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D-Will Stays Scorching, Hangs 31 Points On Cuban’s Mavericks

March 21, 2013  ·  1:01AM

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DALLAS – Deron Williams swears he didn’t so much as wink at Mark Cuban seated baseline as the Brooklyn Nets point guard delivered a 31-point, six-assist wrecking ball to the Dallas Mavericks’ rapidly collapsing playoff chances.

A chip on his shoulder? Not if you believe Williams. Wednesday’s 113-96 win was just like any other his team badly needs. And after inflicting a world of hurt on Cuban and his club, Williams didn’t gloatingly tweet the Mavs owner a la Kobe Bryant, who went for 38 after being tweaked by the outspoken owner a couple of weeks ago.

No, the sharp stick to Cuban’s side was surprisingly wielded by interim head coach P.J. Carlesimo.

“I don’t know,” Carlesimo said when asked if Williams, who scored 26 points in the second half and 13 in the fourth quarter, carried a chip on his shoulder. “But, I’m sure [Williams] understands you’re not going to expect intelligent statements from Mark anyhow.”

Zing.

Williams spurned his hometown team last July as a free agent when he chose to re-sign with the Nets for a max deal of five years and $98 million. Afterward, Williams said he was surprised that Cuban, who was busy in Los Angeles filming the TV show “Shark Tank,” didn’t make the trip to New York to personally sell him on joining the Mavs. Williams said Cuban’s absence helped shape his decision to play in Brooklyn. Cuban responded by saying on a local radio program that his club is actually better off without Williams and the max deal he would have received weighing down the payroll.

“I always get up for the games at home because it’s home and given the situation,” Williams said, who came as close as any time previously of acknowledging a rift with Cuban by referencing ‘the situation.’ “Honestly, I just tried to attack it as a regular game. My thought process was the same today as it is any other game. I didn’t need anything special. It was just a regular game for us, but a big game for us.”

As the Mavs (32-36) limp away from a 14th home loss and the sour opening of a crucial six-game homestand dominated by East opponents, the Nets (40-28) skipped off to sunny Los Angeles for a couple of days of rest and practice before seeking a third consecutive victory on this brutal eight-game trek against the Clippers.

Williams, who hails from a Dallas suburb about 25 miles from the American Airlines Center, is playing his best basketball of the season, rejuvenated from an All-Star break cocktail of platelet-rich plasma therapy, juice cleanser and cortisone shots into both his ailing ankles.

He’s put up 31 points in consecutive games and is averaging 23.9 ppg on 48 percent shooting since the break. Williams refused to talk about his health, offering only a smart-aleck answer when asked if he’s feeling as good as he has all season.

“I really appreciate your concern with my health,” Williams said. “I really do. Thank you.”

We’ll just have to trust the numbers, his teammates, his coach and what he’s telling his coach.

“I kept telling him I would get him out a minute or two in the second half,” said Carlesimo, who played Williams all but 52 seconds of the second half and 41 minutes in all. “And he goes, ‘Are you watching what’s going on out there? So, obviously we didn’t take him out until the the end. I’m not saying that’s as good as we can play, but that’s one of our best games obviously all year.”

Williams got needed help from center Brook Lopez, who matched the 38 points he scored last season in Dallas. Andray Blatche hit six of seven shots and scored all of his 14 points in the first half. Reggie Evans pulled down 22 rebounds in 32 minutes. Gerald Wallace came up with five steals. Joe Johnson dished five assists.

Unlike a few nights ago when the Nets failed to catch their cross-town rival in the East standings by being embarrassed on their home floor by the Atlanta Hawks, they turned up the defensive pressure and poured it on Dallas with 66 points in the second half. Williams and Lopez combined for 46.

With 14 games left and six to go on this so-far 2-0 road trip that Williams said will “define our season,” we are left to wonder where this team, that has mastered the bit of game-to-game inconsistency, will fare now that Williams is again playing like an All-Star.

When the fourth-place Nets finally return home on April 4, after also road-tripping through Portland, Denver, Utah and Cleveland, the No. 2 seed could be within their grasp or a first-round series at home could be falling through their fingers. Brooklyn is two games back of No. 2 Indiana and two games ahead of No. 5 Atlanta.

“This is a good trip for us at the right time,” Williams said. “It’ll define the season for us because we have some tough games ahead of us. We have a lot of days off, but we also have a lot of back-to-backs, which is tough. We’ve got to maintain focus for the rest of the trip and make sure that we don’t slip up.”

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Red Hot Now, Heat’s Shelf Life Up In ’14

March 20, 2013  ·  9:40AM

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HANG TIME SOUTHWEST – Loving the Miami Heat’s dominance or loathing it?

Revel or wallow while you can because the LeBron James-Dwyane Wade-Chris Bosh Heat are a short-term dynasty, a manufactured championship club stamped with an expiration date: June 30, 2014.

As the Heat seek a 24th consecutive victory in their chase to 33 tonight at Cleveland (7 ET, League Pass), the team’s life span, as projected through the lens of contract kill clauses and a screw-tightening collective bargaining agreement, is approaching 15 months and ticking.

Consummated under the old CBA rules in the summer of 2010 by the free-agent signings of James and Bosh and the re-signing of Wade, the Heat have a chance to secure not three, not four, not five … but just two more titles, this season and next, before the franchise is left without its core to (potentially) go for four.

Following the 2013-14 season, James, Bosh and Wade each have an early termination clause that, if exercised, will nullify their respective contracts one season short of completion. Despite all three set to collect in excess of $20 million for the 2014-15 season, it is already being speculated — if not already accepted — that James, if not all three, will terminate and become free agents on July 1, 2014.

James and Bosh, both of whom make $17.5 million this season — less than Joe Johnson, Pau Gasol and Amar’e Stoudemire — agreed to sign with Miami for less money to join Wade, who also took less ($17.2 million this season). That made the union possible and gave president Pat Riley the flexibility to put pieces around them.

Each could have garnered the maximum amount from another team with cap space. Recall the Knicks, like the Heat, dumping salaries solely to carve room to woo James? Now, on his way to a fourth MVP trophy in five seasons, James is nearly certain to cash in his maximum value by taking his talents elsewhere as the league’s teams adjust to the new CBA.

Even if exceptional Heat owner Mickey Arison dreamed of keeping all three together beyond the 2013-14 season, the new CBA makes it painfully, and impossibly, expensive. James, Bosh and Wade, who will turn 33 during the 2014-15 season, would eat up more than $60 million of the roster, already putting the Heat at or close to the salary cap, and about $10 to $13 million short of the luxury tax.

With luxury tax fines that are no longer dollar-for-dollar, but rather increase with each $5 million over the luxury tax line, crippling limitations on trades and devaluing the important mid-level exception for teams over the luxury tax “apron” — $4 million over the tax line — and the looming hammer of the “repeater” tax for chronic high rollers (a tax that a team with more than two high-dollar, long-term contracts can’t dodge), the three-star roster model is being downgraded to a more economical two-star configuration by the CBA the owners and players agreed to over Thanksgiving 2011.

As Sports Illustrated’s Ian Thomsen wrote in December, if the Heat kept the Big Three, plus the four other players under contract for the 2014-15 season, then filled out the roster with minimum-salary players, the Heat could be looking at a summer 2015 tax bill, including the “repeater” tax, of $48 million for a total one-season roster cost of $141.3 million.

So, where will James play next? That speculation has already begun. Maybe he’ll usher out the Kobe Bryant era and begin a new Lakers reign with Dwight Howard. Or maybe he’ll return to Cleveland to re-conquer his home territory and pair with rising All-Star point guard Kyrie Irving.

Wherever he lands, the writing is on the wall for this unbeatable Miami Heat team.

Love them or hate them, enjoy them or loathe them while they’re still intact. Because after next season, the Heat’s Big Three will almost undoubtedly go their separate ways.

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Horford, Hawks Soaring Post Deadline

February 26, 2013  ·  10:43AM





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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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


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Stats Notes: Spurs Thrive On Both Ends

February 22, 2013  ·  12:06PM

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HANG TIME NEW JERSEY – Behind another big game from Tony Parker, the San Antonio Spurs took it to the Los Angeles Clippers, 116-90, in L.A. on Thursday.

The Spurs are now 6-1 on their rodeo trip and 25-4 over the last two months. More important is that they’re an improved defensive team. After ranking 11th in defensive efficiency last season, the Spurs rank third this year, allowing just 98.4 points per 100 possessions.

Also ranking fourth in offensive efficiency, San Antonio is the only team in the top five on both ends of the floor. The Clippers (seventh and seventh), Heat (first and ninth) and Thunder (second and eighth) are the only other teams that rank in the top 10 both offensively and defensively.

Success on both ends of the floor is the the (obvious) key to title contention. Over the last 14 seasons, only two teams that didn’t rank in the top 10 both offensively and defensively won a championship. They were the 2010 Lakers, who ranked 11th offensively and sixth defensively, and the 2004 Pistons, who ranked 18th offensively and second defensively. L.A. was the defending champion and Detroit added Rasheed Wallace at the trade deadline.

But ranking in the top five on both ends isn’t a guarantee of postseason success. Of the last 10 teams to finish on both ends, only two — the 2007 Spurs and 2009 Lakers — won the championship. Two others — the 2007 Mavs and 2012 Bulls — didn’t make it out of the first round.

Last 10 teams, top five in both offensive and defensive efficiency

Season Team W L OffRtg Rank DefRtg Rank Playoffs
2011-12 Chicago 50 16 104.5 5 95.3 1 Lost in first round
2010-11 Miami 58 24 109.3 3 100.7 5 Lost in Finals
2009-10 Orlando 59 23 109.5 2 100.2 2 Lost in conf. finals
2008-09 Cleveland 66 16 109.7 4 99.4 3 Lost in conf. finals
2008-09 L.A. Lakers 65 17 109.8 3 101.9 5 Won championship
2006-07 Dallas 67 15 108.5 2 100.6 5 Lost in first round
2006-07 San Antonio 58 24 106.7 5 97.4 2 Won championship
2005-06 Detroit 64 18 107.7 3 100.2 5 Lost in conf. finals
2004-05 Miami 59 23 108.2 2 99.8 5 Lost in conf. finals
2000-01 San Antonio 58 24 104.7 3 94.9 1 Lost in conf. finals

OffRtg = Points scored per 100 possessions
DefRtg = Points allowed per 100 possessions

Here are some more notes from digging through NBA.com/Stats…

The same, but different
The Indiana Pacers and Memphis Grizzlies rank No. 1 and No. 2 in defensive efficiency. Offensively, they’re both pretty mediocre, with the Grizz ranking 19th and the Pacers ranking 21st. They’re both in the bottom six in pace, as well. From an overall numbers standpoint, they may be the two most similar teams in the league.

But from quarter to quarter, there’s a big difference between the two teams. The Pacers are the league’s most consistent team from period to period, while the Grizzlies are the most inconsistent.

Indiana is basically mediocre offensively and strong defensively, no matter what part of the game it is.

Pacers efficiency, quarter by quarter

Period OffRtg Rank DefRtg Rank NetRtg Rank
1st quarter 99.5 24 95.9 3 +3.6 11
2nd quarter 99.6 22 96.8 3 +2.8 11
3rd quarter 100.6 20 94.8 2 +5.9 7
4th quarter 101.5 18 95.2 1 +6.3 5

NetRtg = Point differential per 100 possessions

Memphis, meanwhile, has been much better on both ends of the floor in the second and third quarters…

Grizzlies efficiency, quarter by quarter

Period OffRtg Rank DefRtg Rank NetRtg Rank
1st quarter 98.9 25 102.1 13 -3.2 21
2nd quarter 106.8 8 95.7 1 +11.2 2
3rd quarter 102.0 14 92.5 1 +9.5 3
4th quarter 95.8 29 101.0 10 -5.3 24

The league’s most anemic lineup
The Wizards rank last in offensive efficiency, scoring just 95.3 points per 100 possessions this season. Amazingly, they were much worse than that with Jordan Crawford on the floor. In Crawford’s 1,127 minutes on the floor, Washington scored a brutal 90.7 points per 100 possessions. In his 1,404 minutes on the bench, they scored a somewhat more respectable 99.1.

But that had a lot to do with who Crawford played his minutes with, or rather who he didn’t play his minutes with. Just 113 of those 1,127 minutes (10 percent) were played with John Wall, and just 341 (30 percent) were played with Nene.

The Wizards’ most-used lineup with Crawford on it (the fifth lineup on this list) had him running the point with Bradley Beal and Martell Webster on the wings, along with Chris Singleton and Emeka Okafor up front. It scored an amazingly brutal 67.8 points per 100 possessions in 68 minutes of floor time. No lineup around the league has been nearly as bad offensively.

Clutch KG?
In case you missed it on Wednesday, we looked at Joe Johnson‘s incredible success in the final minute of close games this season. It’s no surprise that Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant are the leading scorers in standard clutch time (last five minutes with a point differential of five points or less), but Kevin Garnett at No. 3?

Well, no team has been in more tight situations than the Celtics, who have played 179 minutes of clutch time this season. They played only 117 last year.

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Joe Johnson Does It Again

February 20, 2013  ·  8:31AM

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HANG TIME NEW JERSEY – The new NBA.com/Stats site is great for lots of things. One of them is the ability to verify (or deny) a thought that might come to your head while watching a game.

Example: Joe Johnson drains a three to send the Bucks-Nets game into overtime and then hits the game-winner at the OT buzzer. Your thought: “Gee, it feels like Joe Johnson has been pretty clutch this season.”

So you go straight to NBA.com/Stats (the site actually updates within 15 minutes of the final buzzer) and head to the Player Clutch page (Hover over the “League” menu, click on “Stats By Player” and then click on the “Player Clutch” button).

The default filters for clutch stats are Last 5 Minutes, Ahead or Behind, and 5 Points. So we’re looking at stats accumulated in the final five minutes of the fourth quarter or overtime, with a score differential (either way) of five points or less.

If you change the filters from “5 Minutes” to “1 Minute” and from “5 Points” to “3 Points,” you get some different results. Now, if you click on “FGM” to sort by the most buckets in that situation, you see Johnson’s name right there under Kyrie Irving. And you see that Johnson is an incredible 9-for-10.

You can also go to Johnson’s player page, click on “Stats” and then “Clutch” to see how he has shot with a few other parameters.

And if you work for NBA.com, you send an e-mail to your fantastic multimedia department, and they put together a sweet montage of those nine clutch buckets, which you can see above.

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Feeling Lucky? Try 7 GMs With Decisions

February 19, 2013  ·  2:42PM

HANG TIME, Texas — The clock ticks down, the trade deadline draws near and all 30 NBA general managers are burning up their phones with possibilities realistic and absurd.

Some need to make deals to solidify playoff teams, others simply can’t bear the thought of sitting still. As Thursday gets closer, here are seven GMs with big decisions to make:

Danny Ferry, Atlanta Hawks

Is it finally time to give up on the hope that Josh Smith can be more than a numbers-gatherer in Atlanta? Ferry, the first-year Hawks’ GM, wasted no time in moving out Joe Johnson’s big contract. Part of the decision was that J-Smoove would blossom without Iso-Joe taking up a big part of the offense. Instead he’s averaging 1.4 fewer points and one rebound less than a year ago, his efficiency rating is down from 21.14 to 19.90 and he’s shooting only 50 percent from the free-throw line. The sense is that it’s “just time.” Still, that doesn’t mean Ferry has to move him. He’s positioned the Hawks so that they could afford to keep Smith and still sign a pricey free agent next summer. But that won’t stop the likes of the Bucks, Suns, Celtics, Wizards and Sixers from making a run. The Rockets have long had eyes for Smith, but might be more inclined to wait to make their moves in free agency.

Danny Ainge, Boston Celtics

Despite their 8-1 record since Rajon Rondo’s season ended due to torn knee ligaments, it’s too hard to see the Celtics making a serious and deep playoff run on the aging legs of Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce. The obvious move would be with the 36-year-old Garnett and making that long-rumored deal to the Clippers (Eric Bledsoe). The challenge is getting K.G. to waive the no-trade clause in his contract. Can Ainge appeal to Garnett’s own best interest to get another ring or his loyalty to the Celtics organization to help them start over? Even if Rondo’s knee injury isn’t as severe as first thought and he’s able to get back on the floor for the start of training camp, the rebuilding in Boston has to start sometime. It might as well be now.

Billy King, Brooklyn Nets

If King could know for sure that Deron Williams will shake off the injuries and inefficiency and return to the All-Star form he showed in Utah, then he’d be more inclined to sit back and put his feet up. Or maybe not in the realm of Mikhail Prokhorov. The Russian billionaire owner is willing to shell out big bucks, but also expects immediate results and does not handle mediocrity well. See Avery Johnson, who was fired with a 14-14 record, a Coach of the Month title pinned to his resume. The Nets will likely try to get Paul Millsap from the Jazz and could be in the running for the popular Josh Smith. Last year’s All-Rookie team member MarShon Brooks is on the block. Would Charlotte’s offer of Ben Gordon for Kris Humphries be enough? The Nets have been so inconsistent that with the possibility of a first-round bounce due to a bad matchup looming, you have to believe King won’t sit still.

Donnie Nelson, Dallas Mavericks

“The Bank of Cuban is open.” That was team owner Mark Cuban’s declaration last month, but what must be determined is in which direction the Mavericks are headed right now. They enter the post-All-Star stretch six games under .500 and 4 1/2 games out of the last playoff spot in the West. If the Mavs decide they’re better off reloading with a fully-recovered Dirk Nowitzki next season, they certainly have a good trade chip in Vince Carter, who’d be a wonderful addition to any playoff contender. He could also bring in future assets for Shawn Marion, Chris Kaman and Elton Brand.

Daryl Morey, Houston Rockets

You put him in this slot just because Morey lives with an itchy trigger finger and might be inclined to make a deal just because he can. But with the James Harden steal under his belt and the free agency hits on Omer Asik and Jeremy Lin, the Rockets will probably strike only if it’s a chance at a home run. With the youngest team in the league, a position in the West playoff race and a payroll that could make them big, big players in free agency, next summer is probably when they’ll make their move. But Houston is now big-game hunting for talent to play with Harden. If a chance to scoop up a true All-Star comes their way, Morey won’t hesitate.

Mitch Kupchak, L.A. Lakers

It’s almost obligatory to put the Lakers on any potential trade deadline list, despite Kupchak saying publicly that he’s not at all interested in dealing Dwight Howard or breaking up his All-Star group of underachievers at this point. He can’t trade Pau Gasol as long as the possibility exists that Howard walks as a free agent next summer — which it does. Besides, the Lakers problems are not about needing more players but getting the ones they have to play every night with passion.

Dennis Lindsey, Utah Jazz

Paul Millsap or Al Jefferson? Al Jefferson or Paul Millsap? With the contracts of both of the frontcourt veterans expiring, it was assumed since Day One of this season that the rookie GM Lindsey would have to deal one of them by the deadline, if for no other reason than to make room and more playing time for Derrick Favors. It would seem to make sense, but only if the Jazz can get a bonafide star in return. That’s what the 30-24 team lacks right now. But there is no reason to make a deal just to make a deal. The future is based on a young core of Favors, Gordon Hayward, Enes Kanter and Alec Burks. Millsap is the more likely one to go, but maybe only for another expiring contract in return. Salt Lake City is not a desired location for free agents. But as the effects of the new collective bargaining agreement are felt and big names teams try to avoid the increasingly punishing luxury tax, players will want to simply get paid. Don’t expect a panic move here.

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Hawks’ Smith Headlines Trade Deadline Rumblings

February 19, 2013  ·  11:38AM





HANG TIME HEADQUARTERS – Josh Smith‘s days of playing before an ambivalent crowd at Philips Arena are numbered. If we’re reading the trade deadline tea leaves correctly, he might even be down to his final 48 minutes there on Wednesday night when the Hawks host the Heat.

The Hawks’ attempts to convince Smith to stick around until the summer, when he’d be a free agent, have not slowed a number of teams pursuing the versatile power forward.

In fact, the list of teams with reported interest in Smith seems to grow with every tick of the trade deadline clock. The Hawks have let it be known that they are willing to move the Atlanta native by Thursday’s 3 p.m. ET deadline. And a player with his unique arsenal of skills can fit in any system.

The Brooklyn Nets, Washington Wizards, Milwaukee Bucks, Phoenix Suns, Boston Celtics, Houston Rockets and Philadelphia 76ers are all either in full-blown pursuit or monitoring the situation closely in the hopes of landing Smith via trade … or perhaps later via free agency. That leaves the Hawks in the position of being very selective with their decision, while also needing to act now. There will be fewer potential trade partners to work with in July, courtesy of the particulars of the new collective bargaining agreement.

The max-deal conversation that has raged for weeks was, like many things in the Twitter era, not fully understood by most of the people. They were simply repeating the stories of Smith and the Hawks agreeing to disagree about his value to the team that drafted him with the 17th pick overall in the 2004 Draft.

Smith never said he demanded a max deal or else from the Hawks. A source close to Smith confirmed that the conversation between the two sides never ventured into that realm. Smith simply answered a question the way you’d expect any competitive NBA player to answer it when presented with the premise of “Do you think you are worth max money?”

The funny thing is the Hawks, spanning two different front office regimes, have never really made clear what monetary value they have assigned to Smith. His current deal — he’s in the final year of a five-year, $58 million contract — was one the Hawks had to match after the Memphis Grizzlies made a play for him as a restricted free agent in 2008. It’s a bargain for a player who has been as productive as he has during that time.

Since basically his first season, Smith has been on the proverbial trade market every February. And the Hawks have drafted player after player (Marvin Williams, Shelden Williams, Al Horford) who were supposed to supplant Smith as the team’s best option at his position. Yet Smith has been steady. For every knock on his game — the ill-advised jump shots no one wants him to take, the spotty decision-making and the well-publicized dust-ups with coaches Mike Woodson and Larry Drew — there are things Smith and only a handful of other players can do on a given night.

Two players in the entire league average better than 17 points, eight rebounds and four assists. Reigning league MVP LeBron James is one of them and Smith is the other. Smith is the only player averaging better than 17, 8, 4 and one block (he actually averages 2.1).

When the Hawks traded six-time All-Star Joe Johnson to the Nets last summer, the playoff forecast for the franchise changed dramatically. Smith and Horford were left to lead a team of good role players that few people expected to be among the Eastern Conference’s best teams early this season.

There is a high probability that Hawks fans who have grown disenchanted with Smith’s game over the nearly nine years he’s played before hometown crowds. That throng will get their wish and see him move on. It’s up to Hawks general manager Danny Ferry to sort through the mess and find the right deal (with the most assets — players, draft picks, etc. — they can get for their best player).

And all indications are that’s exactly what he’ll do by Thursday’s deadline. (more…)

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D-Will In The Danger Zone?

February 12, 2013  ·  10:49AM



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HANG TIME HEADQUARTERS – A mere three or four seasons ago, the best point guard in the NBA debate was divided two or three ways. You were either in the Chris Paul camp, the Deron Williams camp or the someone else camp.

But those first two guys, both products of the 2005 NBA Draft, were staples. You either loved the leadership, craftiness and feisty attitude that Paul brings to the party or the size, skill-set and shot-making component Williams possessed.

All that was before Derrick Rose slugged his way into the conversation, and won a MVP trophy that neither Paul nor Williams has. (Older mainstays like Steve Nash and Tony Parker belong in the conversation but are rarely included in conversations about the future of the position for obvious reasons.) It was also before guys like Rajon Rondo and Russell Westbrook began to emerge and grow. And since then, All-Stars Kyrie Irving and Jrue Holiday have led the youth movement at the position.

Blasphemous as this seems to say out loud, Williams is in real danger of falling behind the pack. His possible demotion is due to a combination of injuries, uncharacteristic play and the fact that his contemporaries seem to be leading rising teams while he’s the bandleader of a mismatched Brooklyn bunch that can’t figure out exactly what they are.

No one is disputing that Williams is one of the best the league has seen during his time in the NBA. But in the what-have-you-done-lately world of the NBA, two seasons of substandard play, as judged by the lofty bar Williams set himself, makes the slippage hard to ignore.

Williams is sitting out the Nets’ final game before the All-Star break, the first he’ll watch from home since 2009, due to synovitis (an inflammation of ankle joint linings) in both of his ankles.  He received PRP (platelet rich plasma) treatment on both ankles and it scheduled to return next week.

But take a look at his work in the 50 games he’s played this season —  averaging 16.7 points, 7.6 assists and 3.3 rebounds while shooting just 41 percent from the floor. His scoring average is his lowest since his second season in the league, when he was with Utah, and his assists his lowest since his rookie season. In fact, he’s seen his assist numbers decrease in each of the past two seasons, a decline that followed four straight seasons where he averaged double-digit dimes.

Nets general manager Billy King still believes in his prized point guard, the man who immediately assumed face of the franchise status when King snatched him from the Jazz in a surprising trade deadline deal in 2011. He told Stefan Bondy of the New York Daily News as much, insisting that Williams can regain his status among the top two or three point guards in the league as soon he gets healthy:

“I’ve seen it,” the GM said. “He’s done it.”

King ratcheted up his defense of Williams when pressed further. .He admitted Williams has “not had the best year,” but attributed that mostly to injuries, exhaustion and a lack of explosiveness.

He compared the circumstances to Carmelo Anthony’s last season, when the Knicks forward struggled with an elbow injury and Mike D’Antoni’s system.

Amid speculation that Williams has also been slowed by weight-gain, King said the three-time All-Star is just one pound heavier than when he was dealt from Utah.

“You’re digging. You’re digging. And you’re asking valid questions, but (the inflammation to Williams’ ankles) is not a concern,” King said. “Kobe’s had the blood-platelet spinning on his knees, and guys have had it. It happens. So let’s not make this a bigger issue than it is. Let’s let him get through this, have a week off and get back to playing basketball. Let’s not put the dirt on him and say his career’s over at 28.

“I think the same questions were asked last year about Carmelo Anthony when they were struggling and people were writing him off, saying is he’s not the same player. I think he bounced back this year.”

…  “Am I confident he’s going to get back to being Deron Williams? Yes.”

Williams needs all the believers he can get. Because the Nets, a team that continues to come up in trade talks with the Feb. 21 trade deadline looming, have to get things right as the postseason nears.

They’ve spent boatloads of cash and made a splashy entrance in their new arena in Brooklyn. The expectations rose with each and every headline they made in putting this team together. If they’re going to come anywhere close to realizing those expectations, they’ll need Williams to get back being the point guard we all saw during his Jazz days.

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Josh Smith Talks Staying, Leaving Atlanta

February 12, 2013  ·  1:49AM

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DALLAS – Don’t think Josh Smith is just waiting to bolt Atlanta, the only city he’s known for the vast majority of his 27 years. He has a wife there, two young children, a home, good friends and one very personal chauffeur.

“I love driving to the games with my father, each and every home game,” Smith said Monday night after he continued to grab the attention of general managers across the league with a 26-point, 13-rebound, six-assist performance to push the Hawks to a road win over the Dallas Mavericks. “Every home game, my dad drives me to the arena. He gives me his assessments after each and every game. With the exception of myself criticizing my game, he’s the next person in line.”

Pete Smith won’t find much to criticize in the 105-101 win. His son went 10-for-15 from the floor, canned a season-high-tying four 3-pointers on five attempts, including a huge one with 1:29 to go for a 99-94 lead. OK, so he did have five turnovers and missed a pair of late free throws before making two with 22.2 seconds to go.

“I have to wait for his texts,” Josh Smith said. “I know he’s probably texted me two or three times, a long paragraph about whatever he feels like I did, but it’s always something. It’s all good. That’s my dad.”

And that’s hard to leave. But if Smith is traded, he is ready for that, too. It is Atlanta general manager Danny Ferry‘s call to make by the Feb. 21 trade deadline. The Brooklyn Nets, according to reports, are pushing the hardest.

“I will say there is a lot invested,” said Smith, who has gone on a tear over the last nine games. “I was born and raised there, spent my whole childhood and my whole life there. I will say it’s a big investment.” But, Smith continued, “Once you understand as a player that this is a business and you don’t take anything personal, you kind of worry about just playing basketball.”

After dropping three of four, including an 11-point home loss Friday to New Orleans, Atlanta improved to 28-22 with Monday’s win. The Hawks are searching for the spark that sent them to a 20-10 start as they’ve fallen to sixth in the East, two games behind third-place Indiana (and just one game in the loss column).

The Hawks are positioned for a sixth consecutive trip to the playoffs in Smith’s ninth season, but the question is if this team is built to make a legitimate run at the Miami Heat for the East crown.

“I’m not sure; that’s going to be interesting,” center Al Horford said. “It’s one of those things that can be frustrating, because when you see the potential of our team in a game like tonight it makes you wonder. So it’s going to be one of those things that management is going to have to make a decision and see what they feel like.”

Monday’s win showed both the potential — five players scoring in double figures and three with 20 points or more, plus dominant board work — as well as the flaws. The Hawks also had 18 turnovers, many careless, and showed an inability to maintain leads.

For Ferry, the decision will have ramifications well beyond this season’s potential. He can trade his 6-foot-9, 225-pound leading scorer and second-leading rebounder and acquire players to build around; or risk losing Smith for nothing to the highest bidder this summer when he becomes an unrestricted free agent. If he remains, Smith said he’ll give full consideration to re-signing with the Hawks.

Of course, further complicating the decision is the Dwight Howard factor. Howard, like Smith, is from Atlanta. They’re the same age and good friends. Ferry unloaded Joe Johnson‘s contract on Brooklyn last July to create cap space to sign Howard to a max deal.

To convince Howard, it would make sense for Smith be there.

“I don’t know, it might be an enticing thought process for [Howard] to be there if I’m there,” Smith said. “You never know. This league is unpredictable, players are definitely unpredictable, so you never know what future lies ahead of us.”

Smith said he and Howard have not talked recently and have never discussed their futures in much detail.

“You know, he’s going through a rough stretch right now, so I like giving people their space when they’re going through situations so they can be able to just try to work it out,” Smith said. “Whenever he needs my advice I’ll be there for him. We haven’t really necessarily talked about anything as of right now, so I’m pretty sure he’s just trying to get back healthy, trying to get his timing back. I’m just trying to focus on what I’m doing as far as getting better as a player and trying to be as successful as possible for this team.”

The next move belongs to Ferry.

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Blogtable: Who Ya Got, Knicks Or Nets?

January 23, 2013  ·  11:28AM




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

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

Who wins the Atlantic, Knicks or Nets?

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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