Month: May 2012

Raja Bell dislikes Jazz coach Tyrone Corbin

raja bell

Calling Jazz coach Tyrone Corbin unprofessional and saying his career with the Jazz is over, Raja Bell opened up firing Tuesday during a season-ending media interview and never ran out of bullets.

The 35-year-old guard said Corbin made things personal by not allowing him to take the court during Utah’s first-round playoff defeat to San Antonio. Every active Jazz player except Bell recorded minutes. And after working back from knee and groin injuries this season only to watch his teammates be swept by the Spurs without him, Bell left no room for reconciliation. He’s done with the Jazz, and has no intention of playing another game in a Utah uniform…

Longtime Utah small forward C.J. Miles said he was proud of what his team accomplished and is open to returning next season. But the seven-year veteran joined Bell in questioning Corbin’s communication skills, pointing toward deep-rooted issues that sometimes undercut the team’s improved chemistry this year.

— Reported by Brian T. Smith of the Salt Lake Tribune

Nuggets avoid elimination, hold off Lakers in Game 5

javale mcgee

JaVale McGee went out with the attitude that Game 5 was the last game of his life. The other Denver Nuggets played their own mental games, some drawing inspiration from Lakers center Andrew Bynum’s comment about how closeout playoff games can sometimes be easy.

The Nuggets went deep into their motivational wells for an impressive win at Staples Center, and not even Kobe Bryant could prevent the Lakers from getting on a plane back to Denver.

Andre Miller scored 24 points, including two free throws with 12.8 seconds left, and Denver survived Bryant’s late scoring barrage in a 43-point performance, avoiding playoff elimination with a 102-99 victory over Los Angeles on Tuesday night and trimming the Lakers’ series lead to 3-2.

McGee had 21 points and 14 rebounds for the sixth-seeded Nuggets, who barely survived a frenetic finish. Denver had a 15-point lead midway through the fourth quarter against the lifeless Lakers, but Bryant engineered a swift comeback before his final three shots missed…

Bryant scored 12 points over the final 4:45, hitting four 3-pointers that trimmed the Nuggets’ lead to 98-96 with 59 seconds left. Bryant then missed a potential tying 5-footer and a 3-pointer, but Denver missed two of four free throws before Ramon Sessions hit a 3-pointer with 12.8 seconds left, trimming the Nuggets’ lead to one point…

Arron Afflalo scored a career playoff-high 19 points and Danilo Gallinari added 14 for the Nuggets, while rookie Kenneth Faried had 10 points and nine rebounds. Miller scored 10 points in the fourth quarter and 17 in the second half, calmly leading his young teammates to the win…

Bynum had 16 points and 11 rebounds for the Lakers, who lost a closeout playoff game at home for the first time since May 4, 2006, against Phoenix.

— Reported by the Associated Press

Deng, Boozer lead Bulls past 76ers in Game 5

luol deng

The Chicago Bulls aren’t quite finished after all. They’re still in a dire situation, though.

Luol Deng scored 24 points, Carlos Boozer added 19 points and 13 rebounds, and Chicago beat the Philadelphia 76ers 77-69 on Tuesday night to avoid a first-round playoff exit.

The top-seeded Bulls finally won without point guard Derrick Rose, building a nine-point halftime lead and staying in control down the stretch to pull within 3-2. Game 6 is Thursday in Philadelphia, and the way Chicago sees it, maybe, just maybe, some of the pressure is now on the 76ers…

Deng played more like an All-Star after averaging just eight points in the previous three games, hitting 4 of 5 3-point attempts – three in the fourth quarter. He also grabbed eight rebounds. Boozer tied a career-playoff high with six assists, and the Bulls came out on top just when their season appeared to be unraveling…

Jrue Holiday scored 16 points for Philadelphia but hit just 5 of 17 shots. Lou Williams scored 13 points and Andre Iguodala and Spencer Hawes both finished with 11 as the Sixers remained one win from their first series victory since 2003.

Hawes grabbed 14 rebounds, but it was a rough night for him after scoring 21 and 22 the previous two games. He wound up with a nasty scratch running from the side of his left eye to below the lip after going up for a shot during the fourth quarter…

Ronnie Brewer and Evan Turner appeared to exchange some heated words, but Gibson and Brand wound up getting technical fouls with 2:25 left.

— Reported by the Associated Press

Horford, Hawks stay alive, beat Celtics in Game 5

al horford

Al Horford missed most of the season.

Now that he’s back, the Atlanta Hawks center wants to keep it going as long as he can.

In his first start since January, Horford scored 19 points, hit Atlanta’s final two baskets and came up with a potentially season-saving defensive play that allowed the Hawks to hang on for a frenetic 87-86 victory over Boston in Game 5 of the Eastern Conference playoffs Tuesday night, cutting the Celtics’ lead in the series to 3-2…

In addition to pacing the Hawks in scoring, he grabbed 11 rebounds, dished out three assists, came up with three steals and blocked three shots – all while playing more than 31 minutes, far more than the Hawks intended…

Boston had a chance to end the series when Rajon Rondo stole Josh Smith’s inbounds pass with 10 seconds remaining and raced down the court, looking for the winner. But the point guard got hemmed in along the sideline when Horford jumped out to defend him, which caused Rondo to lose control and fling a desperation pass. Smith knocked it away, the ball rolling harmlessly out of bounds as the horn sounded…

Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett led the Celtics with 16 points apiece. Rondo had 13 points and 12 assists, and the last of his five steals gave Boston a chance to clinch the series early and get some much-needed rest…

Josh Smith clearly looked hobbled by a sore knee that kept him out of Game 3, but still managed 13 points and 16 rebounds. Jeff Teague had 16 points, while Johnson and Marvin Williams had 15 apiece, giving Atlanta double-figure scoring from all five starters in a revamped lineup.

— Reported by the Associated Press

Pacers beat Magic 105-87, advance to 2nd round

danny granger

After years of losing and players finding trouble, the Indiana Pacers finally gave their fans something to really cheer about. Danny Granger scored 25 points to help the Pacers defeat the Orlando Magic 105-87 on Tuesday night and clinch their first-round Eastern Conference playoff series 4-1.

”I’m just so happy for our fans,” Pacers coach Frank Vogel said. ”They’ve endured a lot those years when we struggled. To finally see us come back and have a winning team again and somebody that has a chance to do something special this year. That’s what they deserve. Pacers basketball is back.”

The Pacers will play Miami or New York in the second round. Miami leads that series 3-1, and as the final minutes ticked away, fans began chanting, ”Beat the Heat.”

”It was electric,” Granger said. ”The crowd was crazy. They had a lot of momentum going. They pushed us in that fourth quarter.”

It was a tough series for Orlando, which played all five games without All-Star center Dwight Howard because of a back injury. They took the opener, then watched Indiana put together its first series win since 2005 and its first clincher on its home court since the first round of the 2000 playoffs. No player on Indiana’s roster had won a playoff series while playing for the Pacers…

Darren Collison scored 15 of his 19 points in the fourth quarter and George Hill added 15 points for the Pacers, who trailed by two at the end of the third quarter but outscored the Magic 36-16 in the final 12 minutes…

Jameer Nelson led Orlando with 27 points and made 5 of 8 3-pointers. Glen Davis, a thorn in Indiana’s side throughout the series, scored 15 but made just 6 of 17 shots. The Magic, who made just 5 of 16 shots in the fourth quarter, didn’t want to use Howard’s absence as an excuse.

— Reported by Cliff Brunt of the Associated Press

Grizzlies hope to avoid elimination on home court

The stunned and battered Memphis Grizzlies had legitimate hopes of going farther in the NBA playoffs than a year ago when they fell to Oklahoma City in seven games in the Western Conference semifinals is a distant memory.

Now with their egos bruised they’re just focused on avoiding being eliminated in the first round by the Los Angeles Clippers.

Memphis hosts the Clippers Wednesday night still trying to figure out how to stop Chris Paul.

— Reported by the Associated Press

Steve Nash to become general manager of Team Canada

Steve Nash has made his first big basketball decision of the summer, agreeing to become general manager of the senior men’s national team for Canada Basketball.

Nash, who will be a highly coveted NBA free agent this summer, will be introduced in his new role at a news conference Tuesday in Toronto. The arrangement will be similar to the one Wayne Gretzky had with Hockey Canada in advance of the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City.

“Obviously I love the program,” Nash told ESPN.com. “It was a huge part of my development as a player. Going to the Olympics (in 2000) was the best experience of my career.

“So if I can help other Canadians experience that, it would be pretty amazing. I want to try to lend my hand to help develop our system and change the image and reputation of this country internationally and be a resource for as many of our good, young kids as possible.”

— Reported by Marc Stein of ESPN.com

Jeremy Lin will not play in Knicks-Heat series

jeremy lin

Mike Woodson cleared up all the questions and speculation about Jeremy Lin’s status Tuesday. The interim Knicks coach said Lin will not play in this series.

As the Knicks prepared for Game 5 on Wednesday night, Lin and team doctors told Woodson to go on without the point guard.

“He’s just not ready,” Woodson said. “They will let me know when he’s ready, and I’m sure he will step up to the plate and say ‘Hey, I’m ready,’ when that time comes. But right now he’s out. He’s not ready.”

The Knicks already lost Iman Shumpert and Baron Davis in this series to devastating knee injuries. Mike Bibby will start Wednesday, and J.R. Smith and Carmelo Anthony will also handle some of the point guard duties.

— Reported by Al Iannazzone of New York Newsday