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Hassan Whiteside free throw shooting an issue

The 14-9 Miami Heat are getting 12.1 points, 10.5 rebounds and an amazing 4.04 blocks in 27.6 minutes per game this season. But free throw shooting is an issue. Here’s the Palm Beach Post blog reporting:

Hassan Whiteside free throw shooting is an issue

In an ideal scenario, Hassan Whiteside would start hitting something close to 70 percent at the foul line, and he might get there eventually, but the Heat have to work with what they have at the moment.

Right now, Whiteside is a 48.6 percent free-throw shooter and that is a factor in his declining fourth-quarter playing time. But Erik Spoelstra can live Whiteside’s struggles under two conditions.

“As long as we’re getting a point per possession off of it and getting stops at the other end, it’s a plus for us,” Spoelstra said of other teams fouling Whiteside intentionally.

No love between Cavs and Celtics

Here’s the Boston Herald reporting on the Celtics and Cleveland Cavaliers, who will probably not be getting together for the holidays this year:

There were certainly no pleasantries as the teams met for the first time since a painful Sunday in April when Cleveland completed a four-game, first-round sweep with a win at the Garden. Kevin Love dislocated his left shoulder in a tangle with Kelly Olynyk, and Jae Crowder suffered a sprained left ACL when his knees buckled following a wicked elbow from J.R. Smith.

Crowder said Monday he was hoping for an apology, but no such gesture was made by Smith as the Cavs handed the Celtics a more-thorough-than-the-numbers-would-seem-to-indicate 89-77 defeat.

And clearly the Clevelanders didn’t stop competing when the game was finished. While Love and Olynyk have agreed the latter intended no harm, there is still ill feeling on the other front.

“No, I like it,” Smith said about the physical game that saw him give a couple of hard fouls. “It wasn’t chippy enough.”

Dwight Howard denies being unhappy on Rockets

Here’s the Houston Chronicle reporting Rockets center Dwight Howard’s reaction to a report that he wouldn’t mind it if he were to wind up on a different team:

Dwight Howard was not happy. The issue that got under his skin, however, was not with his role in the Rockets offense, but with a report on Tuesday that he was “extremely unhappy” in Houston and predicted that he would be traded to the Miami Heat.

Howard called the report “lies” and said he has never expressed any dissatisfaction with his role.

“I haven’t said anything to anybody about anything,” Howard said. “People make up lies and rumors. That’s never been my focus. I’m trying to get these guys to play better and get myself to play better.”

Greivis Vasquez undergoes ankle surgery

Milwaukee Bucks guard Greivis Vasquez underwent successful surgery Tuesday to remove a bone spur and loose bodies from his right ankle, General Manager John Hammond announced today. The surgery was performed by Dr. Martin O’Malley at the Hospital for Special Surgery in New York. An update on Vasquez’s recovery period will be provided after post-surgical consultation with Dr. O’Malley.

In 16 games this season, Vasquez averaged 7.1 points, 4.4 assists and 2.3 rebounds in 22.6 minutes per contest.

Rajon Rondo issues statement

Statement from Sacramento Kings guard Rajon Rondo:

“Yesterday, I said that my words toward Bill Kennedy were unacceptable and did not reflect my feelings toward the LGBT community. Some have interpreted my comments as a non-apology. I want to be clear, from the bottom of my heart that I am truly sorry for what I said to Bill. There is no place on or off the court for language that disrespects anyone’s sexual orientation. That is not who I am or what I believe and I will strive every day to be a better person.”

Blazers need reliable 3rd scoring option

The 11-15 Portland Trail Blazers are getting 24.7 ppg from Damian Lillard and 19.7 ppg from C.J. McCollum, but third on the list is Al-Farouq Aminu at 10.9 ppg on subpar 39.1% shooting. Allen Crabbe is contributing 10.0 ppg with 49.0% shooting off the bench, which is solid. But ideally there’s be a clear 3rd scoring option. Here’s the Oregonian reporting:

Early in the season, Al-Farouq Aminu looked poised to seize that role. Then Allen Crabbe emerged as a possible third option with a strong start to December. Finally on Monday night at the Moda Center, Gerald Henderson threw his name into the mix with a strong performance off the bench in the Blazers 105-101 win over the New Orleans Pelicans.

Henderson scored 19-points, making 7-of-10 shots, including a career-high tying four three-pointers. His night overshadowed Mason Plumlee, who made his own compelling case for possible third option with 15 points, 13 rebounds, six assists and two blocks.

Henderson didn’t force his offense. He made his mark with an opportunistic and timely attack. He scored the Blazers first seven points of the fourth quarter and his reverse layup with 10:37 remaining in the game gave the Blazers their largest lead at 13 points. Two possessions later he added a three-pointer to help the Blazers maintain a double-digit edge.

Luke Walton sees some positives to end of winning streak

Here’s CSN Bay Area reporting on the 24-1 Golden State Warriors, who after winning 24 games in a row this season finally took a loss:

No team ever wants to lose a game, but the Warriors grudgingly admitted Monday, after two days of reflection, that the first blemish on their previously perfect record brings a measure of relief.

It took coach Luke Walton, who initially said no part of him welcomed the end of their win streaks – 24 in a row this season, 28 overall – a while to realize this can be a positive.

“I think with the streak being over,” he told CSNBayArea.com after a long pause, “we can get back to focusing on some smaller, more important, detail things. Obviously, you don’t want the streak to be over because of how much fun it is.

“But, I guess, to answer your question, there’s a little part of me that knows we’re going to get some better work in, now that the streak is over.”

Russell Westbrook makes big donation to UCLA

Russell Westbrook is dominant on the basketball court, and has made a huge move off of it, as reported by the Oklahoman:

How does “Russell Westbrook Court” sound?

On Monday, UCLA announced that Westbrook has a made a “significant financial contribution” to its Mo Ostin Basketball Center project — the largest donation by a former basketball student-athlete in school history.

For his contribution, the university will honor Westbrook, who played two seasons at UCLA, by naming the new men’s basketball practice floor “Russell Westbrook Court.”

“When I heard that I was a little surprised,” Westbrook said Monday via conference call. “I can’t wait until it is all said and done to kind of go in there and shoot and see the court and see my name. It is going to be a great thing to see.”

Star Wars night at Barclays Center

Here’s the Orlando Sentinel reporting on tonight’s Magic at Brooklyn Nets game:

The Nets’ Brook Lopez had reason to feel excited about Monday night.

First, the Magic-Nets game was Star Wars Night at Barclays Center, and Lopez loves Star Wars.

The Nets also distributed Brook Lopez bobbleheads to the first 10,000 fans.

Lopez, a 7-foot center who loves the sci-fi genre and all things Disney, had seen the doll before Monday. The bobblehead features him wearing a Jedi robe, a Nets jersey and Nets warm-up pants. His likeness also wields a blue lightsaber, which is the same color lightsaber Luke Skywalker had in “A New Hope” and in “The Empire Strikes Back.”

DeMar DeRozan, Kevin Durant named NBA Players of Week through Dec. 13

Toronto Raptors guard DeMar DeRozan and Oklahoma City Thunder forward Kevin Durant were today named NBA Eastern and Western Conference Players of the Week, respectively, for games played Monday, Dec. 7 through Sunday, Dec. 13.

DeRozan led the Raptors to a 4-0 week, averaging 24.0 points (third in the conference), 5.0 rebounds, 3.8 assists and 1.0 steals while shooting 51.7 percent from the field and 91.9 percent from the free throw line. DeRozan matched his career record, scoring 25-or-more points in three consecutive games, and led Toronto with a game-high 28 points against San Antonio on Dec. 9.

Durant led Oklahoma City to a 4-0 record behind averages of 27.3 points (third in the league), 8.8 rebounds, 6.3 assists (ninth in conference), and 1.8 steals. He shot 59.7 percent from the floor (fourth in the conference) while scoring 30 or more points in two games and was 26-of-27 (96.3 percent) from the foul line. Durant recorded his first triple-double of the season when he scored 25 points to go with 12 rebounds and 10 assists against Atlanta on Dec. 10. The next night, he scored 21 points, including the Thunder’s final 11, in a 94-90 road win over Utah.

Other nominees for the Eastern and Western Conference Players of the Week were Boston’s Isaiah Thomas, Chicago’s Pau Gasol, Cleveland’s LeBron James, L.A. Clippers’ Chris Paul and Blake Griffin, Oklahoma City’s Russell Westbrook, Philadelphia’s Jahlil Okafor and Phoenix’s Eric Bledsoe.