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      Foul taste: NBA admits refs’ error in Game 3

      May 10, 2009 /

      The NBA admitted the game officials were wrong for not calling an intentional foul on the Dallas Mavericks prior to Denver Nuggets Carmelo Anthony’s game-winning three-point shot on Saturday evening.

      The Mavericks had a two-point lead and a foul to give. The play began with Anthony receiving the inbounds pass with less than eight seconds left in the game. Antoine Wright clearly body checks Anthony twice, but no whistle was blown. Melo kept playing and hits the three-pointer to give the Nuggets a 106-105 victory and a commanding 3-0 series lead.

      After reviewing the game tape, NBA president of league and basketball operations, Joel Litvin, issued this statement:

      “At the end of the Dallas-Denver game this evening, the officials missed an intentional foul committed by Antoine Wright on Carmelo Anthony, just prior to Anthony’s three-point basket.”

      In the aftermath of a gambling scandal involving former referee Tim Donaghy, the NBA has been public to acknowledged officiating mistakes in playoff games. Last year, the league ruled a foul should have been called against Derek Fisher on Brent Barry’s three-point shot at the conclusion of Game 4 of the Western Conference finals. The play was at the end of a two-point contest, and a foul could have given the Spurs a chance to win the game and even the series at two games apiece.

      NBA

      How much are the Rockets missing T-Mac?

      May 10, 2009 /

      Tracy McGrady

      Here’s a hypothetical I was chewing on even before the news broke that Yao Ming will miss the rest of the playoffs with a broken foot: how badly are the Houston Rockets missing Tracy McGrady in their second round series against the Lakers?

      Many people have argued the opposite, saying that it’s only because McGrady is out that the Rockets have made it this far. It’s a compelling argument, one that I was inclined to believe for a time myself. However, when it comes to the team’s current series against L.A., I think the Rockets are missing T-Mac desperately.

      The reason is that what the Rockets lack more than anything else right now is offensive firepower: something McGrady provides in no short supply. Defensively, Houston has been excellent the entire postseason – and McGrady is no slouch as a defender himself. If T-Mac was able to stay within the confines of what’s been working for the Rockets offensively (quick point guards Aaron Brooks and Kyle Lowry getting into the lane and kicking the ball out to open shooters, Houston could have seen a major uptick in their offensive production.

      But with Yao out for the playoffs, McGrady is the one player who could have possibly given the Rockets a chance to compete with L.A. With T-Mac, the Rockets could have gone small by playing him at the 2, Artest at the 3 and Shane Battier at the 4, forcing the Lakers to match them by playing Lamar Odom at the 4. Without McGrady, the Rockets will still likely go small, sometimes playing Brooks and Lowry together in the same backcourt, sometimes bringing in Von Wafer, but the impact will not be nearly the same. The lineup may not even be dangerous enough to make L.A. want to go small to match Houston’s personnel.

      The real story here, however, is that in discussing Houston’s playoff potential, it is once again a “what if?” hypothetical. As J.A. Adande writes in a column for ESPN.com, Houston has to wonder how much longer it wants to bank on Yao as the centerpiece of its franchise, given his considerable injury history. He and McGrady were a dream combination on paper, but this year, as usual, they have failed to come together on the court.

      NBA

      CBS Sports’ David Feherty under fire for Bin Laden joke

      May 10, 2009 /

      David Feherty

      CBS Sports golf announcer David Feherty has found himself in hot water.

      CBS Sports golf analyst David Feherty came under sharp criticism Saturday for a joke he wrote in a Dallas magazine article that suggested American soldiers would be just as likely to knock off House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Leader Harry Reid as they would Osama bin Laden.

      Feherty was among five Dallas residents who wrote for “D Magazine” on former President George W. Bush moving to Dallas, where the former Ryder Cup player from Northern Ireland has been living the last dozen years.

      “From my own experience visiting the troops in the Middle East, I can tell you this though,” Feherty wrote toward the end of his column. “Despite how the conflict has been portrayed by our glorious media, if you gave any U.S. soldier a gun with two bullets in it, and he found himself in an elevator with Nancy Pelosi, Harry Reid and Osama bin Laden, there’s a good chance that Nancy Pelosi would get shot twice, and Harry Reid and bin Laden would be strangled to death.”

      CBS Sports has already distanced itself from Feherty’s comments, and with good reason. Now it should take the next step and take this moron’s microphone away from him.

      Golf

      Dodgers’ owner furious with Manny

      May 10, 2009 /

      According to the Los Angeles Times, Manny Ramirez recently met with Dodgers’ owner Frank McCourt and general manger Ned Colletti since being suspended for 50-games for testing positive for a performance-enhancing drug and as expected, McCourt ain’t happy.

      McCourt is said to be furious with Ramirez and was demanding that the All-Star outfielder call him, according to sources familiar with the situation who weren’t authorized to discuss the matter.

      Among McCourt’s other demands is that Ramirez address his teammates. One source said that is “unlikely” to happen today when the Dodgers conclude an 11-game homestand, but “might” take place during the six-game trip that starts Tuesday in Philadelphia. A possibility exists that Ramirez could face the team on the second half of the trip, in his off-season hometown of Miami.

      What was clear on Saturday was that the issue of Ramirez’s speaking to his teammates was more important to McCourt than it was to Dodgers Manager Joe Torre.

      “I don’t think addressing the team is necessary,” Torre said. “I think it is important that the players get a chance to say something. I don’t think we need anything formal.”

      I don’t blame McCourt one bit for being furious about this entire situation. He and Colletti had to do the negotiation dance with Manny and his agent for months before Ramirez finally agreed to a two-year, $45 million contract in March. And for all his trouble, McCourt now has to sit idle as his best hitter and marketing piece miss 50 games because Manny got caught masking steroids tested positive for a PED.

      Far be it for me to disagree with anything Joe Torre has to say, but I side with McCourt in that Manny needs to address the team. He needs to look his teammates in the eyes and say, “I screwed up and I need to pay for what I did. But if you’ll have me back, I’ll make it up to you in July when I come back.” I think Manny personally addressing the situation is better than everyone attempting to sweep it under the rug until after the 50-game suspension. He needs to show a little humility and I think his teammates would respect that (even if the rest of us wouldn’t).

      MLB

      Yao Ming to miss rest of playoffs

      May 10, 2009 /

      Yao Ming’s sore ankle turned out to be a hairline fracture in his foot, and he’s out for the rest of the playoffs.

      The Houston center limped off the court late in the Los Angeles Lakers’ 108-94 victory over the Rockets on Friday night. Yao missed Saturday’s practice to get treatment and the team said the 7-foot-6 All-Star would be re-evaluated on Sunday.

      But the Rockets announced later Saturday night that further examination of Yao’s injury revealed a hairline fracture. The Rockets say Yao will need 8-12 weeks to recover, though no surgery is required.

      This news puts a damper on what was shaping up to be a good series between the Lakers and the Rockets. I don’t see Houston keeping up with Kobe and Co. without their big man.

      NBA, NBA Finals, News

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