Tag: Boston Celtics

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NBA General

Around the Rim: Bryant’s big weekend



Yea, I play a little.

1. The Mamba strikes again, no suspension necessary
With the madness running wild on CBS there is a good chance that you were too preoccupied with brackets on Friday night to think about the NBA. Well, unfortunately, you missed another incredible offensive performance by Kobe Bryant. The man with the uncontrollable elbows put up the second best scoring feat of his career by torching Portland for 65 points on a 23-for-39 shooting performance in a 116-111 overtime victory. Bryant was clutch when the game was in question but refused to let his team fall to the Blazers as he scored 24 points in the fourth quarter and threw in an additional nine points during OT. This was only the third game of Bryant’s career in which he scored at least 60 points; it might sound crazy to use the word “only” in that last statement but that’s a sign of how spectacular Kobe is. The Mamba has been on the verge of 60 numerous times as he has cracked the 50 point plateau 13 other times, including a 50 point performance in a 109-102 victory over Minnesota last night.

2. Luck of the Irish

The last time the Celtics had beaten the Spurs was on Jan. 8, 1997. Then the curse began. It was in the following draft when San Antonio changed the destiny of the NBA and landed the number one pick in the draft instead of Boston who had the statistical advantage to grab the top selection, a.k.a. Tim Duncan. Fast forward ten years and the Celtics finally got a measure of revenge as they defeated Duncan and his Spurs by six points, 91-85, for Boston’s first victory over San Antonio in 19 tries. And it’s no coincidence that the Celtics picked up the historic victory of St. Patrick’s Day; Boston also broke a 17-year drought against the Spurs in San Antonio. If losing his first ever game against the men in green wasn’t bad enough for Duncan, the Spurs became only the third team in NBA history to have a winning percentage of .700 or better and drop consecutive games to teams with win percentages of .360 or worse at least 60 games into the season. It’s a big win for the C’s but they’d still rather have the three trophies.

3. The Sixers are great hosts
Hopefully you weren’t fooled by the 76ers seven game winning streak a while back because the real Philadelphia team has returned and they are an ugly assembly. Since having their run of victories ended the 76ers have lost three of their last four games, including an eye-popping 50 point loss, 124-74, to the Rockets last night in Philly. It was the biggest home loss in club history and ranked as the third most lopsided home loss in NBA history. Only the 1986 Houston Rockets (lost to Seattle by 56) and the 2003 Boston Celtics (lost to Detroit by 52) have suffered bigger losses in their own gyms. On the other hand, the Rockets set a new franchise record for road domination and fell just two points shy of tying the team’s biggest win ever. So don’t give up hope just yet Sixer fans; you still might strike lottery gold after all.

Sunday’s Player of the Day: Kobe Bryant vs. Minnesota 45 min, 50 pts (FG: 17-35, 3FG: 4-9, FT: 12-14), 6 reb, 3 ast, 3 stl

Monday’s Game to Watch: Boston (20-46) @ New Orleans (29-37) Yea, it’s a crummy game but it’s the best that the NBA has to offer on a light evening that only consists of two games. But let’s be positive about this because it could be worse, it could have been the same teams from a month ago. Now that’s scary. But Boston is finally picking up some victories after going on a franchise-record 18 game losing streak earlier in the year. Paul Pierce is breaking the hearts of millions of Bostonians as his outputs are slowly removing the Celtics from having a possible future with Greg Oden or Kevin Durant as the franchise’s cornerstone. And while New Orleans is sitting behind all three of the Texas teams in the Southwest Division, they are only two games behind Golden State for the final playoff spot in the West despite losing seven of their last eight games. But don’t blame CP3 for the teams struggles because Chris Paul can’t be expected to do too much more than put up his recent five game average of 16.8 points, 9.8 assists and 4.8 rebounds.

Buzzer Beater: Those weren’t Boooo-zer chants you were hearing on Saturday night. No, those were actual boos as turncoat Carlos Boozer returned to Cleveland for the first time since he bolted for Utah almost three years ago. And LeBron James showed his old teammate that the Cavs don’t miss his glass cleaning abilities as he grabbed a season-high 17 rebounds to go along with 24 points, nine assists, two steals and two blocks. But Boozer had an impressive game of his own (19 points and 14 rebounds) despite being unimpressed with the crowd’s imagination. “It wasn’t even that bad,” Boozer said of his Cleveland homecoming. “They had a lot of signs. I saw a couple of them. Chants were OK. They could have been more creative with their chants. It was good though.” What, you don’t think “Boozer is a Loozer” is purely ingenious?

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NBA General

Around the Rim: Knucklehead Nelson’s Short Fuse Blows It


1. Geez, Thanks Coach
With under a second remaining in yesterday’s game between the Wizards and the Warriors, Don Nelson picked up a technical foul after a questionable call gave Gilbert Arenas a pair of free throws with Washington down by two. But thanks to Nellie’s tech, Agent 0 went to the line and drained three consecutive freebies with 0.1 seconds remaining on the clock. Arenas was 12 for 12 from the free throw line as he went off for 32 points, six assists and five rebounds in the home win. By sinking the clutch free throws, Arenas has joined a pretty elite club. In the last two seasons only three players have hit game-winning free throws in the final second of play (Channing Frye, Darrell Armstrong and Zach Randolph). However, Arenas became the first player since Karl Malone against the Suns in 1999 to give his team a one point victory on three free throws with under a second remaining in the game.

2. Garnett Seeing Green
As unbelievable as it may sound, the Boston Celtics are NOT the worst team in the NBA. The combination of a Boston four game winning streak and a Memphis four game losing streak has given the Celtics a three game cushion over the grisly Grizzlies. Yesterday, the C’s beat the Timberwolves in a double overtime marathon despite another big day from the Big Ticket. Kevin Garnett seems to like playing Boston as he picked up his second triple-double of the season against the men in green. But the last time these two hooked up, Boston fell to KG and crew for their 18th consecutive loss. Seems like Garnett could use a little help in Minny, but, yet again, the entire weight of a franchise is riding completely on his shoulders. You don’t think Allen Iverson, Ben Gordon or Ray Allen could have helped to distribute the burden; do you?

3. Altitude Agrees With The Answer
He hasn’t even been in Denver for a year yet but Allen Iverson has already said that he wants to remain a Nugget for the remainder of his career. Sounds familiar, didn’t he say the same thing in Philadelphia? But things change and you can’t blame AI for wanting to leave the Sixers, considering their current condition. And Iverson is probably truthful about staying in Denver. The Nuggets have a bright future with Iverson and Carmelo Anthony leading the way. When Iverson was traded to the Nuggets, the duo was ranked number one and two in scoring; now they are first and fifth with AI’s numbers dropping a bit. But that was expected; what wasn’t expected was that the Nuggets would be clinging to the eighth playoff spot with only 25 games left in the season.

Sunday’s Player of the Day: Kevin Garnett @ Boston 51 min, 33 pts (FG: 14-28, 3FG: 1-1, FT: 4-5), 13 reb, 10 ast, 2 stl, 3 blk

Monday’s Game to Watch: Houston (36-23) @ Cleveland (34-25) He’s back and he’s not hard to spot. The 7-6 Yao Ming is expected to hit the court for the first time in 32 games after breaking his right leg on December 23. Tracy McGrady is going to have to get use to sharing the load again after making a late MVP push as he carried the Rockets during Yao’s absence. But before Houston can celebrate the return of Yao, they will have to pick up a win in Cleveland where the Cavs are 22-8 this season. And if T-Mac has been hot of late, then LeBron James has been scorching. James has scored between 29 and 39 points in each of his last seven games. This could become a scoring duel between two of the game’s most explosive superstars.

Buzzer Beater: Hitting the century mark has typically been the benchmark of a good offensive game for NBA teams. But what makes a game great is when two players combine for a hundred. That’s what Ben Gordon (48 points) and Michael Redd (52 points) did during the Bulls’ 126-121 victory over the Bucks on Sunday. In the last 30 years, only eight games have seen a duo combine for 100 points and this is the first time since the 1989-90 season that the game didn’t involve Kobe Bryant or Tracy McGrady. For comparison sake, the feat is one of the rarest in all of sports. In the same 30 year span there have been eight perfect games thrown in the MLB, seven 500-yard passing games in the NFL, and five baseball games with four homeruns from a single player.

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NBA General

Around the Rim: Oh No He Didn’!


1. Makin’ Bacon
We all know that Boston is clueless as a basketball team, but now we know that the lack of common sense reaches all the way to the team’s on air personalities. After radio analyst Cedric Maxwell observed what he believed was a questionable call during the Celtics-Rockets game on Monday, he said that female referee Violet Palmer should “go back to the kitchen” and “go in there and make me some bacon and eggs, would you?” Was Maxwell in a cave during the whole Tim Hardaway incident? Let me guess; that’s just how you talk, right? Maxwell apologized at last night’s game, but it could be too little too late. Entercom is the corporate owners of the radio station that Maxwell works for and, unfortunately for him, they don’t take too kindly to chauvinistic commentary. Entercom fired talk show host John DePetro in November after he called gubernatorial candidate Grace Ross a “fat lesbian” while doing a show last year.

2. Playoff Bound, For Now
New Orleans has been receiving some bad pub of late, but despite being hated on by front office officials and players alike, as a team, New Orleans has been doing pretty good for themselves. The finish line is approaching quickly and the Hornets are making a frantic push to make the postseason. With a healthy Chris Paul back in the lineup, New Orleans is sitting in the eighth position after winning seven of their last ten games including 107-100 victory over the lowly Hawks last night. Against Atlanta, CP3 went off for 24 points, five rebounds, 13 assists and four steals, while spurring Tyson Chandler and David West to double-double’s of their own. But the Hornets are going to have a tough time holding on to their playoff hopes with virtually every Western Conference team, minus Memphis, breathing down their necks.

3. The Matrix Replaced
Everybody is always talking about how important Steve Nash is to the Suns’ success, but apparently Shawn Marion is a pretty valuable piece. Without the Matrix last night, Phoenix fell to the 76ers and blew their opportunity to become the only team in league history to go undefeated in interconference road play. Marion didn’t play because of a bruised hand and a bruised quad. He has the complete package as a basketball player and is one of the most underrated players in the league every year. Marion could be a superstar on almost any other team, but unfortunately his talents are often overlooked as Nash and Amare Stoudemire grab the media spotlight. But while Nash and Stoudemire are becoming one of the best combinations in the league, it’s Marion’s 18 points on 52 percent shooting to go along with 10 rebounds, two assists, two steals and two blocks per game that are putting the Suns over the top.

Wednesday’s Player of the Day: Allen Iverson vs. Orlando 46 min, 34 pts (FG: 13-25, 3FG: 1-4, FT: 7-9), 4 reb, 7 ast, 5 stl

Thursday’s Game to Watch: Cleveland (33-24) @ Dallas (48-9) LeBron James has been on a tear of late, racking up at least 29 points in each of the last five games. And the Cavs are going to need another monumental effort if they are going the defeat the leagues hottest team. The Mavericks continue to plow over everyone in their way as their streak has grown to 13 consecutive games. But these aren’t the same Mavs you’re use to. This squad is playing defense. On Tuesday, Dallas set a franchise record by holding the Timberwolves to just 65 points and became the first team this year to hold Minnesota to under 30 percent shooting from the field (.296 on 24 of 81 FGs). The last time Cleveland visited Big D, James went off for 36 points, 12 rebounds and five assists, while Dirk chipped in 30 points, 13 rebounds and six assists as the Mavericks held on for a 91-87 victory. We could be in for a similarly thrilling contest.

Buzzer Beater: What’s up with the Celtics? After being the laughingstock of the league for practically the entire season, Boston goes off and uncharacteristically wins back-to-back games for the first time in two and a half months. To say this has been a tough year for the Celtics organization would be like saying Britney Spears has shown subtle symptoms of neurosis over the past few months. But maybe this is the turning point that will allow Boston to finish strong and end their season with some respectability. Oh, who am I fooling; tank ‘em all and grab Kevin Durant with the first pick.

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Boston Celtics

Former Celtic Dennis Johnson dead at 52


The AP is reporting that Dennis Johnson has died at the age of 52. Johnson was an integral member of those legendary ’80s Celtics team that still make us stop to watch every time we come across them on ESPN Classic. “DJ” collapsed after a D-league practice where he was the coach of the Austin Toros. The Travis County Medical Examiner’s Office has confirmed that Dennis Johnson is deceased and an autopsy is to be performed. More information to follow.

We’re sure there will be a lot of retrospectives of Johnson’s career over the next week or so. However, we’d like to say that we hated Dennis Johnson. Hated him. But we’re Sixers fans. That’s how good he was. Like a wise man once said, they don’t boo nobodies.

Links:
[Star-Telegram]: Former NBA great Dennis Johnson dies

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NBA General

Around the Rim: Child Support Payments are a Bitch!


1. One Last Reign?
First it was Scottie Pippen who was on the comeback trail, now Shawn Kemp is considering making a return to the NBA. But while Pippen could be back in uniform within the next few weeks, Kemp will probably not be helping any team make a postseason push until next season. When Kemp was last seen on a court he looked nothing like the young Reign Man who is considered by many to be one of the most explosive players of all time. At 36 years old, Kemp will most likely have to wait until he can get an invite from a team during training camp. Of course, he’ll have to resist the buffet line over the next six or seven months if he wants to be taken seriously by any coaching staff.

2. European Vacation
The NBA will be sending four teams to Europe in October to participate in training camps and exhibition games. It’s too bad for the fans across the pond that the teams making the trip are Memphis, Boston, Toronto and Minnesota. As of now, the Celtics and Grizzlies are the two worst teams in the entire league and Minnesota is barely clinging to the final playoff spot in the Western Conference. Surprisingly, the Raptors own the fourth best record in the East. But while the overall teams are not that impressive, the individual talent should have the fans lining up for tickets. Kevin Garnett and Chris Bosh will provide the primary star power this fall, with Paul Pierce and, possibly, Pau Gasol acting as supporting actors.

3. Mr. MVP Returns

Steve Nash has missed the last four games and in that time, the once white-hot Suns have lost three in a row. But Nash is looking to get back on to the court tonight when Phoenix travels to Los Angeles for a game against the Clippers. And it’s not a moment to soon for his All-Star teammates, Shawn Marion and Amare Stoudemire, who were running all over the court for the West on Sunday as they combined to score 47 points. While the Suns are anxious to get back into the win column, their division lead remains intact as the Lakers are sitting a full 10 games behind. The main concern for Phoenix right now is to chip away at the 4 ½ game lead that Dallas has over the Suns for the best record in the league.

Tuesday’s Game to Watch: Denver (26-25) @ San Antonio (35-18) Playtime is over and now teams are getting serious about improving their place in the playoff seeding. The Nuggets are hoping to finally have their dynamic duo together for the road game against the Spurs after Allen Iverson received some additional rest by pulling himself from the All-Star game over the weekend. Carmelo Anthony had a great outing against the other superstars as he scored 20 points and grabbed nine rebounds in just 25 minutes. San Antonio will be looking to take advantage of their home crowd after struggling on their annual rodeo road trip. As the oldest team in the league, the Spurs were grateful for the break which allowed some of the veterans to rest their elderly bones. Even Tony Parker and Tim Duncan got to take it easy during the All-Star game as they combined for only 39 minutes in the contest.

Buzzer Beater: Baron Davis is rumored to be eyeing the 27th as the date when he will return to the court after undergoing knee surgery just last Tuesday. That would be great news for the Warriors considering that they have lost four of their last seven games. But the good news doesn’t stop there for Golden State. Jason Richardson could return by Wednesday when the Warriors host the Grizzlies. J-Rich has missed the last 22 games. Currently, Golden State is only one game away from being in the playoff picture, which would be a remarkable feat considering their string of injuries and lack of big bodies while playing in a stacked Western Conference.

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NBA General

Around the Rim: All-Star Weekend Recap


1. The Game
Vegas is supposed to be a city that never sleeps, but a last night’s All-Star game changed that. The game was never even close as the West destroyed the East by 21, 153-132. The West was up 20 at halftime and would eventually stretch it out to 30 thanks to a trio of players with at least 20 points. Kobe Bryant picked up the MVP trophy with 31 points while Amare Stoudemire had 29 and Carmelo Anthony put in 20. Every player on both rosters scored in the contest, but it was a struggle for Caron Butler to get a bucket in his first All-Star appearance. Butler connected on his only hoop (1-7 FG) with just 4:07 left in the game, while his Wizards teammate never heated up in the game either. Gilbert Arenas was just 3-8 in the game for eight points.

2. Dunk Contest
Gerald Green won the slam dunk contest as he did his best Dee Brown imitation while leaping over tiny Nate Robinson. He then went on to jump over a table. It was a decent performance but nobody is going to be ranking it up there with Vince, ‘Nique and Mike. Dwight Howard got screwed because he’s tall as he slapped a sticker onto the backboard just a mere 12 ½ feet off the ground. But it was lost on the judges who seemed to kinda stingy with their scores. The commentators even began referring to Michael Jordan as “the Russian judge.” The Mount Rushmore of dunkers probably wasn’t impressed with very many of the slams because it’s hard to give someone a 10, knowing that you could have thrown it down better.

3. 3-Point Shootout
Jason Kapono easily won the 3-point contest over big names like Gilbert Arenas, Dirk Nowitzki and Jason Terry as he put up 24 points in his final run. That ties the record for most points in a final round and was just one point away from tying the most points ever. But it really shouldn’t have been a surprise as Kapono is leading the league in 3-point shooting by nailing 56 percent of his attempts. He has hit 89 of 159 from downtown this season, which is the best first half shooting performance in the history of the league by anyone who has shot at least 75 treys. In all, it was a good weekend for the Heat as Dwyane Wade defended his crown in the skills competition. Now, let’s see if All-Star successes can jumpstart the Heat down the stretch.

Sunday’s Player of the Day: Kobe Bryant vs. The East 28 min, 31 pts (FG: 13-24, 3FG: 3-9, FT: 2-2), 5 reb, 6 ast, 6 stl

Buzzer Beater: Every year he gets a little bit older and a bit more out of shape, but every year Shaq proves that this is still his league. Even if you don’t like Shaq, he’s an entertaining guy and he understands that the All-Star game is about having fun and putting on a show for the fans. From break dancing during practice, to unveiling his latest concept shoe that doubles as a slot machine, to kissing Tracy McGrady on the head after a slam; he makes it fun. And he’s always going to bring the ball up the court on at least on possession and try to cross somebody over; last night it was Mehmet Okur, and even though he missed the shot, that’s a play that the fans are going to remember. But now that the game is over, Shaq’s going to return to his serious self as the Heat make a push toward the postseason.

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NBA General

Kevin Durant might not want to play for the Celtics


First there were rumors that Greg Oden might not come out of college after this season, now Kevin Durant’s father is saying he might be back at Texas next year. What is it about playing for Doc Rivers and Danny Ainge that has the #1 and #2 picks so worried? Could it be that 18 game losing streak? Or maybe it’s the prospect of playing for Memphis or the Philly that has these two potential superstars so worried.

In an interview with the Dallas Morning News, Kevin Durant’s father, Wayne Pratt hinted that Durant might need one more year to season.


There’s a chance he would come back to Texas next year. Kevin is so young. There’s not a rush for him to go to the NBA. Right now, we’re not even talking about that. We’re talking about winning the Big 12, and Kevin continuing to progress academically.

There’s certain things that Kevin has to show and do before that decision is made, and we still have some things we need to see. It’s a total thing – mentally, physically, all those things have to be intact before a decision can be made. My wife and I have pretty good jobs. There’s no rush for him to go to the NBA.

It’s a good attitude but they have regular jobs… the 2007-2008 rookie scale is $3.9M for the #1 pick for the first year and $3.5M for the #2 pick. Take the money and run, Kevin. No one will blame you.

Links:
[Dallas Morning News]: Will Durant go pro? Don’t go there
[NBPA.com]: Rookie Scale

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NBA General

Around the Rim: Boston’s Marathon is Over



We goin’ Sizzler!

1. Reason for Celebration
After a franchise-record 18 consecutive losses, the Boston Celtics can finally experience the thrill of victory again. You have to give Boston some credit for winning in convincing fashion, but there’s no reason that the finger pointing can’s be directed at Milwaukee. It’s already bad enough that the Bucks have become the answer to a trivia question on Sports Jeopardy by breaking the Celtics streak of futility; however, to get blown out by 20 points in the process should be unacceptable. But it’s tough for a team lacking talent to mount a successful comeback after falling down by 13 in the first quarter. Just ask the Celtics.

2. I Got a Golden Ticket!
After Jason Kidd withdrew from competing in the All-Star game this Sunday, David Stern was forced to, once again, assign another player to the squad. Joe Johnson was the lucky recipient of an All-Star credential for the Vegas weekend. Johnson’s 25.1 points per game ranks as the tenth best in the league and last night Johnson lead his Hawks to victory over the Clippers by scoring a team-high 27 points. With four other players being replaced in the game, this year equals the 1996-97 game where Clyde Drexler, Charles Barkley, Patrick Ewing, Alonzo Mourning and Shaquille O’Neal all missed the midseason contest.

3. Bull Headed
It’s looking more and more like Pau Gasol will be shipped to Chicago. The only holdup seems to be John Paxson’s unwillingness to send Luol Deng or Ben Gordon to Memphis in exchange. But if the Bulls want to have the size and strength to bang with the big bodies from Miami and Detroit in the postseason, then Paxson will have to overcome his reluctance. The pairing of Gasol and Ben Wallace could be what elevates Chicago into the elite level, where everyone thought they would be before the season began. Paxson should try to hold on to Gordon if at all possible, but if the only way to gain Gasol is through the loss of Gordon then he is going to have to suck it up and pull the trigger.

Wednesday’s Player of the Day: Deron Williams vs. Cleveland 43 min, 33 pts (FG: 14-23, 3FG: 1-4, FT: 4-8), 6 reb, 12 ast, 2 stl

Thursday’s Game to Watch: Dallas (43-9) @ Houston (33-18) Something has to give in this game as both teams enter with excellent situational records. Dallas is an impressive 19-6 on the road, while Houston has done a good job of winning on their home floor (19-6) this year. The Rockets could really use a win over their division rivals as they are currently sitting 10 games behind the league’s best record. Tracy McGrady has led the Rockets to victories in eight of their last 10 games while the team continues to wait on the return of Yao Ming. Dallas once again holds the league’s longest active win streak by taking their past eight games.

Buzzer Beater: Derek Fisher has been in the league for 11 years and during that time he has been trusted by his teammates to take numerous big shots. Hopefully, players feel comfortable with Fisher’s ability to handle responsibility because he will take over as president of the NBA Players Union this weekend. Fisher is the current vice president of the union and will succeed Antonio Davis. This year has been turning out pretty decent for Fisher so far. In addition to the promotion, he is also an important contributor to the league’s third best team as Utah has gone 35-17 this season.

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NBA General

Around the Rim: He’s Magically Offensive!


1. The Kid Has Potential
If there were any Dwight Howard doubters before Friday, his performance against the Spurs should have served as a revelation. At one point, San Antonio led by 18 points but Howard led his team all the way back to a tie with .2 seconds. What happened next was easily the play of the year. Howard took an inbounds, alley-oop pass from almost halfcourt and slammed it down with one hand as the buzzer sounded to give the Magic a 106-104 victory at home. It was the first game winner for Howard in his young career, and the first game winning dunk with under a second remaining since Jerry Stackhouse did it in 2002. If that’s not enough for one night, the game capped a three game performance in which Howard shot an astonishing 33 of 37 (89 percent). That’s the best three game shooting streak in the history of the NBA by anyone not named Wilt Chamberlain.

2. He’s a Wizard, Not a Psychic
Gilbert Arenas is a great player but he’s not going to be mistaken for Nostradamus anytime soon. Arenas predicted he would drop at least 50 on the Trailblazers in his blog a few weeks ago, but it didn’t quite work out the way Arenas foretold. Agent Zero ended the game shooting a pathetic three for 15 from the field and was held without a basket (0-8) from behind the 3-point arc as Portland rolled to a 94-73 victory. The nine points scored was Arenas’ third lowest total of the season. Looks like Arenas is going to have to wait until March 20 for another chance at revenge against Blazers coach Nate McMillan for his role in leaving Gilbert off the U.S. national team last summer. The Wizards have now lost four of their five games since Antawn Jamison went down with a left knee sprain on January 30.

3. Green with Envy
Paul Pierce is back, so what? In his first start since December 20, Pierce scored a game-high 29 points against the Timberwolves, but having their star back still doesn’t seem to be enough to get the Celtics a victory. Boston came up two points shy against Minnesota last night as Kevin Garnett racked up his second triple-double in three games with 26 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists. K.G. apparently has no sympathy for the woes of the men in green. The loss is the 18th consecutive for Boston as they slowly approach the single season record of 23 losses in row, which is currently held by both the ’96 Grizzlies and the ’98 Nuggets. And there’s no relief in sight for the Celtics who have six of their next eight games on the road, including a brutal five game Western Conference swing.

Sunday’s Player of the Day: Kobe Bryant @ Cleveland 43 min, 36 pts (FG: 12-24, 3FG: 1-5, FT: 11-11), 7 reb, 6 ast, 1 stl

Monday’s Game to Watch: Los Angeles Clippers (25-26) @ Detroit (31-18) Chris Webber has solidified his role within the team in the past two weeks and thanks to a six game win streak, the Pistons have shot to the top of the Eastern Conference. Detroit is 16-9 at home this year, which isn’t good news for the Clippers. Los Angeles has struggled to gather victories on the road where they are only 8-18 so far. The Clips are barely hanging onto the last playoff spot in the West as the Hornets, Timberwolves, Warriors and Kings are all looking to jump into the postseason picture.

Buzzer Beater: The feud between the Wizard’s centers has escalated as Etan Thomas and Brendan Haywood came to blows once again. Thomas was suspended by the team for two games after throwing a punch at Haywood during the team’s practice on Friday. Thomas said the punch was in retaliation for an intentional elbow; “This cat decides to hit me with a cheap shot during practice and I reacted,” said Thomas. This was round three between these two after coming to blows for the first time last season an

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NBA General

Around the Rim: Revenge of the Purple Dinosaurs


1. O Canada!
So what if the Atlantic Division is horrible, at least a team has finally risen to the top of the heap. And as unbelievable as it sounds, that team is the Toronto Raptors. With a 3 ½ game cushion over their competition, the Raptors are enjoying their first taste of success since a young Vince Carter took the franchise to the postseason. Quietly, the Raps have ripped off a streak of 12 wins in their last 16 games, but next up is a big time showdown between two of the leagues most promising young studs as Chris Bosh locks up with Orlando’s Dwight Howard tonight in Toronto. When these two get together its reminiscent of the budding rivalry between Kevin Garnett and Tim Duncan in the late 90’s.

2. Irish Green or Soylent Green?
Can things get any worse for the Boston Celtics? First, their slide continues as they have now lost a franchise record 15 consecutive games after falling to the Pistons last night. There’s been Tony Allen’s self destruction; and then there’s Paul Pierce. Pierce has been out of action since December 20 after being diagnosed with a stress fracture in his left foot and on Tuesday he was sent home from Detroit with a swollen left elbow and a fever. Throw in the comments by Pierce that he would rather have a veteran on the team than Greg Oden or Kevin Durant and you have all the ingredients for a dysfunctional meltdown of classic proportions. By the way, Paul, you are the veteran on the team.

3. D’oh!
One day after saying that he was only going to Las Vegas because he was “into the free money,” Chicago’s Tyrus Thomas was fined $10,000 by the NBA powers that be. But as badly as Thomas simply wanted to “get my check,” it looks like he will now have to put forth a bit of effort. Third and fourth place in the slam dunk contest only pull down $16,125; second place gets $22,500. So, if the rookie really wants to be stuntin’ after he pays his penalty then he’s going to have to fly like an eagle and pull down the $35,000 first prize.

Tuesday’s Player of the Day: Pau Gasol vs. Houston 41 min, 30 pts (FG: 13-28, 3FG: 0-1, FT: 4-6), 13 reb, 5 ast, 5 blk

Wednesday’s Game to Watch: San Antonio (32-16) @Washington (28-19) The Spurs are back on the road after getting five full days off since losing back to back games to Utah and Phoenix. Tonight starts the second half of an eight game road trip for San Antonio who is 16-8 away from home this season. Washington is 19-5 at home where Gilbert Arenas scored 37 against the Lakers and Caron Butler put up a career-high 38 against the Sonics in their last two home games. It’s a classic battle between offense and defense with lots of All-Star power on the court among Butler, Arenas, Tim Duncan and Tony Parker.

Buzzer Beater: If there can be anything comforting about a 15-game losing streak, this little tidbit is it. In this decade, every team that has experienced a similar span of futility (15 straight defeats) has ended up with the number one pick in the draft. Paul Pierce might want to rethink his idea that teams don’t grow through the draft because those top picks turned into Yao Ming, LeBron James and Dwight Howard. Ask the coaches, players, GMs and fans of Houston, Cleveland and Orlando if they’d like to go back in time and trade those kids away.