The AP reports: LeBron James scored 20 points and had eight rebounds, four assists and four steals before sitting out the fourth quarter of the Cleveland Cavaliers’ 91-83 win over the Philadelphia 76ers in a preseason game Tuesday night… Andre Iguodala had 19 points and Elton Brand 12 points and 13 rebounds for Philadelphia. The 76ers played without starting center Samuel Dalembert, who was sidelined with a sore right knee.
Quotes from six Wizards
HEAD COACH EDDIE JORDAN
On Nick Young: “He had three really good practices. He was awesome today. He was probably the best player in practice today. I would think that if he recovers tonight and tomorrow we think he’s fine, then he’ll play.”
On DerMarr Johnson and Linton Johnson: “We waived forwards DerMarr Johnson and Linton Johnson – both played very well for us and have been NBA players and will continue to be NBA players. We really appreciate their efforts and their professionalism.”
FORWARD CARON BUTLER
On finishing up the preseason: “(We need to be) very serious. We have to be professionals and go out to San Antonio and Cleveland and get some momentum. We need to get some momentum going into the season. The last few practices have been exceptional. The younger guys have been playing great and the veteran leadership has been awesome. It is what it is now – we made our final cuts to the roster and this is the team, so we know our personnel and what to expect going forward.”
On today’s practice: “I think today was great. Over the last couple of practices, everything is really coming full circle. We’re getting into the bulk of our offense and we’re playing against a real intense defense. Guys are really trying to earn minutes. Everybody is trying to put their best foot forward, trying to earn quality minutes and show the work that they put in all summer. We’re anxious to play and I think everybody around the league is too.”
FORWARD ANTAWN JAMISON
On preparing for the regular season: “We still have a ways to go, but I think the sense of urgency is definitely there between the coaches and the players. We know the amount of improvement that we need and what we have to do to get to that point. There’s no panic button or anything like that, but it’s just time to turn things around. It’s time to get focused and be mentally prepared for what we need to do.”
On his health heading into the season: “I feel great. I’m ready for the season start. I’m looking forward to getting out there and playing. We know that we need to go out there and start it off right.”
GUARD/FORWARD NICK YOUNG
On how he’s feeling heading into the season: “I feel good. I’ve had a lot of rest, so I was energized out there. My shot was falling, so that’s always a confidence booster. (I feel the intensity picking up) especially from the veterans like Caron, Antawn and DeShawn – they’ve been going hard.”
GUARD JUAN DIXON
On how his familiarity with the team has been beneficial to him: “Just knowing the system (has helped me). Coach (Eddie Jordan) has a lot of confidence in me – he knows that I’m going to go out and execute plays and be in the right position on the floor. My job is to do what they ask of me. Whatever my role is, that’s what I’m going to go out there and do.”
FORWARD/CENTER ANDRAY BLATCHE
On what he wants to accomplish before the season starts: “It’s time for us to get more serious. We’ve got to start trying to develop a flow together with the rotation guys. Even though it’s preseason, (we need to) try and get some wins and compete. The season is right around the corner – it starts on Wednesday. It’s time for us to get serious and focus.”
Clippers exercise option on Al Thornton
The Los Angeles Clippers today exercised the club’s third year contract option on forward Al Thornton.
Thornton, who was selected by the Clippers as the 14th overall pick in the 2007 NBA Draft, begins his second NBA season and is now signed through the 2009-10 campaign. Under the NBA’s Collective Bargaining Agreement, the Clippers had the right to exercise this contract option. Thornton will now become a restricted free agent following the 2009-10 season, with the Clippers holding the right of first refusal.
In his first season with the Clippers, Thornton was named to the T-Mobile NBA All-Rookie First Team, after averaging 12.7 points, 4.5 rebounds, 1.2 assists and 27.3 minutes in 79 games played. He finished the year ranked second among all rookies in scoring, fourth in three-point field goal percentage (.429), eighth in rebounding and fifth in minutes per game. Thornton turned in his most impressive performance of the season when he tied a Clipper rookie record for points in a game, pouring in 39 points on 3/29/08 vs. Memphis. The 39 points were also the most points scored in a game by any NBA rookie last season.
Kings waive two players
The Sacramento Kings today requested waivers on forwards Noel Felix and Bobby Jones, it was announced by Kings’ President of Basketball Operations Geoff Petrie. The Kings’ updated roster now stands at 14 players.
The NBA’s maximum is 15 players, so the Kings don’t have to get rid of anyone else.
Thunder waive two players
Oklahoma City Thunder General Manager Sam Presti announced today that the team has waived center Chris Alexander and guard Derrick Byars.
Alexander averaged 1.3 points, 2.5 rebounds and 5.0 minutes in four preseason games while Byars averaged 4.1 points, 1.3 rebounds, 1.0 assist and 14.8 minutes in four preseason contests.
The Thunder roster now stands at 15.
Former Celtics owner dies
The AP reports: Harry Mangurian Jr., a former owner of the Boston Celtics and renowned horse breeder, has died of leukemia. He was 82… Mangurian owned the Celtics from 1979-83, a tenure that included a championship in 1981 and the signings of Larry Bird, Kevin McHale and Robert Parish, the original “Big Three” of team lore.
Marbury to start tonight
The New York Daily News (Frank Isola) reports: Stephon Marbury will start tonight against the Celtics which tells you a little about Marbury and a lot about Jamal Crawford. I’ve heard for a few days that the coaching staff is not happy with Crawford’s defense nor is Crawford happy that he is averaging just seven shots per game in the preseason. Marbury has equipped himself well thus far and since trading him (he makes $21.9 million this season) is next to impossible, Mike D’Antoni may be reaching the conclusion that Marbury is the better option in the backcourt to play with Chris Duhon.
The New York post (Marc Berman) reports: Mike D’Antoni confirmed today that Stephon Marbury will start at shooting guard instead of Jamal Crawford when the Knicks play their second-to-last preseason game at the Garden against the Celtics tonight.
InsideHoops.com editor says: I’ve been saying for two months now that if there’s one season Stephon Marbury could redeem himself and rise up as a semi-star again, this one, under Mike D’Antoni, would be it. I know most (almost all) the local beat writers/columnists who cover the Knicks have said the team has to part ways with him, and I know the reasoning behind it, and understand it. Addition by subtraction and all that. Get rid of the bad attitude and the guy that pisses some teammates off. I’d totally buy into that, normally. But I still feel that Marbury could have his best season in years this year if he’s given the chance, and if that happens, the bad attitude and off-court issues would diminish — not totally, but to a bearable level. His contract is up after the season so what does it matter? I see no reason to buy him out. If the team wants to throw money away, buy out other players whose contracts don’t expire this summer. And it doesn’t make sense to bench him as long as he’s on the roster, unless it actually helps the team on the court to do so. I wanna see what he can do under D’Antoni’s offense and I bet it’ll be better than expected.
Wizards waive DerMarr Johnson and Linton Johnson
Washington Wizards President Ernie Grunfeld announced today that the team has waived forwards DerMarr Johnson and Linton Johnson. DerMarr Johnson appeared in five preseason games for Washington and averaged 8.8 points in 19.6 minutes per game. Linton Johnson appeared in four preseason games as a Wizard and averaged 1.3 points in 12.8 minutes per game. Both players originally signed with Washington on September 22, 2008.
The Wizards roster now stands at 15.
Washington will be without star point guard Gilbert Arenas for a few months and role-playing center Brendan Haywood for most of the season. But fortunately, star forward Antawn Jamison should be healthy soon and OK for the start of the regular season.
Oct 20: Suns 111, Bobcats 108 2OT
For Phoenix, Shaquille O’Neal shot 6-of-10 for 18 points and 9 rebounds. Matt Barnes shot 8-of-16 for 18 points, 7 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals but 6 turnovers. Robert Hite shot 6-of-11 for 14 points. Grant Hill had 12 points, 7 rebounds, 3 assists but 5 turnovers. Steve Nash didn’t play. Amare Stoudemire played just a bit, off the bench. For Charlotte, DJ Augustin shot just 4-of-20 but had 11-of-12 free throws for 19 points, 8 rebounds and 5 assists, but 5 turnovers. Jason Richardson shot just 5-of-14 for 15 points and 4 assists. Andre Brown shot 6-of-9 for 14 points and 8 rebounds. Emeka Okafor had 12 points, 10 rebounds and 3 blocks. Adam Morrison scored 12.
Oct 20: Blazers 112, Kings 98
The AP reports: LaMarcus Aldridge scored 24 points, Brandon Roy added 21 and the Portland Trail Blazers never trailed in a 112-98 victory over the Sacramento Kings in a preseason game Monday night. The Kings could not contain Aldridge, who made nine of 16 shots and had six rebounds, five assists and four steals for the Blazers. Portland led by four points after three quarters and stretched the lead to as many as 11 in the fourth. Rookie guard Rudy Fernandez made four 3-pointers and had 16 points for the Blazers, while Greg Oden added 13 points, nine rebounds and two blocks. Portland made 12 of 25 3-pointers. Kevin Martin scored 34 points and John Salmons added 27 for the Kings, who lost their fifth straight.