Tag: sam cassell

Categories
NBA General

And the award for fugliest baller ever goes to…

Was there any doubt?

If we asked you to name us the ugliest player in the NBA, there’s no doubt the words “Sam Cassell” would be rolling off you’re tongue before we could even get the question out. But what about the ugliest player in the history of the league? A little tougher, huh? Actually, that’s a pretty easy one as well: Sam Cassell. But what if you had to name nine other players to join E.T. on the NBA’s All-Time Ugly Team? Now, that makes things a little more interesting. Here’s the list that PartMule.com came up with.

10. Scottie Pippen
9. Dirk Nowitzki

8. Pau Gasol
7. Mark Eaton
6. The 1987 Boston Celtics
5. Patrick Ewing
4. Steve Nash
3. (tie) Chris Kaman and Popeye Jones
2. George Muresan
1. Sam Cassell

Wait a second! What about this guy? How’d he slip through the cracks?

Links:

[PartMule.com]: NBA’s All-Time Ugly Team

Categories
Boston Celtics

Around the Rim: Irish eyes are smiling


1. Boston’s bounce back
Despite falling behind by as many as 22 points, the Celtics came roaring back on in San Antonio on St. Patrick’s day to defeat the Spurs 93-91. Boston was without Ray Allen for the second consecutive game, but luckily they had Sam Cassell who was more than willing to step up and hit a huge 3-pointer in the fourth quarter that put the Cs up 89-87. The Spurs almost pulled off a St. Patty’s day miracle when Bruce Bowen stole an inbounds pass with time expiring, but the normally clutch Robert Horry couldn’t connect on a game-winning trey. Kevin Garnett scored 21 points in the gutsy comeback while Rajon Rondo chipped in 20 and Paul Pierce added 22. Manu Ginobili led San Antonio with a game-high 32 points, but it didn’t prevent the Spurs from losing their fourth consecutive game and the sixth in their last seven outings.

2. Orlando isn’t LeBron’s kingdom

Everything looks pretty meager in comparison to Houston’s super streak, but Orlando is stringing together a nice series of victories as well. Thanks to a 64-point second half , the Magic now own the second longest win streak in the league with five consecutive after beating Cleveland 104-90 in the Magic Kingdom. Dwight Howard finished with a solid double-double of 23 points and 13 rebounds despite shooting just 6-of-14 from the field while Rashard Lewis and Hedo Turkoglu connected on three 3-pointers apiece as they combined for an additional 38 points. In all, the Magic converted 14 treys and extended their lead over the Cavaliers to 6 ½ games. Cleveland took a five-point advantage into halftime after Orlando started 1-for-9 from the floor. LeBron James finished with 30 points, but got no help from his inside defender as Ben Wallace ended his night with two points and four rebounds in 23 minutes.

3. Green doesn’t look good on everyone
For some strange reason, the Knicks and the Bulls both decided to break out green uniforms last night. Luckily, the basketball gods were as offended by the hideous jerseys as much as we were and sent both clubs home with double-digit losses. The Knicks lost to Indiana 110-98 and the Bulls got drummed 108-97 by the Hornets. Chris Paul was scary good once again as he tallied 37 points and 13 assists in the outing and after the game he got some MVP love from his buddy Tyson Chandler.

It was all Chris Paul,” said Chandler, who finished with eight points. “The little man was all over the floor. It was incredible. It’s one of the best performances I’ve seen from him yet. He, at least to me, made his bid [Monday night] to consider him the MVP.

Monday’s Player of the Day: Chris Paul vs. Chicago 42 min, 37 pts (FG: 15-21, 3FG: 2-3, FT: 5-7), 4 reb, 13 ast, 3 stl

Tuesday’s Game to Watch: Boston (53-13) @ Houston (46-20)
The Rockets might be the hottest team in the last 30-some-odd years with 22 consecutive wins under their belts, but if anyone can teach a thing or two about winning to Houston it is the Celtics. Boston rushed out to a 29-3 record to start the season and they haven’t let go of the NBA’s top mark yet. While the Rockets were able to slip by the West’s best in Los Angeles, the East’s top dog could be too much to overcome, especially if Ray Allen is cleared to play. However, the Rockets have the added benefit of catching the Celtics on the tail end of a back-to-back situation while playing in front of a rabid home crowd in an arena where they are a solid 26-9.

Buzzer Beater: No disrespect to Mike Dunleavy, but he’s no Kobe Bryant or LeBron James. However, when you’re playing against the Knicks, even guys like Dunleavy get to be like Mike. The coach’s son tied his career-high by scoring 36 points in a 110-98 defeat of New York. The Pacers snapped a two-game losing streak behind Dunleavy’s fourth 36-point outburst of the season. The loss dropped New York to 19-48 on the year, meaning the Knicks best player next year will probably be hooping it up this weekend at the NCAA Tournament.

Categories
Utah Jazz

Around the Rim: Utah’s Most Wanted


1. Naughty, naughty Nowitzki
Dirk Nowitzki’s frustrations were evident just five minutes into the game. And they were equally obvious by the time the final buzzer sounded in Utah’s 116-110 home victory over the Mavericks. With Big D down 19-6 in the opening minutes of the game, Dirk’s dark side came out as he took an obvious cheap shot at Jazz forward Andrei Kirilenko, knocking him out of the game with a hip injury. However, Utah rallied without AK-47 in the lineup, producing a late-game 16-0 run to secure the victory. Deron Williams finished with 17 points and an eye-popping 20 assists to compliment Carlos Boozer’s game-high 28 points and Mehmet Okur’s 20-point, 12-rebound double-double. Dallas was led by Josh Howard’s 25 points and Jason Kidd’s nine assists, but Nowitzki managed to produce 23 points while being hissed at for the entire evening. After the game, he pretended he had no idea why the crowd wanted his blood.

I kind of tried to grab him, and unfortunately grabbed him around the neck,” Nowitzki said. “Things went so fast, I didn’t mean to grab the neck, but I just tried to hold him so he doesn’t score. I happened to grab his neck and it was a bad fall.

2. Welcome to Club 40

With a 100-88 smackdown of New York on Monday night, the Hornets became the third Western Conference contender and fifth team overall to reach the 40-win plateau. More importantly, New Orleans pulled within 1 ½ games of San Antonio in the race for the Southwest Division crown. Chris Paul had another big performance with 27 points, eight assists and three steals while teammate Tyson Chandler scored 15 to go with 18 rebounds. The Knicks were without Zach Randolph for the contest which might help fans excuse the loss, but it certainly can’t explain the seven years of futility in the Garden. The home shellacking gave New York an 18-42 record, securing their seventh consecutive season under .500.

3. Cheer up China
Not that it matters a whole heck of a lot at the moment to Rockets fans, but Yao Ming underwent successful surgery on his left foot on Monday meaning that if all goes according to plan, he’ll be ready to suit up for the Chinese team at the Olympics is Beijing. yeah. Despite the injury, Houstonians can’t be too disappointed with their squad…at least, not yet. The Rockets will be riding a 15-game winning streak when they meet up with the Pacers on Wednesday. After being expected to sink into the deep, dark Western Conference waters, Houston has continued to stay float, winning three consecutive games since losing their Mr. International. The question is how much longer they can keep their emotional life preserver inflated? After Indiana, the Rockets take on West powerhouses in Dallas and New Orleans.

Monday’s Player of the Day: Deron Williams vs. Dallas 45 min, 17 pts (FG: 7-17, 3FG: 1-5, FT: 2-2), 5 reb, 20 ast, 2 blk

Tuesday’s Game to Watch: Toronto (32-26) @ Orlando (38-23)
It doesn’t get much better than Dwight Howard and Chris Bosh. Unfortunately, Bosh won’t be in uniform for this round as he continues to nurse a bum knee. However, just because the Raps are without their alpha male, it doesn’t take any importance away from the budding rivalry. Orlando has won five of their last six games in an effort to rundown the Pistons and Celtics before season’s end. Currently, the third-place Magic are six games behind Detroit in the Eastern Conference race. Meanwhile, Toronto is just a game behind Cleveland for fourth place and the first round home court advantage that comes along with it.

Buzzer Beater: Sam Cassell is set to officially become a member of the Boston Celtics today, reuniting with Kevin Garnett as they prepare to take their second swipe at the elusive golden apple. The Celtics critics have been taking shots at Rajon Rondo all season, crying that his inexperience would cost Boston when the playoffs roll around. Well, that argument is now squashed. Cassell might be 38 years old and injury prone, but when he is healthy, he is undoubtedly a winner. It’s been a long time since he had a championship reign and you know he is just dying to get his bony little fingers on his ‘precious’ once again.

Categories
Cleveland Cavaliers

Around the Rim: Special delivery driver


1. James nets 51
On Tuesday, there were no high speeds recorded or tickets issued to the NBA’s young King, but LeBron James definitely had the throttle down against Memphis. James scored a season-high 51 points in a 132-124 road win over the Grizzlies. In addition to his scoring, James grabbed eight rebounds and dished out nine assists. The last person to go for 50 points, eight boards and eight dimes was Gilbert Arenas (60-8-8) against the Lakers in 2006. With the victory, Cleveland is two games over .500 (20-18) for the first time since going on a horrendous skid in which they lost 10 of 13 games beginning in late November.

2. Suns slide

When Sam Cassell is on top of his game, even the Clippers become tough to beat; just ask Phoenix. Cassell finished with a game-high 32 points to go with seven assists and the Clippers beat Phoenix 97-90. Los Angeles took over in the third quarter, outscoring the Suns 25-17, and managed to hold on over the final 12 minutes. Amare Stoudemire had 29 points, Steve Nash got 13 assists and Shawn Marion finished with a big double-double (14 pts, 17 reb) in a losing effort. The loss knocked Phoenix all the way down from first in the Western Conference to fifth behind Portland, Dallas, San Antonio and the new top dogs out west, the Los Angeles Lakers.

3. 76ers finally show a little heart
The sun shines on a dog’s butt every now and again and on Tuesday, those warm, golden beams landed directly on the 76ers derriere. Philadelphia trailed by 16 points to the Rockets in the second half, but somehow found a way to rip off a 37-22 beatdown in the fourth quarter and snapped their seven-game losing streak with a 111-107 victory in Houston. Their last win was also on the road, against the lowly Sonics on New Years Eve. Andre Miller scored 26 points and Samuel Dalembert finished with 19 while Louis Williams (18 pts) and Andre Iguodala (17 pts) had solid games as well. Yao Ming & Co. hope they just played their final game with Tracy McGrady who has missed the previous 10 contests with an injured knee. T-Mac is expected to be back in the lineup on Saturday against the Spurs.

Tuesday’s Player of the Day: LeBron James @ Memphis 47 min, 51 pts (FG: 18-28, 3FG: 6-12, FT: 9-16), 8 reb, 9 ast, 3 stl, 1 blk

Wednesday’s Game to Watch: Portland (23-14) @ Boston (30-6)
If there is such a thing as a “good” time to play the Boston Celtics then this would be it. Boston is currently riding a two-game losing streak, their first of the year, and has lost three of their previous four games. Before their current slide, the Cs were 29-3. Portland on the other hand is probably dying for an opportunity at the league’s best in order to prove their current 18-2 streak isn’t a fluke. Unlike Boston, the Trail Blazers started the season in a funk, going 5-12 before embarking on their current tear.

Buzzer Beater: The Pistons bounced back from an ugly defeat at the hands of New York and soundly routed the Raptors 103-89. Richard Hamilton scored a season-high 39 points in the game, including a career-high five 3-pointers. After the game, he let everyone know that anything in the corners and behind the arc is his and you gotta pay rent if you wind up there.

That’s my real estate in the corner,” he said. “It’s like Monopoly. I’ve got four houses and a hotel on there. It’s what I do.

Categories
LA Clippers

Sam’s cool on the outside, but he’s ready to go Alien on this dork

We always knew that it would be some nerdy white guy who’d go up to Sam Cassell and bust out the “E.T. vs. Gollum” question, but we just always hoped that it would be E.J. who `cowboyed up.’ Did we really just say that?

Listen kid, we’re no John Stossels or Geraldo Riveras (although we love the sweet `staches), but it might be good to extend your research beyond Wikipedia entries.

Links:

[Our Book of Scrap]: Sam Cassell Asked Whether He Looks Like An Alien Or Golum