Month: June 2009

Derrick Rose statement on flashing gang-sign

Chicago Bulls point guard Derrick Rose has issued a statement in response to this photo that has been circulating:

Recently, a photo has been circulating on the Internet which appears to depict me flashing a gang sign.  This photo of me was taken at a party I attended in Memphis while I was in school there, and was meant as a joke…a bad one, I now admit.  I want to emphatically state, now and forever, that Derrick Rose is anti-gang, anti-drug, and anti-violence.  I am not, nor have I ever been, affiliated with any gang and I can’t speak loudly enough against gang violence, and the things that gangs represent.

In posing for this picture, I am guilty of being young, naive and of using extremely poor judgment.  I sincerely apologize to all my fans for my mistake.  I pride myself on being a good citizen, and role model, that young people can look up to and I want to urge all my young fans to stay away from gangs and gang-related activities.

Read fan discussion and post your own opinion in this forum topic.

Rashard Lewis must ignore contract talk

The AP reports during the NBA Finals on Orlando Magic forward Rashard Lewis: Lewis was Orlando’s best player through the first three games, the leading scorer on a team that on Tuesday won a finals game for the first time. And for $110 million, the Magic should expect Lewis to be their go-to guy. Except they signed him because they knew he didn’t need to be, and Lewis won’t change his demeanor or his style to justify his paycheck. ”The contract is there and it’s not going nowhere,” Lewis said. ”They can’t take it from me and all I can do now is go out there and play basketball and try to win ballgames for my team, not go out there and put up big numbers to show everybody that I’m worth this contract.”

2009 Mavericks free agent camp

The Dallas Mavericks free agent mini-camp will take place June 11 and 12, 2009.

Click that link to see more info and a list of the players involved.

There are 20 free agents playing at it. I would guess that the best player, or couple of players, will have a good shot at being invited onto the Mavericks summer league team. And if one guy really stands out, perhaps the team will offer him a contract; probably something short, like one year, maybe two at the most, probably nonguaranteed.

Most of the players on the list are known guys.

Magic shoot 63 percent in 108-104 win over Lakers

The AP reports: Making easy shots and tough ones from everywhere, the Magic won their first game in two visits to the NBA finals as Dwight Howard and Rashard Lewis scored 21 points apiece in a 108-104 victory over the Los Angeles Lakers in Game 3 on Tuesday night to pull within 2-1. Orlando shot a finals record 63 percent—including another record 75 percent in the first half—to snap a six-game finals losing streak and avoid falling into an 0-3 hole that 88 previous teams in postseason history have been unable to escape… Kobe Bryant, seeking a fourth title and his first since 2002, scored 31 points for the Lakers but the superstar had just 10 points in the second half and went only 4 of 15 from the field after the first quarter. He also missed five free throws, points that could have given the Lakers that 3-0 lead… Rafer Alston, who was just 3 of 17 from the field in the first two games, had 20 and Hedo Turkoglu and Mickael Pietrus 18 each… Pau Gasol scored 23 points but had just three rebounds and the Lakers were only 16 of 26 from the line.

Sacramento Kings to hire Paul Westphal

Sacramento Kings to hire Paul Westphal

The Sacramento Kings are rebuilding their player roster as well as the coaching staff.

And, according to Sam Amick of the Sacramento Bee, Paul Westphal is going to be hired as the team’s new head coach: “Westphal, the former Phoenix and Seattle coach, was the second of four candidates to be interviewed by the job.”

In 2008-09 the Kings were the worst team in the league, winning 17 games and losing 65. Their star scorer, Kevin Martin, who averaged 24.6 points per game and not a lot else on 42.0% shooting, only played 51 games. They have a few promising young big-men in Spencer Hawes and Jason Thompson, and a very mediocre point guard in Beno Udrih, plus Francisco Garcia, Rashad McCants and Andres Nocioni. And that’s about it.

Westphal will have to help develop the young talent, though there is still a lot more rebuilding to do before he has anything great to work with.

InsideHoops.com will update this blog entry shortly.

Toronto Raptors trade Jason Kapono to Philadelphia 76ers for Reggie Evans

Toronto Raptors trade Jason Kapono to Philadelphia 76ers for Reggie Evans

From Philadelphia to Toronto, a bruiser has been traded for a shooter.

The Toronto Raptors announced Tuesday they have acquired forward Reggie Evans from the Philadelphia 76ers in exchange for guard-forward Jason Kapono.

“Reggie Evans will certainly add an element of toughness to our team,” said Bryan Colangelo, Raptors President and General Manager. “He has very good rebounding and defensive instincts, addressing two areas where we have underperformed.”

The seven-year veteran has averaged better than 6.5 rebounds in five of his NBA campaigns, with a career best of 9.3 per game (12th in the NBA) in 2004-05 with Seattle. He also averaged 7.9 rebounds during a four-year span from 2004-08.

Evans has ranked in the top-10 in the NBA in Rebounds Per 48 Minutes in each of the past six seasons, leading the league in 2006-07 at 19.7. He finished seventh in the NBA last season with an average of 15.3.

Evans has grabbed 20+ rebounds on three occasions, with a career-best 21 versus Charlotte on February 5, 2005. He collected a career-high 19 defensive rebounds against the Raptors on March 10, 2006.

The 6-foot-8, 245-pounder has appeared in 514 career regular season games with 270 starts. He owns career averages of 4.3 points, 6.9 rebounds and 19.6 minutes. He has seen action in the postseason four times, averaging 4.0 points, 6.0 rebounds and 17.1 minutes in 27 games.

Evans signed as a free agent with Seattle in 2002. He has played with Seattle (2002-06), Denver (2006-07) and Philadelphia (2007-09).

The native of Pensacola, Florida played two seasons at the University of Iowa where he averaged 15.3 points and 11.5 rebounds in 69 games. He was named Associated Press Honorable Mention All-American in both his junior and senior seasons.

Kapono signed with Toronto as a free agent July 11, 2007. He averaged 7.7 points and 1.6 rebounds in two seasons with the Raptors.

Evans is a short but rugged forward who adds rebounding to the Raptors frontcourt. Toronto up front has Chris Bosh, but Andrea Bargnani is not particularly strong, and Shawn Marion is undersized and not a lock to return to the team.

Kapono gives the 76ers a very badly-needed three-point shooter. With Andre Miller’s limited range, Kapono will help. He’ll be their best threat from deep range since Kyle Korver. He’d be a good first guard off the bench for them.

This trade helps both teams a bit.

Read fan discussion of the news and post your own opinion in this forum topic.

Scottie Reynolds withdraws from 2009 NBA Draft

Scottie Reynolds has removed his name from the 2009 NBA draft pool and will return to Villanova for his senior season in 2009-10, it was announced today.

“The best decision for me is to return to Villanova for my senior year,” stated Reynolds, who averaged 15.2 points per game in helping lead Villanova to a school-record 30 victories last season. “I’d like to thank everyone who put their time into helping me get better during these NBA workouts. I especially want to thank my teammates and coaches here for all of their support. I felt like I learned a great deal from this process.

“I’m blessed to be in the situation I am in. I’m happy to be back at Villanova.”

Kenny Gattison says Hornets pushed him out

The New Orleans Times-Picayune (Jimmy Smith) reports (via blog): The decision by the Hornets to part ways with lead assistant coach Kenny Gattison was anything but mutual, Gattison said Monday as he continued to search for another job. “This was not a mutual parting,” Gattison said via telephone. “In this economy, who would mutually agree to give up their job? Even though technically I only had a little over a month to go on my contract with the Hornets, given my years of service and contributions to the organization, I think some consideration should have been made toward my coaching career and my family. “If it’s something that they felt it was best to change, we played our last game over a month ago. The timing of it puts me in a very bad spot as far as going out and seeking employment.” The Hornets announced last Friday that the team and Gattison came to a collective understanding about Gattison’s departure so that he could seek other opportunities. Gattison said at a meeting last week he was told his services were no longer needed, and he has found many vacancies that were once open — on multiple basketball levels — have been filled.

Fabricio Oberto has heart-related surgery

Fabricio Oberto has heart-related surgery

San Antonio Spurs forward/center Fabricio Oberto underwent a successful Ablation procedure on 6/4.  The procedure was done to correct the electrical system of the heart that was sending Oberto into Atrial Fibrillation.  Oberto’s procedure was performed in Austin by Dr. Andrea Natale.

One week following his procedure Oberto will start a gradual, conservative cardiovascular exercise program.  After four weeks and with his doctor’s approval, he may begin strenuous exercise.