Tag: timberwolves

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NBA General

Around the Rim: Greg O-Done?


1. With the First Selection

A lot of the draft talk has been about Greg Oden, and deservedly so. Oden will be an immediate blessing to any team that is coming off a lottery level season. But before anyone starts dropping games in order to pick up ping-pong balls for Oden’s rights, they should be willing to be flexible because there’s a kid at Texas who just might change the way the draft plays out. Longhorn guard/forward Kevin Durant is dropping jaws across the nation with his dominance and versatility as a freshman. In 15 games, Durant has averaged 23.4 points (49% FG, 39% 3FG, 85% FT), 10.9 rebounds and 1.8 assists, while blocking 1.9 shots and snatching 1.5 steals per game. Durant torched Colorado for 37 on Saturday and followed that up by picking up his fourth straight double-double with 34 points and 13 rebounds in a win over Missouri last night. Durant’s performances should have teams like the Sixers, Hawks, Celtics and Bobcats reconsidering exactly what all this losing is for.

2. Kings of Comedy
Mike Bibby is trying to get his teammates to rally together and focus on winning, but pointing fingers might not be the way to approach it. Bibby said, “Try to win a game instead of trying to see how many points you can score or how many shots you can get up.” The hot-headed Ron Artest has never been one to take criticism lightly which could lead to problems down the road if he feels Bibby is placing blame on him. But it’s hard for Bibby to accuse others of taking too many shots when he leads the team in shots per game, yet he has one of the worst field goal percentages on his team. The frustrations for the Kings continue to pile up as Sacramento sits at the bottom of their division after losing three in a row and 12 of the last 18 games.

3. Webber Can Come, Garnett’s Got To Go
Chris Webber is a free man and now he’s searching for a team that will bring him a ring. Most rumors are focusing on joining Webber with Kevin Garnett in Minnesota. K.G. has said that he would love to bring Webber aboard, but the move couldn’t possibly bring the Timberwolves any closer to a championship ring than a move for Allen Iverson would have. It’s going to take a lot more than an old Webber who can’t stay healthy to get Garnett into the Finals. Once A.I. was sent to Denver, it became painfully obvious that Minnesota is going to remain a one man show. Perhaps, the time for a K.G. trade is upon us. If Minnesota won’t bring a superstar to Garnett then there are multiple teams who would love to bring Garnett to their superstar.

Wednesday’ Player of the Day: Dwight Howard @ Golden State 45 min, 30 pts (FG: 11-18, FT: 8-15), 25 reb, 2 stl, 1 blk

Thursday’s Game to Watch: Cleveland (22-12) @ Phoenix (26-8) The Suns have been tough to beat this season, but an opponent’s chances are greatly diminished when they must travel to Phoenix where the home team is 15-3. The Cavs are undefeated in 2007 and own the longest winning streak in the Eastern Conference with five in a row, but despite their recent success, Cleveland is only 7-9 on the road. It’s going to be difficult for the Cavaliers to keep up defensively in the transition as Phoenix will try to beat the Cavs down the court on every possession. Cleveland has proven they can produce on offense but Zydrunas Ilgauskus’ abilities on defense could be negated in the up and down game.

Buzzer Beater: You’ve gotta love a short, stocky basketball coach. At least Memphis seems to like theirs. The Grizzlies are 3-3 under their version of Rick Magerus, interim coach Tony Barone. Now, 3-3 might not sound like much, but when you start a season off by going 6-24, a six game stint of 3-3 becomes a big deal. Can Barone keep it up? It depends on if Pau Gasol can remain healthy. Gasol has strung together four consecutive games of 24 or more points and he continues to improve his efforts on the glass. If only Stan Van Gundy were around, he’d be so proud.

Categories
NBA General

Around the Rim: Happy New Year!


1. Kevin Likes It! He Really Likes It!
Well, at long last, the leather ball has returned and it has already been approved by Kevin Garnett. The Minnesota forward put up a season high 32 points against Charlotte in the NBA’s first game with the new old ball. “There is a God,” said Garnett. And K.G. wasn’t the only one feeling the magic of the rock. Four other players scored 20 or more points in the contest. The Celtics seemed to enjoy the change as well. After losing to Seattle on New Year’s Eve with the synthetic ball, Boston opened 2007 with a win over Portland, shooting 44 percent and snapping a six game losing streak in the process.

2. Philly Comes to Town
It wasn’t that long ago when Allen Iverson wore a Sixers uniform. Now, after over a decade of hoops, Iverson will play his first game against Philadelphia. Philly has been a joke all year long and A.I. would love nothing more than to make this reunion a memorable one. Obviously, he could do so by leading his new team to a victory over his old team but, he can also etch his name into the record books with a high scoring performance. If Iverson can drop 40 on his old franchise then he will move into fourth place on the list of players with the most games of 40 or more. The Answer is currently tied with Oscar Robertson with 77 such games. Only Wilt Chamberlain (271), Michael Jordan (173) and Elgin Baylor (88) are ahead of Iverson on the list.

3. Shaq’s Back?
Coaches around the league are searching for a team schedule as they are looking to see when they have to play Miami next. That’s because Shaquille O’Neal is expected to return to the Heat’s lineup on January 15. And what a surprise, if all goes according to plan then Shaq first game back will be against his old Los Angeles Lakers team. Consider it a late Christmas present since Shaq missed the now traditional L.A. versus Miami X-Mas match-up. But late is better than never as Miami has struggled this season and they are currently sitting in third place in their division.

Monday’s Player of the Day: Kevin Garnett @ Charlotte 42 min, 32 pts (FG: 12-18, FT: 8-10), 14 reb, 3 ast, 1 blk

Tuesday’s Game to Watch: Phoenix (21-8) @ Chicago (19-12) Chicago has the best home record in the league and they will need to take full advantage of their crowd’s support as the Suns come to town. Phoenix is only 9-5 on the road but most of their road woes came early in the season. Steve Nash and Co. has won nine of their last ten away from home. No team has hotter than the Bulls recently and a four-time Defensive Player of the Year might be the only person that can slow down a now healthy Amare Stoudemire.

Buzzer Beater: Denver is not the safest place to live if you are a professional athlete. Just ask Nuggets guard Julius Hodge who was shot four times on April 8, 2006. Hodge considers himself lucky to be alive after the drive-by shooting. Denver Broncos cornerback Darrent Williams was not so fortunate after he was gunned down inside of his limousine. Oddly enough, Williams was killed in the same neighborhood where Hodge currently lives.

Categories
NBA General

Where will Iverson end up?



Looks good

The question on everyone’s mind is: where will Iverson end up? Well, here are the latest rumors and conjectures from around the league:

Philly Inquirer: “A source indicated last night that Denver was willing to part with center Nene as part of a package for Iverson and that George Karl had expressed no problems with coaching Iverson…The Nuggets would also be willing to deal injured forward Kenyon Martin, but the Sixers have no interest in the surgically susceptible forward. Martin is out for the year following a second microfracture knee surgery in November and still is due $59.75 million after this season.”

NY Daily News: “One of the deals King was strongly considering is with Golden State, for point guard Baron Davis, center Andris Biedrins and a third unidentified player. In addition to Iverson, the Warriors would get backup center Steven Hunter. While a source close to one of the players involved called the deal “done,” the Sixers remain quiet about where they will be sending Iverson.”

Golden State of Mind: “One of our sources in close touch with an Eastern Conference scout said that the last thing they heard was that the Warriors upped their offer to Baron Davis, Monta Ellis, Ike Diogu and a 1st rounder for Allen Iverson and presumably some other 76ers players. It’s not clear whether this heavy offer was made before or after Bucher’s earlier TV report that the Warriors were out of the running.”

Boston Globe: “With the asking price for Allen Iverson too high, the Celtics‘ interest in the former NBA MVP may have cooled, according to league sources. Boston knows what Philadelphia wants, but is reluctant to put certain players, and possibly draft picks, on the table. Gerald Green and Paul Pierce are off limits. And Al Jefferson may have joined Green and Pierce as players executive director of basketball operations Danny Ainge will not deal.”

Detroit News: “Minnesota: The Timberwolves appear to have fallen to the end of the line. Randy Foye has some value to the Sixers, but apparently that’s where the intrigue ends for King.”

Categories
NBA General

Around the Rim: Mistake in Minnesota


1. One Way Ticket?
The rumors are everywhere. Minnesota should trade Kevin Garnett and begin again with more youth and more talent in return. Sounds like a good idea, but if Garnett doesn’t ask for a trade, then it would be a slap in his face to ship him off. This is a player who has been the face of the T-Wolves for twelve years now. The Big Ticket has won an MVP, an All-Star MVP and has been on multiple All-Star teams, All-NBA First teams and All-Defensive teams. He has meant so much to the franchise over the years, both on and off the court, and he has been a model citizen his entire career. Don’t forget that Garnett was a groundbreaker when he entered the league out of high school as a kid; he was the first player to do so since Moses Malone. Since then, he has bled for this team, suffered for this team and, most importantly, he’s single handedly carried this team. Trading KG is more than a business move at this point. The organization owes him the courtesy of allowing him to finish his career anywhere he desires. He’s earned the right to demand a trade, should he desire. But, if Garnett doesn’t want to leave Minnesota, regardless of reasons, management should respect his wishes.

2. Will the Real Kobe Bryant Please Stand Up?
Kobe Bryant came into this season with a scoring average of 28.5 points per game over the last six seasons. Last year he averaged a career high 35.4. Currently, Bryant is averaging 22 points a game, his lowest average since his first year as a starter in 1998-99 when he was getting 19.9. He’s only averaging 14 shots a game despite being known to jack up 40 shots in a single contest. He did drop 81 on the Raptors, right? Even though Bryant’s scoring is down, the team is 7-3 overall and 5-3 when Kobe has played. Oddly enough, Bryant’s season high of 32 points came in an 11 point loss to Portland. Could it be that Bryant is finally turned the leaf from selfish ball-hog to dedicated leader? Possibly, but the Kobe of old will return if the winning in LA stops and the team begins to struggle. Bryant’s not one to sit back and watch his team fail. If he’s going to go down, he’ll want to go down shooting.

3. Kidd and Carter Combo
As far as guards go, Jason Kidd and Vince Carter might be the best tandem going. The two Nets are attributed with a league high average of points, rebounds and assists by a backcourt. Together they average 69.4 per game. The other teams to average 60 weren’t even close to Kidd and Carter. Phoenix’s Steve Nash and Leandro Barbosa average 61.8, Atlanta’s Joe Johnson and Tyronn Lue get 60.2; Detroit’s Chauncey Billups and Richard Hamilton are good for 60.2 and Milwaukee’s Michael Redd and Maurice Williams average 60. The Nets duo is the second highest scoring backcourt, the best rebounders and rank third in assists. They are the only backcourt in the league to rank in the top five of all three categories. Both guards are great in their own rights, but together they are simply dominant.

4. Mr. Wizard
Gilbert Arenas is good, in fact, he’s on his way to becoming the one of the greatest scorers ever to not be picked in the first round. Arenas was taken with the 31st pick in 2001-02 by Golden State and currently has 22 games of 40 points or more. That’s good for 4th on the list of non-first rounders with games of 40+ since 1966. Ahead of Arenas is George Gervin with 68, Nate Archibald with 37 and Alex English who has 33. Don’t expect The Assassin to catch Gervin any time soon but at his current pace he could surpass English this season. In nine games this season, Arenas has already scored 40 or more on three occasions. Currently, he ranks fifth in the league in scoring with 28.4 points per game. Health will be the major factor that could keep Arenas from moving up the list, however, over the last two seasons he has missed only a total of four games. At 24, Arenas should have long career ahead of him filled with open jumpers.

Monday’s Player of the Day: Dwight Howard @ Memphis 41 min, 24 pts (FG: 9-12, FT: 6-8), 23 reb, 1 ast, 1 stl, 1 blk

Tuesday’s Game to Watch: Los Angeles Clippers (6-2) @ Los Angeles Lakers (7-3) This is the match-up that many wanted last year during the playoffs. It’s been a long, long time, if ever, since the battle of LA was a competitive contest. Well, those days are over and these two teams now have a genuine feud with one another that is only going to intensify further this year. Not that it really matters, but the Lakers are 6-1 at home this year while the Clippers are 0-2 away from the Staples Center. Despite their record, the Clippers have to love their chances on the “road.”

Categories
Minnesota Timberwolves

Kevin Garnett gets Lost in Translation

Remember when Bill Murray has to go on that weird Japanese talk show, “the Johnny Carson of Japan”, with the slightly gay host? Well, this is Kevin Garnett’s trip to a Taiwanese television show. KG is traveling the world promoting… something. Who has the time to read this blog but the folks over at Free Darko (who apparently have a lot of time on their hands now that Darko actually has been freed), found the only part of the trip you need to know about.

Two new dance crazes are sweeping the nation folks, ‘clean the ear’ and ‘make the pizza’. God save us all.