Category: NBA (Page 326 of 595)

      Resilient Magic take Game 3

      June 9, 2009 /

      The Magic shot a Finals-record 62.5% from the field, but amazingly enough, they only won by four, 108-104. Still, a win is a win and the Magic have to feel good about how they played in Game 3.

      Orlando had five players score 18-plus points: Dwight Howard (21 points, 14 rebounds), Rashard Lewis (21), Rafer Alston (20), Hedo Turkoglu (18) and Mickael Pietrus (18). Pietrus gave the Magic a big lift in the fourth quarter with a terrific follow-up dunk (that was actually a goaltend) and a key steal with less than 0:30 to play and the Magic nursing a two-point lead.

      Orlando really moved the ball well and was able to get good shot after good shot, save for a stretch in the fourth quarter where the Lakers erased the Magic’s nine-point lead.

      Kobe Bryant was as hot as a pistol in the first half, scoring 21 points in the first two periods, but he really struggled down the stretch. He was just 4 of 9 from the free throw line and turned the ball over four times. He finished with 31 points, eight assists and five boards. Pau Gasol chipped in with 23 points on 9-11 shooting. He is in such a groove in the post and the Lakers aren’t going to him enough.

      The Magic are still very much in this series. They need to take this one game at a time and not think about the daunting task of winning three games in a row at home. They’ve already proven they can outplay the Lakers in Los Angeles, so if they can get two more wins in Orlando, the series will be very interesting. If the Lakers come back to L.A. up 3-2, the series is all but over.

      NBA, NBA Finals

      Finals commentary, prior to Game 3

      June 9, 2009 /

      Ramona Shelburne of the LA Daily News: The plays are only noticeable in hindsight. On replays. In memory. And sometimes not even then. Little plays that could be pivotal if they don’t go the right way. Some call them “veteran plays.” Others use terms like “heady” and “mature” or “cerebral.” It sounds vague and arbitrary, but tell that to the team that doesn’t know how to make these kinds of plays. It’s even harder to explain how some players learn to make them and others don’t. Whether it’s instinct or experience, natural poise or acquired savvy. Only one thing is certain: Championship teams make them, everyone else watches them later in the film room. And right now, the Lakers are the team in these NBA Finals keeping the opposing video technician busy.

      Jeff Briggs of the RCS Blog: Tonight, Game 6 of the Stanley Cup finals is on NBC at 8pm. A mere hour later, Game 3 of the NBA Finals airs on ABC. While there are clearly two separate sets of fans that follow the sports, the two leagues are still cannibalizing each other’s audience. Sports fans like to watch championship events. People shouldn’t be forced to choose between either the Stanley Cup or NBA finals. They should be able to watch both, hockey one day and basketball the next.

      Brian Schmitz of the Orlando Sentinel: The Lakers haven’t allowed the Magic to be the Magic much at all in taking a 2-0 lead. They’ve had them on the run since this whole thing started, creating chaos. The Magic have been scrambling to find other ways to play, and with other players playing different positions, causing realignment of X’s as well as O’s. Hard to play the NBA Finals on the fly, but it’s reality. Coach Stan Van Gundy pulled out everything imaginable from his bag of tricks on Sunday, and somehow the Magic almost turned the Finals on its ear before losing in overtime.

      George Diaz of the Orlando Sentinel: The Magic have scored just 171 points in consecutive losses. That 85.5 average has something to do with the Lakers’ defense, obviously. But it also has much to do with the inability of the Magic to get into any groove when the ball is bouncing in their hands. We’ll get to the point: Jameer Nelson coming back after a four-month layoff has mucked things up for the Magic in the NBA Finals. This is the dark side of the silver lining Magic fans saw in Nelson’s return after that prolonged absence because of his shoulder injury. Nelson’s unexpected availability has messed with the Magic mojo.

      NBA, NBA Finals

      Brandon Jennings, the wild card

      June 9, 2009 /

      Of all the top prospects in this year’s draft, perhaps the least is known about Brandon Jennings, who skipped an opportunity to play a year at Arizona to join a team in Italy. He had an up-and-down season, his minutes were inconsistent, but by most accounts he did improve. Chad Ford wrote a nice piece for ESPN Insider — it’s long, but this struck me as particularly interesting…

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      NBA, NBA Draft, News, Rumors & Gossip

      NBA Free Agency Rumors: ‘Sheed, Boozer, Sessions and more

      June 9, 2009 /

      – SLAM ONLINE has sources that are saying that the Cavs and Rasheed Wallace are working on a two-year deal worth $20 million. The interest was prompted by the fact that Dwight Howard pretty much had his way in the paint against the Cavs in the Eastern Conference Finals. Wallace will be 35 this September, and has averaged about 12 points and seven boards over the last three seasons. He has the ability to spread the court with his shooting ability and has a reputation for doing a good job defensively on Howard, though the Orlando big man averaged 22 points and 15 rebounds in three games against the Pistons this season. If the Cavs do indeed sign Wallace that kind of a contract, it would trim the team’s projected 2010 cap space from $38 million to $28 million. Also, since the Cavs are over the cap, to make this deal happen, they would have to swing a sign-and-trade with Detroit (for Anderson Varejao?). If the deal falls through, SLAM says that the Cavs may move on to Zach Randolph. Wait…whaaa? 6/11 Update: The Cleveland Plain Dealer says that the Wallace rumors are untrue (and would be illegal if they were true).

      – DESERET NEWS says that Carlos Boozer isn’t sure that he’s going to opt-out of the final year of his contract (that will pay him $12.7 million) by the end of the month. This contradicts everything he’s been saying up until this point. Maybe Boozer isn’t finding that the market for his services is as strong as he thought it was. It might behoove him to play out his contract, stay healthy (this is key) and join the free agent class of 2010. But by going that route, he will lose the security of a long-term deal. Devin Harris says that Boozer is welcome in New Jersey.

      – The RENO GAZETTE-JOURNAL reports that Ramon Sessions‘ first choice is to stay with the Bucks, but he understands that the club is up against the luxury tax so things are a little dicey. I think the Bucks will wait to see what kind of offer sheet he gets from another team and then decide whether or not they’ll match, though it would be wise to start negotiations now.

      – The NEW YORK POST is reporting that the Knicks are eyeing Magic center Marcin Gortat for their mid-level exception. The Knicks are on the hook for about $24 million in payroll heading into the 2010-11 season, which means that they currently project to have roughly $34 million in cap space. If the Knicks use their mid-level this season, it will trim that space by about $6 million.

      – Contrary to earlier reports, if his agent has any say, it’s going to be tough for Ben Wallace to retire, according to the NEWS-HERALD. It would be the best thing for the Cavs, but Arn Tellem isn’t going to let him walk away from $14 million.

      NBA, News, Rumors & Gossip

      Let’s not be too hard on Courtney Lee

      June 8, 2009 /

      Yes, Courtney Lee missed the game-winning alley-oop last night and the Magic went onto lose Game 2 and find themselves down, 0-2, heading back to Orlando.

      Here’s the video…

      I’m seeing some people describing it as his “Nick Anderson moment” while others are referring to the play as a layup. It wasn’t a layup. It was an alley-oop, and it was a difficult shot. If you see where Lee catches the ball — he actually catches it underneath the backboard as his body continues to rise. He has so much momentum going towards the baseline that his head is actually under the backboard when he attempts the layup. Complicating matters, seven-footer Pau Gasol came over to help, which made the shot that much more difficult.

      Impossible shot? No, it was definitely make-able, but on average I’d say that a player successfully converts the shot maybe 30% of the time. Had the pass not led him so much, it would have been a much easier shot. That’s not to say that it’s Hedo Turkoglu’s fault either. It is a tough play to convert with Lamar Odom’s length right in your face.

      It’s a shame, really, because the Magic didn’t get any calls down the stretch and still had a chance to tie the series and make things really interesting as both teams head back to Orlando. Now, barring three wins at home for the Magic, a Laker title looks inevitable.

      NBA, NBA Finals, Video

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