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Joakim Noah continues to battle foot problems

The Nets are bringing postseason basketball to Brooklyn, and Joakim Noah might have to miss the party.

Noah, who grew up in New York, is battling foot problems and might be sidelined when the series opens Saturday, leaving the Chicago Bulls without their top option to defend Nets All-Star center Brook Lopez.

”It’s really hard, it’s really hard,” Noah said Friday. ”All the work you put in is to play in this situation. This is probably one of the hardest things I’ve had to deal with in my career right now. Going back home and playing in these playoff games means the world to me. Not being able to be ready for that is hard. I’m going to try and do everything I can to help the team.”

Noah’s absence could make a huge difference in what shapes up as a competitive series between the Nos. 4 and 5 seeds in the Eastern Conference. Chicago won three of the four meetings during the regular season, but only one game was decided by more than four points.

— Reported by Brian Mahoney of the Associated Press

Brandon Jennings sticks up for his Bucks

Brandon Jennings smiled when asked about his Thursday night prediction of the Bucks over the Miami Heat in six.

Hey, somebody had to stick up for the Bucks, right?

“We were joking around,” Jennings said after the Bucks practice session Friday at the Cousins Center. “I was joking around with Aaron Rodgers before I even said it.

“Of course it’s always going to be taken to the next level. But at the end of the day, we’re getting bashed on ESPN. We’re getting bashed on TNT, anyway. Now that I say we’ll win in six, now it’s a problem.”

— Reported by Charles F. Gardner of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel (Blog)

Celtics players reaction to Boston Marathon attack

“Our sympathies and condolences go out to all of the families that were affected by this disaster in Boston,” Jason Terry said. “And the Boston people who are constricted to their homes right now while they try to find these people that have done this terrible thing. We’re thinking about it, but, again, fortunately we got out of there in time, so we’re not too distracted. But they are in our thoughts.”

“Well you can’t help but to see it,” echoed Paul Pierce. “You wake up, turn on the Internet, it’s cause for concern, especially with us having families in the areas that these situations are happening in. I got phone calls from home, the whole city’s locked down, especially in the area where I live at, so it’s definitely a concern. You worry. But, we’re here, there’s nothing we can really do about it. Hopefully everything takes care of itself back home with the law enforcement doing what they have to do to secure the situation.”

Added Kevin Garnett: “The city’s crazy, man. I think everybody’s kind of trying to at least focus in a little bit on, obviously, our game and the playoffs. But the obvious thing is everybody’s worried, also. I hope everybody back home, especially in the whole New England area, is OK, and safe.”

— Reported by Chris Forsberg of ESPN Boston

Byron Scott disappointed that Cavs fired him

Former Cavaliers coach Byron Scott told The Plain Dealer today that he didn’t think he got a fair shake from the team that fired him on Thursday.

“I’m disappointed, more than anything,” Scott said in a telephone interview. “I don’t think I got a fair shake.”

Scott was informed of his firing on Thursday morning, after the team lost 16 of its last 18 games to finish this season 24-58. That gave him a three-year record of 64-166.

He said he spent several hours at the Cavs practice facility in Independence on Thursday, exchanging words, hugs and tears with players before leaving about 2 p.m. He expects to return to his home in California on Saturday, but will come back at least once to pack up his office.

“I’ll land on my feet,” he said.

— Reported by Mary Schmitt Boyer of the Cleveland Plain Dealer

Trail Blazers waive Jared Jeffries

The Portland Trail Blazers have waived forward Jared Jeffries, General Manager Neil Olshey announced today.

In 38 games during his only season with the Trail Blazers, Jeffries averaged 1.2 points and 1.6 rebounds in 9.2 minutes per game in 2012-13.

In 11 career NBA seasons, Jeffries has averaged 4.8 points, 4.1 rebounds and 21.6 minutes in 629 games (335 starts) with Washington, New York, Houston and Portland.

Mike Woodson and Mike D`Antoni named NBA Coaches of Month for April 2013

The New York Knicks’ Mike Woodson and the Los Angeles Lakers’ Mike D’Antoni today were named the NBA Eastern and Western Conference Coaches of the Month, respectively, for games played in April.

Woodson led the Knicks to an 8-2 month, tied for the most wins in the league in April with the Miami Heat. New York collected wins over four Eastern Conference Playoff teams — Atlanta (twice), Indiana, Miami and Milwaukee and finished the season 54-28 (.659). The Knicks surpassed the 50-win plateau for the first time since 1999-2000 under Woodson, and notched the best home record in the East at 31-10 (.756).

D’Antoni guided the Lakers to a share (Denver, Los Angeles Clippers) of the best record in the conference in April at 7-1 (.875). The Lakers won five straight games to close the season, including three over Western Conference playoff teams – Golden State, San Antonio and Houston, the final two without the services of Kobe Bryant (torn Achilles tendon). The seventh-seeded Lakers finished the season 45-37 (.549).

Other nominees for Coach of the Month were Brooklyn’s P.J. Carlesimo, Denver’s George Karl, Memphis’ Lionel Hollins, Miami’s Erik Spoelstra and Oklahoma City’s Scott Brooks.

Detroit Pistons fire coach Lawrence Frank

Detroit Pistons President of Basketball Operations Joe Dumars announced today that Lawrence Frank will not return as the team’s head coach.

“We thank Lawrence for his hard work and dedication, but we feel it is in the best interest of the franchise to make a change at this time,” said Dumars. “Decisions like this are never easy and we wish Lawrence well in the future.”

Frank, who was named head coach on August 3, 2011, tallied a regular-season record of 54-94 (.365) in two seasons with the Pistons.

This past regular season, which ended yesterday, the Pistons compiled a 29-53 record, tied for 23rd best in the league out of 30 teams.

NBA anti-flopping rules for playoffs

The NBA has set the league’s anti-flopping disciplinary schedule to be used during the 2013 Playoffs, NBA Executive Vice President, Basketball Operations Stu Jackson announced today.

“Flopping” is defined as any physical act that appears to have been intended to cause the referees to call a foul on another player. The primary factor in determining whether a player committed a flop is whether his physical reaction to contact with another player is inconsistent with what would reasonably be expected given the force or direction of the contact.

The NBA’s anti-flopping rule, adopted at the beginning of the 2012-13 season, had 24 violations during the 2012-13 regular season. Fourteen players received warnings while five players received a $5,000 fine for violating the anti-flopping rule twice.

Physical acts that constitute legitimate basketball plays (such as moving to a spot in order to draw an offensive foul) and minor physical reactions to contact are not deemed to be flops.

Any player who is determined to have committed a flop during the 2013 Playoffs will be subject to the following:

Violation 1: $5,000 fine

Violation 2: $10,000 fine

Violation 3: $15,000 fine

Violation 4: $30,000 fine

If a player violates the anti-flopping rule five times or more, he will be subject to discipline that is reasonable under the circumstances, including an increased fine and/or suspension.

Hornets officially renamed the New Orleans Pelicans

Following last night’s final game of the 2012-13 season, the New Orleans Hornets officially took on the team’s new identity as the New Orleans Pelicans. The team will participate in its first NBA event as the Pelicans on May 21 at the 2013 NBA Draft Lottery.

“We have been looking forward to this day since we announced the Pelicans as the new name,” said Owner Tom Benson. “The Pelican is a symbol for our city and region and we’re excited to start a new era in Louisiana basketball history. This off-season is going to be a special time for the Pelicans.”

Benson announced on Jan. 24 that at the conclusion of the 2012-13 season, the name of the team will become the Pelicans, adopting an identity that will represent the culture and resolve of the Gulf Coast region while also symbolizing Louisiana’s most pressing initiative of coastal restoration and wildlife conservation. Benson introduced the team’s new logos, as well as color scheme, during the announcement.

The Pelicans’ colors are blue, gold and red. The team’s primary color, blue, is taken from Louisiana’s state flag. The Pelicans and Saints share the color gold, uniting the organizations, while celebrating the spirited life of New Orleans and its many celebrations (gold is also a commonly found color on the “crown” of the pelican). Red represents fraternity and is indicative of the blood provision of the mother pelican and the vibrant color underneath the pelican’s throat. All three colors are found on the flag of the City of New Orleans.

Cleveland Cavaliers fire coach Byron Scott

The Cleveland Cavaliers have released Head Coach Byron Scott, the team announced today from Cleveland Clinic Courts. The announcement was made by Cavaliers General Manager Chris Grant.

“I have tremendous respect for Byron professionally and a great deal of admiration for him personally. At the same time, it is critical for where we are as a team to ensure that we capitalize on every opportunity for development and success and we have fallen short of that on the court,” said Grant. “I believe we needed to make this change in order to get to a better position to achieve our goals. I know I speak on behalf of the entire Cavs organization and the Cleveland community, in thanking Byron for his three years here and his hard work and many contributions on and off the court. We wish Bryon and his wife, Anita, the best.”

Scott, 52, was named the 18th head coach in Cleveland Cavaliers history on July 1, 2010. The Cavaliers’ record during Scott’s tenure as Head Coach was 64-166.

“I want to thank Chris Grant, Dan Gilbert and the Cavaliers organization for the opportunity I had to coach this team the last three seasons,” said Scott. “Anita and I have enjoyed our time here in Cleveland and greatly appreciate the support we received from this special community and the many friendships we developed. I am certainly proud of the progress that many of our players have made and greatly appreciate the dedication of my coaches and our team in our efforts to attain the success we all desired.”

The Cavaliers will immediately commence a search, led by General Manager Chris Grant, for the team’s next head coach.

“I wish Byron Scott and his entire family the best going forward. Byron is a class guy, both on and off the court, and I thank him for his three years of coaching the Cavaliers,” said Cavaliers majority owner Dan Gilbert.

“I fully support the difficult move that was made today. Although we saw progress with young individual player development, we did not see the kind of progress we expected on the team level this past season. We understand it was challenging with the injuries, but when you are at our stage in the building process, you don’t only measure team progress in wins and losses.

It has been our strong and stated belief that when our team once again returns to competing at the NBA’s highest levels it will be because we have achieved our goals on the defensive side of the court.

Our fans have been incredibly loyal and supportive during these transition years. They deserve better than we have been delivering as of late and it is our full intent to deliver them the kind of competitive team that they expect to see on the court beginning next season,” Gilbert concluded.

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