Euroleague.net reports: A player who has withstood a roller-coaster career by means of his strong character, Sani Becirovic of Lottomatica Roma, has been chosen the MVP for November by Euroleague Basketball. At age 27, Becirovic has already seen the highs and lows of Euroleague competition this decade, scoring more than 20 points per game as a teenager, losing two seasons to a career-threatening injury, and returning to become a continental champ with Panathinaikos in 2007. Having arrived to the Italian capital this season with the role of veteran floor director, Becirovic filled it to perfection in November. Whether going home to Slovenia to face his old club, Union Olimpija, challenging one of the Euroleague’s historically toughest home teams, Tau Ceramica, or squaring off for first place against Fenerbahce, Becirovic was consistently the right man in the right place at the right time for Roma. He finished the month averaging 19 points, 3 rebounds and 4.6 assists in almost 27 minutes per game.
Author: Inside Hoops
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Corey Brewer out for season
The Minnesota Timberwolves today announced that forward Corey Brewer will miss the remainder of the season after suffering a torn anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) in his right knee. A magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) study done this morning revealed the extent of the injury, which occurred during Minnesota’s game vs. Denver on Saturday night. The date for surgery has yet to be determined.
“This is a tough situation for Corey and we feel for him,” said Timberwolves VP of Basketball Operations Kevin McHale. “Corey has worked extremely hard on his game. He was starting to really feel comfortable on the floor and was playing well. We’ll miss his energy, defensive mindedness and toughness moving forward.”
Brewer is still learning to play NBA basketball. Although versatile, athletic and a good defender, he’s not particularly skilled at any one thing yet. Unfortuantely, his development will have to wait.
In 20.5 minutes per game this season Brewer was shooting just 41.1% and averaging 6.2 points, 3.3 rebounds, 1.7 assists and 1.0 steals per game.
Nov 30: Lakers 112, Raptors 99
The AP reports: Pau Gasol had 24 points and nine rebounds, Kobe Bryant had 23 points and a season-high seven assists, and the Lakers beat the Toronto Raptors 112-99 on Sunday night for their seventh straight victory… Bynum scored seven of his 18 points during the pivotal rally, including an alley-oop dunk off a pass from Sasha Vujacic, and another alley-oop play in which he guided in Jordan Farmar’s lob above the rim. Bynum shot 8-for-13 and grabbed 10 rebounds despite a bone spur in his right foot, which he’s had since landing on Vince Carter’s foot during last Tuesday’s game against New Jersey… Anthony Parker led Toronto with 19 points and five teammates also scored in double figures. Jermaine O’Neal missed his third straight because of a sprained left ankle. The Lakers held leading scorer Chris Bosh to 12 points on 4-for-13 shooting.
Nov 30: Nuggets 104, Rockets 94
The AP reports: Carmelo Anthony’s right elbow was so sore, he couldn’t shoot, pass or dribble. Heck, he couldn’t even lift his toddler son, Kiyan, after the game. Good thing the Denver Nuggets have Chauncey Billups on their side now. Making up for Anthony’s absence—along with ‘Melo’s usual double-digit performance—Billups had 28 points and 10 assists to lead the Nuggets past Yao Ming and the Houston Rockets, 104-94 on Sunday night… Anthony scored just two points, halting his NBA-best streak of consecutive games in double figures at 222. That honor now goes to LeBron James, who has scored in double figures 134 straight times… Yao led Houston’s balanced production with 18 points but he was just 5-for-12 from the floor as Martin, Nene and Chris Andersen played terrific defense on the big man… Nene had 17 points and 10 boards for the Nuggets, who took a 48-44 halftime lead thanks to two 3-pointers from J.R. Smith in the closing minutes of the first half. Smith, who has been in and out of coach George Karl’s dog house for lapses in play and professionalism, finished with 19 points.
Nov 30: Nets 117, Suns 109
The AP reports: Devin Harris was on the attack and the Phoenix Suns had no defense for him. Harris scored a career-high 47 points, including 21 in the fourth quarter, and the New Jersey Nets ended their 14-game losing streak at Phoenix by rallying to beat the Suns 117-109 Sunday night… Harris, whose previous high was 38, hit 14 of 25 field goals and 17 of 17 free throws in a dazzling performance… Vince Carter added 28 points for New Jersey, Yi Jianlian had 14 and Brook Lopez 12. Steve Nash, who missed Friday’s game because of a thigh contusion, led the Suns with 26 points and nine assists. Amare Stoudemire had 25 points and 12 rebounds before being ejected with his second technical foul—for arguing with an official—with 3:24 remaining and Phoenix leading 100-98. Matt Barnes had 18 points.
InsideHoops.com note: Harris also had 7 rebounds and 8 assists.
Nov 30: Bulls 103, Sixers 92
The AP reports: Derrick Rose seems unfazed by the rigorous NBA schedule. In the final stop on a seven-game, 12-day road trip which began Nov. 18 in Los Angeles against the Lakers, the 20-year-old No. 1 overall pick in the draft still had plenty of energy. Ben Gordon scored 21 points, Drew Gooden had 20 points and 12 rebounds, and the Chicago Bulls rallied from an early deficit for a 103-92 victory over the Philadelphia 76ers on Sunday. Rose contributed 18 points and 10 assists and reached double figures in assists for the first time this season. Reserve Larry Hughes had 16 points for the Bulls (8-9), who won for only the third time in 10 games on the road… Elton Brand had 21 points and 12 rebounds, and Thaddeus Young added 17 points for the reeling Sixers, who have lost four straight to fall to 7-10. Andre Miller had 15 points and 10 assists, and Willie Green chipped in with 12 points.
Nov 30: Blazers 96, Pistons 85
The AP reports: While the Pistons are 10-2 during the rest of the week, they have been outscored by an average of 17 points while losing all four Sunday games. Portland’s young starting lineup dominated Detroit’s first five, outscoring them 74-52… LaMarcus Aldridge led Portland with 27 points, while Brandon Roy added 19 and Greg Oden finished with 10 points and a career-high 13 rebounds in the Blazers’ fourth straight win… Richard Hamilton had 18 for Detroit, but Allen Iverson finished with only nine on 2-of-9 shooting. The Pistons fell to just 6-6 since Iverson joined the team… Tayshaun Prince, who had played at least 30 minutes in every game this season, saw just 22 minutes of action Sunday.
Ike Diogu loves video games
Lots of guys love video games. (And, plenty of girls do, too.) Personally, I didn’t have a video game system for years, but got myself a Playstation 3 earlier in 2008 and play it pretty regularly.
I only have a few current games: Grand Theft Auto 4, NBA 2K9, NBA Live 09, and NCAA Live 09. Being a pro basketball guy, I tend to mostly play the two NBA games. The college one just came out recently, but still, I see myself sticking more with what I know, the pros.
Trail Blazers power forward Ike Diogu loves video games, too. But on a whole other level. The Oregonian (Joe Freeman) reports:
Diogu now owns three video game consoles — PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 and Nintendo Wii — and estimates that he owns more than 1,000 video games. And his love of gaming extends well beyond simply playing. Diogu’s college major is digital art and he continues to pursue a bachelor’s degree each offseason at Arizona State, with the goal of getting into the video game industry after his NBA career. Diogu is five classes (15 credits) short of his earning his degree.
Needless to say, next time I run into Diogu I plan on challenging him to a game of Pitfall on Atari 2600.
–Jeff
Mavs quit Princeton offense
The Dallas Morning News (David Moore) reports: The Princeton offense has come and gone. The idea that the Mavericks would generate the majority of their shots out of movement instead of sets has been scrapped. “That whole Princeton stuff was a great idea, but it’s tough to determine shots out of there,” forward Dirk Nowitzki said. “We run it a little less than we did at the beginning of the year and are calling more plays where guys are more comfortable. “Maybe we aren’t a team that is just running and slicing and dicing and cutting. Maybe we weren’t really meant for that. Maybe we’re not smart enough. I don’t know. “But it’s been good. We know the sets. We know the go-to plays. We’ve just got to keep on working.”
Pacers need low post game
The Indiana Pacers are doing about as well as expected, with 6 wins and 10 losses. They’ve played without Mike Dunleavy, who is normally their second best player and would at worst be third best this season depending on how much you like point guard T.J. Ford. But they have one problem that has been the case for a while now. The Indianapolis Star (Mike Wells) reports:
The biggest issue I have with the Pacers offense is the same one I had during the summer – they don’t have anybody to score for them in the post. Starters Troy Murphy and Rasho Nesterovic are perimeter big men. The Pacers tend to settle for jump shots too often when the game gets tight. Roy Hibbert may be their best low-post scoring threat. That should tell you something because he’s raw offensively.
Marquis Daniels, playing only one minute less per game this season than Danny Granger, has stepped up, shooting 46.0% for 16.1 points, 6.3 rebounds and 2.1 assists per game. Assuming Dunleavy’s knee eventually heals enough for him to play, Daniels will lose many of those minutes. But still, he should be proud of his performances so far this season.