Euroleague.net reports: Maccabi Elite Tel Aviv (Israel) suffered a blow over the weekend as it learned that the injury big man Marcus Fizer suffered in Thursday’s road win at Olympiacos Piraeus has likely ended his season. During the first quarter of the game, Fizer was fouled on his way to the basket and landed badly on his right leg. He did not return to the game. After returning to Tel Aviv, an MRI revealed that Fizer sustained an internal and external tear of the meniscus in his right knee.
Day: February 17, 2008
No Gilbert Arenas on this summer’s Team USA
The Washington Post (Michael Lee) reports: Gilbert Arenas will not be invited to try out for the U.S. men’s Olympic basketball team this summer, national team managing director Jerry Colangelo said on Friday afternoon. Speaking after a ceremony to announce the finalists for Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, Colangelo said USA Basketball will invite 18 players to Las Vegas for a short training camp June 27-30 to determine which 12 players will represent the country in Beijing. “He’s not part of the mix,” Colangelo said of Arenas. “Not at this point, because of what transpired the first year and he was out the second year. He’s on the roster, but as of right now, we don’t see him as one of the 18.”
David West gives New Orleans hood advice
The Orlando Sentinel (Brian Schmitz) reports: Hornets forward David West admits that fellow all-stars have asked him what parts of town to avoid. “Guys have been asking me about security and safety, and all those other things,” he said. “I just tell them, some places you can go and some places you shouldn’t go. But you can’t let that overtake your mind and prohibit you from having a good time.” All-star weekend, with its celebrities and big spenders, is expected to have an economic impact estimated between $80 million to $90 million on New Orleans. “It just means more to have the game here,” Boston Celtics Coach Doc Rivers said. “The city needs it. It brings in more money.”
Dwight Howard dunk contest interview
After Dwight Howard shocked the world, he spoke for a long time about the amazing dunk contest.
Here’s a piece of it:
Q. Can you take us through the three dunks. The first one, obviously from behind the backboard, Superman, and then that self alley-oop.
DWIGHT HOWARD: Well, the first one I’ve been working on it for about two years. And I could never really get it done. I saw Iguodala did it, and I was working on it after that, coming up with my own little thing. I had my legs under me tonight and I got that one down. And the second one, the Superman dunk, I really wanted to get the crowd into it and try to show a little bit of my personality. You know, putting the cape on, and Superman. I thought everybody liked it. I enjoyed it. And then to make the dunk to finish it, it was unbelievable. And the third dunk, the self alley, I didn’t think I was going to do that dunk tonight in the Dunk Contest. But I was getting a lot of calls and text messages from my friends. And they said I’ve got to do that dunk, I’ve got to let the world see it, and I had to do it.
Q. I thought you were going to bust out with the telephone booth. Was that part of the plan? Or you just kind of invented that, the cape?
DWIGHT HOWARD: The telephone booth? Oh, I didn’t have time to get the telephone booth and all that. But I think the cape and the Superman, and the outfit, I think it worked.
The full-length Q&A session is here. You absolutely have to read the whole thing.
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Peja Stojakovic interview after 3-point shootout
Peja Stojakovic, a great outside shooter, didn’t fare too well in the 2008 NBA Three-Point Shootout, not reaching the second/final round. He shot pretty well, but it wasn’t good enough tonight. Here’s what he said afterwards:
Q: Were you disappointed in how you finished?
Peja Stojakovic: No, no, I just wanted to enjoy myself and enjoy the weekend and that’s about it. It’s a tough competition and Jason Kapono deserved it, he shot the ball and congrats.
Q: What was going through your mind watching Kapono shoot the way he did?
Stojakovic: I knew that the way I started I didn’t have a chance. As I said yesterday, it’s different than playing a game — you can’t come right from the warm-up and step into the competition, you have to wait and once they call your name you got to be ready. It’s different, but its fun, and I haven’t done it in a long time and it’s a good experience.
Q: Is it better to go early or go late in the competition?
Stojakovic: It’s better to go early, right after the warm-up — you step into the competition and you’re ready to go. As I said, it’s different than shooting by yourself in practice and obviously, 60 seconds shooting 25 shots is tough.
Chris Paul interview after Skills Challenge
Chris Paul lost to Deron Williams in the final round of the 2008 Skills Challenge. Here’s what CP3 said after the event:
Q: What are your thoughts on your rivalry with Deron Williams?
Chris Paul: Always, always. But it was fun. That was my first time getting to the second round. You know, I thought I had a shot going second, but then he got 25.8 and I can’t mess up. He set the bar real high but it was fun.
Q: What do you remember the most from watching All-Star Weekend when you were a kid?
Paul: Just all the excitement behind this and seeing all the glitz and glamor and flashing lights – and now to be a part of it is something that I would have never imagined.
Q: Is there one player you always looked up to and were amazed by?
Paul: MJ, all day long. It seems like he won MVP every year or the dunk contest or something like that. To actually know him on a personal basis now makes it even crazier.
Q: If you could add an event or change something about this weekend, what would it be?
Paul: Probably “Horse.” I play “Horse” just about every day with one of my teammates, Jannero Pargo, so we have a lot of crazy shots we do.