Hoops Links: Bobcats, Magic, Smith, Bradley
On this day in 1990, the Celtics set an NBA single-game playoff scoring record in beating the Knicks 157-128 in Game 2 of their first round series. The Celtics shot .670 from the field (63-of-94 FG attempts), setting another playoff mark. However, the No. 5 seed Knicks would win the next three and take the best-of-five series to upset the No. 4 C's.
Will the Knicks pull off another (and larger) first round upset this year? The 2011/12 playoffs kick off today with a slate of four games, including Game 1 of Knicks-Heat. As we wait for the action to begin, here's this week's look around the basketball blogosphere..
- KnowHitter has a plan for the Bobcats going forward.
- RealGM put together a statistical breakdown of the compressed schedule.
- The Basketball Post wonders what's next for Orlando.
- The Good Point wants you to get reacquainted with Josh Smith.
- Euroleague Adventures looks at five rising stars.
- Red's Army salutes the progress made by Avery Bradley.
- Basketball Prospectus would like to see some changes made to the lottery.
- Cavs The Blog profiles Anthony Davis and Terrence Jones.
- Warriors World wonders if Golden State has clutch players.
- Posting and Toasting wants you to know what the Knicks have going in their favor.
- Denver Stiffs looks back on the good times with Chris Andersen.
- The Orlando Pinstriped Post recaps Orlando's crazy season.
- Pounding The Rock examines the Spurs' cap situation in 2012/13.
- True Hoop bloggers cast their votes for this year's awards.
- Hoops Addict writes that the Pacers have something to prove.
- Hoopinion has an idea of what could be next for Steve Nash.
- Wages Of Wins looks at how Kevin Durant edged Kobe Bryant.
- Nets Are Scorching outlined the ten best highlights of the Nets' season.
- Red94 says that Kyle Lowry was the Rockets' MVP in 2011/12.
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Jamal Crawford To Opt Out Of Contract
Blazers guard Jamal Crawford will opt out of his contract for 2012/13, a source tells Marc J. Spears of Yahoo Sports (via Twitter). The option would have paid Crawford $5.23MM next season.
The move allows Crawford to become an unrestricted free agent for the second year in a row. Crawford has an earlier-than-usual June 15th deadline to make the opt-out official but is expected to exercise it soon. A little over two weeks ago it was reported that the guard was expected to decline the option.
There are a number of clubs that have been linked to the 32-year-old including the Wolves, Suns, and Warriors. Crawford nearly landed in Minnesota at the trade deadline as part of a three-team deal before the Wolves backed out.
Raptors Rumors: Calderon, Bayless, Casey
News and notes on the Raptors courtesy of Mike Ganter and Ryan Wolstat of the Toronto Sun..
- Despite some speculation that the Raptors might use their amnesty clause to rid themselves of Jose Calderon's contract, GM Bryan Colangelo club intends to hold on to the point guard. The 30-year-old is owed $10.56MM next season but Colangelo is impressed by the progress that he has made and his leadership skills. The article adds that the GM even seems reluctant to use the amnesty clause at all.
- Guard Jerryd Bayless said earlier this week that he wants to re-sign with Toronto. Colangelo said that Bayless is a young prospect whom he would be interested in retaining but admitted that he could possibly be moved in a sign-and-trade. Bayless will have a $7.2MM cap hold until he signs a qualifying offer or new contract, which could hinder the club's off-season flexibility.
- Head coach Dwane Casey strongly believes that the club can attract elite free agents north of the border. “All the stuff people say about free agency with Toronto being another country and you’ll have tax problems , all that is crap,” the coach said. “I’m telling you right now. This city is one of the finest cities. It’s a top five city in North America. It’s not even close and I’ve been in all of them. For any free agent who doesn’t think this is a special situation, they are sadly mistaken.” Casey, who just wrapped up his first year with the club, had his third-year option exercised yesterday.
Wolves Notes: Love, Darko, Beasley, Randolph
Timberwolves President David Kahn and coach Rick Adelman spoke with the press on Friday morning and Jerry Zgoda of the Star Tribune has the goods..
- Kahn called Kevin Love and Ricky Rubio the team's "cornerstones" and hopes to see the two players retire as lifelong T'Wolves. Outside of that, Kahn promised to be aggressive this year and implied that major changes are on the horizon.
- The Wolves will consider trading the 18th overall pick (from Utah) for a proven veteran but will also evaluate the players that could be available to them. What they won't do, however, is trade down repeatedly to acquire cash and future selections as they did with the 20th pick last year. "That would be a terrible thing to do, and I can assure you that never would we consider that," Kahn said.
- Kahn declined to discuss the futures of Darko Milicic, Michael Beasley, Anthony Randolph, and Martell Webster. Beasley and Randolph will become unrestricted free agents if the team doesn't pick up their qualifying offers. Meanwhile, it's hard to imagine that they'll exercise Webster's $5.7MM option for next season and Milicic, owed $5MM next year, figures to be an amnesty clause candidate.
- Kahn is in talks to bring some of the team's drafted European prospects to Minnesota in June so that Adelman and his staff can evaluate them. That would include forwards Nemanja Bjelica and Henk Norel and center Paulao Prestes. Without specifiying who, Kahn said one of those players might be ready for the NBA. Zgoda says it's likely Bjelica, though he is still probably too soft for the Association.
Kings, Sacramento Fail To Reach Arena Agreement
10:50pm: NBA commissioner David Stern released a statement responding to news that the city of Sacramento and the Kings have failed to reach an arena agreement, reports USA Today's J. Michael Falgoust (via Twitter).
"We are disappointed for the city, its businesses and the supportive fans of the Kings, as well as team ownership , that this transaction, which we thought was fair has been abandoned. The Kings had the right to do that, as well as the right to continue at Power Balance Arena."
2:41pm: Johnson says Sacramento will move on to "Plan B" and try to build a downtown sports arena without the Kings. Co-owner George Maloof, meanwhile, says the Kings don't intend to seek relocation. Ryan Lillis of the Sacramento Bee has the details.
2:08pm: After two days of meetings to see if the two sides could salvage the proposal for a new arena, the city of Sacramento and the Kings have failed to reach an agreement. The arena deal is dead, tweets Rob McAllister of KFBK in Sacramento. The Maloofs confirmed in a statement that today's talks were unsuccessful and no further discussions are scheduled (Twitter link).
"It became clear today that our differences are irreconcilable," said Sacramento mayor Kevin Johnson, who added that the best interests of the city and team were not aligned. According to Johnson, the two sides wanted to leave "no stone unturned," but the deal that was tentatively agreed upon in February will not be happening (all four Twitter links).
While it's too early to jump to conclusions about the Kings moving to Anaheim or anywhere else, the team's long-term future in Sacramento is hazy at the moment. We'll have to wait to see what the next move is for the Kings' owners and the city of Sacramento.
Odds & Ends: Skiles, Griffin, Colangelo, Pierce
With great anticipation of the weekend ahead full of playoff basketball, let's take a look around the league to see what's happening from coast to coast.
- Count Brandon Jennings and Mike Dunleavy Jr. among Bucks players hoping head coach Scott Skiles is retained by Milwaukee after just missing out on making the playoffs, writes Charles F. Gardner of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
- Arash Markazi of ESPNLosAngeles.com says Blake Griffin expects the playoffs to be more physical as the Clippers head into their first-round series against the Grizzlies.
- Raptors general manager Bryan Colangelo is excited to continue the process of rebuilding the franchise after carefully adhering to his long-term plan, reports Mike Ganter of the Toronto Sun.
- Paul Pierce tells ESPNBoston.com's Jackie McMullan that the thought of retirement has crossed his mind after playing 14 seasons for the Celtics.
- ESPNLosAngeles.com's Dave McMenamin says Lakers executive vice president of player personnel Jim Buss is over the heartbreak of losing out on Chris Paul to the Clippers this past offseason.
- Newsday's Al Iannazzone reports Carmelo Anthony and Amare Stoudemire are working to improve how they co-exist on the court after incessant chatter from the media and fans finally drew their attention.
Magic Notes: Davis, Bench, Turkoglu
The Magic will limp into the playoffs as the sixth seed after Dwight Howard suffered a herniated disk in his back to prematurely end his season. Many pundits have the Pacers easily dismantling the injury-riddled Magic in the first round to send them into an offseason of uncertainty given Howard's desire to play elsewhere and head coach Stan Van Gundy's unknown status. Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel has the latest news surrounding the Magic as their series gets underway on Saturday in Indianapolis.
- The offseason acquisition of Glen Davis from the Celtics appeared to be a bust when he was suspended by the Magic for conduct detrimental to team in February, but the former LSU star has turned heads with his strong play in April. After Howard's season came to a close, Davis was afforded the opportunity to start and demonstrated his ability by averaging 16.4 PPG and 8.8 RPG over his last 12 games. Currently struggling with an ankle sprain, the six-foot-nine Davis will be at a severe height disadvantage when he matches up with the Pacers' Roy Hibbert, who checks in at seven-foot-two.
- Van Gundy will need to see strong contributions out of lesser-known bench players if the Magic seek to be competitive against the much deeper Pacers. Earl Clark and Daniel Orton are two names that Van Gundy will have to reluctantly call upon to keep his starters fresh throughout the series. Orton, 21, provides size at six-foot-ten, but has never played in a playoff game after failing to see any action during his entire rookie season of 2010/2011.
- The Magic are playing coy with Hedo Turkoglu's status heading into Game 1 against the Pacers. Van Gundy knows whether the former first-round pick will start, but refuses to offer any clues to the media, and in turn, the Pacers. Now in his second stint with the Magic, Turkoglu offers the team size at the small forward position against a Pacers squad chuck full of big bodies.
Mavs Links: Defense, Minutes, Ibaka
After winning the NBA championship last season against the Heat, the Mavericks will begin their title defense Saturday on the road against the Thunder. The Mavericks fell to the seventh seed after losing four out of their last six games to close out the season. Mike Heika of The Dallas Morning News has the latest out of Dallas with a series of updates from Mavs head coach Rick Carlisle.
- Defense will be a key for the Mavs if they want to contain the Thunder's trio of stars that guided the team to the third-highest scoring average in the league at 103.1 points per game. Carlisle wants his squad to focus on defending the Thunder as a collective unit rather than attempting to guard them individually. Fouling won't help the Mavs as the Thunder rank first in the league for both free throws made per game (21.3) and free throw shooting percentage (.806).
- Limiting the minutes of star players such as Dirk Nowitzki and Jason Kidd will not be a consideration for the Mavs as the team looks to rely on their veterans for heavy usage throughout the playoffs. Carlisle rested Kidd the last two games of the season and decreased the 38-year-old point guard's minutes per game this season to 28.7. Nowitzki finished the season averaging 33.5 minutes per game as his time on the court decreased less than one minute from a year ago.
- The Thunder's Serge Ibaka will be a test for the Mavs' big men after a season in which the 22-year-old rising star blocked 21 shots against the Mavs in four meetings. With defensive stalwart Tyson Chandler now on the Knicks, the Mavs will rely on Brendan Haywood, Ian Mahinmi and Brandan Wright to occupy space in the paint for the team. "Our center position is going to be very important in the series, because the way they defend, our centers have got to give us activity around the basket,'' Carlisle said.
Atlantic Notes: Celtics, Knicks, Humphries
With Tyson Chandler battling the flu, the Knicks may be without their star center in Game 1 against the Heat when playoff action gets underway on Saturday in Miami. The Knicks would turn to Jared Jeffries to man the paint if the team's defensive star in unable to play. Let's take a look around the rest of the Atlantic Division to see what else is making news and headlines.
- The Celtics' continued success this season amidst injuries and setbacks can be traced to the team's tightly-knit roster, writes A. Sherrod Blakely of CSNNE.com. Head coach Doc Rivers maintained a sense of calm and confidence in his squad even when the team's early season record had pundits convinced that the Celtics would struggle to make the playoffs. "I like our spirit," Rivers said. "We're showing resolve. You can see the camaraderie; it's just a good group, a good group to coach. And the future will say how good we are as a basketball team. But they're a good group to coach, and I'm a coach, so that's good."
- Newsday's Al Iannazzone says the Knicks need to see significant production out of offseason signings Baron Davis and Mike Bibby if the team hopes to be competitive against the Heat. The two veteran point guards have stepped up their play considerably in the wake of Jeremy Lin's season-ending injury, but need to continue to do so on a nightly basis heading into the playoffs. For Bibby, being a contributing factor means hitting open three-pointers, a likely scenario given the Heat's struggles defending beyond the arc, while Davis simply needs to keep himself healthy.
- The Nets are excited about the opportunity to move to Brooklyn and play in a new arena, especially unrestricted free agent Kris Humphries, who hopes to re-sign with the team, reports Nets.com's Ben Couch. "I've been to Brooklyn a lot," Humphries said. "We did a ton of stuff in the community there, and our community involvement staff and the PR team, everyone did a great job, getting us familiar with Brooklyn, helping connect us in the community, so I think we'll be able to hit the ground running, if I'm here, and for the guys who are here next year."
Blazers Notes: Crawford, Canales, Aldridge
The Blazers finished the 2011/2012 season with a record of 28-38, marking their worst winning percentage in six seasons. The team faces a busy offseason as they look to rebuild their front office, coaching staff and roster. Here's the latest news and notes from the City of Roses.
- Blazers acting general manager Chad Buchanan says the team isn't worried about Jamal Crawford's pending decision to opt out of his contract given their depth at shooting guard, tweets CSNNW.com's Chris Haynes. Buchanan points to Wesley Matthews and Elliot Williams as options to replace the former Michigan star if he elects to become a free agent. Crawford, 32, averaged 14.0 PPG and 3.2 APG in 60 games with the Blazers.
- Ben Golliver of Blazer's Edge says Buchanan expects the Blazers to pick up the team's option on interim head coach Kaleb Canales for next season (via Twitter). The team has not yet announced whether Canales would continue in his role as head coach or return to his duties as an assistant. The 33-year-old former video intern went 8-15 in 23 games with the Blazers and was applauded by the front office for always maintaining a positive attitude with his players.
- LaMarcus Aldridge will undergo hip surgery on May 10 in Vail after last playing for the Blazers on April 9, tweets Golliver. Aldridge was enjoying a strong season before his injury as the former Texas big man was named to the All-Star team for the first time in his career. The 26-year-old forward had hoped to be healthy in time to play in the 2012 Summer Olympics in London but is not expected to make the final roster cut due to his injury.
- Jazz general manager Kevin O'Connor thinks former Blazers head coach Nate McMillan was unfairly fired when the team dismissed him on March 15, reports Haynes. "He had two-and-a-half bad weeks and they fire him. I mean, that to me, I don't understand it. But that's, I guess, I shouldn't be in somebody else's business."