March 2016 – Page 5 – NBA Blog

Lots of NBA triple-doubles this season

Triple-doubles are piling up around the NBA. Through games of Sunday, March 20, the league has produced 59 triple-doubles this season with more than three weeks still to play. That number is a single-season record for a 30-team league, as well as being the fifth most all time and only six behind the second most. The NBA record is 78 triple-doubles in the 1988-89 season, followed by 65 in 1961-62 (when Oscar Robertson recorded 41 and averaged a triple-double). This season’s barrage is led by Thunder guard Russell Westbrook, who on Saturday became the first player to post 11 triple-doubles in a 30-game span in one season since Michael Jordan in 1989; Oklahoma City is 14-0 when he puts up a triple-double this season. Also Saturday, Grizzlies forward Zach Randolph registered his first triple-double in his 974th game, an NBA record for most games before a triple-double.

— NBA Broadcasters Bulletin

Justise Winslow aiming for better 3-point shot

This can’t wait for the summer. Miami Heat forward Justise Winslow is adamantly working on his jumpshot with the hope of fine-tuning his form by the end of the season.

He’s had a tough rookie season shooting-wise after hitting 48.6 percent (including 41.8 percent on 3-pointers) in his one year at Duke. He is shooting 43 percent for the Heat, which isn’t terrible, but has made just 25.5 percent of his 3s.

“Whatever I need to change, I’m trying to do it right now,” Winslow said after staying late to take jumpers after practice today. “For me it’s just about trying to shoot every shot the same and shoot it with confidence.

— Palm Beach Post Blog

Pistons guard Jodie Meeks remains out

He was supposed to have returned by now.

Instead, guard Jodie Meeks remains sidelined and could stay that way as the Detroit Pistons bid for their first playoff berth since 2009.

Acknowledging but choosing not to elaborate, Pistons coach Stan Van Gundy said Monday he doesn’t expect Meeks back in game-ready shape before the end of the season.

“No, I don’t,” Van Gundy said. “Unfortunately.”

— Michigan Live

Grizzlies sign Jordan Farmar to 10-day contract

For the next 10 days, veteran guard Jordan Farmar is back in the NBA.

The badly-injured Memphis Grizzlies today announced that the team has signed Farmar (pronounciation: FAHR-mahr) to a 10-day contract.

The 6-2, 180-pound guard has played in 490 games (30 starts) across eight NBA seasons and averaged 7.7 points, 1.9 rebounds and 2.9 assists in 19.4 minutes for the Los Angeles Lakers, New Jersey Nets and Los Angeles Clippers. He holds career shooting percentages of 42.3 percent from the field, 37.4 percent from three-point range and 73.4 percent from the free throw line.

Originally from Los Angeles, Farmar was selected by the Lakers in the first round (26th overall) of the 2006 NBA Draft following a solid collegiate career at UCLA.

Farmar returned to Israel’s Maccabi Tel Aviv for the first part of the 2015-16 season after playing with the club during the 2011-12 season. He also has played overseas in Turkey for Anadolu Efes (2012-13) and Darussafaka Dogus (2014-15).

Kings co-owner lists house for $35 million

Like you, I don’t have $35 million sitting around. Well, some of it is sitting around. The rest is invested in bonds, cupcakes, basketball cards, etc. You know how it is. Anyway, here’s the Sacramento Bee reporting:

Mark Mastrov, a Sacramento Kings co-owner and founder of 24-Hour Fitness, is selling his waterfront Lake Tahoe home for $35 million.

The 13,686-square-foot, secluded home has five beds, six baths and enough amenities to keep an owner fit. There are two gyms, a three-hole golf course with practice green and room to build a basketball court – whether you’re an NBA team owner or not. The house sits on 13.6 acres with a swimming pool and spa, boathouse, pier, sand beach, waterfalls, trout ponds, guest house and caretaker’s home.

Stephen Curry jokes about awful game vs Spurs

Stephen Curry jokes about awful game against Spurs

Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry had his worst performance of the NBA regular season Saturday in San Antonio, but he didn’t let that dampen his spirits after the game.

Not long after the Warriors’ 87-79 loss to the Spurs, the reigning NBA MVP poked fun at himself on Twitter.

“I don’t know about y’all, but I thought I played my best game of the year,” Curry joked. “Live and Learn. On to the next!”

Curry struggled mightily against the Spurs’ league-best defense and shot just 4-from-18 from the field, including a career-worst 1-for-12 from 3-point range.

— CSN Bay Area

Draymond Green wants Warriors to beat Bulls all-time season record

Golden State Warriors power forward Draymond Green stood outside the losing locker room late Saturday night in San Antonio, trying to figure out exactly what his team has to accomplish in their final 13 NBA regular-season games to break the all-time single-season wins record.

When someone suggested that the Warriors need to close the season 10-3 to match the 1995-96 Chicago Bulls, who won 72 games, Green quickly issued a correction.

“No, we need 11 wins, because we want to break that thing,” Green said. “Hey, we’ve won 11 games in a row this season. There’s nothing we can’t do. It’s possible. We’re going after it, so it’s possible. …

“I’m not going to shy away from saying we want the record. We want the record, and we’re going after it.”

— San Francisco Chronicle

Guy buys fake NCAA tournament tickets from Craigslist

Buying online tickets is generally safer these days thanks to many services that use technology to make the transfer of ticket ownership a near certainty. But then stuff like this still happens. Here’s the NY Daily News reporting:

An NCAA racket brought nothing but March sadness to one man who bought $500 in fake tickets off of Craigslist, police said on Sunday.

The 20-year-old man purchased the fraudulent tickets off of someone he met through the online classifieds site on Thursday, police said.

Once at the Barclays Center, just steps from the national college basketball tournament, he was informed the tickets were fakes.

Spurs beat Warriors, still undefeated at home

LaMarcus Aldridge had 26 points and 13 rebounds, and the San Antonio Spurs beat the Golden State Warriors 87-79 on Saturday night to remain perfect at the AT&T Center this season and extend their home dominance over the defending champions to 33 straight regular-season games.

Kawhi Leonard added 18 points and 14 rebounds for San Antonio, which has won 44 straight at home in the regular season, tied for the second-longest streak in NBA history.

The Spurs held Warriors superstar Stephen Curry to 14 points while limiting him to 1-for-12 shooting on 3-pointers.

— AP

Matt Barnes suspended, several players fined for Grizzlies-Bucks incident

Memphis Grizzlies forward Matt Barnes has been suspended one game without pay for attempting to enter the Milwaukee Bucks’ locker room and verbally challenging Milwaukee forward John Henson following both players’ ejections on Thursday, March 17, it was announced today by Kiki VanDeWeghe, Executive Vice President, Basketball Operations.

In addition, Milwaukee guard Greivis Vasquez has been fined $15,000 for following Henson to the locker room, while Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo and center Greg Monroe have each been fined $10,000 for their roles in the incident.

The incident began when Henson blocked Barnes’ shot with 5.5 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter of the Bucks’ 96-86 win over the Grizzlies at BMO Harris Bradley Center. Following the play, Henson taunted Barnes and was subsequently assessed two technical fouls and ejected. Barnes was then charged with a technical foul and ejected for continuing use of obscenities.

Barnes will serve his suspension tonight when Memphis hosts the Los Angeles Clippers at FedExForum.