April 2011 – Page 17 – NBA Blog

Dwight Howard would love to host Saturday Night Live

Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel reports:

Dwight Howard wants to host Saturday Night Live

Dwight Howard would love to host an episode of “Saturday Night Live” one day.

But there have been plenty impediments.

Of course, the biggest hurdle is that SNL’s producers usually prefer to book Hollywood stars and famous musicians as hosts.

Another obstacle is that Howard’s playing schedule is too rigid and “SNL” needs its hosts in place for almost an entire week.

But a lockout would free up Howard’s schedule and make an “SNL” gig a remote possibility, an upgrade from no possibility at all.

Howard’s successful recent guest spots on “The Tonight Show with Jay Leno” and “Late Night with Jimmy Fallon” may have enhanced his chances.

Sixers sign Antonio Daniels

The Philadelphia 76ers announced today that they have signed guard Antonio Daniels of the NBA Development League’s Texas Legends. Daniels is the 21st Call-Up of the 2010-11 D-League season.

Daniels (6-4, 205), has played 12 NBA seasons for Vancouver, San Antonio, Portland, Seattle, Washington and New Orleans. His last NBA season was with the Hornets in 2008-09.

In 868 career games played with 220 starts, Daniels is averaging 7.6 points, 3.4 assists and 1.9 rebounds in 22.6 minutes per game while shooting 44.4% from the floor, 31.2% from 3-point range and 79.3% from the line. He also owns a career assist-to-turnover ratio of 3.16.

Daniels has appeared in 80 career playoff games and won a championship with the Spurs in 1999.

In 38 games played with 37 starts in the D-League this season, the 36-year-old Daniels averaged 14.5 points, 8.6 assists, 4.8 rebounds and 1.45 steals in 38.3 minutes per game while shooting 44.8% from the floor, 42.5% from 3-point range and 86.8% from the line. He ranked second in the D-League in assists.

Daniels, who was originally the fourth overall pick by the Grizzlies in the 1997 NBA Draft, will wear No. 22 for the Sixers.

Read fan reaction and discuss your own opinion in this forum topic.

Shane Battier still adjusting to Grizzlies

Ronald Tillery of the Memphis Commercial Appeal reports:

The most challenging aspect of Battier’s reunion with the Grizzlies has come on the offensive end of the court, where his productivity is noticeably less than what he provided to the Houston Rockets.

In the 18 games since Battier joined the Griz at the February trade deadline, his scoring average, shooting percentages and shot attempts have dramatically decreased from his days in Houston.

He’s also playing nearly seven fewer minutes on average. But Battier prides himself on efficiency, which he hopes to improve before the end of the regular season.

“I haven’t shot the ball the way I’ve wanted to,” Battier said Monday as the Griz prepared to host the Los Angeles Clippers tonight in FedExForum. “I have to make shots. It’s on me. I’m still trying to understand how to fit in the system.

“A lot of the teams I’ve played on have been inside-out. But we haven’t found ways to play inside-out. In the playoffs, we’re going to have to. In the playoffs, people take away the paint. We’re going to have to hit some jump shots.”

Mike Miller hopes to be more helpful to Heat

Joseph Goodman of the Miami Herald reports:

Heat forward Mike Miller admits he feels a little guilty.

He was supposed to be in the running for the Sixth Man of the Year Award. Instead, the likable shooter could be considered one of the NBA’s biggest individual disappointments of the regular season. The significance of that statement is not lost on Miller, who has struggled this season due to injury.

“You do feel guilty at times because you want to be able to do more and help but I have to make sure I’m healthy for the stretch we have left,” Miller said.

At this point, that’s the most important thing — that Miller is as healthy as possible for the Heat’s playoff run. He has played in only 36 games this season because of injuries, including torn ligaments in his thumb, a nasty series of blows to the head and, most recently, a bruised right knee.

Lou Williams out indefinitely with strained right hamstring

Philadelphia 76ers guard Lou Williams underwent an MRI this afternoon which was read by Dr. Jack McPhilemy of Main Line Health Services. The MRI revealed Williams has a strained right hamstring and he will be out for the foreseeable future.

His injury will be re-evaluated on a regular basis in order to monitor his progress and determine his return date.

The Sixers next on-court activity will be at PCOM on Monday, April 4 starting at 11:00 a.m., with media availability following.

J.J. Redick has no return date set for return from ab muscle strain

Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel reports (via blog):

J.J. Redick said he expects to play for the Orlando Magic in the playoffs, but the injured guard still doesn’t know when he’ll return to the court from a strained muscle in his lower abdomen.

Redick has rejoined the team after spending several days rehabbing the muscle in Vancouver, B.C., performing strengthening exercises that he hopes will protect the area from future injuries and help get the injured muscle firing correctly.

“The muscle still has to heal and it hasn’t healed,” Redick said Sunday afternoon. “Until that happens, I’m putting that area in a compromising position.”

Shaq returns for Celtics, then quickly strains right calf

Gary Washburn of the Boston Globe reports (via blog):

Just minutes after Shaquille O’Neal wowed the crowd with 6 points in his first game in two months, he was limping back to the locker room with 11:11 left in the second quarter of the Celtics’ game against the Detroit Pistons. The team said it is officially a strained right calf and he is uncertain to return.

Playing for the first time since Feb. 1, O’Neal was in for his second stint of the game when he suddenly began limping, heavily favoring the right leg.

Hot Nuggets deal Lakers a rare loss

The AP reports:

Danilo Gallinari scored 22 points, Kenyon Martin scored six of his 18 in the final 3:24, and the Denver Nuggets hung on for their sixth straight win, 95-90 over the Los Angeles Lakers on Sunday.

Kobe Bryant scored 28 points for the Lakers, who snapped a nine-game winning streak to fall 2 1/2 games behind San Antonio in the Western Conference. The NBA-leading Spurs beat Phoenix 114-97 earlier Sunday to end a six-game slide.

Los Angeles has six games left to try and overtake the Spurs and earn homecourt advantage throughout the playoffs. The Lakers face the Spurs for the fourth and final time this season on April 12 in their next-to-last regular-season game…

Pau Gasol had 16 points and 12 rebounds for the Lakers, and reserve Lamar Odom chipped in with 17 points and seven boards. Andrew Bynum had 16 rebounds and reserve forward Matt Barnes returned from a one-game suspension with five points in 18 minutes…

Nuggets sixth man J.R. Smith picked up three fouls in less than 5 minutes after reporting into the game. He played 16 minutes and finished with only four points.

InsideHoops.com editor says: The Nuggets are a more balanced team since the Melo trade. And they’re a good team to watch. I’m not sure how high their playoff potential is, but Denver is a team to watch next season.

Landry Fields in a slump

Chris Sheridan of ESPN reports:

Going into tonight’s game against the Cleveland Cavaliers, it has been six straight games since Landry Fields had more than three buckets in a single game.

You have to go back to two Sundays ago, on the afternoon the Knicks scored 9 points in the first quarter and lost in Milwaukee, to find a game in which Fields was productive (13 points on 5-for-11 shooting) on the offensive end of the floor.

Getting production out of Fields was not a problem before the big trade, but he has struggled to fit into a rhythm with the new players in the Knicks’ rotation, and he has steadily been losing minutes to Anthony Carter, Roger Mason, Bill Walker and Toney Douglas at the 2-guard spot.

Heat work Eddy Curry out

Mitch Abramson of the New York Daily News reports:

Could Eddy Curry be joining the big three in Miami?

The former Knick, who came to epitomize the team’s failings under Isiah Thomas, worked out for the Miami Heat in recent days in a move that could foreshadow his signing with the team for the playoffs.

“Pat (Riley) worked him and about a half-dozen guys out as part of a big picture look,” a team spokesman said Saturday without elaborating. “Anything else is pure speculation.”

According to a Yahoo! Sports report, Riley put Curry through his paces in Chicago and scheduled the 7-footer to visit Miami early next week for another workout and a physical.