February 15, 2014 – NBA Blog – NBA Basketball Blog

All-Star Dirk Nowitzki plans to take it easy this weekend

Here’s the Dallas Morning News blog reporting on veteran Mavs star Dirk Nowitzki, who would be perfectly happy spending most of Sunday’s All-Star game on the bench watching the action:

The Mavericks played 54 games before the All-Star break, and Nowitzki played in all but two of them. Like most of his teammates, he was rolling in the weeks leading up to the NBA’s annual intermission.

Unlike most of his teammates, he doesn’t get to kick back on a beach or at the house to chill out for a few days. But he still doesn’t plan on putting in much of a workload in New Orleans. With his sprained left ankle still healing, plus a playoff race ahead of him, he values all the rest he can get.

“A couple minutes,” was all Nowitzki said when asked what he expects to do in Sunday’s All-Star Game. “I got a couple days now, and I probably won’t do much, including the game.”

President Obama is a big Stephen Curry fan

Lots of basketball fans appreciate the shooting ability of Stephen Curry. Count President Obama in that group. Here’s the Bay Area News Group reporting:

All-Star Stephen Curry has a fan in President Barack Obama, who offered high praise to the Warriors guard for his shooting ability.

“I gotta tell you, Curry is the best shooter I have ever seen,” Obama told TNT’s Charles Barkley in a portion of a taped interview released Friday. “I believe that.

“In terms of being able to, you know, off the dribble get his shot off from anywhere that fast, best I’ve ever seen.”

No clues to the future of Kevin Love

Here’s the New York Post reporting on Timberwolves star Kevin Love, who for now is… on the Timberwolves.

Love’s name has made the speculation rounds, and with his ability to join the free-agent ranks in 2015, that is not changing. He would be a hit, with his talent, personality and flair. When asked about his future and if he ever gives a thought to New York, he replied with a straight-faced deadpan.

“New York? Right now, I’m thinking about Derek Jeter’s decision. How about that?” Love said.

His standard line is “I want to win” and he’ll think about what he wants to do in 2015 in, well, 2015. He is sharp enough to realize it is a no-win situation.

“If I say that I like Charlotte or ‘Charlotte is a great city, I love spending time there,’ then all of a sudden I’m going to Charlotte,” Love said. “Anything I say is going to be a misconception or be some sort of a headline. It’s silly.”