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Los Angeles Lakers coach Phil Jackson will keep coaching the team at least through 2009-2010. The Orange County Register (Kevin Ding) reports (via blog):
Jackson has usually backpedaled away from all questions about his future, citing a year-by-year policy and even dismissing his contract status as largely irrelevant. This time, he added: “I still have a year left on my contract.”
Nothing crazy here. Jackson is already signed to coach next season. He just seems OK with mentioning it, now.
The Arizona Republic (Paul Coro) reports: After surgery, two weeks of bedrest, a lot of reality television shows and “Daddy Day Care” with his three kids, Amare Stoudemire said he should be 100 percent in one to two months. When he does return to the court, it will be with protective eyewear – for good this time. “Absolutely, seal the deal,” he said. “I’m wearing goggles from here on out. It’s funny I talked to my trainer when I was about to put those Oakley goggles down. I said, ‘What are the odds of me getting poked in the eye again if I didn’t wear these goggles?’ ” His surgeon, Pravin Dugel, said the “ragged tears” in Stoudemire’s eye indicated that the retinal tear was caused by trauma but that it was new and old trauma. Stoudemire had been poked in the eye during camp by Boris Diaw and also by Al Thornton in his final game this season.
The Akron Beacon Journal (Marla Ridenour) reports: With his fifth point of the game, the first of two made free throws this afternoon in a 102-96 victory over the Atlanta Hawks, Zydrunas Ilgauskas became the fourth player in Cavs history to score 10,000 points. A 10-year veteran from Lithuania whose career almost ended before it began because of fractures in both feet, Ilgauskas joined LeBron James, Austin Carr and Brad Daugherty in that exclusive club. During the next timeout, the Cavs saluted Ilgauskas and the sellout crowd of 20,562, which included Browns quarterback Brady Quinn, rose to its feet. Ilgauskas stepped onto the court at Quicken Loans Arena and raised his index finger, perhaps to salute back.
The AP reports: Halftime “tweets” seem to be the latest NBA fad. Suns center Shaquille O’Neal posted a note on his Twitter feed before a home game against Washington on Saturday night, suggesting he planned to post to the popular social networking Web site during halftime. And sure enough, a brief message was posted on Shaq’s feed before the third quarter. “Shhhhhhh,” it read. It was the same message O’Neal delivered when asked about his Twitter plans before the game. When told Phoenix coach Alvin Gentry already knew about it, O’Neal bent over, leaned against the locker-room wall and groaned loudly, saying his plans were blown.
The AP reports: Shaquille O’Neal scored 13 in the Phoenix Suns’ 128-96 victory over Washington on Saturday night to pass Moses Malone as the No. 5 scorer in NBA history with 27,411 points… Jason Richardson responded with 35 points, 17 in the third quarter, Phoenix extended its winning streak to a season-high four games… Steve Nash added 17 points for the Suns, who pulled with 3 1/2 games of idle Dallas for the eighth and final playoff spot in the West with 13 to play. Stromile Swift had 10 points and 12 rebounds in his best game since joining Phoenix on March 4.
The AP reports: Kobe Bryant scored 28 points, Pau Gasol added 23 and the Lakers rallied for a 117-109 victory Saturday over the Chicago Bulls in the first of a season-high, seven-game trip. The Lakers trailed by 16 in the second quarter and 14 at the half, but came roaring back in the third, pulling within one… Despite the high point total, he shot just 10-for-25. Even so, the man who once said he wouldn’t mind playing in Chicago got serenaded with “MVP! MVP!” chants… Gasol grabbed 10 rebounds. Trevor Ariza scored 18 points, Lamar Odom added 16 and Jordan Farmar had eight of his 13 in the decisive run for the Lakers, who have won five of six… John Salmons scored 30 and Derrick Rose 25 for the Bulls, who had tied a season high with three straight wins, but their luck ended against the Western Conference leaders. So did their seven-game home win streak.
The AP reports: The young Portland Trail Blazers are showing more proof of growing up. Brandon Roy had 30 points, eight rebounds and seven assists to lead the Trail Blazers to a 96-84 victory over the Milwaukee Bucks on Saturday night. Steve Blake added 21 points and tied his season high with six 3-pointers as Portland, playing its fifth game in seven nights, came alive in the second half… ilwaukee opened the game with a 9-0 run capped by a dunk by Charlie Villanueva, who had 26 points.Outlaw, playing for the injured Nicolas Batum, scored 17 for Portland which has been out of the postseason since 2002-03.
The AP reports: With Kevin Garnett playing limited minutes and Paul Pierce scoring limited points, Glen Davis stepped up for the best scoring night of his career. Davis had a career-high 24 points on 8-of-11 shooting, and the Boston Celtics pulled away in the second half for a 105-87 victory over the Memphis Grizzlies on Saturday night… Ray Allen added 20 points and six assists, while Eddie House contributed 15 points as the Celtics won their third straight overall and fifth in a row over the Grizzlies. Garnett, still playing limited minutes in his second game back from a right knee injury, scored 10 points and grabbed four rebounds in 17 minutes… Hakim Warrick scored 20 points for Memphis, which dropped its sixth straight at home and fourth in a row overall. Rudy Gay finished with 15 points on just 5-of-15 shooting, while O.J. Mayo and Mike Conley scored 12 apiece.
The AP reports: A night after getting into an on-court argument with T.J. Ford, Jarrett Jack replaced T.J. Ford at point guard and scored 31 points on 13-of-14 shooting, leading the Indiana Pacers to a dominating 108-83 victory over the Charlotte Bobcats to snap a five-game losing streak… Danny Granger added 21 points and Brandon Rush—who started in Jack’s old spot at shooting guard—scored 15 for Indiana, which outscored Charlotte 33-9 in the third quarter in their best performance in weeks… Gerald Wallace, who had scored at least 25 points in the past three games, got into early foul trouble and finished with three points on 1-of-4 shooting. Raja Bell scored seven points on 3-of-9 shooting that included a 10-second sequence where he threw up an airball and was called for a flagrant foul. Felton shot 3-for-13.
The AP reports: Rashard Lewis scored 27 points, Hedo Turkoglu added 20 and the surging Orlando Magic nearly blew a 15-point lead before holding off the New York Knicks 110-103 on Saturday night. The win kept Orlando (51-18) a game behind Boston—but tied in the loss column—for the Eastern Conference’s second-best record behind Cleveland… Rafer Alston had 17 points, and Dwight Howard battled foul trouble to score 15 for the Magic, who have won nine of their last 11 games. Quentin Richardson scored 33 points, and Nate Robinson added 27 for New York (28-41), which has lost four straight games and was dealt another crushing blow to its already grim playoff hopes.