February 2013 – Page 22 – NBA Blog

Derrick Rose return date for Bulls remains unclear

The idea of Derrick Rose coming back to lead the Bulls to glory this season is sounding more and more like a figment of somebody’s imagination. Certainly not his imagination.

Judging by what Rose recently told USA Today, a return to action isn’t close to a given. That’s interesting, considering Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau has repeated, ad nauseam, that Rose is “on schedule,’’ whatever that means.

Does the following sound like someone who has any idea where he’s going to be on May 1, let alone March 1?

“I’m not coming back until I’m 110 percent,’’ he said. “Who knows when that can be? It can be within a couple of weeks. It could be next year. It could be any day. It could be anytime. It’s just that I’m not coming back until I’m ready.”

Thank goodness he didn’t say 120 percent. Rose said his readiness is “probably in the high 80s. Far away. Far away.”

— Reported by Rick Morrissey of the Chicago Sun-Times

Lakers may not shake things up in trade department

The Lakers are scrambling just to scrape into the playoffs, but coach Mike D’Antoni sounds skeptical that any move before the Feb. 21 trade deadline would do anything beneficial to the team’s fortunes.

“It would add somebody who doesn’t know what they’re doing and it could take a while,” D’Antoni said. “You’re playing games you have to win and we might not even play them. That’s a hard thing. As an organization, I’m sure we’ll keep looking and talking and if something makes sense, we’ll do it.”

But Lakers fans shouldn’t get their hopes up after D’Antoni spoke with Lakers general manager Mitch Kupchak last weekend in Miami.

“We are who we are,” D’Antoni said. “It’s good. We have that mindset. But I’m sure he’s always looking, thinking and talking to everybody.”

— Reported by Mark Medina of the Los Angeles Daily News (Blog)

Celtics guard Leandro Barbosa out for season with torn ACL

The Boston Celtics announced today that guard Leandro Barbosa underwent an MRI this morning at New England Baptist Hospital after his left knee injury last night against the Charlotte Bobcats. The MRI revealed that Barbosa suffered a torn ACL in his left knee. No surgery date has been scheduled and he will be out for the remainder of the season.

Barbosa has appeared in 41 games for the Celtics this season and has averaged 5.2 points, 1.1 rebound, 1.4 assists in 12.5 minutes per game. He has shot 38.3% from three-point range which leads the Celtics. Barbosa posted a season-high of 17 points against Brooklyn on November 15 and has recorded 10 or more points in seven games this season.

According to the Boston Globe, “Barbosa was hurt, like Rondo, in non-contact fashion, twisting the knee awkwardly as he drove to the basket late in the third quarter of the Celtics’ 94-91 loss to the Charlotte Bobcats. Barbosa immediately passed the ball to Jeff Green and then crumbled to the floor near the photographer’s area. He was carried off the floor by head trainer Ed Lacerte and rookie center Fab Melo without placing any pressure on any leg. He was able to walk out of the arena under his own power but a post-game examination indicated that it was a ligament tear.”

Son of Larry Bird arrested at Indiana University

The son of basketball legend Larry Bird was arrested Sunday at Indiana University, said Chief Keith Cash of the Indiana University Police Department.

Connor Bird, 21, allegedly tried to hit his ex-girlfriend with a car. Bird faces multiple charges, Cash said, including battery with injury, criminal mischief, intimidation with a deadly weapon and possession of marijuana.

Trouble began, police said, after Bird and the ex-girlfriend got into a dispute Sunday at Bird’s Bloomington apartment. Bird threw a cell phone at the female, police said.

— Reported by Bill McCleery of the Indianapolis Star

Paul, Griffin help Clippers cruise past 76ers

Some of the Los Angeles Clippers’ players were practicing a variety of high-flying dunks during pregame warm-ups. The fun continued when the real game tipped off.

Chris Paul had 21 points and 11 assists, Blake Griffin scored 20 points and the Clippers dunked their way to a 107-90 victory over the Philadelphia 76ers on Monday night.

Jamal Crawford also scored 20 points and Matt Barnes had 11 for the Pacific Division-leading Clippers. Eric Bledsoe scored 10 points while DeAndre Jordan grabbed 10 rebounds.

”We were out there having fun,” said Jordan, who watched some of those highlight-reel dunks on an iPad in the locker room. ”When we’re active and moving the ball, good things happen. I think dunks and layups come when we’re doing what we’re supposed to be doing on offense.” …

Los Angeles won the finale with ease without guard Chauncey Billups and forward Caron Butler. Both players were nursing sore lower backs and were replaced in the starting lineup by Matt Barnes and Willie Green…

Nick Young led the Sixers with 29 points while Jrue Holiday, Evan Turner and Jeremy Pargo had 10 each. Spencer Hawes had 10 rebounds…

Lavoy Allen struggled against the Clippers, two nights after the best performance in his career. Allen had 14 points and a career-best 22 rebounds in an 87-76 win over Charlotte last Saturday. Against the much more athletic Clippers, Allen managed just four points and two rebounds in 28 minutes.

— Reported by the Associated Press

Nets rally late, beat Pacers 89-84 in OT

Brooklyn figured out how to win without its most versatile offensive player Monday night.

Feed Brook Lopez early and often, keep Reggie Evans active on the glass and put the ball in Joe Johnson’s hands with the game on the line.

It may need to keep that formula a while longer.

Lopez scored 25 points, Evans grabbed 22 rebounds and Johnson tied the score with a 10-foot bank shot to force overtime before closing it out with four straight free throws to give the Nets an 89-84 victory—their first in six tries at Bankers Life Fieldhouse…

Brooklyn (30-22) needed every one of those plays to turn things around.

They came into Monday night with three losses in four games, including a 111-86 shellacking at home Sunday. They had lost five straight in Indianapolis, one of the best home teams in the league this season, and had been struggling badly to score, too. Plus, they were missing guard Deron Williams who was diagnosed with synovitis, an inflammation of the ankle joint linings. He received platelet rich plasma treatment on both ankles and isn’t expected to return to the floor until after the All-Star break.

But without Williams, the Nets stayed focused.

They had only 11 turnovers, forced the normally proficient Pacers to shoot just 34.4 percent, limited All-Star forward Paul George to five points on 1-of-10 shooting, and rallied late in regulation in a game that looked all but lost. Then, in overtime, the Nets refused to let this one slip away…

David West Indiana’s other big scorer, got poked in the eye by Lopez 60 seconds into the game. When he returned to start the second half, he didn’t look like himself. He was just 2 of 11 from the field with seven points and six rebounds and missed three straight midrange shots at the end of regulation, the last a 14-footer that bounced off the front of the rim as time expired…

George Hill led the Pacers with 22 points and six assists while Lance Stephenson and Jeff Pendergraph each had 14. It was a season-high for Pendergraph, whose previous best was six.

— Reported by Michael Marot of the Associated Press

Ridnour, Timberwolves end road skid, beat Cavs

All the losses and injuries had been piling up for weeks on the Timberwolves. They were shaken, unsure, almost helpless to stop them.

They were desperate for a break. And finally, they got one.

Luke Ridnour scored 21 points, Ricky Rubio added 13 and 10 assists and Minnesota snapped an eight-game road losing streak, beating the Cleveland Cavaliers 100-92 on Monday night.

”We needed that bad, man,” Ridnour said.

He made a critical 3-pointer with 1:43 left and scored 13 points in the fourth quarter for the banged-up Timberwolves, who hadn’t won on the road since Jan. 3 – star center Kevin Love’s last game before he was lost indefinitely with a broken hand.

Nikola Pekovic added 16 points and 10 rebounds as Minnesota ended a four-game losing streak and improved to just 4-16 since losing Love…

Kyrie Irving scored 20 points and Tristan Thompson had 16 for the Cavs, who were within 82-81 in the fourth before Ridnour sparked a 10-2 run by the Timberwolves. Minnesota shot 75 percent (12 of 16) in the fourth quarter, leaving Cleveland swingman C.J. Miles to call out his teammates…

Derrick Williams had 13 points and Mickael Gelabale and Alexey Shved added 11 apiece for the Timberwolves…

Wolves G J.J. Barea played 15 minutes after missing Sunday’s game with a sprained left foot. Minnesota was also without Andrei Kirilenko (strained quad), F Chase Budinger (knee surgery), G Brandon Roy (knee) and G Malcolm Lee (knee, hip surgery).

— Reported by Tom Withers of the Associated Press

Byron Mullens, Bobcats end Celtics win streak 94-91

All in all, Monday proved to be a painful night for the Boston Celtics.

Not only did the Celtics have their seven-game losing streak snapped at the hands of the NBA’s worst team, but they might have suffered yet another costly injury in their 94-91 loss to the Charlotte Bobcats.

Backup guard Leandro Barbosa, who has seen increased playing time since the season-ending injury to Rajon Rondo, injured his left knee late in the third quarter and had to be carried to the locker room by a trainer and teammate.

Coach Doc Rivers said Barbosa will have an MRI on Tuesday.

”It doesn’t look great but we’ll see,” Rivers said…

This night belonged to Charlotte’s unheralded big man, Byron Mullens…

The 7-foot Mullens hit 10 of 16 shots from the field, including 4 of 5 from 3-point range. Ramon Sessions had 19 points for the Bobcats, including the go-ahead jumper from 18 feet with 25.7 seconds left. Kemba Walker had 18 points, six assists and six rebounds, and Gerald Henderson chipped in with 16 points…

Kevin Garnett had 16 points and 13 rebounds for the Celtics, but missed a key 18-footer that would have given Boston the lead late in the game. Paul Pierce and Avery Bradley had chances to send the game into overtime in the final seconds, but missed open 3-pointers.

Jeff Green had 18 points for the Celtics and Pierce finished with 13 points, eight assists and eight rebounds…

Bobcats center Bismack Biyombo was a force inside on the defensive end blocking four shots and grabbing seven defensive rebounds.

— Reported by Steve Reed of the Associated Press

Andrew Bynum continues to experience knee pain

Philadelphia 76ers center Andrew Bynum, who has yet to play this season because of bone bruises to both knees, might have his possible return pushed back.

However, in a bit of semantic obfuscation, he insisted it wasn’t a setback.

Before the 76ers lost 107-90 to the Los Angeles Clippers on Monday, Bynum said he experienced a lot of pain in his left knee after working out two consecutive days on the court. He said he is uncertain when he will be able to return, after saying last week that he hoped to be back by the end of the month.

— Reported by the Sports Xchange

Celtics guard Leandro Barbosa hurts knee

Already without Rajon Rondo and Jared Sullinger, the Boston Celtics suffered what could be another serious injury when guard Leandro Barbosa sustained a knee injury in Monday’s game against Charlotte.

The extent of the injury will not be known until an MRI is performed on Tuesday, but it did not look good.

Barbosa had to be helped off the floor by a teammate and a trainer.

— Reported by the Sports Xchange