November 2012 – Page 7 – NBA Blog

Hawks beat Clippers for 5th straight win

Jeff Teague only gets two chances to face Chris Paul each season, so he wants to make the most of his opportunities.

It took Teague much of the first quarter to find his momentum against Paul, a fellow Wake Forest point guard. Once he did, the Atlanta Hawks were making stops on defense and scoring in transition.

Teague had 19 points and 11 assists, Zaza Pachulia added 19 points and 12 rebounds, and the Hawks won their fifth straight game with a 104-93 victory over Los Angeles on Saturday night…

Blake Griffin scored 22 points and Paul had 19 for the Clippers.

Los Angeles has lost a season-high three consecutive games after winning six in a row.

Lou Williams finished with 18 points and Josh Smith added 17 for Atlanta…

Hawks G Devin Harris missed the game with a sore big left toe.

— Reported by George Henry of the Associated Press

Wizards fall to Bobcats in 2OT

A season ago, the Charlotte Bobcats were the losingest team in the history of the NBA. The Washington Wizards are trying to avoid that distinction.

The Bobcats beat the Wizards 108-106 in two overtimes on Saturday night, equaling their win total from last season in just their 12th game.

In the lockout-shortened 2011-12 season, Charlotte was 7-59, the lowest winning percentage in NBA history. They’re already 7-5.

Washington was hoping to win its first game, but fell to 0-11…

Byron Mullens scored 27 points, Ramon Sessions had 20 and Ben Gordon added 19 for the Bobcats…

Martel Webster had 21 points for Washington and Nene scored 19. It was just the second game for Nene after he missed the first nine with a foot injury.

— Reported by the Associated Press

Suddenly, the Kings can score

The Kings spent 10 games trying to find their offensive flow. All it took was for Tyreke Evans to find his and, suddenly, the Kings can score.

A night after blowing a 13-point lead in the fourth quarter to Utah in Salt Lake City, the Kings came back to beat the Jazz 108-97 Saturday night at Sleep Train Arena.

And it was Evans in the middle of the flow with a season-high 27 points to go with five rebounds and a team-high five assists.

“Me being aggressive, that sets the tone,” Evans said. “And when (DeMarcus Cousins) is aggressive, that sets the tone. We’ve just got to keep doing that to be in game-winning situations and win games.”

— Reported by Jason Jones of the Sacramento Bee

Coach Mike Dunlap has Charlotte Bobcats playing well

Michael Jordan’s Bobcats are the NBA’s most surprising team so far this season.

Charlotte (6-4) has won five of its past six games and is one victory away from matching last year’s win total.

The turnaround is impressive considering the Bobcats finished last season 7-59 and with the worst winning percentage (.106) in league history. They lost their final 23 games of the season.

But under the direction of defensive-oriented coach Mike Dunlap, they’ve been competitive and have developed a knack for closing games. Charlotte is 5-0 in contests decided by four points or fewer — and without much NBA experience on the roster.

— Reported by Steve Reed of the Associated Press

Raymond Felton points out he has way more experience than Jeremy Lin

Jeremy Lin’s magical, memorable run last season led to more attention and money than anyone could have imagined, and may have caused some resentment among his old

Knicks teammates. Even some who didn’t play with him have grown tired of hearing about Lin.

Raymond Felton, who replaced Lin after the Knicks opted not to match the Rockets’ three-year, $25.1-million offer, thinks it’s ridiculous to compare the two of them.

But that point-guard matchup will be front and center Friday night when the Knicks play the Rockets.

“I’ve been in this league eight years,” Felton said. “He’s been in this league half of a year, coming into a year now. I definitely can’t see how nobody can compare me

and him together. I’ve been in this league way longer, got much more of a body of work.”

— Reported by Al Iannazzone of New York Newsday

Darrell Arthur set to return for Grizzlies

Grizzlies forward Darrell Arthur is expected to make his regular-season debut Friday night but insists he was ready the first time he participated in practice.

Doctors and the head athletic trainer cleared Arthur for contact workouts last week. He stepped onto the court and soon caught a lob pass from teammate Josh Selby. When Arthur threw down the alley-oop dunk, he removed any doubts about his recovery.

“A lot of guys were telling me to take my time and don’t rush,” Arthur said. “But I went and caught a lob from Josh Selby and everybody was like (darn!). That’s the type of player I am. I’m going to make those athletic plays. That’s how I knew I was ready.”

— Reported by Ronald Tillery of the Memphis Commercial Appeal

Nic Batum playing great for Trail Blazers

In a span of 22 days, Batum already has established new career highs in scoring (35 points, twice), steals (six vs. Houston), blocks (five vs. San Antonio) and field goals made (13 vs. Houston). With averages of 20.1 points, 6.0 rebounds, 3.4 assists, 2.0 steals and 1.09 blocks per game, Batum isn’t just averaging career highs in nearly every statistical category, he’s also among the NBA leaders in multiple areas.

Batum ranks 11th in scoring, seventh in steals, third in three-pointers made (32) and fourth in minutes played (38.9 per game). All while shooting an incredible 48 percent from the field, including 40 percent from three-point range. He’s been efficient, balanced and — for the first time in his career — consistent. As Batum’s offseason crush, the Minnesota Timberwolves, prepare to visit the Rose Garden on Friday night, he’s justifying their aggressive offseason pursuit.

“He’s such a unique player that you can do a bunch of different things with him,” Blazers coach Terry Stotts said. “His ability to shoot, his quickness to the rim, his length. As a coach, you see all the possibilities and you know it can’t happen all at once, but … he’s doing a little bit of everything right now.”

— Reported by Joe Freeman of the Oregonian

NBA admits error at end of Raptors-Bobcats game

Too little, too late.

The NBA admitted on Thursday to missing a foul on the decisive play of Toronto’s loss to the Bobcats a day earlier.

“On the final possession of Charlotte’s 98-97 win over Toronto on Nov. 21, the game officials missed a foul by Charlotte’s Michael Kidd-Gilchrist against Toronto’s Andrea Bargnani on a jump shot. Bargnani should have been given two free throws and the clock stopped with approximately 2.4 seconds remaining in the game,” read the missive at NBA.com.

Credit the league for admitting the error, but it won’t do much for the Raptors.

The ninth loss of the season (against three victories) stays on the books and the disappointment remains.

— Reported by Ryan Wolstat of the Toronto Sun

Metta World Peace wanted Gerald Wallace fined for flopping

The news first made Metta World Peace excited.

The NBA fined Brooklyn Nets forward Reggie Evans $5,000 for flopping on the Lakers forward during Tuesday’s game, a new league initiative passed this season in hopes of deterring such behavior.

“Yes!” World Peace said with delight.

Then the news disappointed him.

The NBA didn’t penalize Nets forward Gerald Wallace, whom World Peace believed flopped twice in the same game.

“That’s ridiculous,” World Peace said. “That’s worse than Evans. I’d rather Gerald Wallace get fined than Evans.”

— Reported by Mark Medina of the Los Angeles Daily News
http://m.dailynews.com/ladn/db_299337/contentdetail.htm?contentguid=EqPAR048

Bobcats 1 win from matching last season’s win total

Michael Jordan’s Bobcats are the NBA’s most surprising team so far this season.

Charlotte (6-4) has won five of its past six games and is one win away from matching last year’s win total.

The turnaround is impressive considering the Bobcats finished last season 7-59 and with the worst winning percentage (.106) in league history. They lost their final 23 games of the season.

But under the direction of defensive-oriented coach Mike Dunlap, they’ve been competitive and have developed a knack for closing games. Charlotte is 5-0 in contests decided by four points or less – and without much NBA experience on the roster.

— Reported by Steve Reed of the Associated Press