated in terms of the final results (the coach always has to go).

Del Negro has taken a rather aggressive approach, tinkering with his rotations and even benching starters in an effort to jumpstart his team.

“It’s up to them,” Del Negro said of his players to ESPN.com‘s J.A. Adande after the loss to the Pacers. “All I can do is take them in and out of the games.”

For any of this to be said on a team with some of the best locker room leadership in the league (Paul, Caron Butler, Grant Hill and Chauncey Billups) is a bit startling.

Just as startling is Del Negro’s pointed criticism at his biggest stars, particularly his benching of Paul and Griffin recently, moves that are sure to erode the coach-player dynamic on a team that has always had issues in that regard under Del Negro. This madness is going on with a team that needs just one more win to clinch the franchise’s first 50-win season in history.

This puts the entire operation on alert for the postseason. If the Clippers slide in and then slide out just as quickly, then it’s anyone’s guess as to where the Clippers go from there in the offseason.

Start the playoffs on the road and suffer the fate then that you did during your recent tour through the Southwest Division, a 1-3 plank walk, and whatever is wrong with the Clippers will be someone else’s problem.

Del Negro won’t have to worry about it anymore!

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Blogtable: A Dream First-Round Match

March 27, 2013  ·  11:25AM
James Harden, left, and Kevin Martin (by Bill Baptist/NBAE via Getty Images)

James Harden, left, and Kevin Martin (by Bill Baptist/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 22: Heat running the table? | Dream first-round matchup | Best player you won’t see in playoffs

What’s a first-round matchup you’d like to see?

Steve Aschburner: If you could get, right out of the chute, what many expected could be the Western Conference finals, who wouldn’t want to see that? So I’d be glued to Lakers  vs. Spurs, on paper one of the most amazing No. 1 vs. No. 8 opening rounds in NBA history. Big names and reputations everywhere, old nemeses in new colors and circumstances, the Lakers’ last best chance to salvage their season vs. what might be the Spurs’ last best chance to win a title with its historic Big 3.

Fran Blinebury: Thunder vs. Rockets. Revenge of the Beard.  Hangin’ it on Harden. Slammin’ it at Sam (Presti). OK can you C me now? Hey K-Mart, there’s a mess on Aisle 4. Need I go on? I can’t ever remember a player as young and as good and as critical as James Harden being bounced off a Finals team and getting a chance to stick it in the ear of the bouncers just a few months later in the playoffs. This would be simply delicious.

Jeff Caplan: Out here in the Western Conference, where there’s actually more than one team of intrigue, there’s several would-be matchups to ponder. However, one in position to launch right now is James Harden against his old mates: Rockets vs. Thunder. Houston is 1-2 against OKC this season, but both losses, coming by a combined 52 points, were in 2012 when the team was still new and adjusting, and coach Kevin McHale spent a month away on personal leave after the death of his daughter. In 2013, the high-powered Rockets are 1-0 against the Thunder with a 122-119 victory in Houston on Feb. 20. Harden has averaged 29.3 points against his former team, has shot 55.0 percent from 3-point range and has averaged 12.3 free throws in the three meetings. Imagine the pressure on the reigning champs and Harden-replacement Kevin Martin against The Beloved Beard and a Rockets squad that has swapped the top spot with OKC all season as the highest scoring team in the league.

Scott Howard-Cooper: Clippers-Lakers. It may not happen because the Lakers may not get up to No. 6, even if the Clips get to 3. But if it does, what a moment for Clippers credibility, to be able to be the team that drives the Lakers season into the ground once and for all.

John Schuhmann: Pretty much any matchup in the West. Seriously, I look at those eight teams (assuming the Lakers hold on to the eighth spot) and there’s not one series I wouldn’t thoroughly enjoy. Even the Grizzlies, who play the best defense and play at the slowest pace of all those teams, are fun to watch. In the East, I would love to see any series between the Knicks, Nets and Celtics. The regular-season matchups between those three teams (with the exception of Tuesday’s game in Boston, which was lacking two very ornery defensive anchors) have been intense, and an Atlantic Division playoff series would be crazy. Knicks-Celtics looks like the most likely scenario of the three possibilities.

Sekou Smith: There are potential first round matchups that intrigue on both sides of the conference divide. That Denver-Memphis clash in the West, New York-Boston in the East or even a San Antonio-Los Angeles Lakers showdown. But if the basketball powers that be would be so kind as to grant us a Los Angeles Clippers-Golden State Warriors tilt in the first round, I’d be forever grateful. Styles make fights and this one would be filled with non-stop action. Generally, the outcome of first-round series tend to stick to the seeding. But the Clippers and Warriors could be a free-for-all without a clear-cut favorite. The Clippers might have the better record, but they’ve had all sorts of trouble with the Warriors this season. The Warriors won the season series 3-1. The Warriors handed the Clippers their first loss of the season, 114-110, on Nov. 4 at Staples Center, and one of their worst losses of the season, a 115-94 beating in Oakland that was their second straight loss after the Clippers’ franchise-record 17-game win streak (Denver snapped the streak a night earlier). These teams haven’t played since Jan. 21, but you had better believe they’d both be eager to battle for state bragging rights, what with the Lakers limping down the stretch of the season and not guaranteed to even make the postseason.

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Air Check: Houston Edition

March 27, 2013  ·  11:19AM

HANG TIME NEW JERSEY – For NBA fans like us, there’s nothing better than League Pass. Having the ability to watch every game every night (and then again the next day) is heaven.

aircheck-250Of course, with local broadcasts, you get local broadcasters, which can be good and bad. It can be good, because these guys know their teams better than most national broadcasters. It can be bad, because these guys love their teams more than most national broadcasters. And they’re usually not afraid to show that love.

The national guys aren’t perfect either. And if they’re not careful, they may be featured here, where we highlight the best and worst of NBA broadcasts.

Here are a few more moments that made us laugh, made us smarter, or made us shake our heads.

The Spurs-Rockets contest on Sunday was a great game, especially if you had your TV on mute. The game went down to the wire, with James Harden hitting the off-balance game-winner with five seconds left.

Unfortunately, the Rockets’ crew of Bill Worrell, Matt Bullard and Clyde Drexler made the broadcast a difficult listen, with several shake-your-head comments over the course of the night. So, we’re dedicating an entire edition of Air Check to this one game.

1. Off to a great start


Drexler sets the tone for the broadcast by complaining about the jump ball. The jump ball! And if you watch the jump ball, the only issue with it is that both Omer Asik and Tim Duncan jump too early.

Not to be outdone, Worrell joins Drexler in the jump ball critique (so does Bullard), and then calls for a travel 12 seconds into the Spurs’ first possession. Yep, this is how this broadcast is going to go.

2. Isn’t this Daryl Morey’s team?


Just a few minutes later, we get the dreaded team points-per-game graphic. The Rockets, of course, lead the league in that mostly meaningless stat.

Team points per game lacks a lot of context, specifically how the Rockets play at the league’s fastest pace. They do rank fifth in offensive efficiency, but they also rank 19th in defensive efficiency. So Drexler’s statement that “If you can score, you can do well in this league, especially in the playoffs” is also lacking some context.

Over the next few possessions, Worrell goes on to say that the Spurs used to rely on defense, and that Gregg Popovich decided a few years ago to “rely more on offense.”

Now, I didn’t expect Worrell to have read what I wrote just two days earlier. But it would be nice if broadcasters were aware of where the teams that are playing rank offensively and defensively. At the time of this game, the Spurs ranked third in defensive efficiency.

Led by general manager Daryl Morey, the Houston Rockets are the team most invested in analytics. And it would be great if that was apparent when you watched their games. But unfortunately, the broadcast is well behind the curve.

3. The push in the back that nobody saw


When you first see this play, it’s unclear where the foul is. But both replays clearly show Asik push Duncan in the back.

Worrell: “I didn’t think there was a Rocket near enough to him to foul him!”

Replay 1.

Worrell: “Who fouled him?”

Replay 2, where the push in the back is pretty obvious.

Bullard: “There was no contact AT ALL!”

Drexler: “Asik might have pushed him in the back a little bit.”

Worrell: “The baseline official made the call, so he couldn’t have seen anything.”

Drexler: “Exactly.”

Worrell: “He doesn’t have x-ray vision.”

It’s hard to fathom that you’d prefer listening to Sean Elliott call a game on any given night, but this became the case on Sunday.

4. It was clear to us … but we have a bad angle


In the final minute, a rebound goes off of either Asik or Duncan, and the referees initially call a jump ball, which is pretty rare.

Worrell: “They have to look at it, because that was tipped out by San Antonio. That’s all there was to it.”

Drexler: “Duncan knocked it right out.”

Worrell: “Duncan knocked that ball out of bounds, folks.”

Then we see the replay.

Bullard: “Ooh. I don’t know. Omer’s hand looked like it was on the inside.” And later, “Maybe that is a jump ball. Maybe both guys hit it at the same time.”

Worrell, of course, gets in one more shot at the referee’s ability to toss up a fair jump ball, but they all basically agree that it’s a tough call. And the refs confirm the original call and do continue play with a jump ball.

Bullard: “I think to call that a jump ball in real time is a pretty impressive call.”

Drexler: “They got it right.”

Well, that’s good. But hilariously, Drexler ends the discussion by saying, “Of course, we couldn’t see it, because it was away from us.”

OK… Then why, exactly, were you insisting that the ball was off of Duncan just a minute ago?

Good grief.

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John Schuhmann is a staff writer for NBA.com. Send him an e-mail or follow him on twitter.

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Morning Shootaround — March 21

March 21, 2013  ·  7:51AM

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: It was pick-a-wild-finish night in the NBA after the thrilling endings to Heat-Cavs, Celtics-Hornets and Thunder-Grizz. We liked the finishes of all three — how could you not like the frantic action in Cleveland? — but our pick goes to the grit-and-grind guys in Memphis. The mostly unappreciated (by non-League Pass fiends) Marc Gasol came up with a big bucket in OT to seal the win (although, if you’re an OKC fan, you might have thought there was a little push-off going on there) after Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook seemed to vanquish the Grizz time after time in the fourth quarter. Our guy Zach Randolph struggled (thanks to killer down-the-stretch defense from Nick Collison), but Mike Conley and Jerryd Bayless provided some smart guard play to offset Z-Bo’s absence in what was a playoff-type game through and through.

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News of the morning

Game of ‘H-O-R-S-E’ gets Lin on track | Karl surprised by Nuggets’ rapid rise | Teague delivers vs. Jennings, Bucks | Shumpert hears pop in knee | Bynum begins rehab this week

Round of ‘H-O-R-S-E’ gets Lin going — Entering Wednesday night’s showdown with the Jazz in Houston, Jeremy Lin had been hot, averaging 16.7 ppg, 5.2 apg and shooting 52 percent. But he was a bit worn down from the season’s grind and Alicia Keys taking over the Toyota Center, Lin headed to a different court and played a few rounds of H-O-R-S-E with his brother, who was visiting him. The light-hearted game obviously helped as Lin torched Utah for 24 points and six assists (most of which coming out of the pick-and-roll) as Houston got a big win to help its playoff hopes. Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle has more:

With a day off and orders to clear his mind, Jeremy Lin took the opportunity to head to the gym.

He did change things up a bit. With Alicia Keys taking over Toyota Center, Lin found a different court and a few different teammates. But Lin’s idea of a day off included basketball.

“It’s therapeutic,” he said.

After Sunday’s 30-point loss to Golden State, he and the Rockets needed the therapy, so Lin spent a chunk of Monday launching jumpers and playing HORSE.

When the Rockets reconvened at Toyota Center on Wednesday, Lin spent the night as if still goofing with his brother and buddies far from the cameras and lights. He repeatedly pierced the Utah Jazz defense, helping to drive the Rockets to a 26-point lead. And when the Jazz rallied in the fourth quarter, Lin knifed through them again, with one drive to a layup and another and a pass for a Chandler Parsons dunk that finally closed out the Jazz 100-93.

Lin made eight of nine shots in the paint as the Rockets went from launching 3-pointers to beating the Jazz at the rim, and from a series of slow starts to a rapid bolt from the opening tip that set the tone for the game.

“JLin made them pay,” Parsons said. “He’s a good player, especially in pick-and-roll. He’s fast. … He can get in the paint.”

…

“Jeremy really attacked the rim well,” Rockets coach Kevin McHale said. “I thought that Jeremy made some big hoops coming down the stretch when we needed them. They were really intent on staying with James (Harden) in the second half and really not giving him a lot of room, so Jeremy really broke free. Jeremy kept turning the corner and got in the paint. We needed all of those.”

…

“Sometimes, when you do that, you get the feel of the joy of the game back in you again,” Lin said of his day off in the gym. “I went and shot. My little brother is in town. My buddy is here. We just went out and messed around, played some HORSE. But we didn’t get to finish because other people started playing. Everyone had S.”

Karl amazed by Nuggets’ revival — Nuggets coach George Karl is the man with whom former Denver star Carmelo Anthony experienced his greatest NBA successes as well as some of his biggest letdowns, particularly in the playoffs. It’s hard to believe, but it has been more than two years since Denver sent Anthony to New York for a package of players that included Danilo Gallinari, Wilson Chandler, Timofey Mozgov and others. At the time, it looked like the Nuggets were embracing a full-scale rebuild, but Karl has kept Denver competitive and, this season, the Nuggets are one of the Western Conference elite and sport a 13-game win streak. Karl talked with USA Today’s Sam Amick about the Nuggets rise, the post-’Melo era and more in a solid Q&A:

Q. So you having fun yet?

A. You know, in coaching you don’t ever really have that joyful fun, but there’s no question that it’s enjoyable. It’s winning. And when you win and you’ve lost, what, four games in 60 days or something like that, it’s nice not having the headache of that day of losing. In the NBA, you win, and you think you’re going to win tomorrow. But as soon as you lose, you don’t think you’re ever going to win again.

Q. Are you as surprised as most people are with how quickly your franchise recovered from the Anthony deal?

A. I definitely think that the speed that we’ve built ourselves back into being a contender in the Western Conference has surprised me. We have one player on the team that played with Melo. The Melo trade was, what, two years ago in February? And you have to remember that one of those years was a lockout year. So probably the team has only played together less than 100 games … And then you had the Nene trade last year. Nene was another piece that we changed up. That was kind of the final addition that “we’re going to go with young players.” During the year, we played Kosta (Koufos) and Timo (Timofey Mosgov) a lot more than we played Bird (Chris Andersen) and Nene. We turned it over to all the young guys. The team has evolved. It’s worked hard. It has stayed focused … My team even last year always thought they could play with the big boys. Now that they have the consistency to play an 82-game season together and show that they’re good enough, that’s what we’re doing this year.

…

Q. Has your longevity and success allowed you to have a wall up between you and the fires that coaches are always putting out or is that still always there?

A. I don’t think there’s any question that I don’t think young coaches can maybe take the risks that I take. But in the same sense, I think my staff and I work very hard on explaining what we’re doing. And we have no problem with a player wanting to play, and we have no problem answering a question of why you’re not playing — in fact we encourage it, we like it, we want players to want to play, we want them to be angry when they’re not playing, but we don’t want them to degrade the team or negate the team (with) a negative attitude during the game or during practice or in the locker room. Do that one on one with me, do that one on one with (general manager) Masai (Ujiri), do that one on one with my assistants, and let’s talk this through. I try to tell players all the time — I’m 61 years old. It’s not personal man. I mean this is not personal. I’m past the time when I’m making a personal decision. I’m making a basketball decision based on who is playing well, who is playing hard, and who is more focused and more disciplined on that given night.

…

Q. That record is good enough at this point to have your group be in the discussion about title contention. I know that’s not where your head is at this point, but how do you see this idea that this deep and balanced group can take it to that level?

A. My first step is to get this team to win in the first round. And then, once you win in the first round, there’s confidence. Coach (Tim) Grgurich (formerly a longtime Seattle SuperSonics and Denver assistant) have talked about how this team responds me a little of my first full year in Seattle (in 1992-93). I think we played Utah in the first round, beat them in a Game 5 in the first round. We were down 2-1 in that series, and could’ve lost in Utah in Game 4. But we won Game 4 — that made us grow up. We won Game 5 in a really crazy game. I think it’s actually a record, where in the same game we had the lowest scoring half and the highest scoring half for a SuperSonic basketball team (the Sonics scored 30 points in the first half and 70 in the second half) … And that whole momentum of learning to win in that series, and then we took Houston to a seven-game series and beat them in overtime (in Game 5). It was really one of those weird series, where we won at home easy and they won at home easy and Game 7 was an overtime game. We won that game, and then we play Phoenix and we’re growing up right in front of ourselves (the Sonics lost to the Suns in seven games in the Western Conference Finals). You could see the confidence happen.

Now can we do that this year with this group? I think we can. I hope we can. I really think we can. That’s where I want to put this team. I want to put them in that place, the best chance possible to win a first round (series), and then see where our confidence goes from there.

Teague steps up against Bucks — Milwaukee boasts one of the more explosive backcourt combinations in Brandon Jennings and Monta Ellis, with Ellis hot of late after a 25-point fourth quarter that helped the Bucks to a comeback win over the Magic. Hawks guard Jeff Teague has quietly established himself as one of the more solid guards in the East and took the challenge of playing against Jennings and Ellis to heart on Wednesday night, particularly with playoff positioning between the Hawks and Bucks on the line. Chris Vivlamore of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution details just how Teague stepped it up against Milwaukee:

Teague finished with 27 points and 11 assists as the Hawks held off the Bucks 98-90 at Philips Arena in a key Eastern Conference game. It was one point shy of Teague’s season- and career-high point total.

The Hawks (38-30) won for the fourth time in five games and kept hold of the fifth spot in the conference playoff race.

Teague was challenged by Player Development Instructor Nick Van Exel at halftime to pick up his energy and play. The guard responded with 12 points in a decisive third quarter.

“C’mon,” is what Teague said Van Exel simply told him. “Me and him a little way we talk to each other. I knew what he meant.”

…

The Bucks (34-33) had a two-game win streak snapped. They lost for the ninth time in the past 10 games at Philips Arena. Jennings finished with 21 points but Ellis had just five. Larry Sanders had 19 points and 14 rebounds for the Bucks.

“Not letting them get in a rhythm,” Devin Harris said of the success against the guard combination. “Obviously, Jennings did that a little in the third and the fourth (quarters). We try to take away easy baskets. Don’t let them getting any open looks. They run a lot of stuff off each other and (Teague and I) are able to switch and keep them in front of us.”

…

Both teams struggled offensively in the early going with the game tied 18-18 after the first quarter. The Hawks shot 30 percent (6 of 20) and the Bucks shot 25 percent (8 of 32). The Hawks made 12 of 19 shots in the second quarter to push to the lead at intermission.

Ellis and Jennings combined to make just 2 of 14 shots for four points in the first two quarters.

“I don’t get caught up in that,” Teague said of the challenge of the Bucks’ duo. “I just go out and play. They are talented players. They do what they are supposed to do for their team. I just try to help my team.”

Shumpert scared by knee pop – The good news for the Knicks last night? Carmelo Anthony returned to the lineup and New York romped past a downtrodden Magic squad. The (possible) bad news for the Knicks? Iman Shumpert heard a pop in his knee — the same knee he had surgery on and that caused him to miss much of the early part of the season. Howard Beck of The New York Times has more on Shumpert’s injury, which doesn’t sound serious and hopefully isn’t for a Knicks team that counts Amar’e Stoudemire, Tyson Chandler and Kurt Thomas among its wounded:

The Knicks are still awaiting the return of Chandler, who is dealing with a bulging disk in his neck, and they are moving on without Kurt Thomas, who was lost this week to a broken foot that might end his season.

But the Knicks could not escape the night without another injury, this time to their youngest player. Iman Shumpert tweaked his left knee — the same one that was surgically repaired last spring — late in the first half. He was held out of the second half as a precaution.

Shumpert said he felt a pop in the knee while pushing off toward the rim. The medical staff later told him it was probably scar tissue.

“Last time I felt it pop, I was out eight months, so I was just a little nervous,” Shumpert said, referring to the torn ligaments he sustained last spring. “It scared me more than anything.”

Doctors will re-evaluate Shumpert on Thursday, but no tests are planned.

…

Kurt Thomas sounded much less optimistic than team officials about his potential return this season. Thomas has a stress reaction surrounding a stress fracture in his right foot. The Knicks are projecting a recovery of two to four weeks. But when Thomas was asked if he would play again, he said simply, “We’re going to see.” Asked if the chances were 50-50, he said, “I think that’s a good number.” Thomas confirmed that he initially sustained the stress fracture in 2006-7, when he played for the Phoenix Suns, and that it never completely healed. The injury was aggravated last Thursday in Portland.

Bynum has surgery, starts rehab soon — Andrew Bynum is done for the season after having arthroscopic surgery on his gimpy knees and our crew on the weekly Blogtable chimed in on exactly where Bynum would fit in best for 2013-14. While we all sit back and wonder where the former All-Star big man will end up and, if he’ll ever be an elite-level center again, Jason Wolf of The (Wilmington) News-Journal reports that Bynum is starting rehab work on his injury this Friday:

One-time All-Star center Andrew Bynum had arthroscopic knee surgeries Tuesday to remove debris from both joints and will begin physical therapy Friday, the Philadelphia 76ers announced.

The 7-foot, 300-pounder, who did not appear in a game this season because of bone and cartilage damage in his knees, will refrain from any weight-bearing activities for about three weeks and will spend an additional three weeks on crutches, according to the team.

Bynum’s longtime orthopedist, Dr. David Altchek of the Hospital for Special Surgery in New York, performed the operations. The primary focus of the procedures was to clean out loose bodies from his knees in an attempt to alleviate pain and swelling.

Bynum, 25, was originally diagnosed with a bone bruise in his right knee in September, a month after the Sixers acquired him from the Los Angeles Lakers in a blockbuster four-team trade in August. The Sixers nevertheless expected Bynum to be ready to play in the season opener, but as the season progressed, the team and player repeatedly delayed the date of his expected debut. Bynum was diagnosed with a “mirror issue” in his left knee in November, when a piece of cartilage broke loose and his joint swelled after going bowling.

ICYMI of the night: Must be something about the Sixers that gets DeAndre Jordan and Blake Griffin going …:


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OKC Needs To Get Martin Scoring Again

March 18, 2013  ·  1:51AM

DALLAS – Few teams can survive a game, let alone amass 107 points, when three players score in double figures and two combine for nearly two-thirds of their total points.

But no other team has Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook, and that makes the Oklahoma City Thunder as unique as they are incredibly difficult to defeat. The Dallas Mavericks realized this Sunday night for a fourth time this season and a third time in late-game, heartbreak fashion, 107-101.

Durant and Westbrook totaled 66 points with Westbrook going for 31 of his 35 through three quarters and Durant elevating an off-night with 19 of his 31 in the fourth quarter. Serge Ibaka plowed Dallas for 18 points and 16 rebounds.

No one else scored more than nine points which brings up the issue of sixth man Kevin Martin. He had the nine points on 4-for-9 shooting but just 1-for-4 from 3-point range, and it has to raise some concern that single-digit games are coming with increased frequency. Of his 15 single-digit games among 65 he’s played this season, Sunday’s was his sixth in the last 16 games, and OKC has won just two of the six with this one easily capable of swaying the other way.

Martin had the incredible good fortune to join the Thunder juggernaut just days before the season started in the stunning trade that sent former third amigo James Harden to the Houston Rockets. Martin says he loves the sixth-man role after being a career starter on poor teams and the effect the decreased minutes per game have had on his body. He said he wants to re-sign when he becomes a free agent this summer.

Yet Martin is well aware that he’ll be served up as the designated whipping post if OKC fails to defend its Western Conference crown, a delicate fact that Martin says means little to him.

“I don’t feel any pressure,” Martin said in an interview with NBA.com prior to playing the Lakers on March 5. “I’m comfortable in my own skin and with what I’ve done in my eight years as a professional basketball player.”

The Thunder and Martin got off to such a seamless start to the season that Harden quickly became an afterthought in Loud City as the Beard instantly became an All-Star in Clutch City. Now with the regular season winding down and the final judgment on OKC and Martin getting set to ratchet up, the sharpshooter is struggling to find a consistent shooting groove, and the Thunder’s wins and losses seem to mirror his ebbs and flows.

In the games Martin has scored fewer than 10 points, the Thunder are 7-8. They’re 42-8 otherwise.

Obviously, other factors also account for the final ledger in those games, but since the Jan. 27 loss at the Lakers when Martin scored nine points — he shot 4-for-8 from the field, but missed his two 3-point attempts — OKC is 1-5 against current playoff teams plus ninth-place Utah when Martin doesn’t reach double digits. The lone win came against Chicago, while San Antonio, Denver, Miami, Utah and the Lakers beat the Thunder by an average margin of 9.6 points. All but the Miami game came on the road.

It begs the question whether OKC can survive three rounds in the West if Martin is not a consistent scoring threat, especially from beyond the arc? During this 2-5 spell when Martin scores in single figures, he is 6-for-20 from 3-point range (30 percent), well below his excellent 42.5 percent on the season. In the 15 games (10 against playoffs teams plus Utah in which OKC is 3-7) he’s just 11-for-56 (19.6 percent).

Harden scored his points in a variety of ways. He’s an excellent ball-handler who often initiated the Thunder offense, including in the fourth quarter and crunch time. He can bury the 3 and is a premier penetrator, who this season leads the league in free throw attempts. Martin, averaging 14.3 points, is a pure shooter. He gets his points off catch-and-shoot 3s and on cuts to the basket.

Publicly, Martin’s teammates and coach Scott Brooks have his back. It’s difficult to say if internally there is concern. But, Sunday’s escape from Dallas — the West’s 10th place team had it tied 101-101 with 1:20 to play — served as another example. Martin had seven points in the first half and two in the second that came on a fourth-quarter layup off a Dallas turnover. On the next possession, he badly missed a corner 3 that led to Dallas taking the lead. It was Martin’s lone 3-point attempt of the second half.

“We know Kevin’s going to come through when he needs to,” Durant said. “There’s some shots he’s just missing, wide-open shots he’s just missing that he normally makes. It’s a different role for him. It’s tough to get a rhythm when you’re playing the sixth man and then most of the time you’re on the court with Russell and me. So we’ve just got to find a way to get him going, and we know he’s going to stick with it. Once he gets in the game we’ve just got find him and make sure we get him a good rhythm going.”

Durant makes a salient point. Martin played the final 3:46 of the third quarter, subbing in for Durant. Westbrook and Ibaka were both hot and they took five shots in the final six possessions. Martin didn’t get a look. He played the first 8:37 of the fourth quarter when Durant took over with remarkable isolation play that netted him 15 points in the opening 7:27. Brooks ultimately made the right call lifting Martin. His replacement, Thabo Sefolosha, hit the contested, crunch-time fadeaway with 12.5 seconds left to put OKC ahead 105-101.

It’s a difficult way to strike a rhythm.

“That’s what I’ve had to be most of this year, being a third scorer here,” Martin said in that interview a couple weeks ago. “Some nights there are a lot of opportunities, some nights they’re not. You just have to make the best out of those opportunities.”

After Sunday’s game, Martin, who played 24 minutes, four more than he garnered three games ago in the loss at San Antonio, was quick to dress and exit the locker room. Perhaps he just wanted a good seat on the team bus.

Perhaps it’s nothing to worry about on a team that boasts a double-barreled scoring machine with Durant and Westbrook and has led the league in scoring for most of the season. But in March, Martin’s scoring average has dipped to 11.1 points and his shooting percentages are down to 43.2 from the floor and 36.3 from 3s.

And in those last five losses to playoff teams (plus Utah), the Thunder have averaged 97.2 points, nearly 10 points off their season average.

“We want everybody to be on their game going into the playoffs,” Brooks said. “He’s had maybe eight to 10 games or maybe even less than that where he hasn’t shot the ball well, but I think every player will go through that. And hopefully he’s getting out of that the last few games. But he’s a big part of what we do.”

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Cuban Delivers Final Shot at Fisher

March 17, 2013  ·  9:06PM

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DALLAS – The Derek Fisher-Dallas Mavericks saga had one last loud go-round Sunday, as the point guard who played nine games for Dallas between Thanksgiving and Christmas was lustily booed when he checked in late in the first quarter.

Mavs owner Mark Cuban led the chorus.

“I’ll just boo him like hopefully everybody else,” Cuban said prior to the Mavs taking on Fisher’s new team, the Oklahoma City Thunder.

Fisher signed with the Thunder in late February, about two months after asking the Mavs to release him from his contract. Fisher said in a statement at the time that he wanted to return to his family in Los Angeles. Fisher, 38, immediately took over as the starting point guard for Darren Collison and averaged 8.4 ppg and 3.4 apg. The Mavs, who have had trouble finishing games all season, were 5-4 with Fisher.

After the 17-year veteran signed with title-contending Thunder, the team he joined late last season, as well, Cuban reacted with sarcasm. He said that Fisher’s kids had time to grow up during the eight weeks between leaving the Mavs and joining the Thunder, and Cuban joked that it’s easier to fly in and out of Oklahoma City than Dallas.

On Sunday, Cuban said that Fisher repeatedly made pitches to him and asked for advice before signing with the Mavs. Cuban said he “took the bait.”

“With his history, I shouldn’t have been surprised with what happened,” Cuban said. “I tried to offer him some help. I thought I offered him some positive encouragement and advice, and then we signed him. I expected a different turnout than what happened.”

After the 2007 playoffs with the Utah Jazz, Fisher asked out of his contract to better deal with his infant daughter’s battle with eye cancer. He later signed a three-year contract to return to the Los Angeles Lakers. Last season, after being dealt from the Lakers to the Houston Rockets, he had his contract bought out and joined the Thunder, who lost to the Miami Heat in the NBA Finals.

After Sunday’s shootaround, Fisher said he holds no hard feelings toward Cuban. He hopes Cuban will eventually feel the same.

“I love Mark and I have a tremendous amount of respect for what he’s done and does in terms of this team,” Fisher told The Dallas Morning News. “There’s no question about how passionate he is for his team. If it was my team and I wanted to win, I would want as many players that I felt like could help me.

“I take [Cuban's criticism] more as a positive thing than a negative. He saw some value I provided and would like to still have me here. But as far as long-term for me, I don’t have any issues with Mark, and hopefully one day, we’ll be able to get past this and have much more things to enjoy and laugh about than the short few weeks here.”

Fisher might be waiting a while.

“It’s not so much what he did,” Cuban said. “It’s how he did it.”

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