NBA Blog: The NBA basketball news blog section of Inside Hoops
The following is a report from Syracuse Athletics:
Syracuse University sophomore men’s basketball center Fab Melo did not travel with the team to Pittsburgh, and will not take part in the NCAA Tournament due to an eligibility issue. Given University policy and federal student privacy laws, no further details can be provided at this time.
The AP reports: Glen Rice Jr. has been kicked off the Georgia Tech basketball team after being charged in a shooting incident outside an Atlanta nightclub. Coach Brian Gregory made the announcement Tuesday, less than a week after Rice, a graduate student manager and another person were charged. The 6-foot-5 junior guard will remain enrolled at school and complete his academic requirements for spring semester.
And direct from Georgia Tech: “It’s an honor and a privilege to represent Georgia Tech and be a part of this basketball program,” Gregory said. “There are certain standards that have to be met both on and off the court, and there has to be accountability when those standards aren’t met. I’m disappointed that we have to take this action. “Glen has done well in school, and we want to make sure he finishes the semester strong, and then we’ll assist him in any way we can with his next steps as a student-athlete.” Rice had been suspended from the team for the final six games of the 2011-12 season, and also had served a three-game suspension at the beginning of the season. Rice averaged 13.0 points and 6.7 rebounds for the Yellow Jackets last season, and had three-year career averages of 9.9 points and 4.8 rebounds.
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Former NBA star Stephon Marbury has denied hitting a fan after a testy playoff loss in a Chinese Basketball Association game.
The 35-year-old Marbury and his Beijing Ducks teammates were trapped in their team van after their 102-100 road loss on Sunday to the Shanxi Brave Dragons, Marbury’s original team when he joined the league in 2010. A newspaper photograph showed fans pounding on the windows of the van.
Marbury was quoted Tuesday by the official China Daily as saying he and the fans had been separated by guards. However, he disputed reports he’d hit a fan.
“I didn’t do that,” Marbury said. “How could I do that over the security guards?”
Marbury scored 25 points in the game that was interrupted for 10 minutes as Shanxi fans threw water bottles onto the court to protest what they deemed to be a bad call.
— Reported by the Associated Press
Dick Harter, who died Monday at his Hilton Head, S.C. home, was the first coach the Charlotte Hornets hired. Most of us had not experienced the NBA when the Hornets played their first game in 1988. We looked to Harter for guidance.
On the court, he was so rigid he should have been wearing a whistle.
“He was old school, he demanded a lot, and you always knew where you stood,” says Dell Curry, the Charlotte Bobcats’ broadcaster who played for the first Hornets’ teams. “People either wanted to play for him or they didn’t.”
Off the court, Harter was candid and funny and interested in almost everything. I can say with some certainty that he is the only head coach of a major Charlotte team to ride through Myers Park on a two-seat bike with his wife, Mary, in back and their pet rabbit in a basket in front.
— Reported by the Charlotte Observer
The AP reports:
Derrick Rose scored 32 points and the Chicago Bulls beat New York 104-99 on Monday night, handing the Knicks their sixth straight loss.
Rose shot 12 of 29 from the floor and had six rebounds and seven assists as the Bulls got their 10th win in 11 games.
Taj Gibson had 15 points and a team-high 13 boards for Chicago, which outrebounded New ork 56-38. The Bulls entered the game leading the league in rebounding margin.
Carmelo Anthony led the Knicks with 21 points and Amare Stoudemire added 20, but the two combined for just seven points in the fourth quarter as the Bulls pulled away.
Ronald Tillery of the Memphis Commercial Appeal reports:
Grizzlies forward Rudy Gay has a mild concussion and could miss Tuesday’s home game against the Los Angeles Lakers.
Team doctors confirmed Gay’s condition today after re-evaluating him. Gay left Sunday’s win at Denver with concussion-like symptoms after he received an inadvertent elbow to the head from Denver center Nene.
Under the terms of the NBA’s new protocol for concussions and other head injuries, Gay will have to satisfy a strict set of criteria before being allowed back on the floor.
The AP reports:
Cavaliers coach Byron Scott says center Anderson Varejao’s broken right wrist will not be re-examined by doctors until next week.
Varejao has been out since Feb. 10, when he broke his wrist during a game against Milwaukee. The Cavs expected Varejao to miss from 4 to 6 weeks and were initially optimistic he would return sooner. One of the NBA’s top rebounders, Varejao continues to wear a wrap on his wrist. He has not yet resumed basketball activities and has been limited to working on his stamina.
The Milwaukee Bucks’ Ersan Ilyasova and the Golden State Warriors’ Monta Ellis today were named the Eastern and Western Conference Players of the Week, respectively, for games played Monday, March 5, through Sunday, March 11.
Ilyasova led the Bucks to a 3-1 week, including wins over the 76ers and Knicks. Ilyasova averaged 25.0 points while shooting .638 from the field, .900 from the foul line, and .667 from distance, to go along with 10.8 rebounds and 1.5 assists. Ilyasova posted three point-rebound double-doubles, including a 31-point, 12-rebound effort to close the week in a 105-99 win over the Raptors on March 11.
Ellis helped the Warriors to a 3-1 week behind averages of 20.5 points, 7.5 assists and 2.0 steals. Ellis knocked down 8-of-12 (.667) three-point field goals on the week, and shot 10-of-16 from the field in his 25-point, eight-assist, five-rebound effort in a 120-100 win over the Wizards on March 5.
Other nominees for the Eastern and Western Conference Players of the Week were Atlanta’s Josh Smith, Cleveland’s Kyrie Irving and Antawn Jamison, Detroit’s Rodney Stuckey, Memphis’ O.J. Mayo, Miami’s LeBron James, Oklahoma City’s James Harden, Orlando’s Dwight Howard, Philadelphia’s Evan Turner, and Phoenix’s Marcin Gortat and Steve Nash.
The Los Angeles Clippers today announced that they have recalled rookie guard Travis Leslie from the Bakersfield Jam of the NBA Development League.
In his four game stint with the Jam, Leslie tallied 12.5 points, 3.5 rebounds and 1.5 assists in 21.0 minutes per game.
The 47th overall selection in the 2011 NBA Draft, Leslie has averaged 1.5 points and 1.0 rebounds in eight games played for the Clippers this season.
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San Antonio Spurs guard T.J. Ford announced that he will take an indefinite leave of absence from basketball activities this season. And then on Twitter today, he announced his retirement from the NBA.
The 28-year-old Texas native suffered a series of neck and spine injuries during his eight-year NBA career, most recently a stinger on March 7 vs. New York.
“While this was a tough decision to make, it is what is best for me and my family at this time,” said Ford. “I have been blessed to play alongside wonderful teammates for great coaches and organizations from high school, to college, to the NBA. Regardless of what the future holds, I will carry the experiences, the friendships and the memories with me forever. The support I’ve received from family, friends and the fans has been humbling and I am looking forward to evaluating my professional options following this season.”
Ford joined the Spurs on Dec. 10, 2011. He appeared in 14 games for the Silver and Black, averaging 3.6 points, 3.2 assists and 1.3 rebounds in 13.6 minutes.
“The entire organization has enjoyed having T.J. Ford in San Antonio this season,” said Spurs Head Coach Gregg Popovich. “I congratulate him on all that he has achieved as a player and fully support the difficult decision he was forced to make. T.J. has a bright future ahead of him and will always be a member of the Spurs family.”
Prior to signing with San Antonio the 6-0, 165-pound point guard enjoyed stints with Milwaukee, Toronto and Indiana. Ford was selected by the Bucks in the first round of the 2003 NBA Draft, with the eighth overall pick, after playing two seasons at the University of Texas. He enjoyed his best NBA season during the 2008-09 campaign, averaging 14.9 points, 5.3 assists and 3.5 rebounds in 74 games with the Pacers. In 2004, he was named to the NBA All-Rookie Second Team, after posting averages of 7.1 points and 6.5 assists. Midway through his rookie season Ford suffered a spinal injury that he would later have surgery on which forced him to miss the entire 2004-05 season. For his career, Ford played in 429 games, averaging 11.2 points, 5.8 assists, 3.1 rebounds and 1.16 steals 27.7 minutes per game.
Ford enjoyed an outstanding high school and collegiate career in the state of Texas. In his final two seasons at Willowridge High School, his teams posted a 75-1 record, capturing back-to-back Texas 5A State Championships. In two seasons at the University of Texas, Ford averaged 12.9 points and 8.8 assists. During his sophomore year he was named both the Naismith and Wooden Player of the Year Award winner and earned 2003 First Team All-American honors.
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