The AP reports: Dwyane Wade still believes his knee will be ready for the Beijing Olympics. The Miami Heat guard, who missed the final 21 games of last season because of chronic soreness in his surgically repaired left knee, said Sunday that he’s been playing 5-on-5 games for about a week with “no problems.” Wade is spending much of his offseason rehabilitating in Chicago, with eyes on both getting a spot on the Beijing-bound team—USA Basketball will finalize its Olympic roster later this month—and ensuring that he’s fully healthy when the Heat open training camp in late September.
Month: June 2008
Max money for Michael Redd a mistake
The Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel (Michael Hunt) writes: The Bucks also erred in bestowing a maximum contract on Michael Redd. Do that, and the player had better be able to carry a team. Redd is one of the league’s premier scorers – mitigated by the fact the points have to come from somewhere on a bad team – but he could not lift the Bucks to even mediocrity. For the $17 million a year they pay him, the Bucks could’ve finished last without Redd. Eighty games below .500 and one playoff victory. Of course, you can’t pin all that on Redd, who was stuck here while Glenn Robinson got a ring in San Antonio, and while Allen and Sam Cassell might get one in Boston. Management failed miserably to surround Redd with a supporting cast once the decision was made five years ago to dismantle one of the NBA’s better teams.
Tiago Splitter not coming to Spurs next season
The San Antonio Express-News (Jeff McDonald) reports: Spurs general manager R.C. Buford acknowledged that Tiago Splitter has indeed informed the team that he won’t be coming to San Antonio next season (2008-09). Splitter, a first-round draft pick a year ago, has instead decided to sign an extension with Tau Ceramica that would keep him in the Spanish League through 2012. This would seem to make acquiring a power forward a priority for the Spurs this offseason. It would also seem to make Kurt Thomas, who is due to become a free agent July 1, an even more valuable commodity.
Ty Lawson arrested for driving offense
The Winston-Salem Journal (Bill Cole) reports: Ty Lawson, a point guard at North Carolina, was arrested in Chapel Hill early yesterday for a driving offense that involved alcohol. Lawson was stopped by Chapel Hill police at 2:33 a.m. on North Columbia Street, according to the arrest report. Officers were concerned about loud music coming from Lawson’s vehicle but determined that he had been drinking. Lawson, 20, was charged with driving after drinking. He was not charged with DWI. He was charged also with a noise ordinance violation and for driving with a suspended or revoked license.
Rudy Fernandez to join Blazers next season
The Oregonian (Joe Freeman) reports: Rudy Fernandez, a high-ceiling shooting guard with an accomplished international resume, announced his intentions to join the Blazers next season (2008-09) during a news conference Friday in Badalona, Spain, a promise that will net the team yet another talented young player. The 23 year-old 6-foot-6 Spaniard, whom the Blazers acquired in a draft-day trade with Phoenix last season, said he expects to join the team sometime after the upcoming summer Olympics, assuming the Spanish National Team he plays for is a competitor. “(The Blazers) have pushed hard for me to join them and have assured me I will be an important figure for them,” Fernandez said at the news conference, according to Reuters. “It wasn’t an easy decision to take but it is the time for a new challenge after a fantastic year with Joventut.”
Calvin Booth exercises player option
Philadelphia 76ers President and General Manager Ed Stefanski announced today that Calvin Booth has exercised the player option on his contract. Per team policy, terms of the contract are not disclosed.
The Penn State product signed as a free agent with the Sixers on September 11, 2007. He appeared in 31 games last season, averaging 0.8 points, 1.2 rebounds and 0.58 blocks in 6.6 minutes per game. Booth averaged 4.24 blocks per 48 minutes played last season, which was the 11th highest average by any player in the league. He recorded four of his season-high five blocks in the first quarter vs. Miami on December 12, 2007. Booth is approaching his 10th season in the NBA.
Doug Collins will not be next Bulls coach
The Chicago Tribune (K.C. Johnson) reports: Doug Collins will not be returning for a second coaching stint with the Bulls. Collins and team Chairman Jerry Reinsdorf mutually agreed during a Friday-afternoon phone conversation that the Bulls’ coaching search, now more than seven weeks old, would continue without Collins. “I just knew over the last few days that Jerry was really struggling over whether or not to do this, and I didn’t want Jerry to have those struggles,” Collins told the Tribune. “I love him. And I didn’t want him feeling that kind of angst.
No Varejao for Brazil this summer
The Akron Beacon Journal (Brian Windhorst) reports: Anderson Varejao’s season with the Cleveland Cavaliers dramatically was altered by one false step. Now it is affecting his summer plans, too. A Cavaliers’ official confirmed Thursday that Varejao has informed Cleveland he has decided not to play this summer for the Brazilian National Team. Varejao will devote the offseason to rehabbing his left ankle instead.
Sonics work out Kevin Love
The Seattle Times (Percy Allen) reports: UCLA forward/center Kevin Love highlighted a quartet of draft hopefuls that began workouts for the Sonics on Thursday. Love was joined at the Furtado Center by Ohio State 7-foot center Kostas Koufos, North Carolina State 6-9 forward J.J. Hickson and 6-10 Australian Nathan Jawai. Today the Sonics will bring in Georgetown center Roy Hibbert, UCLA 6-4 guard Russell Westbrook, Illinois 6-9 forward Shaun Pruitt and George Hill, a 6-2 guard out of Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis.
June 5: Celtics 98, Lakers 88
The AP reports: Paul Pierce, who as a kid growing up in Los Angeles used to sneak into Lakers games, returned from a knee injury to inspire and lead Boston to an emotional and tense 98-88 victory on Thursday night in Game 1 of these tradition-soaked NBA finals… Kevin Garnett scored 24 points, Pierce finished with 22—11 after going down—and Ray Allen, the third member of Boston’s Big Three, added 19 for the Celtics, who are chasing a 17th NBA championship. The trio was making its first finals appearance, and for a short time it appeared only two of them would finish their long-awaited debut. With 6:49 left in the third quarter, Pierce was deep in the lane when teammate Kendrick Perkins crashed into him from behind, crumpling Boston’s No. 34 to the court. The 10-year veteran, who last summer thought his days with Boston might be nearing an end, had to be carried from the court in extreme pain and was taken to Boston’s locker room in a wheelchair… Kobe Bryant led the Lakers with 24 points, but the regular-season MVP was just 9-of-26 from the field as the league’s top defensive team kept close tabs on him. Bryant, attempting to win a fourth NBA title—and first without Shaquille O’Neal—had numerous shots rattle out and spent most of his 42 minutes in the game searching for a rhythm.
Ticker reports: And it was most evident late in the first half, when Bryant – who is known for hoisting up shots in bunches – passed up a wide-open 3-pointer, drew Garnett out to him and dished off to Gasol, who was fouled. The ensuing two free throws gave Los Angeles a 49-44 lead with 1:36 left before halftime, when the Lakers held a 51-46 lead. But Bryant, who scored 24 points on 9-of-26 shooting, was forced to be a one-man show by the Celtics’ defense in the second half. “We got a little stagnant,” Bryant said. “I think our rhythm wasn’t there, wasn’t what we like it to be. Still, we played well enough to almost steal the game – some balls bounced their way tonight. They scrapped and they clawed their way to this victory.” Boston also was buoyed by Allen, who scored 19 points to help his team to its fourth straight Game One victory this postseason.
InsideHoops.com Stat Notes: Both teams shot around 42%, and both struggled from three-point range, but Boston fared a bit better from outside. The Celtics also hit 28-of-35 free throws, the Lakers 21-of-28. The Celtics won the rebounds category, 46-33. Assists were close. The Celtics committed 7 more turnovers.
For the Celtics, Kevin Garnett (just 9-of-22) had 24 points and 13 rebounds. Paul Pierce (7-of-10, 3 threes) had 22 points and not too much else. Ray Allen on 13 shots had 19 points, 8 rebounds and 5 assists (but 4 turnovers). Rajon Rondo had 15 points, 5 rebounds and 7 assists. Off the bench, James Posey and PJ Brown combined for 2-of-10 shooting.
For the Lakers, Kobe Bryant (just 9-of-26) had 24 points, just 3 rebounds, 6 assists but 4 turnovers. Derek Fisher on just 9 shots had 15 points, 4 rebounds, 6 assists and 3 steals. Pau gasol (6-of-11) had 15 points, 8 rebounds and 4 assists. Lamar Odom (6-of-11) had 14 points, just 6 rebounds, and little else. No other Lakers were particularly good.
Game 2 is Sunday in Boston. The next three games (if Game 5 happens) are in los Angeles. Games 6 and 7, if they happen, are in Boston.