General NBA insight – Page 124 – NBA Blog

Jazz not rocking lately

Brian T. Smith of the Salt Lake Tribune reports:

Less than average. Bottom of the heap. Going nowhere.

This is where the directionless Jazz are at 73 games through the 2010-11 season, having fallen below .500 for the first time since Nov. 5 after a heartbreaking overtime home loss to New Orleans on Thursday.

Utah has dropped four consecutive contests, six of eight, and has only beaten one team with a wining record since Jerry Sloan resigned Feb. 10. All while the Jazz (35-36) have refused to concede a frustrating, disappointing year during which initial high expectations have slowly given way to a halfhearted rebuilding process that is officially on pause until Utah is mathematically eliminated from the playoffs.

The Jazz haven’t been this low at this point during a season since the 2005-06 campaign, when the team finished 41-41. That was Deron Williams’ first year in the NBA, and it was the last time Utah failed to make the playoffs.

Now, even when the Jazz play well — as they recently did against New Orleans and Houston — the team has been unable to close out games and secure wins, lacking a killer instinct and often being at least one premier athlete removed from being the best squad on a given night.

James Harden has stepped up since Jeff Green trade

Darnell Mayberry of The Oklahoman reports:

No one needed to say anything to James Harden.

When Jeff Green was dealt to Boston three weeks ago in the trade that brought Kendrick Perkins to the Thunder, Harden knew immediately that he needed to be more productive.

“We had to make up for those 15 points that we lost,” Harden said. “Everybody’s level of play had to step up.”

Harden, though, shot up to a level few thought he could reach — at least not this quickly.

In 15 games since the All-Star break, Harden has averaged 17.7 points. That total trails only Dallas’ Jason Terry for points off the bench over that span. Harden’s 50.6 percent shooting over that same span, meanwhile, ranks fifth among shooting guards with at least 10 games played.

By comparison, Harden averaged just 10.3 points on 41.3 percent shooting prior to the All-Star break. The turnaround has transformed the second-year guard into one of the league’s best Sixth Men.

Heat need a healthy Udonis Haslem

Tom Haberstroh of ESPN reports:

Udonis Haslem

udonis haslem

Rocks cornrows

Haslem may not be a center, but he usually replaced one when he was healthy. His inside presence allows the Heat to go “small” with him at the four and Bosh at the five. In fact, three of the four most frequent lineups with Haslem on the floor feature Bosh at center. And it’s incredibly effective. The score with those “small” lineups? Heat 203, Opponents 166.

The Heat don’t just suffer on the boards without Haslem. Offensively, the Heat’s floor spacing becomes congested around the rim with the Heat’s big men. On Wednesday night, the Thunder bigs routinely cheated off of Howard, Dampier, Anthony and Jamaal Magloire in the paint without consequence. For a team that depends on open lanes for Wade and LeBron to penetrate, the offensive deficiencies of the Heat big men become exponentially troublesome. It’s no longer a game of five-on-five.

Armed with a silky jumper, Haslem can hit shots inside and out. His presence can help stabilize the Heat’s offense and unclog the paint for his attack-minded teammates.

This is all to say that Haslem offers a specific skill set the Heat woefully lack: a hard-nosed rebounder who commands the attention of opposing defenses. No one else on the Heat roster fills that essential role. On Wednesday against the Thunder, Haslem’s absence was profoundly felt by the Heat’s thin frontline.

Tyler Hansbrough on rise for Pacers

Bob Kravitz of the Indianapolis Star reports:

A star is being born in Indiana, Hansbrough going for a career-high 30 points in Tuesday night’s manic 119-117 victory over the New York Knicks. He got on this roll five games ago, and has now scored 26, 21, 20, 29 and 30 points, the most consecutive 20-plus point games by a Pacers player all season.

Two things have happened:

For one, he’s getting playing time. You wonder, if Jim O’Brien had stuck around, would Hansbrough have ever found the floor? Quick answer: No.

Two, he has gotten into NBA shape. Remember, he went more than eight months without working out, without playing basketball or jogging or doing much of anything besides waiting for the dizziness to subside. It wasn’t until roughly three weeks ago that Hansbrough started to feel like he did at North Carolina.

“You go all that time doing nothing, and now you’re playing against the best players in the world, you’re not going to be at your best,” Hansbrough said. “. . . To be honest, I didn’t even know if I was going to be ready for training camp. The doctors gave me the OK, I went from doing nothing to six-hour practices. It was miserable for a while. Then there were stretches when coach O’Brien wasn’t playing me, so I wasn’t getting any experience.”

Andrew Bynum is a big man

Elliot Teaford of the Los Angeles Daily News reports:

Others are taller and some weigh more, but is there a bigger big man than Andrew Bynum in the NBA? Bynum, officially listed at 7-foot and 285 pounds, certainly measured up against the Orlando Magic’s Dwight Howard, who’s 6-11, 275.

“He’s a big guy, man,” Orlando point guard Jameer Nelson said of Bynum after the Lakers rallied to defeat the Magic 97-84 on Monday night at Staples Center for their 10th victory in 11 games since the All-Star break.

“He’s a handful,” Nelson continued. “It’s like he’s out there and you think you’ve got the ball, and he has it in his hands. You’re jumping for the ball, but he’s just standing there tipping it to himself to get those extra shots.”

Bynum scored 10 points and matched his career high with 18 rebounds Monday, his fourth consecutive game with 10 or more points and his sixth straight with 12 or more rebounds. He’s had a big impact on the Lakers’ winning ways since the All-Star break.

After rounding into form slowly following offseason right knee surgery that sidelined him for the first 24 games of 2010-11, Bynum has become a force in the paint for the Lakers. His season averages have risen to 11.6 points and 8.8 rebounds.

Phil Jackson jabs Mark Cuban over 2006 Finals

Dwain Price of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram reports:

Los Angeles Lakers coach Phil Jackson insinuated that complaints about officiating by Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban in the 2006 NBA Finals may have cost the Mavs the championship.

Before Saturday’s Mavs-Lakers game, Jackson was asked whether it was crucial for the Lakers to have home-court advantage should the Mavs and Lakers meet this year in the playoffs, because of Cuban’s personality.

Jackson said: “Why?”

Cuban’s penchant for complaining about officiating, the reporter asked. That’s when Jackson, while laughing, said of Cuban:

“Oh, he lost that Miami series. He definitely had it coming that time. I think he’s toned it down in the last years.”

Read fan reaction or share your own opinion in this forum topic.

Raptors rookie Ed Davis playing well

Doug Smith of the Toronto Star reports:

He had 12 points and 13 rebounds in Friday’s win over Indiana, he’s scored at least 12 points in five of his last seven games and in five of his last 12, he’s had at least 13 rebounds.

He leads all rookies in field goal percentage, shooting an impressive 60.5 per cent from the field, and his per-game rebound average of 6.9 would place him tied for fourth among all rookies had he played enough games to qualify for the league-leading list.

“He’s showing a lot of progress and the future is looking real good for him,” teammate Reggie Evans said of Davis.

And Evans plays a role.

“A lot of times on the defensive and offensive glass, they’re trying to box out Reggie and that leaves me open to get tip-ins and easy rebounds,” said Davis.

The most noticeable area of improvement has come in Davis’s offensive game.

He’s always shown an ability to gather offensive rebounds but he’s far more comfortable now stepping out and shooting jump shots. There is still a lot of work do on that aspect of his game but for the short time he’s been a regular in the rotation, the improvement has been alarming.

Deuce watches rep at NBA All-Star in LA

Aside from Blake Griffin dunking over a car, a fun All-Star game, great parties and lots more, a highlight of mine at 2011 NBA All-Star weekend in Los Angeles back in February was hitting up a beautiful Deuce Brand watch event in a luxury suite high atop the beautiful WaterMarke Tower.

At the event, which Deuce was smart enough to host right near the Staples Center (for reasons that cannot be explained, lots of companies had events at All-Star weekend yet held them in outer parts of Los Angeles that were too far to want to travel to), the new Deuce G2 lifestyle sports watch was introduced.

Rocked by Matt Barnes and other pro athletes, the durable watches can be slammed around, not worried about, and they’ll keep working. Here’s a pic:

Deuce watch at NBA All-Star weekend in LA

Deuce watches are cool. Shoutout to them for a great All-Star suite.

– Jeff

Joining Heat was easy decision for Mike Bibby

Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald reports:

As Mike Bibby mulled where he wanted to play, the decision quickly became obvious.

“It was a clean choice,” the Heat’s new point guard said Thursday morning after participating in his first shootaround with Miami. “They’re on TV a lot and you’re just in awe of the way they play. It looks like everybody has the right attitude. You can tell the guys here have a winning mentality. Great chance to win a championship. I feel I could help this team.”

Bibby, who was traded from Atlanta to Washington last week, was asked if friends or family questioned his decision to give up all of his $6.2 million salary for next season as part of buyout terms with the Wizards.

“It’s not their decision to make,” said Bibby, who signed for the rest of the season at a prorated share of the $1.2 million veteran’s minimum. “I make the money. I decide what to do with it. It’s always tough to give up money. [But] this part of my career I want to be happy. This was the best place as far as winning.”

Corey Brewer and Jason Terry had a close encounter last year

Dwain Price of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram reports (via blog):

It was a year ago today when Dallas Mavericks guard Jason Terry and Minnesota Timberwolves forward Corey Brewer had an up close and personal meeting.

Terry was amazingly whistled for a foul on a play in which he received an elbow in the nose from Brewer. Blood was spewing from Terry’s nose as he laid sprawled on his back on the floor.

Terry went to the locker room and was back in the game about three minutes later with cotton sticking from his left nostril. And he wound up scoring a game-high 26 points as the Mavs edged the T-Wolves, 112-109.

After an examination, it was revealed that Terry had to undergo facial surgery after he fractured his left orbital bone. The surgery, ironcially, occurred Mar. 5, which is Brewer’s birthday.