Tag: Miami Heat

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Miami Heat

Around the Rim: The Heat burn the Suns


1. Suns drop it like its hot
Perhaps we misheard, but we could have sworn that the Phoenix Suns were going to use their embarrassing loss to the Timberwolves as motivation for the remainder of the season. Well, between Saturday and Monday, that plan flew out the window because in their very next game, the Suns got beat at home…by the Heat! We know that any team can beat any other team on any given night in the Association, but the Suns, who many consider to be the best in the West, just lost consecutive games to teams that are now a combined 9-30 on the season. Does the 117-113 loss spell the end of all hope for Phoenix fans? Of course not, but they are allowing the Lakers to creep back into the division race and the Suns’ schedule isn’t (and virtually can’t) get any easier. Here’s what’s on tap for Phoenix: vs. Utah, @ New Orleans, @ San Antonio, @ Dallas, vs. Toronto, @ Lakers.

2. The sleeping giant finally awakes

You might not know it by looking at the stoic, solemn expressions that almost never leave his gigantic face, but Yao Ming is a serious competitor. Labeled as a soft stick figure for the first few years of his career in Houston, Yao pretty much dispelled the myth that he’s got no heart on Monday when he called his club “soft” after losing to Philadelphia, their second consecutive defeat.

When you are soft yourself, everything will feel tough,” Yao said. “It’s not because they are so tough. It’s because of how soft we are.

“It’s weird that we changed that quick. I never had that feeling. I feel like they traded me to another team, a new team I’ve never been on before.

Finally! The Rockets have been waiting for over five years for you to step up and take control of this squad. Now Houston is, at last, ready to start winning. At least Yao is and that’s more than we knew before.

3. Another angry giant
We told you how Shaquille O’Neal is more than a little pissed about not touching the ball enough. Shaq is averaging career-lows across the board, but it’s not his age that is getting the best of him. Nope, as always, with Shaq it has to be someone else’s fault.

If I’m taking 20 shots a game and I’m only making two, then you can say my production is going down,” O’Neal told the Miami Herald on Friday.
“But I’m still shooting 60 or 65 percent from the field. So they’ve got to find better ways to get me the ball. It should be simple.”

Shaq was asked whether he had voiced his concerns inside the Heat organization.

“I shouldn’t have to [expletive] communicate that.

Monday’s Player of the Day: Josh Smith @ Orlando 45 min, 25 pts (FG: 7-20, 3FG: 2-4, FT: 9-13), 16 reb, 5 ast, 4 stl, 4 blk

Tuesday’s Game to Watch: San Antonio (17-3) @ Golden State (11-9)
Since Tim Duncan came to the Spurs, San Antonio is 42-5 against the Warriors, undefeated through 19 games at home and sporting a 33-5 mark in Oakland. Luckily for Golden State, the Spurs could be playing for the third consecutive game without the former two-time MVP who is still nursing a sprained knee and ankle. The bad news for the Warriors is that, even without their man in the middle, San Antonio has beaten Dallas and Utah to extend their current winning streak to five games. Golden State has slowed down a bit in the win column after going on a tear when Stephen Jackson returned to the lineup, but they are still racking up the points and have the ability to run anyone right out of the gym. This should be a great matchup regardless of Duncan’s availability.

Buzzer Beater: Heeee’s baaaack! LeBron James was cleared for the Cavaliers game against the Pacers on Tuesday and the move couldn’t have come at a better time. The Cavs have lost every contest that James missed – five consecutive – and now sit 5 ½ games behind the division leading Pistons. Before the injury, LeBron owned the entire NBA, racking up four triple-doubles while leading the league in scoring with 30.7 points per game. At least James got to show off his impressive wardrobe during the sick leave.

Categories
LA Lakers

Around the Rim: The showdown repeated beatdown in Tinseltown


1. The purple and gold is getting old for GS
The Lakers and Warriors came into Sunday’s game tied for second place in the Pacific Division, but Kobe Bryant exploded in the second half to ensure the tie would break in LA’s favor. Bryant scored 20 of his game-high 28 points in the final two quarters and the Lakers won their third consecutive game, 123-113. Kobe also dished out a season-high eight assists as six other Lakers finished with double-digit points. Andrew Bynum tied his career-high, scoring 20 points to go along with 11 boards and five blocked shots as Los Angeles defeated the Warriors for the ninth consecutive time and the 14th time out of 15 tries. After the game, a disappointed Baron Davis hit the nail on the head.

They’re a big team, and we just got outhustled.

“Somebody for them is always having a career game against us.

Look on the bright side though, B. You guys sure can beat up on the Mavericks.

2. World’s Greatest Bosh

Chris Bosh missed five games with a strained groin and the Raptors proceeded to lose three of those games. Unfortunately for Houston, they had to face a healthy Bosh and ended up dropping their third game in five tries. Bosh was solid in his return, scoring 21 points, grabbing 10 rebounds and blocking four shots. Equally important to the 93-80 home victory for Toronto was their bench production, totaling 45 points and 23 rebounds. For Houston, Tracy McGrady led his squad offensively with 23 points while Carl Landry, playing in just his second career game, led the team in rebounds with seven. We don’t know how on earth a 6-foot-7 rookie outrebounds Yao Ming (six rebounds) in just 10 minutes of action, but it happened. Of course, Landry also picked up five fouls in those 10 minutes while Yao had just one in 38 minutes. But, c’mon, six boards?! He does know he’s 7-foot-6 and weighs over 300 pounds, right?

3. Even slumpbusters need slumpbusters sometimes
There’s no doubt that when a team hits a slump, they start scanning for the Clippers on their schedule. Usually, that’s an easy win. However, when you’re the Miami Heat, there is no such thing as an easy win. It took 35 points and 10 assists from Dwyane Wade, but the Heat escaped Los Angeles with a 100-94 victory, the 1,200th of Pat Riley’s career. But with a 5-15 record, there was probably no champagne corks popping in the locker room celebrating the occasion. After demanding he receive the ball more, Shaquille O’Neal finished with eight points on eight attempts and was thoroughly outplayed by the Clippers’ Chris Kaman (14 pts, 12 reb). Miami hasn’t won consecutive games yet this year and don’t expect this win to trigger a streak either because the Heat will likely get burnt by the Suns tonight.

Sunday’s Player of the Day: Brandon Roy vs. Milwaukee 45 min, 26 pts (FG: 11-13, FT: 4-4), 8 reb, 9 ast, 2 stl, 1 blk

Monday’s Game to Watch: Atlanta (9-10) @ Orlando (16-5)
A few years ago you would have been committed for saying that Orlando and Atlanta were the top two teams in the Southeast Division and playoff bound. Nowadays you can get away with it because Dwight Howard is manning the middle in the Magic Kingdom and the hatchling Hawks are beginning to spread their wings. In addition to having four double-digit scorers, led by Joe Johnson’s 20.5 points per game, Atlanta also possesses the league’s top shot blocker in Josh Smith who is getting over three swats a contest (3.56 bpg). Orlando has slowed down a bit after jumping out to a 9-2 start, but Howard seems to be just heating up. At just 22 years old, the man child has upped his scoring average from 17.6 last year to 23.5 this year and currently ranks first in the league in rebounds (15.0 rpg), second in field goal percentage (61.43%) and fourth in blocks (2.90 bpg).

Buzzer Beater: In case you missed it on Saturday, the Timberwolves upset the Suns. Yes, the Timberwolves. Al Jefferson had a huge coming out party, racking up 32 points and 20 rebounds. Needless to say, the T-Wolves were pretty stoked.

Definitely this season, it’s the biggest of all three of our victories,” Marko Jaric said.

Unfortunately for Marko and the Wolves, he could be saying the same exact thing at the end of the season.

Categories
Miami Heat

Around the Rim: The Miami Meek


1. Even the Blazers are punking out Miami
The Heat were easily extinguished by the Blazers last night as the Portland upstarts came through in the crunch. Meanwhile, the vets on Miami just let another game slip through their fingers, their fourth consecutive botched contest. Pat Riley appears to have finally accepted the fact that his squad is pitiful, 4-14 pitiful to be exact. Dwayne Wade did all could, coming up one assist short of a triple-double, but Brandon Roy torched the Heat for 25 points while Travis Outlaw chipped in with 20 off the bench to go with one humongous slam dunk in the 112-106 victory. Shaq’s performance continues to decline in the twilight of his career, but he still managed to give a facial to Portland center Joel Przybilla, just not in the manner you’d think. Less than a minute into the game, Shaq sent Przybilla to the floor and then proceeded to smash the ball into his face, bloodying his nose, as the Diesel stumbled over the top of the fallen Blazer. Enjoy this face-smashing view from the cheap seats.

2. They just got (everybody now) MIC’D UP!!

The Nuggets and Mavericks got together last night for a contest that saw Denver take a 122-109 victory, giving Dallas their sixth loss in nine games. But the play on the court was only half the story, coaches Avery Johnson and George Karl became the guinea pigs for the NBA’s latest experiment. The coaches in general don’t seem too happy about the league’s decision to mic up coaches, which is mandatory, and players, which is optional. So, how exactly does the average fan benefit from the latest multimedia move? Well, you get tremendous insight that you never had access to before. Besides the newly implemented and binding media timeout interview with coaches, there are all sorts of other juicy sound bites for your pleasure. Check out this stuff and just try to keep your mind from melting.

Soon after, TNT showed a montage of audio collected from the microphones.

“Let’s go, enjoy this thing,” Karl said at the start of the game.

“Good hustle men, keep it up,” Johnson said during a timeout.

“Let’s go. Let’s go, let’s go,” Stackhouse said, clapping his hands on the court.

“Way to go, Stack,” Johnson was later shown saying following a basket by his microphone-wearing swingman.

3. Now Jason Kidd probably has a headache
Wait, wait, wait; you mean to tell us that Jason Kidd might have actually had a migraine headache on Tuesday? That’s not possible, it was a power play to highjack the Nets’ cash or to get traded. Remember, he was “on strike.” Or maybe not. Kidd laid out his side of the story and, guess what, it makes sense. He had a headache and he didn’t play, simple as that. Give the guy a little credit, he’s a veteran and a professional when it comes to the game of basketball. Heck, the guy is 34 years old and he’s 1.3 rebounds away from averaging a triple-double for the sorry franchise. We don’t doubt that he might want out of Jersey, nobody could blame him for that, but Kidd has never given any indication of being a complete numbskull like, oh we don’t know, Stephon Marbury.

Thursday’s Player of the Day: Josh Smith vs. Minnesota 45 min, 28 pts (FG: 11-19, FT: 6-7), 7 reb, 2 ast, 2 stl, 7 blk

Friday’s Game to Watch: Utah (13-6) @ San Antonio (16-3)
Less than a week ago things were looking grim for the San Antonio Spurs after Tim Duncan was carried off the court by his teammates. Four days and a huge win over Dallas later, Gregg Popovich is saying the Big Fundamental has a 50/50 shot to be in the starting lineup against the Jazz. Duncan’s return only adds to Utah’s uphill battle. The Jazz are 13-6 and went to the Western Conference Finals last season, but the franchise hasn’t won a game in San Antonio since Feb. 28, 1999 – 19 consecutive losses. But you can’t count out the Jazz based on history alone because even if Duncan logs some minutes, he’ll have his hands full trying to stop the NBA’s player of the month for the West. Carlos Boozer averages 24.9 points, 11.4 boards and 2.9 assists for the Northwest Division leaders.

Buzzer Beater: With 2.2 seconds left on the clock following Marko Jaric’s layup, it appeared that Minnesota was about to grab their third win on the season. But appearances can be deceiving, just ask Joe Johnson who nailed a jumper at the buzzer to give Atlanta the slightest of victories, 90-89. While winning is normally good enough, when you barely eek out a win against the most pathetic team in the league, even a buzzer-beater leaves you bummed out.

It’s got to stop sooner or later, man,” he said. “I honestly thought this was a 25-30 point win for us tonight.

25-30 point win? Don’t flatter yourself Joe. You do know that your team’s average margin of victory during its eight wins is just 7.5 points, right?

Categories
Cleveland Cavaliers

Around the Rim: `He’s more than we thought he was!’


1. `You wanna crown his ass then crown him!’
LeBron James is playing some of the best basketball of his career right now and last night he led the Cleveland charge to knock off the Celtics 109-104. King James followed up his back-to-back triple dips with a 38-point, 13-assist effort to outlast Boston in overtime. The league’s top scorer (31.3 ppg) racked up 11 of Cleveland’s 17 points in overtime and is one outing away from tying Wilt Chamberlain for most consecutive 30-point games against the Leprechauns. That opportunity comes on Dec. 2 in Beantown. And should LBJ end up tying the original love machine, it wouldn’t be anything new. Coming into last night’s contest, James was averaging 37.5 points, 10.2 rebounds and 9.5 assists over his last six pack of games. Hardwood icons Oscar Robertson (1965) and Chamberlain (’64) are the only other players to accomplish such a feat.

2. Kobe and K.D.

Kevin Durant got his first up close and personal glimpse of Kobe Bryant and when the game was over he was weeping at the Mamba’s feet. Not really, but he did get outscored and the Sonics fell to 2-13. Durant put together another nice effort with 25 points on 10-of-19 shooting, but Kobe was Kobe and the crafty vet showed the rookie the definition of well-rounded, scoring 35 points, grabbing eight rebounds and delivering six assists. The Lakers improved to 8-6 with the win, but must now face a tough stretch with games against the Nuggets, Jazz and Magic.

3. How long until the Brooklyn relocation?
The Nets certainly haven’t had much to get excited about this season and last night was no different. Jersey fell to 7-8 after getting beat by the Grizzlies in the IZOD Center (that’s the corny name of the Nets arena in case you didn’t know). While the losing stinks, losing when you know you could be winning is the real kick in the nuts. Jason Kidd got another triple double, the 91st of his career, with 12 points, 15 rebounds and 12 assists while Vince Carter blew up for 32 points, nine rebounds and seven assists. Richard Jefferson chipped in 27 points, but the W just wasn’t to be. It should be interesting to see how the squad reacts to the loss. So far, the Nets have gone on a three-game win streak followed by a six-game losing streak which was followed their recently snapped three-game winning streak.

Tuesday’s Player of the Day: LeBron James vs. Boston 46 min, 38 pts (FG: 11-25, 3FG: 2-8, FT: 14-15), 4 reb, 13 ast, 2 stl, 2 blk

Wednesday’s Game to Watch: Houston (8-7) @ Phoenix (11-3)
The Suns just got beat at their own game by Golden State on Monday, but getting back on a winning streak won’t be easy against a healthy Rockets squad. Tracy McGrady is back to his old self after a minor elbow injury and everyday Yao Ming looks more and more like a mighty oak transplanted into the middle of the paint. Surprisingly, one of the weak spots in the Rockets’ framework this year is their record a home, a sorry 4-3. The Suns have equally been opportunity destroyers this season with a 6-2 road record and a 5-1 mark at home. But it really doesn’t matter if the arena is located on Saturn, Mike D’Antoni’s boys are going run up and down the court for 48 minutes and then treat the planet’s rings like a treadmill. The Suns’ big three (that’s Steve Nash, Amare Stoudemire and Shawn Marion if you get confused by the other studs on the roster) alone are averaging a combined 38.5 shots per game. That’s a lotta hustle!

Buzzer Beater: The Heat put together a nice all-around effort against Charlotte and cruised to an easy 110-90 victory, ending a four-game losing streak in the process. Now, we know that Miami has been going through some sobering struggles recently and a win is a win, but, seriously D-Wade, it’s just the Bobcats.

I can’t remember the last victory we had like this,” Wade said. “It feels good.

“Can’t remember the last victory we had like this”??? Was your Game 6 Finals victory over the Mavericks really all that long ago?

Categories
Dallas Mavericks

Around the Rim: Now Mark Cuban has something to dance about


1. 4-1 in their last five against SA; too bad it’s not a playoff series
The Spurs came into Dallas as a sizzling hot team, but it didn’t take long for the Mavericks to toss a bucket of ice water all over San Antonio’s flames. Behind runs of 17-1 and 11-0, the Mavs hit the court running and never bothered to check their rearview mirrors, toasting the Spurs, 105-92. Tim Duncan (24 pts) and Manu Ginobili (25 pts, 9 reb, 7 ast, 3 stl) showed up to play for SA, but they were about the only ones. Mr. Longoria was 1-of-11 for seven points and Michael Finely went 0-of-6. Outside of four rebounds, Finely put up zeros across the stat sheet in 25 minutes against his former club. Meanwhile, Dallas was scoring at will with four players finishing the game with at least 17 points. Josh Howard had a team-high 23 and Dirk Nowitzki was solid with 17 points, eight rebounds and five assists.

2. Bulls get bullied, again

Chicago did what they could, but that wasn’t good enough to knock off the Suns. Grant Hill had a game-high tying 24 points to pace Phoenix as six of the eight Suns to record minutes finished with double-digits in the 112-102 win. What’s amazing about this team is that they continue to roll with just a seven man rotation. The only question surrounding Phoenix at the moment is if they have enough depth for when the playoffs roll around. But there’s plenty of time for that to develop, it’s Chicago that is running out of time. The Bulls are 1-6 now after having four full days to prepare for this game. They’ve got the Clippers, Lakers and Nuggets coming up on the schedule, so, like the old Flintstones Vitamins commercials, the Pistons division lead is at 4 ½ games…and growing.

3. Houston can exhale now
Good news for Rockets fans. After taking a shot to the right elbow, Tracy McGrady couldn’t even shoot a pair of free throws with the arm during Houston’s loss to the Lakers. Turns out that that there’s no damage to the elbow and it’s just a sprain. He’ll probably miss a week or so and then he’ll be putting up 40 on fools like nothing ever happened. Bad news for Rockets fans. Houston heads to San Antonio tonight for their second contest of the season against the Spurs. But it is not the end of the world. Back on the 6th, the Rockets survived a 4-for-14 shooting performance by T-Mac to beat their instate rivals 89-81. In fact, the Rockets might get through this without too much damage. Considering the Spurs got roughed up by Dirk & Co. last night, with a big effort, they might steal one on the road. They have to turn right around and host the Suns on Saturday, but after that they’re off until next Wednesday. Meaning McGrady could be ready to go just in time for a huge game against the Mavs.

Thursday’s Player of the Day: Manu Ginobili @ Dallas 31 min, 25 pts (FG: 7-15, 3FG: 1-4, FT: 10-13), 9 reb, 7 ast, 3 stl

Friday’s Game to Watch: Miami (1-7) @ Boston (7-0)
It’s not too often that you’ll see a team as bad as the Heat make our Game to Watch, but today’s a little different. Pat Riley is on the edge of insanity after enduring the most embarrassing start of his career. Following getting drummed by the Sonics, he threatened to make “a massive shakeup” in his lineup. Well, “massive” really only describes one man on the Heat. So, don’t be surprised when Shaquille O’Neal isn’t jumping for the opening tip against the Celtics. And if Riley follows through, don’t expect Shaq’s absence to be the only new wrinkle in the starting five. So, will his tinkering pay off? Eh, probably not. We all know that Boston is on top of their game and the NBA at the moment. Kevin Garnett, Ray Allen and Paul Pierce are about as nasty a trio as the league has ever seen. All we know is that if this trick doesn’t smack some life into the Heat then Riley is probably going to be curled up in the corner of the visitors’ showers, mumbling and sucking his thumb after the game.

Buzzer Beater: Leave it to ESP-freakin’-N to go totally overboard with the Celtics quick start out of the gate. Now, we know that Boston has looked pretty darn good over their first seven games, but are we really doing this already?

NBA Best Teams Ever Comparison

2007-08 Celtics vs. 1995-96 Bulls

Twelve years ago, the Chicago Bulls set a standard of success that many think will never be matched: 72-10 in the regular season. Almost a perfect season.

Well, now we have another fast-starting team, and so far they are running with the Bulls. The Boston Celtics are on pace to surpass the Bulls’ 72 wins and become the second team to win 70 in a season.

Imagine that, they’re on pace to “become the second team to win 70 in a season.” Actually, right now, they’re on pace to win 82 games this season. This is so stupid; can’t we at least wait 10, 20, 30, dare we say, 40 games before we start clearing the pedestal for the new greatest team ever. These guys aren’t even the best Celtic team ever!

Categories
Miami Heat

Around the Rim: South Beach Bums


1. Heat hate
If Pat Riley was considering suiting up for the Heat after they were trounced by the Cats then he’s probably considering pulling Magic, Kareem and Worthy out of retirement following Miami’s loss to the Sonics on Wednesday. Seattle came into the game with a 0-8 record, before leaving South Beach with a 9-point victory, 104-95. What makes things even worse for the 1-7 former champs is that Dwyane Wade was finally back in their lineup and it didn’t really help. It’s obvious that Riley is getting absolutely sick of all the losing and we’re figuring that if this goes on too much longer he’ll probably bail on his boys, again. He’s tried everything he can think of, including attacking their manhood. Last night, he went after their pride.

If you don’t feel like the Heat mean something to you … you have to have a real meeting with yourself about what you care about. I don’t see a team that really feels like they have anything at stake here. They come in, they play, they get beat, they go home, they go out into the night.

Guess Antoine Walker wasn’t your biggest problem after all.

2. Miami isn’t alone

The Golden State Warriors are scratching their heads following their 0-6 start. Don Nelson guided his team to the biggest upset in NBA postseason history last year, but the Warriors can’t even get a W in the win column this year. On Wednesday, GS blew a 22-point lead to the Pistons and lost by seven, 111-104, on their home court. There is no excuse for blowing a huge advantage like they did, but it’s the Pistons we’re talking about, so we’ll cut them a little slack there. Not much, but a little. In all reality, the Warriors have endured a really tough schedule so far: Utah (twice), the Clippers, Cleveland, Dallas and Detroit. Don’t look for things to get any easier though, they’ve got a five-game, east-coast road trip looming. We’re praying Jessica Alba isn’t being subjected to this torture, we just couldn’t stand that.

3. See, Minnesota can win without K.G. Just not very often
The Sonics weren’t the only squad to snap their winless streaks. Minnesota finally emerged from the depths to capture their first victory of the post-Kevin Garnett era with a 108-103 squeaker against Sacramento. Rashad McCants led the way with a game-high 33 points while Al Jefferson chipped in 23. Even the overweight Antoine Walker managed to hoist himself off the bench for 19. It’s a good win for the team, but, c’mon, it was against the Kings. Even with Ron Artest back in the lineup for Sac Town, the team is still a joke. They haven’t won on the road in five tries and both of their victories came against winless teams at the time (Seattle and Minnesota). Mike Bibby is out of the picture and they’ve been outscored by 69 points in eight games. Other than that, the T-Wolves should be thrilled about the outcome.

Wednesday’s Player of the Day: LeBron James vs. Orlando 47 min, 39 pts (FG: 15-27, 3FG: 2-4, FT: 7-9), 13 reb, 14 ast, 2 blk

Thursday’s Game to Watch: San Antonio (7-1) @ Dallas (5-2)
Outside of the Celtics, there’s no team in the NBA that is hotter than the Spurs. They’ve won five consecutive games and they look like they’re already in Finals form. Tony Parker is leading the way, averaging 20 points and six assists while Manu Ginobili is coming off the bench and getting 19.5 points, 4.9 rebounds, 4.6 assists and 2.4 steals per game. Manu could probably break both of his legs right now and still win the Sixth Man of the Year award. Oh, and some guy named Tim Duncan, maybe you’ve heard of him, is patrolling the paint. But the Mavs are no slouches, they’ve got their own MVP in the starting five and we all saw last season how easy it is for these guys to click and rip off a 15-game win streak. With a win tonight on their home floor, the Mavs can move within ½ game of the Spurs for the Southwest Division lead.

Buzzer Beater: Phil Jackson probably shouldn’t quit his day job anytime soon. Well, actually with all the headaches from Kobe and just plain sucking, he might want to consider it. But that’s not the point, the point is the Zen Master should leave the jokes to Frank Caliendo. Jackson got fined by the NBA after saying this following his team’s loss to San Antonio on Tuesday.

We call this a ‘Brokeback Mountain’ game, because there’s so much penetration and kickouts,” Jackson said.

Actually, that was pretty funny. It was just dumb to say considering whom you are and the position you hold. But he made a sincere, heart-felt apology to anyone he’d offended, so all is forgiven.

If I’ve offended any horses, Texans, cowboys or gays, I apologize,” Jackson said.

Categories
NBA General

Around the Rim: The league is upside-down from last year


1. Role reversals
The season is just getting underway and there is still a whole lotta basketball to be played, but we always love looking to see who the last teams to grab victories are and who the final clubs to suffer defeats are. This year is a classic case of “What the …???”

For the undefeateds, we’ve got the Pistons at 3-0 (no shocker there) and then there’s Boston at 3-0. That’s a heck of a turnaround from last year’s routine double-digit losing streaks, but Kevin Garnett, Ray Allen and a healthy Paul Pierce make winning much easier; even in Boston. Out West, the lone team without a blemish is the Clippers (4-0). But, give `em time, they’re the Clippers, this can’t last too long, right?

Turning our attention to the big losers of the league and immediately we see some usual suspects: Seattle is 0-5 (Kevin Durant’s still too skinny to carry a team) and Minnesota is sitting at 0-3. But what really caught our eye were all the playoff caliber teams who were anemic in the W column. Chicago (0-4), Washington (0-3), Miami (0-4) and Golden State (0-4) have all dropped into the cellar after making the second season last year. Miami we are willing to barely overlook seeing that D-Wade isn’t breaking ankles, but other than that, these guys should be ashamed of their play. Golden State has the most to worry about, already falling four games back in a division that houses the surprising Clippers, the Suns and the Lakers.

2. The Diesel’s needle broke off

After seeing the Spurs handle Miami with ease last night, 88-78, one thing became glaringly clear and it is not that the Heat desperately needs Dwyane Wade in the lineup. No, as much as it pains us to say it, Shaquille O’Neal’s days are numbered. It’s been clear for some time now that the Diesel is on the decline, but that decline has finally leveled out and Shaq is sitting in the pit of a crater that’s about 10,000 feet below sea level. Say what you want about saving gas for the down the stretch, but in four games this year, Shaq has 51 points, 26 rebounds and six blocks to go with six assists and zero steals. That was a typical game during O’Neal’s heyday. Oh, and the Heat are 0-4. Slow start to the season? No; this is the creeping finish of a career.

3. What’s up with the Hawks?
If the Hawks could ever make it to the finals they’d be set. So far, those wild and wacky Hawks are playing some impassioned ball. Against their Eastern Conference foes, Atlanta is 0-2 with a couple of close losses to Detroit and New Jersey. But against the big boys, the studs from out west, the Hawks are 2-0. They opened the season with a 101-94 victory over the Mavs and last night they set the Suns with a 105-96 win. Granted, Amare Stoudemire wasn’t on the court during the game, but Grant Hill, Shawn Marion, Boris Diaw, Steve Nash and Raja Bell is still an imposing starting five. This Hotlanta crew could be the real deal with Josh Smith, Al Horford, Joe Johnson and Acie Law IV leading the way, but growing pains are inevitable. However, if these guys continue to gel then they could be in contention for a division title against a weakened Southeast.

Wednesday’s Player of the Day: LeBron James @ Utah 41 min, 32 pts (FG: 12-27, 3FG: 1-4, FT: 7-15), 15 reb, 13 ast, 3 stl, 2 blk

Thursday’s Game to Watch: Dallas (3-1) @ Golden State (0-4)
The Warriors are struggling out of the gate and the Mavericks love it. And Dallas is hoping to take advantage of their misery as well. After getting bounced from the postseason by Golden State in humiliating fashion last year, the Mavericks have jumped out to a 3-1 record and look like they could be on course for another top seed in the playoff brackets. Whether they hold onto it this time is yet to be determined. The Warriors, on the other hand, are winless through four games and have been outscored by 54 points during the stretch. But you can never count Golden State out when they take the court against Big D. At least not as long as Don Nelson is calling the shots for the Warriors because if there is a breath left in Nellie’s lungs then he’s dead set on ruining Mark Cuban’s life.

Buzzer Beater: Anybody who is born in 1988 and playing in the NBA in 2007 is a freak. Of course, that freak is still just a kid. So, it shouldn’t come as any surprise that rookie Kevin Durant would hit a wall at some point; it’s just that nobody expected the head-on impact to come so soon. Five games in and K-Smoove finally went flying through the windshield as he finished with 17 points on 3-of-17 shooting and two rebounds in a loss to Memphis. Thank goodness for free-throws, huh Kevin? We know he’ll bounce back and even get better as the year goes on; after all, with a 0-5 record, P.J. Carlesimo can’t allow for too many of those games from Durant, now can he?

Categories
Phoenix Suns

Around the Rim: Seattle lets the Suns shine in their town


1. Sonics boom
The Suns and Sonics put on a heck of a game through three quarters. Unfortunately for Seattle, games last 48 minutes, not 36. Kevin Durant did what he could (27 points, five rebounds) and he got plenty of help from his friends as Chris Wilcox went off for 23 points, 11 rebounds and three steals. But the inexperienced group of diaper dandies just didn’t have the gas or level of execution to close the deal in the fourth and lost 106-99. The fire power of the Suns remains unmatched. Three players finished with double-doubles (Shawn Marion, Amare Stoudemire and Steve Nash) and Grant Hill debuted with an all-around solid performance of 13 points, six rebounds and five assists. We all know that the Suns can and will win games during the regular season, but it’s their inability to win in the postseason that has become their trademark. We’ll have to wait until June to see if this team can break free of the chains that bind them, but in the mean time, just pop open a brew and enjoy the most entertaining brand of ball in the league.

2. No Bull!?!?

The other day, Mark Cuban broke thousands of Mavericks fan’s hearts when he said that there was no way Kobe Bryant would end up in Dallas. Well, Chicago fans, it’s time to break out the tissues because GM John Paxson shot down any hopes of No. 24 becoming the next No. 23 in The Windy City. “There’s not a deal done,” he said Thursday. “There’s not going to be a deal done.” The rumors were that Luol Deng was the one piece that didn’t fit in the trade scenarios: the Bulls were going to have to deal Deng to get Kobe, but Kobe said he didn’t want to go if Deng wouldn’t be on the team. There were even rumors going around that would have landed Kobe in Chi-Town while putting Ben Wallace and Ron Artest in Los Angeles. Bryant for Wallace and Artest??? The Lakers should be ashamed of their front office for even allowing such a rumor to surface. Why not just trade Kobe for Yi Jianlian and a bag of magic beans?

3. Miami Beat

The Miami Heat looked like a team that was missing their leader when they took on the Pistons. Actually, they were missing their leader because Dwyane Wade is still recovering from summer surgeries and he was sitting on the bench in a snappy suit. But, in reality, they were missing both of their leaders because as Wade sat and watched, Shaquille O’Neal was shut down by Detroit double teams. The big fella only had nine points and six shots in the game, none of which came in the first half. Throw in some career-highs from Tayshaun Prince (34 points, 12 rebounds) and you’ve got yourself an easy 91-80 Bad Boy celebration. The one good thing about the game for Miami was that Ricky Davis was solid with 23 points, but we are talking about Ricky Davis. You know, the guy who intentionally missed a shot on his own team’s basket in an attempt to get a triple-double. We know he’s got skills, but that is the last guy in the world you want to have to hitch your trailer up to.

Thursday’s Player of the Day: Tracy McGrady @ Utah 40 min,47 pts (FG:17-27, 3FG: 2-5, FT: 11-14), 4 reb, 4 ast

Friday’s Game to Watch: Washington (0-1) @ Boston (0-0)
The Big Ticket and his new buddies make their long awaited debut tonight. For Kevin Garnett, he’s been waiting for this moment his whole life, even if he doesn’t know it or won’t admit it. He finally has the cast around him to make serious noise in the playoffs and there are far fewer giants lurking in the conference to give him hell on defense. But we don’t want to forget about the other loveable losers in this game. Ray Allen and Paul Pierce can finally relax a bit with some help around them and let their natural skills shine though. This team isn’t overly deep, but, then again, they don’t have to be; at least not yet. It should be interesting to see how these guys share the ball, but considering how hungry they all are to establish some postseason presence in Boston, we don’t foresee a problem. Oh, and the Wizards will be there too.

Buzzer Beater: We love Thursday nights because we love Inside the NBA. It’s one of the highlights to our otherwise drab week. And last night just happened to be a great evening of early season basketball. There were the Suns vs. Kevin Durant, the Pistons and the Heat, McGrady’s explosion against the Jazz. So, how the heck did this guy steal the show?

Categories
Miami Heat

Could VH1 be bringing The Love Shaq to a TV near you?



Hey ladies, wanna be dwarfed by
your man? Shaq’s about to be on the
man meat market.

You can add a new moniker to the ever growing list of names that Shaquille O’Neal has collected like custom cars since joining the league: the Big Bachelor. Apparently, Shaq and Shaunie O’Neal are splitting ways after five idyllic years of wedded bliss and the big fella decided to be the dumper instead of the dumpee and slapped his ol’ lady with divorce papers on Tuesday.

According to the filing, which was first reported by The Miami Herald on its Web site Tuesday night, Shaquille O’Neal is asking Shaunie O’Neal to provide a “correct accounting of all money, funds, stocks, bonds, and other securities” that she had access to or obtained during the marriage.

They are the parents of six children; Shaquille and Shaunie O’Neal had four together, and each had one other before their Dec. 26, 2002 wedding.

Damn, six kids! But at least they managed to spit four of `em out together. Are you listening Travis Henry? But back to the chedda’ chedda’; there’s no way that Shaq’s gonna get stiffed on this whole deal and he’s asking this potential gold digger to fork over some receipts. Doesn’t sound too unreasonable too us; after all, we are talking about the potential future fat face of law enforcement in Florida. He’s going to need all the campaign money he can muster up.

Links:

[MiamiHerald.com]: Heat’s Shaquille O’Neal seeking divorce

Categories
NBA General

Santa Shaq can stay, but Kobe isn’t welcome at Christmas this year


If you’re already getting burnt out on all the Tim Donaghy chatter that has dominated the NBA landscape for the past few days, here’s something that might distract you from the incessant coverage. It seems that the NBA and ABC have finally given up on the holiday bad blood between Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O’Neal and for the first time in a long time it appears that the fans won’t be settling into a Lakers/Heat game on Christmas afternoon. Instead, the scheduling gurus have decided to focus on the on-court feud of the future between LeBron “Baby Dunker” James and O’Neal’s sidekick, Dwyane Wade. Of course, this could have a little something to do with the fact that Bryant is pushing to get outta Los Angeles too.

Now, the schedule isn’t final and this is all speculation at the moment, but we’re really hoping that this is true. We were getting sick of all the hype that went along with the LA/Miami game and the James/Wade battle has a lot more sizzle to it anyway, considering that both are able to compete at extremely high levels still. Sorry Shaq, we’re not saying that you’re washed up just yet, but if you’re going to be the main billing in a X-Mas day contest, you should at least be in better shape than the obese kids you’re profiting off of.

Links:

[MiamiHerald.com]: Stockings void of Shaq-Kobe