The AP reports: Ben Gordon issued a warning to the rest of the NBA after teammate Derrick Rose showed off a dizzying array of moves Friday night—the talented rookie is only going to get better. Rose had 18 points and six assists and Gordon scored 23 in the Chicago Bulls’ 100-83 victory over the Phoenix Suns… The Suns played without Shaquille O’Neal, who got the night off as part of a plan to rest him periodically throughout the season… Amare Stoudemire, coming off a 49-point performance against Indiana on Wednesday, finished with 26 points and seven rebounds for the Suns… Steve Nash played only 24 minutes and finished with six points and five assists.
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Matt Barnes now father to twin boys
Phoenix Suns forward Matt Barnes left the team prior to last night’s 113-103 win over the Indiana Pacers to be with his fiancée, Gloria Govin, who gave birth to twin boys, Isaiah Michael Barnes and Carter Kelly Barnes.
The timetable for Barnes’ return is undetermined. The Suns return to action Friday night in Chicago against the Bulls at 6:30 p.m. (Phoenix time).
Nov 5: Suns 113, Pacers 103
The AP reports: Amare Stoudemire scored 49 points, falling a point short of his career high in the Phoenix Suns’ 113-103 victory over Indiana on Wednesday night. Stoudemire was 17-for-21 from the field, made 15 free throws without a miss and had 11 rebounds, six assists and five steals. He just missed his career high of 50 points, set against Portland on Jan. 2, 2005. Boris Diaw added 14 points for the Suns (4-1). T.J. Ford and Danny Granger each scored 23 points, and Marquis Daniels added 19 for the Pacers (1-2). Indiana beat defending NBA champion Boston on Saturday.
Amare drops 49 on Pacers
The AP reports: Amare Stoudemire scored 49 points, falling a point short of his career high in the Phoenix Suns’ 113-103 victory over Indiana on Wednesday night. Stoudemire was 17-for-21 from the field, made 15 free throws without a miss and had 11 rebounds, six assists and five steals. He just missed his career high of 50 points, set against Portland on Jan. 2, 2005.
Matt Barnes out with family issue
The Arizona Republic (Paul Coro) reports: Suns center Shaquille O’Neal is back in the starting lineup for tonight’s game because starting forward Matt Barnes left the team moments ago for a family emergency in the Bay Area.
Nov 4: Suns 114, Nets 86
The AP reports: Raja Bell hit all six of his 3-pointers and scored 22 points, and the Phoenix Suns shot 63 percent from the field in beating the 114-86 on Tuesday night… Nash added 12 points and 11 assists, O’Neal had 18 points and six rebounds, and Stoudemire added 14 points as the Suns won for the third time in four games… Vince Carter had 19 points and Yi Jianlian added 15 and eight rebounds for the Nets, who lost their second straight game… For the game, the Suns were 43-of-68 from the field, and 12-of-18 from 3-point range. The Nets shot 34 percent, hitting 28 of 83 shots.
Nov 1: Suns 107, Blazers 96
The AP reports: Amare Stoudemire scored 16 of his 23 points in the decisive third quarter and Phoenix beat the Trail Blazers 107-96 Saturday night to give Terry Porter his first home victory as Suns coach… Steve Nash had 20 points, including a 3-pointer that put Phoenix ahead 101-90 with 1:48 left. Matt Barnes scored 21, Shaquille O’Neal 16 and Raja Bell 13 for the Suns, who shot 55 percent. Nash also had seven assists. Brandon Roy and Rudy Fernandez scored 20 apiece for Portland. Roy, hounded by Bell much of the night, was 7-of-18 shooting. LaMarcus Aldridge added 16 for the Trail Blazers, coming off a 100-99 home victory over San Antonio on Friday night.
Oct 30: Hornets 108, Suns 95
The AP reports: Chris Paul had 20 points, 10 assists and eight rebounds and New Orleans held off a rally, then pulled away to beat Phoenix 108-95 Thursday night and spoil the home debut of new Suns coach Terry Porter… Peja Stojakovic added 20 points before leaving the game with a sprained right ankle in the first few seconds of the fourth quarter. New Orleans already was without starting center Tyson Chandler, who sprained his right ankle against the Warriors. Morris Peterson added 21 and David West 18 for New Orleans. James Posey scored 13, including three 3-pointers in the fourth quarter… Steve Nash had 24 points and nine assists, and Amare Stoudemire added 21 points and 12 rebounds for Phoenix. The Suns committed 24 turnovers, resulting in 21 New Orleans points, after only 10 in their victory at San Antonio the previous night. Nash had seven turnovers.
2010 All-Star weekend in new Dallas Cowboys stadium
Dallas has been selected as the site of NBA All-Star 2010, Commissioner David Stern, Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban and Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones jointly announced today during a press conference outside the American Airlines Center.
Following the mantra that “everything is bigger in Texas,” the 59th NBA All-Star Game will be played on Sunday, Feb. 14, 2010, at the new Dallas Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, which will have a seating capacity in excess of 80,000. This collaboration between the NBA, and the ownership groups of the Mavericks and Cowboys, will afford all Mavericks season ticket holders a chance to partake in the pageantry of the NBA All-Star Game.
The T-Mobile Rookie Challenge and NBA All-Star Saturday Night festivities will take place at American Airlines Center, home of the Mavericks. 2010 will mark the first time the All-Star competitions are split between two venues since Houston in 1989 when The Summit hosted All-Star Saturday Night and the Astrodome hosted Sunday’s All-Star Game.
“Dallas is a vibrant city with a passionate sports fan base that will embrace the NBA All-Star experience,” said Stern. “We appreciate the collaborative efforts of Mark Cuban and Jerry Jones on what will surely be one of the most memorable basketball events of all time.”
Spurs hack-a-Shaq 5 seconds into game
UPDATE: See the video of it here.
The East Valley Tribune (Jerry Brown) reports: With Shaquille O’Neal’s “coward” comment still ringing in the ears of Spurs fans before Wednesday’s game, a reporter asked San Antonio coach Gregg Popovich if he would consider a mock “Hack-a-Shaq” on the first possession of the game to jokingly prove that he wasn’t backing down from his strategy in last year’s playoffs. Popovich stopped. He ran his fingers through his new white beard. And then he started to grin. “You know, that’s not a bad idea now that I think about it. It’s a better suggestion than any of our (assistant) coaches have had all summer,” Popovich said. “I could get a couple of guys in front of me and act like they were holding me back … a typical NBA fight.” Funny guy. He was just kidding, of course. Right? Sure enough, the Suns won the tip and ex-Sun Michael Finley wrapped his arms around O’Neal to stop play five seconds into the game — a nonshooting foul. O’Neal quickly looked over at Popovich, who gave him two thumbs-up and the two shared a laugh. “Classic Pop. I loved it,” Steve Nash said. “It would have been a fine if he didn’t do it.”