January 3, 2013 – NBA Blog – NBA Basketball Blog

Rebounds a struggle for Heat, despite hot start

Most wins in the Eastern Conference, fewest rebounds in the NBA.

It might not sound like a winning formula, but it’s working for Miami.

The Heat (22-8) are on pace for the second-worst rebounding season in franchise history, better than only the 2007-08 campaign where Miami won just 15 games in what was Pat Riley’s final season on the sideline as coach. And even though it was Riley who once said ”no rebounds, no rings,” the Heat are clearly not the type of team that will dominate on the backboards.

Only reigning MVP LeBron James is currently ranked among the NBA’s top 30 rebounders in terms of average per game, and the Heat have a lineup that’s outsized in nearly every game – sometimes by a significant amount.

”Rebounding is not something that you work on,” James said. ”It’s a knack.”

Countered Heat coach Erik Spoelstra: ”It’s interesting how sometimes we have the knack.”

What they’re doing is simply defying logic on some nights. The Heat have been outrebounded by margins this season of 15, 17, 19 and 29 – and somehow, they went 4-0 in those games.

— Reported by Tim Reynolds of the Associated Press

Kobe Bryant says Jamal Crawford should be Sixth Man of Year

“He gets my nomination for sixth man of the year,” Bryant said of Crawford after Thursday’s Lakers practice.

It’s quite an endorsement, though Crawford’s numbers speak pretty well for themselves.

Crawford, who comes off the bench for the Clippers, is averaging 16.5 points in 29.1 minutes a game. He was instrumental in the Clippers’ franchise-best 17-game winning streak and has helped the team to an impressive 25-8 record.

Crawford, 32, was named sixth man of the year in 2010, but he’s never made an All-Star team.

— Reported by Melissa Rohlin of the Los Angeles Times

Phil Jackson and Jeanie Buss are finally engaged

Former LA Lakers coach Phil Jackson has finally popped the question to his longtime girlfriend Jeanie Buss — after 12 years of dating — but the real question … could this affect the Zen Master’s possible coaching gig with the Brooklyn Nets?

Our Lakers source tells us the engagement went down on Christmas day, but Jeanie — daughter of Lakers owner Jerry Buss — didn’t reveal the ring until moments ago.

— Reported by TMZ.com

Rajon Rondo opens up about Celtics losses

Rondo said the search for who they are as a team isn’t the most frustrating aspect of what’s happening this season.

“The frustrating part is we’re losing,” he said. “Regardless of how many combinations we’ve had, how many different starting lineups we’ve had, we’re still losing. I’m a sore loser. It’s tough to lose.”

Avoiding that feeling won’t get any easier with the Indiana Pacers coming to town on Friday and a road game at Atlanta the following night.

“I’m a confident player. We’re a confident team,” Rondo said. “We just haven’t found our way now.”

— Reported by A. Sherrod Blakely of CSNNE

LeBron misses practice due to bruised knee

LeBron James sat out of Thursday’s practice to receive extensive treatment for his bruised right knee but hopes to play in Friday’s game against the Chicago Bulls.

It wasn’t initially clear whether James aggravated the slight knee injury during the Heat’s 119-109 overtime victory against the Dallas Mavericks on Wednesday. But James has dealt with soreness in both knees for much of the season.

Heat coach Erik Spoelstra didn’t reveal James’ latest injury during his session with reporters immediately after Thursday’s practice at AmericanAirlines Arena. But during the final stages of practice that were open to the media, James was seen riding a stationary bike.

— Reported by Michael Wallace of ESPN.com

Cavs assign forward Jon Leuer to D-League

The Cleveland Cavaliers toady re-assigned second-year forward Jon Leuer to the Canton Charge, the Cavaliers’ NBA Development League affiliate. The assignment is the record 90th of the 2012-13 NBA and NBA D-League seasons and the second for Leuer, who is one of a record 46 NBA players to be assigned to an NBA D-League affiliate this season.

Leuer (6-10, 228, Wisconsin) returns to the Charge following a six-game assignment earlier in the season, when he averaged 20.3 points, 12.3 rebounds, 1.2 steals and 35.8 minutes. He has appeared in five games for the Cavaliers this season, averaging 3.2 points, 2.0 rebounds and 14.4 minutes. Originally selected in the second round (40th overall) of the 2011 NBA Draft by the Milwaukee Bucks, Leuer played in 46 games for Milwaukee last season. In 51 career NBA games, Leuer has averaged 4.6 points, 2.5 rebounds and 12.3 minutes.

A four-year contributor for the Badgers, Leuer averaged 11.2 points and 4.5 rebounds in 123 career NCAA games (68 starts). As a senior, Leuer led Wisconsin with 18.3 points and 7.2 rebounds per game and was a First Team All-Big Ten selection by the coaches.

Leuer is expected to join the Charge today and be available tonight when they face the Springfield Armor in Massachusetts.

Mike James to audition for Dallas Mavericks

In an attempt to convince the Dallas Mavericks that he can help them, veteran point guard Mike James is joining the D-League’s Texas Legends in time for Saturday’s game against Tulsa, according to sources with knowledge of the deal.

After playing for 10 NBA teams, most recently last season with the Chicago Bulls, James has cleared the D-League waiver process to become eligible to sign with the Legends as a free agent.

James arrived in town Thursday with no guarantees from the Mavericks, sources said, but the 37-year-old has been lobbying them to let him audition for a roster spot by playing in a few games with the Legends to prove he can help stabilize their backcourt.

— Reported by Marc Stein of ESPN.com

Pacers re-assign Miles Plumlee and Orlando Johnson to D-League

The Indiana Pacers today re-assigned Miles Plumlee and Orlando Johnson to the Fort Wayne Mad Ants, Indiana’s NBA Development League affiliate. The assignments are the record 88th and 89th of the 2012-13 NBA and NBA D-League seasons, while Plumlee and Johnson are two of the 46 players who have been assigned to the NBA D-League this season.

Plumlee (6-11, 255, Duke) re-joins the Mad Ants following four previous assignments when he played in six games and averaged 14.7 points, 11.2 rebounds and 33.0 minutes. He has appeared in six games for the Pacers this season, averaging 1.0 points, 1.3 rebounds and 3.7 minutes.

Selected 26th overall by the Pacers in the first round of the 2012 NBA Draft, Plumlee was a four-year member of the Blue Devils, where he won an NCAA Championship in 2010.

Johnson (6-5, 220, UC-Santa Barbara) has appeared in three games for Indiana this season. In his previous two assignments with Fort Wayne, Johnson averaged 22.5 points, 7.5 rebounds and 3.0 steals.

Selected in the second round (36th overall) of the 2012 NBA Draft by the Sacramento Kings, Johnson was acquired by the Pacers via trade on June 28, 2012. In just three seasons at UC-Santa Barbara, Johnson became the Gauchos all-time leading scorer (1,825 points), and is the only player in school history to have scored 500 or more points in a season three times. His 674 points as a junior and 39 points in a game vs. Cal-Davis are also school records

Plumlee and Johnson are expected to be in available tonight when the team hosts Santa Cruz Warriors.

Fab Melo suffers concussion from running into a hotel door

Fab Melo was recalled from Maine of the Development League, but it was to get treatment for a concussion he received when he ran into a hotel door. Melo missed the Red Claws’ Dec. 31 win over Springfield and is questionable for Friday’s game with Erie.

Melo said he still feels concussion symptoms and is unsure when he can return.

“I still have a little headache sometimes. I can only focus on things for a certain time,” he said.

Melo, a first-round pick from Syracuse, has been making headlines, blocking 23 shots over a two-game period, including a league-record 14 Dec. 22 against Erie. In 12 games, the 7-footer is averaging 10.9 points, 6.9 rebounds, and 3.8 blocks.

— Reported by Gary Washburn of the Boston Globe

Chris Wilcox will not need surgery

Backup center Chris Wilcox is unsure when he will return from a sprained ulnar collateral ligament in his right thumb and he will be reexamined next week. Wilcox has been wearing a brace on his hand since sustaining the injury Dec. 18 at Chicago.

He said doctors have informed him he will not need surgery.

“The doc told me I need to take some time off. I gotta let it heal; it’ll be a while,” he said. “Yesterday I got good news; they told me I didn’t have to have the surgery. Now I’m just trying to see what I’m comfortable with.”

Wilcox, who last season underwent surgery to repair an enlarged aorta, said he considers this injury a minor setback.

“It’s been tough for me,” he said. “But this is minor compared to what’s happened to me in the past. Anything other than that is nothing.”

— Reported by Gary Washburn of the Boston Globe