December 2012 – Page 30 – NBA Blog

Raymond Felton has MRI on hand

New York Knicks point guard Raymond Felton underwent an MRI to determine the extent of a left hand injury he suffered late in the Knicks’ 106-99 win over the Phoenix Suns on Sunday.

“It’s swollen right now,” Felton said. “It’s a lot of pain, but we’ll see what happens.”

Felton said, if it were up to him, he’d play in the Knicks’ next game on Wednesday against the Charlotte Bobcats.

If Felton is forced to sit, the Knicks could have just one healthy point guard available against Charlotte.

— Reported by Ian Begley of ESPN New York

Jason Smith says Hornets go 1-on-1 too often

When New Orleans Hornets veteran forward Jason Smith was asked after Sunday’s practice to assess his team’s problems, he had plenty to say. He said they are not moving the ball enough offensively and too many players are putting themselves in one-on-one isolation plays instead of involving their teammates.

Although the Hornets are still without their two best players, Anthony Davis and Eric Gordon, because of injuries, they have not been able avoid low-scoring quarters or get enough significant contributions from key players.

“You can say it’s not a big problem and some people shrug it off, but it’s a problem,’’ Smith said. “We’re going a little bit one-one-one too much, not moving the ball. We get a stop or a rebound and we don’t pass the ball and we get up a shot. I think we’re letting defenses off the hook when we just go down make one pass and shoot.’’

— Reported by John Reid of the New Orleans Times-Picayune

Ricky Rubio says he feels good after first practice with Timberwolves

Ricky Rubio practiced with the Minnesota Timberwolves on Sunday, Dec. 2, for the first time this season. He says his surgically repaired left knee feels good, and he’s anxious to see how his body responds on Monday.

There is still no timetable for his first game. Rubio says he wants to be sure his knee is 100 percent before he comes back. Rubio tore the anterior cruciate ligament and lateral collateral ligament in his knee last March.

— Reported by Jon Krawczynski of the Associated Press

Knicks beat Suns, stay perfect at home

Rasheed Wallace delivered a hard whack to Luis Scola, then some hard words to the referees.

These New York Knicks won’t let anybody have it easy at Madison Square Garden, not even the officials.

Carmelo Anthony scored 34 points and the Knicks ran their best home start in 20 years to 7-0, withstanding Wallace’s ejection after a mere 1:25 of playing time to beat the Phoenix Suns 106-99 on Sunday.

Phoenix had won its last two at MSG but the Knicks have finally figured out under coach Mike Woodson that home-court games are not to be wasted. They are 18-1 in the regular season here since he took over last March, jumping on their last few opponents from the start…

Raymond Felton had 23 points, seven assists and no turnovers for the Knicks, who last won seven straight at Madison Square Garden to open a season when they started 9-0 in 1992-93. The point guard was hurting after the game, saying he was going to get an MRI on his swollen left hand…

[Tyson] Chandler finished with 15 points and 13 rebounds as the Knicks improved to 12-4 overall, a half-game behind Miami for the best record in the Eastern Conference. They got off to a good start in December after winning 11 in November for the first time since a 12-victory November in 1972 on the way to their last NBA championship…

Marcin Gortat had 18 points and 10 rebounds for the Suns, who dropped their third straight and fell to 1-4 on their season-high, six-game road trip that ends Tuesday in Memphis. Shannon Brown scored 17 points.

— Reported by Brian Mahoney of the Associated Press

Elton Brand thinks he can do more for Mavs

Brand has had his struggles this season, but he doesn’t think the 17 points, 12 rebounds and four blocks he had in Saturday’s win over the Pistons should be considered a surprise. Those all at least match season highs, but Brand expects many more nights like this in a Mavs uniform.

“Nah, that’s not vintage,” said Brand, who was averaging 6.2 points and 6.0 rebounds entering the game. “Not even close. That’s what I can do. That’s where I’m at right now.

“With the opportunity and the looks, I’m still right there. I can do that every night – most nights – with those opportunities.”

By opportunities, Brand means shots and minutes. They were both tough to come by for Brand in the first month of the season.

— Reported by Tim MacMahon of ESPN Dallas

Marcus Camby out with sore left foot

Marcus Camby was ruled out of Sunday’s game against the Phoenix Suns shortly before tipoff due to a sore left foot.

Camby participated in a walk-through with the Knicks on Saturday, so it is unclear when the injury flared up. Mike Woodson said 90 minutes before tipoff he expected to have all of his players except Jason Kidd (lower back spasms) available.

Camby, 38, missed the entire preseason due to a calf injury and entered the season out of game shape. The veteran big man has played in just six of the Knicks’ 15 games. He has received DNP’s in the past two.

— Reported by Ian Begley of ESPN New York

Denver Nuggets recall rookie Quincy Miller from D-League

The Denver Nuggets have recalled rookie forward Quincy Miller from the Iowa Energy of the NBA Development League, Executive Vice President of Basketball Operations Masai Ujiri announced today.

Miller, 6-9, 210, joined the Energy on Nov. 13. He started two of three games and averaged 14.0 points, 10.7 rebounds and 2.3 assists in 29.0 minutes.

Selected by the Nuggets with the 38th overall pick of the 2012 NBA Draft, Miller joined the Nuggets after being named the 2011-12 Big 12 Co-Freshman of the Year in his only season at Baylor University.

He averaged 6.8 points and 5.2 rebounds for Denver at the 2012 NBA Summer League but has not appeared in an NBA game.

Spurs assign Nando De Colo to D-League

The San Antonio Spurs today announced that they have assigned guard Nando De Colo to the Austin Toros of the NBA Development League.

De Colo has appeared in 13 games this season for San Antonio, averaging 2.5 points, 1.4 assists and 1.2 rebounds in 10.4 minutes.

The French native is currently in his first season playing for the Silver and Black. He was selected by the Spurs with the 53rd pick in the second round of the 2009 NBA Draft and spent the past three seasons playing for Valencia of the Spanish ACB League.

Warriors assign Jeremy Tyler to D-League

The Golden State Warriors have assigned forward/center Jeremy Tyler to the Santa Cruz Warriors of the NBA Development League, the team announced today.

He is slated to join Golden State’s D-League affiliate in time for the team’s game this afternoon at Reno.

Tyler, 21, has appeared in five games with Golden State this season, averaging 1.6 points in 2.0 minutes per contest.

Celtics re-assign Kris Joseph to D-League

The Boston Celtics announced today that they have assigned forward Kris Joseph to their NBA Development League affiliate, the Maine Red Claws.

Joseph, a 6’7” forward, appeared in one game for the Celtics during his recall from the Red Claws against the Portland Trail Blazers on November 30 and recorded two points in 4:55 of action. He returns to the Red Claws where he appeared in two games earlier this season and averaged 25.5 points, 7.5 rebounds, 3.5 assists, 2.0 steals and 1.0 block per game.