The Atlanta Journal-Constitution (Sekou Smith) reports: Hawks coach Mike Woodson didn’t realize he’d still be auditioning for his job at this late date. Yet nearly a month after the Hawks’ stunning playoff run ended in a Game 7 defeat in Boston, Woodson and his staff are still in limbo regarding their futures. Contracts expire June 30 and now a new general manager, Rick Sund, who was hired Wednesday to replace Billy Knight, has to evaluate the Hawks’ entire basketball operations staff before rendering decisions on who stays and who goes. Sund repeated Thursday the same thing he said a day earlier, that he’ll “spend the next week and half or so being a good listener and getting a lay of the land” before doing anything.
Category: NBA Teams
NBA teams blog
May 29: Lakers 100, Spurs 92
The AP reports: Kobe Bryant and the Los Angeles Lakers dispatched the defending champions, and are headed to the NBA finals for the first time in four years. Bryant scored 17 of his 39 points in the fourth quarter, and the Lakers rallied from an early 17-point deficit to beat the San Antonio Spurs 100-92 on Thursday night and win the Western Conference finals in five games… A 3-pointer by Luke Walton and baskets by Jordan Farmar and Bryant gave the Lakers a 74-68 lead with 8 1/2 minutes remaining, and they were on top the rest of the way. The Spurs led by as many as 10 points early in the third quarter, but the Lakers turned up their defensive intensity during a 19-8 run that gave them a 61-60 lead—their first since the opening minute. Bryant scored nine points during the spurt. Los Angeles led 64-63 entering the final period. The Spurs got 3-pointers from Finley, Ginobili and Barry during a 15-1 run that gave them a 33-16 lead early in the second quarter. The Lakers went nearly 7 1/2 minutes without a field goal until Farmar scored three straight baskets to trim San Antonio’s lead to 11.
InsideHoops.com Stat Notes: The Spurs shot 48.6%, the Lakers 44.7%, but the Lakers took 85 shots, the Spurs 74. The Spurs also nailed 7-of-15 three-pointers, the Lakers 8-of-21, which is still good. Both teams shot 18 free throws, but the Lakers hit a few more. The Lakers grabbed a few more rebounds, but the Spurs had 22 assists, the Lakers 16. Overall, the Lakers shit two more field goals, one more three-pointer, and three more free throws.
For the Lakers, Kobe Bryant (16-of-30) had 39 points, 2 steals, and not too much else. Lamar Odom (5-of-10) had 13 points, 8 rebounds and little else. Pau Gasol (just 5-of-15) had 12 points, 19 rebounds, 5 assists and 4 blocks. Sasha Vujacoc scored 9 with 3 steals, and Vladimir Radmanovic and Jordan Farmar each scored 8.
For the Spurs, Tony Parker (11-of-22) scored 23 with 4 assists. Tim Duncan (just 7-of-19, just 5-of-10 free throws) had 19 points, 15 rebounds and 10 assists. Mike Finley (4-of-9) had 13 points and 4 rebounds. Brent Barry and Kurt Thomas both shot very well for 11 points each, and Thomas had 7 rebounds (but 3 turnovers). Manu Ginobili (just 3-of-9) had 9 points, 7 rebounds, 2 blocks, and the same turnovers as assists. Bruce Bowen had 3 steals and little else, offensively at least, in almost 38 minutes.
NBA fines Rasheed Wallace
Rasheed Wallace of the Detroit Pistons has been fined $25,000 for his use of profanity and criticism of the officiating following last night’s game, it was announced today by Stu Jackson, NBA Executive Vice President, Basketball Operations.
Wallace made his comments to the media following the Pistons’ 106-102 loss to the Celtics in Game 5 of the 2008 NBA Eastern Conference Finals in Boston.
Doug Collins is Bulls coaching candidate
“I have spoken with Bulls management recently about their head coaching vacancy and will resume conversations after the conclusion of my work for TNT in the Western Conference Finals. There is no agreement in place.” Doug Collins
Here is Jim Paxson from the Bulls today: “I have been in contact with Doug Collins in regard to our head coaching position. Contrary to some reports that are currently out there, we have not reached an agreement. Right now, his commitment is covering the Western Conference Finals for TNT. When that series concludes, we will continue our dialogue. In the meantime, I will continue to talk to other candidates and review our options.”
May 28: Celtics 106, Pistons 102
The AP reports: Boston’s three All-Stars finally put it all together to move the Celtics one win away from the NBA finals for the first time since the original Big Three’s heyday. Ray Allen scored 29, hitting a long 2-pointer with a minute left after Detroit came within one point, then he and Kevin Garnett each made a pair of free throws down the stretch as the Celtics beat the Detroit Pistons 106-102 in Game 5 of the Eastern Conference finals on Wednesday night… Kendrick Perkins had career playoff highs with 18 points and 16 rebounds, and Rajon Rondo added seven points, 13 assists, six rebounds and four steals for Boston. Paul Pierce scored 13 of his 16 points in the first half, when Perkins outrebounded the Pistons 13-11 by himself… Chauncey Billups scored 26 and Richard Hamilton had 25 points for Detroit, which has reached the conference finals six consecutive years but played for the championship just twice and won once in that span… Rasheed Wallace picked up a technical with 5:18 left in the game. It was his sixth of the postseason, and his next earns him a one-game suspension.
Ticker reports: Kevin Garnett poured in a game-high 33 points while Kendrick Perkins added 18 points and 16 rebounds as the Celtics defeated the Detroit Pistons, 106-102, to take a 3-2 lead in the best-of-seven series… Hamilton strained his right elbow with 8.2 seconds left but X-rays were negative… Afterward, the volatile Wallace tore into officials Mike Callahan and Ken Mauer. “All them (garbage) calls they had out there,” Wallace said. “Mike and Kenny, you saw that (garbage), a lot of them phantom calls, cats flapping and falling, they’re calling that (garbage). That (garbage) ain’t basketball, what they run out there. It’s all entertainment, all that (bleeping) entertainment.” … Detroit took command of the game early in the second, building an eight-point lead. But the Celtics went on a 16-4 run to end the first half, highlighted by Garnett’s desperation 3-point bank shot as the shot clock expired with 1:23 remaining before halftime.
Hawks new GM will be Rick Sund
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution (Sekou Smith) reports: The Hawks have reached an agreement with former Seattle general manager Rick Sund, who will be announced Wednesday afternoon as the team’s new general manager. The hiring of Sund, 56, wraps up a nearly four-week hiring process the Hawks kept under wraps. Sund, a consultant for the Sonics this past year after being reassigned by a new ownership group in April 2007, will take over for Billy Knight, who resigned after six years with the franchise, the last five as general manager.
May 27: Lakers 93, Spurs 91
The AP reports: Kobe Bryant and the Los Angeles Lakers are one win away from returning to the NBA finals. Bryant had 28 points and 10 rebounds and the Lakers beat the San Antonio Spurs 93-91 on Tuesday night to take a 3-1 lead in the Western Conference finals. It was the Spurs’ first home loss this postseason, and the defending champions face elimination when Game 5 is played in Los Angeles on Thursday. Tim Duncan led the Spurs with 29 points and 17 rebounds. Reserve Brent Barry had 23 points and his last-second 3-point attempt could have given the Spurs the win. He claimed he was fouled on the play by Derek Fisher but there was no call… The Lakers led all game after opening a 22-8 lead. The Spurs got within 81-79 in the fourth quarter, but the Lakers scored seven straight points… The Lakers were up 77-70 heading into the fourth quarter. Barry’s 3 brought the Spurs within 77-75 and his running jumper got them to 79-77… Los Angeles came out with energy and took advantage of sloppy play by the Spurs to lead by as many as 14 points in the first quarter.
InsideHoops.com Stat Notes: The Lakers shot 44.7%, the Spurs 40.0%. But the Spurs shot a bit better from three-point range (though under 30%) and hit 24-of-26 free throws, the Lakers 14-of-19. The Lakers had 9 more rebounds, but the Spurs had 5 more assists. And the Lakers had 14 turnovers, the Spurs just 8.
For the Lakers, Bryant (14-of-29) had 28 points, 10 rebounds and just 1 assist. Lamar Odom on just 9 shots (and 8-of-9 free throws) had 16 points and 9 rebounds. Vladimir Radmanovic (5-of-8) scored 11 with 6 rebounds. Pau Gasol (4-of-7) had 10 points, 10 rebounds, 6 assists and 2 blocks. Luke Walton needed 10 shots for 9 points off the bench.
For the Spurs, Tim Duncan shot just 10-of-26 (plus 9-of-11 free throws) for 29 points, 17 rebounds, 3 steals and 3 blocks. Tony Parker (8-of-17, 7-of-7 free throws) scored 23 plus 4 rebounds and 9 assists and just one turnover. Brent Barry (7-of-14, 5-of-12 threes) had 23 points, 5 rebounds and 2 steals in 27 minutes off the bench. Francisco Oberto, Mike Finley, Robert Horry and Ime Udoka did very little. Manu Ginobili in 36 minutes off the bench was lousy, shooting 2-of-8 for 7 points and 7 assists.
Cavs assistant GM Chris Grant not joining Hawks
The Cleveland Plain Dealer (Branson Wright) reports: Assistant general manager Chris Grant will remain with the Cavaliers despite rumors that he was a lock to become the General Manager of the Atlanta Hawks. Grant, according to a source close to the situation, turned down an offer made by the Hawks.
Kings exercise option on Geoff Petrie
The Sacramento Kings and Maloof family today exercised the option on President of Basketball Operations Geoff Petrie’s contract for the 2009-10 season.
“We’ve had the privilege of working with Geoff for the past nine years and consider him to be the best general manager in the NBA,” explained Kings owner Joe Maloof. “He’s respected league-wide for his dedication to the game, innovation, scouting and diligence. We look forward to our continued work with Geoff as we bring the Kings back to prominence.”
A two-time NBA Executive of the Year award winner, Petrie has been a key figure behind the success of the Sacramento Kings over the past 14 years.
“I want to thank Joe, Gavin, and the rest of the Maloof family for their ongoing trust, loyalty and support,” said Petrie. “We are all committed to working diligently in the present so as to ensure a more productive, exciting and entertaining future for our fans, players and staff.”
Under Petrie’s direction, the Kings have qualified for the NBA Playoffs in eight of the past 10 campaigns and nine of the past 13 years overall, while winning Pacific Division titles in 2001-02 and 2002-03 and advancing to the 2002 Western Conference Finals. Between 2000-01 and 2004-05, Sacramento joined San Antonio and Dallas as the only teams in the league to register 50-plus wins in each of those years.
When Petrie was named The Sporting News NBA Executive of the Year following the 1998-99 campaign, he became the first person to win both the league’s executive and rookie annual awards. Petrie shared the 1971 NBA Rookie of the Year award with Boston’s Dave Cowens. Following the 2000-01 season, Petrie was named the Sporting News Executive of the Year for a second time.
May 26: Pistons 94, Celtics 75
The AP reports: Playing his best game playoff game in perhaps a decade, Antonio McDyess had 21 points and 16 rebounds to lift Detroit to a 94-75 series-evening win over the Boston Celtics on Monday night in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference finals… Boston’s Big Three shot awfully as did most of the Celtics, but the NBA’s top-seeded team stayed competitive for much of the game thanks to a stark disparity in free throws. Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce and Ray Allen combined to miss their first seven shots and finished 11-for-38 from the field… Detroit scored the first 10 points of the game and started the second quarter with an 11-2 run, but led just 43-39 at halftime. The Celtics stayed in the game by making 17 of 20 free throws in the first half while Detroit was 5-for-9… The Celtics fell to 1-7 on the road and 0-6 when trailing after three quarters.
InsideHoops.com Stat Notes: The Pistons shot 51.4%, the Celtics just 31.8%. Both teams shot 9 threes but barely hit any. The Celtics had 32-of-39 free throws, the Pistons 20-of-26. Boston had a few more rebounds, but the Pistons won the assists category, 27-12. And the Pistons only had 7 turnovers, the Celtics 14. The pistons won the blocks category, 10-3 (Rasheed Wallace 5 blocks).
For the Pistons, McDyess (8-of-14) had 21 points and 16 rebounds. Richard Hamilton (8-of-10) had 20 points and 7 assists. Rasheed Wallace (6-of-9) had 14 points, just 5 rebounds, but 5 blocks. Jason Maxiell (6-of-6) scored 14 off the bench. Chauncey Billups (just 3-of-12) had 10 points, 7 assists and 2 steals.
For the Celtics, Kevin Garnett (just 6-of-16) had 16 points, 10 rebounds and 2 blocks. Paul Pierce (awful 3-of-14) had 16 points, 8 rebounds and 4 turnovers with just 1 assist. Ray Allen (awful 2-of-8 but 7-of-9 free throws) scored 11 with little else. James Posey on 6 shots had 11 off the bench. Kendrick Perkins (4-of-6) had 10 points and 6 rebounds. Rajon Rondo (awful 2-of-8) had just 4 points and 4 assists.