Orlando’s Dwight Howard is averaging 21.6 points, 14.4 rebounds and is shooting .603 from the field. Only four players have finished a season averaging at least 20.0 ppg., 10.0 rpg., while shooting .600 from the field: Wilt Chamberlain, Philadelphia, 1966-67; Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, L.A. Lakers, 1979-80; Charles Barkley, Philadelphia, 1989-90; and Shaquille O’Neal, Miami, 2004-05.
Author: Inside Hoops
InsideHoops.com has been a world leader in NBA basketball coverage for over 20 years. Read our blog, but also be sure to read our main website on www.insidehoops.com
Rockets 22 straight wins, take lead in West
NBA News: With their 104-92 victory over the Los Angeles Lakers on Sunday, the Houston Rockets (46-20) extended their franchise-record winning streak to 22 games and took over sole possession of first place in the Western Conference. On Jan. 28, the day before the streak started, the Rockets were 24-20, in 10th place in the West and eight games out of first. Houston passed the 1970-71 Milwaukee Bucks on Friday for the second longest stretch in NBA history. The record of 33 straight victories was achieved by the Lakers in the 1971-72 season. The Rockets have won 26 of their last 27 games and 31 of their last 34. They’ve won 15 straight at the Toyota Center; 12 straight on the road; 10 straight since All-Star Yao Ming suffered a season-ending broken foot; and 11 of their last 13 games by double digits. The Rockets host the Boston Celtics tomorrow (8:30 p.m. ET, TNT).
The Celtics pace the league with a 52-13 mark and are an NBA-best 23-8 on the road. For the Celtics, however, tomorrow’s game in Houston is the start of a hyper-difficult Texas Triangle trip in which they will also play the Dallas Mavericks and San Antonio Spurs. The three Texas teams are a combined 80-18 (.816) at home this season, and are riding a 26 game winning streak. The last team to sweep the Texas Triangle trip was the 2001-02 Sacramento Kings (Nov. 27-30, 2001).
Players of week are Stoudemire, Jamison
The Washington Wizards’ Antawn Jamison and the Phoenix Suns’ Amaré Stoudemire today were named the Eastern and Western Conference Players of the Week, respectively, for games played Monday, March 10, through Sunday, March 16.
Jamison led the Wizards to a 3-0 week, with wins over the Clippers, Cavaliers and Bucks. After collecting two double-doubles on the week, Jamison’s 37 double-doubles stand as the second highest total in the Eastern Conference (Dwight Howard, 59). Jamison averaged 25.3 points, 9.7 rebounds and 1.0 steals during the undefeated week, helping Washington move above the .500 mark for the first time since Feb. 5.
Stoudemire led the Suns to a 3-0 week, with all three victories coming against Western Conference opponents. Stoudemire averaged 32.0 points on .660 shooting from the field, 11.3 rebounds, 2.7 assists and 1.7 blocks. The back-to-back 30-point, 10-rebound efforts on March 13 and March 15 marked the third time this year that Stoudemire recorded consecutive 30-point, 10-rebound games.
Other nominees for the Eastern and Western Conference Players of the Week were Philadelphia’s Andre Iguodala, Cleveland’s LeBron James, Atlanta’s Joe Johnson, New Orleans’ Chris Paul, Orlando’s Rashard Lewis, Houston’s Tracy McGrady and Dallas’ Dirk Nowitzki.
Bulls send several players to and from D-League
The Chicago Bulls announced Saturday that the team has recalled rookie forward Demetris Nichols from the Iowa Energy of the D-League. The Bulls also announced they have placed Shannon Brown and Cedric Simmons on assignment with the Energy.
Nichols (6-8, 216) has appeared in four games with the Bulls since the team claimed him on waivers on Dec. 7, 2007. He has also spent time this season in New York and Cleveland, having appeared in three games with the Cavaliers before his stint with Chicago. In 14 games with the Energy this season, Nichols has posted averages of 19.3 ppg, 4.2 rpg, 2.9 apg, 1.14 spg and 1.00 bpg in 37.6 mpg.
Brown (6-4, 211) has appeared in four games since the Bulls acquired him via trade with Cleveland on Feb. 21, and holds averages of 6.0 ppg and 1.0 rpg in 12.3 mpg in 19 appearances this season with Cleveland and Chicago.
Simmons (6-9, 235), also acquired by the Bulls in the Feb. 21 trade, has seen action in four games in Chicago. On the season, he has played in 11 games and averaged 0.5 ppg and 1.5 rpg in 7.1 mpg.
Pau Gasol sprains left ankle
The AP reports: Pau Gasol sprained his left ankle and needed help limping off the court in the first quarter of the Los Angeles Lakers’ game against the New Orleans Hornets on Friday night.
Gasol was running into the lane looking for a potential offensive rebound when he appeared to step on teammate Vladimir Radmanovic’s foot.
Wizards-Clippers team connections
Gilbert Arenas was raised in Los Angeles and starred at Ulysses S. Grant High School in Van Nuys, CA.
Nick Young attended Cleveland HS in Reseda, CA, and played collegiately at USC.
DeShawn Stevenson (Washington Union HS, Fresno, CA) and Dominic McGuire (Lincoln HS, San Diego, CA) also played high school ball in California.
Clippers center/forward Aaron Williams was a member of the same New Jersey Nets Eastern Conference Champion squads for which Wizards Head Coach Eddie Jordan and Associate Head Coach Mike O’Koren served as assistants.
Williams appeared in 81 games for the Wizards during the 1999-00 NBA season…DeShawn Stevenson and Clippers guard Cuttino Mobley were teammates in Orlando for a short stint in 2004-05.
Clippers guard Brevin Knight appeared in 32 games for Washington during the 2003-04 season.
Raptors file claim against Spanish league over Garbajosa injury
Statement from Toronto Raptors regarding claim filed against the Spanish Basketball Federation for non-payment of insurance proceeds related to Jorge Garbajosa’s injury:
“The Toronto Raptors issued a Statement of Claim on Friday against the Spanish Basketball Federation regarding the non-payment of insurance proceeds related to Jorge Garbajosa’s injury. It is unfortunate that we’ve reached this point. The matter is now before the courts. Therefore we will respect the court process and not comment further while the matter is on-going.”
Bucks send David Noel packing
The Bucks have waived David Noel. All I really know about him is that he can jump high. Maybe that’s all the Bucks know, too.
More info: Currently in his second NBA season, Noel did not appear in a game for the Bucks this season. He missed 27 games with a right wrist injury and was inactive (36 games) or a coach’s decision (two games) for the other 38 contests for Milwaukee. As a rookie, Noel appeared in 68 games for the Bucks and averaged 2.7 points, 1.8 rebounds and 1.0 assist per contest.
Seattle Storm re-sign cutie Sue Bird
The InsideHoops.com basketball blog focuses almost entirely on the NBA, with some stuff on international, streetball and other men’s basketball, but when big WNBA news breaks I will occasionally mention it here.
Sue Bird is very cute, and a terrific pro basketball player, and her Seattle Storm WNBA team has re-signed her to a multi-year deal. This keeps her alongside Lauren Jackson. But the Storm are also loading up on other legends and have added Swin Cash and Sheryl Swoopes, two other stars that pretty much all basketball fans, whether they follow the NBA or not, know about.
In other words, watch Seattle Storm games this upcoming WNBA season.
More info on the re-signing of Sue Bird is here.
Sonics recall Mouhamed Sene from D-League
The Seattle SuperSonics have recalled Mouhamed Sene from the Idaho Stampede D-League team.
He’s probably still just very tall and undeveloped as a player, though. But he can dunk in pre-game warmups, and that’s a plus.