NBA Blog: The NBA basketball news blog section of Inside Hoops
Police say former NBA star Mookie Blaylock remains hospitalized and faces two charges after a fatal crash in suburban Atlanta.
Jonesboro Police Chief Franklin Allen said Sunday that the 46-year-old Blaylock is charged with driving on a suspended license and failing to stay in his lane.
Allen says officers haven’t been able to talk with Blaylock yet because of injuries suffered in the wreck, but they hope to do so as early as Monday.
Reported by the Associated Press
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Indiana Pacers center Roy Hibbert has apologized for using a gay slur and cursing during his news conference after Game 6 of the Eastern Conference finals.
The team issued a statement from Hibbert on Sunday morning in which he said he was sorry for his ”insensitive remarks.”
”They were disrespectful and offensive and not a reflection of my personal views,” he said in the statement. ”I used a slang term that is not appropriate in any setting, private or public, and the language I used definitely has no place in a public forum, especially over live television.”
After Saturday night’s win, Hibbert ended a response to a question about his defense on Miami’s LeBron James with ”no homo.” He also referred to reporters as ”y’all (expletive).”
Reported by the Associated Press
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Yes, Wade’s knee has been troublesome for weeks; Bosh turned an ankle in the series. They’re still commanded to find a way, because champions do.
“My rhythm seems off,” Bosh said. “It’s been like that the whole series.”
This is no time for rhythm, only results. The Pacers’ David West played with a 103-degree fever, a league source told Yahoo! Sports, and somehow he delivered on a night that started out with him missing seven straight shots, with his coach telling him, “You have nothing tonight” and trying to take him out of the game.
West refused to sit and played his part in pushing the Heat back to Miami for a Game 7. If the Heat are still going to get past Indiana on Monday night, there promises to be a terrific toll taken on them with the San Antonio Spurs awaiting in the NBA Finals. Yes, Boston pushed Miami to a Game 7 a year ago, but Bosh had returned late in the series and Miami gathered momentum as those conference finals unfolded. Now, they gather doubt.
Chris Andersen comes back for Game 7, and history suggests that Wade loves creating these desperate scenarios for himself – only to rise again to the cheers of the adoring South Florida masses. And yet, to watch these Heat now, it is impossible to imagine how they won 27 straight games this season. That feels like a different team, a different season.
This is a grind for Miami, dominance left far, far back in the distance. This is sheer survival now. So yes, James played the part of the cheerleading, optimist leader late Saturday night, professing a belief in his heart when perhaps a different truth about his teammates exists in his eyes.
Reported by Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports
The Indiana Pacers stayed alive in the Eastern Conference finals with a 91-77 win over Miami Saturday night at Bankers Life Fieldhouse and will return to South Florida for a winner-take-all game on Monday.
Paul George scored 28 points and Roy Hibbert added 24 and 11 rebounds as Indiana survived a furious Miami rally midway through the second half and then pulled away in the final five minutes.
“We knew they would make a run,” George said. “That’s just us staying together, being poised. We shared the ball. We made huge plays when we needed to. It’s a credit to our guys playing their hearts out.”
James led the Heat with 29 points, seven rebounds and six assists but was mostly a solo performer as Miami endured a brutal offensive performance. The Heat shot 36.1 percent from the field and scored just 37 points in the second half. Indiana dominated the glass 53-32, including a 26-9 margin after halftime.
“We hate to be in this position,” James said, “but it’s an opportunity we look forward to. We worked all season to get home-court advantage. There are 30 teams that would love to have one game to advance to the NBA Finals. You can’t substitute this feeling, this atmosphere. At the end of the day, you just go out and have fun.”
Reported by Chris Goff of the Sports Xchange
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Indiana staggered Miami with one more big punch Saturday night.
Now the Pacers have a fighting chance to pull off a stunning playoff upset.
Roy Hibbert did everything but pull out the boxing gloves in Game 6, finishing with 24 points and 11 rebounds, and continually contesting Miami’s shots to help Indiana stave off elimination with an emphatic 91-77 victory over the defending champs.
Paul George scored 28 points, had eight rebounds and five assists, and the Pacers held Miami to 36.1 percent shooting as they booked a trip back to Miami for Game 7 on Monday night.
”Myself and David (West), we throw ourselves in the fray, in the paint. We like to muck it up,” Hibbert said. ”Paul and myself, we wanted to make sure we got this for him as well. We didn’t want this to be our last game.” …
The Pacers had a 53-33 rebounding advantage, outscored Miami 44-22 in the paint and limited Miami’s shooters to 16 of 54, 29.6 percent, from inside the arc.
James led the Heat with 29 points on 10-of-21 shooting. Nobody else scored more than 10…
With Chris ”Birdman” Andersen suspended for the game because of a shoving incident with Indiana forward Tyler Hansbrough on Thursday, the Heat couldn’t keep up with Indiana’s big rebounders inside. Even Lance Stephenson, who was not effective at Miami, finished with four points, 12 rebounds and four assists…
The Heat rallied early in the fourth, taking advantage of Indiana’s 1 for 6 start from the field. When Mike Miller hit back-to-back 3s, the Pacers’ lead was down to 70-64 and when James scored on a layup with 5:54 to play, the Heat were within 72-68.
But the run ended abruptly when George hit a 3, Miami’s Joel Anthony was called for a loose ball foul on the offensive end and David West grabbed an offensive rebound and scored on a dunk to extend the lead to 77-68. Then came the technical flurry that finished it off.
West scored 11 points and had 14 rebounds despite playing with an upper respiratory infection that prompted Vogel to send him home early from the Pacers’ morning shootaround.
Reported by Michael Marot of the Associated Press
The Sacramento Kings will introduce former Golden State assistant Mike Malone as their head coach on Monday.
The news conference to announce Malone’s hiring will come three days after new owner Vivek Ranadive officially took control of the franchise from the Maloof family, a team official said on condition of anonymity because no announcement had been made.
Malone replaces Keith Smart, who was fired Friday shortly after the sale of the team was completed.
Ranadive has been a minority owner the past three seasons of the Warriors, where Malone worked the past two seasons as an assistant under coach Mark Jackson.
Reported by Josh Dubow of the Associated Press
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The Los Angeles Clippers today announced that seven-time NBA All-Star Grant Hill will retire after 19 seasons.
For more than two decades, Hill, 40, has been one of the most recognizable basketball players in the world, highlighted by a standout collegiate career at Duke, an Olympic gold medal with Team USA at the 1996 Olympics and an illustrious NBA career that saw him earn five All-NBA honors and the 1994-95 Co-Rookie of the Year Award.
“The entire Clippers organization wants to congratulate Grant on an incredible career,” Clippers Vice President of Basketball Operations Gary Sacks said. “For 19 years, Grant has always been the embodiment of class, a true professional and not only one of the best players – but one of the finest individuals I have been around. We were fortunate to have Grant with us last season, and we wish him all the best in his next endeavor.”
Hill finishes his career with averages of 16.7 points, 6.0 rebounds, 4.1 assists, 1.2 steals in 33.9 minutes per game. In his only season in Los Angeles, Hill appeared in 29 games and averaged 3.2 points, 1.7 rebounds and 0.9 assists in 15.1 minutes per game. He appeared in his 1,000th NBA game on Jan. 15, 2013 against the Houston Rockets. Hill played in 1,026 total NBA games (972 starts) and connected on 48.3 percent of his field goals, 31.4 percent from behind the 3-point line and 76 percent of his free throws over his career.
Hill was named to the All-NBA First Team in 1997 and the All-NBA Second Team in 1996, 1998, 1999 and 2000. He also won the NBA’s Sportsmanship Award in 2005, 2008 and 2010.
Originally selected with the third overall selection in the 1994 NBA Draft by the Detroit Pistons, Hill was named Co-Rookie of the Year (Jason Kidd – Dallas Mavericks) after posting averages of 19.9 points, 6.4 rebounds, 5.0 assists, 1.8 steals and 38.3 minutes in 70 games played. He was also named to the NBA’s All-Rookie First Team that season and made history by becoming the first rookie to lead the NBA in All-Star fan balloting.
After leaving Detroit prior to the 2000-01 season, Hill spent seven seasons with the Orlando Magic in which he was limited to just 200 games due to injuries to his left ankle.
Before joining the Clippers for 2012-13, Hill spent five seasons with the Phoenix Suns. In 2010-11, Hill became the seventh player in NBA history to average 13 or more points at the age of 38 or older.
A member of the 1996 United States Olympic Team, Hill helped lead the U.S. to the gold medal. He was also selected to the 2000 Olympic Team but did not play due to injury.
Hill entered the NBA after a prolific four-year collegiate career at Duke University (1991-1994), where he helped lead the Blue Devils to back-to-back National Championships in 1991 and 1992. Hill was named the nation’s top defensive player in 1993 and was named ACC Player of the Year in 1994.
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Nate Robinson, who will be an unrestricted free agent come July 1, would be open to returning to the Knicks, according to his agent, Aaron Goodwin.
“Nate’s first thought would be to remain with the Bulls, but if the Knicks’ opportunity presented itself, I am sure he would appreciate an opportunity to play in New York again,” he told ESPNNewYork.com.
Robinson started his NBA career in New York, where he played four-and-a-half seasons before being traded to the Celtics in Feb. 2010. During his time with the Knicks, he averaged 12.5 points, 2.8 assists and nearly one steal in about 25 minutes per game.
Since then, Robinson has played for the Celtics, Thunder and Warriors, and he just wrapped up his first stint in Chicago, where he became one of the top playoff performers.
Reported by Jared Zwerling of ESPN New York
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Nate Robinson, who will be an unrestricted free agent come July 1, would be open to returning to the Knicks, according to his agent, Aaron Goodwin.
“Nate’s first thought would be to remain with the Bulls, but if the Knicks’ opportunity presented itself, I am sure he would appreciate an opportunity to play in New York again,” he told ESPNNewYork.com.
Robinson started his NBA career in New York, where he played four-and-a-half seasons before being traded to the Celtics in Feb. 2010. During his time with the Knicks, he averaged 12.5 points, 2.8 assists and nearly one steal in about 25 minutes per game.
Since then, Robinson has played for the Celtics, Thunder and Warriors, and he just wrapped up his first stint in Chicago, where he became one of the top playoff performers.
Reported by Jared Zwerling of ESPN New York
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Indiana Pacers starting power forward David West missed the team’s morning shootaround at Bankers Life Fieldhouse because of an upper respiratory infection.
West showed up for shootaround, but coach Frank Vogel sent him back home.
The Pacers say West will play in tonight’s pivotal Game 6 against the Miami Heat. The Pacers needs to win tonight to force a deciding Game 7 back in Miami on Monday.
“Any time a guy isn’t a hundred percent it’s a concern, but we know he’s a gamer,” Vogel said. “He’ll get his rest and his fluids this afternoon and be ready to go. I don’t anticipate it’s going to be an issue.”
Reported by Mike Wells of the Indianapolis Star