Month: February 2013

Sebastian Telfair is content to get out of Phoenix, come to Raptors

sebastian telfair

Dating all the way back to the franchise’s expansion draft, when B.J. Armstrong said he would prefer not to play in Toronto, there has always been a concern with the Raptors that players did not want to play for them.

Well, Sebastian Telfair, acquired before Thursday’s trade deadline, is happy to be a Raptor. He has already seen dysfunction this season.

“This is my ninth year in the league so I definitely don’t want to go through anything like we were going through in Phoenix,” Telfair, who will suit up for his first game as a Raptor on Monday against Washington, said. “You’ve got a goal to win and if you’re not winning you at least want to be out there competing at the highest level. We weren’t doing that over there in Phoenix this year. I’m happy to be a part of a team that got a goal for themselves and night in and night out they’ve got something to achieve.”

Indeed, the Suns are one of the most depressing teams in the league. They are last in the Western Conference, have a roster that is low on talent and have gone through a coaching change.

— Reported by Eric Koreen of the National Post

Amare Stoudemire OK with 30 minutes per game limit

amare stoudemire

With Amar’e Stoudemire continuing to play well since his Jan. 1 return from knee surgery, the question has intensified: Why are his minutes still maxed out at 30?

That was the feeling after Tuesday’s practice as Stoudemire was coming off his best performance of the season — a season-high 22 points on 9-for-10 shooting in the Knicks’ win over the 76ers on Sunday night.

But Mike Woodson remained adamant that 30 is the time limit — a decision he said has been made by the team’s medical staff — and that is fine by Stoudemire.

“I have no problem with that,” the power forward said. “You can be very productive in 30 minutes and so that’s my motto right now — to really come out and be aggressive and efficient in 30 minutes. I think it’s more so just about playing smart basketball offensively.”

Woodson said the playing-time restriction will only benefit Stoudemire down the road.

— Reported by Jared Zwerling of ESPN New York

Pau Gasol no longer using crutches

pau gasol

In a sign that the torn plantar fascia in his right foot has somewhat healed, Lakers forward Pau Gasol revealed in a tweet Tuesday that he’s no longer nursing crutches.

Gasol injured his foot in the Lakers’ win Feb. 8 over the Brooklyn Nets and was declared out for a minimum of six to eight weeks. Lakers coach Mike D’Antoni suggested that it’s possible Gasol won’t return until the Lakers will know their playoff aspirations.

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

Paul Pierce lifts Celtics over Jazz in OT

Paul Pierce scored 26 points, including seven straight in overtime, and the Boston Celtics beat the Utah Jazz 110-107 on Monday night to close out a five-game road trip.

Pierce had a chance to win it in regulation, but his 19-footer at the buzzer rimmed out.

Alec Burks’ reverse layup pulled Utah to 108-105 with 37 seconds left in overtime. Kevin Garnett’s banked 3-pointer with 13 seconds left came after the shot clock expired, giving the Jazz another chance.

Paul Millsap was fouled before he could get off a 3, but made two free throws with 4.2 seconds remaining.

Courtney Lee added two free throws at the other end with 1.2 seconds left to bump Boston’s lead back to three, and Randy Foye’s 26-footer at the buzzer missed everything.

Avery Bradley added a season-high 18 points for Boston.

Gordon Hayward led Utah with 26 points, Millsap had 16 and Al Jefferson finished with 15 points and 11 rebounds.

The Celtics (30-27) were playing their fifth game in seven days, but didn’t seem to care down the stretch.

— Reported by Lynn DeBruin of the Associated Press

Wilson Chandler steps up, helps Nuggets beat Lakers

Wilson Chandler scored 23 points in place of an injured Danilo Gallinari, and Ty Lawson added 22 in the Denver Nuggets’ 119-108 victory over the Los Angeles Lakers on Monday night.

Gallinari, the Nuggets’ leading scorer, sat out with a bruised left thigh. He wasn’t needed as the Nuggets won their ninth straight game at home, snapped the Lakers’ four-game winning streak and took the season series from their long-time nemesis 3-1.

The Lakers, who were shut out on the offensive glass in the first half, wanted to slow down the Nuggets but Denver outscored Los Angeles 33-3 in fast-break points.

Gallinari, who got hurt Friday night at Washington and was limited the next night at Charlotte, was an unexpected late scratch. Averaging 16.9 points, he had scored at least 19 in each of Denver’s first three games against the Lakers.

Chandler started in his place and Corey Brewer got extended minutes, too, finishing with 16 points.

Kobe Bryant led the Lakers with 29 points, and Dwight Howard added 15 points and 14 boards but missed 11 of his last 12 free throws.

— Reported by Arnie Stapleton of the Associated Press

Al Horford gets 23 points, 22 rebounds in Hawks win over Pistons

Al Horford had 23 points and 22 rebounds, and the Atlanta Hawks beat the Detroit Pistons 114-103 on Monday night for their fifth win in six games.

Josh Smith added 23 points for the Hawks, who were ahead 61-51 at halftime and led by as many as 26 in the third quarter.

The Pistons have lost three straight, all without guard Brandon Knight, who has a hyperextended right knee. Will Bynum was also out Monday because of a suspension.

Jeff Teague had 20 points for Atlanta, which shot 14 of 33 from 3-point range. Kyle Korver scored 15 points, all from beyond the arc.

Rodney Stuckey led Detroit with 22 points, and Jonas Jerebko added 21.

Horford equaled his career high in rebounds.

— Reported by Noah Trister of the Associated Press

Wizards beat Raptors 90-84 for 3rd straight win

Bradley Beal scored 20 points, Nene had 11 points and nine rebounds, and the Washington Wizards beat the Toronto Raptors 90-84 on Monday night for their third straight victory.

A.J. Price and Martell Webster each added 12 points for the Wizards, who won for just the fifth time in 27 road games this season. Washington’s road record is the worst in the NBA.

John Wall had 10 points and seven assists, and Emeka Okafor had eight points and 13 rebounds as the Wizards won for the 14th time in 23 games.

The third overall pick in last June’s draft, and the Eastern Conference rookie of the month in December and January, Beal has scored 20 points or more in four of the past six.

DeMar DeRozan scored 25 points and Kyle Lowry had 18 for the Raptors, who had won six of their previous seven.

It was a rough night for Toronto’s Rudy Gay who missed his first six field goal attempts before scoring on a driving dunk one minute into the fourth quarter. Gay shot 1 for 11 and finished with seven points, one more than his season low, set Dec 22 at Houston when he played for Memphis.

— Reported by Ian Harrison of the Associated Press

Gallinari out vs Lakers with thigh bruise

The Denver Nuggets will be without leading scorer Danilo Gallinari against the Los Angeles Lakers on Monday night as the forward sits out with a bruised left thigh.

Gallinari only played sparingly in a win over Charlotte on Saturday. He’s averaging 16.9 points this season.

Nuggets coach George Karl was fully expecting Gallinari to be in the starting lineup, saying before the game, ”I think he’s good. I didn’t even check today. He told me this morning it was fine.”

— Reported by the Associated Press

No Melo suspension for Sunday incident

New York Knicks forward Carmelo Anthony will not be suspended for his brief altercation with Philadelphia 76ers center Spencer Hawes on Sunday night, ESPNNewYork.com reported.

Anthony hit Hawes in the back of the head while the two were battling for position for a rebound.

Hawes angrily confronted Anthony after being hit, but Hawes was pushed away by Knicks center Tyson Chandler.

— Reported by the Sports Xchange