March 2, 2014 – NBA Blog – NBA Basketball Blog

76ers retire jersey of Allen Iverson

Allen Iverson cupped his hand to his left ear and asked to hear his favorite tune one more time.

With that command, 20,000 roaring Philadelphia 76ers fans gave AI the standing ovation he earned by stamping himself as one of the franchise’s all-time greats.

Iverson, emotional as he thanked former teammates and friends, had his No. 3 retired at halftime of Saturday’s game against Washington.

High above the Wells Fargo Center court, Iverson’s banner slipped between Maurice Cheeks’ No. 10 and Charles Barkley’s No. 34.

“They all wanted me to talk about how much y’all loved me,” Iverson said, “but trust me, the feeling was mutual.”

— ESPN.com News Services

Knicks lose sixth game in a row

Here’s New York Newsday on the Knicks, who are stumbling badly these days:

At first it looked like an omen, the way the Bulls were roaring through the Knicks in the opening minutes. Then it turned into a problem, and then a bigger problem.

Before the Knicks caught their breath or broke a sweat, the score was 16-1, and the whole thing became another bad, bad loss.

“At this point, there really are no answers to it,” Carmelo Anthony said Sunday after the Knicks failed to get out of that instant ditch and lost to the Bulls, 109-90, at United Center. “As a team, we’ve got to have some sense of pride just to go out there and compete. It seems like we’re not even competing right now.”

Just like that first stretch of 4 minutes, 11 seconds, the recent past has become very ominous for the Knicks. They have lost six in a row and 12 of 14. Worse yet, the past three have been nationally televised blowouts.

Rockets face tough upcoming schedule

Here’s the Houston Chronicle on the Rockets, who will have to be at their best these next few weeks:

The Rockets did a lot of things well in their 118-110 win over Detroit on Saturday.

They are going to have to do that and much more over the next weeks to come out on top in one of their toughest stretches of the season.

In the next two weeks, the Rockets face several of the league’s top teams. They will see Miami twice, Indiana, Portland and Oklahoma City. They also face Chicago and Orlando in that time.

“It is definitely going to be a tough couple of weeks,” guard James Harden said. “It will be a good test.”

The Rockets got off to a good start in March after going 8-2 in February.

Lakers recall Xavier Henry from D-League

The Los Angeles Lakers have recalled Xavier Henry from the Los Angeles D-Fenders of the NBA Development League, it was announced today.

Henry, a 6’6” guard out of the University of Kansas, was assigned to the D-Fenders on Feb. 27 for two games against the Texas Legends. Starting in each game, Henry scored 15 points to go with four steals on Feb. 27 and followed up with 19 points and three steals on Mar. 1.

A three-year NBA veteran, Henry is averaging a career-high 10.1 points, 2.8 rebounds and 1.2 assists in 31 games (five starts) this season with the Lakers. In addition, the Ghent, Belgium native has posted single-game career-highs in points (27), rebounds (eight), assists (four), steals (three), blocks (two), field goals (nine), three-point field goals (three), free throws (nine) and minutes (36). In 164 career NBA games (23 starts) with the Lakers, New Orleans Hornets (Pelicans) and Memphis Grizzlies, Henry is averaging 5.6 points, 1.9 rebounds and 0.6 assists.

Bulls sign Jimmer Fredette

The Chicago Bulls announced today the team has signed free agent guard Jimmer Fredette for the remainder of the season.

“We are very excited to add a player like Jimmer to our roster,” said Chicago Bulls General Manager Gar Forman. “We’ve followed him closely throughout his collegiate and professional career, and believe he’ll be the type of player that will fit in with our group and be an asset to the team.”

Fredette (6-2, 195) is currently in his third year in the NBA and spent two-plus seasons playing for the Sacramento Kings. He appeared in 41 games this year with the Kings and averaged 5.9 ppg, 1.5 apg, 1.1 rpg in 11.3 mpg, and shot .475 from the field, .493 from downtown and .895 from the free throw line. Fredette was drafted by the Milwaukee Bucks with the 10th pick in the 2011 NBA Draft (his draft rights were traded by the Bucks to the Sacramento Kings in a three-team deal with the Charlotte Bobcats).

In two-plus seasons with the Kings, Fredette played in 171 regular season games (seven starts) and averaged 7.0 ppg, 1.5 apg and 1.1 rpg in 15.0 mpg, and shot .416 from the field, .402 from behind the arc and .855 from the free throw line.

Fredette will wear No. 32 and will be available for Chicago’s game today versus New York.

Chicago’s roster now stands at 13 players.

Bobcats waive Ben Gordon

Charlotte Bobcats President of Basketball Operations Rod Higgins announced today that the team has requested waivers on guard Ben Gordon. The Bobcats roster now stands at 14 players.

“With the recent acquisition of additional backcourt depth to our roster, we believe this is in the best interests of both parties,” Higgins said. “We want to thank Ben for his contributions over the past two seasons and wish him the best as he moves on in his career.”

According to Yahoo Sports, “Gordon couldn’t reach an agreement with a playoff-bound team to get eligible for a postseason roster before Saturday’s deadline, so contenders are no longer interested in signing him. Nevertheless, there is interest among some non-playoff bound teams, sources said, and Gordon is weighing those opportunities against sitting out the rest of the season and preparing for summer free agency.”

Acquired from the Detroit Pistons along with a future first-round draft pick on June 26, 2012, in exchange for Corey Maggette, Gordon played in 94 games for the Bobcats with averages of 10.0 points, 1.7 rebounds and 1.7 assists in 19.6 minutes. Gordon saw action in 19 games this season, averaging 5.2 points, 1.4 rebounds and 1.1 assists in 14.7 minutes.

According to the Associated Press, “Gordon was making $13.2 million this season.”