NBA News Blog – Page 1102 – NBA Blog

Kevin Durant says winning All-Star MVP was a childhood dream

Kevin Durant

Makes it rain

Kevin Durant cringes a little whenever he hears his name next to words like elite or superstar.

But after winning his first All-Star MVP award with a scoring display that ranked among the best in the game’s history, even Durant might have to acknowledge his own NBA stardom.

The Oklahoma City Thunder forward scored 36 points and grabbed seven rebounds Sunday night to help the West hold off a late charge from the East in a 152-149 victory.

“It’s just exciting to be named (an) All-Star, but to step it up another level and become MVP, it’s only something as a kid you dream about,” Durant said. “Coming from where I come from, I didn’t think I would be here. Everything is just a blessing to me.”

His performance was a small piece of All-Star redemption for Durant after he came up just short against Minnesota’s Kevin Love in Saturday night’s 3-point Shootout.

— Reported by the Associated Press

Lockout-shortened NBA schedule taking a toll on players

Among the 24 players selected to play in Sunday night’s All-Star Game at the Amway Center, 11 were sidelined with injuries at some point during the first half of the season.

Atlanta Hawks guard Joe Johnson was unable to play Sunday night because of tendinitis in his left knee, replaced by Boston’s Rajon Rondo, who missed eight games earlier this season with a wrist injury.

“Basically, every week there’s four games and that’s a lot of wear and tear, but at the same time you have to be smart with your eating habits and put in the right fluids,’’ Anthony said.

Injuries are not only disrupting the plans of contending teams, but it has impacted rebuilding franchises like the Hornets.

— Reported by John Reid of the New Orleans Times Picayune

Progress in upcoming sale of Hornets

In his annual state of the league address Saturday night, NBA Commissioner David Stern declined to confirm or identify if the group led by Los Angeles area businessman Raj Bhathal has emerged as a top candidate to purchase the New Orleans Hornets.

But Stern did say they are in discussions with one group and they have another group in sort of second place that is waiting to see how discussions go forth with group one.

Asked if the second group was from Seattle, which is pushing to get back to the NBA after losing the SuperSonics in 2008 when the franchise relocated to Oklahoma City, Stern said, “No.”

Sources confirm that Bhathal, who founded one of the country’s leading swimwear manufacturing companies, is the frontrunner. The group includes Larry J. Benson, brother of Saints owner, Tom Benson and former NBA coach Mike Dunleavy.

The second group is headed by former Hornets minority owner Gary Chouest, the billionaire owner of Edison Chouest Offshore who was forced to sell his 35 percent stake in the team in December 2010 when the league purchased the team from former majority owner George Shinn.

— Reported by John Reid of the New Orleans Times Picayune

Bobcats focused on long-term success

Charlotte Bobcats president of basketball operations Rod Higgins promises no “hard right turns” in reaction to his team having the worst record in the NBA at the All-Star break.

By that, Higgins means no trades that could make them cosmetically better the last 30 games of the season without having long-term value. The Bobcats could have up to $21 million in space under the salary cap next summer, and Higgins says they won’t botch that with something short-sighted between now and the March 15 trade deadline.

“Panic doesn’t exist for us,” Higgins said Wednesday. “Once we made those trades (exchanging veterans Gerald Wallace and Stephen Jackson for packages that included draft picks), we have to see it through, the path we’ve taken: Get assets, create (cap) flexibility.

“The season is going in a direction that maybe some of us didn’t envision. A disappointment, you might say. But with that being said, you cannot make that hard right and forget about what you’ve already done.”

— Reported by Rick Bonnell of the Charlotte Observer

A few greats missing from 2012 All-Star game

When the 61st annual all-star game is played on Sunday, it’ll have a very unfamiliar feel about it.

For the East, no Kevin Garnett.

Out West, no Tim Duncan.

The future Hall of Famers were not voted in by the fans or the coaches, ending more than a decade in which the two were mainstays during all-star weekend.

If ever there was an indication of how the torch of NBA greats has been passed, this weekend only strengthens that position.

Paul Pierce, Dirk Nowitzki and Kobe Bryant are the only all-stars this weekend having been selected to 10 or more all-star games.

— Reported by A. Sherrod Blakely of CSN New England (Blog)

Dirk Nowitzki discusses this NBA season’s crowded schedule

Dallas Mavericks forward Dirk Nowtizki is a member of the 2012 Western conference All-Star team. The NBA champion spoke with reporters in Orlando at NBA All-Star weekend about this season’s crowded schedule:

Question: With all the injuries in the NBA this year, how much do you attribute to the fact that there’s so many games coming so fast?

Dirk Nowitzki: Yeah, we knew that coming in that the schedule was a monster. It was everyone’s fault. It was the players’ fault, it was the NBA’s fault. We knew this was coming for two years and we didn’t do anything about it, so now we have to deal with this shortened season and just play a lot of games. We’ve got nine games in 12 games coming out of the break, which is a ridiculous number of games. But we’ve just got to deal with it and go from there. We’ve just got to fight through it. We knew coming in it was going to be bad, but you’ve just got to deal with it.

Question: Will we see more teams do what the Spurs did the other day and sit Parker and Duncan?

Nowitzki: We have obviously an older team, and we have a tough stretch coming up. We have games back to back to back, so I doubt J Kidd or some of those guys are going to play all nine games in 12 days. I don’t know if it’s going to happen. But we’ve got to fight through it, hopefully get some of our bodies back. I don’t know how Roddy is doing, hopefully get him back soon. I don’t know how long D-West is going to be out, but we’re going to need every healthy body and get through this tough stretch.

Rajon Rondo discusses Jeremy Lin, and being an All-Star

Boston Celtics guard Rajon Rondo is an Orlando right now as a member of the Eastern conference All-Star team. He was just recently named a replacement for injured Hawks guard Joe Johnson. Here are a few quick words from Rondo with reporters at All-Star weekend:

Question: What have been your impressions of Jeremy Lin?

Rajon Rondo: He’s worked hard. A lot of people doubt him. I think he’s a product of hard work, and now it’s paying off. He seems like a pretty humble guy. He seems like a good guy. He’s going to be here for a long time.

Question: Sitting here right now, has this kind of been the craziest three days you’ve had in the league?

Rondo: Yeah, it’s been jam packed, really, my schedule. I’ve changed my schedule completely. I didn’t expect to be here. I actually found out on my birthday. It was a good birthday present. I had to go back home and pack and I had to try to get a ticket situation going and a hotel room, who was coming, who wasn’t coming. But I’m glad I’m here, and this has been the quietest All Star I’ve had as far as people coming in. I’ve usually had about 20 people come in, but now it’s about five or six.

Steve Nash remains committed to Suns

Steve Nash

Likeable

Nash’s eighth All-Star trip at age 38 is remarkable as the oldest All-Star point guard — ever. But with a 14-20 Suns team, the interest in Nash’s career is what comes next in July free agency and speculation about the March 15 trade deadline.

“It’s up to the team,” Nash said. “I’m happy where I am. I’m not happy with our record. I feel like I made a commitment to the fans and my teammates. But at the same time, I’d understand if the team wanted to make a move, so I’m completely open. To be honest, I just occupy myself with trying to prepare to play and play as well as I can.”

The Suns have made it clear that he would not be traded unless he asked for it. That is not in Nash’s nature.

“I feel like it’s a difficult position for me to demand a trade when I’ve been a part of that community for so long,” Nash said in his 10th Suns season. “I really feel like I owe it to my teammates to do the best I can for the group. I don’t feel like I should be demanding anything.”

— Reported by Paul Coro of the Arizona Republic

NBA to make 13-man active rosters permanent

The NBA’s competition committee voted Friday to make the transition rule allowing teams to dress and play 13 players permanent and to shorten and streamline the waiver period, said Stu Jackson, the league’s executive vice president of basketball operations.

The roster rule was approved unanimously by the committee consisting of league and team executives and will be recommended to the Board of Governors for formal adoption pending approval by the players’ union. The waiver period, currently 48 business hours during the season and seven days from the end of the season until August 15, would be changed to 48 hours year-round, including weekends.

The long-held practice of the league maintaining three daily waiver reporting times – 10 a.m., 2 p.m. and 6 p.m. ET – would be replaced by a single daily reporting time of 5 p.m. ET, Jackson said. The changes could take effect as soon as this summer.

The roster rule initially was employed with the intention of allowing teams to dress 13 players but only play 12. It was subsequently decided that all 13 who dressed would be able to play. The committee voted Friday to recommend making the rule permanent.

— Reported by Ken Berger of CBS Sports (Blog)

Andrew Bogut injury update: Ankle is healing appropriately

Andrew Bogut

Top bloke

Milwaukee Bucks General Manager John Hammond announced the following update on the injury to Andrew Bogut (7-0, 260):

“On Tuesday (February 21), Andrew had a CT scan performed on his injured left ankle. The results of the scan were reviewed by Bucks orthopaedic surgeon Dr. Michael Gordon, along with additional foot and ankle specialists who agreed that Bogut’s ankle was healing appropriately and at this time surgery is not indicated.

“Bogut will be allowed to progress to the next stage of his rehabilitation program, and will undergo an additional scan in approximately one month. The initial recovery period of 8-to-12 weeks has not changed.”

The seventh-year center suffered a fractured left ankle in the win at Houston (January 25) when his left foot landed awkwardly on a Rockets player’s foot after attempting to block a shot in the first period. In 12 games this season, Bogut averaged 11.3 points, 8.3 rebounds, 2.6 assists, 1.0 steal and 2.0 blocked shots in 30.0 minutes per contest.