NBA Teams – Page 1271 – NBA Blog

Rockets elder statesmen provide more than veteran presence

The youthful Rockets may be on the verge of playoff elimination, but it’s not for lack of effort by their oldest players on the court.

Francisco Garcia, 32, and Carlos Delfino, 30, had 18 and 11 points, respectively, to spark a second-half Rockets rally that fell short by the margin of Kevin Durant’s seeing-eye 3-pointer, the critical blow of Oklahoma City’s Game 3 victory Saturday night.

With Jeremy Lin rendered ineffective by his bruised chest, Rockets coach Kevin McHale’s frequently tweaked rotation came down in the second half to heavy doses of Garcia, who played 32 minutes, and Delfino, who nursed his aching elbow through 22:07.

Each did enough, absent Durant’s final 3-pointer plus the 38 points that preceded it, to get the Rockets back in the game and avoid a 3-0 deficit that in NBA history is tantamount to playoff elimination.

“We played so hard in the second half,” Garcia said. “I’m proud of my guys.”

— Reported by David Barron of the Houston Chronicle

Nuggets must trust big men to advance in NBA playoffs

The Nuggets did not pay center JaVale McGee a $10 million salary so coach George Karl could let him rot on the bench in the playoffs.

After being good enough to be in the starting lineup 81 times for a 57-win team during the regular season, center Kosta Koufos lost his job after one loss to Golden State, as if it were his fault the Nuggets cannot defend 3-point shots from Warriors guard Steph Curry.

Anybody know where the Nuggets can find two psychiatrist couches in an extra long? The Denver centers are 14 feet of head case.

Want to know why the Nuggets are unexpectedly trailing upstart Golden State 2-1 in this best-of-seven playoff series?

Denver is afraid to be the bigger team.

— Reported by Mark Kizla of the Denver Post

Rio Grande Valley Vipers win 2013 D-League championship

The Rio Grande Valley Vipers defeated the Santa Cruz Warriors 102-91 to capture the 2012-13 NBA Development League Championship for the second time in four seasons. The Vipers were led by D.J. Kennedy’s game-high 27 points to go with seven rebounds and six assists, while Glen Rice, Jr. chipped in 25 points and 13 rebounds. The Warriors’ Travis Leslie scored a team-high 16 points and added 13 rebounds in defeat.

The Vipers dominated the first half, leading by as many as 17 points as Rice, Jr. and Kennedy combined for 33 of the team’s 56 points heading into the halftime break. Santa Cruz was led by Jeremy Tyler, who was four-of-five from the floor, scoring 10 points in the second quarter.

The Warriors charged out of the halftime break, outscoring the Vipers 26-17 in the period on the back of eight Travis Leslie points, his first of the game. Santa Cruz cut the Rio Grande Valley lead to as few as five points, 69-64, with 2:00 minutes to play in the third before settling for a six point deficit at the end of three, 73-67.

Scott Machado scored six points as part of a 12-0 Warriors run in the opening five minutes of the fourth quarter, taking Santa Cruz on his back and leading the team to a one-point disadvantage, 82-81 with 7:31 to play. The next two minutes of the game were all Vipers, though, with Toure Murry, Tyler Honeycutt and Kennedy connecting on back-to-back-to-back buckets, scoring a quick six points and stretching the Rio Grande Valley’s lead to seven, 88-81, with 5:28 to play in the game. From there, the teams traded buckets before a Rice three pointer gave his team a 93-88 advantage. The Vipers never looked back en route to the Championship win.

For Rio Grande Valley, Murry finished with 13 points and Mike Singletary scored 10 in the win, while Machado finished with 15 off the bench for Santa Cruz.

Philadelphia 76ers now own a D-League team based in Newark, Delaware

The NBA Development League today announced that the Philadelphia 76ers have purchased the right to own and operate an NBA D-League team that will play in Newark, Delaware. The new team will be the single-affiliate of the 76ers, and will play at the Bob Carpenter Center on the campus of the University of Delaware. Tipping off for the start of the 2013-14 NBA D-League season, the team will be known as the Delaware 87ers.

“We’re thrilled to work with the 76ers to bring NBA D-League basketball to Newark and the state of Delaware,” said NBA D-League President Dan Reed. “Having a record 12th NBA team invest in their own NBA D-League team shows our development system for top NBA prospects is working, and highlights the league’s continued growth. We’re very excited to share our world-class brand of basketball, affordable family-friendly entertainment, and community engagement with all Delawareans.”

The name 87ers was chosen for the team in recognition of Delaware being the first state to ratify the U.S. Constitution in 1787, and the team will be referred to as the “Sevens,” a nod to the parent club being referred to as the “Sixers.”

“The creation of the Delaware 87ers is an important milestone in our quest to ensure that the Philadelphia 76ers are viewed in all respects to be a world-class and cutting-edge NBA franchise. We believe that the ability to own and operate our own NBA D-League affiliate will strengthen our player development and other team initiatives, and be a tremendous asset to the entire Sixers organization,” said Sixers Managing Owner Josh Harris. He continued, “We are particularly excited that we can situate the team in the welcoming, nearby state of Delaware, especially since there are so many Delawareans who already are avid 76ers fans.”

The 76ers have purchased the rights to operate the former Utah Flash, which has been on hiatus since the end of the 2010-11 NBA D-League season. The team becomes the 17th NBA D-League team, and the 12th to be singly affiliated with an NBA team.

Of the 12 NBA D-League teams with single affiliations, the 76ers join five other teams which are fully owned and operated by their NBA parent club, including the Austin Toros (San Antonio Spurs), Canton Charge (Cleveland Cavaliers), Los Angeles D-Fenders (Los Angeles Lakers), Santa Cruz Warriors (Golden State Warriors) and the Tulsa 66ers (Oklahoma City Thunder). An additional five teams have a hybrid relationship with their NBA parent club, including the Erie BayHawks (New York Knicks), Idaho Stampede (Portland Trail Blazers), Maine Red Claws (Boston Celtics), Rio Grande Valley Vipers (Houston Rockets), and Springfield Armor (Brooklyn Nets). The hybrid partnership gives an NBA team control of the NBA D-League team’s basketball operations while local ownership retains control of the business. The Texas Legends have a one-to-one relationship with the Dallas Mavericks.

Russell Westbrook undergoes knee surgery, out for rest of playoffs

Oklahoma City Thunder guard Russell Westbrook underwent successful surgery earlier today to repair a lateral meniscus tear in his right knee.

Westbrook will miss the remainder of the 2013 NBA Playoffs. Rehab will begin immediately and a timetable for his return will be determined during the offseason. The surgery was performed at the Stedman Clinic in Vail, CO with Thunder medical personnel present.

“Although we are of course disappointed that Russell will be unable to return to the floor with his teammates this season, the opportunity to repair the meniscus as opposed to remove it was the best possible scenario for Russell’s long term health as a player and person,” said Thunder Executive Vice President and General Manager Sam Presti. “Russell’s health and well being are obviously our number one priority through this process and today’s procedure helped solidify our belief that Russell will have many productive years of basketball in his future.”

Westbrook suffered the injury in the second quarter of Game 2 of the First Round of the Western Conference Playoffs. The three-time NBA All-Star averaged 23.2 points (6th in NBA), 7.4 assists (7th), a career-high 5.2 rebounds and 1.77 steals (9th) in 82 games this past season.

Brooklyn Nets sign GM Billy King to contract extension

The Brooklyn Nets have signed General Manager Billy King to a contract extension, it was announced today by Principal Owner Mikhail Prokhorov. Details will be added to this page later today.

“Billy has been a great asset to the Nets organization over the last three years”, Mr. Prokhorov said on behalf of the entire Nets organization. “He has shown he is not afraid to be bold and take risks, and, as a result, we have a playoff team with a world of potential. We are glad we will have the opportunity to continue our work together and realize that potential.”

“I am anxious to continue working hard for Mikhail Prokhorov and the Brooklyn Nets”, said King.

King, who was named general manager of the Nets on July 14, 2010, presided over a team that posted a 49-33 record in the franchise’s inaugural season in Brooklyn, matching the second best record in Nets’ history, while making their first postseason appearance in six seasons.

In his three seasons as general manager, King overhauled the Nets roster, first by making a mid-season blockbuster trade for Deron Williams in 2011, and then by completing his All-Star backcourt with the July 2012 acquisition of six-time All-Star Joe Johnson. Adding Gerald Wallace via a trade in March 2012, King then spearheaded the re-signings of Williams, Wallace and All-Star center Brook Lopez this past summer.

King joined the Nets after spending 10 years with the Philadelphia 76ers organization, serving as the team’s president from 2003-2007. King joined the 76ers in June, 1997 as vice president of basketball administration, a role in which he served as the point person for basketball operations. Less than a year later, he was promoted to general manager, a position he held until being promoted to team president following the 2002-03 season.

During his 10-year tenure, King guided the team to five consecutive playoff appearances (1999-2003), including the 2000-01 season in which the Sixers captured the Atlantic Division title on the heels of a 56-26 season. The Sixers went on to win their first Eastern Conference Championship since 1983, advancing to the 2001 NBA Finals.

Before joining the 76ers, King served as an assistant coach for the Indiana Pacers for four seasons under Larry Brown. He joined the professional ranks after spending four seasons as an assistant at Illinois State University under Head Coach Bob Bender. King also spent one year as a color analyst for ESPN’s basketball coverage of the Ohio Valley Conference.

Holding several roles within the USA Basketball program throughout his career, King has served as a member of USA Basketball Men’s Senior National Team Program Advisory Panel, on USA Basketball’s Board of Directors, as treasurer of USA Basketball and as an athlete representative on the 1997-2000 executive committee. King also served on the USA Basketball Men’s Senior National Team Committees for the 1997-2000 and 2001-04 terms.

Warriors guard Stephen Curry questionable for Game 3

Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry is questionable for Friday night’s game against the Denver Nuggets.

Curry sprained his left ankle during Game 2 of their series on Tuesday and did not practice Thursday.

The injury is not related to his surgically-repaired right ankle.

If he does not play?

“It would kill me,” Curry told reporter Thursday.

— Reported by the Sports Xchange

Zach Randolph scores 27, Grizzlies beat Clippers 94-82 in Game 3

Zach Randolph’s fast start helped the Memphis Grizzlies return to their inside dominance.

Randolph had 13 of his 27 points in the first quarter, and he finished with 11 rebounds and the Grizzlies beat the Los Angeles Clippers 94-82 on Thursday night to pull within 2-1 in this first-round series.

”Zach was huge,” Memphis coach Lionel Hollins said. ”He got started quickly. He had 18 at halftime, and that got us going and everyone else just flowed into that. I thought our defense, for the most part, was solid.”

Randolph hadn’t scored more than 13 in each of the first two games and had only 12 rebounds combined in Los Angeles. He looked much more like the All Star who had 45 double-doubles this season, and he also had six offensive rebounds after leading the NBA with 310 in the regular season…

Marc Gasol accepted his trophy as the NBA’s Defensive Player of the Year before tipoff, then scored 16 points. Quincy Pondexter and Tony Allen had 13 each. Mike Conley was 1 of 9 but had 10 assists and no turnovers on a night where he was so sick he sipped on soda and didn’t talk much…

Blake Griffin scored 16 points for the Clippers. Matt Barnes had 12, Chauncey Billups 11 and Jamal Crawford and Caron Butler 10. Chris Paul had eight points on 4-of-11 shooting and added six assists…

Memphis outrebounded the Clippers 45-33, including 17-5 on the offensive boards. That gave the Grizzlies a 22-4 edge in second-chance points, which was similar to what the Clippers did to Memphis in Game 1 when they held a 25-5 advantage. The Grizzlies also outscored Los Angeles 40-26 in the paint and led by as much as 16.

— Reported by Teresa M. Walker of the Associated Press

Carlos Boozer steps up, Bulls beat Nets to take 2-1 lead

Every play near the basket looked like a traffic accident. There were long scoreless stretches. Shooting from outside was a dicey proposition.

It was ugly for everyone but the Chicago Bulls. This was their type of game.

Carlos Boozer had 22 points and 16 rebounds, Luol Deng added 21 points and 10 boards, and the Bulls held off the Brooklyn Nets 79-76 in Game 3 of their first-round playoff series Thursday night.

”We did what we had to do to win the game,” Boozer said. ”In the playoffs you have to win different ways. Nothing is perfect.”

Chicago had no field goals and two foul shots over the final 5:46 of its second straight win in the series. It will try for a 3-1 lead when the banged-up teams return to the court Saturday afternoon in a quick turnaround.

Brooklyn shot 35 percent for the second straight game. Brook Lopez had 22 points, nine rebounds and seven blocked shots, and Deron Williams finished with 18 points on 5-for-14 shooting…

Joe Johnson got a cortisone shot for his ailing left foot and finished 15 points for Brooklyn, while Noah’s foul shot was his only point of the game while dealing with his own painful right foot injury. Noah also had eight rebounds, two assists and two blocks…

Brooklyn went 5 for 21 from 3-point range and is 15 for 56 from beyond the arc for the series.

— Reported by Jay Cohen of the Associated Press

Rockets head home with some answers, needing more

The Rockets seemed to find some answers in Game 2, starting Patrick Beverley for the first time and using a three-guard lineup for all but a few brief moments. McHale felt the change allowed Houston to penetrate the lane more frequently, with one of his perimeter threats often matched up against one of the two Thunder big men, Serge Ibaka and Kendrick Perkins.

”They kind of put a tight shell out there, but once you break that shell and get on the inside, a lot of stuff can open up,” McHale said. ”We had a lot of good catch and shoot 3s, open 3s and that’s how we have to play.

”We don’t have a dominant inside presence. A lot of our inside points are finishing on dunks and tipped dunks. It’s our guys going in there and making plays against their bigs and then kicking it out.”

McHale also found success by going with a 2-3 zone after Oklahoma City had built its biggest lead at 89-74 early in the fourth quarter. Houston responded by scoring 21 of the next 23 points, even taking the lead.

— Reported by Jeff Latzke of the Associated Press