The Lakers offense does a pitiful job of exploiting the Cavs defensive weaknesses.
Cleveland has poor quickness amongst their big men. That flaw makes the Cavs vulnerable in transition, against pick and roll plays, against opposing big men who have jump shots and can take them out to the perimeter, against opposing bigs who have quick face up games and beat them off the bounce, and are vulnerable in team defense scenarios against quick ball + player movement. Read the rest of this entry »
Andrew Bynum dropped 12 points and 5 rebounds in the first nine minutes of the game. Big response to the trade rumours today. He’s altered at least 3-4 shots right at the rim and intimidated players on another 2-3 drives into not shooting. He’s been the anchor to an incredible defensive effort by the Lakers early in the game. They’ve held Milwaukee to just 4 points in the first 9-10 minutes. Their defense has allowed them to build a 16 point lead despite making only 6-15 shot attempts from the field.
End Of First Half
The Lakers held the Bucks to 29% shooting and only 28 first half points. LA should be up 20+ points but their own offense has struggled. They lead 39-28. Read the rest of this entry »
Good chance to see the Lakers big lineup tonight. I haven’t tuned in to a Lakers game since the Artest injury so I’ve missed this lineup so far. I hear that it hasn’t performed well.
Lakers and Mavs are #1 and #2 in opposing team’s true shooting percentage + third and fifth in overall defensive efficiency. Similar in offensive efficiency too, 12th and 13th respectively.
No Ron Artest tonight.
Kobe Bryant has scored 34ppg over his last 6 games. His highest scoring streak since those 9 straight 40 point performances back in 2002/03 + averaging 40.6ppg for the entire month of February. Read the rest of this entry »
Good matchup tonight … but it should be a comfortable win for the Celtics
Notes
No Manu Ginobili tonight. The Spurs aren’t an elite team without him. More like a 50-55 win squad, a good-to-very good team. Unfortunately, the Spurs defense is still a work in progress so their current form is a little below that level.
Edit: Manu will play tonight … the Spurs do have a decent chance of winning. I thought he was still out injured. The Spurs remain an underdog but a they have a respectable shot at winning.
The Celtics are the single best low post defensive squad in the NBA. They simply do not lose to post scorers to beat them. It doesn’t happen. Look at the previous two seasons and see how many games they’ve lost where a post player was the leading offensive scorer/threat, it’s a tiny number. Read the rest of this entry »
Good game here tonight. Arguably the two best teams (form-wise) in the Eastern Conference at the moment. A possible preview to the second round of the playoffs.
Notes
Some good matchups
Dwight Howard vs Al Horford (offense + defense)
Rashard Lewis vs Josh Smith (offense + defense)
Mickael Pietrus vs Joe Johnson (defensive for Magic — Joe defending the point with Bibby defending Pietrus)
The vast offensive firepower of the Washington Wizards versus the more well rounded San Antonio Spurs.
Notes
Manu Ginobili is out again tonight but Tony Parker is back. Theo Ratliff and Keith Bogans continue in the starting lineup alongside Duncan, Parker and Jefferson.
The Wizards have a healthy roster! Jamison is back in action. Caron Butler too. Along with Arenas and Haywood, plus Miller (he was injured too, right?) rounding out the lineup.
Theo Ratliff is not good enough to be a rotation player in the NBA anymore. Good fifth or sixth big in the rotation, an insurance guy, but not someone who should be relied upon day in day out. He’s still a solid defensive player but he’s a below par rebounder and a very weak offensive player. Read the rest of this entry »
Excellent game tonight. The two best teams in the Eastern Conference going at it. This could be a previews of the 2010 Eastern Conference Finals.
Game Notes
No Jameer Nelson tonight — Jason Williams will start in his place. I haven’t liked what I’ve seen from him in previous Magic games I’ve watched. He is doing a great job of protecting the ball and making sure Orlando gets a shot off though. Anthony Johnson will be his lead backup.
JJ Redick — I heard Matt Goukas say the other night that SVG is considering using Redick at the point while Jameer Nelson is out.
Rasheed Wallace — Doc Rivers recently asked Rasheed Wallace to slow down on the three point attempts. Sheed is currently on track to take 450+ three pointers this season. That is 5.8 attempts per game despite only playing 21 minutes a night, a career high and a career low. Two thirds of Wallace’s shot attempts (5.8 out of 8.8) have been from downtown this season. Read the rest of this entry »
Good test for the Miami Heat tonight. The Cavs aren’t in great shape, or even very good shape, at the moment but they are playing at a good level. The Heat have been in excellent form lately and have been playing very good basketball so they’re a bit ahead of the Cavs at the moment. That said, I think the Heat are playing above themselves, and the Cavs are under-performing, so tonight will be a good “see where we are game” for both sides.
I’m expecting a very close game, eminently winnable for either team, with Wade + LeBron going off for huge nights. Pretty much canceling each other out. Whichever player gets more of a hot hand from their supporting cast will end up being the victor.
Miami matches up better with Cleveland than most title contenders due to the Cavs over-reliance on LeBron James. It allows their defense to be more effectual.
Starting lineups
Cleveland Cavaliers — Mo Williams + Anthony Parker + LeBron James + JJ Hickson + Shaquille O’Neal
Miami Heat — Mario Chalmers + Dwyane Wade + Quentin Richardson + Michael Beasley + Jermaine O’Neal Read the rest of this entry »
Big game tonight between the Cavs and Magic. Good opportunity to see how the new look Cavs, Shaquille O’Neal in particular, defend Dwight Howard and company.
Magic lineup — Shaq + Hickson + James + Parker + Williams
Delonte West is inactive tonight. The team hasn’t released the reason why … only to say there needs to be accountability for all players.
Nice help defense by Nelson coming over from the weakside to break up the pass by LeBron to Hickson under the rim.
Mo Williams knocks down a jumper. Jameer Nelson replies with a pull up J of his own from 18 feet on the right elbow extended.
James isolation on the right wing against Barnes, James settles for the jumper, hits a 22 footer. He can beat Barnes for speed all night long. Look to drive.
Cavs post up Shaquille O’Neal, foul on Howard in the post. His first. Sideline ball, Cavs post up Shaq again, he turns middle, hesitates, gets himself in trouble, takes a one handed short shot in the middle of the paint, misses. Read the rest of this entry »
San Antonio leads 3-2 after one minute as Deron Williams hits a layup in transition.
Tony Parker pick and pop with Tim Duncan, nice help defense by Brewer to dissuade Duncan from taking that jump shot immediately, Okur recovers, Duncan facing him up on the left wing, takes it, misses it.
Okur gets good position in the middle of the paint, eight from the rim, against Bonner, turns around and hits the short shot.
Ronnie Brewer knocks down a 17 footer off the left elbow. Nice catch and shoot.
Tony Parker pick and pop with Matt Bonner on the right wing, three pointer Bonner, miss.
Fun matchup here. Two undefeated teams battling one another.
Dwyane Wade put on a show against the Suns last season putting up 43 and 6 in Phoenix + 35 and 16 at home leading the Heat to two wins out of two versus the Suns.
No Barbosa tonight. He’s out injured.
This should be a good game. First Quarter
Miami lead 4-2 after 75 seconds following two Beasley free throws.
Nice pass by Steve Nash from the left elbow out to the right wing to an open Richardson for a three pointer, miss.
Beautiful bounce pass by Nash from the top of the key to Richardson who cut down the baseline and got himself a wide open dunk for his troubles.
Channing Frye looks like a small forward out there. The way he moves, the positions he takes up.
Q-Rich knocks down a triple out of the let corner. Good pass by Jermaine O’Neal to set that one up. Read the rest of this entry »
Good matchup here between two of the young squads over in the Western Conference. An up and coming Thunder squad versus an already established Blazers. These two squads could be fighting one another in the playoffs for the next 5-10 years.
First Quarter
Greg Oden just beast-ed Krstic in the low post before he ever got the ball. He’s too strong for Krstic to handle. Oden will be able to get deep position all night long, plus he can seal him away from the pass extremely well. Superb matchup for the Blazers.
Sloppy passing from the Blazers … almost turned it over three times — Aldridge’s four foot pass to Blake off target, Blake runs it down to the sideline, trapped, throws it to Oden, Oden can’t catch the ball, spills it heading out of bounds, saves it, Westbrook intercepts it but falls out of bounds in the process — Portland lucky to hang onto possession there. Read the rest of this entry »
Bosh and Shaq jump up it … Bosh wins the tip. Calderon dribbles forward, pick and roll, over to Bargnani who ran around the baseline, Varejao is defending him, head fake, drives baseline, dunks over Varejao. Nice move.
Bargnani is defending Shaquille on the other end. Mo Williams misses from the corner, Varejao beats Bosh to the rebound.
Chris Bosh posts up on the right box, turns middle, lefty hook, well defended by Varejao, miss. Read the rest of this entry »
I think this is preseason game number two for both sides. The Celtics lost to the Rockets the other day, whilst the Knicks beat the Nets with Gallinari showing off his impressive passing skills and with Wilson Chandler having one of those make-you-drool-over-his-potential games.
First Half
The Celtics have looked amazing in the first few minutes of the first quarter. They’ve pushed ahead 17-8, mainly due to their activity defensively. Offensively they’re pushing the ball right back at NY, I love it.
The Knicks were a lot of fun to watch while David Lee was on the floor. Unfortunately he picked up three quick fouls and had to sit down. While he was on the floor, he was picking up rebounds like a fiend and setting bone crunching screens (one beautiful screen on Rondo which took Rajon right out of the play). Offensively, he provides great balance for the Knicks. When he goes off the floor they have problems with spacing and with an interior/pick and roll threat. Read the rest of this entry »
The Lakers can finish the Magic off tonight, and win the 2008-09 NBA Title.
The Magic are fighting for their lives.
First Quarter
Good job by Rashard Lewis, fronting or 3/4ering Gasol in the post, and deflecting the pass … turnover. Courtney Lee drills a jump shot on the other end.
Three or four shot attempts at the rim there for LA, Bynum missing, Gasol finishing inside. Great effort from Bynum to keep that alive.
I’d absolutely love to see the Magic win this game and tie up the series. It would set up some much needed tension over the remainder of this series. So, I’m pulling hard for the Magic tonight.
First Quarter
Am I the only one who thinks there is a lack of buzz about this game?
I like the Magic to rebound and win the game tonight. They’re due for a good shooting night.
First Quarter
Dwight Howard wins the tip … He posts up on the left block, draws a double, kicks it out, Hedo gets a great look from downtown on the left wing, miss Read the rest of this entry »
I think this game is a must win for the Orlando Magic. I cannot seeing them win four out of five games against the Lakers, which is something they’d have to do should they fall back 0-2 tonight.
First Quarter
Excellent defensive rotations from the Los Angeles Lakers to take away Orlando’s three point shooting opportunities despite having numbers on the weak side of the court, forced Alston to put the ball on the floor and to take a tough runner over Gasol, miss. Read the rest of this entry »
I’m giddy about these NBA Finals. This should be a terrific matchup and a very exciting series.
First Quarter
Orlando lead 7-6 after the first two plus minutes.
Gasol pulls down the defensive rebound after Rafer’s missed floater. Lakers come up court, quick post up for Kobe, he pressures Lee, turns middle, kickout, runs out the right wing, gets the ball back, drives hard down the baseline, draws a foul. Read the rest of this entry »
Closeout game. The Magic lead the series 3-2 and are looking to finish the Cavs off tonight.
I’m pulling for Cleveland. I’d absolutely love to see this series go seven games, I think the seventh game would be a beautiful display of the mental strength both teams possess. Talk about a pressure cooker game, game seven, for the Magic. I’d love to see that.
First Quarter
Orlando lead 3-2 after two minutes after Ben Wallace misses a pair of FTS. Varejao has already picked up two fouls.
Hedo on the drive and kick, off the high pick and roll, to Rafer in the left corner, Rafer drains it!
James dribbling on the perimeter, pulls up, knocks it down
Drive and kick to Lewis, top of the key, pump fake, drive, drive and kick to Lee in the left corner, extra pass, three second violation on Howard who was trying to get position for the rebound. Read the rest of this entry »
The Lakers lead the series 3-2 heading into tonight’s game. The Nuggets are just trying to stay alive.
I like the Lakers to finish off the Nuggets tonight. This series has already gone on too long.
First Quarter
The Lakers win the tip. They got Kobe on the midpost on the right wing 16 feet from the rim, double teamed, he passes out, nothing on for LA. Their spacing there wasn’t up too much.
Kobe Bryant tries to steal the outlet, Billups loose ball foul as he tried to keep the ball from Bryant.
The Magic lead the matchup 3-1 and are looking to close out the series tonight. The game is in Cleveland.
I expect the Cavs to win this one. It’s hard to see LeBron not finding a way to pull this one out, and extend the series in the process of doing so.
First Quarter
I missed the first few minutes of this one. Cleveland lead 17-6 after four minutes, a fast offensive start from Cleveland.
Ilgauksas knocks down a 21 footer off the pass.
Turkoglu steps over the line on an inbounds pass, turnover. That’s gotta hurt.
Mo Williams knocks down a triple over Rafer Alston — he’s 4-4 from the field, 3-3 from downtown, for 11 points already.
I didn’t watch this game, watched it on tape this morning. No game log for this one, just some thoughts on the game.
The Game
The first half was a close affair, with neither team truly able to pull away from one another.
Denver started out better, a timeout by Jackson seven minutes in calmed the Lakers down and suddenly they went on a 8-0 burst to take the lead back. Denver rallied and tied the game at 25-25 by the end one, with two huge Chris Andersen blocks denying Odom dunks and sparking fastbreaks going the other way.
The second quarter was even closer, with both teams trading baskets until the final minutes of the quarter and with neither able to create any separation. Finally, the Nuggets created a five point gap, but a strong Lakers finish punctuated by a Vujacic three pointer closed the gap and left the game tied at 56-56 entering halftime. Read the rest of this entry »
This is a pivotal game for the Cavs tonight. They don’t want to be heading back to Cleveland down 3-1. If Orlando can pull out the win, it’s nigh on impossible to the see them losing this series.
I’m pulling for the Magic tonight. I’d love to see them make the Finals.
First Quarter
Rafer Alston opens up the Magic’s account with a shot from downtown. great sign to see him hit an early jumper.
Good screen and roll defense from Cleveland on the left wing, LeBron cut off the dribble penetration, sent him back to the perimeter, screen and roll, Z did a good job sending him back to the sideline, Rafer picked up his dribble, Z got back quickly, Varejao made it across to stop Dwight’s roll to the rim far away from the hoop. Read the rest of this entry »
Is tonight a must win for the Nuggets? I think so. I don’t see them coming back from a 3-1 deficit.
First Quarter
Nuggets run upcourt off of Ariza’s two missed FTs, Melo jumps to the low post, inside to him on the right block, double comes, Kenyon trailing the play, nice pass to the cutter, two handed dunk. Great pass.
Bynum scores inside after a nice lob pass to take advantage of the smaller Anthony who had switched onto Bynum
Anthony dribble penetration, misses the runner, Nene takes the rebound and stuffs it home!
We’re not even four minutes into this game and the Nuggets are already a +5 on the backboards (7-2). If Denver can win the battle of the backboards, that’ll go a long way towards winning the game because they’ve been better than LA elsewhere for most of this series. Read the rest of this entry »
Orlando stole homecourt advantage by splitting the first two games in Cleveland. The series is tied 1-1.
First Quarter
Dwight Howard gets the friendly bounce, three or four friendly bounces, on his first free throw attempt of the night. He misses the second. Orlando lead 1-0 after the first minute.
Dwight Howard gets great position inside, middle of the paint, four feet from the rim, muscles up the short shot and hits it.
Cleveland have started in jittery fashion. They look nervous. LeBron might have to take over the scoring for a few minutes to let his teammates find their comfort zone. Read the rest of this entry »
The series switches to Denver with the matchup tied at one apiece.
Interesting article saying Bynum and Jackson aren’t speaking to one another right now — Bynum is unhappy at his lack of playing time, and Phil is unhappy at Bynum’s lack of rebounding + defense. Both have a point, but Phil is a heck of a lot more correct than Bynum is.
First Quarter
Denver lead 7-4 after two and a half minutes.
Kobe Bryant posts up on the left post, he backs down Jones easily, Jones tries to wrap him up before the shot attempt but to no avail. Kobe makes two at the line.
Melo fouled on a jump shot, nice spin move to get away from Ariza, stupid contest from Ariza as he jumped wildly into Melo’s body. Second straight possession LA has fouled a jump shooter. Read the rest of this entry »
The Orlando Magic stole home court by winning game one. It’s important for Cleveland to find their footing tonight, and to get a win, otherwise I worry that things could steamroll badly for them.
First Quarter
Cleveland win the tip but don’t get a bucket
Lovely dribble penetration from Courtney Lee, who sliced inside into the paint from the left wing and then dumped it off to Dwight Howard for the easy dunk after Big Z came over to eliminate Lee’s layup attempt … But nobody told Delonte West, who scuppered down form the perimeter and swiped the ball away from Howard from behind as Howard went up to stuff it home.
Great job by Lee to run 14 feet to contest a high lob pass from Ilgauskas, off an offensive rebound, out to Mo Williams 30 feet from the rim. Lee got a piece of it but the Magic couldn’t get control of the loose ball. Read the rest of this entry »
The Lakers won the first game of the series, hopefully they can win again tonight.
First Quarter
No scores in the first minute after Fisher hoists a desperation three off the dribble over Kenyon Martin as the Lakers possession comes to a miserable end.
Chauncey Billups dribbles upcourt and hits a 22 footer on the right wing
Nice drive by Bryant along the baseline, threads the pass beautifully for Bynum for the dunk
Ariza tries to create off the bounce, loses his dribble twice, the Lakers possession bottoms out again — Kobe goes one on one and forces a long jump shot to beat the shot clock, hits it. Read the rest of this entry »
Cleveland’s rust is a major factor to watch tonight. Hopefully they can give a good performance.
First Quarter
Cleveland win the tip, Dwight roaming off of Varejao, Varejao cuts to the rim from the opposite side of the court, layup. Nice pass over the top by James.
Lewis misses a quick three pointer from the left wing
Beautiful pass once again to Varejao, he’s fouled on the reverse layup. Nice threaded pass along the baseline. Cleveland lead 4-0 after a minute.
LeBron James is on Rafer Alston, and he’ll roam defensively, try to wreck some havoc defensively. Read the rest of this entry »
The series is obviously tied three apiece. The Celtics have homecourt tonight.
I think the Boston Celtics should be considered the favourites because of homecourt, their game seven experience, and superior mental qualities (toughness/poise/focus). The Orlando Magic are more than capable of winning this game though … so we should have a great game on our hands
I think the Magic could give the Cavs a better run for their money in the next round. I think we’d see a better Conference Finals if they won.
First Round
Orlando win the tip. Boston’s defense is aggressive on the first possession, they do a very good job making the entry pass into the post difficult, Howard finally gets it, misses a jump hook. On the other end, Orlando’s defense is softer Read the rest of this entry »
Obviously, the series is tied three apiece. The Lakers are at home tonight, and I expect them to win in a 20+ point blowout. I have to say though, I’m pulling for the Rockets to win, I’d love to see the Lakers complacency punished. The only way I see Houston winning is if they have one of those nights where they can’t miss a shot.
I had the start time wrong, so I missed the opening part of this game.
The Lakers lead the series 3-2 and I expect them to end the series tonight.
First Quarter
Houston jump out to an 8-1 lead after two shots, by Scola and Brooks, hit over the out-stretched hand of Bynum. Steal by Ron Artest, breakaway layup. The Rockets lead 10-1 after three and a half minutes.
Battier blocks Bryant’s pull up J from 18 feet on the top of the key, turnover, but Brooks turns it over on the fastbreak.
Bynum offensive rebound, misses the short 5 foot shot, rebound Gasol, miss. LA is 0-6 from the field.
Denver lead the series 3-1 and I expect them to end the series here.
I watched this sporadically because it wasn’t up to much as a contest, and because the series was already decided. Ergo, only a few box score thoughts to follow.
The Game
The game wasn’t much of a contest. The Nuggets jumped out early and built a 32-21 lead late in the first quarter. They then held that double digit lead for most of the action until the four minute mark in the third period. From there, Denver made a nice 8-0 run to seemingly end the contest with a massive 93-76 lead.
The Mavericks, however, would mount a mini-comeback, led by Brandon Bass as Bass scored eight quick points between the end of the third and the first two minutes of the fourth. Read the rest of this entry »
The Celtics lead the series 3-2 and can finish the series tonight. I, however, like the Magic to prolong the matchup.
I expect the Magic to come out with passion and ferocity tonight. I’m looking for them to make a big run early in the first quarter, or perhaps in the second quarter, and build a nice advantage for themselves.
First Quarter
I missed the first 3 minutes, tied 6-6.
JJ Redick remains in Orlando’s starting lineup — that’s disappointing. I would have liked to have seen Courtney Lee starting.
Inbounds by Boston, 1 second on the shot clock, to Perkins, 16 foot jumper, he hits it! Read the rest of this entry »
Lamar Odom was a doubt before the game. He will play but shall come off the bench. Bynum will start in his place, hopefully this will help him get off quickly, and allow Pau Gasol to start against Scola which may help him.
I like the Lakers to win tonight, and then win the next game to end this in six.
First Quarter
Hayes defends Pau Gasol on the first possession, so no change there. Scola is on Bynum, and Artest is now defending Ariza.
Nice lob pass to Bynum, alley oop dunk!
Nice baseline drive by Artest, evades Bynum with a nice shoulder fake, misses the layup, rebound and putback for Hayes Read the rest of this entry »
I have to say, I’m hoping the Celtics win this game. I think their success and valour without Kevin Garnett is a great story, and I hope it gets a chance to continue. That said, I think the Orlando Magic are a favourite by a solid margin.
First Quarter
Redick continues in the starting lineup despite some reports that Courtney Lee may re-take his starting spot.
Brian Scalabrine missed shoot-around with flu like symptoms, but he’ll play tonight.
Glen Davis knocks down a baseline 17 footer off the baseline inbounds pass — knocked loose after a Pierce drive, good to see Paul drive the ball on the first possession of the game.
Dwight Howard tries to attack Perkins with his quickness, Perk pushes him wide, and Dwight misses the runner. Read the rest of this entry »
I didn’t bother watching either game, because frankly, both series are already over.
Atlanta Hawks vs Cleveland Cavaliers
Dallas Mavericks vs Denver Nuggets
Prior to the games, I thought the Hawks chances of winning were somewhere south of two percent, and that the Mavs-Nuggets game was a 50-50 proposition … but was hoping for Denver to end the series because it’s gotten dull.
I missed the first half of this one, but tuned in for the first 18 minutes of the second half as LA failed to make a run and in doing so failed to make this one a contest.
The Rockets went up double digits after five minutes and never looked back. They were up 18 points by halftime, and grew that lead to 27 points halfway through the third quarter behind a barrage of three pointers from Brooks and Battier. The rest of the game was garbage time.
What follows is mostly just thoughts on the box score:
Houston
Aaron Brooks is a far more effective player when he’s allowed to dominate the ball. He likes to play, likes his coach to allow him to play, like a Chris Paul — a point guard who’s allowed pound the ball into the floor and make every decision for his team. We’ve known this about Brooks for a long time, and it’s part of what makes him a so-so fit as role player on a team contending for a title …. but it’s also what makes him terrifying as a team’s first option when those stars go down. Read the rest of this entry »
Cleveland leads the series 1-0 and is looking to take care of homecourt tonight.
First Quarter
I missed the first six minutes of the game. The game is tied 12-12 midway through the quarter.
Varejao on the offensive glass, and gets the putback. He has three baskets and a couple of offensive rebounds.
LeBron James hits two FTs after drawing a foul on a driving layup in transition
Great job by Varejao tracking on the pick and roll, Joe Johnson pulls out to 30 feet, still doesn’t have much of a pass on, and after the pass Zaza is forced to create and he makes a mess of it Read the rest of this entry »
The Rockets won game one and lead the series 1-0.
First Quarter
The Rockets are 5-0 when leading after the first quarter, and 0-2 when trailing after the first quarter.
The Lakers win the tip, good player movement to start of the game, hand off from Gasol to Fisher on perimeter, he drives right, pull up J from 18 feet at the top of the key, hits it
Gasol drops a fadeaway over Yao off the left block, good D by Yao on the possession. Lakers lead 6-2 after 90 seconds. Read the rest of this entry »
Orlando won the first game of the series and lead 1-0.
First Quarter
Rondo flies to the rim and hits his second layup of the quarter (other was a layup off a backdoor cut). Pierce also knocked down a three, Rondo with the assist, to give Boston a 7-4 lead. Boston post up Perkins on the left block, he backs down Howard, right hand jump hook, hits it.
Pierce sits down with two fouls, only three and a half minutes into the game, and Stephon comes in to replace him. It’ll be very interesting to see how Boston defend Hedo, and how they manage their offense. Read the rest of this entry »
Nene misses a spectacular dunk to start of the game, it bounces high, about 25 feet in the air and out of bounds on the sideline. Nice pick and roll, and lovely bounce pass from Billups to Nene to set it up.
Antoine Wright opens up the scoring with a three pointer
Dirk Nowitzki posts up Kenyon Martin low on the right block, fakes middle, Kenyon moves that, spins baseline, lay in. Read the rest of this entry »
What a start! James at the top of the key, passes it to Delonte on the left high post, Delonte hand off to James, who circles down the left wing and drives hard to the rim for the two handed dunk
Good job by Josh Smith running the floor, he was about 15-20 feet ahead of Varejao by the time he hit the low post, good help D from Big Z makes him hesitate while Varejao gets back in position. Josh Smith goes up with it, rejected by Varejao, Smith gets it back, spins to the paint, up again and finishes this time. Read the rest of this entry »
Kobe Bryant drops a 20 footer on the left wing over Battier to open the scoring for LA.
Yao Ming with a nice jump hook to put Houston up 4-4. Andrew Bynum returns the favour on the other end, left post, spins middle, right hand jump hook and hits it.
Yao Ming crosses the paint, posts up on the right block, face up jumper, misses. Andrew Bynum shows to the FT line, catch and shoot, misses.
Artest drives baseline on Ariza, Pau Gasol helps down, Artest throws a nice pass back to Scola who’s just inside the FT line, he hits the short shot. Nice pass from Artest.
Luis Scola posts up on the right block, turns baseline, jump hook off the glass, misses. Read the rest of this entry »
Dwight Howard wins the tip, nice screen and roll action near the top of the key with Hedo and Dwight, Shard joins the action, gets wide open, Hedo gives it to him and Lewis drains a triple
Nice defensive rotation by Glen Davis to draw the charge on Howard
Kendrick Perkins backs down Howard, turns middle, goes back to the baseline for a fadeaway, rejected by Howard. Perkins gets it back, continues to force it in the post, tries to back down Howard, loses his dribble and turns it over.
Nice fake spin move by Perkins in the lane, turns back the other way and gets a good look on a jump hook, misses. Nice move though
Dirk Nowitzki scores the first two field goals of the game to put Dallas up 4-0 after two minutes. Dirk bags another bucket a minute later, as he drives off the right wing, into the middle of the paint and hit a fallaway from there.
Dampier falls over after collecting a defensive rebound — he’s not moving well at all, holding his hip too. Jogging gingerly. The Mavs gotta get him off the floor.
Nene scores two layups — one on the break and one in the halfcourt
Timeout Dallas — they’re looking at Dampier now. Ryan Hollins checks in, big loss for the Mavs. Read the rest of this entry »
Al Horford will play tonight, so Atlanta have a chance of winning this game, if he couldn’t go this series would be over before this game ever began.
Jermaine O’Neal will not play tonight. He isn’t much of a loss, although he has played two excellent games in this series and one solid game. Edit: Jermaine will play, he just didn’t start.
First Quarter
Atlanta lead 14-10 halfway through the first quarter
Udonis Haslem has 5 rebounds already, as he pulls down Horford’s missed turnaround J out of the low post. Haslem runs down a long offensive rebound on the other end of the floor, that’s 6. Read the rest of this entry »
Winner takes all tonight — series tied 3-3 — anything can happen in Game Seven!
Before the game, I listed a couple of numbers which show just how close this series has been. You can check that out here.
Boston should be considered the favourite. They have more high end talent.
First Quarter
Tuning in after four minutes — Chicago lead 13-11 after two Ray-Ray FTs
Ben Gordon has gotten off to a hot start — 7 points — a long two just inside the three point line, a three and two FTs … make that 10 points as he hits more FTs
Horford will not play tonight. [edit: Second Quarter, Horford is actually on the bench and has dressed for the game, but is not expected to play.]
Marvin Williams is dressed for the game, but I read that he’s not playing again tonight. Maybe he’ll play if Atlanta become desperate? Odd that he dressed despite reports saying he wouldn’t play. Mo Evans continues to start at small forward.
Miami should be considered the favourite because of Atlanta’s two large losses.
Hang on, Jermaine O’Neal is not playing either, he has a problem with his left elbow and Joel Anthony will start in his place.
Miami should still be considered the favourite, O’Neal isn’t as large of a loss as Al Horford is.
First Quarter
A fast scoring start — Atlanta ahead 8-7 after three minutes.
Orlando will be without the suspended Dwight Howard, and the injured Courtney Lee, tonight. In their place, Marcin Gortat and JJ Redick will start. I would have preferred to have seen Mickael Pietrus start.
The Magic lead the series 3-2 and close out the series tonight. I like Phily to hold firm and send this series back to Orlando — mainly due to Hedo Turkoglu’s struggles, if Hedo can have a good game in Howard’s absence then the Magic stand a good chance of winning.
I didn’t watch this game so the following is just a box score summary
Tuning into the Rockets-Blazers game late because of the triple overtime Bulls-Celtics game. We are four minutes into the third quarter, with Houston leading 58-43.
Third Quarter
Brandon Roy and LaMarcus Aldridge have 32 of Portland’s 44 points. Make that 34 of their 46 points as Roy makes two FTs at the line.
Ron Artest has 21 points for Houston. A balanced scoring effort by his lead.
Artest drives baseline, gets a step on his man easily, to the rim, layup. Read the rest of this entry »
Boston leads the series 3-2 and I like their chances to end the series tonight.
First Quarter
A John Salmons three pointer from the left wing puts Chicago ahead 3-2. Lovely block by Ty Thomas on Pierce’s layup attempt off some good dribble penetration from Paul, the Bulls miss a short shot by Noah on the other end.
Ah no, Perkins picks up a stupid foul off the ball 80 feet from the rim, while walking back down court. The Celtics can’t win this game without Perkins on the floor for big minutes, and playing well. Perk can’t afford to pick up stupid fouls like that. Read the rest of this entry »
The Nuggets lead the series 3-1 and are trying to close out the series tonight. I think the Nuggets will win this one.
Tyson Chandler will not play tonight. Hilton Armstrong starts in his place.
First Quarter
Tuning in after the first seven minutes of the quarter. Denver is leading 12-11, make that 14-11 after Nene drops two FTs out of the timeout.
Rasual Butler is bringing the ball upcourt against Billups, it takes him 14 seconds to get rid of the ball and that was a sideways pass to Paul 25 feet from the rim. Good pressure defense from Billups there. Butler runs down to the baseline, curls off screen, catch and shoot, good plus a foul on Chauncey. The possession worked out well for the Hornets but that looks like a problem waiting to happen. Read the rest of this entry »
The series is tied 2-2. I like Atlanta’s chances at taking the lead in the series tonight.
Marvin Williams will not play.
First Quarter
Miami are leading 8-6 after a few minutes. We’ve seen a powerful dunk from Josh Smith and some nice play from Jermaine O’Neal.
Odd stat — Wade has 32 three pointers versus 23 free throw attempts in the series.
Good defense by James Jones, great contest on JJ’s fadeaway J from 22 feet in the right corner. Jones’ length is going to bother that shot, JJ has to put the ball on the floor and take Jones off the bounce. Read the rest of this entry »
I wrote a game time post for two of those games, albeit only the fourth quarter for the Blazers game, and have posted a link to those posts above. The other two games will get some box score punditry here. Read the rest of this entry »
Houston leads the series 3-1 and can end the battle tonight. Portland are playing for their playoff lives.
I only tuned in for the final quarter.
Fourth Quarter
64-62 Portland lead
Nice steal from Houston, well done Lowry. Portland foul on the break. Inbounds, ball swung to Von Wafer, he drives to the rim and finishes with the layup. Tie game. Two possessions later, Yao draws the fourth foul on Oden. After the inbounds, Yao delivers a face up jumper over Oden from 15 feet right wing. Chuck Hayes checks in for Yao, to give him a break.
Aldridge has been the best scorer for Portland. He is 11-18 from the field for 25 points. He has only 2 rebounds, and 2 assists, though. Read the rest of this entry »
Paul Pierce knocks down his second shot of the night, a nice little step back shot off the drive from the FT line over Salmons. Pierce looks in good form tonight, which is great news for Boston.
Ben Gordon drills a three pointer from the top of the key over Glen Davis, a switch off the pick and roll, to beat the shot clock. On the next possession, Rose does a lovely job to find Noah inside for the lay in. The score is 9-8 Boston after five minutes. Read the rest of this entry »
The Lakers can close out the series tonight. It would be an impressive achievement to beat this Utah team in just five games.
First Quarter
It’s tied 4-4 after two minutes.
Okur with a nice drive and dish to Boozer for the lay in. Tied at six.
Both teams going through the motions right now, neither side is trying to grab hold of this game. It’s 8-6 LA after five minutes in a low energy, low urgency start. Read the rest of this entry »
The Nuggets will look to take control of the series tonight, and they’re a good bet to do so.
I watched the Hawks-Heat game instead, so this will just be a box score report … and it’ll be even shorter than that, because of how this game turned out.
Thoughts On Game
The Nuggets repeated (Game Three) their superb opening performance to the game by opening up a 36-15 lead after the first quarter. Their lead was never threatened, and the game was effectively over at this point.
The Nuggets and Hornets played each other even in the second quarter, but the Nuggets destroyed the Hornets once again in the third quarter. They won that quarter 27-11 and built their lead to 38 points entering the final quarter.
Jamario Moon is questionable tonight and Marvin Williams will continue to sit out injured.
Update — Jamario Moon is out — big loss for Miami, only wing in the rotation outside of Wade who rebounds the ball well.
First Quarter
Monstrous dunk from Al Horford over Jermaine O’Neal — Atlanta ahead 6-1 to start of the game.
Al Horford is really going after that Jermaine O’Neal turnaround. I’m not sure it’s worth the risk of picking up a foul there. Jermaine shoots what? 30-40% on that shot? That’s a shot you’re happy that Miami takes as long as it’s contested. I don’t think Horford has to go all out for the block and give up a ticky tack foul like he just did.
The whole Hawks bench gets up and cheers after Josh Smith puts it on the floor and drives to the rim. That sentence says so many things about Josh Smith …. Read the rest of this entry »
I didn’t get to watch much basketball yesterday, and caught glimpses of a couple of games, so I pretty much missed the following games
Boston Celtics vs Chicago Bulls — Game Four
Cleveland Cavaliers vs Detroit Pistons — Game Four
Orlando Magic vs Philadelphia 76ers — Game Four
Houston Rockets vs Portland Trailblazers — Game Four
Okay, so I’ll supply some short box score notes on each of the games
Cleveland Cavaliers vs Detroit Pistons
This game was over before it began, after the way Cleveland demolished Detroit in the first two games and embarrassed Detroit in game three, you just knew the Pistons stood no chance in hell of winning this one. Read the rest of this entry »
I watched the first quarter, but didn’t write down any notes, and turned off until late in the third quarter — so the game time report will start there.
First Half
The Philadelphia 76ers gradually build an 11 point lead, winning the first quarter by 6 points and the second quarter by 5 points.
Cleveland should build an unassailable lead tonight by going ahead 3-0 in the series.
First Quarter
The Detroit Pistons start off in better fashion, opening up with an 8-0 run keyed by two long Tayshaun Prince jump shots on the left wing. He has 5 of the 8 points.
Big Z at the top of the key, a little off to the left, behind the three point line, Bron is on the right wing and cuts hard to the rim, nice bounce pass from Z to Bron, slam dunk. That ends the Pistons run.
Next possession, Cleveland run a 1-3 screen and roll and force the switch, Stuckey is on James, LeBron takes him down into the low post, left block, and makes the catch, backs him down, turns and muscles up a short shot over the youngster.
Oh beautiful move from Stuckey … Stuckey dribbling up the floor high out on the right wing, he drives hard to his left, his the free throw line, lovely spin move to the lose the defender and he hits the pretty layup. Brilliant spin move. Read the rest of this entry »
I watched the Bulls-Celtics and Jazz-Lakers game, so I only caught a small part of this game (during halftime of Chicago’s game). I’ll offer my thoughts on that, and some box score punditry on the rest.
Second Quarter
Dallas are leading the game 34-25 five minutes into the second quarter.
A couple of superb defensive plays sparks a 10-0 Dallas run
Tony Parker was out on the right wing, drove hard at Jason Kidd, Kidd anticipated the angle, beat Parker to the spot, and forced Parker into losing his footing, and earned a traveling violation against the Spurs guard.
Brandon Bass with a picture perfect steal out on the right wing, a lazy pass from Kurt Thomas, breakaway dunk for Bass!
Kurt Thomas squirms around in the paint and his shot rejected back out, fastbreak again. Read the rest of this entry »
The Celtics have jumped out of the gates and built up a 17-10 lead after just five minutes of action. Their early dominance has quieted the Bulls’ home crowd. That draws a timeout of Chicago.
Out of the timeout, Paul Pierce decides it’s time to exert his dominance. He hits back to back jumpers, including one lovely 17 footer on the left wing where he used a beautiful headfake to lose John Salmons, to put Boston ahead 21-12. Pierce is 5-5 from the floor. On the next possession, Pierce gets the ball out on the wing, dribble drive to the FT line, draws the defense, he takes the 16 foot fallaway J, hits it.
Tuning after the first three and a half minutes. The Houston Rockets are off to a bright start and have an 11-2 lead. Portland’s Nate McMillan just called a timeout.
It’s time for Brandon Roy to get a hold of the game for his team.
Brandon Roy uses a high screen and roll with Yao, he drives hard, down the left hand side of the lane, layup. Houston turn it over, Brandon Roy gets the ball, uses another pick and roll with Yao, and gets another bucket.
Artest misses a three pointer off the lift wing, long rebound, Aldridge shows little hustle, Scola on the other hand goes out and taps it away, runs it down but Steve Blake is there to meet him and it goes out of bounds of Luis Scola. Read the rest of this entry »
First blood — Dirk Nowitzki gets a down screen from Wright, he pops out for a 14 footer, shoots it, fouled by Roger Mason Jr. Three point play. Nice start for Dallas and nice screen to get Dirk open.
Antoine Wright will defend Tony Parker. Dallas are hoping his quickness, size, and length will be more impactful versus Parker than their slow or small point guards.
Tony Parker gets a screen from Tim Duncan, slices into the paint, layup attempt, fouled, not called.
Duncan stripped in the post by Dirk. Nice play by Nowitzki.
Parker gets a great look but misses the floater from 5 feet. San Antonio control the offensive rebound, out to Michael Finley, Finley blows by Josh Howard and gets the layup. Great play from Finley and worrying lack of defensive effort from Howard. Read the rest of this entry »
I missed most of this game so I don’t have a huge amount to say about — short post only.
I tuned in after the Bulls win over Boston, it was about halfway through the second quarter at the time. The Pistons where down 43-39, and subsequently bottomed out and finished the half down 12 points after a miraculous heave by LeBron James — he ran down the left sideline, threw up a Hail Mary from midcourt and nailed it.
I missed the start of the third quarter, but the rest of the game basically followed the same tired protocol — Detroit stay down double digits, never seriously threaten the Cavs, despite being within shooting distance until midway in the fourth, and the Cavs get a very comfortable win.
Some Stats
The biggest problem for the Pistons tonight? Firepower!
Rodney Stuckey was their best scorer on the night. He dropped 20 points but it took him 21 shots and 6 free throws. Read the rest of this entry »
I’m making some changes to my “Game Time” posts. I usually do a game log and give a brief description of what is happening throughout the game, but I have decided to abandon that method.
For the time being I’m going to be writing a brief recap of the game, but I’m not sure if that’s the long term successor or not. It’s a work in progress.
First Quarter
Quick injury report — John Salmons is still suffering from a groin injury. He can and will play through the injury.
First Basket Of The Series — The game started with a bang from the Bulls. On the first possession of the game Boston turned over the ball, outlet to Derrick Rose, he flies up the court and finds a streaking Joakim Noah for a flush.
Kendrick Perkins got an early post up opportunity down in the left block. He easily got low position against the much smaller Joakim Noah, then easily backed him down, and easily hit a jump hook over Noah. Perk can get that shot whenever he wants all series long. Read the rest of this entry »
The final regular season matchup of the season for last year’s Finalists.
First Quarter
Usual starting lineups for both sides. Walton continues to start at small forward for LA – watch that matchup with Pierce closely, it may decide the game.
Boston’s crowd are up for this one
Pau Gasol wins the tip, on LA’s first possession Odom dribbles the ball left towards the middle of the floor above the three point line, quick crossover right, blows by Garnett, fouled, runner blocked by KG. Odom misses his first free throw, and misses his second free throw.
Kobe Bryant is defending Rajon Rondo like he did in the NBA Finals. Ray Allen needs to take advantage of Fisher. Read the rest of this entry »
Cavs win the tip. No scores until 90 seconds in. Nice drive by Iverson from the right wing into the middle of the paint, drawing the defense, and dishing off to Rasheed Wallace for a 6 footer on the left block.
Big Z answers back with a 20 footer on the left wing. Great to see Ilgauskas back in action. He pulls down a rebound on the other end. Drive and dish to Big Z as he runs up the floor, he feels in rhythm (not sure he is though), he misses. I don’t like seeing Z shoot right after he runs up the floor, he’s more of a set shooter
Nice pick and roll between Stuckey and Amir Johnson, slam dunk. Amir should be an excellent pick and roll player with his finishing ability, good picks, and athleticism. I’d like to see the Pistons use him in pick and rolls more often..
Cavs are 1-7 from the field in the first four minutes, they’re down 1, 4-3 Detroit
Mo Williams draws a charge. His defense earns some praise from the commentators and a story about Mike Brown praising his defense also.
That’s a better shot for Z, his feet were set when he caught the ball for the jump shot this time, front rims it, rebound bounces right back to him, he takes a step in to catch it, another step into the paint and gets fouled on his runner. He splits a pair at the line and the game is now tied at 4-4 after five minutes.
Rasheed Wallace close to getting a technical. He deserved one there. Two refs were mixed on who’s ball it was after it was knocked out of bounds, a third ref came over and made the correct call – that Sheed blatantly dropped it out of bounds – and Sheed was upset at the call. Read the rest of this entry »
First game after the All-Star reserves have been announced. We have three All-Stars for Orlando with Dwight Howard, Rashard Lewis and Jameer Nelson. While the Cavs sport one All-Star.
Mo Williams was a player who received a lot of All-Star buzz over the past fortnight, so it’ll be interesting to see how he reacts tonight after missing out on the festivities. As an added bonus he’ll be going head-to-head with the player who took his All-Star spot in Jameer Nelson. Read the rest of this entry »
My focus on the game tonight is the matchup of Bynum vs Howard, so most of my bullet points will be on them [edit: as the game wore on that changed, fantastic game]
I thought this would be a fun matchup and an interesting “check where I’m at” game for Andrew Bynum
In this fixture last season, I remember Bynum blocking seven shots (10 points and 6 rebounds in 29 minutes also) and playing a solid game. However, it would prove to be too little as the Magic ran out to a very good road victory behind Dwight Howard’s impressive night (17 points, 8 rebounds, 5 blocks).
This is the second matchup of the season for LA and Orlando, the first one ending in a Magic victory on their home court. The Lakers were very poor on that day with Kobe Bryant getting far too little help from his teammates. Bynum meanwhile was atrocious and picking up 5 fouls in only 11 minutes. Read the rest of this entry »
A different set up for tonight’s game, instead of the usual game log I’m going to run a quick Q&A on some of variables I was looking for in tonights game.
First a disclaimer – I wasn’t able to watch the game as closely as I like to do normally, but I feel like I caught the gist of the game. If anybody has anything else to add or correct please feel free to do so.
Secondly, the result was 112-111 to the San Antonio Spurs. It was a tight game throughout and came down to whoever was making their shots at the end of the game, and the Spurs where that lucky side. I’d pay very little attention to who lost and who won tonight because the game could have gone either way. Read the rest of this entry »
First NBA matchup of their careers. This should be a good one.
This game will be played in Chicago.
First Quarter
Oklahoma are starting two point guards and two small forwards. Westbrook and Rose are defending one another on either end of the floor.
Westbrook doing a nice job sagging off of Rose and going down to the elbow as a perimeter jump shot is taken by Gooden, then he flies into the paint and takes down the rebound. Read the rest of this entry »
If the Lakers perform like they did in their previous three of four games (didn’t see the New Orleans game, good win for LA), this will be a rout.
If the Lakers perform like they have in the month of December, this will be a comfortable win for Boston.
If the Lakers perform like they did in the first month of the season, well then we have something special to salivate over. Read the rest of this entry »
This excellent matchup turned into a sad excuse for a contest. The New Orleans Hornets never showed up, and were slapped around with impunity by the Orlando Magic. The Magic had leads of over 20 points for most of the game, topping the 30 point mark at times. The game was over 5 minutes into the third quarter, and from that point on it was garbage time. Read the rest of this entry »
Fantastic matchup tonight between two of the four best teams in the NBA. A possible NBA Finals preview? Yes. A litmus test for both sides? Absolutely. Two excellent defensive+rebounding teams on show today, so we should have a fun grind it out type of game on display.
The Rockets had a very impressive performance last night in New Jersey where they shut down the Nets and stopped their game easily. They went up by 20 points early on and never looked under threat.
Chris Paul needs one steal tonight to break an NBA record for consecutive games with a steal. He’s currently tied with Alvin Robertson with 105 straight games with a steal, with MJ now in third place with 77 games. Rondo is second on the active list with 22 games, Jeff Foster is fourth with 9 steals which tells you how hard it is to string together a large number of games in this fashion. I’ll be so pleased when this is finally over with because I’m sick of the same damn graphic in every Hornets game since preseason. That’s almost 30 games.
Tyson Chandler is back for the Hornets, but Peja Stojakovic is out again tonight.
Michael Finley is playing his 1,000th regular season game tonight. Congradulations Finley.
The debut of Jay Triano, exciting night for Raptors fans.
Utah are short handed tonight as they play without Carlos Boozer. Millsap starts in his place and Kirilenko will likely play extended minutes off the bench.
First Quarter
Raptors win the tip, Calderon brings it upcourt, passes to Bargnani out on the right wing, Brewer on him, wide open right hand side of the floor, he drives hard down the right and dunks it home
Memo Okur with a fadeaway out of the left block, miss, rebound pulled down by Jermaine O’Neal
Jermaine O’Neal muscles his way down low and finishes inside
Quick push by Utah, wide open right wing, Millsap takes it to the rim, Jermaine back slowly but takes up a good position to put Millsap off on the shot attempt, missed layup. Read the rest of this entry »
The Celtics are currently in the midst of a 10 game winning streak which matches their high win streak from last season’s 66 win title winning side. Tonight they’re going to try and break mark against Brandon Roy’s Portland Trailblazers.
There’s a couple of very interesting subplots to tonight’s game that are worth watching out for
The Celtics defense, especially their pick and roll defense, shut down Steve Blake last season. They stopped him from being even a part time creator out there. When that happened all the responsibilities fell on Brandon Roy because there was no other Blazers’ guard who can break the Celtics down off the dribble. How does Steve Blake do now? Does their exciting Spanish backcourt rise to the occasion? Can Batum or Outlaw provide the help from small forward.
Rondo played in one of two meetings last season and had a big game against Blake. Blake’s defense will be under a big test tonight also. One could make the case for Blake being the Blazers X factor against the Celtics, the guy who decides how competitive this game is. Read the rest of this entry »
Spurs-Nuggets tonight folks, this is an excellent matchup.
Watch out for Nene’s post defense on Tim Duncan, he’s had a couple of excellent defensive performances against Timmy.
Spurs are starting both Manu and Tony these days so it’ll be interesting to see what they do with that second unit.
First Quarter
Toss ball, Duncan tips it forwards, Manu gest it, quick jumper as he races in front of everyone, hits the jumper
Carmelo beating down Michael Finley and scoring inside
Bonner knocks down a triple
Kenyon Martin tries to drive on Bonner from 23 feet out top of the key, with two help defenders beside him, anyone want to guess how this goes? Martin fumbles the ball, it falls out luckily to a teammate, Jones drives, fumbles, gets rid of it, Nene hits a jumper in the opposite wing, right wing 17 footer Read the rest of this entry »
Dampier forces a tough shot from Amare, miss, Dallas breakout, Dampier beats Amare up the floor and gets a dunk inside. Bad transition D from Amare.
Two pick and rolls from either side, Amare and Dampier dunking.
George banks a pull up jumper from the FT line
George is making his second consecutive start tonight. I didn’t know he’d been inserted into the starting lineup, I guess the Gerald Green experiment is over for now.
Amare has taken five shots and hit 3 of them in the first 2 and a half minutes. No other Suns player has shot the ball. His last basket was a long jumper. Read the rest of this entry »
Portland begin their five game East Coast road trip tonight. They’ll be facing Detroit, New York, Washington, Boston, and the Toronto Raptors. Detroit will pose a good test for the young Blazers.
Detroit have comfortably beaten their last two opponents, New York and Milwaukee, after an embarrassing display that saw the Minnesota Timberwolves walloping them by 26 points on their home court.
[Edit: Dang it. I got the start time wrong. I thought it was 3:30 Eastern, it was actually three o'clock. Blazers ahead 18-9]
Miami ahead 5-4 after Dwyane Wade hits a ridiculous three pointer from the left corner, he came off a high screen and roll on the left wing, was pushed along the sideline by Zach Randolph, Zach then went back to his man who was rolling to the hoop, Wade stopped, Gordon got back to his man, Wade went up with a hand in his mug and drained it.
Anthony had a brilliant rejection early in the game.
Nice cut by Camby from the top of the key down the middle, his teammate finds him, he puts too much english on the layup and blows the easy two.
Zach Randolph along the baseline, right side, facing up his man from 16 feet, a couple of jab steps, knocks down the jumper. Baron Davis followed that up with a long J of his own. Read the rest of this entry »
I’m tuning in a few moments late. I was watching the Suns-Heat game, fantastic win for Miami and a great performance from Dwyane Wade.
First Quarter
Blazers ahead 4-0 after two minutes (Roy+Aldridge scoring)
Nice drive by young Batum as he drives from the corner, hugging the baseline, and finishes inside with the dunk
Aldridge posting up on the left box, he faces up, drives across the lane and hits a sweeping hook shot
Steve Blake nailing a three pointer right wing
Peja Stojakovic responding right back with a triple from the left corner early in the shot clock.
Peja posting up the youngster on the right block, backing him down, draws the foul. He has 5 of the Hornets 7 points, and adds two more at the FT line.
Portland lead 13-7 after four plus minutes
Roy posting up Butler off the left elbow, Blake cuts across the baseline from the right corner underneath the rim, Butler in a low stance, Roy passes over the top to Blake, the sprint takes him away from the rim, he takes the 14 footer on the left baseline, good look, misses Read the rest of this entry »
Shaq rests tonight, so we’ll get a chance for an extended look at Robin Lopez
This is a trap game for Phoenix. Oklahoma City will, or at least should be, riding a high from the coaching switch, they’ll come out with great energy tonight and play hard.
First Quarter
Oklahoma win the tip
First possession, Durant above the top of the key, passes to Collison high right wing, Durant cuts gets the hand off, unloads, misses
Second possession, turnover, bad drive by Green against numbers got trapped on the baseline, then jumped and had nobody to pass to.
Good ball movement by Phoenix to Matt Barnes another three pointer, his second of the game. Suns ahead 6-2.
Earl Watson with a great hustle to play to save a loose ball off a Suns player out of bounds to save a possession. Durant gets a 18 footer, catch and shoot, left wing on that ensuing possession.
Nash with a lazy lob pass to the unattentive Lopez, easily stolen
Collison gets his hand on another Suns pass, it goes out to Barnes, he’s defended, Barnes has to take it, makes it.
Jermaine O’Neal will play this morning/afternoon so we will get to say the Raptors big frontline in full effect.
The Celtics bench has come back around over the last two games after a few tough ones. They were outplayed by Toronto’s second unit in Boston so it’ll be interesting to see how they come out today.
First Quarter
Raptors win the tip. Jermaine on the right baseline, 18 feet out, takes one dribble in, back to the basket, gets off a shot, falls down, little out of control, misses
Perk misses in traffic, contested rebound, slapped out, Bargnani snares it
Bargnani cuts down into the post, Pierce bumps into him and pushes himself (Pierce) out of the play, Bargnani reacts poorly and moves off the block, sets a screen for Bosh to come down there. Ball knocked out of bounds a few moments later, inbounds, a heave at the buzzer, miss. Bad possession.
Calderon dribbles into the lane, picks up his dribble, he’s in no man’s land, turns it over on a bad pass.
Perkins back to the basket right block, turns, swings the ball, takes a power dribble down ot the baseline and draws the foul on Jermaine
Great cut by Perkins across into the middle of the paint, gets the pass, kicks it out to the corner, three pointer good
Rondo slap’s Calderon’s dribble from behind, breakaway layup for Rondo as he leaked out. Read the rest of this entry »
Andrea Bargnani starts at small forward again tonight
Mickael Pietrus is out injured for the Magic. Redick starts in his place.
Great matchup tonight. A rematch of last year’s playoff battle and a possible playoff matchup this season too. Toronto have undergone big changes since last season with Jermaine O’Neal now at the club, it’ll be very interesting to see how these two clubs matchup now.
First Quarter
Bargnani flashes from the corner to the right hand side of the hoop, makes the catch and finishes inside
Howard with a shot block on Solomon’s forced drive as he attempted to beat the shot clock. Rough possession for Toronto there Read the rest of this entry »
Denver have been a tough matchup for LeBron James and the Cavs over the past few years. Their speed and offensive firepower gave them a stylistic difference over the methodical Cavaliers, and the Nuggets were consistently able to force the tempo they needed to turn that difference into an advantage. With Billups in town, and Mo in Cleveland, the speed advantage and firepower advantage Denver had is smaller than recent years …. Cavs might have the advantage now.
Denver have won the last 5 games against Cleveland.
I believe Chris Andersen is out tonight. Kenyon Martin is a game time decision, if he can’t go that would leave Denver with only one legit big man …. very difficult to see them winning in that scenario. Cleveland are too tough on the interior to get away with that.
Both teams turn the ball over in the first 30 seconds.
Suns have gone inside to Shaq on the first two possessions, second was a kickout to Nash for a three which he hit
Shaq blocks Yao’s lefty jump hook, turnover, Matt Barnes pushes it the other way.
Suns go inside to Shaq again, nice pass by Shaq to the cutting Barnes, layup
Bad pass inside by Ron Artest. Yao had inside position but the pass forced him outside of the paint, misses the ensuing shot. Why make your teammate take a worse shot? Make a good pass would you please?
Phoenix ahead 8-0 after Barnes hits a corner three pointer off of Nash’s drive and kick
Artest and Scola play a nice two man game, Artest threads the bounce pass, dunk Scola. Read the rest of this entry »
Peja Stojakovic – 21ppg in 36 minutes a night shooting 47% from the field and 60% from three on almost 10 attempts per game from downtown. The Lakers defense was disgracefully bad on him more often than not (especially Radmanovic). Good test for this team’s D.
First Quarter
Hornets can’t get the lights to come back on after turning them off for the pregame introductions. There’s enough light on the court but not around the rest of the stadium. They’re holding up the start of th contest to see if they can quickly fix the problem.
The court is looking brighter now. They must have some if not all of the lights on.
Haywoode Workman is a ref tonight.
Jump ball to start the game, problem on the jump ball, problem on the jump, is the third or fourth jump ball? Chandler wins the tip
Chandler low post, drives hard to the middle, takes a poor jump hook, Bynum blocks it easily. Chandler didn’t use his body well enough to protect the ball. Read the rest of this entry »
Tonight is a test game for the Lakers, well more specifically for Pau Gasol and the Gasol-Bynum tandem. Before the season Phil Jackson amongst others voiced concerns about how well their big lineup would do against perimeter orientated bigs, guys who can shoot or drive, and also players who are mobile+quick. If Gasol does poorly we’ll see a lot of Lamar Odom.
Ah, terrible news before the game starts, I was hoping Josh Howard would be playing tonight but he isn’t ready to return yet. That leaves Dallas without their second best player. This is going to make the game a lot tougher for Dallas.
First Quarter
Oops misjudged the start of this one. Five minutes into the game. Dallas are ahead 14-10. No idea how the game is going so far.
Dallas ahead 17-10
Commentators say that the Mavericks are on a 13-0 run and that the Lakers have not scored for three minutes
I’m going to tune off this game to watch the Mavs-Lakers matchup at 20:30 ET. So I should get to see 2-3 quarters of basketball.
These two teams played a couple of nail-biters last season, close contests that went down to the finish. A pair of really good games post Ben Wallace trade too. Of course one of the big reasons why was Mo Williams who destroyed Cleveland last year, so we’ll see if the Bucks can hang tough without him – one of the reasons Cleveland rated him so highly? I think so.
Ah bad news, Michael Redd isn’t playing tonight. Charlie Bell starts in his place. A tough game just got tougher. Read the rest of this entry »
I struggle to see how Toronto make this a game, I expect a convincing win from the Celtics.
It’s Perk’s birthday tonight folks
First Quarter
Raptors win the tip
Jermaine O’Neal on the right post, fadeaway in the middle over Perk, nails it
Pierce posting up Moon on the midpost left wing, one or two dribbles and a quick turnaround, misses. Didn’t look in rhythm.
Officials don’t know who deflected that ball out of bounds. They’re discussing it. Boston ball.
Jermaine O’Neal is defending KG, KG gets the step as he moves right, spins left, Jermaine recovers, great contest, KG hits it anyway
Jermaine O’Neal with a beautiful fadeaway over Perk in the low post. That was a tough shot, Perk played him brilliantly. Jermaine has come out to play tonight.
Jermaine posting up too far out, faces up, thinks about the jumper, Celtics double, make Jermaine reconsider and dish it out, Calderon misses a three, offensive rebound, quick 16 footer taken by Jermaine, miss
Offensive rebound for Boston
Good hustle by Jamario Moon to beat KG to the loose ball. Jermaine didn’t react and didn’t put a body on KG.
KG against Bosh inside, moves inside, passes out, slapped on the arm by Moon. Foul.
Toronto ahead 4-2 after three minutes
Lob pass by Perk to Pierce, layup and the foul on Moon. That’s two, Graham should enter the game. It’ll likely be Kapono. Let’s see what Sam Mitchell does. He leaves Moon in the game. Okay.
Moon hitting a rainbow fallaway top of the key off the backboard, lucky shot
Jermaine fighting Perk on the defensive glass, tapped out, Moon scrapes it up. Those loose balls that Moon makes his is his best value as an NBA player.
Jermaine hits the jumper from the FT line
Raptors defense scrambling all over the court effectively. Got a little disorganized late in the possession but found their way back before Boston spotted the open man.
Jermaine with another fallaway inside. He has 8 points in the first five minutes.
I don’t think Jermaine’s performance will last the full game …. I expect Perk’s defense to win out as the game goes on.
Calderon goes away from Jermaine, passes out, Parker puts it back inside, Jermaine posting up, backing him down, muscling it up, wants the refs to give him a foul, doesn’t get it, misses badly. He played for the foul instead of the shot attempt.
KG getting good position as he runs up the court quickly, he makes the catch right post, backs down Bosh, foul on Bosh as KG goes up through his arm. Foul on the floor, must have been before the shot attempt.
Bosh trails the play, hits a 20 footer in rhythm, nice pass allowing Bosh to step into that.
Perkins loose ball foul on the offensive glass
Timeout
Jermaine drives on Perk, takes a wild ruunner, brick …. Calderon steals it, lob pass, alley oop dunk by Jermaine. He has 10 points already.
7 minutes into the game now
Rondo goes strong to the hoop, misses, rebound Jermaine
Bosh beats Perk as he drives right off the right wing, gets to the rim, foul on Perk. Bosh makes two at the line. Perk’s second foul, who’ll replace him? He’s already looking at the break. Leon Powe enters the action. Bosh has been averaging 26.7ppg, 11rpg and 54% shooting from the field.
KG with the fallaway, misses, rebound Jermaine
Rebound KG …. Celtics walk it up slowly. Pierce posts up left block, doubled passes it out, Ray has had enough, he takes Parker one on one, drives right on the right wing, spins back left as he nears center court, fouled on the runner, makes two at the line.
Rondo pressuring Calderon a little bit
Jermaine goes up for the dunk … blocked by KG from behind. Nice pass by Parker to Jermaine in the middle of the lane.
Ray makes two more FTs.
Toronto lead 16-11
Andrea Bargnani replaces Chris Bosh
3 minutes to play
Jermaine forces a jumper from 12 feet, Leon Powe with a great contest, airball. Jermaine is now 5-10 from the field.
Ray finds Pierce for an open three, nails it
Timeout
Ray knocks down the jumper off the pick, he has 8. Tie Game.
Solomon with a fake, and a long two, misses, tracks down his offensive board, out to Kapono, Kapono knocks down a three.
Raptors ahead 21-18
Leon Powe inside, travel.
The Celtics second unit is now in. Ray Allen is the starter that’s remained out on the floor.
Nice pass by Kapono to Humphries, he dunks inside
Second Quarter
Raptors lead 23-18
House nails a long jumper
Offensive foul on Bargnani, moving pick
Doc during the timeout – Both teams are playing like garbage right now, they’re just winning because they’ve been making all the hustle plays, getting to all the loose balls – When he’s right, he’s right.
Bosh enters the game for Bargnani as Andrea picked up another foul, Leon drew it.
Leon Powe travels again, turnover. Third Boston turnover, Raptors have two turnovers of their own.
Kapono creating off the dribble, I don’t like that, Raptors end up with a long jumper as the shot clock winds down, miss … they get the rebound though.
Graham is in the game too. Toronto had a full five bench players on the floor to start the quarter.
Graham with a nice rebound inside
Bosh hits the face up J along the baseline from 14 feet over Powe
Pierce is about to enter the game for Ray Allen. I prefer Paul in that unit, he does a better job as a central figure who provides balance/creativity for the unit for the unit.
Raptors ahead 26-22
Graham wide open from 18 feet top of the key, hits the shot
Graham with another wide open J from 17 feet, this time right wing
Kapono created both of those shots for Graham. Odd sight.
Timeout
Glen Davis jumps over Humphries and lands on top of him.
Drive and dish to Graham, he nails a 20 footer top of the key
Tony Allen beats Graham off the bounce easily, gets to the rim, blows the layup
Lovely passing by Toronto, nice pass back by Kapono to Humphries for a dunk on the break. Kapono bumping shoulders with Humphries on the way back.
Davis takes a 17 footer left wing, misses
Pierce posting up, faces up from 18 feet left wing, drives right, gets into the paint and goes up, smacked, foul.
Joey Graham with a great hustle play getting on the offensive glass, loose ball foul against Boston as Graham tried to snatch that away.
Jermaine re-enters the game
Bosh forces a shot from the top of the key, misses
Graham trips up Tony Allen … refs rule incidental contact. Celtics uphappy with the call, rightly so.
Rondo turns it over going to the hoop but it’s a good sign that he’s taking it the hole.
Jermaine turns baseline off the right block, pump fake, Davis bites, Jermaine goes up, gets some contact, gets the foul, hits the shot
KG with a nice fadeaway J out of the low post over Jermaine O’Neal, he nails it
Graham hits the jumper from the corner off the drive and kick. Graham’s shooting providing the Raptors with some offense here in the second quarter.
Sam Mitchell brings Anthony Parker back in for Graham. I’d be tempted to leave him in there.
Jermaine makes two at the line
Toronto lead 40-26
KG offensive rebound, out to Ray Allen, he misses a three, defensive rebound Jermaine O’Neal
Jermaine with a nice pass to the beautiful cut by Kapono running around Jermaine from the left wing along the baseline as Jermaine faced up from 14 feet left post, layup. Heady play from both Jermaine and Kapono.
Raptors are geared up tonight
KG gets a three point play inside as Jermaine goaltends after the foul.
Jermaine with a beautiful spin move out of the low post, layup. He was so quick that he looked like he was out of control and about to fall over, but he steadied himself and lays it in.
Jermaine getting animated …. didn’t like that foul on the defensive end. Pierce made one of two FTs.
Toronto ahead 22-14 on the backboards
Jermaine O’Neal and Perkins going nose to nose. Having words. Perk is relaxed quickly. Jermaine has moved away from the action. Foul on Perkins. Didn’t see that. Replay shows a little shove from Perk, not much. Double technicals called also. Third foul on Perk.
Lovely pass by Rondo off his dribble penetration to KG, open 18 footer along the baseline, nails it. Calderon cannot defend Rondo off the dribble.
Timeout
Jermaine O’Neal has 19 points and 7 rebounds on 7-12 shooting. 11 of those shots came inside of 13 feet.
Rondo overpassing. His teammates head was turned the other way, KG couldn’t see the ball, Rondo threw it to him anyway, turnover. He had a layup but wanted to pass.
Pierce with a nice hesitation dribble to break loose and get to the rim on the break, layup, missed badly
Turnover Parker, he stepped out of bounds. Mitchell fired up.
Rondo falls over on his dribble, gets rid of it before Toronto tie him up
Offenisve foul on Parker on the fastbreak, third on Parker. Turnover. He used the off arm to push Pierce out of the way in mid air. Easy call.
Toronto ahead 46-32 with a minute fifteen to go
Inside to KG, back out, they make a few passes, post up Pierce, he passes out, KG creates a shot for himself from 15 feet off the bounce, ball tapped around, Toronto come away with it.
Calderon with a bullet bounce pass, slips through the hands of Kapono. Pass looked low but hard to tell from this camera view.
Pierce takes it to the rim, passes off the KG, short shot good. Pierce is 2-10 from the field. The two field goals were layups.
Rondo fouls Calderon, Jose makes two at the line
Timeout Celtics
Rondo takes Calderon off the bounce, layup
Halftime
Toronto ahead 48-36
Toronto ahead on the backboards 25-18
The Celtics have only shot 32% from the field on their 37 attempts, 12 makes, 7 dimes on those 12 buckets. They are 1-10 from three and 10-12 from the FT line.
The Raptors are 18-40 from the field for 45% shooting. They have 13 assists on their 18 baskets. They are 4-5 from three and 10-11 from the FT line.
Jermaine finished the half with 19 points and 8 rebounds on 7-12 shooting, plus 5-5 from the line. He was the player of the half.
Joey Graham gave the Raptors a gerat spark of the bench with 8 points and 5 rebounds in 12 minutes
Chris Bosh was quiet with only 6 points and 2 rebounds. That isn’t likely to continue. I expect to see him come up big in the second half
The C’s Big Three have 28 of the team’s 26 points. Ray is 2-7 from the field. Pierce is 2-10 from the field. KG was the best of the three from the field shooting 5-12.
Eddie House was the Celtics’ only bench player to make a shot. The bench didn’t contribute much in the first half. Tony Allen was disappointing.
The Raptors bench has outscored BOston 19-6
Third Quarter
Ray Allen makes the pull up J from 12 feet to start the half
Moon misses the three pointer
Jermaine misses a jumper from the left wing, about 17 feet …. Celtics run the other way, Ray Allen hitting the layup
Drive and kick Calderon to Moon, he hits the three pointer from the right wing. Defensive rebound Moon on the other end after KG missed a 19 footer top of the key.
Rondo settles for a jumper out of the corner, misses
Jermaine faces up 15 feet out left wing, drives left along the baseline, kicks it out to Parker. Nothing comes of it.
Nice deflection by Toronto on the lob pass, fastbreak the other way, jump shot from 18 feet along the baseline, nailed it. Think that was Parker.
Calderon and Rondo trade hoops. Rondo’s was a drive and layup late in the shot clock. Calderon’s was a 20 foot pull up J after coming off a screen.
Heinson – this is the type of game where I’d try to get throw out if I was coaching. Try to get some emotion into the game.
Moon with the offensive rebound. Great rebound by Moon.
nice bounce pass by Calderon to the top of the key, Bosh pump fake, drives middle, shuffle pass to Jermaine, he’s fouled on the layup. He goes to the FT line, misses the first, misses the second, high bounce off the rim and it bounces up off the rim over the backboard.
Tommy and Mike Gorman are working some witchcraft
Ray Allen bricks a 7 footer. Bricks it badly.
Calderon drives inside, dishes it out to Moon, three from the top of the key, misses
Pierce misses on the otehr end, long rebound Moon, Moon pushes it up quickly, passes it inside to Bosh, Bosh drives baseline, travel.
Boston settling for jump shots as KG misses another from the top of the key. KG is 5-14 now.
Boston still shooting 32% from the floor
Perk backing down Bosh, short jump hook, good. He beat up Bosh easily.
Perk’s outlet pass, Calderon deflects it. Out of bounds
Timeout
Toronto lead 57-44
13 point lead isn’t safe against this Boston team. That can disappear in 3-4 minutes.
KG scores off the Pierce feed
Moon creating off the dribble, finally gives it up, Calderon posts up Jermaine, Pierce is defending him, Jermaine takes the fadeaway, misses. Good D by Pierce.
Toronto ahead 59-46 after that Bosh alley oop dunk.
Active hands by Toronto. Two deflections out of bounds on this possession. Still 9 seconds on the shot clock for Boston.
Boston’s crowd is quiet
Ray inbounds it to Rondo, he drives it, misses the floater. Rondo is now 2-6
Toronto ahead 32-26 on the backboards
Toronto post up Jermaine, he passes out, Moon misses a three
Glen Davis is defending Jermaine right now. Tought matchup for Jermaine in the low post, but he should be able to shoot over the top of him on his post moves or face up jumper.
Loose ball, Celtics steal it, come up the other way, pass to Pierce on the left wing, Pierce nails a three pointer
Boston are on a 9-2 run
Timeout Sam Mitchell
Toronto ahead 8-4 on offensive boars as Bosh pulls that one away … Kapono drives, passes out, Bargnani shoots it from three left wing, closed out well, brick. Bad brick.
Toronto pick up their first team foul almost 10 minutes into the third quarter. Bosh called for a loose ball foul on that Bargnani miss
Rondo misses a layup. Bosh did well to alter that late.
Celtics defense cranking up. Great possession there to deny Bosh, stop a Kapono drive, and then force a long three from Calderon to beat the buzzer.
Celtics run out the other way, Pierce fouled, two FTs, makes them.
6 point game
Calderon harrassing Calderon, Calderon falls over, Rondo looses his show as he tries to reach down, goes to pick up his sneaker and fouls Calderon with the other hand to get his shoe back on.
Parker nails a jumper from the top of the key as he comes off the pick
Ray drive and kick to KG in the corner, 18 footer good
KG pressuring Calderon up court
Rondo pokes Parker’s dribble away from behind, KG steals it … Boston push it the other way, passes it to Ray on the right wing, Ray drives right, gets to the rim, foul on Ray, no foul on Bosh. They change the call. Bosh had his foot in the circle, he changed his standing foot at the last moment before Ray hit him and stepped back inside the semi-circle.
Garnett is pumped right now … Crowd responding. KG taunting Calderon all the way up court, clapping his face and jeering him.
Foul on KG off the ball. He’s pissed at the call. Bosh misses the first FT, makes the second.
Toronto ahead 62-57
34 seconds to play
Pierce passes to Rondo along the baseline, quick pass to KG cutting inside, layup
KG pressuring Calderon upcourt again
KG switches onto Calderon, Calderon passes it to Kapono in the corner, Kapono nails it in Pierce’s face. Wow.
Fourth Quarter
Kapono makes a tough runner off the glass off a broken play. Big shot. Good defense by Rondo pressuring Calderon and almost stealing the ball away.
Pierce takes it hard to the rim, foul on Bargnani, he makes both. Paul is 3-13 tonight for 16 points on 8-9 shooting from the line.
Bargnani nails a difficult shot over Davis along the left baseline.
Big mistake by Toronto – Graham and O’Neal fought one another for the rebound and lost it out of bounds.
Calderon doesn’t want to leave the game. Has words with Mitchell. Now he’s on the bench clapping on his teammates. Doubt he sits long. It’s important he’s fresh for the finish, because he’s the Raptors closer.
Tony Allen sparking the defense with a steal, ahead to Paul, fouled again. He splits the pair.
7 point game
10:35 to play
Overpassing from Toronto, they had three good shooting opportunities but key passing them up, House steals it, fastbreak House to BBD, blocked by Jermaine, called for a foul. Not sure that was a foul. Davis splits a pair.
Toronto ahead 69-63
Leon Powe draws a charge on Jermaine. Great job by Leon Powe there.
Pierce with a looping layup, makes it, plus the foul. Calderon comes back in. Pierce makes the FT. Pierce has 20 points now and is 10-12 from the FT line.
69-66 Toronto
Graham taking an unneccassy dribble that screwed up Calderon’s wide open three pointer …. Kapono bails him out with a tough tough jumper to beat the shot clock.
Pierce spins into the lane on Calderon, finds Leon, dunk.
Kapono has to force it, misses. Raptors getting nothing going offensively.
Pierce nails the pull up jumper
Toronto lead 71-70
8:18 to go
Timeout Toronto
Kapono misses a floater … Pierce rebounds, Pierce dribbles it upcourt, pulls it out, drives left, kicks it over to House early, Calderon gets a piece of Eddie’s shot. Turnover.
Celtics have shot 50% this half, compared to 39% for Toronto
Tony Allen called for the offensive foul. Good charge drawn by Jermaine.
Kapono loses the ball on the way up for his pull up J, it lands on the baseline, turnover.
Third time lucky for Boston?
No offensive foul on Tony Allen for pushing off …. no wait, replay doesn’t show that. Bad call. Boston should have gotten the lead on that play
Calderon nails a three pointer left wing
Big swing there on those two possessions
Pierce looking comfortable attacking Kapono, help comes quick, BBD takes a 18 footer left wing, misses
Foul on Glen Davis. That’s his fourth.
6 minutes to play
Paul Pierce has played 40 minutes already tonight, he isn’t getting any rest now.
Pierce nails a three pointer as the Celtics push it up quickly after a Raps miss
Nice ball movement from Boston as the swing it side to side off Calderon’s drive and kick, Parker nails a three
Pierce and House left against Calderon on the left wing, good ball movement, Pierce fakes the pass, Calderon buys it, Pierce nails a three
Calderon gets to the rim, misses the layup
House scores a three over Calderon
Boston take the lead
79-77 Boston
Nice drive by Bosh, passes to Jermaine, fouled inside, misses the layup. He should have made that. Lack of concentration after the foul, it was soft foul.
Timeout
Jermaine O’Neal has 0 points and 3 rebounds in the second half. He hasn’t been involved in the game on the offensive end of the floor.
Jermaine makes the first FT, next one to tie the game, crowd giving him some abuse, makes the second.
Tie Game 79-79
Celtics ball …. House brings it up court, to KG top of the key, to Pierce right wing, pick and roll, Pierce turns the corner gets to the FT line, bounce pass to KG who’s rolling down the right wing, KG hits the short J off glass. Boston take the lead back.
KG fouls, third team foul.
Raptors inbound the ball. Nice kickout from Jermaine to Parker in the corner, three pointer good. Toronto take the lead
Pierce misses the jumper, Kapono rebounds.
3:20 to play
Nice pass by Calderon to Jermaine as he cuts across the paint after Jose’s penetration, Jermaine gathers himself and finishes inside.
Timeout
Ray Allen with a massive three pointer on the catch and shoot … Tie Game again
Jermaine makes one pass too many after good ball movement. Turnover. He should have shot that.
Rondo dribbles out the shotclock, has to force a fadeaway, side irons.
High screen and roll, nothing on, Kapono making a bad entry pass to the post to Jermaine, lost O’Neal inside position, Jermaine can’t get a good shot, has to take the fadeaway, blocked by Perk
Celtics push it ahead the other way, Pierce nails a jumper right wing, he backed down Kapono to the right elbow, then spun away from the rim and hit the fadeaway
Timeout Toronto
Calderon top of the key, runs off a high pick, throws it back to O’Neal, he puts it on the floor, loses it, turnover. Great defense by Boston on Calderon to force him along the baseline, took away any good options he was hoping to create.
Pierce nails another jumper over Kapono
Calderon air balls a 15 foot pull up J, he had a great look. Perk made himself big coming over but he wasn’t close to getting it.
Pierce drives to the rim, nifty finish, up and under in midair to avoid Bosh’s contest. He blew by Kapono at the top of the key to get into the lane in the first place.
Boston ahead 90-84
This is over
34 seconds to play, inbounds to Parker, pull up J off the dribble, miss, rebound Rondo, he may have stepped out of bounds on that board before getting rid of it. Toronto foul.
This is over.
Very good win from the Celtics after playing very poorly for large chunks of this game.
Toronto will be disappointed that they blew this contest after controlling the game for close to three quarters, and having a lead in the final three minutes of the game.
Great matchup tonight, quite possibly the best two teams in the Western Conference.
For my money, Houston are the team that’s best equipped to knock the Lakers off in postseason action
First Quarter
Bynum just about wins the tip. Lakers immediately go to Bynum, he backs Yao down, turns middle, jump hook, loses control of the ball. Bynum has said in teh past that Yao is one of the more difficult players for him to play against, he’s the only one who’s bigger than him length wise.
Pau Gasol with a defensive rebound, Fisher brings it up, Fisher probing off the bounce, creates his shot, takes a fallaway 15 footer left wing, in and out, miss. Looked good.
Bynum forces an air ball from Yao on his fallaway along the baseline off the left post
Kobe hitting a floater over Yao
Artest backs down Kobe, Kobe dives, open path to the rim, LA’s defense all rotate over, pass out to Scola for the 17 footer top of the key, nails it
Kobe beating Artest with his quickness, another bucket for him
Lakers run the fastbreak, Radmanovic throws the lob pass to Gasol, slam dunk. Nice play
Yao called for a travel. He got Bynum on the head fake and was about to draw a foul, but he travelled first.
Bynum keeping it alive, Scola corrals it.
Tracy driving, Kobe strips him … fastbreak the other way, Fisher layup, contested, miss, putback contested, miss
Pau misses a 16 footer left wing off the pick and pop
Kobe from behind blocks Yao Ming. Looked like Yao had an open dunk after a sweet pass from Scola. Yao tried to lay it in rather than dunk it on the layup.
Lovely bounce pass by Fisher to Bynum off the pick and roll, he goes strong to the rim, foul on Houston. Bynum misses the first, makes the second.
Lakers lead 7-4
Alston throws an awful pass out of bounds. That was 7 feet wide of two players, almost perfectly in between the two
Bynum throws a bad pass, Artest leads the break, finds Alston, layup
Kobe showing some nice footwork, spins baseline, fouled by Artest. Artest playing Kobe tight.
Fisher has another J rattle in and out. Unlucky.
Lakers 3-12 from the field to start the game
Lovely cut by Yao, he dunks it hard. Learned his lesson from the previous play.
Quick push by Houston, three pointer Alston right wing. Rafer has 7 of their first 11 points.
Houston ahead 11-7
Rafer leading the fastbreak, behind the back to McGrady, layup contested, missed, tap up and in.
Bad pass by Gasol, Bynum almost saves it. His athleticism is crazy. Turnover … fastbreak Houston, three pointer on the break.
Timeout
Houston lead 16-7
Lakers miss a shot out of the timeout, Bynum keeps it alive, fighting for it, it goes out of bounds. Rockets ball.
Great collapsing defense by LA on Tracy McGrady, forced Houston into a very poor shot.
Turnover LA, bad pass by Radmanovic. Fifth turnover
Rockets have 4 turnovers. Houston have scored 10 points off turnovers, LA only 2.
Bynum inside over Scola, takes the turnaround, great look, misses, rebound Scola
Rafer races up court, and all around the court, now resets the offense, into Yao, he takes the quick turnaround J, in and out
Fisher nails a 18 footer left wing
Rockets post up Yao, tentatively passes out instead of taking the shot, Houston repost, Yao takes a hook shot, nails it
Houston try to run off the fastbreak, Artest looks to slow it down and reset, then sees the trailing Scola, finds Luis, Luis dribbles right, thinks about resetting the offense, thinks better of it, notices Pau isn’t in good defensive position, spins baseline, gets under the hoop, goes up strong, draws the foul
Timeout
Scola makes two
Yao taps it away from Gasol in the low post, fastbreak, Alston takes a runner, misses, Yao runs to the front of the rim and sets up shop, taps it up, misses, taps it in on the second attempt
Ron Artest picks up his second foul
Aaron Brooks comes in for Artest. Odd substitution. Adelman must want to keep up the high pace. Brooks will run the point by the looks of their first possession.
Alston three pointer, left iron
Kobe doubled by Yao …. terrible matchup. Kobe will kill Rafer Alston. At least put Tracy on Kobe. This is where Shane Battier’s absence really hurts
Rockets lead 22-11
Kobe misses the first FT, makes the second FT
Chuck Hayes comes in for Yao. Now the Rockets are really small.
Two minutes to play in the first quarter
Difficult two minutes ahead for Houston
Chuck Hayes tries to create a shot for himself, almost turns it over, passes out, Scola forced into a 20 footer to beat the shot clock.
Blocking foul on Hayes trying to take a charge on Ariza’s slashing.
Houston forced to heave at the end of the shot clock again, miss, offensive rebound, out to Brooks, three pointer good. Brooks has gotten 1-3 of those three pointers of teammates offensive rebounds per game in the Rockets games I’ve watched this season.
Houston miss a runner, offensive rebound, they bring it back out and play the clock.
Brooks top of the key, drives into the paint, fouled by Gasol, finishes up over Gasol off the glass, nice high arc there. Brooks makes the FT, three point play.
Houston ahead 28-14
Kobe brings it up, crosses over T-Mac and takes the pull up J, hits it
Second Quarter
Lakers shooting only 29% in the first quarter. Plus the 8 turnovers. Plus the 4 offensive rebounds Houston got. Lakers are only down 12? They should be happy.
Lovely pass down low to Carl Landry, he gets a hoop in the middle of the lane to start the second quarter off right
Bynum taps the rebound out, Ariza hustles it down
Houston have no starters on the floor right now
Landry is the tallest Rocket on the floor. Hayes is guarding Bynum. Go to Bynum! Please!
Rockets lead 32-16
Hayes called for the hold on Bynum
Lakers go inside to Bynum, nice give and go between Ariza and Bynum as Ariza cuts baseline gets the hand off and lays it in
Brooks drives baseline, throws a bad pass, turnover, foul on the fastbreak as Landry reaches in on Sasha’s dribble
Bynum with a nice move in the post to hit a turnaround over Hayes. Little shoulder shake and good footwork.
Rockets turnover, Ariza gives it to Farmer, Farmer layup
Head passes out to Brooks, he nails a three from the right corner as Sasha gets hit by a screen
Timeout Phil Jackson
Phil has a word with Sasha as he comes to bench – friendly word. Likely give some directions to Sasha after that last play.
Rockets lead 35-22
Farmer nails a three from the top of the key, 10 point game
Brooks runs off a screen, loses his man completely, wide open three, no two pointer, foot on the line, right wing. Nice movement by Brooks.
Bynum walks, isn’t called, he finishes over Hayes easily in the paint
Landry on the pick and pop, great look from 15 feet, FT line jumper, hits it
Hayes called for another foul. Tried to draw a charge again, failed, blocking foul.
8 minutes to play in the first half
Brooks has 13 points already.
Scola checks in for Hayes
Landry strokes it home from 18 feet right wing
Lamar Odom very aggressive on two straight possessions posting up on Landry. Called for three seconds on the second possession before he could get it up and in. Landry has to start defending him before the FT line. Odom is starting to low.
Turnover, Bynum steals Barry’s pass, Barry wants a foul. Fastbreak, three pointer, good.
Another Rockets turnover, Farmer runs it, looks to reset, no he takes a three after pulling out, misses. Huge momentum shot right there. Another basket would have been brilliant, crowd would have erupted. Should have gotten a better shot.
Rockets run the other way off Farmer’s miss, Scola draws the foul inside, makes two FTs.
Rockets lead 43-31
7 minutes to play
Lamar Odom posting up at the elbow, turns middle, shoots, Ariza swoops in from the right wing, offensive rebound, misses the putback, Odom hits the putback
Bynum posts up inside, misses the baseline shot, Ariza swoops in again. Fouled on teh putback.
Brent Barry – Put a body on Trevor Ariza already! You’re killing your team right now. Four second chance points and it’s on your head for being lazy. Nothing else, just a lack of effort. Get your head in the game.
Farmer steals it, breakaway dunk
Houston lead 43-36
Head drives to the rim, layup. Nobody stopped the ball. Two bigs showed some attention and reached over, but didn’t go strong enough
Lamar Odom to pop off from three, no, passes off in midair, finds Bynum open under the rim, dunk.
Timeout Houston
7 point game now
Lakers are leading on the backboards, 17-15.
This is one of those matchups where not having Mutombo kills the Rockets. They need that second big to handle the Lakers quality big man play, especially Bynum.
Ariza swooping in fon the offensive glass, another rebound. That was Head’s fault.
Kobe nails a 20 footer after Yao didn’t come out on the pick and roll
Timeout
Houston lead 45-40
Alston probing off the dribble, over-dribbles, Ariza helps, reaches in, knocks it loose, turnover.
Kobe suffocated on the drive, barely gets rid of it. Perimeter shot, huge offensive rebound by Bynum, he gets it back, goes back up, misses, Houston pull it down.
Yao tries to thread the backdoor pass, Ariza steals it
Lovely pass by Fisher to Ariza who was running the baseline, reverse layup, miss, Pau taps it home
Bynum defensive rebound
Houston up 1
Houston lead 45-44
Kobe drives to the rim, rejected by Yao, Artest retrieves it
Yao fighting on the offensive glass, taps it home
Yao has 8 and 4
Fisher has the ball stolen by Alston, he goes coast to coast, misses the layup, tip by Artest, missed, smacked out, Lakers run the other way …. to Bynum, he stretches back and looks to dunk it home hard after Ariza’s feed, Yao jumps up straight, hands down, called for a foul. Bad call.
Timeout
Bynum makes two at the line
Houston lead 47-46
1:37 to play in the half
Fisher called for a bump
Bynum takes a break. He had a great stretch in the second quarter. As did Ariza.
Odom defensive rebound, with one hand as he does so well.
Lovely footwork by Gasol to get the easy shot in the paint. Lakers have taken the lead.
Kobe gambling, knocks it loose, Artest falls over, turnover … fastbreak the other way, Tracy tries to stop the ball, Gasol jumps into him. Gasol smacked into Tracy’s knee. Not sure if he’s worried about his knee or ankle. He’s walking gingerly but staying on the court.
Second last possession, Houston bring it up, Artest, forces it against Kobe, fouled by Fisher, sorry Kobe. Bail out foul by Artest. Artest only had one thing in his mind there, and that’s to shoot the ball. Nothing but one-on-one play. Three Lakers surrounded him trying to steal the ball after they realized he wasn’t passing.
Lakers lead 50-48
Final possession, Kobe turns it over, Artest on the break, layup, blocked by Odom from behind. Great defensive play to end the half.
Halftime
Houston were up 32-16 after the first 13 minutes. Over the next 11 minutes, LA went on a tear outscoring Houston 34-16
Lakers ahead 25-21 on the backboards
The Rockets second unit is badly missing Shane Battier and Dikembe Mutombo tonight
Lakers have 7 assists on 17-41 shooting from the floor for 41.5% FG%. They are 2-7 from three and 14-18 from the FT line.
The Lakers have 11 turnovers costing them 17 points. Turnovers hurt LA badly in the first half.
The Rockets have 12 turnovers of their own, costing them 13 points
The Rockets have 12 assists on 19-43 shooting for 44.3% from the field. They are 4-9 from three and 6-7 from the line.
Pau Gasol had 12 points and 8 rebounds in the first half. He’s perhaps the biggest key to LA beating Houston, because he’s their second best scorer and has a matchup that he can take advantage on if he plays smart.
Bynum had 9 points and 6 rebounds, 2 assists and one steal+block
Kobe Bryant had 9 points but no assists and no rebounds. Played 17 minutes.
Trevor Ariza had 5 points, 5 rebounds and 3 steals off the bench in 12 minutes
Brooks leads the Rockets with 13 points. Landry adds another 6 off the bench. Head had a layup.
Luis Scola leads the team with 6 rebounds, also has 8 points. Yao adds in 8 points, 4 rebounds and block. Alston had 7 points.
Tracy McGrady is 1-7 from the field and has 3 points plus two dimes.
Ron Artest played 15 minutes, shot 0-5 from the field and 1-2 from the FT line for one point. He has 2 rebounds, 2 steals, 2 assists and one block … also two personal fouls so he has to be careful in the third
Third Quarter
Lakers lead 50-48
Kobe called for two quick fouls. That’s three. He switches to Tracy now.
Artest isolation top of the key, he’s dribbling, threatening to drive, pump fake, Radmanovic bites, he jumps into Rad, takes the contact, FTs coming, he makes one of two.
Yao makes a bad pass, throws it behind Scola, turnover
Kobe jumps around Yao and puts it home with his left hand in the paint. Pretty move.
Alston bricks it, offensive rebound Houston, Alston drives it in, out to Tracy, 17 footer, misses, he’s now 1-8 from the floor
Tracy is gimpy as the commentator puts it … he’s not running smoothly at all
Scola with a nice spin, heavily contested by Bynum, great defense, Scola got it off and just missed, rebound LA
Bad pass Kobe, Bynum tries to save it, can’t get there in time.
Rockets have 13 turnovers, Houston have 12
Awful spacing for Houston. Their frontcourt and Tracy was within 5 feet of each other for about 4 seconds there. Finally Tracy moves two feet to the left, Tracy backs down Kobe, passes off to Yao, dunk
Lakers lead 52-51
The second half has been at Houston’s pace
Alston misses another three, defensive rebound Bynum. Alston was wide open there
Radmanovic nails a three pointer from the left corner
7:30 to play in the half
Nice pass and interior pass by Alston to Yao, Yao not ready, miss, defenisve rebound, pass out, intercepted by Artest, Artest dribbles to the corner and takes a three … What is he thinking? … makes it. Bad shot to take
Kobe scores, then blocks McGrady’s layup. Tracy should have dunked that. He was wide open under the rim.
Kobe scores off the glass from midrange
Lakers lead 59-54
Timeout
Halfway point
Artest knocks down another three pointer, this time off a hand off from Yao
Radmanovic with a high arcing three looking to respond, long rebound to the corner, Kobe beats everyone to the ball, passes out, Lakers swing it to Fisher, he bags a long jumper
Yao muscling Bynum underneath, blocked by Pau, jump ball, no foul on Bynum first. Bynum has played aggressive defense on Yao tonight.
Yao posting up inside, quick fadeaway, fouled on the reach in by Fisher. Yao will shoot two. Yao misses both.
5 minutes to play
Gasol touches the ball, still hasn’t shot the ball in the second half, he forces a running a hook, scores it. Looked a little off balance but the shot was good all the way.
McGrady driving to the rim, barely gets off the floor, blocked by Bynum. Not sure if Bynum even jumped there.
Artest and Scola miss shots
Lakers lead 67-57
Kobe pushes it on the break, back to Pau on the left elbow, misses, Bynum fights for it, doesn’g te it, Houston bring it up court.
Nice pass by Artest inside to Scola, fouled inside.
Landry and Brooks enter the game
Lakers turn it over on the breakaway. 15th turnover for LA.
Lakers lead 67-59 with 2:30 to play. Eight point game.
Lakers lead by 9 on the backboards, 38-29 overall.
Landry getting away inside on the weakside, Tracy finds him, dunk
Screen and roll Kobe to Pau, slam dunk
Brooks drive and dish to Scola, 17 footer baseline J, hits it
Kobe takes a contested three, rebound falls right to Farmer
Radmanovic posting Brooks, horrific entry pass pushes Radmanovic out from 6 feet to 18 feet. What was that? High looping pass that was way off the mark. Stopped an easy shot. Those types of plays drive me crazy.
Kobe has to take it at the shot clock buzzer, contested, misses
Artest sets up Landry, blocked by Gasol, Landry gets it back, goes up again, blows it
Lakers run up the other way, Lamar takes the three pointer top of the key, makes it
Lakers lead 72-63
Brooks holds it for the final shot, he takes it to the rim, Bynum helps, Brooks get it over him, off glass, rims out, rebound Landry, putback Landry.
Fourth Quarter
Lakers lead 72-65. It’s a 7 point game.
Lovely pass by Farmer, Lakers open the scoring
Artest and McGrady are a combined 3-21 from the field. The Rockets are still in the game. Scola and Rafer are a combined 6-18 from the field. So Yao is bailing them out right? He has 10 points on 5-10 shooting so not really. He’s doing fine, but not a major factor.
Sasha nails a deep three from the left wing
Sasha drive and kick to Pau, 18 footer right elbow extended, he hits it. Gasol has 18 points on 9 attempts. He also leads LA with 12 rebounds.
Lamar Odom strokes a fallaway along the baseline.
Timeout is coming if Houston don’t score here.
Head on the crossover, almost a steal … real deep, shot clock down to five, he takes a 28 footer, nails it
Lakers lead 81-69
Lamar takes a pull up J, misses, Scola ball watching, doesn’t box out, rebound Pau Gasol. He kicks it out to Farmer, Farmer nails a three.
Luther Head jacks a three, misses
Gasol nails another jumper
Timeout
Pau Gasol has 20 points, 15 rebounds, 3 blocks and 3 assists. He takes a rest now. He has played 33 minutes tonight
Kobe Bryant has 17 points, 3 dimes and 3 rebounds
Bynum has 9 and 7
Houston score inside
Lakers lead 86-71
8 minutes to play
This game is pretty much over
Beautiful crossover by Brooks to get to the rim and hits the nifty layup
Farmer responds right back with a similar move
Down to 7 minutes
Lakers lead 88-73
Brooks has to force it, no gives it to Landry on the pick and pop, Landry misses, long rebound, Brooks gets it, takes the three, misses badly …. Lakers run out the other way, Farmer nails a three on the right wing.
Brooks picks up a tech. In fairness, he was hit on the three pointer on the other end. Surprised their was no call.
Vujacic hits the FT
Lakers up 92-73
6:36 to play
Vujacic hits the teardrop in the lane
Yao spinnig baseline, fouled by Bynum, third team foul, on the deck. Inbounds to Yao, doubled, Vujacic strips him, out of bounds of Yao, Lakers ball.
Lakers lead 97-77
Bynum goes backdoor, lob pass, Bynum dunks over Yao.
Bynum has 11, 7 and 2 blocks. He’s altered a lot of shots in the paint tonight.
Kobe steals it at midcourt, takes it to the rim, Brooks with a good foul, doesn’t let Kobe get a shot up, fouled him hard.
8 players on LA are averaging at least 20 minutes and at least 8 points
Kobe driving to the rim, fancy pass to Bynum, fouled on the interior shot, Bynum takes two, makes two.
Kobe with an alley ooop dunk on the break. Great work by Bynum trapping on the screen and roll and stealing the pass to ignite that break.
Ariza with the defensive rebound, tries to go coast to coast, passes to himself, refs don’t notice, he scrambles it down, takes a three from the corner, hits it
Head misses a 13 footer
Lakers run it the other way, Brooks sets up and takes a charge, on Odom.
Lakers unload their bench with Mihm, Powell and Walton
This is over, I’m calling it. Excellent performance from LA outside of the first quarter. Very poor performance by Houston.
Game Notes/Stats
I love that Lakers 9 man rotation. The starting five plus Odom, Ariza, Vujacic and Farmer.
A rematch of last season’s Eastern Conference Finals, and there’s a good chance they’ll meet there again later this season. Great matchup.
I’m very excited about seeing these two teams go head-to-head again …. Iverson’s home debut only adds to the occasion.
First Quarter
Perk gets the tip, but Rip comes away with the abll. Celtics extend their defense beyond the three point line, nice spin and right handed drive by Prince, he misses a pull up in the leane, Celtics rebound.
Iverson steals KG’s pass inside
AI drive and kick to Prince, he passes up the three, Prince puts it on the floor tentatively, passes it back out, Sheed takes the three, misses
Perk turns it over
Hamilton pounds the ball into the floor, takes the shot to beat the clock, misses
Great job by Perk to hustle down the offensive board
Iverson drives along the baseline, to far under the backboard to anything, tough pass out, Prince gets it, missed shot
KG posting up Prince inside, takes a fallaway inside, offensive rebound Perk, pump fake, goes up, Wallace swats it away
Lovely passing by Detroit around the key, Amir goes up, is contested, miss
Pierce drives to the hoop, gets his shot rejected
Iverson on the quick push, hits a 18 footer right wing
First basket of the game after three and a half minutes
Pierce gets to the rim, layup
Rondo nailed by Rasheed on a pick before midcourt …. no Celtic was back there to call out the pick.
Iverson fouled on his penetration. Sideline inbounds. Detroit run Hamilton and Prince along the baseline, Iverson gives it to Rip, he misses left corner
KG inside, doubled, shoots, misses, offensive rebound, out to Ray, Ray takes a runner, loses control of the ball, turnover … Pistons run the other way, slam dunk Amir Johnson off the nice feed.
Ray Allen ties the game at four. He was fouled on a jumper right wing by Rip Hamilton, made two at the line
Amir Johnson on the offensive backboards, misses the layup though
Ray takes a quick three, misses
IVerson on the drive and kick to Rip, he pump fakes, drives right, takes a midrange runner, misses, rebound KG, he’s falling out, not many to pass it too, he heaves it, intercepted by Prince, he drives to the rim, Pierce tries to take the charge, foul, Pierce’s foot was in the key, blocking foul.
Wallace lost control of the outlet pass – that was, it slipped out of his hands and went behind him out of bounds on the baseline. Turnover.
Celtics have 4 turnovers early in the game. That was Detroit’s first.
KG posting up Amir Johnson, turns middle, jump hook, nails it. I love it when KG takes that shot.
AI bails out the offense with a late shot clock jumper … next possession, Iverson leads the break and Detroit get a layup
Celtics isolate Pierce on the left wing, pump fake, Prince bites, Pierce draws the contact and gets teh foul, makes the jumper too. Opportunity for a three point play.
Timeout
Rondo pressuring Iverson in the backcourt …. looking over his shoulder for Rasheed Wallace. He doesn’t want to get hit on a pick like that again.
Perk muscling Amir Johnson out of the way from the FT line inside for a 5 foot hook, misses
Amir Johnson nails a 19 footer right wing to beat the shot clock.
Detroit lead 13-9
3:30 to play in the first half
Celtics fighting on the offensive glass, two tips, Prince comes away with it … Iverson pushes it up the other end, drives down the left wing, changes direction as he nears the three point line, cuts across the middle inside to the FT line, hits the runner. Nice shot.
Herrmann is defending KG down in the post now. Defensive three seconds as his teammates look to help him, Ray makes the FT. No sorry, that was a switch. Herrmann is on Pierce. The matchup ends up again with the two forwards switching on the pick and roll.
Iverson picks up his 2nd foul. Offensive foul.
Stuckey into the game. Kwame Brown also. Eddie House as joined the action for Boston, immediately nails a three pointer.
Detroit lead 15-13
Stuckey takes it hard to the rim, heavily contested, miss, Celtics knock the rebound out of a crowd, House gets it, pushes it on the break, finds Ray open on the wing, three pointer left wing good. Celtics take the lead.
Kwame Brown posts up inside, takes a turnaround J, misses badly, Herrmann gets a hand on it but knocks it out of bounds. Celtics ball.
House brings it upcourt, Stuckey backing off him, passes it to Pierce top of the key with his back to the basket, Pierce called for pushing off. Flop from Herrmann? Celtics announcers think there was a hint of it.
Pierce in the low post against Herrmann, up and under, layup, misses, offensive rebound, tapped out of bounds by Detroit. Celtics ball. House misses a three as he runs off a Perk screen to the corner following his inbounds pass
Kwame Brown with great position in the middle of the paint, fouled inside by Perk, that’s two fouls on Perk. Big foul drawn by Kwame. No sorry, the foul has been changed to Pierce, and now a technical is called on Pierce. That’s Pierce’s third foul. That’s huge. Tech on Doc Rivers, likely for the sarcastic clapping for the call on Pierce. Replay isn’t kind to the refs call. Detroit have to use this opportunity to build up a lead before halftime. Tony Allen’s play has just grown in importance.
Herrmann called for a touch foul 40 feet outside. One of those annying ticky tack calls … rule changes! Tony Allen will shoot two, makes the first, misses badly on the second one. His shoot looked off from the minute it left his hand, back iron.
13.5 seconds on the clock, Detroit will hold it for the final shot
Stuckey beats House off the bounce and draws the foul on House as he gets into the lane. Stuckey is averaging 10ppg and 4apg on 40% shooting from the field. Stuckey makes the two FTs
Inbounds to Rondo, he pushes it upcourt, hands it off to Eddie, he nails a three, doesn’t beat the clock. Looked like Rondo took too much time on the pass. He was fine if he shot it himself, but a pass and a shot was too much.
Second Quarter
Detroit lead 19-17
House turns it over, breakaway Detroit, 3-on-1, Tony Allen breaks it up, Boston steals possession back.
House splits the pick and roll defense, gets into the paint, draws the help D, passes it to his big man, dunk. That was Leon Powe finishing inside.
Pistons shooting 29%, Celtics shooting 24%
Offensive foul on Kwame Brown
Ray is playing with the second unit tonight
Davis with a spinning fallaway out of the post, score it
Kwame Brown draws the foul inside with a strong move to the rim after being left open 15 feet out. Foul on the floor.
Stuckey dribbles out the shot clock, finally passes it, Maxiell has to take it to beat the clock, 17 feet right wing, misses
Kwame Brown fouls Davis as he runs up court. That’s three fouls. He’s gone to the bench. This is Kwame Brown’s 8th year, amazing.
Travel inside, turnover Celtics.
Boston lead 21-19
10 minutes to play
Prince posts up Tony Allen, drives left, spins right, hits the fadeaway, nice shot.
Lovely finish inside by Tony Allen with the right hook deep in the paint
Stuckey nails the runner over Davis
Celtics lead 10-5 in bench points right now
Leon Powe going to work inside, drives right off the left elbow, spins left, muscles it up through Johnson’s chest, draws the foul, finishes the layup. He makes the FT.
Timeout
Boston lead 26-23
Stuckey with a nice over and back dribble to beat House, he creates the contact with his elbow, foul on House. Smart play.
Tony Allen slashing along the baseline and finishing at the hoop
8 minutes to play in the first half
The crowd is getting uneasy. Prince makes a tough shot off the bounce, that gets a cheer from the crowd.
Quick pass ahead, Tony Allen on the screen and roll right wing, he flies into the lane and draws teh foul as he makes the layup. That was an incredble blaze of speed. He misses the FT, Powe gets the offensive rebound, great effort, fouled on the putback.
Iverson called for an offensive foul, that was harsh, looked like House fouled him.
Powe attacks Walter Herrmann, travel
7 minutes to play in the first half
Stuckey off the high screen and roll, Ray does a solid job, Stuckey gets nowhere, they post up Maxiell midpost right wing, he takes a fallaway, in and out, defensive rebound Boston …. Tony Allen attacks in the open court, defense collapses as he reaches the foul line, nice passing, Celtics score again
Timeout
Michael Curry has to be fearful right now. Celtics starting to heat up and their second unit have been beating the Pistons unit.
Iverson fumbles the ball, it scrambles loose 20 feet into open space, AI gets to it first … he drives hard to the rim, gets his shot blocked. Turnover.
Boston lead 33-25
Halfway point in the second half
Hard foul inside by Leon Powe on Jason Maxiell to deny the dunk
Paul Pierce giving Leon Powe a congradulatory greeting as he comes over to the bench.
Stuckey gets to the rim, draws the foul, on the floor before he got up the shot.
Pierce is still sitting on the bench. He likely won’t play until the second half. He’s getting on his feet to high five each of the bench players as they come out.
Great defense by Rasheed Wallace, tough fadeaway, missed. Should have reposted, lot of time left on the clock.
Iverson driving hard into the paint, nice bounce pass, Maxiell fumbles it, turnover.
Rondo smacked by Rasheed. Nah actually, small bump, Rondo dived.
Iverson takes a wild runner, misses, gets the offensive rebound, turns it over on the pass, breakaway, Tony Allen layup
Boston get the first double digit lead of the night
Rasheed posting up inside, turns middle, fallaway, contested well by KG, miss
Passes into the post to KG, Rondo cuts down the middle, KG finds him, Rondo reverse layup, smacked by Maxiell. Rondo is just 14-28 from the FT line so far this year, that’ll pick up, he makes both.
3:30 to play
Iverson brings it up slowly, Rondo almost picks his pocket, 14 seconds into the shot clock, Iverson still hasn’t gotten inside of 30 feet, he fumbles the ball, almost turns it over, out of bounds off Boston. 8 seconds to shoot, lovely pass to the cutting Prince by Maxiell, blocked by Tony Allen but he got a lot of body, foul. Prince makes two.
Rondo with a beautiful drive and dish to the cutting Allen as he moved across the baseline, layup, rejected. Pistons run the other way, Celtics defense recovers and knocks it out of bounds
Timeout
Big closing period right now. Boston are trying to hang onto a double digit lead. Detroit are trying to cut it single digits and preferrably below 5 or even erase it. Very interesting to see who succeeds here.
Rondo called for a reach in foul. They’re in the penalty. Iverson misses the first, makes the second
Did Ray Allen slip there? Step on Rip’s foot? Or did Rip bumble over him? Anyway, foul on Rip Hamilton as Ray dribbled the ball after curling off a screen. He makes two FTs.
Boston up 11
2:30 to play
Prince has it up top, initiating the offense, Rip is taking a one on one, falls over, out to Sheed, three pointer, missed.
Travel on KG down in the post. That’s happening a lot these days. League cracking down on those travels.
Iverson draws another foul, he makes one of two at the line.
Offensive foul on Perk as he smacks Iverson out of the way after looking to establish post position
Iverson with a nice step back J off the catch, misses
Detroit has only 1 field goal in the last 7 minutes
Cedric Maxiell says a lot of that has been self inflicted – He’s right, Detroit have resorted to a lot of one on one play, haven’t moved off the ball or moved the ball as well as normal, and haven’t got anything going in the post. All the action is happening in front of the defense.
Detroit’s crowd is quiet
Maxiell misses a 20 footer top of the key.
Rondo beats Stuckey off the bounce with a crossover, drives right down the right wing, layup and the foul. He has 6 points now.
Celtics up 43-29
One minute to play
Great help defense by Perk to force Rip to give it up, Rasheed crosses the ball to the other side of the court, intercepted by Tony Allen, foul on Maxiell.
Rondo to KG, 19 footer top of the key on the pick and pop, nails it. Not the smoothest pick (spacing wasn’t good) and pop but effective.
Hamilton driving to the rim, stripped, long pass to Tony Allen who leaked out, layup
Detroit’s fans are booing loud. Very loud. It’s not even halftime
7.1 seconds to play
Timeout – Michael Curry wants a set play
Boston have outscored Detroit 30-10 in the quarter
Tayshaun Prince inbounds the ball, no, Rip will inbounds it on the opposite side. Odd. Isolation for Stuckey, to Rasheed, clearout for Rasheed to take a contested three, miss. What the hell was that? Out of a timeout? What? Awful.
Rasheed Wallace throws his head band to the ground in disgust
Detroit didn’t score a field goal in the final 7:23 of the half
Halftime
Boston lead 47-29
Tommy Heinson on the Pistons – No chemistry, nobody knows what to do, disorganized – absolutely, spot on.
Boston have shot 16-37 for 44% shooting. They have 10 assists on those 16 baskets. They are 2-4 from three and 13-17 from the FT line
Detroit are 10-40 from the field for 25% shooting. They have only 2 assists on those 10 field goals. Only 2 assists at halftime? It’s been that bad for Detroit. Boston’s defense has put on a clinic. Detroit are 0-5 from three but 13-15 from the FT line which is good.
Boston winning out 29-22 on the backboards, Detroit ahead 8-7 on the offensive backboards.
The Celtics had 12 first half turnovers costing them 9 points. Detroit had 9 turnovers, costing them 8 points
Tony Allen has 13 first half points to lead Boston
KG has only 4 points. Pierce has only 5 points, in 11 minutes. That has to scare the hell out of Detroit, Boston have done this damage without their two best players scoring.
KG does have 8 rebounds and has played excellent defense. Perkins added 7 rebounds. Ray Allen had 6 rebounds, and 8 points to rank second in that category for Boston.
Tayshaun Prince leads Detroit with 11 and 4. Sheed has 6 rebounds but he hasn’t been in it offensively, 0 points. Iverson has 8 points. Rip Hamilton has their two assists, but only 1 point. Amir and Stuckey have 4 apiece. Nobody else has more than 1 point (Kwame).
Stuckey was struggling at halftime … didn’t make it to the locker room. He crumpled over in half at midcourt, then sat on the bench for 5-10 minutes while they took his pulse and other such. No word on what’s wrong or if it’s serious or if he’ll be back. I hope he’s alright.
Third Quarter
Boston lead 47-29
Boston are ahead by 18 points
Pierce opens up the half with a bucket, stretches the lead to 20
Rasheed Wallace misses a jump shot, offensive rebound, bad pass out, over and back backcourt violation.
Pierce backing down Iverson, takes the shot off the right elbow, misses
Maxwell – Mouse in the House – Pierce backing down a smaller guard in the paint – gotta love that
Johnson rips Ray Allen on the pick and pop as he looked to pass to KG, fastbreak, 3-on-1, Iverson back to Johnson, layup and the foul, makes the three point play
Detroit extend their defense full court, Boston left Rondo back there by himself but beats the trap easily
Give and go, Ray Allen gets the layup from Paul’s feed
Rasheed misses another jumper
Celtics ragged, reset the offense, Rondo drive and kick, stolen by Rip, breakaway, Pierce fouls Rip in the open court. That’s the fourth quarter.
Ray Allen with a nice fallback J
Perkins tips the rebound to himself after boxing out Amir Johnson beautifully.
Rondo beats Johnson off the dribble, nice pass to Perk, Perk wasn’t ready for it, they pass out, rotate it back to Rondo in the corner, pump fake, beats Johnson again, goes baseline, smacked from behind by Johnson. That’s four fouls on Johnson. Kwame Brown enters the game
8 minutes to play in the quarter
Boston ahead 53-34
Ray Allen misses a pull up, Kwame rebounds the ball
Lovely pass from Prince inside to Brown, lovely shuffle pass by Kwame, layup
Pistons miss a jumpshot on the break
Timeout
Boston ahead 34-26 on the backboards. Perkins now in second place in blocks per game with 2.8bpg
KG down in the low post, scores inside with a fallaway. Love that.
Nice passing from Detroit as Rasheed flashes to the elbow, then finds Prince wide open in the opposite corner from where the ball arrived from, he takes and makes the jumper
Halfway point in the third quarter
Good trap by Rasheed on Pierce, Pierce manages to get rid of it, KG fouled by Iverson as he finds Perk for the dunk inside. Would have been a three second call against Perk if it wasn’t for the foul.
Pierce forces the pass, Iverson steals it. Iverson has Rondo on the right wing, he wants a clear out, draws the foul.
Timeout
Iverson has it out on the left wing, gets a screen, Detroit swing the ball to the corner, nothing on, shot clock winding down, Prince has to create something, takes an awful off balance running hook shot, misses. Should have just taken a face up jumper from three.
Rasheed picks up his second foul on Ray’s shot. Rondo groups his teammates after the foul and gives out some orders. I love seeing that from the young point guard.
Boston ahead 57-38
Wallace creates a runner off the bounce from the right wing, misses, goes out of bounds off Boston. Detroit ball.
Ray Allen with an excellent contest on AI’s fallaway jumper in the lane off the dribble, rebound Boston
Ray Allen knocks down the three from the left corner
Detroit are giving up. IVerson just dribbled the ball for 13 seconds with none of his teammates moving for him. Tayshaun hoists a three late in the clock, makes it.
Rondo knifing into the paint off the hand off at the elbow, under Sheed’s armpit, layup
Prince nails a three from the opposite wing. Nice pass off of some penetration. Good look. Prince has 8 straight points.
Perk getting too fancy with his pass, turnover
Timeout
3 minutes to play
Boston ahead 62-44
Boston have kept their halftime lead
Tayshaun Prince now has 21 points, 21 of their 44 points. AI has 8, Amir has 7. That’s 36 of their 44 points. Stuckey adds 4. That’s 40 of their 40 points. Rip has 1, Kwame has 1, Wallace has 2. Ouch.
Maxiell has his shot altered by Perk, he may have gotten a piece of that, miss.
Boston will play 20% of their schedule in the opening month of the season. Busy start. At least it allows them to get rest later on in the year to prepare for the playoffs.
Rondo fouled on a drive, he misses the first FT, makes the second.
Tony Allen enters the game. He’ll defend Tayshaun Prince
Prince passes up the three, now decides to drive, spacing is horrible from Iverson on his right, he runs into a second Celtics defender. Detroit don’t get a shot off in time. 24 second violation after AI dished to Maxiell for a 16 footer, but he couldn’t get it up in time.
KG nails a 19 footer top of the key
21 point lead
Boston lead 65-44
1:40 to play
Perk picks up his third foul
Foul inside on Perk on Maxiell’s dunk attempt. Max will shoot two
Legal Sea Foods Trivia Question – AI is 20th all time in scoring, which there former Celtics are ahead of him – John Havlicek, Dominique Wilkins and I’m not sure on the third. Larry Bird? I’ll pick Bird as the third.
Iverson with a tough 20 foot pull up J along the baseline, makes it
Nice drive and dish from Rondo to Tony, three right wing, air ball.
Iverson has it top of the key, one two with Herrmann, takes a three, miss, foul on Glen Davis on the rebound. He didn’t put a body on Kwame Brown, Brown gets two FTs, makes the first, front irons the second.
Glen Davis hits a 17 footer left wing. Not sure I like him taking that shot. He’s been missing it most of the season so far.
Stuckey has not played yet. It looks unlikely that he’ll play again tonight. Still no word on what the problem is.
Fourth Quarter
Boston lead 69-49
House nails a jumper to open the fourth
Bynum is in the game now
Rip draws a foul, makes two FTs
Davis finds House running off a screen, nails a deep three. Runs back down court cleaning his eye out.
Afflalo inside to Maxiell, turns baseline, up and under, loses it on the way up
House still poking at his eye ball
Tony Allen beating his man off the bounce, layup
Celtics ahead 38-28 on the backboards
Celtics ahead 17-8 for assists
10 minutes to play
Amir Johnson rejoins the action
Boston ahead 76-53
House catch and shoot from the corner fading away into the bench, air ball … fastbreak Detroit, layup
Leon Powe gets a post up, jumps into Amir, short shot, rolls out
9 minutes to play
Timeout
The answer to the Legal Sea Foods Trivia question is – John Havlicek, Dominique Wilkins – Not Larry Bird … it was Robert Parish. Dang, didn’t think of the Chief. Didn’t think Larry had enough points to be that high up on the list.
Sheed misses another jumper
Paul Pierce has played only 23 minutes tonight and has only 7 points. KG has only 8 points on 4-13 shooting. Still …. Boston is up by 21 points.
BBD diving on the ground, jump ball between him and Amir Johnson, jumps into Amir on the jump ball, mistimes it, Amir knocks it back, Celtics get possession.
Foul on Rasheed Wallace for knocking over Leon Powe
Boston ahead 76-55
8 minutes to play
Leon muscling his way into the paint, gets a good look, miss. Decent D by Amir to stay in the play. Powe is smacking him around easily though
Pistons turn it over as they bring it up court, foul on Rasheed was it? Not sure
Another jump ball, conceived out on the right wing, House and Johnson jumping, Amir wins the tip.
Will Bynum takes it to the hoop strong on the drive, House fouls him. Bynum misses the first, makes the second
Pistons fans have been leaving the building since the start of the fourth. It’s emptying out quick now.
Lovely block from Amir Johnson on the weakside help to stop House’s layup
Another foul on Boston. Not good. Clock is stopping. Doc getting up and giving out instructions. He wants them to get their heads back in this. Their intensity has been dropping noticeably over the past three minutes.
Tony Allen isolation with Bynum on his back, he turns faces, drives left, spins right, layup, misses, tap by Leon, tapped over the backboard and out of bounds. Too strong on that offensive rebound.
Leon Powe fouls Bynum. Another foul. Another clock stoppage. Doc is getting animated now. Bynum makes both this time.
Boston ahead 76-59
Pierce enters the game to calm Boston back down
Detroit’s full court press causing Boston some problems
Lovely reverse layup to avoid the shot blocking presence of Amir Johnson
Drive and kick, Rasheed three pointer right wing, nails it
16 point game
5:30 to play
House turns it over
Timeout
Rajon Rondo checks back into the game
Pistons trying to make a late run. They’re playing with some pride right now … at last.
Iverson is 4-11 from the field for 10 points, also has 4 turnovers
KG is back in the game too
KG rebounds the ball, Rondo brings it upcourt, Pierce and KG run and screen and roll left wing, Celtics reverse the ball, Baby posts up right block, spins out of control, misses the shot. He had the mismatch against Bynum. Rebound is loose, Celtics dive on it, Rondo and Bynum jump ball midcourt. Boston win the tip. Pierce misses a 20 footer right wing
It’s uncomfortable for Boston right now. They’re not in rhythm. Detroit are snipping at their heels.
Sheed takes a three, in and out, offensive rebound Prince, out to Bynum, he thinks about three, thinks better, notices KG is on him, decides to drive, lovely drive, and finish on the opposite side of the rim using the rim to negate Garnett’s length.
Great block by Tony Allen to deny a fastbreak layup
3:44 to play
Iverson back in the game
Sheed misses another three, rebound KG, fastbreak Boston, layup Tony allen
Boston ahead 80-64
Detroit need quick baskets
Prince makes a 16 footer left baseline, score it. He has 23 points now.
KG with a fallaway over Herrmann, misses, Sheed rebounds, Tony Allen intercepts the outlet pass. That’s a killer steal by Boston.
Pierce creating against Afflalo out on the three point line, foul on Afflalo
Timeout
2:25 to play
Boston ahead 80-66
KG scores inside over Prince, no wait he missed that easy shot, offensive rebound and tip in by Tony Allen. 21 points from Tony Allen to lead Boston
KG deflects the cross court pass by Boston
5 seconds on the shot clock, in to Detroit, nice cut by Afflalo after the inbounds pass, nice pass Prince, Afflalo scores inside.
Davis draws the foul inside, maks two FTs
Bill Walker checks into the game.
1:40 to play
Boston lead 84-68
Steal Tony Allen, breakaway, layup
Wallace gets a bucket. He’s 4-17 from the field now, has 10 points. Mostly done in garbage time.
Bynum makes a three to end the game
Boston win 88-76
Boston trashed the Pistons tonight. Great performance, especially on the defensive end.
Detroit has a lot of work to do to incorporate AI and keep their offensive principles in tact.
One worrying note as described at halftime – Stuckey was struggling at halftime … didn’t make it to the locker room. He crumpled over in half at midcourt, then sat on the bench for 5-10 minutes while they took his pulse and other such. No word on what’s wrong or if it’s serious or if he’ll be back. I hope he’s alright. – Stuckey didn’t return to the game. There has been no update on Stuckey since. Not a pleasant sight, hopefully it was nothing and not something serious.
It was 45-36 Minnesota when I tuned in with about 2 minutes to play in the half. Rudy
According to the commentators, the Blazers big men have dominated in the paint. Przybilla has led the charge. For Minnesota, Big Al has missed a lot of shots he normally makes, while Love is 0-2 from the field.
Rudy Fernandez’ movement off the ball was brilliant there on back to back possessions, causing Minnesota a lot of worries.
Aldridge is 0-6.
Roy fouled on the elbow, not called. Nate is pissed, gets a tech. Wolves make it.
Roy turns the corner on the screen and roll, drives right, drive and kick to Rudy, three pointer right sideline, nails it
Miller high screen and roll, drives right, to the rim, Aldridge blocks it … fastbreak Blazers, Blake has it, misses, offensive rebound Roy, putback.
Telfair from midcourt? Misses.
Halftime
Minnesota leads 49-43
Portland leading 24-20 on the backboards. The Blazers have 10 first half offensive rebounds
Portland have 7 assists on 15 field goals, making only 15-39 shots for 39% shooting. They are 3-9 from three and 10-14 from the line.
The Wolves have 14 assists on 21 baskets, making 21-45 shots for 47% shooting. They are 1-5 from three and 6-9 from the FT line.
Al Jefferson was only 3-10 from the field in the first half. Only 1 FT also. He finished with 7 points and 3 blocks. He only had 3 rebounds though.
Kevin Love was 0-2 from the floor and in 10 minutes finished with 1 point, 1 rebound and 1 assist.
Brandon Roy leads Portland with 11 points, 5 rebounds, and 3 assists. All team highs.
Four Blazers have between 5-6 points, and Blake adds four more points. Balanced scoring behind Roy, but no second scorer.
Aldridge is 1-7 from the floor and 4-6 from the FT line. He does have 5 rebounds and 2 blocks. Przybilla has 4 rebounds. Frye had 4 rebounds (plus 2 blocks) off the bench, Outlaw had 3. Sergio had 3 dimes off the bench.
Rashad McCants led the Wolves with 13 points on 5-8 shooting in 11 minutes. Craig Smith and Randy Foye had 8 points apiece. All three players came off the bench and have 29 of the team’s 49 points. Ryan Gomes also came off the bench, he has 4.
The starting backcourt for the Wolves have 4 points each, Telfair has 3 assists while Miller has 2 boards and an assist. Brewer played only 7 minutes and has 2 rebounds.
Martell Webster has removed the protective boot from his foot. His recovery is progressing.
Third Quarter
Jefferson finishing inside with a 11 footer, good look in the paint, no contest on the shot. Not sure how that happened, looked like his defender wasn’t paying attention, can’t describe it better than that.
Batum with a rejection on the break
Aldridge forced into a tough fallaway, miss … fastbreak again, this time Brewer takes it to the rim, Batum blocks it again. He blocked Telfair on the previous layup attempt.
Jefferson doubled, Batum came down, Miller wide open three, nails it. Batum shouldn’t have left Miller.
Brewer’s pass is intercepted, Roy on the right wing, finds his trailer, slam dunk. Great effort by Batum to get up there and help his teammates, he was under the basket when Portland began that break. Great end to end effort.
Offensive foul on Aldridge
Miller gets the switch, Blake on him, he posts him up on the right block, doubled, pass to the open Brewer on the opposite side of the court along the baseline, hits it
Roy slowly dribbling, lulling his defender to sleep, takes the pull up J, hits it
Love inside, going up strong, blocked by Aldridge, gets it back, goes up again, Batum from behind swooping for the block, Przybilla nails him from the other side, smacked in the face, foul. Timeout. Kevin Love can’t see. Commentators wonder if he has contacts? Or if his eye is bleeding. He’s okay. Comes back to the FT line after the timeout and takes his FTs, makes of two.
Batum fouled on the defensive rebound, fouled by two Wolves
Roy is dribbling very slowly tonight, moving slowly. Not injured, just playing slowly. It’s hurting the pace of their halfcourt offense because all his taemmates have to adjust to his pace since he’s on the ball so much.
Halfway through the third
Minnesota ahead 57-52
Telfair turns it over, bad pass
Roy coming up again, slowly dribbling, screen comes up from Aldridge, Roy crosses over and goes the other way, he turns on the gas, gets to the rim, layup. That play reminds me so much of John Stockton. Lulling the defender to sleep then blazing by him in an unexcpected direction away from Karl Malone’s screen. It’s hard to do, don’t see it often.
Timeout
Blazers on a 7-0 run …. starting to build some momentum
Telfair drives from the right corner, gets into the middle of the paint, takes the runner, blocked by Blake
Commentators questioning why the Wolves Head Coach waited this long to bring some of his scorers off the bench back into the game. Fair question. Portland have been building this momentum for some time now.
Turnover Telfair, illegal screen, stuck out the elbow and hit someone
Batum misses a three from the right corner, Aldridge rebounds, scores the putback. Batum scored a three earlier in the quarter.
Brewer scores the three from the right wing
Big Al fouled inside, makes two at the line. Minnesota lead 62-58
Roy unwinds from three at the top of the key late in the shot clock, nails it
Al spinning his way through the post, drawing the foul on Joel, that’s four, he’ll sit, Al will shoot two more.
Aldridge reples with FTs of his own
Aldridge is in foul trouble, he’s defending Jefferson, Al low post left block, shot fake, Aldridge bits, Big Al goes inside, layup, misses
Big Al face up J from 15 feet left wing, hits it
Minnesota lead 66-63
Aldridge nails the jumper off the pick and pop
Blazers haven’t led since they were up 5-3 in the first quarter
Miller drives into the middle, passes off to Gomes, dunk, Aldridge contests it, Gomes misses the dunk. Aldridge’s presence was a factor there.
Roy draws the foul on a drive on the other end
Timeout
Tie Game 66-66
Two minutes to play
Miller shoots a three, sticks his leg out, Frye runs into his leg, no only two FTs, long two, not a three
Aldridge on the post, finds the cutter from the top of the key running down the middle, layup Sergio
McCants shoots over Frye on the switch, misses. McCants has to move Frye around more than that if he’s going to take that shot, made it easy for Frye to stay in the play and alter the shot
Tie Game 68-68
McCants clearout left wing, drives left, doubled, passes out, miss, loose ball foul on Portland as Aldridge grabbed the rebound. Craig Smith will shoot two. Foul on Sergio. Smith makes both.
40 seconds to play
Sergio brings it up, runs a high screen and roll, doesn’t get anyhting, goes back and runs it again, picks up his dribble, almost loses it, out to Rudy, misses a quick three, offensive rebound Travis Outlaw, fouled on the putback. He makes one of two.
McCants short arms a three, offensive rebound, nice passing, McCants cuts, runner, misses. Lot of contact. End of the third.
Fourth Quarter
Wolves lead 70-69
Rudy nails a three to open the fourth quarter. Blazers get their first lead since the opening minutes
McCants misses another shot, a three, he’s cold. Hasn’t been close on any of these shots.
Aldridge hits the 18 footer over Madsen on the feed from Fernandez
Gomes out of control on the drive, picks up and offensive foul
Great work by the Blazers, Frye and Outlaw went hard to the offensive glass, and tapped it off the offensive glass, Aldridge hustles to ensuing rebound, gets to it, goes up, fouled. Great effort from the Blazers frontcourt. He makes two.
Portland lead 76-70
Big Al muscling his way into the paint, double comes, passes out to Telfair in the corner, nails it
Lovely pass along the baseline by Outlaw to Aldridge for the easy dunk
Portland lead 78-73
Portland should win this game. They have all the momentum and nobody on the Wolves can score right now.
Telfair step back J off the dribble from 21 feet left wing, misses. Bad shot to take.
9 minutes to play
Big Al drawing the foul in the low post. He has 15 points but is only 5-14 from the field. These are his sixth and seventh FTs. Jefferson makes two.
Portland ahead 78-75
Lob to Rudy, it’s off, Rudy somehow guides it in as he falls on his rear end
Telfair gets the switch, Frye on him, drives, hesitates, drives again, fouled by a help defender reaching in.
8 minutes to play
Big Al, double there if he goes middle, forces him baseline, Joel right there, tough shot, wants to pass out, looks at the clock, takes it, makes it. Tough shot.
Outlaw nails a three
Rudy losing Foye off the ball, he turns down the three, drives, gets stripped, fastbreak, layup, foul. Rudy is holding his face, evidently he was fouled too. Big Al apologises for hitting him in the face. Foye makes the three point play.
Minnesota have cut the lead
Portland ahead 83-82
Aldridge has gone to the bench, now to the locker room. No idea why. He didn’t come out of the game because of a knock or look uncomfortable.
Foul line, Love passes up the shot twice, posts up Big Al, turns middle, jump hook, misses, offensive rebound Love, he takes a bounce, muscles it up, stripped by a guard on his way up …. fastbreak, pass to Frye who beat Jefferson up the court, foul. One of two.
6 minutes to play
Aldridge checks back in, well in a moment, he’s at the scorers table
Two point game
Foye gets a great look 17 feet along the baseline, miss
Roy is stripped by Jefferson, fastbreak Telfair, leaves it for Miller, layup
Tie Game
Roy takes Mike Miller off the bounce, draws the foul on his drive. He splits a pair of FTs
Nice drive and dish Foye to Jefferson, 14 footer right wing, misses it, rebound Portland
Roy turns the corner, gets to the rim, misses, rebound Przybilla, layup
Fernandez jumps into Przybilla on the defensive rebound, almost lose it out of bounds
Roy misses a jumper
Four minutes to play
Telfair scoots to the middle, lefty layup, miss
Rudy fell over as he was shooting the ball, air ball. He’s pissed off at himself.
87-84 Portland
Randy Foye steps back behind the screen from Big Al, three pointer, misses
Three minutes
Blake on the three pointer, miss, contested rebound, big offensive rebound by Aldridge, finds Rudy for a wide open three, miss. Seventh offensive rebound for Aldridge.
Big Al posts up, double comes, Miller launches a three, scores it. That’s twice they’ve scored off that pass when Miller was on the strong side of the floor.
Blake scores a two
Post up Big Al, up and under, scores
Tie Game 89-89
Clearout for Roy top of the key, drive and kick, three pointer from Blake on the left wing, two pointer, foot on the line.
Timeout
Big Al and Roy trade buckets
95-93 Blazers
32 seconds to play
Wolves inbound, Love into Telfair, just avoids a 5 second call, just avoids a turnover on the pass. Telfair gets it into Big Al, up and under, no, offensive rebound Love, putback no, offensive rebound, Big Al, miss, defensive rebound Aldridge as he taps it out and dives on the floor to get possession of the ball, timeout called by Aldridge
Rudy, Blake, Outlaw … Roy and Aldridge. Blazers FT shooters.
Blake inbounds the ball to Rudy, can’t foul him as he turns the corner and loses his man, defense rotates over, pass to Aldridge in the FT line, pass to Outlaw in the corner, finally a foul. 5 seconds lost for Minnesota.
Only fives seconds left
Outlaw makes two
Wolves down four, the’yre donePortland up four, Outlaw steals the inbounds pass at midcourt
Good win for Portland in a tough game. Portland are now 3-3 in their first 6 games. Good start considering this is the first team they’ve played that don’t consider themselves a title contender - Lakers, Rockets, Jazz, Spurs, Suns.
There will be a rematch next Saturday in Minnesota. Should be good.
The Blazers are about to undergo a tough 16 game strecth where only 4 of their games are at home. Two long road trips, one cross country, and the other out on the East.
Kirk Hinrich will be out for the next 3 months. Ben Gordon will take over the starting spot.
First Quarter
Tie Game 6-6
Good finish by LeBron James on the fastbreak, he kept the smaller man on his hip while he dribbled towards the basket, and then muscled up the finish over him. He got the foul and FT.
Thomas switches onto Mo Williams, late in the clock, Mo has to force it 20 feet out along the baseline, blocked by Tyrus, Wallace with the rebound and finish in midair. Next possession, offensive rebound Big Z, passes to the cutting LeBron James, layup.
Cleveland ahead 13-8
Thomas out near the three point line right wing, Ben Wallace hanging out in the paint, Tyrus drives left, spins right, jump hook from 12, blocked by Wallace, Gray gets to the loose ball and scores inside.
Wow … Rose with the crossover dribble slicing into the lane and flying through midair, layup, missed. What a move though.
Great 40 foot bounce pass cross court from the right wing up near mid-court to the James filling the left lane, right on the money just enough ahead of Rose’s out-stretched hand, slam dunk LeBron James
Defensive rebound Big Z
Cleveland are on a 17-4 scoring run right now as they stretch the lead 19-10
Ben Wallace showing the moves inside, shoulder faking, pump faking, nice footwork, draws the foul, makes one of two
Joakim Noah misreads a Gordon cut to the corner for a cut to the hoop, throws the bounce, turnover. If Gordon had of made that cut he would have had a layup, his defender had his back turned to the ball and was behind Gordon’s movement.
Mo Williams with a pretty floater in the lane
Big Z with another defensive rebound, loose ball foul on Noah going over the back.
James making the catch above the left elbow, comes off a screen, passes to the corner, long two good. I love seeing James catch the ball beneath the three point line.
West deflects the pass, Nocioni retains possession. He swings it to the other side, Rose takes it to the cup, misses the layup, offensive rebound Noah, foul on Z. That’s two fouls on Z, he’ll sit down. Noah makes two at the line.
Cleveland lead 24-14
West runs off a high screen and roll, has a lane to the rim, doesn’t attack it hard enough, allows the defender to stick with him, skip pass to the corner, no shot on, Gibson dribbles up top, passes back to West in the corner, West drives left, finds Varejao with the wrap around pass, layup
James tries to throw the tricky behind the back bounce pass in mid air through traffic … steal, fastbreak Bulls going the other way, bucket
Timeout
Great block from Noah from behind on Varejao’s layup attempt
Final minute of the quarter
Inbounds baseline to Williams, 20 footer catch and shoot, nails it from the left wing
Deng side arms a 20 footer left wing, hustles down the offensive rebound, passes to Noah, out to Ben Gordon, three pointer top of the key, hits it.
Ben Gordon holds it at the top of the key, holding it for the final possession, nice drive, spins right, hits the runner
Great run by Chicago to end the first quarter
Cleveland ahead 32-27
Second Quarter
Both teams trade misses to start the quarter … great hustle play by Hickson to come away with that, layup Hickson. Next possession, another offensive rebound Hickson, whisle, travel I think.
Williams misses a 20 footer from the right corner, shot came off a dribble off a screen and roll … rebound Chicago, they push it upcourt quickly, Ben Gordon takes it hard to hole, fouled, makes two at the line.
Ben Gordon top of the key, drives left, gets the step, into the middle, fouled by Gibson. Gordon makes one of two FTs to tie the game.
Tie Game 34-34
Chicago jump out to a lead, ahead 43-38.
Cavs post up Big Z on the left box, he turns middle, draws contact, gets the foul, shoots two at the line
Nocioni passes up the three, passes left, hard drive, missed layup, Tyrus Thomas from the weakside slams it home
Nice passing from Cleveland to find Z open from 14 feet on the baseline, he hits the shot
Big Z bangs in a 20 footer right wing
Nocioni responds with a three pointer
Chicago ahead 48-42
5 minutes to play in the half
Nocioni bangs home another three pointer. Back to back threes for Noce.
Big Z left post again, he spins middle, finishes inside.
Chicago ahead 51-44 with under four minutes to play
Z posting up on the right post, help comes, bouce pass to Varejao on the opposite side, layup
Timeout
Rose stuck in the paint, nobody to pass to, close to a three second call, gets rid of it, Chicago have nothing on, have to force it, miss … defensive rebound, Cleveland get it in the hands of LeBron James who drives down off the left wing into the paint, jumps, takes the contact, tries a fallaway off glass, misses, makes two at the line.
Nice move by Luol Deng as he curls off a screen into the paint, gets the pass, blows the layup. Jump ball after Gray and Varejao get tied up on the rebound, Bulls win the tip, Rose has it top of the key, dribbles inside, screen just above the elbow, Gray slips behind, Rose rises for the 15 footer at the FT line, changes his mind, finds Gray, wide open dunk, blocked from behind. Wasn’t quick enough.
Z adds a long jumper to his account
Deng slicing into the paint again, this time off the drive as Varejao got stuck on the switch, he takes it hard to the rim, hits the layup and the foul. Tech on Varejao, Gordon makes the FT, Deng makes the FT. Varejao still complaining, a teammate tells him to shut up and move onto the next play.
Chicago lead 55-50
Delonte West soaring through midair to break up the lob pass on the fastbreak. Out of bounds, Chicago ball. Inbounds to Rose, high screen and roll, gets nothing, picks up his dribble, Chicago in trouble now, turnover.
Williams off the pick and pop to Z on the left wing, 19 footer teeded up and in
Great play by Rose, he comes off the screen and roll, drives, Varejao switches, he slowly brings it out, about 15 feet out on the baseline now, then turns, gives a stutter step, blows by Varejao for a layup
LeBron James with an authorative slam to end the half in the halfcourt
Halftime
Varejao still complaining about the call. He’s in the refs face over the scorers table, a second ref ushers him away to the locker room before he gets himself into trouble.
Chicago ahead 57-54
Chicago ahead on the backboards 25-21
Chicago have only 8 assists on their 20 baskets, shooting only 20-48 from the field for 41.7% shooting. They are, however, shooting 3-5 from three and 13-15 from the FT line.
Cleveland also have a low assist number with 10 dimes on 23 baskets, shooting 23-49 from 47% FG%. They are 0-3 from behind the arc and 8-9 from the FT line.
LeBron James has only 3 FTs in the first half …. he has taken 18 shots and has only 3 FTs, unusual for him. He is 7-18 from the field and has only 2 assists. He does have 6 rebounds though.
Big Z has done a great job for Cleveland finishing with 15 points, 6 rebounds, 2 assists on 6-11 shooting plus 4-4 from the FT line. LeBron and Z have combined for 33 of the Cavs 54 points, with nobody else having more than 6. Some of their teammates need to step up offensively, their guards - Mo Williams, Delonte West, Danny Gibson - haven’t done nearly enough.
Chicago have 7 turnovers costing them 11 points. Cleveland have only 5 turnovers, costing them 3 points. Nice edge in transition points from Cleveland.
Ben Gordon got his first start of the season tonight and has responded with 17 first half points.
Chicago had 7 blocks in the first half led by Tyrus Thomas with 3. They also have 3 steals.
Deng has chimed in with 14 points of his own, while Noce has 10 off the bench. Derrick Rose has 6 and 5. The Bulls starting big men have 4 points apiece.
Came across this stat at halftime – LeBron James is 7-41 (17%) on jump shots to start the season.
Third Quarter
Tyrus hits the 15 footer (right wing) off his guard’s penetration
Noah deflecting William’s pass out off a Cavs player
Rose drive and dish to Thomas, 18 footer left baseline, miss
Chicago ahead 59-54
Derrick Rose dribbling, stops and pops from the left elbow, hits it. Terrible defense by Williams, no pressure on the ball whatsoever, didn’t contest the shot either.
Williams driving along the baseline, shuffle pass to Big Ben, pump fake, Tyrus goes for it, Wallace stuffs it home
Big Z saves the ball in the left corner after an awkward bounce from Tyrus’ missed FT, it falls right to LeBron, he goes coast to coast, hard to the rim, fouled. Tyrus takes a seat.
Chicago ahead 62-60
Big Z missing a jumper from the top of the key
Derrick Rose coming off a high screen and roll, drives left, beats Z to the cup, lays it off the backboard and in
Timeout
Chicago lead 68-60
Rose missing a layup, gets his rebound, resets teh offense, up to Ben Gordon top of the key, to Noah above the FT line, Rose left wing backdoor cut, Noah finds him, layup
Chicago are up 10
LeBron James nails a 22 footer left wing
Chicago run a screen between Rose and Noce, Cleveland switch, passes back to Nocioni at the top of the key, he tries to take advantage of Mo, called for a foul.
James called for an offensive foul, moving screen. He doesn’t know what he did. Moving screen, you were moving!
Noce creating one-on-one against Wally World, left wing, fakes a couple of times, crossovers, now drives left, fallaway, Wally looked uncomfortable on the play but fair due to him he stuck it out and got a hand in Noce’s face, may have tipped the ball on the shot too, miss.
James goes coast to coast, FTs, two of two. He has more FTs in 7 minutes in the third quarter than the first half.
Gordon runs off a high screen and roll left wing, takes the 18 footer, makes it
Gibson has a 20 footer rim in and out
Varejao posting up Noah, nice move, screws it up at the final moment with the way he went up on the release, forced himself to jump backwards on the hook, allowed Noah to contest it, he bangs it in strong off the glass. They all count.
Chicago ahead 74-66
3 plus minutes to play in the third
James nestles in a three pointer from the top of the key. He’s heating up.
Timeout Chicago
Missed the final minutes of the third there
Fourth Quarter
Chicago ahead 77-74
LeBron James gets to the FT line on Cleveland’s first possession, he came off a high screen and roll, dribbling down the lane, shoulder faking side to side, cut right, went up into Thomas’ body and drew the foul, missed the layup. He made one of two at the line.
Rose looses his dribble, dribbled it off his heel as he tried to go through his legs from behind, Mo Williams dives on it, passes out, Cavs running the other way, Gibson to LeBron, Bron takes it to the rim, foul. He makes two. Great defense by Cleveland, Varejao and Mo trapped him effectively on the pick and roll and almost stole possession twice before Rose lost control.
Tie Game at 77
James pounding the rock into the ground, no movement from Cleveland, he loses his dribble, picks it up, pass, asks for it back, takes a 23 footer off the dribble to beat the shot clock from teh top of the key.
Wow …. check the highlights for that acrobatic James layup. A guy his size shouldn’t be able to knife through the air like that.
Rose on the offensive glass, putback, rejected by Varejao
James on a heat check four feet behind the arc, misses, loose ball foul on Chicago
Timeout
Cleveland have taken the lead 85-77
Cleveland getting some rest for LeBron, also getting some movement offensively. Wonder that? Gibson from the right corner, drives right, teardrop, nails it
Cleveland ahead 10 points now. Chicago turn the ball over and Ben Gordon rejoins the action.
8 minutes to play
Varejao hits a 17 footer right wing
Rose and Gordon playing by themselves, causing Cavs’ guards lot of problems off the bounce, Rose ends up getting the to rack and makes the layup
Thabo and Tyrus go up for the block, they foul Varejao and Thabo decks Tyrus in midair. Hard fall there for Thomas.
Cleveland ahead 91-79 with 7 minutes to play
LeBron still on the bench, he’s cheering loudly, most of the Cavs bench is standing. LeBron was, now he’s sitting down again but he’s up every 20 seconds to clap and cheer loudly.
Loose ball foul on Nocioni, Bulls in the penalty, Varejao gets two, misses the first, makes the second.
Gordon trapped hard on the pick and roll, forced back to midcourt, struggles to get rid of it …. does, Deng bails Chicago out with a long two.
Gordon nails a three pointer off the screen and roll
9 point game
Gibson misses the pull up J from the left elbow, Chicago push it quickly, to Deng in the right corner, he drives baseline, muscles up the layup
7 point game
Timeout Cleveland
James beats Deng on the drive easily, runs into the help defense, three Bulls jump straight up around him, he can’t get the shot anywhere near, miss. Great help D.
Cleveland lead 96-87 off Mo’s FTs
4 minutes to play
Missed shot, Bron rebound, long outlet to the Gibson who leaked out, looks like an easy layup but Noce is coming down hard and fast, he blocks the layup from behind. Out of bounds, Cavs ball. James runs off two screen and rolls, couldn’t get anything better than a 18 footer fallaway baseline off the dribble while sprinting … how tough is that shot? Want to guess if he made it? Yeah he missed it.
Nocioni hits a three pointer
6 point game
Timeout Cleveland
James in the post, spins middle, short shot, rejected
Three minutes twelve to play
Two seconds on the shot clock, inbounds to Varejao, he takes a dribble backwards, turning from three along the left baseline falling rather than jumping he heaves a shot … air ball
Ben Gordon hits a pull up jumper on the other end
Four point game
James has it top of the key, high screen and roll, good help defense, he finds Mo open in the left corner, he misses the three … contested rebound … Chicago come away with it. Mo fouls Gordon out near midcourt, trying to steal the ball to make up for his missed shot, he was pressing too much there.
Rose drives into the paint, jumps up, tries to pass, no angle, loses the ball on teh way down, West got a piece of it, he tries to pass it again before hitting the ground, deflected out of bounds. Chicago score off the inbounds
Two point game
LeBron James hits a 20 footer left wing/top of the key off the dribble after going behind the scree. Cavs ran that screen and roll with their point guard as the screener … I love that play for Cleveland.
Hard foul by Varejao to deny Gordon’s layup. Good penetration from Gordon. Ben makes two FTs.
Two point game
1:42 to play
Cleveland brings it up, James has it in his hands, same play, this time James nails a three.
The score changed. The scoreboard must have been wrong. It’s a 6 point game, not a 5 point game. That’s not Chicago’s scoreboard.
Derrick Rose draws the foul on his drive, makes the first, misses the second. It rimmed in and out, hit the inside of the rim 2-3 times before coming out.
Cleveland beat the full court press easily
James waves off the screen, wants to milk the clock, now they run it, James weaves into the middle, Mo pops to the left corner, three pointer on the way, miss, offensive rebound, James has it again. He milks the clock again, same play again, passes to Mo along the left sideline again, this time the defensive rotation gets to Mo in time, he drives right towards the middle, Nocioni comes from the weakside and alters the shot. Miss. Long rebound fumbled out of bounds, off Varejao.
Timeout
Chicago ball, they advance it 3/4ers of the court
Inbounds to Rose, Rose passes up top to Gordon, he takes a quick three, misses, rebound James, fouled. This is over.
Does anyone else get the impression that the Cavs don’t want any part of the regular? Like it’s an unneccessary chore for them? I’ve gotten that feeling a couple of times in the games I’ve seen.
*Partial game, I switched off late in the third quarter to watch the Bulls-Cavs matchup
Indiana are without two of their starters tonight – Mike Dunleavy and Rasho Nesterovic
New Jersey are without their point guard Devin Harris
First Quarter
Pacers lead 10-4 off a quick push by TJ Ford, and dish to Foster for a Foster layup
Daniels with a strong drive and finish
Timeout … missed a few moments there.
Back to back long jumpers as Vince Carter nails a three pointer in transition on the left wing.
Indiana leads 17-16, 18-16 off a FT
Vince Carter nails another three pointer, this time from the top of the key. Eight straight points by Carter. He’s heating up.
Troy Murphy responds right back with a three of his own
TJ Ford showing some activity defensively to knock Carter’s dribble as he double down on Carter’s attempted drive.
Carter misses a jumper, kept alive by Najera.
Lovely ball fake as Rush fakes the pass to the right, drives hard left, blows by Simmons, takes it to the rim, finishes inside.
Pacers in transition, Murphy trailing the play, Rush sets him up with a nice soft pass, quick trigger, missed. Murphy stepped into that shot nicely.
Lopez lost his shoe. Nets decide to take a timeout, let Brook Lopez get his shoe back on. Good work by Lopez to hustle down court and grab a defensive rebound instead of worrying about his shoe …. or lack of a shoe.
Carter has 11 first quarter points. He’s gotten off to a fast start.
Indiana lead 23-20
Nice jumper from Brook Lopez off the pick and pop from 15 feet right wing
Granger nails a three pointer left wing. Quinn Buckner is delighted with how Danny has been shooting early in the regular season.
Deiner and Jack are playing together in Indiana’s backcourt. Good decision making by Indy to hold that up and set the offense, nice quick passing, ending up with a corner jumper from Jack.
Nets are in a zone right now. Jack cutting into the middle, defense collapses, Danny jumps down to the corner off the wing, Jack finds him, three pointer on the way, good.
Hassell has scored two buckets in a row
Indiana hold it for the final shot, Rush drives by his man to the rim along the baseline, loses it, no, late call, foul on Lopez.
20 second timeout. 3 seconds on the shot clock. Set play coming up, I’d like to see Indiana run Rush off a screen or two and give him a catch and shoot. Inbounds pass by Jack, Pacers line up in a four man queue at the FT area, Granger pops out to the top of the key, receives the pass, he dribbles right, pulls up from 16 feet, miss. Good look.
Second Quarter
Indiana lead 32-27
Nice pass fake by Deiner, loses his man, takes a bounce in and shoots it, miss. Nice play by Deiner.
Jack steals the ball as Dooling mishandles the rock … Indiana run the other way, take a long J, miss.
It gets frustrating watching Obie’s offense at times. The quick threes on the fastbreak, blah.
Troy Murphy had 8 points and 5 rebounds in the first quarter
I love seeing Roy Hibbert play in the NBA. Feels like it’s a long time coming, the forgotten effect of a four year college player?
Dooling has scored two jumpers
Nice pass by Hibbert to TJ Ford who went backdoor, defense recovers well, TJ kicks it out, Jack drives right, muscles left as meets the center of the key, and shoots up over the defense.
Timeout
Nice pick and roll, Yi takes a bounce to get to the rim, misses inside
Daniels misses a corner three in transition. Too many jumpshots in transition from Indiana, they’re allowing NJ to hang in, making the game difficult on themselves.
Hayes gets bailed out by the refs. He was in the no charge area when he drew the foul. Poor call.
Nets start the possession on the right wing, reverse it the opposite side, Dooling drives into the middle before the defense fully reacts and he gets the runner to go.
Murphy putting the ball on the floor and creating on two consecutive possessions. Don’t like that.
Vince Carter nails a wide open three pointer off the drive and kick
Nice back screen by TJ Ford to free up Daniles for the cut, Foster finds him, fouled before he could get up the layup.
Jarvis Hayes with the acrobatic runner off the glass from the right hand side of the lane
TJ Ford driving into the paint, takes the fallaway over Boone, misses, gets the offensive rebound, turns down the putback and passes out.
Jeff Foster with the putback and offensive rebound in one motion. He’s the best offensive rebounder in the league today.
Vince Carter making a very difficult fallaway
NJ lead 46-43 with three minutes to play in the half
Jeff Foster making himself big, he spreads out in the paint and streches his arm out to receive the ball, Boone can’t get near it, one step, layup. Nice job setting up shop in the paint off the screen and roll.
Daniels settles for a three, 1-5 from downtown tonight, 2-15 from three on the season …. shot looked flat.
Vince Carter runs the screen and roll with Boone, nice pass, Boone fouled on the layup. Boone air balls a FT. He bricked a jumper badly the possession before. He front irons the second. Offensive rebound Nets, turnover Nets.
Final minute
TJ Ford brings it upcourt, Indiana stagnant on that possession, forced into a long J, miss, offensive rebound Jeff Foster, Daniels cuts to the hole, nice pass, layup
NJ lead 51-49 off some VC FTs
Foster with another offensive rebound, to TJ Ford, out to Danny Granger, three pointer, miss. Granger could have held that for the final shot, didn’t do so.
New Jersey will hold it for a final possession, Vince drives, stops and pops from the elbow, misses
Halftime
NJ lead 51-49
Indiana are ahead on the backboards 22-16
Indiana have 12 assists on 19-45 shooting from the field. They are only 6-21 from three and 5-5 from the line. Only 25% shooting from three and on course for 42 attempts in the game, no wonder those long shots were bothering me so much in the first half.
New Jersey have 9 assists on 21-42 shooting from the field. They are 5-10 from three and 4-7 from the line.
Vince Carter leads New Jersey with 20 first half points. Dooling adds 9, nobody else has more than 5 points.
TJ Ford is 0-6 from the field but has 5 assists and 4 rebounds
Jeff Foster leads the team with 12 points and 7 rebounds. Murphy has 10 and 5. Daniels has 9, Granger has 7 and Jack/Rush have combined for 10 points off the bench. Indy’s two big men doing good work, and a balanced act from there on.
Third Quarter
TJ Ford with a nice drive from the corner with three seconds on the clock, gets into the paint, fallaway J at the buzzer, hits it. Nice way to start the half.
Murphy with a contested rebound in the paint
Daniels has to force a shot, he puts it on the floor, drives baseline, takes a one armed leaner over two defenders, misses.
Indiana’s offense has not looked good tonight. Lacks movement. Lacks quick decision making. TJ Ford is starting to dribble more as the game goes on. They’re clearly lacking Mike Dunleavy’s multi-skilled threat from every spot on the floor offensive game.
Nice block by Granger on Simmons’ floater
Indiana ahead 53-51 after two and a half minutes
Granger coming off a screen, nothing on, waits from Daniels to come up top, TJ Ford doesn’t get open on his cut. Nothing happens … missed shot … fastbreak the other way, lob by Dooling to Boone, one handed dunk, miss
Murphy trails the play, nails a three
Steal by Danny Granger, he goes coast to coast, gets fouled as he cuts passed the lane, layup, and one.
Pacers on a 8-0 run to start the second half
Nice pass over the top to Murphy who was being fronted, he’s fouled inside on the short shot
Turnover NJ, moving screen on Boone. It was a hand off pass/screen.
Granger makes two more at the FT line. Four FTs in the quarter.
TJ Ford runs into Najera in the open court, falls over, looses the ball, NJ have it, Lopez dribbling in cautiously, goes into the paint, Indy have no shotblockers, try to get a charge, foot in the paint, layup and the foul.
Lovely passing by Indiana to get Murphy and open look from three at the top of the key, miss
Is it just me or is Vince Carter cursing a lot more this season? Every TV close up I’ve seen he’s “F” this and “F” that.
Vince hasn’t scored in the second half yet
Nice pass into Lopez on the baseline inbounds, Hibbert fouls. Hibber turns it over on the other end, bad pass.
Daniels deflects the cross court pass out of bounds. 7 seconds on the shot clock, in to Dooling, to Vince, face up three, miss. TJ Ford passes it into Hibbert quickly after Roy got great position on the break, short hook, makes it.
Najera misses a three pointer badly. Air ball.
Daniels swishes a three pointer on the left wing, stretches the lead back to 10, 11 actually.
Indy lead 66-55
Timeout Lawrence Frank
We just passed the halfway point in the third quarter.
Drive and kick from Vince to Dooling, three pointer from the corner, good
Turnover TJ Ford, offensive foul, pushing off
TJ Ford and Murphy screw up the spacing there, standing alongside one another at the top of the key with only one defender in the vicinity. Force a contested three, miss, offensive rebound, Murphy bags the second attempt.
Oh pretty dribble to beat his defender, even sweeter pass by Daniels in midair to Ford after drawing the shot blocker for the wide open layup. Fastbreak there.
Indiana lead 71-60
Okay I’m going to switch over to the Bulls-Cavs game. That looks like an interesting matchup.
Indiana should really win this game. They’ve been toying with an inferior side all game, but they haven’t had enough of a killer instinct to put them away so Jersey are still in with a shout. The game has all been about what Indiana is doing, and not doing ….. rather NJ making it tough.
Wow … great ovation from the crowd as Chauncey Billups is announced. He makes a short speech, gets a great reaction again. This crowd is pumped. I’m pumped, this is great, very excited about seeing Chauncey Billups’ return to the Nuggets
Chauncey is wearing #7. Dahntay Jones will start in Allen Iverson’s place as previously reported.
First Quarter
Hubie Brown announcing tonight
Nuggets getting three shot attempts on their first possession after a Mavericks turnover. Their big men taking a 18 footer each, missing both.
Dirk is down in the low post, backs down Carmelo, spins baseline and lays it in.
Billups posts up on the left block, backs down Kidd, turns middle, short shot in the lane, misses
Is that Kevin Calabro? Is he working for ESPN? Yes, that is KC. Great. One of my favourite announcers (damn Thunder stealing the Sonics)
Billups comes down court, slips behind the screen and nestles in a three pointer
Moving screen on Dampier. Melo shaken up for a second.
Nene off the right elbow, he drives left into the paint, draws the foul. Diop enters the game after Damp picks up two fouls in the space of about 10 seconds. Inbounds, worked into Nene inside, he powers it up, fouled. Nene makes the first, and gets the roll on the second.
Denver ahead 7-4
Dirk with a tough fallaway, Martin might have gotten a piece of that, air ball
Post up for Melo on the left post, face up, takes the 14 footer, nails it
Jason Terry nails a long J to end a 7-0 run
Nice pass from Billups, foul first, Martin slams it home. Martin is going to like Billups.
Terry misses a three from the corner over Martin’s hand, deflected out, Martin comes away with it.
Nene keeps alive the offensive rebound, Melo hustles it down, drives along the baseline and stuffs it home as Diop falls over. Love it.
Timeout
Nuggets leading 11-6
Howard misses a tough shot over Carmelo at the shot clock buzzer, they get an offensive rebound. Illegal defense on Denver following the iso for Howard who got a switch.
Billups has had three practices and a meeting in the last 24 hours trying to learn the Nuggets offense. He says it’s light and day with what he ran in Detroit.
Loose ball foul on Diop, that’s two, Nene takes another two FTs, makes one of two. Bass comes in for Diop.
Dallas push it up quickly, get into their offense … illegal defense, another FT made by Dirk. Inbounds, Dallas never gets into their offense, never below 20 feet, Kidd has to take a 26 foot three, blocked by Billups, Denver come away with it, outlet pass, intercepted by Kidd, he runs down the left lane, draws the defense, fancy pass, intercepted. A couple of turnovers later, Dallas gets a basket.
Lovely backdoor cut from the left corner by Howard, Terry finds him, layup. Josh Howard is getting so many of those types of baskets this season.
Dirk fouled at the rim, he finishes, well goaltend really, makes the FT. Dallas on a 8-0 run to take the lead, they’re up three.
Dallas ahead 15-12
Martin top of the key, crosses it over right to left, drives down the left side, flips up the runner, misses
Howard has been shaking his left hand/wrist for the last two minutes. Got fouled again on that play. Timeout.
Nuggets have been on a scoring drought for some time. JR Smith enters the game along with Chris Andersen. JR immediately takes a pull up J off the bounce from 20 feet left wing, misses, loose ball foul, Andersen will shoot two, makes the first, makes the second.
Under four minutes to play
Good work by Martin trying to block Bass’ 9 footer that looked wide open in the middle of the key, looked like it put Bass off in the last moment. Oh my, next possession, Bass with the one handed follow up slam on the offensive rebound from the weakside. Watch the highlights tonight. That’s nasty.
Kleiza driving across the paint, taking the contact, finishing and making the FT.
Stackhouse hitting a long J
Tough hard nosed drive by JR Smith bullying his way through two players including the helping big (Dirk), and muscling up the lay in, good.
Bass passing to himself after Martin came over and tried to block the shot. Should try a pump fake next time, Martin has been jumping at everything over the past few minutes.
Dirk scores inside …. Denver push it back up while Dirk is on the floor, Carter pushes the length of the court, finds Kleiza, fouled inside, makes two FTs. Dirk made a nice drive from the right wing to finish that shot. Denver’s quick response caught Dallas off guard.
Dirk backing down Martin, fadeaway 14 footer, Martin jumps at it, Dirk misses.
Lovely ball movement from Denver as all five players touch the ball, ball swings to the corner, Kleiza bags it. He’s brought Denver back into this game.
Bass with a great hustle play to keep that offensive rebound alive, but he steps out of bounds on the catch. Unlucky. Great effort.
Lovely strip by Dirk on Martin’s drive. Martin grimmacing after that. He’s fine. Holding his hand but he looks okay.
JR Smith roasting Wright off the dribble, takes it to the rim, crowd gasps, Bass fouls. That looked like a big dunk. Camera turns to Martin on the bench, he’s in a bit of pain, Denver’s trainer looking at him. Smith makes the first FT, and the second.
Denver lead 26-23
Denver 7-0 run
Kidd holds it for a final shot …. dribbling up right wing, runs a high screen and roll, nothing on, Wright cuts from the right wing, lob pass, miss, Bass tap, miss, Bass tap, good.
Second Quarter
Wright with a hard drive, pass out to Damp, 17 feet out, not much use there, passes out to Kidd, three pointer, miss …. leakout, layup, missed. Hubie wants a strong dunk there.
Nuggets turn it over in the paint
Stackhouse misses a three pointer top of the key, loose ball foul on Damp going after that rebound. Diop re-enters.
Kleiza looking to pass, Andersen can’t get open, Kleiza has to take it, he drives, spins, gets in there, scores
Bass nailing a 15 footer
Kleiza driving again, Diop smacking that out of there …. Dallas push it up the other end, Wright takes it hard to the rim, and he falls hard on a soft foul, looks in pain. He gets up after about 15 seconds and plays on.
Kidd taking another three to beat the shot clock, another offensive rebound, this time by Stack, quick pass to Bass, he scores inside.
The Nuggets are getting killed on their defensive glass
Lovely move by Nene, he spins middle, up and under, left handed dunk.
Stack taking an off balance runner, great defense, nobody goes to get the rebound, Stack does, layup, Stack loses it on his way up, turnover
Tie Game 30-30
Smith fading off a screen, takes it to the rim, scores on the drive
Dallas clearout for Bass, Kleiza defending him, double comes, perimeter shot forced, offensive rebound, Dallas pass it around, Carter plays the passing lane …. breakaway, layup
Nene with the offensive rebound, one power dribble and then he slams it home, hard.
Timeout
Nuggets tap the defensive rebound out, Dallas come away with. Quick jumper, another offensive rebound. This is getting tiring. For the love of all that is right will someone box out, and go up with two hands and snatch a defensive rebound.
Lovely pass by Nene to Melo inside, layup, miss, foul. Billups comes back into the game. Melo makes two FTs.
Denver lead 38-32 with 6 plus minutes to play
Carmelo Anthony is defending Jason Kidd, Billups defending Terry.
Nene spikes that shot, fancy block as he knocks it out of bounds. Still Dallas ball though.
It was Kenyon’s left wrist that was sore, he’s been icing it since coming out of the game. He just returned now. He also has a hamstring problem.
Kidd left wide open, tees up a three from the right wing, hits it
Pass by Melo to Nene, awful pass. Nene had a wide open layup and a straight forward passing angle, pass had to go 6 feet, how’d he screw that one up?
Nuggets shooting 34%, Dallas 32%
Howard knocks down a three pointer, Dallas take back the lead.
So many mistakes tonight. Lots of blown layups, horrible passing, horrible rebounding, and all these missed shots.
Kenyon Martin driving right, flinging up a runner, hits it.
Terry taking it to the rim, fouled on his layup.
Dallas are ahead 44-40
3:30 to play
Billups brings it up along the left wing, Melo runs off a screen on the left post, Billups times the pass beautifully, wide open dunk for Anthony.
Kidd hits his second long jumper tonight. He’s now 2-6 from the field. Dallas lead 46-42
Billups driving into the paint and getting fouled on his way up, makes two
Stat – Dallas has 14 offensive rebounds in the first half – Hubie is disgusted, righly so too.
Billups deflects the pass, almost steals it, Dallas retains possession, Dallas go back to Howard, Chauncey defending him, Howard forces a drive, takes a tough shot, misses, good D.
Kidd trying to back down Anthony, changes his mind, lets Howard back down Billups, takes another tough shot, misses, defensive rebound Anthony, he falls down, gets rid of it before he can be tied up.
Lovely steal by Martin, fastbreak, Carter finds Nene, Nene with the athletic glide to the hoop and finishing inside with his left hand
Timeout
Tie Game 46-46
Dirk posting up on the right block, double, pass out to Terry, three pointer, miss
Terry picked Billups’ pocket, breakaway dunk
Billups has it on the left wing, steps back for a three after coming off a screen, misses. He’s 1-7 from the floor in 13 minutes.
Under one minute to play
Nene with a one hander, lefty layup scored
Dallas lead 49-48 after the refs change a Kidd three back to a three after it changed to a two incorrectly
Halftime
Chauncey Billups struggling. He’s 1-7 from the field and has more turnovers (2) than assists (1). Kenyon Martin is struggling with his shot, going 1-6. Carmelo Anthony is only 3-9 from the floor. Chauncey and Billups leading the team with negative +/-
Nene has been very good leading the team in points, rebounds, blocks and FG% – 13 points, 6 rebounds, 2 blocks, 5-7 from the field
The Dallas Mavericks have 14 rebounds against the Nuggets 16 defensive rebounds. Dallas pounding the Nuggets 31-23 on the backboards
Both teams have 8 assists. Denver have 16 field goals, Dallas 18 field goals. Dallas have 8 more attempts, 52 to 44. Dallas shooting a miserable 34.6% from the field, Denver barely did any better with 36.4% shooting.
Dallas have been led by four players – Dirk and Terry combining for 23 points, Howard and Bass combining for 18 points. That’s 41 of their 49 first half points. Terry and Bass are both
Let’s hope the quality of play picks up in the second half. Very low in the first.
Second Half – Third Quarter
Jones bagging a 18 footer right wing to start the half. Only his second shot tonight, first basket.
Terry responds with a three pointer. Good vision to spot him open in the opposite corner.
Carmelo muscling up a shot in the paint, he’s in a crowd, misses, rebound Jones, dribbles out, has to take it, misses it
Nuggets double Kidd on the wing for some unknown reason, pass to the wide open Dirk Nowitzki, three pointer good.
Nene scores a 18 footer left wing, face up jumper.
Dirk on the block, backs down Martin, fallaway J, nails it
Billups scores a three pointer top of the key as he pulls up right away after bringing the ball up court
Chauncey with a nice drive and dish in the open court, Jones wide open 18 footer on the baseline, he drives it, goes up strong for the dunk, loses it, turnover. He had a wide open J.
Dallas lead 60-59 with 8:25 to play in the third
Jones switches onto Dirk, Dirk backs him down, 18 feet out, spin move, fouled.
Kidd knocks down another three pointer from the right wing. He’s hit a pair of catch and shoot threes from either wing. Dallas 4-4 from three in the quarter
Nene with the lefty finish in the paint again. Great left hand.
Tie Game 63-63
Dirk posts up, spins … hang on … Dallas miss …. hang on … Nene is limping …. Dirk knee to knee with Nene. He hit him on his padded knee. Timeout. Nene heads to the bench. He’s in some discomfort
Kidd is now up to 12 points. Five of Dallas’ players have scored 61 of their 63 points. Stack has the other two. Dirk leads all scorers with 16.
Nene has returned to the agme.
Nene goes right to work, lovely pass to Nene as he ducked into the paint and called for the ball, layup. Hubie – Nene is quick with the ball tonight – couldn’t agree more.
Dirk off balance, fadeaway, nails the 18 footer
Billups driving into the paint, layup
Nene slips the screen, pass over the top, quick pass by Nene to Martin, slam dunk
Carlisle wants a timeout
Nuggets lead 69-65
JR Smith goaltends Diop’s short shot. That’s the eight Maverick to score.
Four minutes to play in the third quarter
Dallas shooting 64%, Denver 69%
JR Smith in the right corner, dribbles left and unwinds a long jumper, score it
Stackhouse misses, he’s 1-7 now, rebound Denver. Nuggets need to extend this lead while they have a bit of momentum.
Dirk isolation against Billups, spins, Billups wraps around from the back almost steals it, Dirk misses the runner, offensive rebound, blocked shot, Billups gets the ball and goes coast to coast, dunk Kenyon Martin
Steal Martin, breakaway, Dirk fouls before he can dunk it home, two FTs.
Denver lead 75-67
Isolation for Dirk, against the buzzer from the corner, fadeaway over Martin who’s right in his mug, miss, long rebound, long outlet, Kidd showing his pace to get back and break up that pass, denying Anthony the easy two. He knocked it out of bounds, still Denver ball.
Andersen with the defensive rebound, outlet to JR Smith, he’s dribbling up the left wing, drives middle, gets into the paint, fouled on his runner, he’ll shoot two, make two. 10 point lead.
Kidd brings it up, passes to the right wing to Green, he’s trapped after going away from the screen, prays with a long pass, deflected, out of bounds. Dallas hangs onto it and manages to get Kidd open from three on the drive and dish from Terry. Denver miss, Dallas push it, Kidd stops and sets up at the three point line, he nails it. That’s his 5th three, fourth of the quarter. Foot was on the line on one of those makes, sorry.
Denver lead 79-72
32 seconds to play in the third quarter. Both sides making some substitutions.
Terry winds down the clock, makes his move at the 8 second mark, high screen and roll, runs into a double, passes out, Kidd has to force it, miss, rebound, fastbreak, Carter open 16 footer baseline, miss, offensive rebound, miss. Why the hell did Carter run to the midrange point on the fastbreak? Denver had a 2-on-1 there.
Fourth Quarter
Lovely pick and roll, nice bounce pass, Andersen hacked on the dunk. He goes to the FT line, makes one of two
Denver come away with the defensive rebound, tipped by Andersen, JR Smith takes it in the paint. He goes coast to coast, slices his way into the paint off the dribble, layup. 10 point lead again.
Kidd hustles in another three pointer. He is 7-13 from three and 6-12 from three for 20 points. The only other shot he took he had his foot on the line.
Terry adds 17 points off his own as he bangs home a long J
Loose ball foul against Dallas on Andersen. Good effort by Andersen on the offensive glass. Third on Diop.
Dahntay Jones up and under in the paint on the drive, misses. Forced it …. fastbreak the other way, Green filling the right lane, slam dunk. Wow. He skied there.
Andersen erases Green’s layup attempt. Inbounds … double on Dirk, pass out, Green hits a three pointer.
Denver misses their shot, Dallas run up the floor, pass to Green in the corner, pump fake, drivse baseline, jumps over three Nuggets for a floating jumper, fouled.
Carter tips the offensive rebound to Kleiza, layup. Great work by AC.
Dirk spotting up from three, nails it.
Denver lead 89-88
7:30 to play
Kleiza turns it over, third turnover in the second half from Denver
Dallas have taken 29 threes tonight as Terry misses badly
Nene with an offensive rebound, stripped by Dirk, goes out of bounds. Nuggets ball.
Chauncey Billups rejoins the action
6:30 to play
Anthony posting up left blow, turns middle, shuffle pass inside to the cutting Martin, he’s fouled on the layup. Martin gets the friendly roll and bounce on the first FT, second one is up and good.
Denver lead 91-88
Dallas has only 10 points in the paint since their 18 points in the opening quarter
Dirk posts up inside, right post, kicks it out, Green three pointer right wing, scores it
Long rebound, outlet, breakaway, layup Dallas
Howard in some pain. He’s holding his wrist again. It’s been lightly wrapped tonight.
Green’s energy has been great here in the fourth quarter
Dallas got nothing going in that possession. Good defense. Carmelo scores on a crossover drive and layup off the glass on the quick shot in the halfcourt.
Green isolation, beats Smith off the bounce, goes left, layup
Nuggets post up Anthony, stripped by Kidd, Nene has to force a 20 footer falling backwards to beat the clock, miss
Four minutes
Tie Game 95-95
Great defense by Denver, forced Kidd into the corner on the high screen and roll, trapped him hard, deflected the pass, fastbreak the other way, slam dunk Anthony after nice passing back and forth between him and JR Smith.
Dallas ball, Kidd brings it up, passes to Dirk left high post, Kidd flashes by him, moves into the mid post, pass to Kidd, posting up Billups, foul called. On Kenyon Martin for holding Dirk. Inbounds, Dirk’s ball fake creates a lane to drive, he drives left, layup, swatted by Kenyon …. fastbreak, nobody stopping the ball, Billups takes the pull up three, makes it. Crwod are on their feet.
Bass fouled at the rim
Denver lead 99-98 with three minutes to play
Chauncey misses a long two, high bounce behind the backboard, Kenyon jumps out of bounds and saves it off Dirk.
Timeout
Nuggets ball, billups has it up, high screen and roll, doubled, he gives it up, Melo creates against Kidd, spin move, turnaround J, stripped by Kidd …. long pass out by Terry, stolen by Billups. Billups brings it up, Melo moves into the post, they go to him, he draws the foul, makes two at the line. Kidd has five fouls now.
2:21 to play
Kidd brings it upcourt, passes to Terry left wing, runs off a screen, does nothing, passes back out to Dirk, Dirk drives right and draws the foul on Martin’s reach in, he’ll shoot two, makes two. Dirk has 23 points and 8 rebounds.
2:07 to play
Denver lead 101-100
Nuggets come up court, Billups top of the key, waits for Anthony to rub off the screen, Billups doesn’t make the pass, drives through the middle to the rim, has his shot blocked from behind, turnover.
Dallas struggle to get anything going offensively, long three heavily contested by Terry, miss, loose ball foul on Dirk. Melo goes to the line, Anthony makes two – Melo has 24 points, 7 rebounds and 6 assists. Swished both FTs.
Steal by Billups on Kidd’s dribble, great D
Billups brings it upcourt, isolate Melo, he goes to work on Green, muscles his way inside, misses the four footer, almost gets the offensive rebound, Dallas come away with it.
Dirk clearout at the elbow, he takes the fallaway, misses
103-100
32 seconds to play
Billups drives into the paint, he’s smacked to the floor after his shot is rejected …. Dallas run the other way with Billups crumpled over on the deck, Kidd takes it hard to the rim, and lays it in plus the foul. Soft touch foul allowing Kidd the and one opportunity. He misses the FT. Rebound Martin. You just knew Kenyon Martin would get that rebound that didn’t you?
Timeout Nuggets
103-102 Denver
20 seconds to play
Denver have to get the ball to Billups. He’s a superb FT shooter. 91.8% last season on 400+ FTs.
Barea enters the game for Kidd. Has he played tonight?
Kenyon inbounds the ball in the backcourt, inbounds to JR Smith, Green deflects it out of bounds. Inbounds, Chauncey manages to get free after splitting through a screen. He’s fouled by Barea. Ah yes, Kidd had 5 fouls. Barea moves back to the bench. Billups takes the first, misses, second shot is up and in.
17.5 seconds to play
Dallas timeout
Green inbounds to Bass, stripped by Nene 30 feet to the rim, Anthony gets to the loose ball. He’s fouled. Carmelo makes the first, and makes the second.
Inbounds, quick push, Dallas dribble up, Dirk takes a three, misses, long rebound, Terry gets it, nails a three.
Timeout Nuggets
1.1 seconds to play
Nuggets have to make sure they inbound the ball now. How many timeouts do they have left? Any? I doubt it.
Nuggets inbound the ball and the clock expires before a foul. Refs review. Refs give foul … yada yada yada, Green misses at buzzer.
The greatest part of this game? Kevin Calabro.
I wrote this midway in the fourth – The second half picked up in a big way, but the play was still very inconsistent and disjointed, both sides. Lots of runs and bad decisions.
I’ll add one more thought to that – great finish, very exciting.
Rafer Alston bagging the three pointer off McGrady’s kickout
Scola filling the lane on the fastbreak, Rafer finds him, layup
Rockets lead 7-4 after two and a half minutes
Batum sticks a midrange J
Yao Ming with a hook shot baseline off the right post, misses. Przybilla doing a good job keeping him out of the paint.
Scola backing down Roy, shoots the turnaround over him, score it
Rockets lead 11-10
Turnover, fastbreak Houston, Rafer makes a mess of it, manages to retain possession, gives it to Tracy, he drives left on Batum, draws the foul. Batum’s length looks like it could cause Tracy some problems, hard to get a good look over those arms. That should hurt his face up game.
Tracy isolation on the right side of the wing, he doesn’t take the J, starts overdribbling, bounces it off his leg, has to get rid of it, team shoots at the shot clock buzzer, miss
Rockets work it inside to Yao Ming, he takes the fallaway over Przybilla, misses, great work again by Przybilla to push Yao well out from the paint, made that shot difficult for Yao.
Timeout
Rockets lead 13-10
5:30 to play in the first
Moving screen on Channing Frye
Carl Landry has entered the game for Yao Ming. Frye and Outlaw have come in for Portland.
Brandon Roy gets the step on Ron Artest, blows right by him, gets to the rim, fouled. Roy makes
Artest post up Brandon Roy, Roy fronting him, Frye comes to double, forces Artest back out to the three point line after the catch, he takes the long J on the left wing, misses
Artest misses another three, this time from the opposite wing
Frye swishing the 19 footer left elbow extended on the pick and pop
Rockets haven’t scored in awhile, Scola hits the 17 footer top of the key
Brandon Roy draws the foul on Landry who has picked up two quick fouls.
Rudy fires up a three quickly after entering the game, miss
Blazers lead 16-15 … we have a timeout
Barry called for the reach. Bad defense by Barry. He shouldn’t be defending Brandon Roy, he can’t stay with Roy. Roy isolation right wing, Roy backs him down about 10 feet, then the defense collapses, he finds the cutting Rudy, Rudy passes out to Outlaw in the corner, he nails the three pointer
Scola missing an 18 footer. Don’t like seeing him shoot so far out.
Aldridge driving left on Scola, muscles it up in the paint, misses, offensive rebound, pass out to Frye, he bags a 20 footer from the right corner
Great job by Roy to slap away Barry’s dribble, then diving on the floor and getting it to a teammate before he can get tied up.
Blazers lead 21-15 with one minute to play in the first
Aaron Brooks nailing a three to end the quarter.
Second Quarter
Outlaw with the one dribble pull up J from 20 feet on the right wing. Jumping over Barry like he wasn’t there.
Outlaw strips Yao on his post up … man Yao’s confidence has to be low right now. He needed this game to regain his confidence, not a lot of good right now.
Portland lead 23-18
Brooks weaving through the paint, wastes the clock, passes out, in to Yao, quick pass out, missed jumper, rebound Outlaw. That’s Travis’ 6th rebound already.
Frye bags another jump shot along the baseline
Brooks looking to post Yao, was too slow on the post up, Yao lost his great position but still has good position, double, pass out, three pointer from the opposite wing.
Rudy Fernandez answers right back
Brooks with a runner in the lane
Brooks on the quick push, driving it up, goes right down the right hand side of the lane, fouled on the runner. Brooks’ change of pace creating that drive. He makes two at the line.
Outlaw bangs in another jumper right wing
Blazers have 11 assists to the Rockets 6
Timeout
Portland lead 30-24
Blazers are outrebounding Houston 17-7
Yao gets his first field goal of the night with the hook shot in the lane
Lovely pass by Sergio to Rudy for the bucket inside
Brooks nails another three pointer. He has 10 points.
Artest driving inside, shows great patience and vision to find Landry for the dunk on the opposite side as he threads the pass through a crowd
Rebound Barry, back to Artest who takes it up, he looks to post up Fernandez, looks for the repost, Barry wants to drive, beats his man, draws the defense, nice pass to Artest, wide open layup, he passes it up, Yao contested layup, fouled. Artest should have shot that one. Yao makes two.
Fernandez nails a three
Portland lead 38-34
We’re near the halfway point in the second quarter
Landry jab stepping right, twice, then takes the face up J over Przybilla, misses it from 17 feet.
Yao travels inside as he shuffles his feet after the catch.
POrtland are 16-30 for 53% shooting from the field
Offensive foul on Frye, another moving screen.
Fernandez with the steal, and the save, no he threw it out of bounds on the baseline.
Tracy and Roy check back in
Tracy and Artest both have 0 points. Houston only down 4.
Offensive foul on Artest, he hooked Roy around the neck when Roy was trying to get out and front him
Steve Blake with a pretty drive and finish
Great patience by the Rockets to exploit Artest inside, Roy was fronting Artest, Houston let the ball do the work and reversed the ball, Artest had position, easy pass, immediate foul. Artest made one of two at the line.
Artest strips Rudy, Rudy fights for it, gets it back, Ron dives on him, jump ball. Timeout. Great stuff.
Rudy’s flip shot misses badly on his drive
Tracy with a rolling hook as he slashes to the hole
Aldridge drives right, spins left, jumps up into Landry and finishes over him, gets the foul too. Nice move.
McGrady finishing inside with the left hand
3:30 to play in the half
Portland lead 42-39
Aldridge hits another midrange jumper off the pick and pop
Scola with the putback, great hustle
Blake driving along the baseline, nowhere to go, he forces the pass, picked off, fastbreak going the other way, Rafer fouled.
Timeout
Brandon Roy turns the corner on the pick and roll, tripped up by Scola. Roy has taken only one shot so far, he’s been relatively quiet.
Roy slicing and dicing his way past Yao Ming and finishing off the glass beautifully. Great drive off the high screen.
Tracy comes back down and takes it to the rack, finishing and drawing the foul
Artest with the breakaway dunk as he leaked out on the defensive rebound, great pass by Tracy to spot him, first bucket for Artest
Aldridge scoring inside. He’s looked great every time he’s tried to shoot the ball.
Aldridge down in the low post, doubled by Rafer, passes out to Blake, three pointer, good, no foot was on the line make that a two pointer
Lovely behind the back pass by Tracy to the cutting Luis Scola for a layup
Rockets have taken the lead on that basket, they’re ahead 51-50
Roy being shadowed by Artest, Roy gives it up, Aldridge bangs in a 19 footer left wing
Halftime
Portland lead 52-51
Surprisingly the Blazers are ahead on the backboards and by a large margin, leading 23-14
Portland have 16 assists on 23 baskets, shooting 53.5% from the floor as they’ve made 23-43 shots. They are 4-12 from three and 2-3 from the line. Only three FTs. Not surprising when you consider how many perimeter jump shots.
The Rockets have 11 assists on 20 baskets, making 20-35 shots for 57% shooting. He is 4-7 from three and 7-9 from the FT line.
Luis Scola had a very good first half finishing with 12 points and 4 rebounds on 6-8 shooting. Aldridge matched him with 14 points and 4 rebounds on 7-10 shooting.
Travis Outlaw has 10 points and 9 rebounds off the bench in 14 minutes. Rudy Fernandez adding another 8 points.
Blake and Roy have combined for 8 assists and 10 points. Brandon Roy has shot the ball only five times.
Alston is the second leading scorer in the Rockets starting lineup with 7 points. The other three (Big Three) have 5-6 points.
The Rockets have 5 turnovers costing them 2 points. Portland have 7 turnovers costing them 4 points.
Przybilla played 13 minutes and finished with only 1 rebound. No points. 2 fouls. He played good defense on Yao Ming though.
Brooks let another second quarter charge tonight when he dropped 10 points in 7 minutes allowing the Rockets to stay close while both Tracy/Artest were scoreless.
Third Quarter
Aldridge bangs home his 8th field goal. Another jumper
Scola with a hand off to Rafer who’s curling around a screen out on the three point line right wing, Rafer drives middle, gets into the paint, shoots the floater, misses
Nice pass to Przybilla who was trailing the play and left wide open, slam dunk. Yao double teaming unnecessarily off the ball.
McGrady misses the short shot in the paint
Three second violation on Portland … just before Aldridge could go to work on a clearout in the midpost along the baseline
Scola has his shot rejected inside. Blazers third block of the evening.
Blake misses a three, tapped out by Joel, Blake drives inside, finds Aldridge, dunk
Yao with a quick turnaround off the catch on the left block, went baseline, misses, out of bounds of Portland. Inbounds, catch and shoot McGrady, he nails it
Portland lead 58-53 after three minutes. Make that 60-53 as Aldridge hits the baseline hook shot off the right box.
Tracy isolation left wing, his man leaks out, Tracy misses but goes after the offensive rebound, taps it inside to Scola, layup
Batum missing the 18 footer right wing, rebound Artest
Yao is just 2-7 from the field. He was 4-14 the other night against Boston. He’s short of confidence right now, looks unsure of himself when making some moves, some hesitancy or passiveness from time to time.
Blake leading the break, finds Batum filling the left lane, layup
Rockets in a bit of trouble right now. They’re struggling to weather this storm.
Rockets post up Yao on the left block, he turns middle, Przybilla plays him for that side, gets a hand in his face, miss. Refs bail him out with a foul, Yao makes two at the line.
Blazers swinging the ball from right to left, back to the right again corner, Blake facing up and shoots the three, Rafer hits his elbow on the way up.
Aldridge fouled inside. He’s creating all types of problems. Sideline inbounds, Aldridge out on the three point line, has a bit of space, puts the ball on the deck and drives, shuffle pass inside to Joel, slam dunk
Tracy driving frmo the left wing and finishing inside
Aldridge with the turnaround J from 15 feet on the left wing, nails it. He’s tearing apart Houston.
Timeout
Aldridge has 22 points and 6 rebounds on 11-14 shooting. Aldridge is the difference in the game so far
McGrady has scored 6 in the third, to give him 12 points.
Blazers 7-9 shooting in the third
Brandon Roy loses his dribble against Artest, forced outside, Ron goes with him, Roy has enough room to turn on the gas, gets by him, drive and kick, missed jumper
Yao misses a shot inside, goes after the offensive rebound, tied up, jump ball. He wins the tip, goes right to McGrady, top of the key, he waits for everyone to clear out, drives left and hits the floater. nice shot. Steal Tracy McGrady, he pushes it up court, fouled on the dribble.
McGrady swishes a jumper … that’s 9 straight Rockets points by McGrady. He’s catching fire.
Blazers lead 68-66
Outlaw misses a wide open jumper at the top of the key. Good defense by Houston until the final moment on that possession.
Tracy facing up Outlaw, settles for the jumper, misses.
Long rebound snagged by Rafer Alston
Chuck Hayes taking a short baseline jumper, contested jumper. Why’s he taking that? Doesn’t he know Tracy has the hot hand? Brandon Roy nails a jumper on the other end and forces a timeout from Adelman. McGrady has 17 points now, 11 in the third. He’s 8-15 from the field.
Aldridge with the rejection inside, his third block of the night, smacked that one off the glass
Brandon Roy faces up Barry from 18 feet on the left wing, takes the J, makes the J
Alston responds with a quick three pointer
Final two minutes of the third quarter
Roy isolation on Barry again, he backs Barry down, turns middle and takes the turnaround J, rims out
McGrady makes a poor pass, turnover. He thought he had Hayes down low but Hayes cut across the rim thinking he could create a better passing angle on the other side, could have had a layup if he stayed.
Roy iso on Barry again, fourth straight possession, misses again
Loose ball foul on Hayes on the offensive rebound.
Portland lead 72-69
Final minute
Frye wants the ball in the post, faces up Landry, takes the 10 footer, misses … fastbreak the other way, rejected by OUtlaw. Portland bring it back up, isolation for Outlaw, one dribble pull up J nails it from the corner
Rockets clear out for McGrady, drives by Outlaw easily, gets to the rim and is fouled by Frye. Artest back in for Landry for the defensive possession.
Portland hold it for a final shot, Blake uses a high screen and roll, then finds Rudy running off a screen on the opposite side, passes it across, Rudy loosk to drive, steps back and shoots the three, misses
Fourth Quarter
Portland lead 74-71
Aldridge trying to back down Hayes, Hayes holding his ground well, forces Aldridge into a tough shot, missed, offensive rebound, Frye scores
Artest called for a travel. Turnover.
Rudy Fernandez nails a big three to stretch the lead to 8
Brooks razzle dazzling with the dribble, driving inside, gets nothing, passes it out, Artest left wing drives right down the middle, Outlaw blocks it.
Fernandez calls for everyone to clear out, beating Barry easily, getting into the paint and will head to the line.
Portland on a 7-0 run to start the fourth. Houston bringing Yao Ming and McGrady back in.
Fernandez fouls McGrady as he jumped into him, Tracy makes two. Eight point game.
Yao picks up his first foul
Fernandez with a sweet acrobatic finish in the lane
9 minutes to play
Artest is defending Rudy now. Houston doing everything possible to cool him down.
Foul away from the ball on Joel, that’s his fourth.
Great replay on Rudy running through around a screen twice to create separation from Artest off the ball
McGrady misses a long jumper. It’s been 5 and a half minutes since the Rockets made a field goal. It’s a miracle the lead is only 10.
Lob pass from Rodriguez to Rudy, push by Artest, Rudy will shoot two.
Yao coming away with the defensive rebound
Chuck Hayes scores inside
Blake running the pick and pop twice with Outlaw, passes to Outlaw who’s hugging the left sideline, he drives on McGrady, gets to the rim, Yao comes over and alters the shot, Outlaw goes weak, misses, defensive rebound Houston, Rockets push it ahead, Ron stops at the three point line, shoots it, five point game.
Timeout
Portland lost a close one the other night against Utah after being in a great position to win
Luis Scola hasn’t scored since halftime, in fairness he’s barely played in the second half. About 6 minutes so far. McGrady has taken over on the offensive end but hasn’t gotten enough going.
Defensive rebound, tapped out by McGrady to Brooks, Brooks turns on the jets, goes coast to coast, layup
7-0 Rockets run to close the gap to three
Portland lead 83-80
Hayes called for a foul on Aldridge’s move in the post. Aldridge will shoot two, makes one.
Portland have gotten Houston into the penalty, all fouls will be FTs from here on out
McGrady bags a long two. He’s shot 9-18 from the floor.
Roy misses a long two
Foul off the ball, Batum holding McGrady, that’s four on Batum.
McGrady isolation, double comes from the baseline, Tracy looks to pass, nothing on, drives left to the middle, fouled as he reaches the rim, he’ll shoot two, he’s 5-6 tonight from the line, makes the first, one point game, takes the second, misses.
Portland lead 84-83
Roy runs into Yao on the drive, gets the foul. Looked like Yao was still, not in defensive position but not moving either. Roy makes two, he has 10 points now, and 4 assists, on 3-10 shooting.
Ron Artest will take Roy down the stretch – Reggie Miller says – Ron has shut down Rudy Gay, Paul Pierce, and two others in the fourth quarters of recent games.
Offensive rebound Roy over Yao Ming
Roy on the isolation with a beautiful crossover dribble, shakes free of Artest, gets to the rim, layup. Roy is too quick for Artest, if he drives each time he’ll roast Artest. If he settles for jumpers he’s likely to struggle.
3:50 to play
Portland lead 88-83
Inbounds to Yao, fadeaway out of the post. Tough shot over Joel, that’s 10 points for Yao. Joel has done a terrific job on Yao, first field goal by Yao in almost 30 minutes.
Rebound inside by LaMarcus Aldridge, putback good. Big sequence for Portland, Rockets needed that rebound.
Rockets keep the rebound alive, knocked out by Aldridge, baseline inbounds for Houston after the timeout.
Portland ahead 39-29 on the backboards … rebounding has hurt Houston tonight.
Brooks driving baseline, looses the handle, turnover
Portland haven’t had a turnover in the last 15 minutes
McGrady driving off the screen and roll, finishes inside over Przybilla
Tracy has 20 of his 26 points in the second half. He hasn’t gotten enough help from his teammates.
Przybilla wins the tip against Yao, quick shot by Roy, misses. He is only 1-8 in the quarter
Artest fouled, Rudy reached in on his jumper and caught him across the arm. Artest misses the first, big miss, timeout Portland, makes the second
Portland lead 90-88
Chuck Hayes is still on the floor. He’s played too many minutes tonight. Actually, he has cooled off Aldridge, heck, he might have been worth those minutes. His offensive difficulties are irritating though.
Roy has missed his last three shots and turned it over.
Tracy ties it up at the line
Tie Game 90-90
Final minute
Roy has it top of the key, he gets teh high screen and roll, gets another, drives inside, gets nothing going, passes it to Aldridge in the corner, Aldridge puts it on the floor and drives, runs into a crowd, knocked loose out of bounds, still Portland ball, Outlaw gets wide open on the inbounds, 18 footer left wing, misses, rebound Aaron Brooks. Great play by the little fella.
Timeout Houston
33.8 seconds left in the game
Houston inbounds it in the backcourt, Hayes to Brooks, Brooks brings it up, Tracy runs off a screen on the opposite side of the floor, gets the ball, runs a high screen and roll, Portland double off of Chuck Hayes, Hayes wide open under the rim, McGrady forced back towards the halfway line, he’s smothered, can’t see anything, calls a timeout. Adelman draws up a play.
Inbounds to Artest, he forces a three to beat the clock, misses badly, great D by Roy, rebound Outlaw. Timeout Portland.
10.1 seconds to play
Portland will get one final shot to win this game, or else we’ll head to Overtime.
Inbounds to Roy, isolation, now the screen with Aldridge comes, Aldridge slips under, Artest strips the ball, Roy kicks it. Turnover. Houston ball. Timeout. There’s only 0.2 seconds on the clock. We’re headed to overtime.
Adelman wants the inbound pass on the other side of the court … nope … he drew the play on the wrong side of the floor. The Rockets run McGrady off a screen, throw a lob to the rim, he gets and on it, tries to guide it home, no good. Overtime.
Overtime
Rockets win the tip, post up Yao, he gets a good look inside, misses
Defensive rebound Portland, Rudy and OUtlaw run two screen and rolls, as Rudy dribbles for a bit, Outlaw pops out rather than rolls, collects the pass, drives baseline, gets to the rim, fouled.
Scola has played only 22 minutes. He hasn’t seen any action since halfway through the third quarter. Landry has only played 13 minutes. Hayes leading that trio in tick.
Offensive foul on Hayes, moving screen
Four minutes to play
Portland lead 92-90
Rudy brings it up, they run the same play with Rudy and Travis, this time Rudy drives middle, dishes out, Blazers swing the ball right to left, Outlaw drives, takes a jumper, misses
Aaron Brooks flying up the court off the miss and laying it in
Fernandez called for a charge. Good work by Chuck Hayes.
Portland have 12 turnovers now, Houston 8. Both teams have taken good care of the ball tonight.
McGrady settles on a long two early in the clock, misses
Aldridge loses the ball on his way up, rebound Przybilla, pass outside. Refs call … clock shouldn’t have been reset.
Isolation for Aldridge, he drives left, spins right, muscles it up, Hayes is in troubl, Aldridge smacked Hayes left shoulder with his left elbow, Hayes heading to the locker room. Foul should have been on Aldridge, an offensive foul, called on Hayes. The other two PFs haven’t played in awhile.
Timeout
Tie Game 92-92 but two Aldridge FTs to come, he makes none
Portland lead 46-33 on the boards, and 16-5 on the offensive glass
Brooks coming off the screen, stops and pops from the FT line, misses, rebound Outlaw
Blake in for Rudy Fernandez, Portland still running that same play, get Travis the ball, he posts up, turnaround J, little off balance, misses
Great pass by Tracy in midair to Landry who was cutting along the baseline, slam dunk
Rockets take the lead 94-92
Roy driving into the paint, finds Przybilla, layup. Roy worked hard to get that opportunity. Tie game.
Tracy top of the eky, Aldridge switches, Tracy drive and dish to Yao, 18 footer baseline, miss, rebound Portland, timeout.
Tie Game 94-94
Portland ball
Blazers are just 1-11 from the field in the last 7 minutes. They’ve done well to hang tough and stay in this.
1:10 to play
Portland bring it up, they run something different, run a clearout for Aldridge in the post on the left wing, turnaround J, miss, rebound McGrady … he brings it up, runs a high pick and roll, pump fake, defender bites, McGrady takes the contact, doesn’t get the foul, he hits the 22 footer anyway. He wanted that foul. He was fouled too.
Aldridge fouled inside by Landry, Aldridge 1-5 tonight from the line, 76% last season from the line, he hits the first, takes the second, makes the second. That’s 27 points for LA tonight.
Timeout Houston
Tie Game 96-96
30 seconds to play
Houston inbounds on the baseline, bring it upcourt, get Tracy the ball, 20 seconds time, switch, Tracy isolation, he settles for the J, tough shot over Aldridge who was right there with hin, Tracy didn’t make him change directions or anything
Portland push it up fast the other way, Roy drives the right wing, stops turns around, takes the J, nails the 19 footer on the right wing as Artest falls down.
Timeout Houston
Batum to defend the inbounds, into Yao, he’s 18 feet out, takes the fallaway against the double team, nails it …. and he’s fouled. Roy scampered along the baseline and reached. Yao hits it.
0.8 seconds remaining
Portland Timeout
Rockets lead 99-98
That should do it. Rockets need to get a stop here. 0.8 seconds, switch everything. Blake to throw it in, Yao defending the inbounds the pass, I love it. In to Roy who gets a good look, three pointer from 30 feet, nails it. Game winner. Officiating crew review it. It’s good.
Great matchup tonight. This is a potential first and/or second round matchup.
There’s a couple of things to bear in mind tonight
Elton Brand will decide this game, either as low post tough post scoring force or as a defensive liability. No matchup has more importance than Rashard Lewis-Elton Brand. Brand has the advantage because he’ll be shooting 6-10 footers instead of 20-24 footers. It’s a question of application and intelligence for Elton Brand tonight. If he does poorly in those areas then Rashard Lewis will have the opportunity to light him up on the other end.
Sam Dalembert is a very talented interior defender …. but he cannot defend Dwight Howard. Dalembert struggles against guys with muscle who can and will knock him around the court, Dwight does that to him with regularity.
Thaddeus Young’s defense against Hedo Turkoglu is a watching point.
Phily have a big matchup advantage in the backcourt with Miller and Iguodala going against Nelson and Pietrus. The backcourt battle could go a long way to deciding who controls the contest.
Phily should have a big rebounding advantage tonight. Big test for Orlando on the backboards. Read the rest of this entry »
Chris Bosh posting up on the right block, turns middle, pump fake, Amir jumps at, Bosh jumps into Amir and draws the foul. Amir tries to block everything, over-commits too often.
Stuckey bringing the ball up court, turns on the pace, gets to the rim and finishes easily. Too easy.
Lovely ball movement from Detroit, inside out to the right wing, swung around the perimeter to the opposite corner, open three pointer for Rip Hamilton, miss
Bosh with great position in the post, pass inside, spin baseline, Amir from the weakside, pump fake, Amir jumps and he’s out of the play now, Bosh finishing easily
Great job by Amir Johnson fighting for that offensive rebound, he stopped what looked like an easy defensive rebound for Bosh, Bosh smacks it out of bounds, unable to grab the ball
Stuckey posts up, spin move, finishes easily
Jose and Bosh run the pick and pop on the right wing, Jose drives inside, Bosh pulls out to the top of the key, receives the pass, another pump fake by Bosh, Amir flies by, he makes the jumper
Bad offensive possession from the Raptors. They get nothing going and resort to an isolation for Moon. Moon faces up from 18 feet right wing and takes the jumper, makes it. That’s not a shot Toronto want, they were easy to defend on that possession.
Toronto lead 9-8 after four minutes
Prince posts up Moon, passes out, repost from Wallace, back out, Wallace has to take the three, miss
Jermaine taking an off balance fallaway off the left block. Wallace played him for that right shoulder (baseline), Jermaine refused to go the other way and made the shot harder on himself.
Stuckey on the break, the Raptors are all ahead of him, turns on the gas, gets to the rim and draws the foul on his layup. He’s strong, finishes despite the contact.
Oh, wow, Anthony Parker in the right corner, fouled on the three, high arcing three pointer that went about 20 feet in the air before dropping home, swishing home, makes the FT, four point play. That was a pretty shot.
Rip with a nice give and go off the post entry pass, basket.
Raptors lead 13-12 halfway through the first …. sorry that’s 14-13 Detroit.
Jermaine wins the jump ball on the second attempt, tapped into the left corner, Bosh runs it down, tries to create a jumper for himself off the dribble, misses badly, never looked good
Rasheed posts up 14 foot out on the right wing, faces up, and shoots over the top of Jermaine, nails it
Amir Johnson strips Bosh after Bosh got superb position inside and looked to have a sure layup on his hands
Kwame Brown enters the game for Amir
Calderon drains a jumper off a screen … calderon steals the ball from Stuckey following the inbounds pass from Kwame Brown, turnover, out of bounds, Raptors ball.
Rasheed will defend Bosh now, forces Bosh into a tough fallaway shot which he misses
Jermaine O’Neal backs down Rasheed, goes the easier way this time, nails the fallaway in the lane
Nice hand off pass and shot from Bosh to Parker, three pointer, no
Timeout
Toronto lead 17-16 with two plus minutes to play in the first quarter
Excellent block by O’Neal, no it was late, thought he got there in time, he didn’t. He was close. Rip had cut down the right wing, Jermaine came down from the FT line and pinned it against the glass.
Joey Graham and Jason Kapono have entered the game. As has Andrea Bargnani. Calderon and Jermaine remain out there.
Kapono doing a good job pressuring Hamilton out on the perimeter, stops him from passing into Rasheed down in the post, he passes to the corner, quick pass to Rasheed, Rasheed makes his move and draws the foul. Wallace makes the first, and the second. Detroit up 20-19.
Calderon brings it up, high screen and roll with Jermaine, Jose patient on the dribble, now finds Jermaine who rolled to the basket well, immediately goes up off the catch after stopping in the middle of the paint, fouled on the shot, Jermaine makes two.
Will Solomon enters the game. No Roko Ukic? That’s disappointing.
Great job by Jermaine O’Neal to alter Rip’s layup after his nifty drive, Rip misses.
O’Neal banging inside, turns middle, and goes up over the top, nails it
Herrmann misses the three, defensive rebound Bargnani
Jermaine out of control on the left block, loses his dribble, tries to force the up and under along the baseline after regain his control somewhat, offensive foul with the shoulder. He has two fouls, Bosh comes back in for him. Jermaine has been the team’s best player so far.
Bosh with the defensive rebound, passes ahead, Solomon drives across the three point line and leaves it for the trailing Chris Bosh, three pointer, no.
Second Quarter
Raptors lead 23-20
Raps defense doing a great job keeping the ball out on the perimeter and making the Pistons’ perimeter players lifes difficult. Oh, Tayhsaun hits a leaner at the shot clock buzzer
Maxiell faces up Bargnani along the baseline, nails it from 17 feet
Wow … Amare Stoudemire has 21 points three minutes into the second quarter over in Indiana. He’s off to an explosive start. Amare is 8-8 from the field and 5-5 from the line.
Tayshaun drills a three pointer. That puts Detroit up 28-25
Prince making a couple of FTs here in the second
Detroit have taken the lead and gone up 33-27
Raptors second unit haven’t been able to score
Kapono curls off a screen, nice pass by Solomon, layup, fouled, makes two at the line.
Bosh leads the team with 9 points and 6 rebounds. Watching the game, it feels that he’s been quiet.
Bargnani swishes a three pointer off the dribble hand off from Kapono
Will Bynum hanging in the air and scoring off the glass on his drive
Great work by Kwame Brown to knock the pass into Bosh in the post out of bounds
Lovely move by Kapono, passes into Bosh, fakes right, goes left, defender gets lost trying to watch the ball and follow Kapono, open look from 19 feet left baseline, miss
Will Solomon beating Bynum off the dribble and finishing inside
Kwame Brown banging into Bargnani aggressively, takes the jump hook, Bargnani doing well to hold his ground and get a hand up, miss, Tayshaun taps it up and in. Moon has to keep him off the offensive glass.
Dertoit lead 39-34
Replay shows a lovely bounce pass by Bynum on the break to Afflalo for the fastbreak layup
6 minutes to play in the second quarter
Tayshaun runs off a screen, catch and shoot from 18 feet left elbow extended, he makes it, he has 12 points. Most of them have come in the second quarter, all of them actually according to Devlin.
Wallace backing down Bargnani, going where he wants, gets the baseline fallaway, Bargnani stays in the play and gets a hand up in Sheed’s face, miss
Nice cut by Moon, alley oop by calderon, too fast on the pass, turnover
Stuckey drive and kick to Prince, three pointer right wing, miss
Bosh in the post, squares up Rasheed, drives baseline, reverse layup, miss, Bosh wanted the foul
Prince pump fake, drives left and dunks it home
Moon inside into Bosh, he fakes both ways and then takes the fadeaway, swishes it. Maxiell on Bosh there
Calderon on the quick push, ahead to Kapono, Kapono has a one on one so he takes a three pointer from a step behind the line, miss …. fastbreak the other way, Maxiell dunks it
Bosh misses the face up J from 20 feet left wing
Calderon doing well to deny Stuckey’s drive, forces him back outside, Stuckey gives up the ball
Rip fouled on the drive, makes two.
Odd stat of the day, Rip and Chauncey only two players to finish one and two in team scoring each year since 2002.
Jose has his shot stopped by Prince … fastbreak, nice pass (Rip) to Maxiell, Max jumps into Bosh’s chest and lays it in
Bosh drives right, layup, miss. Nice drive by Bosh.
Rip Hamilton fakes the three, one dribble in, takes the 17 foot leaner, nails it
Pistons on a 13-4 run
Pistons lead 50-38
Bosh sets a pick for Jose Calderon, he drives right along the baseline, layup, fouled
1:20 to play after two Jose FTs. 10 point game. Who’ll finish the half strong?
Prince up top of the key, Bargnani on him, Prince looks to drive, goes left, fouled by Bargnani. That’s three fouls on Andrea. He comes out for Humphries, that gets a cheer from the crowd. Prince makes two FTs.
Calderon running off two screens, Pistons switch, Bosh posts up, double comes, Jose stunts to the left to avoid the help from the top of the key, pass out by Bosh, three pointer good
Stuckey nailing a tough shot
Humphries catches it on the FT line, drives right, fouled on the layup, hits it. Aggressive play by Hump, he wants the coaching staff to notice his scoring ability. Three point play by Humphries.
Final possession, Stuckey holding it up, clock winding down, Stuckey top of the key, 1-2-2 zone, he drives, gives it up, gets it back, has to force a contested 20 footer, misses, bad possession
Halftime
Detroit lead 54-46
Rebounding tied at 20 apiece
The Pistons have 10 assists on 22 baskets. They’ve shot 22-44 from the field, 1-6 from three, and 9-12 from the line.
The Raptors have 11 assists on 16 baskets on just 36 attempts for 44.4% from the field. That’s 8 less shot attempts than Detroit. Raptors are 3-8 from three and 11-11 from the line
The Raptors have 8 turnovers to the Pistons 3.
Calderon has 9 points and 5 assists. Bosh has 11 and 7. Jermaine O’Neal has only 6 and 1 after an impressive first quarter, foul trouble ruining his half.
Tayshaun Prince leading all scorers with 16 points, all coming in the second quarter. He is 5-7 from the field and 5-6 from the line. Rip is second with 11 points. Rasheed, Maxiell and Kwame have four rebounds each.
Pacers lead 66-59 at halftime. I’m watching the wrong game. Amare finished the half with 27 points. TJ Ford is leading the Pacers with 18 points of his own, Granger has 15, Murphy 12. An old fashioned shootout out in Indiana.
Third Quarter
Pistons open the third quarter with possession of the ball. Problem with the clock. Restart.
Chris Bosh just passed, well in the second quarter, Antonio Davis for the all-time Raptors record for offensive rebounds
Rip posting up Parker, Calderon cheating of Stuckey, forces the pass out, Stuckey takes the 20 footer, misses.
Jermaine posting up on the right block, turning middle, misses, Rasheed doing a great job playing Jermaine on that right side allowing him to bother that shot severely
Great steal by Moon cheating from the right wing to the top of the key and stealing the pass, two Raptors were trapping the ball on the right sideline, pass to the top of the key, Moon breaking away the other way, hesitant, passes up the drive, Jose passes up the drive, brings it back out
Amir Johnson hits a jumper
Bosh on the right wing nails a 19 footer over Amir Johnson
Tayshaun Prince hits his second jumper from the right wing in the first three minutes of the third. He’s having a big game so far.
Parker side rim-ing a three pointer. Looked ugly. Misses the catch and shoot right baseline on the inbounds pass
Detroit score again, Stuckey on the weakside, scores inside.
Timeout Toronto
Detroit lead 63-48
Jermaine O’Neal with a defensive rebound.
Pistons missing a couple of long jumpers. Starting to settle for perimeter shots.
Jermaine on the left block, drives right, runs into Rasheed, falling runner double clutched, lot of contact, missed. Jermaine is furious. Tech. Pistons make the FT.
Let’s see how Jermaine reacts to that little anger fit.
Moon settles for a three pointer right wing, misses
Wallace with his foot on the line bangs in a long two on the left wing
Pistons lead 66-50
Calderon bags a long two top of the key
Halfway through the third quarter now
Stuckey drives right, behind the back, goes left, baseline, up strong, Calderon does well to pin Stuckey under the edge of the backboard, tough shot, miss
Raps score a three
Wallace has his dribble poked away by Jermaine, forced into a long two from the corner, shot clock violation on the air ball
Jose taking the long two top of the key again. That’s a 7-0 Raptors run.
Timeout Michael Curry
Prince has only taken 9 shots tonight. He has 21 points. Bunch of FTs too.
Lovely cut backdoor by Rip Hamilton, layup.
Moon thought about three, thought better of it, passes inside to Bosh, drives towards the middle, spin move baseline, fouled, layup, three point play. Bosh has schooled Amir Johnson several times tonight.
Jeez … Amare has 39 points halfway through the third quarter. He’s tearing up Indiana.
Bosh pump fake, Amir jumps at it again, drives down the paint and lays it in
Detroit lead 74-64 … make that 74-66 after two Calderon FTs
Calderon has 20 points now
Jermaine tips Bynum’s floater, rims out. Big tip by Jermaine
Jose takes the 19 footer right wing off the screen and roll again, misses
Jose deflects the pass, Pistons hang onto it, inside to Maxiell, Max drives right and misses his runner, rebound Jermaine
Bosh faces up Wallace, 17 footer left wing, misses it
Bargnani about to check in
1:30 to play in the third
Prince drives left from the right wing, step back J from the elbow, hits it. Timely shot by Tayshaun to hurt the Raps momentum.
Jermaine posts up Wallace, turns middle, takes the contact, foul called, hits the runner in the paint, three point play. That move by Jermaine started out by the three point line, good composure to take one dribble in and then post his way back down into the paint. He missed the FT, not a three point play.
Jermaine taps the defensive rebound, Jose secures it
Bosh isolation against Rasheed on the right wing, 17 feet out, drives left, fouled on his long armed lefty layup, hits it.
calderon heads to the bench. Calderon had 11 points in the third to spark the Raptors back into the game.
Detroit lead 76-71
21.7 seconds to play in the third, Detroit hold it for the final shot, managaing the clock, Bynum razzle dazzling, goes to early, has to get rid of it after getting himself in trouble, Pistons work it around the perimeter, tough contested shot from the perimeter, miss
Fourth Quarter
Bosh drives it right to the rack, slam dunk
Bosh defensive rebound, turnover, Bynum turns it over right back, Raptors come back up, Solomon bags a 20 footer off the screen and roll on the left wing
Detroit lead 76-75
Toronto are on a 16-6 run
No look pass by Rasheed to Herrmann, reverse dunk
Lovely pass by Solomon to the cutting Bargnani, slam dunk
Bargnani fighting Wallace effectively in the post, making him work for the catch, now holding his position, Wallace turns middle and takes an usual floater out of the post, misses, good work by Bargnani to keep a hand in his face. Offensive rebound Detroit, works it way out to the perimeter, three pointer by Rasheed, nails it
Raptors haven’t led since early in the second quarter when they were up 25-24
Bargnani swishes a three pointer
9 minutes to play
Detroit lead 81-80
Wallace posts up, faces up, looking for the pass, nothing on, Bargnani pressures the ball, Sheed shoulder fake to get some space, face up J, air ball, shot clock violation
Timeout
Solomon carried the ball, turnover
Bosh is going to sit for a brief bit now. Jermaine is back in the game
8 minutes to play
Acker is in the game, looked a little worried on that dribble, gets rid of it.
Jose Calderon checks back into the game.
Stuckey makes another bucket. He has 14 points
Parker catch and shoot as he runs off the screen top of the key, calderon with a nice pass, hits the shot
Jermaine late on a defensive rotation, fouls Kwame on the layup, nice pass by Stuckey to find the rolling Kwame open in the middle of the lane
Double on Calderon, knocked loose into the backcourt, three players dive on it, jump ball. Great strip by Maxiell after hedging the screen well. Maxiell wins the tip
Detroit lead 86-82 with 6:30 to play
Kwame hand off to Stuckey, misses the 17 footer off the right elbow
Jose pass deflected by Hamilton, falls to Bosh, fouled
Herrmann with a defensive rebound
Jermaine keeps the rebound alive as he tips it away from Maxiell to a teammate
Detroit lead 88-84
Five minutes to play
Prince is now defending Chris Bosh
Jermaine backing down Kwame, spins middle, misses the short shot
Parker with the blocked shot on the fsatbreak by Detroit
Bosh posts up Prince, faces up, drives left, picks up his dribble, nowhere to go, up and under, squirms up a layup that’s good. Bosh looked in trouble there for a minute.
Bosh contesting the perimeter shot, misses badly. Good D by Bosh.
Detroit lead 88-86
Four minutes to play
Calderon top of the key, inside to Jermaine, passes out to Parker, Herrmann running hard at him, brick
3:30 to play
Rip Hamilton clear out, dribbles in, pump fake, defender bites, he jumps into him and creates the contact, hits the 20 footer. Refs don’t give him the foul, easily could have.
Jermaine posts up right block, fallaway to the middle, misses
Rip isolation top of the key, he drives on Parker, goes up through Parker’s chin, misses the runner. Good bit of contact there again. Offensive rebound Detroit. Timeout Detroit.
Detroit lead 90-86
Stoudemire leading Phoenix with 43 points, 8 rebounds and 6 assists. All categories. Suns up 5 with 6 minutes to play. Make that 45 points as he scores inside.
2:30 to play
Bargnani with a big block on Rip’s runner, falls out to Rasheed, three pointer right wing, good. No long two pointer.
Calderon knocks down a long jumper, foot was on the line, two pointer
Under two minutes to play
Rip runs off a screen, catches the ball, shoulder fake left, dribble right, pull up J from 16 feet, miss
Bosh misses a long jumper, rebound Prince
1:20 to play
Detroit lead 92-88
Prince backing down Moon, lefty hook, hits it
That’s the game right there
Pistons up 6 with 1 minute to play. Raptors call timeout
Parker driving, missing, rebound Wallace
Pistons run down the clock, Stuckey sees an open lane, drives hard, Raptors collapse, passes out to Tayshaun, Prince lets the clock wind down some more, then takes the long jumper, misses
Calderon sees the defender wasn’t set, drives hard, draws the foul. He makes two at the line. There’s 32 seconds on the clock. Raptors down four. Pistons ball.
Full court pressure, Detroit looked surprised but end up handling it comfortably enough. Foul on Bosh as Detroit cross midcourt. 26 seconds to play. Sideline ball, Herrmann inbounds the ball, Rip will shoot two after being fouled. Pistons back up 6, 25 seconds to play.
Good win for Detroit. Raptors played them tough but couldn’t execute well enough late in the game.
Boston win the tip, Rondo brings it up court, on the left wing, up top to Perk to Pierce on the right wing, back over to Ray on the left wing, off a screen, Ray drives towards the middle spots Rondo in the corner, jumper, missed
Lovely quick passing by Scola to the cutting Alston and the touch pass to Yao for the dunk
Turnover Celtics, steal Artest, McGrady passes ahead to Alston, Alston takes it strong to the rim and gets fouled
Alston is standing 6 feet off of Rondo when Rajon has it along the three point line after bringing it upcourt.
Great hands by McGrady to smack the ball loose on Ray’s dribble, Ray steps out of bounds trying to regain control.
Scola slithers into the paint and finds a way to get it up off the glass in between KG and Perk
Haywood Workman is reffing tonight. Great to see him back in the league.
Artest rebounds KG’s missed jumper
Perkins left wide open, in 7 feet of open space just outside the FT line, he takes it and makes it
Scola with a great tap to himself on the offensive glass, saves a possession for Houston.
Rondo rebounding over McGrady on the offensive end, layup. Tracy gave up on the play after he failed to catch that board.
Rockets lead 8-4
Allen with a layup in the halfcourt
Artest draws the foul on Pierce on his baseline drive from the left wing
McGrady with a beautiful pass to Scola who was cutting along the baseline, short 6 foot jumper from Scola, misses
KG with that dribble going left and step back J that he loves
Artest with a long high arcing three from the left wing, nails it
Long rebound off the KG miss, Alston rebounds it. Good work by Alston because the rest of his teammates where too close to the rim and had no chance of getting that rebound, four Celtics were next in line.
Perk misses the follow up on Rondo’s miss, rebound KG, Celtics reset. Ray Allen top of the key drives through the middle, lovely pass to Perk, foul on Yao on the layup. That’s two on Yao, he’ll be sitting for a long time.
Boston lead 14-13 after the halfway mark in the first
Tracy posts up inside, draws the double, kicks it out to Artest, missed three
Perkins posts up Artest, Artest goes for the steal and knocks it out of bounds
Garnett misses a 20 footer from the left corner, long rebound, loose ball foul on Hayes
Rockets getting beaten on the backboards here in the early going
Pierce posting up Artest, kicks it out as the defense starts to inch closer. Celtics work it around. Nice pass to KG who flashed to the right block, KG spins middle for the turnaround … foul on Hayes on Perk.
Hayes getting a short hook off the glass. Nice pass by Alston.
Artest takes it hard to the basket, misses, tips it, nope, everyone is fighting for it, after four more tips it ends up in the Celtics hands, Rondo running the other way and cooks Alston on the way to the hoop for the easy two
19-17 Boston after a Rafer hoop
McGrady is the only scoreless Rockets player so far
Ray with a long jumper left wing
Rondo goes under the screen, Alston stops and pops from three, miss
Pierce gets a layup. Lot of easy baskets inside for Boston right now.
Artest snags another three from the top of the key
Timeout celtics, final two minutes of the first quarter
Pierce gets a quick two out of the timeout
McGrady fouled inside, Tony Allen enters for Ray, sideline ball, inbounds, ball moves cross court to Tracy, isolation on the right wing, face up J, good
Rondo driving to the hoop and finishing inside
Clyde Drexler says that Rondo is an All-Star caliber player who just doesn’t get the recognition
Rockets look small out there
Boston leading 28-22
Boston hold it for the final shot, Pierce up top of the key, his cross over dribbles, between the legs and spin move don’t work on Alston, he picks up his dribble for no reason, forces himself into a tough 19 footer and doesn’t have his feet well set, misses. Good D by Alston
Second Quarter
Artest gets a step on Pierce in the backcourt as he brings the ball up court, he keeps Pierce on his hip and rides him all the way down the right wing to the rim for the layup and the fou, misses the layup, makes one of two at the line
Pierce is back in the second unit again instead of Ray Allen. He’s playing alongside House, Tony, BBD and Powe.
Artest scrapping inside, drawing another foul, makes two
Pierce with a beautiful jab step, step back jumper out of the midpost after facing up Artest on the right wing from 16 feet
Yao Ming re-enters the game
Boston leading 33-25
Tony Allen beating Landry to the defensive rebound. On the other end, Davis doing a great job beating Yao to the offensive rebound and getting the putback, using his body well to hide the ball from Yao.
Celtics getting all the loose balls right now. Their effort levels have been very good.
Celtics move ahead 38-25
Rockets offense is misfiring. Landry just picked up his third foul. Yao has two. Brooks enters the game.
Brent Barry misses a jumper from the right wing. The Rockets are now 2-9 from three.
Davis air balls a 18 footer
Boston lead 20-8 on points in the paint. They’re doing an excellent job of getting shots close to the basket.
Boston lead 40-25
Another turnover for the Rockets
BBD takes another jumper from 17 feet, misses another jumper.
Brooks slithering through the paint for a floater, score it. That ends a good Boston run.
BBD steals another offensive rebound and draws the foul on Yao Ming on the putback. Great job by BBD. BBD got the shot to go plus the foul. Hayes comes back in for Yao Ming
Aaron Brooks nails a three pointer. He’s scored the Rockets only points in the last 3-4 minutes.
Scola with a steal 30 feet out from the hoop, he dribbles up court under control and makes the layup
KG with that left dribble step back J again, misses hard off the rim, long rebound, loose ball foul on Rondo, Celtics in the penalty, Barry makes two.
Rondo dribbles upcourt, Brooks happy to let him do so, standing a foot off him, Rondo shoulder fake right, drives hard left, Brooks beat instantly, Rondo into the paint, pump fake by Rondo, Hayes not buying, Hayes draws the charging foul
Barry nails a three
10-0 Rockets run
Perkins posting up Chuck Hayes, and scoring easily.
Barry stripped on his drive, falls right to Scola who has an open layup, good
Perk left unguarded on the left box, gets the pass, turns inside, hacked on the layup. Timeout. Perkins makes the first, and misses the second
Boston lead 45-39 with 5 minutes left in the half
Brooks running the pick and pop with Scola, Scola gets the ball 18 feet out on the left baseline, he makes the shot. A well executed move.
Brooks draws the foul on Rondo has Brooks blazes right on the drive trying to get into the paint
Boston lead 45-43 with 4:30 to play in the half
Ticky tack call on Scola, KG will shoot two. Good double team by Houston prior to the foul to bother KG. Eddie House came in for Rondo after that third foul against him. KG makes two.
Tracy McGrady nails a three pointer from the right wing. One point game. 19-4 Rockets run.
Pierce misses, rebound McGrady, he dribbles, pulls up from 20 feet, gets the kind roll, Houston take the lead. 21-4 Rockets run.
Hayes blocks KG’s inside shot, long outlet to Brent Barry who leaked out, layup good.
Timeout Doc Rivers
Three minutes left in the half
Boston were up 16 earlier in the quarter, now Houston are up three. 23-4 run.
Pierce over to Ray, left wing, drives on Barry easily, pass out to KG on the left baseline, long jumper missed, rebound BArry
Brooks brings it back up, he dribbles, takes the 20 footer off the bounce, nails it.
Haywood Workman with an inadverdent whistle on Ray’s jumper, Ray made the shot anyway. Play on.
Ray Allen dribbles up and nails the three pointer from the right wing. Boston take the lead back.
Turnover McGrady, steal KG, he leads the break, no good, miss, offensive rebound, miss, loose ball foul on Pierce
Double technicals on McGrady and Perk
1:30 to play in the half
McGrady iso right wing, he settles for the three pointer, miss, long rebound, loose ball foul Hayes, two FTs
Illegal defense on Boston on Brooks’ penetration, Barry makes the freebie. Doc unhappy with the call.
Pierce right up on McGrady, gets too close while McGrady was looking for hte pass, McGrady flies by him to the left, bullet pass to Scola, Scola drops it, turnover … Celtics come up the other way and get a three pointer
Houston had a 25-4 run, then Boston went on a 11-1 run
Brooks holds it for the final shot, he runs a high pick and roll, excellent help from Perk, House knocks the ball loose, turnover
Halftime
Rockets lead 27-19 on the backboards. They have 12 offensive rebounds to 4. The rebounding difference has been one of the major stories of the first half.
Houston have 10 assists on 19 made baskets, on 42 shots for 45% FG%. They are 5-14 from three and 10-11 from the line.
The Celtics are 21-45 from the field for 47% shooting. They only have 9 assists. Also, they are 2-6 from three and 14-19 from the line.
The Celtics 6 turnovers have cost them 9 points. The Rockets 5 turnovers have cost them 8 points. Largely even there.
Yao Ming played only 8 minutes in the first half. He had 6 points and 2 rebounds.
KG was only 2-10 from the floor in the first half. He missed a lot of shots that he normally makes.
Boston’s backcourt has combined for 22 points. Pierce has 9 more. KG and Perk have combined for 13 points. That’s 44 of the team’s 58 points. Glen Davis led the bench with 7 points.
Tracy McGrady leads all players with 5 assists but he is only 3-7 from the floor for 7 points, he hasn’t looked for his own offense enough so far.
Ron Artest has been quiet outside of the two threes. He is 2-8 from the floor and 6 of those attempts were three pointers.
Rockets supporting cast stepped up in a big way. The insertion of Aaron Brooks in the second quarter turned the game around for Houston, he leads the team with 9 points. Scola has been huge too (8 points), and Brent Barry (8 points). Landry picked up three quick fouls. Hayes was solid. Alston did a decent job offensively but Rondo had his way with him on the other end.
Third Quarter
Artest posting up Pierce, help is reluctant but nearby, now it comes, Artest gets slapped across the wrist on his shot. He makes one of two.
Pierce posts up 17 feet out on the left wing, he spins baseline, called for using his arm to wrap around Artest. Offensive foul, turnover.
Big rejection inside on Artest’s shot
Rafer misses another long jumper. He’s 1-5 now.
Ray’s pass on the drive and kick was a little of the mark, Pierce fumbles it after repositioning himself, it falls out of bounds, turnover.
Yao catch and shoot from the FT line, good
Perk answers right back with a 16 footer from above the FT line. Same shot Yao gave him in the first half.
Yao on the right block, pump fake, drives left, tries to dunk, blocked by Garnett
Lovely passing by the Rockets on the slow break from the right wing to the top of the key to the left lane for Scola to get the layup, he’s fouled by Perk, gets the and one.
Boston lead 60-59
Perk left open above the right elbow, nails it
Great post defense by Perkins to push Yao out to 10 feet going away from the rim on the jump hook and getting right up under him to bother the release, misses badly. Great D.
Ray with a nice drive and finish
Yao misses the dunk
KG with great position inside on the quick push, two dribbles, fallaway baseline, hits it
Boston lead 66-59
Scola makes two more FTs
Ray Allen off the high screen on the ball, drives hard right and takes the pull up J over McGrady from 11 feet, hits it
Rockets hitting the offensive boards and getting several shots, long rebound, to Artest in the right corner, three pointer good
Lovely cut by Rondo on the left wing heading towards the rim after finding Pierce curling off the screen at the top of the key, touch pass by Pierce, touch pass by Rondo to Perk on the right hand side of the rim, dunk
Pierce gets the layup off the inbounds. Nobody helped Artest on the screen.
Boston leads 72-64
McGrady line drives a jumper on the right wing. He has 9 points on 4-8 shooting. Settling for long jumpers. Not driving, not playing in the post.
Perkins nails a 16 footer along the left baseline. Perkins has 15 points and 7 rebounds.
Scola responds. He’s been huge tonight. 15 points for Scola now. Scola called for another ticky tack call on KG.
Timeout
Houston are missing Battier defensively. They lack some defensive leadership out there, a coordinator.
Boston lead 76-68
Scola called for a loose ball foul. That’s three on Scola, not one of them has been a useful foul, all small stuff.
Artest creates a turnover
Scola with a scoop shot on the drive, misses badly
Great steal by T-Mac, knocks it loose, saves it before it goes out of bounds, fastbreak Houston, Alston works it to perfection getting Scola the layup after drawing the defense. Next possession, steal McGrady, he takes it coast to coast, driving on KG, finishing over KG off the glass
Ray with another hoop to stablize the Celtics. He’s made a couple of big shots tonight.
McGrady on the right wing, drives hard, draws the foul.
Timeout
2:30 to play in the third. Tracy makes two FTs. He has 13 points, 7 assists, 3 steals and 2 rebounds.
Tony yo-yoing at the top of the key, finally gives it up, did very little with all that time and handle. Celtics miss their shot on that possession … fastbreak coming the other way, Houston make a mess of it but keey possession.
Perkins with a nice block on Yao inside
Boston lead 78-76
Artest called for his third, Pierce to the line, makes one of two. He has 13 and 7 himself. Ray Allen picked up his fourth foul a few minutes ago and is on the bench.
BBD enters the game. Great effort from Perk. Landry also joins the action, for Scola.
McGrady isolation on the right wing, 21 footer over Tony Allen, nails it, swish, first time his jump shot has looked that good tonight. He’s heating up.
Turnover Houston, fancy pass by Alston went awry.
Offensive rebound Rondo, he takes the floater, misses
Artest with a big offensive board, loses it on the way back up …. Boston run the other way, Davis gets a layup.
Tracy holds the ball for the final shot off the third, misses a contested three pointer
Fourth Quarter
Brooks has entered the game. Barry and Artest are on the wings. Landry and Yao are the bigs
Pierce loses it on the way up, gets it back, passes out to House, Eddie to beat the shot clock? Doesn’t get it up in time. Turnover. Great D by Houston.
Landry misses the jumper, hesitated on the jumper and allowed the defense to conteste it
Lovely cut by House, Powe with a lovely reverse bounce pass
Davis fronting Yao, Houston can’t get him the ball, they swing it to the FT line, bad pass Landry intercepted by BBD, Boston go the other way, House makes the basket
Barry on the offensive board, loses it, now gets tangled with Powe
Pierce left wing, trapped on the screen and roll, gets rid of it, BBD can’t find anyone, now House gets free for him, defense chases after House, leave BBD open on the left wing, he takes the 18 footer, misses
Powe picks up his fourth foul. Yao sits down for Hayes. Yao had only two points in the second half so far and that was a hoop at the begining of the third. Tough quarter for him.
Illegal D, another FT made by Barry
Brooks has his shot stripped on the way up by House. Baseline inbounds to Artest, three right corner, miss, rebound Landry, passes out to Brooks at the top of the key, three pointer on the way, good
Boston lead 85-82
Pierce high screen and roll left wing, Houston switch, Boston clear out, Hayes does a great job contesting the shot, miss
Timeout
Nice pick and pop, Landry makes the 17 footer top of the key. 6-0 run Rockets. Crowd getting behind the team well now.
Houston have to tap it up three times but they come away with the defensive rebound. Big win for Houston. Now they turn it over on the other end, Boston give it right back two seconds later. Artest on the left wing, driving inside, smacking into Pierce, foul on Pierce. Doc Rivers is unhappy with that, Thibs has to pull him aside and chill him out. Tech. Artest ties the game at 85 on the FT. He has two more, makes the first, Houston take the lead, first lead since the second quarter, misses the second, rebound KG.
KG hits the jumper from 17 feet off the right elbow. KG has 12 and 8.
Artest misses the three pointer at the shot clock buzzer, great position by Landry, offensive rebound, passes out to Brooks, three pointer on the way? No. Crowd was about to explode on that one.
Boston lead 87-86 with 6:20 left to play
Brooks misses the runner
Catch and shoot House in the corner running off a screen, miss, offensive rebound Ray Allen, fouled on the putback
Timeout
Perk playing excellent post defense on Yao again, he blocks the turnaround J
Easy catch and shoot for Ray
Boston lead 92-86
Yao misses the tip on the offensive rebound. Boston on a 7-0 run here.
Offensive foul on Perkins, moving screen.
Adelman has gone back to his starting lineup
Yao travels on his post up. Perkins has taken Yao’s game off rhythm.
Pierce misses the three, rebound Scola
Tracy misses a three from two feet behind the arc. That possession went badly when they missed Scola inside for an easy opportunity, didn’t have enough time left on the shot clock to get a good shot.
Boston lead 92-86 still
There’s 3:40 left in the game
Tech on Rafer Alston, Boston make the FT.
Artest misses the 20 footer, Scola misses the tip, hard tip Scola was reaching from the opposite side of the rim
Ray misses a three pointer on the left wing. That could have been huge.
Tracy drives right on Ray, fouled, he hits the runner and goes to the line. Long continuation. How many dribbles did he take after that foul? One? Two? Tracy makes the FT after the timeout.
Boston lead 93-89
Ray Allen responds with a three pointer from the left corner after running the baseline. He has 27 points on 10-14 shooting tonight.
Tracy makes a long J, two pointer
Ray Allen curling off a screen, nails it from 16 feet
Boston lead 98-93 after a Scola two
Artest scraps for it, Yao dives on the floor, passes it off, fastbreak, layup. Great effort from the Rockets. There were two Celtics right there who looked sure to gain possession of the ball, but Artest saw it differently and bowled his way into the two guys to keep it alive, Yao then dived on the ball to win possession. Love it.
Scola has 21 points and 7 rebounds
Timeout Boston
1:13 to play. The Celtics lead 98-95. Boston ball after the timeout.
Hand off to Ray, Rockets stay with him, he dribbles cross court and hands it off to Pierce on the right wing, he dribbles left, finds KG on the left wing, long two, good.
Rockets miss the jumper …. forced to foul. Pierce to the line. He makes two. That’s a seven point lead. This is over.
Wait this one isn’t quite over. It should have been but two poor Celtics plays defensively and a so-so offensive possession have allowed Houston a chance they shouldn’t have.
Dumb play by Ray giving a quick foul on the inbounds. He’s fouled out now.
Pierce runs the clock down, takes a jumper off the dribble, misses
The legend of Tony Allen grows? Will this play last the season like the Billups one last year? Three FTs for Tracy. Gives Houston a shot, a long shot but a shot. Tracy makes two.
Boston lead 101-99
Inbounds to House, quickly fouled, makes two at the line.
That’s the game. Good win for Boston.
Some Stats and Game Notes
Kendrick Perkins was the man of the hour for the Boston Celtics. His defensive performance was superb, especially in the second half. He bothered Yao Ming tremendously. Offensively he had one of those nights where he did just about everything right. He finished with 15 points on 7-8 shooting from the field, 7 rebounds and 4 blocked shots.
Ray Allen hit timely basket after timely basket. He was huge in the fourth quarter where he led the team in scoring and helped keep them in the lead. Ray finished with 29 points, 5 rebounds and 5 assists. He was 11-15 from the floor, 2-6 from three, and 5-5 from the line. Great game for Ray.
Rafer Alston did a good job running the Rockets offense but he couldn’t buy a shot (1-6 from the floor) and struggled defensively. He did have 7 assists and 4 rebounds though.
Kevin Garnett floated through the game and still had a big impact finishing with 14 and 11.
The Big Three for Houston had inconsistent-to-rough nights. Yao Ming managed only 8 minutes in the first half due to foul trouble, and finished with just 8 points and 7 rebounds by the game’s end. He was regularly unable to beat Boston’s defense, it was far too comfortable for Perk and the gang. Ron Artest had a horrible shooting night going only 3-16 from the floor to finish with 15 points and 7 rebounds. Tracy McGrady was the best of the three but even he had an inconsistent night. He regularly failed to drive, or play in the post, and settled for long contested jump shots time and time again. His stat line disguises some of his offensive problems as he went for 26 points on 9-18 shooting. Tracy did however do a good job distributing the ball and creating shooting opportunities for his teammates as he always. Defensively Ray Allen had an easy time working on Tracy, Tracy is capable of much better defense, he looked a step or two slow for most of the night.
The Rockets regularly failed to get Yao Ming the ball in advantageous situations. The entry passes to the post were consistently telegraphed and late. The team also failed to get him the ball on the post several times tonight. It was disappointing. The Rockets also failed to play off Yao Ming when he had the ball in the post. Each touch in the block seemed to do more damage to their offense and take them out of rhythm. Not a good game for the Rockets in terms of servicing Yao Ming.
Luis Scola was the main reason Houston were able to keep it close. He finished with 21 points and 9 rebounds. His 9 rebounds led the team, while his 21 points paced for second place.
Rajon Rondo had an excellent first quarter, but after that he was up and down.
Celtics’ understanding of how to play alongside one another is much improved over where it was late last season.
Several times late in the game the Rockets failed to come away with key rebounds. They were improved in second half, but still not as good as they should be, they underperformed on the backboards. In the end Boston outrebounded them 46-41.
The biggest difference tonight was the Rockets inability to score baskets on their possessions. Despite having 10 more shots at the hoop, the Rockets made 6 less field goals. They shot a poor 39% from the field making 34 of 87 shot attempts. In contrast, the Celtics shot 52% making 40 of 77 field goal attempts.
The Celtics had 21 assists on their 40 baskets. The Rockets had 19 assists on their 34 hoops.
Turnovers hurt the Celtics badly once again tonight. Their 17 give aways cost them 19 points. The Rockets had only 11 turnovers, costing them 12 points.
Eddie House gave the Celtics good minutes, particularly in the second half. He finished with 8 points and 3 steals.
Disappointing games for backup power forward marvels Carl Landry and Leon Powe. Both were incredibly quiet.
Glen Davis was superb in the second quarter, well except for those silly long jump shots. He played great defense and added 9 points plus 2 rebounds.
The Rockets missed Mutombo tonight. They needed that big defensive/rebounding presence in the middle with Yao struggling and in foul trouble. He could have been a difference maker.
Aaron Brooks was fantastic in the second quarter sparking a 25-4 Rockets run with a few big shots and his ability to pressure the defense with his speed and penetration. For the rest of the game he was mostly quiet, and didn’t make enough use of his defensive abilities.
Brent Barry keyed in with some good minutes on the wing.
The Rockets were clearly lacking Shane Battier. Throughout preseason and the early regular season games the Rockets have lacked a defensive leader, a coordinator out there. Their defense has slipped from last season. Battier is a huge difference maker for the Rockets and will likely solve this problem once he returns.
Offensively the Rockets still lack fluidity to their play. A problem for several years now.
Tracy McGrady continues to look in poor physical shape. He’s clearly still recovering from his end of season ailments …. I’m not sure it’s in the Rockets best interests that he’s on the court right now. I’d be more comfortable with him coming back when he’s healthier. They don’t win a title if he isn’t healthy come playoff time. Feels like they’re taking a risk with him on the court right now.
Oklahoma starting lineup – Jeff Petro – Nick Collison – Jeff Green – Kevin Durant – Earl Watson
Minnesota starting lineup – Al Jefferson – Ryan Gomes – Corey Brewer – Mike Miller – Randy Foye
First Quarter
Thunder win the tip, try to post Durant 18 feet out, can’t get him the ball, reverse the ball to the other wing, pass inside to Collison who travels on his post move, turnover
Opposite end, Big Al clumsily drops the pass into him in the low post, turnover
Nice drive by Brewer to draw some help defensive, Al floats to the baseline, Brewer hits him, Al knocks it down
Two nice cuts by Gomes, one a made layup, the other a missed runner
Collison diving on the floor to win the offensive rebound, saves a possession for Thunder. Thunder have four offensive rebounds in the first three minutes.
Thunder don’t get back on defense, Miller gets a breakaway layup
Pick and pop between Miller and Al, Al misses from the right elbow
Nice lob pass by Foye to Big Al for the dunk on the high screen and roll, poor help defense from Thunder, left Petro out on an island after he helped Watson on Foye’s dribble down the left wing
Durant dribbles to the left wing, dribbls back to the top of the key, does nothing and gives it back to Watson. He just wasted six seconds dribbling the ball 25 feet from the rim while never threatening to drive before giving the ball back to the guy who gave it to him. Anyone want to guess if OKC scored on the possession?
8-6 Wolves, Foye turns it over
Brewer coming away with the rebound in traffic, immediately puts it on the floor and pushes the dribble beyond Petro, gets by Petro, running up court, passes ahead to the left wing, quick pass inside to Big Al on the left block, Al fouled before he scores inside. Great push by Corey Brewer.
Brewer doing an excellent job forcing Green out to the three point line with Green looking to accept the pass after running around a screen.
Turnover Wolves, fastbreak, 3-on-1, Watson to Durant, slam dunk
Quick outlet off the made basket by the Thunder, Green is way ahead of the pack, he has a one man to beat … guess who? Brewer the first Wolves player back to defend the hoop. Green drives down the right wing, he goes directly to the hoop, Brewer beats him to the spot and draws the charge. Turnover. Great play by Brewer. That should have been an easy two for Green but he never made the defender react, and never created the angle to the rim, made it easy for Brewer. Timeout.
High screen and roll between Foye and Al on the left wing, defense jumps out on Foye as Al rolls to the rim, Foye passes to the top of the key, quick pass to Al, layup. Nice possession.
Minnesota leading 14-10 with under five minutes to play in the first quarter. Not sure if that last basket counted, some inadvertent whistle by the ref.
Collison finds a wide open Desmond Mason for an easy two
Durant missing the jumper but runs down the long offensive rebound.
Jefferson missing a right hook in the lane
Moving screen on Wilcox. Westbrook went too early.
Craig Smith with the teardrop in the lane after a reluctant drive
Joe Smith knocking down a jumper off the left elbow. Lack of defensive coverage after he made the catch, too easy. Other end, Smith knocks the defensive rebound out of the paint and away from Big Al, it ends up in Westbrook’s hands who blazes into the frontcourt and draws the foul on his drive, he mades one of two at the line. Great work by Joe Smith to start that opportunity. Kevin Love enters the game,
Minnesota lead 18-16 as we near the final minute of the quarter
Rodney Carney hits the 20 footer in the left corner
Joe Smith making the catch on the right wing 15 feet out, faces up Al Jefferson, and nails the jump shot over him.
Westbrook with a beautiful runner coming across the lane on the break
Carney misses a three from the right wing, he forced it a bit, Love gets a hand on the offensive rebound but can’t corral the ball, out of bounds.
Westbrook holds it for the final shot, beats Ollie off the bounce into the paint, Ollie stays in the play well enough to make the shot difficult, Westbrook misses
Second Quarter
Nice drive and dish to the open Carney along the left baseline, Carney knocks it down. Minnesota get the lead back.
22-20 Wolves
Joe Smith beating Craig Smith to the rebound, he starts the break … nothing comes of it
Nice drive and short pass by Ollie to his rolling big man off the pick and roll, layup and the foul for Smith.
Smith beating old Joe Smith off the dribble on his drive and finishes with his right hand off the glass
Wilcox misses two FTs at the line, Minny building a lead right now.
Lovely give and go between Ollie and Love from above mid-court to the high right post, then the sweet pass after the cut, layup. That’s a 9-0 run by Minnesota to open up the second quarter.
Thunder miss another shot, fouled on their offensive rebound. Thunder hold onto possession. Carney deflecting a pass out on the perimeter out of bounds. Inbounds to Westbrook, he has to shoot it, drives and pops a 15 footer at the FT line, misses, offensive rebound Wilcox, fouled on the putback, he makes the first and the second. That ends Minnesota’s run. First points of the second quarter for Minnesota.
Carney air balls a forced jumper on the left wing. That his second air ball?
Carney contests Mason’s shot, long rebound, doesn’t bother to box out Mason or follow the ball, jumped out of the play into the left corner, rebound right to Mason, slam dunk. Two bad possessions by Carney.
Jeff Green scoring over Rashad McCants on the face up J
Craig Smith runs Joe Smith over, layup. Rough house drive from Craig Smith.
Offensive rebound Joe Smith, lovely pass to Westbrook who was hanging around underneath the rim on the opposite side, layup
Minnesota struggling to hold off a surge from Oklahoma. Just about hanging onto their 8 point lead.
Wolves fronting Wilcox, nice pass over the top, dunk Wilcox. Too easy. No pressure on the passer and no help from the weakside. They can’t leave Kevin Love out there like that. First basket for Wilcox.
Timeout
Minnesota lead 36-30, halfway through the second.
Wilcox makes two more at the line. Four point game.
Desmond Mason loses his dribble as he looks to drive baseline from the left wing
Brewer scores a long jumper after adding a FT on the previous possession. Durant answers right back on the other end.
Watson knocking down a 20 footer from the top of the key to beat the shot clock
Mike Miller scoring a 19 footer top of the key after running off a screen, his defender ran for the steal allowing Miller to take one step in and make an uncontested jumper. That was Mason, the defender. Does better on the next possession heavily contesting Miller’s three.
Timeout
Minny lead 43-38
Nice dunk by Green on the fastbreak from the feed by Earl Watson
Durant takes the lead back on two FTs. OKC lead 46-45
Collison blocks Al Jefferson after coming across from the opposite block along the baseline to swat Jefferson’s short shot
Another offensive rebound for Minnesota, rebounding killing Minnesota so far tonight.
Mike Miller takes the lead back, also from the FT line. Miller has only 6 points so far, very quiet offensively.
Final possession, Watson holds it for the final shot, two high screens, nope, Watson forced for a terrible step back jumper after ineffectively trying to shake and bake his man, misses.
Halftime
Rebounding has been the story of the first half. OKC doubling up ‘Sota on the backboards 28-14, with half of those coming on the offensive end. Oklahoma City actually have more offensive rebounds than Minnesota have defensive rebounds.
Nobody on the Wolves has shined on the backboards. Jefferson leads the way with four rebounds but he hasn’t done nearly enough. Love had three rebounds in half the minutes Al played.
Minnesota have 14 assists on 19 baskets on 39 attempts for 48% shooting from the field. They are 1-4 from three and 8-8 from the line.
OKC have been bricking a lot of shots in the first half, one of the principal reasons for their high offensive rebound totals, but to my surprise are actually managing a 40% FG%. They have taken only 6 more shots but also 6 more FTs.
Turnovers have hurt the Thunder badly, their 9 turnovers costing them 13 points. In contrast, the Wolves have only 5 turnovers resulting in only 4 points.
Milwaukee are leading NY by 5-6 points in the final minute of the game. They’ve been ahead for much of the second half. I watched the first half, odd game, neither team were capable of taking control of the game and both teams were doing a poor job of executing their offenses. I had stopped watching, but was still checking the live game scores, Milwaukee rectified the situation and took control of the game in the third quarter and have sustained Knicks rallies since then.
Third Quarter
Nice finish by Brewer on the fastbreak. Minnesota open up with two layups, the other from Al Jefferson. Wolves lead 51-46. Foye nails the three from the right corner off the penetration from Miller. Wolves lead 54-46. Quick 7-0 run by the Wolves over the first 70 seconds of the third quarter.
Earl Watson fakes the pass, the defender bites, Watson oddly passes up the shot and makes the pass anyway, and the Thunder get the three from Jeff Green despite the defender being right there.
Collison tries to drive on Gomes from 20 feet, does it well, but misses the runner. Collison needs to go beat up the smaller Gomes in the low post.
Brewer with a beautiful up and under in the middle of the lane off the drive from the right wing, misses, offensive rebound, touch pass outside, three pointer on the way from Foye, good.
Al Jefferson posting up inside, gets the roll on the right hook off the left block. Good post defense by Petro, he stopped Jefferson from backing him down and stopped him from turning/spinnning in either direction. Thunder have done a good job with Jefferson so far.
Wolves lead 61-53 after a Nick Collison basket, Mike Miller answers from 22 feet top of the key
Durant isolation left wing, jab step right, drives left, beats Miller to the rim, layup, misses, rebound Miller over Collison.
The Wolves guards are chasing down every defensive rebound here in the third quarter. They got their marching orders at halftime.
Halfway point in the third
Wolves move ahead by 12 off two Foye FTs
Nice pass by Collsion to the cutter, miss, follow up slam by Wilcox
Wolves have a chance to kill off Oklahoma right now. One more run.
Wilcox posts up left post, turns middle and knocks down the right hook.
Jefferson makes the catch in the middle of the paint, drives left, Collison gets back in it, another pump fake, spins the other way, hook shot, Wilcox contests it, score it anyway.
Thunder’s confidence is growing after a few good plays in the last few minutes
The Thunder’s announcers are god-awful. They’re killing me.
Another offensive rebound and putback for the Thunder
Jefferson has four rebounds in the last three or so minutes. He has a double double now, make that a 20-10 performance.
A little over a minute remaining in the third
Boston Celtics next up for the Thunder.
Westbrook with the steal in the backcourt, on Smith’s outlet pass, two dribbles layup and the foul, makes the FT. That cuts the Wolves lead to 73-66. One minute to play in the third.
Another steal by Westbrook stealing Love’s pass back out to the perimeter, he pushes it up in transition, finds Joe Smith, he hits the midrange J.
Another turnover for the Wolves, steal Joe Smith, Thunder will hold it for the final shot. Westbrook dribbles it out up top, then passes to Mason, he loses it on the catch, regains his composure, now he has to force it, drives right off the left wing and knocks down the jumper from 22 feet out.
Wolves lead 73-70 … terrible finish to the third by Minnesota
Fourth Quarter
A lot of the crowd in the picture are up on their feet. Everyone is clapping, nice rhythm. Great cheer on Wilcox’s made short hook.
Miller forces a three after being unable to beat his man, misses
One point game
Westbrook misses the pull up J from 10 feet, offensive rebound, Westbrook finds Green running off a screen, he knocks down the 12 footer in the middle of the paint off the catch.
Mason blocks the layup attempt … fastbreak the other way, Westbrook finger roll, good
Nearly all the crowd is standing now. Tremendous noise from the crowd.
Oklahoma City have all the momentum. Minnesota look rattled, they need their starters back out there and they need that to happen right now.
Nice pull up J from 18 feet by McCants. He has to lead this second unit, he’s by far the best player on the court for the Wolves right now. Next possession, McCants misses a layup on the fastbreak. Great effort by Joe Smith to come away with that defensive rebound.
Lovely move by Durant, on the right wing, driving left, spinning right as he hits the paint, and making the layup
McCants takes it hard to the rim and draws the foul on Wilcox.
Mike Miller has only 8 points tonight.
Smith scores inside once again. He’s caused the Thunder a lot of problems tonight. Last night it was Carl Landry who killed them. Direct physical power forwards? Something to keep an eye on.
Turnover, McCants goes coast to coast, misses another layup
Minnesota lead 79-78, Oklahoma City lead 80-79 off a Collison hoop
Mason playing terrific defense on McCants on that possession, denying the drive and then stripping McCants on his step back J, fastbreak the other way, layup.
Timeout Minnesota
We’re near the halfway point in the fourth quarter
Wolves top two scorers – Jefferson and Smith (13 points). Then Gomes in third place (12 points). All power forwards. Mike Miller is actually fourth, Wolves getting no scoring outside of their power forwards tonight.
Miller makes the runner. Good drive and finish off the glass.
Durant posts up Gomes, Gomes too close, bah …. Durant shoots the face up drive, misses, offensive rebound and tap by Collison, good. Durant had Gomes for a foul if he drove.
Durant has 20 points but he’s been poor tonight. Only 7-20 from the floor, only 3 rebounds and no assists. Poor defense too. He’s been nowhere near their best player tonight. Disappointing to see such a lack of progress from last season.
Good double on Jefferson, no options, he jumps up and throws a poor pass outside, Miller saves it, Wolves miss the jumper, offensive rebound, Wolves work the ball around, Love shoots a three from the top of the key, miss, defensive rebound Westbrook. Westbrook misses a three on the other end.
OKC lead 84-83 with four minutes to play
Lovely up and under by Miller, Miller curled off a screen, caught the ball in the paint, pump fake, up and under, lost the ball unforced on his way back up, turnover.
Timeout by PJ
Westbrook and Watson play the guard spots, then Durant, Green and Collison.
Durant step back J off the face up, misses. Poor shot to take. He’s been missing that all night.
Offensive rebound and putback Al Jefferson, Wolves lead again
2:30 to play
Wolves lead 85-84
Westbrook goes all the way to the rim and hits the driving layup
Foye and Gomes run the pick and pop, Gomes ends up with a good look from 17 feet on the right wing, rims out
Thunder turn it over on the other end
Jefferson misses the short shot
Brewer steals, out of control, saves it, but it goes into the backcourt straight to the Thunder … Watson dribbles up and takes an awful off balance fallaway J from 18 feet, miss. PJ is pissed at that shot. Timeout. He gives Watson a long look, then lets it go, gives some marching orders out.
OKC lead 86-85
My god these announcers are terrible. It’s painful.
Great help D to knock away the pass into Al Jefferson as he cut across the lane off the ball and had great position inside. Wolves turn it over after retaining possession on that deflection, block by a Thunder play.
Durant calls for the ball, drives, fouled.
Timeout 20 second timeout. 28 seconds to play. The Thunder are up one.
Side out, to Watson, to Green on the opposite wing, over to Collison on the right elbow, no passes on, Collison decides to drive it on Jefferson, Jefferson’s defensive position is disgraceful, easy blow by Collison, lefty finish, scores the layup. That was an awful defensive effort by Al Jefferson.
16 seconds to play. Another timeout, this time Minnesota. They’re down three.
Wolves should go for a quick two. Anyone want to bet they’re taking the three? Inbounds to Foye, Foye drives hard, throws up an off balance runner though, misses. At least his head was in the right place.
Game Over.
Decent game, it was competitive and full of effort, lacked quality though.
Good win for the Oklahoma City Thunder.
Some notes
The Wolves second unit and some coaching decisions hurt the Nuggets badly last night. They were up double figures late in the third quarter and looked close to finishing off the game, but unfortunately they couldn’t find the right punch. Then came some mass substituions and a huge number of gaffes from the second unit, allowing OKC to go on a big run to end the third quarter. Wittman decided to stay with his second unit to start the fourth instead of coming back with a starter or two to provide some stablity, the result was another short run by OKC to tie the game. Wittman didn’t bring his starters back until halfway through the fourth quarter. By that point Oklahoma City had been rolling for about 8-9 minutes, had all the momentum and the crowd was roaring right behind them. The Wolves starters were cold and never found any fluidity to their play over the final few minutes, the result was Oklahoma holding off the Wolves and taking the win.
There was actually three points in the game where this happened as described over at Canis Hoopus
Last night the Thunder went on runs of 12-6, 12-2, and 13-0. The first run was brought about by a near whole-sale substitution of the 2nd unit near the end of the 1st quarter. The 2nd run was brought about after a near whole-scale substitution of the 1st unit in the middle of the 2nd quarter. The last run was a nasty little ditty that spanned the 3rd and 4th quarters where the 2nd units were matched against one another for the majority of the run.
Oklahoma City were sparked by a great effort from their big men, especially on the backboards. The Thunder had an offensive rebounding rate of 40% which speaks for itself. Nick Collison was the star of the show finishing with 10 points, 10 rebounds, 2 assists, 3 steals and 2 blocks. Wilcox came off the bench to supply 14 and 7 in just 25 minutes, while Joe Smith added 6, 6 and 2 dimes in 16 minutes. Petro played only 17 minutes but came away with 6 rebounds in that time. Jeff Green mostly played the three but had a few minutes at power forward, finishing with 13, 6 and 3 in 36 minutes. The Thunders big men also did a fine job containing Al Jefferson who except for a good period in the third was largely under wraps.
Russell Westbrook was a game changer tonight, especially in the fourth. I’ve said this before and I’ll say it several times over before the end of the season, but the lad is simply impossible to keep out of the paint on the fastbreak. He’s like a small LeBron. You see him coming and you can’t do anything about it, he just barrels right over you. Westbrook was so threatening that Carlesimo elected to run him and Watson at the guard spots down the stretch rather than playing two big men, who had been so successful throughout. Westbrook responded by coming up with a couple of huge defensive plays.
Philadelphia 76ers – Andre Miller – Andre Iguodala – Thaddeus Young – Elton Brand – Samuel Dalembert
Toronto Raptors – Jose Calderon – Anthony Parker – Jamario Moon – Chris Bosh – Jermaine O’Neal
First Quarter
Dalembert wins the tip, Miller runs through two screens on the ball from Brand, is trapped well by Jermaine, Bosh rotating over to Brand, Miller denied the passing angle, has to throw it over to the opposite corner, Thaddeus faces up and drains the three.
O’Neal posting up on the right block, he backs down Dalembert, doesn’t go anywhere, turns middle and takes the fadeaway, misses. He jumped too far back on that jumper, Dalembert’s length bothered him on that play, took him off balance.
Brand gets his first bucket as a Sixer with a jumper from 17 feet on the left wing
Pick and pop with Jose and Bosh, Jose from the right wing passes to Bosh at the top of the key, no hesitation as Bosh immediately puts up the 21 footer, fouled on the arm from Dalembert on the lazy reach. Dalembert looked surprised by Bosh’s quick shot.
Andre Miller running around another pick from Elton Brand on the right elbow extended, Miller driving hard right, near the baseline now, passes back to Brand at the elbow, he drains the 16 footer
Jermaine posts up on the left block, great position with a foot inside the paint, immediately takes one power dribble towards the middle off the catch and muscles up a shot four feet from the rim, misses
Andre Miller getting a piece of Calderon’s pull up jump shot, nice D by Miller. On the ensuing possession, Miller beats Calderon off the bounce as he dribbles down the left wing turning hard on the corner and driving baseline, getting to the rim for the reverse layup, misses, both teams scrapping, out of bounds off Phily.
Jermaine faces up from 14 feet, hard drive left, goes up, loses control, off the backboard. That’s either a turnover or a brick.
Iggy posting up left block, in to Iggy, double, out to Miller, repost, Iggy spins baseline, elevates, hangs in the air as the help D comes over, nice short pass along the baseline to Dalembert for the easy two, Dalembert blows it ….. It didn’t cost the team anything but poor communication/recognition from Elton Brand trying to catch the ball five feet from Iggy while Iggy was trying to post up, Andre Miller had to tell him to get out of the way, wasted about 4 seconds of Phily’s shot clock leaving their offense stagnant and showed Toronto exactly what they wanted to do which resulted in the quick double.
Jermaine shoots off the catch from 17 feet left elbow extended, misses it
Low scoring opening, it’s 7-1 Sixers after five minutes
Jose top of the key off the inbounds pass, fires it across to Chris Bosh on the right wing, he faces up, the puts his foot on the acceleration driving right, Brand doing well to stay with him, Bosh loses it out of bounds
Andre Miller driving along the baseline again, this time from the right corner, reverse layup good. Jermaine was a tad late trying to block that shot.
Jose nails a jump shot to give the Raptors their first field goal of the game as we near the halfway point for the first quarter.
Iggy with a step back J as he takes one bounce off the catch then decides to pull up on the right wing, hits it
Bosh with position inside, tries to turn to get some protection from the rim, Dalembert muscles him far enough to contest the shot, swats it …. fastbreak the other way, Brand throws it away on a poor alley oop pass, shouldn’t be throwing that.
Calderon blazing by Miller to the hoop and finishing easily off the glass
Bosh down on the left block, jab step left, shot fake, drives right with one dribble, hesitant on the drive, pulls it back, shot fake again, Dalembert right there, Bosh rises up, rejected by Dalembert. Indecisive possession by Bosh.
Thaddeus Young picks up his second foul on a charge on an aggressive drive down the middle, good work by Jermaine drawing that foul.
Chris Bosh hasn’t been threatening when at the top of the key so far
Moon faces up from three off the sideline ball in, he has Miller on him, he takes the shot and hits it
Iggy on the screen and roll top of the key, Iggy drives hard right towards the baseline, passes the ball cross court to Miller who’s on the left wing, touch pass by Miller back to Brand who’s open from 18 feet top of the key, drains it
Calderon bringing it up, to Bosh in the high post, Parker down on the left post, starts to run out, sets a screen for Jermaine (high left wing) to run his man through, O’Neal wide open on the cut to the rim, Bosh finds him, dunk.
Willie Green entered the game for Thaddeus after the foul
Iggy misses the jumper, Dalembert gets the rebound, misses the putback over Bosh and Jermaine’s contest, another offensive rebound, blocked by Moon from behind, out of bounds. Baseline in, Phily (Dalembert 13 footer baseline) miss another shot, Miller with the offensive rebound, on hard dribble around Jermaine, Jermaine contests it, Miller misses the layup, it rolled all around the front half of the rim before falling out, nobody puts a body on Dalembert who races to the rim and pulls down another offensive rebound, he’s caught beneath the rim, Jose doesn’t stay with Dalembert he was on the ball side, Dalembert pivots back to the right of the rim and he’s fouled on the putback as Jose slaps his arm. Strong move by Dalembert. Dalembert makes the first FT, makes the second.
Phily lead 17-11 with three and a half minutes to play
Parker curls off two screens, the second above the FT line, passes back to the screener Jermaine after a dribble, finds Jermaine for the easy two. Nice play by Parker.
Good vision by Jermaine O’Neal to spot Parker wide open on the opposite wing after he retained the loose ball
Bargnani blocks Iggy’s driving layup from behind, Calderon runs the break the other way, 4-on-2 for the Raptors, horrible spacing, Jose passes to the right, Parker goes up strong, blocked by Green … fastbreak the other way, Miller passes ahead to Brand, he goes between his legs, drives off the right elbow to a lefty runner, misses, Dalembert with the offensive rebound and dunk.
Miller blocks Calderon’s jumper again. Jose wanted the foul …. fastbreak the other way, Miller is about 30 feet ahead of Calderon who was complaining to the refs, he gets the easy layup on the break. Good response by the Sixers after Toronto cut the lead to 1. Timeout Raptors. Jose goes over to complain to the refs again.
Sixers lead 21-16 with two minutes to play
Jose and Bargnani run a high screen and roll, Phily switch, Evans on Calderon, Miller on Bargnani, Bargnani goes right to the low post on the left block, Jose makes the pass to Parker in the left corner, entry pass, Phily double quickly, Bargnani passes out to Jose on the left wing, Jose swings the ball to the right elbow extended, Moon takes the jumper, misses
Bad pass by Lou Williams trying to pass through traffic, picked off easily
Bosh nails a 19 footer on the right elbow extended as he trailed the break, that’s his first field goal today.
Brand with another offensive rebound, he dribbles out, then decides to pull up from 18 feet, misses, offensive rebound, Phily reset their offense, after some passing they clearout for Brand in the post, he’s doubled on the post, passes out, re-post a few seconds later, Brand has it late on the shot clock, drives hard right going nowhere, passes out to the right wing, Iggy has to take it to beat the clock, heavily contested, misses badly. Bad possession for Sixers on each shot.
Toronto have it for the final possession, 12.6 seconds to play, ahead to Bosh, he brings it up, to Bargnani on the left wing, puts it down on the floor and drives right, gets through to the paint, takes a runner in the lane, misses, offensive rebound Moon, fouled on the putback. He misses the first FT, misses the second.
Second Quarter
Phily out-rebounded Toronto 22-5 in the first quarter
Phily only shot 34.6% shooting and had 5 turnovers. The Raptors only shot 33% themselves.
Sixers showing some backcourt pressure, Evans stays back to trap Ukic, Ukic looks in trouble, stays composed and passes ahead, Raps pass left to Bosh who’s left open by Evans, Bosh to Kapono, back to Bosh at the three point line, Bosh drives hard and hits the layup
Lou Williams nails a three to beat the zone defense
Donyell Marshall is on the floor. Why? Why in the name of everything that is right is Marshall on the floor?
Good tap out by Bargnani on the offensive board, right to Bosh. Smart play.
Bosh blocks Williams driving layup, he recovers possesssion
Thaddeus Young picks up another foul, a cheap touch foul, that brings Miller back. He’s on Joey Graham defensively.
Bosh doing well to get an offensive rebound over Evans, great position inside as Evans cheated over trying to help defensively, Bosh brings it out, passes to Graham top of the key, dribbles, spins and muscles Miller out of the way, makes the floater. Nice move. Toronto need to milk that matchup. No way Miller can defend Joey Graham
Lou Williams notices he has Bargnani rotating over to cover him, drives left immediately off the catch, gets to the rim and finishes off the glass
Philadelphia continue to try and trap in the backcourt, pass ahead by Ukic to Bargnani, Bargnani drives inside, draws the defense, passes out to Kapono, 18 footer right wing, hits it.
Joey Graham on the left baseline 18 feet out, drives right towards the middle, muscling up the shot over Miller again, he follows his miss, nobody puts a body on him, taps it up, tries for a second time and makes the shot.
Bargnani blocking Miller’s runner, Miller gets it back, Bargnani staying involved and contesting the follow up, miss, rebound Bosh, great outlet pass by Bosh finding Ukic for the breakaway layup
Toronto take the lead 28-26
Sixers call timeout
Toronto doing a great job altering shots around the rim
Bosh hustling to the offensive glass, dunks it home. Raptors have all the energy right now, Phily look out of it. They need to bring Brand and Dalembert back, oh Brand is back already. Must have came in on that timeout.
Graham drives baseline, blocked by Dalembert, turnover.
Lovely drive and kick by Ukic to Kapono, three pointer from the opposite (left) corner, hits it
Roko drives through a crowd and gets the layup, misses. Little out of control on that drive but good idea.
Bargnani with the rebound, not much of a boxout on the missed FT though, if the ball had bounced a different way Brand might have stolen that rebound.
Bargnani running the pick and pop with Ukic, over to Bargnani on the left wing, fakes left, one dribble right pull up J from 17 feet, misses, Bosh offensive rebound over Dalembert, fouled on the putback.
Iggy dribbling for awhile, can’t find anything to do, decides to pull up with the jumper, makes the 19 footer over Parker. He’s 2-8 from the floor.
Dalembert offensive rebound, Bargnani leaves his hand out to contest the shot but wasn’t straight up and Dalembert jumped into his arm drawing the foul. Bargnani got caught out there trying to decide whether to help on the initial drive or not, allowed Dalembert the rebound.
Ukic with a lovely behind the back dribble on the outley to get away from Miller, breakaway layup
Parker in the right corner, Dalembert ended up defending him in transition, isolation, Parker jab step right, pulls it back, jab step again, takes the three pointer over Dalembert and nails it.
Bosh posts up left block, Bosh has good position, spins middle and shoots over Dalembert, makes it
Under three minutes to play in the half
Elton Brand driving on Jermaine O’Neal from the right box, drives left towards the middle and is fouled on the way up. Looked like he was out of control on that drive, lucky that he got a foul, likley would have missed the shot.
Ukic weaving through Phily’s defense, finds Kapono in the corner, Kapono passes up the three and drives left, travel. Should have taken that shot.
Chris Bosh draws the charging foul on brand
Raptors lead 44-38
Great work by Jermaine fighting for position inside throughout Parker’s drive and ending up with great position on the offensive glass, and he comes away with the rebound. On the same possession on the baseline inbounds, Jermaine on the left elbow extended blows by Dalembert and slams it home with his left hand over Dalembert, plus the foul, makes the FT.
Theo Ratliff checks in and draws a big cheer from the home crowd upon his return to Phily
Miller drive and kick to Rush, three from the corner, nails it
Theo on the right block, jab step right, face up J from 14 feet, nails it
Andre Miller makes a difficult layup in traffic
Jermaine O Neal steals another rebound, he ended up with Ivey on him on the break, Rush left the minute the ball didn’t come to Jermaine in the post, he was wide open under the hoop for that rebound.
Rebound Rush, passes ahead to Iggy, Iggy flies down the open court and makes the layup in transition
Bosh with an aggressive drive and two hand slam
Iggy holds it for the final shot, is smacked by by Bosh + Jermaine on the drive, he’ll go to the line, makes one of two.
Halftime
Raptors shooting 41.2% from the floor, 5/7 from three and 4/7 from the free throw line. They have 11 assists against 2 turnovers.
The Sixers shot 37.8% from the field, 4-10 from three and 7-11 from the line. They had 9 assists but also had 8 turnovers.
Raptors were plus 7 on the backboards in the second quarter, outrebounding the Sixers 17-10 in the second quarter
Thaddeus Young foul trouble caused the Sixers problems
Phily started the game well, struggled with their shooting but controlled the game. Then the Raptors turned up their intensity and energy and seemed to get every loose ball. That turned the game around.
Third Quarter
Raptors inbound the ball to the start the second half, the Raps lead 51-45, Bosh misses a 19 footer left elbow extended
Brand posting up, Jermaine doing a good job pushing Brand out to 15 feet and off the low block, Brand faces up and drops the jumper over Jermaine
Bosh posts up on the low post, left block, spins baseline and takes the lefty hook, misses
Brand gets Bosh in transition, turns down the shot, demands the ball back, he wants to go at Bosh, posts him up, backs him down, fadeaway, misses
Dalembert misses a short hook, rebounds his miss, scores the putback
Poor defense by Dalembert, he gets caught ball watching, Jermaine creates some space in the middle of the paint receives the pass from Parker (good pass) and gets an easy two. Next defensive possession, Dalembert gambles for a steal down in the paint on Bosh, misses, layup Bosh. Poor defense again from Dalembert
Dalembert snares another offensive rebound, that’s 10 offensive rebounds already, he passes out to Brand, Brand misses the 16 footer
Jermaine posting up on the right box, backs down Brand, Iggy rips it from him as Jermaine tries to turn into the middle, turnover.
Moon drops a 19 footer from the right elbow extended
Young driving off the left wing, across the middle, spins back left, shoots the floater, goaltend by Bosh and a foul on Bargnani, Thaddeus makes the FT.
Bargnani active on the offensive glass, tapping it out but it goes out of bounds
Iguodala isn’t doing much work defensively, maybe they should try him out on Jose Calderon? Give him something to do.
Moon making the steal on the horrible outlet pass from Dalembert, Raptors don’t punish the Sixers in transition. Too hesitant on the open jumper (three times – open three for Parker, open 16 footer above the FT line for Calderon, open 14 footer for Bargnani on the right wing/baseline), made life harder for themselves.
Iguodala scores on the driving finger roll, that’s a 7-0 run
Parker sells the pump fake, Iggy bites, Parker has an open lane down the baseline, he attacks, misses the layup after the good contest from Brand, Bosh goes to the offensive glass and gets the rebound, fouled on the putback.
Andre Miller with a line drive jumper, never looked like going in
Beautiful pass by Calderon to Moon who cut underneath the hoop and was wide open, fouled on the layup
Jermaine O’Neal has been in the locker room for the past few minutes. He was in the locker room getting checked over and stretching out his right hamstring. He returns to the bench and asks to check back in, he re-enters. Let’s see how he looks phyiscally.
First possession out the Raptors go to Jermaine in the low post, right block, turnaround J along the baseline, nails it. Nice move from Jermaine O’Neal.
Bosh calling for it in the post, double teamed, passes out to Calderon, to Moon top of the key, drives right into the paint, called for the charge on the layup. Good aggressiveness from Moon to drive it into the hoop.
Jermaine with great position in the middle of the paint four feet out, Dalembert is struggling, makes a desperate attempt to knock the pass into O’Neal away, he does, turnover. Jermaine is upset at himself for not getting that ball, he’s spinning/jumping/shouting at himself but not getting back on defense. Sixers slow to break the other way, now Jermaine is the last man back for the Raps, nice pass by Brand to Iggy inside, Jermaine slides down and alters the shot, miss, offensive rebound. Sixers hold onto possession, Iggy drives, fouled, Jermaine blocks the shot to stop the potential three point play. Iggy makes two at the line.
Toronto lead 62-58 with 4 minutes to play in the third quarter
Bosh and O’Neal have combined for 32 points and 17 rebounds and we haven’t even finished the third quarter yet
Raptors lead 9-6 on offensive rebound since the first quarter
Parker with a dagger from the corner to beat the Sixers’ zone defense
Iguodala bricks a three pointer, rebound Brand, putback Brand, altered by Jermaine, blocked by Bosh, shot clock violation
Did Theo Ratliff were #50 last time he was with Philadelphia? That number looks weird on him. I can’t remember what was. #42?
Raptors perimeter players doing a sensational job on that possession pressuring the ball and stopping the Sixers from getting the ball inside the key, long three forced to beat the clock, miss, Raptors don’t get the rebound. Sixers make nothing of the rebound.
Jermaine swings from the left elbow to above the right elbow, catch and shoot, knocks it down. He’s in rhythm right now. Keep shooting big fella
Another excellent defensive possession from the Raptors. The Sixers can’t get anything going right now.
Caleron runs off a high screen from Bosh, dribbles to the left and pulls up from 17 feet on the left wing, knocks it down
Final minute of the third quarter
Iggy with a nice pass to Brand, he knocks down the midrange jumper. That ends a 9-0 Raptors run.
Bosh drives, kicks the ball to the right corner, Raptors swing it to the right wing to the top of the key, Calderon knocks down a triple. Lou Williams was terrible on that possession, he was right there able to defend Calderon but stood too far away from Calderon and gave up an easy look at the rim. Poor recognition of his mark, and how quickly the ball was moving to his man … just bad defense from Williams.
Iggy gets two at the FT line
Roko has it up top, he’s entered for Calderon, Roko manevours his way into the paint, nice drive, layup, Theo from the weakside eliminates the shot. Defensively Roko jumps into Lou Williams on hsi three point attempt to beat the clock, three FTs coming, Williams makes all three
Fourth Quarter
Raptors lead 74-65
Bosh has a double double already, Jermaine is close to that mark himself
Jermaine looked like he had that charge foul, nope replay shows him moving at the last second. Green goes to the line, makes two.
Raptors struggling to get the ball up against the pressure but they eventually figure it out
Great defense by Evans fronting Jermaine and denying the entry pass, i was so busy watching Evans I didn’t see the shot, Kapono hit a long two from the left wing … it was a one dribble left pull up J.
Green nails a three pointer over Bargnani
Graham handling the ball against Iggy+Evans, gets across the line, loses control for a moment but retains possession easily.
Big rebound by O’Neal off the missed Sixers jumper in transition … Jermaine with a good look from 16 feet just above the FT line, misses
Nice cut across the paint by Thaddeus Young, his teammate finds him, one spin the other way and lefty hook over Kapono, misses, offensive interference by Evans
76-70 Raptors after two minutes
Jermaine trying to get position, Evans doing a great job making O’Neal work for it, now O’Neal has position, he’s sealed Evans, gets the ball, turns and drives left towards the rim, Evans pulls the rug from under Jermaine’s feet and Jermaine travels.
Evans’ energy is lighting a spark for Phily
Lovely quick pass by Jermaine out of the post, on the double team, to Jose for an open three, nails it. Lou Williams again caught out defensively, he was out of control and scrambling, never in the play.
Calderon dribbles all around the world, from the halfway line to the top of the key, down the right wing, along the baseline, under the basket, coming back up along the left hand side of the lane, to the top of the key, passes to Jermaine on the right elbow, Jermaine drives right and makes a good pass to Kapono along the baseline, 17 footer, makes it. Raptors hot shooting is keeping them
Lou Williams with a great drive through a crowd, gets a good look on the layup, misses, offensive rebound, Sixers pass out, swing it to the corner, Lou is open, a Raptor rushes out to get a hand in his face, missed shot.
Calderon called for an offensive foul as he runs into Williams. He’s holding his elbow after the fall. Ukic checks in.
Timeout
Raptors lead 81-72
Under 8 minutes to play
Young dribbles in, takes a runner from midrange, misses, offensive rebound Young, loses the ball … Raptors run up the other way, Ukic leaves it for Kapono, Kapono travels
Jose now pointing to his fingers/wrist on the bench
Bosh with the quick first step, draws the foul on the drive, makes two at the line. Bosh is 7-14 from the field and 9-10 from the line. Bosh pulls down another defensive rebound, that’s 11 boards for Bosh.
Roko dribbles for 18 seconds, goes all around the court, finally passes the ball, Jermaine has to force the fadeaway, misses
Brand on the offensive glass, fouled on the putback
Jermaine O’Neal has 15 points, 8 rebounds, 4 assists on 7-14 shooting
Jermaine tells Bosh to switch sides on the FT line, he wants to box out Dalembert
5:30 to play in the game
Kapono nails another three from the right corner after some good ball movement from the Raps
Elton Brand offensive rebound, makes about four head fakes, I think O’Neal bought the third one, Brand draws the foul
Ukic with a fancy dribble, looked like a carry though, he gets the step on Miller, drives inside, sets up a good look for his teammate, missed long jumper
Calderon checks in for Ukic
Raptors lead 86-75 with 4:20 to play
Dalembert crowding Bosh, way too close, Bosh drives left and draws the contact before the ball even hits the floor on his dribble, foul
Nice finish inside by Bosh
Isolation for Brand, takes a bounce, goes up with the jumper, misses. He was 16 feet out going up against Jermaine. He got the shot he wanted, a good look, just missed
Lou Williams with the teardrop over the Raptors big men
Jose and Bosh run a pick and pop at the top of the key, Jose passes back to Bosh at the top of the key, Bosh with the upfake, Dalembert goes flying, now he goes up for the shot, Jose’s man rushses over, Bosh passes to Jose for a wide open three on the left wing after changing his mind in mid air, missed shot … Phily run off the rebound, fastbreak dunk Iguodala
Jermaine takes a turnaround 15 feet out on the left wing, side rims, defensive rebound Phily … Phily run again with Williams finishing in a crowd and drawing the foul. Good pass ahead by Iggy.
Timeout Raptors
Raptors lead 88-81
Bosh and Calderon run another high pick and pop, back to Bosh top of the key, jab step, takes it from 20 feet, nails it
2 minutes to play, 8 point game
Raptors clear out again, run the screen and roll again, lovely extra pass by Bosh to Kapono for the open three in the corner, Kapono nails it
11 point game
Sixers force the miss, leakout and get a layup in transition, 9 point game
Good cut by Bosh from the elbow than to the low post when he recognized the smaller man was on him, quick pass to the middle of the paint to the cutting Jermaine O’Neal who’s fouled, Jermaine ices the game at the line
Tuning in late in the first quarter, only three minutes to play in the the first, Lakers lead 24-20
First Quarter
Showing some nice highlights of Baron Davis having words with teammates in several different circumstances. Leaderership.
Kobe left wing faces up on Thornton, blows by him and misses the layup, offensive rebound Odom
Ricky Davis with two quick assists after checking, one to Baron for a three, the other to Skinner for a 14 footer
Baron Davis with his third steal of the quarter as he plays the passing lanes beautifully on Farmer’s pass, Baron running the other way, finds Thornton, bucket
Game tied 27-27
Baron has gone to the bench, still giving his teammates instructions, unhappy with Skinner with forcing it, wants him to slow down.
Lakers hold it for the final shot of the quarter, Kobe up top, Davis on him, Pau sets the screen, Clippers help cheats over, Ariza sprints the baseline, alley oop lob, misses the dunk, Gasol runs down the offensive rebound, passes out to Kobe, Kobe drives, Ariza runs out and sets up at the three point line in the opposite (left) corner, Kobe finds him, three pointer scored as the quarter expires
Second Quarter
Lakers lineup – Gasol, Odom, Ariza, Vujacic, Farmer – this will be Phil’s quick lineup. They’ll pressure the ball defensively and try to push it offensively.
Clippers lineup – Jason Hart, Ricky Davis Steve Novak, Tim Thomas, Brian Skinner – I’m surprised by this lineup. The loss of Marcus Camby has left their big men a bit short handed. They’ll likely go with a lot of small ball lineups because that’s where the most individual quality is. I’m surprised Novak made the rotation though, I expected him to be an irregular player in the Clips rotation
Odom on the backboards, takes a dribble, passes ahead to Ariza who’s coming down the right wing, Novak is defending him, little move right, then burst of speed left, blows by Novak, has a lane to the rim, fouled.
Lakers lead 32-31
Very good double team by Ariza and Odom on Tim Thomas, Thomas crumbled under the pressure late in the shot clock and couldn’t get rid of it, turnover.
Nice penetration and dishes off to Tim Thomas for the dunk along the baseline. Thomas gets a tech for the delay of game, his second of the game, Vujacic takes the FT, misses, third missed FT in 30 seconds for LA.
Gasol rejected at the rim
Gasol doing great work on that offensive glass tapping it twice to himself before Skinner fouls. Those long arms of Gasol can reach right over the top of Skinner.
Gasol on the right block, dribbles towards the baseline, loses control of the dribble, picks it up, draws a crowd, passes it out, Lakers swing the ball from right to left, Farmer drives past his man and nails a short J. Next possession Gasol hits a shot off the right elbow.
Vujacic nails a thre pointer on the left wing. Gordon was too far off his man defensively.
Tim Thomas forced to create his own shot off the dribble to beat the shot clock.
Farmer defensive rebound, he pushes the break, hits Ariza cutting to the rim along the left wing, bounce pass, dunk.
Timeout
LA lifting the caliber of the team right now. Clippers second unit looks weak and in trouble. They need Baron Davis back in the game. Everything they were doing was on the perimeter and for the most part it looked bad, the Lakers defense caused them the world of trouble.
Lakers have extended the league by 5 points since Kobe sat down over the past 5 minutes, Lakers up 8 now.
Farmer driving, showing some patience as he navigates his way from the right wing, to the elbow, across the paint, now finds the passing angle and throws the lob to Bynum, layup. Bynum reluctant to truly flush that down, he’s been hesitant for most of the season so far.
Farmer is playing brilliantly
Nice push by Farmer, gets into the paint, hits his trailer for the long J from 19 feet, Bynum takes it, misses it. Not his shot, should have held that up and reset the offense.
Baron Davis getting closer on Farmer now, holding off his drive and keeping him on the perimeter, Farmer passes off, he gets it back, now he’s reluctant to drive on Baron, passes it off, Ariza nails a face up three. Next possession, Farmer yo-yo-ing up top, making up his mid whether or not to drive, passes off instead attacking Baron Davis.
Baron Davis bringing the ball up court, nice hesitation dribble, gets to the rim, layup
Timeout
Mobley playing good defense on Bryant in the post, slaps the ball loose, Thornton picks up the loose ball, races the length of the floor down the left wing right to the rim, fouled, misses the first FT, makes the second. Kobe is unimpressed with the refs, felt he was fouled.
Fisher on the drive, Kaman alters it at the basket, Fisher misses, rebound Clips. Clippers look to get out in the fastbreak, turn it over in the paint. Clippers need to do a better job in the open floor
Kobe gets a post up on the right block, whirls into the paint and shoots over the top of Moblye, shot rolls out, Kaman rebounds. Good look for Kobe, he should keep attacking Cuttino in the post.
Offensive foul on Kaman, turnover
Luke Walton with a nice spinning hook 9 feet from the rim, now he gets the steal and pushes the break, over to Fish who stops for a three on the break, nails it
Lakers quickly and quietly up 16 points. It doesn’t feel like that big of a gap but the Lakers keep making small runs and have pushed this lead well. Be interesting how the Lakers respond to this.
Bryant backing down Mobley on the left post, the double team comes from the elbow, Kobe spins baseline, Clippers help rushes over, passes back to Bynum who’s coming down the middle of the paint, Bynum elevates for the dunk, fouled, makes two of two
Ricky Davis nails a three at the buzzer for the shot clock. The Clippers were all over the place on that possession from some terrific Lakers defense, big bail out shot from Davis.
Lakers lead 59-42
Baron Davis makes two FTs
Lakers bring it up and will play for one good shot, Kobe runs down the clock, now gets the high screen from Gasol, Kobe drives left, kicks it to the corner to Fisher, misses the open J from the perimeter, Clippers rebound, stolen back by LA, halftime
Halftime
Lakers leading 59-44
Lakers ahead 21-17 on the backboards
The Clippers have 12 assists on 16 baskets, shooting only 16-37 from the floor for 43% shooting. They are 3-12 from three and 9-15 from the line.
The Lakers have 15 assists on 22 baskets, making 22-40 from the field for 55% shooting. They are also a red hot 8-13 from downtown and are 7-10 from the free throw line.
Derek Fisher leads the Lakers in scoring with 13 points. Bynum is the only player in double digits with 10 points. Very balanced scoring from the Lakers with all 10 players on the scoresheet in the first half
The starting forwards (Thomas+Thornton) for the Clippers have 21 points combined while Baron Davis leads the way with 9 points and 5 assists. Nobody else on the Clippers has more than four points. Davis also has 3 steals and 2 boards.
Kobe Bryant had 5 turnovers in the first half, all came in the first quarter. He sas the small guys on the Clippers’ active hands caused him some problems in the first quarter.
Tim Thomas only 2-6 from the FT line, main reason why the Clippers are shooting 60% as a team from the stripe.
Andrew Bynum has only 3 rebounds in 16 minutes. He had a poor rebounding night against Portland too. Something to watch over the next few games/weeks.
Chris Kaman has only 2 rebounds for the Clippers, the Clippers starting frontcourt has only 7 rebounds as Tim Thomas leads the starters with 3 boards. Skinner has a team high 4 boards off the bench. The Clippers need more rebounding from their frontcourt to compete in this game.
Both teams have 8 turnovers, the Lakers capitalizing on 12 points off those turnovers, while the Clippers made 10 points off LA’s turnovers.
Pau Gasol leads the Lakers rebounding effort with 6 rebounds. Ariza is second on the team with 4 boards off the bench in 11 minutes. Bynum and Bryant are next with 3 apiece, Odom has 2 boards, nobody else has more than one.
Third Quarter
Baron Davis starts off the third by initiating some physical contact with Fisher before running back to get the ball and bring it up, little reminder that Baron is capable and happy to handle Fish’s physical D, Baron brings it up court, blows by Fisher off the bounce and makes the layup
Bryant trying to kill the game, forces it on Mobley and draws the foul, goes to the FT line for two
Bad pass by Thornton cross court to his open teammate, threw it over his head and out of bounds.
Kobe steals the ball from Kaman after the defensive rebound, off Gasol’s miss, ball squirms loose to Bynum, pass to Gasol, layup, fouled, he shoots two, makes two.
Lakers ahead 66-45
Bynum with a defensive rebound, those long arms snaring the ball high out of the air
Bynum gets the pass inside, caught too far under the rim, draws a crowd, kicks it out to Kobe, Thornton rushes out, makes it easy for Kobe to blast right by him, foul on Thornton to stop the open path to the rim.
Baron Davis jams Fisher off the dribble, then traps him along the sideline, Fisher has to get rid of it, steps out of bounds trying to make the pass. Great defense by Davis.
Horrid pass by Tim Thoms. He had Thornton wide open for a three 6 feet to his left and he throws a slow high bounce pass gifting the Lakers defense enough time to get out and challenge the shot. Those type of unintelligent selfish plays that hurt your teammate drive me nuts.
Davis on the driv,e throws it up, ball rolls around the rim, ball gets caught on the back end of the rim, Thornton has great position for the offensive rebound, he’s just waiting for it to leave the cylinder, taking too long, now it drops, Thornton has been surrounded but he still has position inside, ball falls off the rim, Bynum from under the backboard jumps up and taps the ball out to stop Thornton getting the rebound, it goes right to Fisher … fastbreak the other way, Fisher with a nice bounce pass from the right win, three point line, to the opposite lane for Gasol who was trailing the play, layup, fouled
Lovely touch pass by Davis off the outlet to a streaking teammate for the layup. He was around midcourt, Kobe sprinted over to cover him, and Davis just flipped over to the man Kobe was initially defending. Easy two for Mobley on the breakaway.
Bynum and Thomas bang heads, Thomas is shaken up, doesn’t get back on defense, Odom scores inside. On the way back up Bynum gives the thumbs up to Tim to check if he’s okay, Tim gives him the thumbs up back. Sportsmanship.
Lakers ahead 76-50 with 4 minutes to go in the third.
This game is over.
Rest of the game
Lovely give an go with Lamar and Gasol. Lamar left wing passes into Gasol on the post, cuts left, gets the hand off, drives baseline and finishes. Nice play. Odom is at the four spot right now, how hard is that play to defend for an opposing power forward?
Gasol scrapping inside for the loose ball of Fisher’s miss on the aggressive drive from the left wing on the break, Pau comes away with it, misses the putback, Kobe hits the offensive glass and is fouled on the putback. Mike Dunleavy’s face has been plastereed with dismay for the last couple of miscues from the Clippers. Timeout.
Lakers lead 82-50
Ricky Davis on the fastbreak, finds Mobley filling the right lane, bounce pass on the money, dunk. That ends a 13-0 Lakers run.
Pau Gasol with another defensive rebound. He’s been focused on the glass tonight.
Bryant curling off a screen on the right wing, gets the pass, has the step on on his man immediately, flies into the paint and is fouled by Skinner. Bryant makes two. The Lakers starters will likely stay on the bench for the fourth quarter.
Novak nails a three
Farmer holds the ball for the final shot of the quarter, calls for the screen from Gasol, Gasol sets up top of the key, Farmer runs off the screen and drives right, manevours his way to the right elbow, help D is there, Farmer jumps up and tries to throw a pass to the left baseline, over the head of Odom out of bounds. Wouldn’t let Kobe make that play? No?
Fourth Quarter
Pau Gasol stays out there with the second unit. Odom, Ariza, Vujacic and Farmer are the other four.
The Clippers will likely rest their starters too – we have Gordon, Hart, Davis, Skinner, Novak.
Unselfish pass by Gordon to Hart who was trailing the play and had an easier layup than he did. He held the ball up well waiting for Hart to get himself into position. Next possession, Novak hits another three. Clippers still down 25, 28, Ariza hits a three.
Vujacic helping out on the glass … Lakers defense so far has stayed active and aggressive despite the big lead. Lakers go up 30 off of two Gasol FTs.
Lakers ahead 101-66
Lakers second unit has been passing well, and making smart cuts, especially Ariza.
Lakers lead 115-77 with under two minutes to play
Eric Gordon misses off the bank on the drive
Some Stats
Lakers have 7 players in double figures. All 12 players got on the scoreboard, and everyone scored more than 4 points. Kobe Bryant led the way with 16 points, Farmer had 15 points, Fisher had 15 points, Pau Gasol had 13 points, Andrew Bynum had 12 points, Trevor Ariza had 11 points, Chris Mihm had 11 points. Radmanovic and Odom had 6 apiece, Vujacic 5, and Walton+Powell had 4 points each.
The Lakers had 28 assists on 41 baskets, on 80 attempts, for 51% shooting. They wre also 10-19 from behind the arc and 25-33 from the FT line. A superb offensive display from the Lakers.
The Lakers pummeled the Clippers on the glass in the second half building up a 51-32 advantage in rebounds. Bynum and Gasol led the way with 9 apiece, Kobe had 8, Ariza 6, Farmer 5, Odom 4 boards and once again every single Laker registered a rebound.
Pau Gasol led the Lakers in assists with 6, Farmer had 5, Fisher had 4 and three other Lakers finished with 3 dimes each. 9 of the 12 Lakers finished with assists – the three that didn’t are Bynum, Mihm and Powell. Powell played only 6 minutes, Mihm only 9 minutes … plus you can’t blame Mihm he was too busy shooting (10 points in 9 minutes) to get in on the action.
Some indivudal Lakers statlines
Andrew Bynum had 12 points, 9 rebounds, 3 blocks and a steal in 25 minutes. Bynum was 4-7 from the field and 4-6 from the line.
Pau Gasol 13 points (only 3-10 shooting, 7-7 from the line), 9 rebounds and 6 assists.
Kobe Bryant had 16 points, 8 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 assists. Bryant was 5-12 from the field and 6-7 from the line. Kobe played 31 minutes.
Jordan Farmer led the way off the bench with 15 points, 5 assists, 5 rebounds on 6-8 shooting from the field. Farmer played 26 minutes to Fisher’s 22.
Fisher had 15 points (5-11 shooting) and 4 assists
Ariza had 11 and 6 in only 20 minutes
Odom had 6 points, 4 rebounds and 3 assists in 23 minutes
Not a lot to say about the Clippers
Tim Thomas led the team in rebounding with 8. Kaman had only 5 rebounds in 30 minutes. Skinner had 5 boards in 27 minutes. Thornton had 3 boards. Nobody else had more than 2 rebounds. The Clippers got beaten up on the backboards to a 19 board differential, clearly they missed Camby.
Baron Davis led the team with 11 points and 7 assists, plus 3 steals, but he was quiet after the first quarter. He sat too long into the second quarter and by that stage the Clippers had lost momentum, put themselves into a deficit, and Baron was too cold to bail them out. The game got out of hand in the third and Baron didn’t press the game, he knew it was over.
Ricky Davis had 6 assists but only 5 points, only took 5 shots making 2 (1-4 from downtown). Ricky needs to provide some scoring punch of that bench.
I expect the seriousness of the Clippers postseason challenge to be defined by the contributions of their two young wings, particularly their scoring, so how did they do – Al Thornton finished with 16 points, 3 rebounds and an assist. He was 7-15 from the field and had only 3 FTs. Also had 3 turnovers. He wasn’t a factor for long parts of the game and struggled defensively. Eric Gordon played 14 minutes off the bench and never got into the game. Gordon was 0-4 from the floor, and finished with 2 points, 2 assists, 1 rebound.
The Clippers clearly lacked scoring options. Their offense lacked direction because they had nobody to pass the ball the ball to after LA took away their first option. The Lakers defense kept the Clippers on the perimeter, where they had only one legit player who could create for himself and others (Baron Davis), and that killed the Clippers. The spacing difficulties were made even worse by a poor night from behind the arc, going only 5-22 from three.
Defensively the Clippers were unable to give much resistance. The Lakers had little difficulty in working around the Chris Kaman’s presence, he was often the only shot blocker on the floor, so they either moved him (Pau/Bynum setting screens, spotting for jumpers, passing high post) out of the way or worked around him (pick and rolls). Getting Camby back there defensively should help the Clippers defense attack more aggressively, because they’ll have a fail safe on either side should the defender get beat. Without that second anchor the Lakers abused the Clippers. Baron Davis was the only Clippers perimeter player that had a good night defensively, part of the reason the two shot blockers is so important is because the defenders on the perimeter are questionable/mediocre/poor. It’s hard to tell what this Clippers team is capable of defensively, we must wait to see Camby out there and give the perimeter guys more time to settle down (young duo – Thornton/Gordon again important).
Drive and dish Bryant to Gasol, 17 footer just off the baseline on the left hand side, makes it
It looked like Bynum got a piece of that reverse layup from Roy, Oden snatches it out of the air, Bynum locks him down on the ground before he can dunk it home
Lovely drive, baseline pass to Oden, Oden gathers himself, decides to take the short hook instead of muscling it up, misses
Bynum posts up, wants to go one-on-one, he turns middle, hook shot, misses.
Travis Outlaw is at small forward.
Blake leads the fastbreak, throws a bad bounce pass to Roy, Roy manages to avoid the charge, puts it up off the glass from five feet, misses, Fisher rebounds, goes coast to coast and drops the floater over Oden’s outstretched arm
Timeout
Lakers jump out to an 11-4 lead
Oden with a tough off balance hook shot, misses, offensive rebound Aldridge. Offensive foul on Oden for the screen. Two fouls on Oden. That was predictable. The first was a tough foul.
Gasol with the lefty shot in the paint over Aldridge, nice footwork in the post
Outlaw doing a solid job of guarding Bryant so far. His length is causing Kobe some problems.
Odom enters the game, knocks the ball loose on Roy off Roy out of bounds
Blake forced to defend Kobe in transition, Kobe locks him in on his hip and takes him right to the rim, shooting over him easily.
Aldridge making the shot over Odom out of the low post, looked like he lost control off the ball on the way up.
Bynum on the offensive glass, putback
Rudy Fernandez joins the fray
Great outlet pass by Radmanovic thrown 60 feet off the defensive rebound ahead to Fisher, Fisher mishandles the pass on the catch, turnover.
Odom with a 50 foot alley oop pass to Bynum, he misses the dunk
Odom drives, passes to Vujacic, Vujacic isn’t in the game, he’s standing on the sideline, oops.
Timeout … Lakers jump out to a 17-6 lead
Portland going zone, Lakers remain patient and work the ball from side to side, inside and out, then to the FT line, Ariza cuts baseline, pass and the dunk
Fernandez with a lovely floater driving in from the left wing across the paint
Ariza knocks down a triple out of the left corner on the face up J
Fernandez comes around the Przybilla screen, drains the 18 footer left elbow extended
Lakers leading 22-12
Fernandez launches another shot from 17 feet on the left wing, misses. Good look though.
Sergio out to Frye, Frye threads a nice bounce pass down to Joel, dunk
Second Quarter
Vujacic ends up covering Przybilla, Blazers swing the ball over, post him up, Joel looks to drive rather than back him down or shoot over the top, misses his runner. Bad choice.
Ariza defending Outlaw very well, stopped him from driving left on that possession. Let’s see if he keeps it up.
Frye air balls a long J as he looks to beat the shot clock
Odom cutting across the paint, Farmer inside to Odom on the left box, quick hook shot, hits it off the glass, nice move by Odom. Next possession, Farmer pushes the break, runs down the right hand side of the lane, rises up for the layup, finds Gasol wide open on the opposite side of the rim as the defense collapses, dunk. Timeout
Oden back in
Fernandez nails a three on the right wing. He has 7 of their 17 points. Portland’s starters have only 6 points.
Rudy picks up his dribble to pass, Ariza immediately jumps back and jams the passing lane, Rudy has to swing it back up top.
Doug Collins says that Oden is limping on the right ankle since his fall.
Vujacic nails a three from the left corner
LA deny the post entry pass again, force a 24 second shot clock violation. Blazers couldn’t get anything going. Brandon Roy checks back in, as does Kobe.
Gasol with a lovely move, driving left off the left box, spins right, little hook, rolls out. Nice move against Oden.
Roy with a beautiful drive and dish to Outlaw in the left corner, three pointer good. Ariza’s attempts to steal the bounce allowed Roy to get a step ahead on his drive.
Ariza three pointer right wing
Rudy adds a pair of FTs, the lead is 36-24 LAL
Wow, nice pass by Kobe on the money to Gasol over the top of Roy to Gasol for the layup who beat Oden up the floor
Oden down on the left post, he’s angling for the right handed hook towards the middle, spin move baseline, up fake, gets Bynum off his feet, fouled on his way up, misses both FTs.
Radmanovic with the flush on the fastbreak off the feed from Bryant
Oden posts up inside on Gasol, short shot, misses, offensive rebound, turns left, isn’t comfortable going left, tries to go back right despite playing him on the right hand, runs into trouble, fumble, turnover.
Kobe drains the 14 footer off the bounce over Aldridge.
Blake nails a three from the left corner to stop the bleeding
Lakers leading 46-27
The Lakers are plus 16 on points in the paint
Radmanovic drains a triple along the right wing off the dribble
Final two minutes of the half, timeout
Roy top of the key, screen coming from Kobe’s right, he jumps to the right, as does Gasol, Aldridge pops out to the left, Radmanovic rotates up and steals the pass.
Roy with a nice pump fake and drive on Kobe on the right elbow, he gets to the rim, goes up, fouled by Bynum and Gasol, makes two of two at the line
Blake nails another three from the corner, this time the opposite side, big shot, that cuts the lead to 15
Halftime
Blazers made a nice 7-0 run to close the half
Lakers lead 49-34
Lakers leading 25-22 on the rebounding battle, Portland ahead 8-6 on the offensive boards which you’d expect considering how many shots they missed.
The Blazers had 10 assists on their 13 baskets, but shot only 13-42 for 31% shooting from the field. They were also 4-12 from three and 4-7 from the line.
The Lakers had 12 assists on 21 baskets, on 43 shots good for 49% shooting. They were 4-7 from downtown and 3-4 from the line.
The Blazers 7 turnovers have resulted in 8 points. The Lakers have 8 turnovers resulting in 6 points.
Brandon Roy and Greg Oden have yet to score a field goal.
Kobe Bryant has scored only 6 points but has an impressive team leading 8 rebounds and a team leading 5 assists. He’s also done a superb job defensively on Brandon Roy. He does have four turnovers though.
Gasol leads the Lakers with 15 points on 7-9 shooting. Radmanovic is second in rebounding with 5 boards. Gasol and Bynum have combined for only four boards. Ariza leads the bench with 8 points but it’s mostly been a balanced act once you get past Gasol.
Fernandez and Outlaw have 9 points apiece to lead the Blazers in the scoring column. Przybilla had 6 rebounds and 4 points in 11 minutes. Oden had 5 rebounds and a block but missed all four of his shots and is scoreless. Brandon Roy leads the team with four assists but is 0-6 from the floor.
The Lakers defense has been very active. They’re hustling all over the place and stopping Portland’s best scoring options.
Third Quarter
Lakers leading 49-34
Bynum blocks Blake’s runner, Blake gets it back, kicks it out to the corner, Outlaw nails a three from the corner
Outlaw drives left, jumps over Radmanovic and hits the fallaway J from 18 feet left wing
Przybilla altering Fisher’s fastbreak layup well, forces the miss
Aldridge low post, spins middle, jump hook, nails it
Greg Oden is not on the floor. He may be injured.
Outlaw air balls a three
Lakers lead 49-41
Great run by the Blazers to cut the lead from 22 to 8
Kobe ends the run with a three pointer. After Blake’s miss on the other end, Kobe snatches the defensive rebound, brings the ball up slowly, works his way by Roy, drives left down the middle of the lane, jumps to the left and finishes with the other hand drawing the foul and making the fancy layup
Bynum with the quick 15 footer from the FT line, front irons it. His feet weren’t set when he caught that ball, always looked off, Bynum taps the board, but knocks it out of bounds. Bynum is now 1-6 from the floor.
Bryant runs the screen and roll with Gasol, Aldridge switches, Bryant pulls it out to the right wing, he’s dribbling through his legs, decides to turn on the gas, drives left across the paint, elevates and tries the left roll, fouled. Kobe makes two FTs.
Lakers lead 56-41
Odom with a great outlet pass, very quick, passed ahead to midcourt to Kobe, Kobe pushes it up the wing, gets by Roy, fouled on the drive, he’ll shoot two, makes the first, timeout, makes the second.
Lakers have gone on a 9-0 run to push the lead to 17
Outlaw stops the bleeding with a long two
Radmanovic left open for a three, nails it. Roy was lazy coming out to defend the shot. He looks tired, needs a breather.
Outlaw driving left from the right wing, across the lane, takes the off balance J from 14 feet, misses
Bryant has 13 points in the first 9 minutes of the quarter.
Lakers leading 67-46
Three minutes to play in the third
Lakers rotating out beautifully and stopping the Blazers from getting a good shot, 24 second shot clock violation.
Odom bringing the ball up and initiates the offense, passes left, gets the hand off, iso, takes the jumper off the dribble from the left wing, hits it
Roy hits his first shot of the night. 1-10 from the field. Next possession, Roy hits a triple from the corner.
Bayless has entered the game, comes up firing straight away, misses the 15 footer hard off the iron
Offensive rebound Aldridge, slam dunk. Gasol wanted the foul.
Fourth Quarter
Greg Oden is still in the locker room. They’re checking out his foot.
The Lakers leading 72-53
This game is all but over. It would take a sensational run by Portland to scramble this back.
Ariza draws the charging foul on Bayless’ drive
Bayless on the break, Ariza is right there with him, Bayless tries to muscle it up against Ariza, Ariza skies and blocks the shot, Vujacic saves it, Lakers pass ahead, stolen by Roy at midcourt, he dribbles up and passes to his left to Rudy for a wide open three, nails it.
Przybilla just yanked down his 10th rebound. He’s played 24 minutes.
Bynum with a nice turnaround J from 13 feet off the left post
Travis Outlaw has a team high 18 points on 8-15 shooting
I’m going to call it. Lakers open the season with a win. The Blazers disappoint, this was predictable, too difficult a matchup for them this early in the season.
Some Stats+Notes
Greg Oden played only 13 minutes after the leaving the game with a sprained right foot. The subsequent X-ray was inconclusive, he’ll have an MRI on Wednesday. Oden finished with 5 rebounds and a blocked shot while missing all four of his shots. His presence on both ends was there, but he looked uncomfortable shooting over Bynum. The above link is to a JA Adande story, some nice speculation on what type of injuries it could be.
LaMarcus Aldridge had a poor game, he was passive and regularly not involved on the offensive end. He finished with only 8 points on 4-12 shooting. He didn’t do enough to contribute to the game in other areas either, the rebounding (4) in particular was disappointing. He played 32 minutes.
The Blazers played a slow tempo and didn’t take advantage of the runners – like Aldridge. In the halfcourt they got stuck into one-on-one play and didn’t have good enough ball or player movement for most of the night. The Lakers did a superb job of limiting the Blazers high screen and rolls, and of containing Brandon Roy’s influence.
Brandon Roy missed his first 9 shots and didn’t score until late in the third quarter. He finished 5-15 from the floor for 14 points, 5 assists, 3 rebounds and 3 steals. He played with good poise throughout and didn’t let his struggles effect the way he played.
The two leading scorers for the Blazers were Travis Outlaw and Rudy Fernandez. Outlaw had 18 points on 8-15 shooting while Rudy finished with 16 points on 5-10 shooting. Rudy had an impressive debut. Outlaw was a mixed bag on the night, not enough contributions outside of scoring.
The Blazers made it to the line only 14 times against 84 field goal attempts. Greg Oden’s limited action meant he only got 2 FTs, missed both. The whole starting frontcourt failed to make a FT, the forwards not even getting an attempt. The backup frontcourt fared no better, they didn’t make a FT until garbage time when Diogu went 2-2 from the stripe. That put a lot of pressure on the backcourt to penetrate and draw fouls which they failed at, not surprising.
The Lakers beat Portland on the boards 49-44 and so they should when Portland miss 13 more shots than they do.
Portland shot a poor 34% from the field making 29-84 field goal attempts. They had 19 assists on those 29 baskets. They were 10-24 from three … Roy, Outlaw, Blake, Rudy all making 2-3 three pointers …. and only 8-14 from the line.
The Lakers shot 47% from the field going 37-79 from the floor. They had 19 assists on 37 baskets, were 7-10 from downtown and 15-18 from the line.
Kobe Bryant led the Lakers with 23 points, 11 rebounds, 5 dimes but also had 5 turnovers. He took over in the third quarter and put the game on ice. Portland had no answer for him.
Drats, I missed the first 6 minutes of the opening quarter.
First Quarter
The Cavs lead 16-6 after two Big Z FTs
The Cavs employing some backcourt pressure, KG brings the ball up, Celtics handle the backcourt pressure well.
Big Ben moving well on that first play. Hope that’s a sign for the rest of the season. Looks more mobile and active than he did last season. Maybe it’s just the fresh legs on opening night.
Boston just 3-13 from the field as eddie House misses a wide open three pointer
LeBron and Wallace switching very well, LeBron handling KG in the post, Wallace ignores Pierce and cheats over to KG but stays far enough away not to trap KG, KG passes over the top to Paul at the top of the key, Pierce slices his way through the paint, and finishes the layup.
Wow …. Mo Williams plus Z run the high screen and roll on the left wing, C’s force him along the sideline, Mo passes up to Z who has popped out to the top of the key, Mo avoiding the trap, LeBron is on the right wing, cuts immediately, Z finds him with a lob pass over the top, LeBron just soars in the air, grabs the ball, thinks about coming back down, changes his mind and lays it in on his way back down.
Pierce scores again, that’s 9 points for Pierce. The rest of the C’s have only 2.
LeBron is currently at power forward. Wally and and Delonte out there with mo and Z. Doc is keeping Pierce on James, while KG is on Wally World.
Leon Powe with a pair of massive buckets to lead a 7-0 Celtics run.
Sczcerbiak nails a 19 footer left elbow extended off the pass from LeBron out of the post
Leon Powe below left elbow, he faces up Varejao, drives left, fallaway, misses
Wally with a steal, passes ahead to LeBron, dunk
Garnett scores his third bucket of the quarter, a nice fallaway off the left box in the middle of the lane.
Lovely drive and dish to Varejao for the reverse layup
Celtics hold for the final shot, Pierce yo-yo-ing at the top of the key, drives right, step back J from 16 feet just above the FT line, hits it
Second Quarter
Eddie House with a catch and shoot from 18 feet top of the key, nails it
Ray Allen is at small forward and leading the second unit. As expected the rest of the unit is House/Tony in the backcourt and Leon/Davis as the bigs.
Cavs lead 28-24 after the first minute of the second unit
Cavs playing Delonte West, Danny Gibson, Pavlovic, Wally, Varejao
Eddie House stealing the pass in the backcourt, he saves it at midcourt back to Powe, Powe to Tony, Tony dribbling up court, Eddie stops at the three point line on the right wing, Tony kicks it over to him, miss
Now Gibson steals a pass in the backcourt, pass ahead to Varejao, he’s fouled under the hoop on his way up.
Tony Allen driving in from the left wing, slamming into his defender and finishing with a soft touch in the middle of the paint.
Tony Allen mid post left wing, Wally on him, Tony spins towards the middle on the catch and is fouled immediately by Wally. Tony Allen is far too quick for Wally to check him, won’t work, Tony will light him up. Allen makes two FTs.
Lorenzon Wright is playing for the Cavs. Fratello tells the story of Hickson being late for something and being punished to the tune of his spot in the rotation
Gibson drives into the paint, throws a poor pass, Wright fumbles it on the catch, fumbles it again on the way up, it falls across to the other side of the paint back to Gibson, Gibson finishes and is fouled. Lucky play.
Timeout
Cavs leading 37-28
House and Allen are 2-9 off the bench for the Celtics, make that 2-10 as Tony misses a three
Wright with a line drive fallaway despite being wide open from 15 feet, he almost broke the back of the rim with that one. Ugly shot.
Both teams second units are getting a good run here in the second half. Halfway through the second, the C’s big duo re-enter the game. Cavs bring back a couple of starters, keep LeBron on the bench. Feels weird after seeing LBJ play so many minutes in the last 7 games these two have played.
Rondo breaks the backcourt pressure, long pass ahead, Rondo pushes it up, gets into the paint, finds Davis, layup
Ray Allen didn’t tough the ball often enough, or get enough shots in that lineup. Disappointing.
KG on the steal, Ben Wallace tried dribbling the ball, breakaway layup for Rondo
Pierce driving hard on the quick push off the defensive rebound, he’s fouled by James on his up and under along the baseline in midair, makes two at the line
Ben Wallace not staying with Pierce long enough after showing on the screen and roll, KG cuts to the rim, nice bounce pass by Pierce, KG misses the easy one, rebound Wallace
Three plus minutes to play in the half
Rondo smacked hard by Ben Wallace, lands hard on his shoulder, he looks in some pain, his teammates pull him up
Ray Allen has played the whole half so far
Pierce with another buzzer beater, this time a fallaway
Lovely lob from Delonte West out above the three point line, to LBJ cutting along the baseline for the alley oop slam
Celtics hold it for a final shot, Rondo to KG in the right corner, misses the long J
Halftime
Cavs lead 50-43
The Cavs leading 21-18 on the backboards
Cleveland have 11 assists on their 15 baskets, on 32 attempts for 47% shooting. They are 1-6 from downtown and 19-22 from the FT line. The Cavs getting a big boost on their FTs.
Boston have 7 assists on 17 baskets, on 42 attempts for 40.5% shooting. They are 0-9 from three and 9-13 from the line.
The Celtics 6 turnovers have cost them 7 points. The Cavs have 8 turnovers, costing them 5 points.
Celtics leading 24-16 on points in the paint
Cleveland’s bench outscored Boston 19-13
Third Quarter
Cavs lead 50-43
LeBron in the low post left block, triple teamed, jumps out, Pierce doesn’t go with him, turns and shoots from 16 feet, misses, Z tips the rebound, Garnett tips it away, ball about to go out of bounds on the corner, Rondo runs it down and saves it. Great hustle from KG and Rondo.
Ray Allen nails a three
Garnett left open by Wallace, 18 footer right elbow extended missed. I don’t know why Wallace cheated down to block Rondo’s potential layup, James was right there shadowing Rondo, no way was Rondo getting a clean look at the hoop.
Celtics open up on an 8-2 run off the Perk hoop
Mo Williams missing a good look from 19 feet off the high screen and roll, rebound Pierce, he dribbles out, passes ahead to Rondo, Rondo looks to take it to the rim, gets fouled hard. Second hard fall from Rajon Rondo.
KG left right wing, facing up LBJ, thinks better of it and decides to try to back LeBron down, fails to do so, passes out to Pierce, Pierce gets Wallace to bite on the pump fake, gets the jumper, misses
Pierce on the fastbreak, slowly manevouring into the paint, draws the blocking foul on Wallace, Pierce shoots two, makes two.
Celtics have their first lead of the night
Ilgauskas throwing up an odd shot, falling over as he flung that one in off the backboard
Celtics turn it over, first turnover after 14 minutes … Z gives it right back to Boston on the travel, KG gives it right back with a travel of his own after changing his pivot foot in the low post.
Mo Williams nailing a three point from the left wing putting Cleveland back on top
KG knocking down the long deuce on the left wing
Pierce has Mo Williams stuck on him after the quick push, he takes his time, waits for the floor to set up, they clear out, he drives, now backs down Mo, waits for the help to cheat over, they do, Powe cuts under the rim, Pierce finds him, layup
Wally called for a holding foul, using his hands. Sideline in, Powe attacks again, pass off to Rondo, turnover.
59-59 with four and a half minutes to play
Cavs turn it over, Ray Allen stealing an errant pass
KG misses a left wing 19 footer (nearer the baseline), he has missed 6 straight shots
Bron driving to the rim, finishing a tough one in a crowd of four defenders.
Back inside to Leon Powe, Cleveland double on the catch, back out to KG, 19 footer left wing (nearer center), misses
Cleveland running a 1-3 screen with Gibson and James, pick and pop, James from 21 feet top of the key, makes it. Oh, James is at power forward now. I love seeing James set picks for the Cavs guards, extremely difficult to defend against.
Lovely pass to KG who was rolling to the hoop, Garnett looks to get an easy one, fouled.
Timeout
KG misses the first, misses the second. He’s struggling right now. I expect he’ll find the range before the game ends.
Pierce has 19 points on 7-12 shooting. James has 16 points on 7-15 shooting.
Pierce knocks down a triple
Varejao taking a falllaway from 15 feet, off balance, in and out. Don’t like that shot.
Little shake and bake to the right, flies left, jumper, hits it. He’s now 9-14 from the floor.
Gibson dribbled the ball for 21 seconds before firing off a tough 22 footer off the bounce. Great defense by Rondo to stop Gibson from initiating the offense.
The Cavs have now made back to back fouls in the backcourt. Horrible. Mike Brown must be chewing on his tongue right now. Cleveland need to regain their composure, they’re ragged and are lacking focus.
Gibson with a lovely floater late in the shot clock, doesn’t go …. offensive foul Rondo for pushing off on the fastbreak
Boston leading 67-63
Boston look in much better shape right now. They have all the momentum, all the focus and are playing with more energy.
Rondo getting inside Gibson’s shirt down on the baseline, Gibson fakes right, drives left, gets the baseline, is fouled. Rondo a bit too close on that possession.
Wright misses a 18 footer at the end of the shot clock
Boston end the quarter on a 8-0 run
Fourth Quarter
Celtics push the lead to 72-66
Tony Allen with the defensive rebound, almost gets the offensive rebound on the other end when Davis misses a 18 footer right wing. Bad shot for BBD to take. Pavlovic cuts the lead to four on the opposite end.
Tony Allen to the rim, beats his man (West) easily on the high pick and roll, gets the contact on his drive, gets the foul and finishes. Allen doing a good job of taking it to the hole to start the fourth.
Pavlovic takes a pull up J off the bounce, misses. He has all of Cleveland’s 5 points in the first three minutes of the fourth. Cavs offense looks very weak without James there.
Leon Powe with the facial, wow, he cocked that ball and jammed it down hard on West’s head. Jeez, don’t see Leon get up like that often.
Timeout
Gibson and Williams miss two three pointers
Davis again from outside, 19 footer top of the key, misses, loose ball foul on Powe
Williams creates the turnover, Z comes up with it, back to Williams, Williams with the hard push, finds Varejao for the layup, he makes it and the foul, misses, Z taps it out of bounds.
7 minutes to go in the fourth
Boston lead 76-70
Tony Allen iso on the left wing against James, drives hard left, pull up J off the bounce from 14 feet, hits it. Great pull up J from Allen, he left James frozen, very quick.
James fouled, shoots two, Celtics in teh penalty, James misses the first but makes the second.
James posts up inside, doubled, forced outside, he drives, fallaway, misses, offensive rebound Varejao. Cavs post up Z, Perk fouls Z, didn’t see that. Perk had done everything right defensively on that possession to that point.
Turnover at halfcourt, Rondo picked Williams pocket, Williams runs back, fouls Rondo on the layup, Williams comes up limping. He’s alright
Rondo with another steal, fastbreak, he leads the pack, Z close by, he uses his behind the back pass fake, layup, missed … James goes the other way and scores.
Boston lead 82-78 with three thirty to play
James called for a travel. That’s the 21st turnover of the game for the Cavs.
Great defense by James to contest that fallaway from Pierce of the bounce, miss, offensive rebound.
Ray makes one of two at the line
Cavs only 3-7 on FTs in the fourth. Their FT shooting causes them a lot of problems.
Ray Allen iso against Delonte, working one on one, takes too much time, the late help from James, blocks Rays turnaround J, turnover, fastbreak the otehr way, pass back to James, slam dunk
Pierce working his way into the paint, finds KG for the open J from 16 feet left baseline, nails it
James misses a three, loose ball foul on Z going over the back
Boston lead 85-80 with 1:36 to play. James shouldn’t be shooting threes, easy two pointers. Celtics make one of two at the line.
Williams with a tough three from the left wing, nails it. Cuts the lead in half.
Pierce drives on James, throws a bullet pass to Leon, Leon barely makes the catch, has to force it, miss
James on the drive, off the glass, misses … huge miss … Ray Allen runs the other way, nothing on (great D by Mo Williams to stop the transition basket), pulls it back out, timeout.
27 seconds to go
Pierce misses, the Cavs switched the pick and roll and left Varejao to defend Pierce, defensive rebound James. Timeout
Three point game. What will the Cavs do? Go for a quick two or a tie? They’ve settled for three pointers here in the fourth.
Inbounds to LeBron, top of the key, drives left on Pierce, fouled, KG ties him up, foul first, foul on Pierce. He thought about that three after the catch, but instead took it to the line. James misses the first, makes the second. James is only 3-6 from the FT line now. Two point lead, only 10.6 seconds to play. Celtics inbounds, playing keep away, KG to Pierce, up ahead to Powe, dunk and the foul. Game Over.
The game is tied at 5-5 after a John Salmons three pointer, make that 7-7 after Yao and Martin trade hoops
Tracy McGrady has lined up tonight and that’s the chief reason why I’ve tuned into this game. McGrady has played only one game, really only the equivalent of a quarter, so there’s still a huge number of questions about how Rockets are going to fit alongside one another this season.
Brooks has started in place of Rafer Alston. While the Kings start Spencer Hawes instead of Brad Miller. I didn’t know Rafer wasn’t going to play (attending to his DUI charge from the summer before last), that’s a pity.
Ron Artest defensive rebound, he brings it up at a slow tempo, Tracy sprints to the low post and gets good position on Kevin Martin, Artest decides to feed Tracy instead of getting Houston into one of their sets, Tracy turns and faces up Martin, spends about 4-5 seconds looking at Kevin before making a move, followed by a passive drive and pass out …. wasted opportunity. Artest draws a foul and makes some FTs.
Bobby Brown back irons a 16 footer, nice curl off a screen and pass by Martin to get Brown that look.
Artest has started strong and is causing the Kings big problems
Timeout … Rockets lead 17-9
Spencer Hawes knocks down a three pointer out of the timeout
Tracy posts up left block, spins middle and hits the hook shot. Nice play by Tracy. Next possession, Tracy posts up on the same spot, Sacramento send the double on the catch, Tracy jumps off the block, then spins baseline, and throws up a fancy reverse layup, misses. Nice move though.
Tracy right wing, drives inside, passes out to Scola in the corner, Scola drives left towards the middle, defense collapses, Scola finds Brooks open in the opposite corner, three pointer on the way, missed, offensive rebound and putback McGrady.
John Salmons driving left on McGrady, spinning right, and muscling up a shot in traffic, Tracy staying with him the whole way and rips the ball loose, turnover. Good defense by McGrady.
Mikki Moore with an excellent block on the recovery, it looked like Scola had an open 16 footer along the baseline but Moore’s hustle stopped the shot. Rockets inbound to Scola left elbow extended (18 feet), he fakes the shot, Moore jumps three feet up in the air arms extended trying to get another block, Scola drives by him and drives the ball. Way to cancel out a good defensive ….. Moore can’t be doing that, otherwise it’s a long season for the Kings in the paint.
Brooks and Tracy get visibly confused on the play, neither knew who was meant to cut or in what direction, or what the other should do … the result is Houston had three players within 6 feet of each other along the left sideline, all indecisiveness and stagnant and wasting precious seconds of the shot clock away.
Yao came up limping late in the quarter, he’s headed to the locker room to get himself checked out
Second Quarter
Rockets leading 34-25 … 34-28 after a Martin three pointer, next possession turns into a breakaway layup for the Kings to cut the lead back to four.
This is how the whole game has gone so far, Houston makes the initial run and opens up a lead, then Sacramento fight back and make it close, only for Houston to spurt ahead again.
Martin bags another three
Head misses a wide open J from 18 feet top of the key …. Kings defensive rebound, slow to break out, now Martin turns on the jets along the left wing, and takes a leaning one hander from about 15 feet down the left wing finishing up with a baseline shot, misses.
Jason Thompson posts up Hayes inside, he turns and tries to dunk it home over the top, fouled
Yao checks back in. He must be fine. You’d expect Houston to hold him out as a precautionary measure, it’s only preseason after all. Tracy McGrady has also checked back in. Yao posts up inside, he has great position four feet from the rim, quick hook shot, rolls out.
Timeout
Tracy knifing into the paint, not elevating the way he wanted to, misses the layup, comes up with a slight limp but shakes it off as he runs back on defense.
Martin and Hawes run the pick and pop, Hawes ruins a shooting opportunity by being over aggressive on the drive after a good ball fake, he passes it back out to Martin, jumper from 18 feet right wing, misses
The Kings have stolen the lead and are ahead 49-47
John Salmons slicing into the paint for another two
Tracy low post on Martin, turns baseline, pump fake, Martin buys, up and under, scores it. He’s grimmacing all the way back court. He’s in pain. Adelman needs to pull him out of the game.
Bobby Brown nailing a three pointer to extend the lead …. Rockets turnover, Thompson steals the ball, leads the break the other way, fouled in the backcourt.
Timeout … final minute
Hawes hits a 19 footer right elbow extended out of the timeout
Tracy posts up left post, turns middle for the fallaway, hits it
Thompson replies with a quick basket in the paint on the other end. Sacramento are scoring easily against the Rockets.
Halftime
Kings lead 60-51
The Kings have been led offensively by three players – Kevin Martin, John Salmons and Spencer Hawes. Hawes had a very productive half with 13 points and 9 rebounds in 19 minutes. Martin leads the squad with 14 points and has been their most threatening offensive player. Salmons has 10, 5 and 3.
Kings lead 21-16 on the backboards …. unusual for Houston to get beat on the backboards, especially by a poor rebounding squad.
Jason Thompson and Bobby Jackson did great work in the second quarter to help spark the rally that saw them take back the lead. Thompson’s size and athleticism is causing Houston some problems. The Kings offense looked under better control with Jackson at the helm.
The Kings have 15 assists on 23 baskets on 49 attempts for 47% shooting, plus they are 5-11 from downtown and 9-9 at the line.
The Rockets have only 9 assists on 20 baskets, and most importantly have taken only 36 attempts for 55% shooting. That’s 13 less shot attempts than Sacramento. Houston are 3-7 from three and 10-11 from the line.
The Rockets have 12 turnovers costing them 10 points. The Kings have only 7 turnovers costing them 10 points.
That’s 5 turnovers, 2 FTs, adding up to 6 possessions. That leaves 7 more possessions unaccounted for, I assume the rebounding difference accounts for most of that.
Sacramento lead 13-2 in second chance points … that’s basically the difference in the game. The Kins also lead 12-7 in fastbreak points. I didn’t see a stat for points in the paint but Houston were up big early in the second, Kings likely made some headway on that in the remainder of the quarter.
Third Quarter
Nice high low pass from Scola to Yao for the flush.
Hawes with a great effort on the defensive glass to knock that loose rebound away from Houston, then scramble to the corner to come away with possession.
Wow …. that’s a rebound …. the long arm of Hawes reached about a foot over the top of Scola for the offensive rebound, he pulled it down with one hand while jumping around Scola to the underside of the backboard, and then finished on the other side of the rim. Great play.
Tracy on the isolation along the right wing, faces up from 17 feet, takes the jumper, makes the jumper
Kings leading 71-66 as we near the halfway point in the quarter. Both teams trading misses, must be five or six possessions now since we had a made shot.
Hawes posting up inside, on the right box, spinning baseline and flipping up a hook/leaner, missing
Excellent offensive rebound by Mikki Moore, great burst of pace from the right elbow to the left side of the rim, jumping up and stealing away the rebound, passes out to Hawes, 15 footer along the baseline, makes the shot
Timeout
Both teams are trading scores over the past four minutes …. Kings leading 80-74 as we enter the final minute and a half of the third.
Yao with a nice spin move baseline, layup, fouled, makes two at the line.
Fourth Quarter
Landry making a good cut to the hoop, fouled on the way, finishes and hits the FT. The Rockets have made an 11-4 run to open up the fourth to steal back the lead. They should be able to seal this win from here.
Jason Thompson is playing some small forward right now alongside Shelden Williams and Spencer Hawes. Bobby Brown and Bobby Jackson are in the backcourt. Interesting lineup.
Turnover, Kings run out, Hawes is leading the break, Barry tries to draw the charge, Hawes almost runs him over but shows just enough body balance in mid air to glide past Barry. Kings score off his miss.
Turnover Houston again, Kings post up Thompson left block, turns middle for the hook shot, hits it
Hawes drives through the lane on Hayes, passes off to Williams, Williams muscles up a layup in traffic, great look, misses it.
The Rockets frontcourt is Artest, Landry, Hayes …. they look tiny next to the Kings long big men of Hawes and Thompson. The Rockets trio are all physically very strong and good post defenders so this will still be difficult for the Kings to capitalize on. Let’s see how they do, it’ll tell a lot about where either one of them is. The less Shelden Williams touches the ball the better.
Brent Barry hitting a three pointer right wing off the pass from Scola
The Kings have brought Kevin Martin back in. Good opportunity for Martin to show his mantle as a late fourth quarter scoring option.
Hawes posts up Hayes, goes nowhere, Hayes bodied him up comfortably until Hawes passed out. A couple of passes later Salmons scores the bucket for Sacramento.
Martin runs the pick and roll with Hawes along the left sideline, Martin drives baseline, bounce pass back to Hawes, Hawes looses control of the ball, turnover … Rockets throw it away on the break. Salmons comes back down and nails a jumper.
Rockets miss … Kings run, Martin stops and pops from three, misses. Martin went for a backbreaking shot to half the lead …. should have driven the ball and cut it to four. There’s still 2:40 left on the clock, plenty of time, no reason to be looking for shortcuts.
Silly foul on Landry after the missed three, timeout Houston, Landry makes some FTs and extends the lead to 8. Kevin Martin has been punished severely for his poor decision on that shot.
This game is over. Rockets win a close one in Sacramento. The Kings gave a good showing of themselves tonight.
Wilson Chandler on the fastbreak driving left from the left wing on Yi and finishing the contested driving layup. Yi replies right back with a driving layup of his own.
Harris using a high screen and roll, turns right and drives into the paint, goes up for the floater, changes his mind in mid-air and forces a dumb pass which doesn’t make it’s mark, turnover.
Yi doing a good trapping Wilson along the baseline, giving him no angle to move back out into space, Chandler throws a pass off the jump out to the top of the key, turnover.
Brook Lopez defending Zach Randolph in the low post, Zach on the left box, holding his position well, Zach spins baseline for the lefty hook, Lopez blocks the shot and it goes out of bounds of Randolph
Chris Duhon playing the passing lanes and stealing pass over to Harris on the left wing, breakaway layup for Duhon …. New Jersey’s Yi throws a quick pass out to Harris on the inbounds, Harris has about 10 feet on Duhon, he turns on the acceleration, blazes up court, gets to the rim and finishes plus the foul.
New Jersey showing some backcourt pressure, Chandler brings the ball up easily
Richardson nails a three pointer. That’s either his second or third long jumper of the night.
Chandler jumping over everyone to snare the defensive rebound, dribbles off the board and subsequently makes the quick pass ahead
Bad pass by Simmons over to Carter, Carter fumbles the catch as a result, Quentin Richardson could have stolen that if he was trying to, Carter gets control and nails the 20 footer.
Harris draws another foul, he went right to the rim on the quick push off the outlet pass from Carter. Harris has drawn three or four fouls in the first 6 minutes.
Duhon fakes the screen, drives the other way, loses all the defenders, help D pops over from the weakside, he throws a poor pass (too slow) to Richardson in the corner, three pointer on the way, misses. The pass allowed two Nets to run Richardson down and get a hand up in his face.
Brook Lopez with a strong finish dunking home with two hands
Stephon with an excellent long pass ahead to Nate, he threw that pass about 60 feet ahead right on the money, Robinson makes the layup, Simmons runs into him … and I mean runs into rather than tries to foul him, while Robinson takes the layup, foul.
Steph drive and kick to Duhon in the corner, Duhon drives left, gets into the paint and hits the lefty runner
Yi misses the 20 footer from the left elbow extended
Knicks move the ball well, Nate Robinson ends up with an open three pointer top of the key, hits the shot. Next possession, Nate leads the break, passes left to Steph, Nate runs behind him and pops up from three, Steph passes back to Nate, three pointer on the way, good.
Yi showing his sweet stroke from 19 feet on the right wing
Chandler doubles Carter on the dribble, Carter fumbles the ball, falls over, falls on top of the basketball, gets rid of it to Yi before any Knick dives on him trying to earn a jump ball, Yi swings it to the opposite wing to Harris, Harris penetrates again and hits the layup
Stephon has four assists in his first three minutes on the court. Richardson did hit three three pointers early in the game (was unsure on one of them), and Chandler has 8 points.
Stephon dribbles upcourt, lax defense, stops and pops from 20 feet left wing, nails it
Final minute of the quarter, Steph drives left, passes it backwards between two defenders to Zach Randolph for the 9 footer, misses, offensive rebound Randolph, puts it home on the second attempt. Next possession Steph cuts backcourt, bad pass, he saves it from going out of bounds and makes a good kickout pass, Knicks swing it once from the right wing to the sideline, Nate drains another three pointer.
Knicks lead 36-29
Second Quarter
Sean Williams backs down Randolph on the left block, Randolph pulls the rug, Williams travels as he stumbles backwards.
Collins with the lovely give and go with Curry or Rose, Collins passed from inside micourt to Curry/Rose on the right elbow, ran for the hand off all the way to the rim and dunked it home plus the foul. He celebrates with a chest bump awfterwards.
Curry drawing a quick foul on Williams inside. Eddy has a lot of heft on young Williams. Sean Williams looks particularly sleepy eyed tonight on that TV closeup.
Knicks ahead 41-31 after two minutes in the second
Nate Robinson is fouled on a corner three pointer, hits it and makes the FT to give a four point play. Eddie Gill hit Nate’s elbow on the way up. It was right in front of the Knicks bench and they’re going crazy. On the previous possession Nate sneaked is way into the paint and had an offensive rebound fall directly into his layup which he immetiately turned into a layup.
Brook Lopez has looked good so far. He looks like he can make a useful contribution on both ends and the backboards …. he likes to stay in the paint and consistently fights for position down in the paint offensively either to post up or hit the glass, and I like that. He knows where his money is earned.
Yi refuses to throw the post entry pass to Lopez, turns right towards the middle tries to get the ball to Gill, can’t, now can. Not wild about Yi not making that pass.
Vince Carter doesn’t give Brook Lopez enough time to set up for the high screen, Brook reaches over to set the pick, by some miracle Vince drove so far right that Brook couldn’t even hit the defender, that was a moving screen waiting to happen, Vince drives, gets to the rim, dunk, misses the easy stuff.
Zach Randolph defensive rebound, he brings the ball up court, now finds a guard, himself and Eddy Curry get muddled up and end up in each others way with both trying to play on the left post … the Knicks possession never recovers from the 4-5 seconds they blew while Curry tried to find a place to stand.
Brook Lopez looks to drive, Curry jumps out and chest bumps Lopez sending Brook backwards, he hits the fallaway and gets the foul. Close call on the foul on Curry, replay shows he had better position than I initially thought (feet set) but his chest is still moving outwards (leans forward to create contact).
Nobody picks up Lopez on the slow break, Lopez wide open underneath the rim, still nobody notices him, now Vince Carter does, slam dunk.
Vince Carter with a heads up play, seeing his big man was in trouble and about to force a low percentage shot, Carter ran baseline and hit the offensive glass coming with the rebound (air ball) and slamming it back home in one motion.
Knicks ahead 53-46 with three and a half minutes to play in the first half
Zach Randolph right box, drives left and throws up a running left hook, misses …. Brook Lopez’s length bothered him no end on that attempt. Knicks get an offensive rebound, Zach runs into his teammate after the rebound, allowing four Nets to collapse around him from all angles, turnover. What was Zach doing there?
Duhon deflects the pass into the halfcourt, looks like it’s going out of bounds, Duhon sprints and runs it down, drives down the left wing, 2-on-2, Chandler trails the play, Duhon passes back to Wilson for the lound slam.
Quentin Richardson throws a ridiculously poor pass, a high looping pass that was behind where Zach was running to, turnover. Just wait for your big men to establish position, then make the pass. Very poor play.
Randolph nails a three pointer late in the half to put NY up 12 points
Duhon making a stupid play, jumping up at Gill’s pump faked three pointer 27 feet from the rim with the clock about to expire. He’ll shoot three.
Halftime
The Knicks are ahead 22-16 on the backboards
New York have 16 assists on 24 baskets, on 54.4% shooting (24-44). They are also 9-17 (53%) from three, and 10-12 from the FT line.
New Jersey have 9 assists on 20 baskets, on 51% shooting (20-39). They are also 3-7 from downtown and 15-18 from the FT line.
The Nets 11 turnovers have cost them 15 points …. while the Knicks 10 turnovers have cost them 9 points.
Nate Robinson leads all Knicks scorers with 17 first half points on 6-8 shooting, including four three pointers. Richardson and Chandler are second with 12 points apiece. Duhon and Randolph lead the Knicks on the backboards with 5 boards each, while Marbury leads them in assists with four.
Devin Harris leads New Jersey with 17 points of his own. He’s been able to beat the Knicks off the bounce at will, and has both (a) gotten to the basket (b) and drawn fouls at an impressive rate. Carter, Simmons and Lopez all have 8-9 points, while Eddie Gill has 7 points off the bench. Lopez and Carter lead the team in rebounding with 4 boards apiece …. Carter has filled the stat sheet in the first half with 9 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists (team leading), 2 steals and 1 block.
Second Half
New York lead 67-58
A sloppy start to the second half
Harris with a quality drive and kick to Yi on the baseline, wide open 18 footer, missed
I just realized David Lee hasn’t played tonight. He’s in street clothes, god I’m slow tonight. New York are doing well, especially considering they’re without Lee.
Yi doing a good job hustling to the offensive glass and stealing away a rebound, fouled on the putback, makes one of two at the line
Knicks lead 72-67 as we near the halfway mark of the third quarter, lot of missed shots from both sides …. Richardson makes a three pointer to draw a timeout out of Lawrence Frank
Harris almost air balls a three pointer, just caught the underside of the rim. It wasn’t contested but was taken off the dribble.
Yi looks to post up Simmons, takes 4 seconds to get him the ball and gives it to him in a bad position (both Yi and Simmons at fault for that). Nets get nothing from the play.
Steph with a nice drive to the cut, finishing a 7 point NY run to put them up by 14 points, timeout NJ
Three minutes to play in the third
Sean Williams misses a short hook, New York fumble the rebound, Williams steals it, waits for some space to clear out as he stands on the right block, now posts up, Randolph spins middle and draws the foul on his fallaway. Williams makes two of two.
Final minute
Eddie Gill hits a three. Knicks come back down, Stephon forces the drive and jumps into three players, he picks up the charge, good play by Najera. New Jersey struggle to inbound the ball against the defensive backcourt pressure, now do to CDR, he struggles with his handle against Steph, now gets rid of it, passes to Ryan Anderson, Steph called for a foul on a reach in. Anderson makes two. Chandler hits the 20 footer at the buzzer.
Fourth Quarter
Knicks lead 93-77
Knicks have this game pretty much won … all they need to do now is hold onto their lead. Unfortunately their style of play makes them vulnerable to quick runs from opposing teams … we’ll see.
Nets quietly have cut the lead from 16 to 11. The score is 97-86 with 8:40 to play. New York has just been called for an illegal defense, add a FT for Jersey, the lead is 10. Nets within striking distance. Lopez adds a long jumper to cut the gap to 8. New York’s lead has been halved in four minutes.
Jamal Crawford stops the bleeding with a long jumper left wing from 20 feet off the dribble that was contested by the defender. Seven and a half minutes to play, ten point game.
Brook Lopez throws an unwise lop pass (to Hodge), almost a turnover, Nets hold onto possession …. now Lopez is called for three seconds. Curry turns it over on the other end, so New Jersey go unpunished.
Julius Hodge driving on Crawford, going from the top of the key, to the left wing, slashing left, almost on the baseline and finishing the tough layup …. New York misses a runner, Jersey’s Hodge comes out of the paint running with the ball in his hands, pass ahead by Hodge to #13 for the fastbreak layup. Chris Duhon called for a charge on the otehr end, another turnover for Jersey. New Jersey turn it over and waste a valuable opportunity to get the lead to four. Eddy Curry posts up on the right block, spins baseline, layup, hits it. Four point swing to put NY back up 8. Timeout
New York lead 103-95 with 5 plus minutes to play
Knicks up 104-97 with 3:30 to play
Eddy Curry left block, turns and drives left along the baseline, muscles up the shot through Lopez and draws the foul. Curry is too strong for the rookie. Eddy Curry makes both FTs, that should seal the result.
Lopez’s long arms reach over the head of Curry to rebound his teammates air ball and he lays it in over Curry.
Nets close it to four points with two mintues to play, then turn the ball over after Lopez is called for his moving screen
Nate from the left wing, drives left, gets by his man, Lopez comes over to help, Nate’s teardrop falls beautifully over the long arms of Lopez.
Lopez right block, backs Curry down, turnaround in the middle of the paint, Curry gets his arm wrapped around Lopez’s arm on the way up, foul. Lopez makes both FTs.
1:20 to play, four point game, Knicks ball
Mardy Collins nails a three off of Nate’s penetration … that should seal it
Okay, I’m going to call it for the Knicks.
The Nets look like they have a long season ahead of them.
Joey Graham continues in the starting lineup for the Toronto Raptors, to the bench goes Jamario Moon.
The Lakers continue their twin towers experiment, and the Odom 6th man role experiment. Vladamir Radmanovic starts at small forward. I’d love to see Ariza get some minutes starting alongside these guys.
Andrew Bynum wins the tip
Pau Gasol posts up Bosh on the right block on the first possession, shoulder fake baseline, Bosh moves on it, spins back towards the middle, turnaround jumper, Bosh fouls him on the arm on the way up. Gasol makes two at the line.
Joey Graham in the right corner, takes two slows dribbles left and pulls up from 19 feet, miss. Next possession, Joey Graham looks to post up Radmanovic, Radmanovic gives a decent effort to front him, Joey does nothing to seal position, complete lack of effort by Graham to give his passer a target. Raptors have to try something else. Joey moves out of the left block to the left corner, Calderon gives it to him, Joey takes a bounce and shoots that 20 footer along the sideline again, misses again. Bad possession.
Anthony Parker at the top of the key, ball rotates over to him, Pau Gasol rushes out, Parker with a nice up fake to get Pau Gasol out of his way, takes a bounce, buries the open jumper from 18 feet, lovely shot. Next possession, Bosh drives from the left wing across the lane, finds Parker open out on the wing, three pointer on the way, nails it. Parker has the Raptors first five points tonight.
Bynum makes a pair of FTs
Chris Bosh left wing 16 feet out, takes a dribble right, steps back J, shoots over the top of Gasol, makes the high arcing shot
Joey Graham drives on the left hand side of the baseline, passive when the defense shows up, passes baseline, Kobe picks off his pass.
Good hands by Graham to slap Radmanovic’s shot out of his hands as he looked to take a runner on the right hand side of the lane. The ball goes out of bounds and will remain with the Lakers.
Kobe Bryant runs the screen and roll with Bynum, Bosh tries to help, Kobe goes towards the corner from the left wing, he throws the lob pass up in the air for Bynum, slam dunk.
Lakers lead 13-11 after five minutes
Radmanovic reads Graham’s pass perfectly, breakout, easy dunk. Graham is off to a poor start.
Bynum with the steal to deny the pass inside to Jermaine O Neal, Bynum’s long arms creating that play for himself.
Bryant made a beautiful crossover to blow by Parker on the right wing, Parker had no help on the baseline and had to foul to avoid the easy slam. Kobe is getting MVP chants at the FT line.
Jermaine O Neal posts up Bynum on the right box, turns middle, fallaway J, Bynum contests it well, tough shot, ball hangs on the rim, doesn’t go. If Jermaine took that shot this time last season he would have been blocked.
Screen and roll Kobe and Pau, Kobe drops the pass between Bosh and Parker as Chris comes up top on the screen, Pau makes the catch at the left elbow, Jermaine comes across, lob to Bynum on the opposite of the rim, Bynum had to take it down and go back up, mistimed his jump, Raps foul to avoid the dunk. Nice passing by LA.
Bynum doesn’t have the pass open, he’s 16 feet out along the left baseline, takes one dribble right and turns his back to Jermaine, posts up Jermaine, looks to re-post, sends the ball out and quickly gets it back, backs Jermaine down, Jermaine holds his ground well, help from the blindside, steal Raptors … fastbreak going the other way, Toronto blow the easy opportunity. Turnover Raps. Should have been a layup.
Kobe flies by Parker off the dribble from the top of the key all the way down the middle of the paint for a reverse layup. No help defense. Too easy.
Kobe picks off another pass, breakaway dunk. Kobe was defending his man in the corner, Jose was doubled on the screen and roll, forced wide to the right wing, passed back to Bosh near the top of the key, Kobe cheated over and anticipated the pass beautifully to create the steal.
Bynum jumps over Bosh and Jermaine to pull down the defensive rebound, the man’s huge
Lakers double up on Toronto, lead 22-11, make that 23-11
Lakers backcourt pressure, Jamario Moon bringing it up, they trap Moon, he almost turns it over … lucky boy on that pass. Raptors get into the halfcourt, pass down low to Jermaine O Neal, Bynum defending him still, Jermaine takes the turnaround from a 45 degree angle and hits off glass. Nice basket.
Alley oop pass from Radmanovic on the left wing to the cutting Andrew Bynum, Bynum had to turn around (back to basket) in mid air to make the catch, pass a bit slow, and throws down a reverse slam.
Moon takes a quick shot from 17 feet along the baseline, misses. Too early in the shot clock to be going for that shot.
Bynum pins Bosh down in the paint, four feet out, easy shot, hook shot easily over Bosh, misses. Good work by Bynum to create the shot but he missed the easy two.
Timeout
Raptors starting to get back into it now
Lamar Odom posts up Bosh left box, fadeaway along the baseline, he took the shot instantly off the catch, side rims.
Bosh drawing fouls on back to back possessions. The first was a drive, the second was running the break and establishing low position to bother the defense.
Ariza nails the 17 footer baseline as the Lakers swing the ball from left sideline, to the right wing down to the baseline to Ariza. Next possession, Ariza left open in the left corner … Jamario Moon is gambling all over the place on the last few possessions. Sam Mitchell has obviously has told him to double off of Ariza and try to create havoc for the Lakers ….. Ariza makes the catch on the left wing, head fake, drives into the paint and finishes at the rim.
Bosh bringing the ball up court on the break, waits for some teammates to fill the lanes, he’s on the left wing, Moon through the middle, nice pass by Bosh, Moon layup, blows it. Should have dunked that.
Second Quarter
Lakers lead 29-20
Lakers show some backcourt pressure, Farmer picks up a quick foul, sideline inbounds, Lakers keep the backcourt pressure, Kapono brings it up as Ariza looks to trap off of him giving him a lot of space to work with. Disrupts the Raps offense, never looked organized offensively.
Pau Gasol spins baseline off the right block, uses the rim to protect his shot from his defender, reverse layup, Moon blocks the layup. Good weakside help from Jamario Moon.
Humphries right underneath the hoop, nice cut and pass, Walton bothers his shot, misses the bunny, Moon rebounds, Gasol alters it, Moon misses, rebounds his miss, goes back up, Ariza blocks it and the Lakers are off running the other way.
Ukic with a clever drive and finish
Pau Gasol left post, Gasol doubled, Gasol turns and passes over the top of Toronto to the cutting Lamar Odom on the weakside, Odom is fouled on his inside shot.
I don’t know why the Raptors are double teaming so much. They’re hurting themselves right now. The Lakers are too good of a passing team to double like this.
Bargnani with a quick turnaround J baseline out of the left post, misses
Once again the Raps double Gasol, Pau passes over the top to Luke Walton, layup … too easy
Ukic not looking to pass, looks to take his man off the bounce, and he does, taking Jordan off the dribble into the paint and drawing a foul. He looks like a good penetrator.
Farmer returns the favour on the other end, drawing the foul on Ukic as he jumps into him on a midrange runner off the dribble
Graham puts his head down and drives left on Walton from the right wing, Walton can’t get into position and is called for a blocking foul.
Kapono makes a bad pass out to Ukic off his drive, as he got caught in mid air under the hoop, passes it to Ukic’s shins, turnover, foul on the fastbreak, Farmer makes one of two. Clear path foul Lakers retain possession. Kapono shouldn’t be trying to make plays like that.
Will Solomon enters the game for Ukic
Joey trying to create of the dribble, has it knocked loose, it’s on the floor in between Graham’s legs, nobody can get hold of it, Lakers defense gets off balance trying to steal the ball, Graham open path to the rim as he finally gets hold of the ball, goes straight up strongly and draws the foul on Walton’s reach in. Luke’s defense has been very poor so far tonight.
Lakers lead 36-25
Graham with an acrobatic (needlessly so) defensive rebound. He did that little kickout like Rodman used to.
Josh Powell enters the fray
Raptors struggle to inbound the ball against the backcourt pressure, finally get it in when Graham intelligently runs the baseline to get a better angle. Touch pass back to Graham, he brings it up court.
Graham taking it up against pressure, trapped by Powell, turnover, Lakers two on one, Graham does an excellent job contesting the shot at the rim, miss, Raps rebound. Toronto not punished for that miscue. Graham should have passed ahead to Bosh once Powell lagged off him to trap, bad mistake … but an excellent recovery by Graham, he didn’t give up on the play.
Ronnie Lestor (assistant GM) gives a very good interview. One point of note is that the Lakers hope to make some roster decisions/cuts in the next 3-4 days.
Ariza hits the long J from the top of the key
Calderon had a beautiful pass to Bosh for an easy slam a few moments ago.
Calderon pressuring Farmer, knocks his dribble into the backcourt, Farmer gets it back, turns and runs right at Calderon from 50 feet out, getting the step on Calderon inside of 10 feet and running all the way to the rim for the layu
Timeout
Bosh with a nice move inside, faked left, went right, draws the foul and hits the shot near the hoop.
Lakers lead 44-34 with 5 minutes to play
Lakers third string on the floor now. Mihm and Powell their only rotation regulars. Three perimeter guys (Karl, Crawford, Heath) who may be gone in a few days.
Bargnani out on the right wing, Mihm a bit of a distance away, Bargnani refuses to settle for the jumper, instead drives baseline on Mihm, jumps into Mihm, and finshes the reverse layup, plus the foul and he makes the free throw to complete the three point play
Powell deflecting Bargnani’s high-low pass to Bosh, turnover
Chris Mihm has been very active in the paint, lot of good shots, couple of offensive rebounds … but he keeps missing these shots he’s creating.
Joey Graham with a nasty dunk over Chris Mihm on the other end. Good powerful play by Joey Graham.
Lakers turning the ball over again, Calderon coast to coast reverse layup. Lakers struggling with this third unit and have begun to look careless with the basketball.
Toronto on a 10-0 run to cut the lead to three
Mihm finally makes a shot, a fallaway J over Bosh heading towards the middle of the paint about 11 feet out
Raptors actively looking to exploit the Karl-Graham matchup
Weird and bad call by the refs. They whistle Coby Karl for a foul on Joey Graham (could have gone either way), Graham pushed off on Karl and slapped Karl in the face as he did, so they gave Graham a tech. They also called the foul on Karl for holding onto Graham. Strange, you’d think it’s either a foul on Joey or a foul on Coby.
Karl passes (left wing) into Powell on the left box, cuts along the baseline, Joey runs into Powell’s fallaway as he looked to follow Karl on his cut without paying attention to the ball, Powell heads to the FT line.
Bargnani’s footwork poor on that hook shot, kept his feet to close together allowing Mihm to stay in the play and contest the shot, Bargnani still had a great look but missed the short hook
Bargnani showing on the screen well, stopping the drive, and then getting back to his man albeit a tad slow.
Lakers turnover. Last possession of the quarter to Toronto with 7 seconds to go, nothing comes of it
Halftime
Lakers leading 53-49
The rebounding battle is even at 23 rebounds each. The Toronto Raptors have 8 offensive rebounds, the Lakers have 6.
The Los Angeles Lakers are shooting just 42% from the field on their 38 attempts, making 16 of them and having assists on half of those makes. LA is also 2-8 from three, and are 19-23 from the FT line. That gives them a TS% of about 53.5%.
The Toronto Raptors are also shooting 42% from the field. The Raptors have taken 40 shots, making 17, and have 13 assists on those 17 buckets. They area also 4-5 from three and 11-14 from the line. Their TS% is 52%.
The Raptors have sent LA to the FT line a ridiculous 23 times, that has to change in the second half, otherwise they’ll be hard pressed to win this game. Their overzealous double teaming and inability to defend penetration is putting immense pressure on their defense.
Kobe Bryant leads the Lakers with 9 points. Ariza is next with 8 points. Bynum third with 7 points. Pau Gasol has scored only 2 points so far, but he’s been killing Toronto out of the post due to the double teams.
Chris Mihm had a productive 9 minutes putting up 4 and 4
Jose Calderon has 6 assists in just 14 minutes, he has four rebounds also.
Chris Bosh leads the Raptors with 9 and 8 in 19 minutes. Jermaine has only played 8 minutes, putting up 4 and 2.
Graham has 7 points, 5 of those points from the FT line plus the dunk. Plus that one rebound. He looked good when Luke Walton was on him, and generally was poor the rest of the time.
Kapono had 9 points in 16 minutes making 3-4 from downtown. Bargnani had 6 and 3 in 14 minutes
The Raptors 9 turnovers have cost them 12 points, while the Lakers five turnovers have cost them 6 points.
Third Quarter
Lakers leading 53-49
Jermaine posts up Bynum on the left block, triple teamed very quickly, Kobe rips away his dribble, turnover
Parker with a lovely shot over Gasol along the baseline following the quick push. Next possession, back to back J’s from Parker, 17 footer right wing as Kobe went for the steal leaving him wide open. Identical to the first half, Parker has the Raptors first five points.
Calderon with a nice pass to the trailing Joey Graham on the right lane, he took a lot of contact from two Lakers defenders but stayed strong and made the difficult shot. Missed the FT.
Fisher 30 feet out, passes to Gasol who’s just off the right elbow, give and go, nice bounce pass form Gasol to the opposite side of the lane for the cutting Derek Fisher, Fish takes it to the rim and draws the foul.
Kobe Bryant bringing the ball upcourt along the right hand side of the court, alley oop pass from Bryant at midcourt to Bynum on the left side of the rim, Bynum showing the nice touch with the soft lay in off the alley oop. Nice pass
Jermaine with an aggressive move towards the rim to get on the glass, snares the offensive rebound after Calderon’s miss, he muscles his way about in the paint, goes up, fouled on the shot, makes one of two
Gasol left elbow, lob pass to Bynum, too close to the rim, too high also, Bynum tries to correct it’s trajectory, misses it.
Bynum off the left elbow, throws a nice bounce pass to Kobe Bryant who went backdoor along the baseline, slam dunk
Jermaine backing down Gasol, Fisher doubles, slaps at the ball and takes a lot of arm, foul. Lakers have four team fouls already.
Jermaine inside, on the left box, pumps fake Bynum, drives baseline, elevates and tries to finish on the other side of the rim where he’s hacked before getting off the shot. Two FTs on their way.
Bosh not on his toes defensively, Gasol pops out, lot of space, takes the shot, misses
Parker faces up Kobe, jab step, takes the three corner left, makes it, Raps lead for the first time tonight halfway through the first
Radmanovic took a spill on the floor, was down for a long time, now a timeout
Lakers two big men seem to get a lot of three second calls when they are playing together. It’s either one of them hesitating on a jump shot while the other goes for a rebound …. or their teammates not being conscious of where their big men are, and consequently passing up on jump shots while their bigs have position inside for the rebound. More time on the court together should solve this.
Radmanovic misses another three, not shooting well from the perimeter tonight
Jermaine 17 feet out left wing, dribbling little shimmies, takes the face up J, misses. Bad possession. The Raptors need to stop Jermaine O Neal from trying to make moves from outside of 15 feet. If he’s inside he can go one-on-one. If he’s outside of 15 feet then he’s a passer.
Raptors run out on the turnover, Jermaine trails, gets the pass, spins in the lane and hits the short shot after being fouled
Raptors lead 21-10 in third quarter scoring
Bynum shuffled after the catch before shooting, travel, turnover.
Chris Bosh low post down on the right box posting up Pau Gasol, backing him down, fouled by Gasol before he ever really makes a move. These two FTs should give Bosh a double double. He misses both, and is stuck on 9 points and 10 rebounds.
Andrew Bynum’s activity on the offensive glass is great. He hasn’t been coming up with rebounds on the last few possessions but he’s been keeping the ball alive and causing Toronto problems on their defensive glass, LA have gotten three extra possessions from Bynum’s work on the glass.
Rad finally makes a three …. the shot came from the left corner
Calderon dribbles himself into the right corner, jumps up, and throws a long looping pass to the top of the key … terrible idea for a pass … turnover. That’s unlike Calderon.
Lakers go on a 7-0 run to tie it at 70-70, timeout.
Good work by Gasol to get the rebound, taps it to himself, dunks it home, comes down the lane late after the three, nobody boxed him out, quick pull up three on a break
Kobe drive and kick to Farmer in the corner, nails the three, Lakers take the lead back
Kapono throws a poor bounce pass to Bargnani on a screen and roll on the left wing, stolen by Kobe Bryant. Jason Kapono should never have the ball in his hands when using on the ball screen and rolls
Bargnani with back to back jumpers, a 17 footer right elbow extended, then a 22 footer near the top of the key left wing. Next possession, Bargnani open 18 footer left elbow extended, misses
Jermaine hammers Gasol on his layup attempt under the rim. Jermaine got his arms wrapped with Odom a few moments ago, looked like a tussle may break out. Jermaine also had a goaltend a minute or so prior. He’s starting to get frustrated by this game, Sam needs to sit him down for a few minutes.
Lakers backcourt pressure, Ukic allows Kapono to take it up, he dribbles into the sideline, Kapono trapped at mid-court, picks up his dribble, four Lakers at mid-court, turnover on the pass, Farmer throws it down over Chris Bosh. Ukic has to keep that ball in his hands, he can’t let Kapono bring the ball up against pressure.
Fourth Quarter
Lakers lead 80-76 at the end of the quarter. LA went on a 17-6 run to end the quarter. Great work by the Lakers.
Raps turnover, Farmer on the breakaway, throws it off the backboard for Ariza, slam dunk
Adams on the offensive glass, rebound, blocked by Mihm out of bounds. Lakers are making just about every hustle play right now.
Chris Bosh (left wing) throws a bad pass to Bargnani on the screen and roll, too far to his left, out of bounds, turnover
Odom bringing the ball up, goes coast to coast for the layup, Bosh wasn’t expecting that, he came up the right wing, across the middle just before the three point line, then used a little screen by Pau Gasol (more in the way than a screen) and Lamar just turned the corner on the left wing and went right to the hoop for the finish
The Lakers jumped out to 90-76 to start the half, since then both teams began trading baskets
There has been some nice passing by the Lakers. Odom had a couple of nice assists. Luke Walton’s movement has been great, getting himself open underneath the rim a couple of times. Odom also had a sweet finger roll.
Parker had 14 points in 17 minutes on 6-7 shooting
Lakers finishing with their second unit here, rather than their third unit. I hope they continue with this lineup
Mihm with the 16 footer off the elbow, catch and shoot. Nice. He has 8 and 7 in 15 minutes.
Walton posts up moon, Jamario Moon doesn’t fight for position, 4 footer, fadeaway, hits it. That’s far too easy. Moon playing with very little effort tonight.
Fastbreak LA, Ariza rips the rim on the dunk
Walton curls off the screen, pulls into the lane, Farmer finds him, short shot makes it
Humphries from behind with the block on Josh Powell’s dunk on the break
Timeout … 3:30 to play …. Lakers lead 104-86
Sun Yue in the game
Powell picks up the foul, out of position defender
Bargnani drives on Mbenga, draws the foul, right wing, drives right towards the baseline
Powell keeps it alive on the offensive glass and taps it back in
Moon drives right, Humphries didn’t clear out well enough, not enough space, Moon has to come back and shoot a tough fadeaway, misses
Mbenga blocking Moon’s dunk on the break
Powell nails a 17 footer right wing on the break following the block
Bargnani traps Farmer, helps push Farmer back to midcourt, deflects his pass, turnover, Ukic gets the steal as he comes up with the loose ball. Great effort by both guys.
Lakers win
Some Stats
The Lakers were plus 15 on the backboards in the second half. Toronto had only 12 rebounds in the second half to LA’s 27 boards. Lakers finishing with 50, Toronto with 35.
The Lakers had 27 assists on 43 baskets on 83 attempts which is good for 52% shooting from the field. They 4-15 from three and 22-28 from the FT line. LA had only 8 assists on 16 buckets at halftime, so in the second half they had 19 assists on 27 baskets. They also made only 5 trips to the FT line in second half, but saw a huge boost in their FG%. Their TS% finished up around 57-58%.
The Raptors had 23 assists on their 32 baskets, but shot only 42% on their 76 attempts. They were 5-11 from three and 21-30 at the line. Their TS% finished up at around 49-50%.
The Raptors had 18 turnovers which cost them 26 points. The Lakers had 16 turnovers, costing them 17 points.
Jordan Farmer led all scorers with 16 points on 6-9 shooting …. Farmer also had 7 rebounds, 5 assists and 3 steals.
Chris Mihm played only 17 minutes but had 8 points, 8 rebounds and 2 blocks. He looks so much better physically than he did last season.
Trevor Ariza was the Lakers second leading scorer with 14 points. Odom added 10 points, plus two blocks. Luke Walton had 8 points, 6 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 steals.
Kobe Bryant had 13 points and 6 assists in 24 minutes, also four steals. Bynum had 9 and 4 in 19 minutes. Pau Gasol had 7 and 7 in 24 minutes. Fisher added 9 points, while Radmanovic threw in 2-7 shooting for 5 points.
Anthony Parker led all Raptors scorers with 14 points in just 17 minutes on 6-7 shooting
Chris Bosh had a double double with 11 points, 11 rebounds and 3 assists. He took just four shots in 34 minutes of action. Jermaine O Neal added 12 and 4 in 21 minutes. Jose Calderon finished with 9 assists in 27 minutes, and also four rebounds and just 2 points. Graham had 9 and 3 in 18 minutes.
Hassan Adams tied Parker for the lead in points, with 14 off the bench on 7-9 shooting. Bargnani and Kapono added 11 each. Jamario Moon had 5 rebounds but was 0-8 from the floor in 14 minutes. Bargnani had a disgusting three rebounds in 31 minutes. Humphries was 0-4 from the field and finished with no points and no rebounds in 10 minutes.
The article in the Indy Star (ex-IUPUI player), and is there mainly because Hill picked up a thumb injury. Hill is awaiting an MRI to find out the damage …. but what I found interesting where the quotes from his Head Coach Gregg Popovich.
Hill’s work ethic and commitment to improve every day has earned him a lot of praise.
“I’ve been impressed,” Popovich said. “More than anything, he’s obviously an absolute NBA defender. He does a great job defensively. He’s got a knack for steals, deflections, getting a piece of the ball here and there. He really understands that side of the court. Secondly, I’m really impressed with his mental toughness; he’s not intimated by anything. He’s got a great demeanor about him.”
“We’re turning him into (a point guard) and that’s a tough transition,” Popovich said. “That process will take time. In certain situations we’ve gotten on him a little bit more and tried to get him to focus and tried to get him to understand that the position is a bear to learn and it comes with a lot of responsibility.
“That’s a lot to throw on a guy that hasn’t played the position, really. He’s really improved leaps and bounds since the summer time.”
I haven’t caught a San Antonio game this season, mainly because you know what to expect and also because Mahinmi got injured, so I haven’t seen Hill play since summer league …. where Hill struggled with his both his shot and ability to run the team (good defensively). He looked a million miles from where he needed to be. It’s great to hear he’s made so much progress in a short time. I hope I get to see him in a game when he comes back from injury.
Update: MRI showing no damage, Hill is back playing. Popovich has also said that the starters are expected to play more in the remaining preseason games.
Bynum controls the tip easily, taps it ahead to Radmanovic for the layup. Fran Vasquez wasn’t even halfway up by the time Bynum tipped the ball
Kobe on the left baseline, 17 feet out, Navarro closing out on him and taking away the jump, that’s a mistake, Kobe drives right, turns to go back-to-basket, backs Navarro down from 14 feet out to 4 feet out, turns baseline, four foot lay in, fouled to avoid the easy bucket. Navarro should have given him that jumper.
Fisher running into the paint and aggressively wrestling the ball out of #9’s hands
Lakers on a 9-0 run to lead 13-8
Bynum is wearing a knee brace. Not sure if I noticed that before. Bynum is off to a nice start with three soft shots in the paint, making two.
Radmanovic with two dunks … and he’s playing some solid defense but Barcelona are also making it easy on him (limited penetration)
Vasquez flushes the alley oop dunk, whew, he’s a long player.
Gasol is fronted in the post, he’s on the left block, the ball is up high on the left wing, pass to the left corner to Fisher, quick pass to Pau along the baseline, easy dunk. Great work by Pau to seal his man and create that opportunity.
Daniel Santiago checks into the game
Both Kobe Bryant and Andrew Bynum have travelled here in the early going, each got away with it too. Kobe’s was blatant in the open court after some indecision on a pass. Bynum shuffled his feet down in the paint.
Lamar pulls down a rebound in a crowd, he dribbles up slowly, everyone is ahead of the ball but Pau Gasol is ahead of everyone, alley oop pass from midcourt from Lamar to Pau, slam dunk. Beautiful.
Pau Gasol with two offensive rebounds on this possession. The first came off some hustle as he ran/scrambled down a rebound and out on the right wing, passes out … another Lakers shot goes up and misses, Gasol inside takes it down and scores the easy putback. Great effort by Gasol.
Chris Mihm and Trevor Ariza enter the contest
Ilyasova has three quick fouls. The third was a ticky tack loose ball foul on Lamar following a rebound. Bad start for him.
Second Quarter
The Lakers lead 29-19
The Lakers are shooting 57% from the field. FC Barcelona are shooting only 27%.
The Lakers push the lead out to 34-19 and are in the midst of a 15-1 run
Farmer doing a good job pushing the tempo and running the break, he threads a lookaway bounce pass to Ariza through a crowd for a layup
Mihm has looked very good. He’s grabbing every rebound and sight …. but more importantly his quickness/agility/balance have all looked much improved and good.
Turnover, Lakers running the other way, Farmer is on the left wing, he throws the lob to Ariza on the right wing, slam dunk …. LA doubles up on Barcelona 38-19.
Laporta is doing an interview on the sidelines. He has good english but it seems a little difficult for him to do a live interview. He’s a great man, done great things for FC Barcelona.
Barcelona get their first basket of the quarter at the 7:30 mark. The Lakers were ahead 40-19 and were on a 21-1 run.
Jordan Farmer throws a crappy into Bynum in the post. Bynum had established solid position 11 feet from the rim just below the elbow. Farmer’s high looping pass forced Bynum to jump towards the ball (to avoid the Barcelona players from stealing possession), and lost position in the process.
Sun Yue’s first 5 possessions were a disaster. In the first possession he turned the ball over. The second he fails to set+initiate the offense, his teammate turns the ball turnover before the ball even got beneath the FT line. The third possession Sun Yue drove past his man right at the start of the halfcourt offense, he got to the FT line, little hesitation, then shot and missed the FT line jumper. The fourth possession, once again Yue fails to initiate the offense after bringing up the ball. The fifth possession, Yue turned the ball over after using his off arm to shove off the defender 25 feet out, and was called for an offensive foul.
Barcelona go on a 18-1 mostly sparked off of Lakers turnovers. On one turnover, Barcelona pushed the ball, Navarro floated to the corner and drained a 20 foot baseline J. On another turnover, Barcelona came down and ran a high pick and pop, resulting in a jumper from the top of the key.
Kobe Bryant re-enters the game and looks to create some stability on the court. Bryant out on the left wing, doubled up, he kicks it out to Coby Karl at the top of the key, quick pass Karl down low to Bynum right block, slam dunk. Very good pass by Karl. Kobe nailed a long jump shot, a short jump and finished the half up with four consecutive FTs.
Halftime
The Lakers winning the battle on the backboards 21-15
The Lakers defense has been very good at creating turnovers, forcing 13 turnovers and capitalizing on those miscues to the tune of 20 points. They’ve also held FC Barcelona to 16-43 shooting from the field for 37% shooting. They haven’t defended the three point line well enough though, giving up 20 attempts (almost 50% of their total field goal attempts) from downtown and have hit 45% of them. Barcelona didn’t get to the FT line, only 3-4. Their TS% is a good bit higher than their FG% because of their three point shooting, it’s about 47%.
The Lakers have shot 54% from the floor on 19-35 shooting and have 14 assists on those 19 baskets. The Lakers are also 14-18 from the FT line. Their TS% is 60%.
The Lakers have outscored Barcelona 32-8 in points in the paint
The Lakers did have 10 turnovers, several of which occurred (spurred) during Barcelona’s mid-late second quarter rally, giving up 11 points off of them.
The leading scorer so far is Navarro who has 17 points. Kobe Bryant leads the Lakers with 16 points.
Pau Gasol played only 10 minutes but had 9 points and 4 rebounds in those minutes. Lamar Odom filled up the stat sheet off the bench with 5 points, 5 rebounds (team leading) and 3 assists (tie team leading).
Lakovic added 11 points off the bench for Barcelona.
Third Quarter
Santiago posts up inside, down on the left block, spins towards the middle and hits the rolling hook shot
Kobe Bryant high on the left wing, receives the hand off, nails the three pointer. The Lakers are leading 60-46.
Radmanovic showing great anticipation on the passing lanes to knock that one loose, we got a breakaway and a one handed slam from Radmanovic.
Ilyasova with a lovely high arcing jumper from 18 feet on the right wing
Ilyasova forced to defend Pau on the switch, Pau posts up on the right block, shows good patience to figure out Barcelona’s help defense, Lakers spread the floor, Pau goes to work and backs Ilyasova down easily, one footer, layup good. Four Lakers starters are now in double digits.
Radmanovic is receiving a lot of praise from the commentators for both his offensive and defensive contributions. Radmanovic has been an improved defensive player this preseason showing good concentration and effort, he’s still a below average defender but it’s great to see him making progress. Another area the Lakers announcers were praising his improved understanding of how to operate in the Triangle and tonight he did look a lot smoother. Two things to look out for this season.
Pau Gasol receives the pass going down the lane, Santiago blocks Pau hard and sends him to floor.
Gasol posts up on the right block again, Barcelona send help from the opposite post, Gasol throws a no look bounce pass to Bynum, Bynum goes up for the dunk, looses it on the way up, turnover. Lovely pass by Gasol.
Bryant deflects the pass, Gasol comes away with it and brings the ball upcourt from the three point line, Pau goes between his legs and turns to the left, as he crosses halfcourt he makes a beautiful lookaway 25 foot bounce pass to Radmanovic for the dunk. What a play by Pau Gasol.
The Lakers lead 72-60 with 4:30 to play
Radmanovic shoots the three pointer from the right wing, he misses. That’s Radmanovic’s first perimeter shot tonight. He’s 5-8 from the field.
Barcelona pull down an offensive rebound, Radmanovic pops up from behind and rips it out of his hands
Ariza makes the steal, he’s sprinting down the right wing, centers the ball to Farmer, Farmer throws an over the shoulder pass to Odom for the dunk. Play of the night right there.
Mbenga 16 feet out on the right wing, he’s looking to make the pass, no options open yet, he gets nervous and puts the ball on the floor, tries to create his own shot, turnover. The commentators said “uh-oh” the minute he put in on the floor and I was thinking the exact same thing. Terrible decision by Mbenga. He travelled on his move, that’s how the turnover happened.
The Lakers lead 83-68 at the end of the quarter
Fourth Quarter
Jordan Farmer makes the steal, leads the fastbreak, goes behind his back and navigates his way through two defenders, threads a bounce pass to Ariza, layup. Lovely pass.
Lamar Odom leads the break, no passes open, he continues on, nobody stops the ball until he arrives at the FT line, two defenders jump out at him leaving Ariza open, Lamar spots him, layup
The Lakers lead 93-80 off a Farmer layup – first basket tonight for Farmer? I think so
Five minutes left in the fourth. The Lakers switch the lineup and play their third/fourth stringers to finish the game off. They’re leading 97-82.
From the 3:20 mark to the 47 second mark … Barcelona go on a 13-2 run to cut the gap to a 101-97 deficit.
Lakers scrubs struggle with the backcourt pressure and their decision making is awful (quick shots, bad passes) …. but Barcelona can’t make anything of it. Lakers win.
Some Stats
The rebounding battle ended up even at 37-37
The Lakers shot a blistering 55.4% from the floor, making 41-74 shots from the field and ammounting 28 assists on those 41 baskets. The Lakers shot poorly from three, only 2-13, but that didn’t matter at all. They also made 32 trips to the line, making 24 attempts. The Lakers TS% finished up at 60%.
FC Barcelona only shot 44% from the floor, 39-88 from the field. They were however 15-32 from three for 43% and 11-13 from the line. Their TS% was 55%. Barcelona had 29 assists on those 39 baskets, impressive.
The Lakers forced 27 turnovers and turned those opportunities into 41 points … does anyone not know where the game was lost now? Okay. The Lakers had 19 steals and 2 blocks.
The Lakers weren’t immune to turnovers themselves either, they threw it away 23 times and it cost them 18 points ……. but still had a 23 point advantage over Barcelona from turnovers.
Kobe Bryant led the Lakers with 28 points and 6 steals on 10-14 shooting from the floor. He also added two dimes and one rebound. It took him only 27 mintues to put up those 28 points.
Navarro led all scorers with 34 points. He shot 12-27 from the field and 7-13 from three, plus 3-4 from the line. Navarro also added 7 assists and 6 rebounds. He had one heck of a game.
Fisher went scoreless in his 18 minutes, but the three other Lakers starters (plus Kobe) hit double digits. Gasol had 13 points (6-11 from the floor) and 6 rebounds in 18 minutes. Bynum had 13 points (5-7) but only three rebounds in 25 minutes. Radmanovic added 12 points shooting 5-8 from the field, and taking only one shot (missed) from the perimeter. Two bench players also hit double digits – Ariza and Mihm – but not Odom. Odom did have a good game scoring 7 points, led the team with 8 rebounds, and tied in the lead with 5 assists. Jordan Farmer scored only 4 points but added five assists.
Lakovic finished with 15 points and 7 assists, but only 6 turnovers. Ilyasova scored 15 points (4-9) and added 6 rebounds, 3 dimes, and 2 steals. Daniel Santiago had 9 points and 3 rebounds in 11 minutes.
Chris Mihm looked very good during his limited minutes. His mobility was much improved from the version we saw last season … and in 11 minutes he ammassed 10 points and 6 rebounds. He played very well.
Good help D by Emeka to come over late and alter Pachulia’s layup, missed shot
Pachulia makes the catch just above the FT line, he has a little room but not much, decides to drive, weaves his way through three bodies and draws the foul. Aggressive play by Zaza. The Hawks are starting a big lineup tonight with Josh Smith, Horford, Pachulia in the frontcourt. The backcourt is Bibby and Johnson as usual.
1-1 after three minutes … not the smoothest of starts for either side
Joe Johnson breaks the deadlock and gets our first hoop of the night, good drive from the left wing into the middle of the lane and he nails the floater. Charlotte respond, but Joe counters that with a 17 footer right elbow extended.
Josh Smith air balls a right corner three pointer
Joe Johnson with the steal and fastbreak layup to tie the game back up. Next defensive possession, Josh Smith steals the ball, brings the ball up left wing, crosscourt pass to Mike Bibby in the corner, three pointer on the way, good.
Sean May looks out of breath …. he’s been moving around the court well enough though
Al Horford shockingly non-receptive to the open lane he had to the rim after Bibby shot the ball, nobody in his way to getting to that rebound and he didn’t put the effort in to go after it. You don’t see that very often with Horford. He’s barely been involved to the start this game. Timeout.
Bad pass by J-Rich throwing the ball behind Dudley as Dudley rolled to the hoop after the screen and roll. Had a layup/dunk if that pass was on target. Next possession, now Felton throws it out of bounds on an easy 6 foot pass to his left 25 feet from the hoop to Richardson. Lot of turnovers for Charlotte. Atlanta leading 14-9 after 7 minutes. Another timeout.
Adam Morrison didn’t dress for the game, injury report says it’s his left knee but doesn’t offer a description of the injury. Presume it’s a day-to-day thing.
Mo Evans and Acie Law check into the contest
Evans coming off a screen just above the baseline, rolls of the shoulder into the paint, Horford finds him, Evans hesitates on the 13 footer, puts it down and takes a contested fadeaway, misses. Indecision there costing Evans an easy shot/basket.
Ajinca and Augustin have joined the game
Atlanta on a mini run (7-2) to push the lead to 21-13 as we enter the final two minutes of the game.
Atlanta’s backcourt pressure backfires, opening up the lane for penetration, nice pass, layup. Next Hawks possession ends in a turnover, Augustin leads the break the other way, he has a 4-on-1, passes it to Richardson who’s filling the left lane, he makes the layup and gets the foul. Richardson makes the FT too. Charlotte halved the lead in 30 seconds.
Ajinca is getting caught ball watching on each possession. Solomon Jones losing him on every cut, his teammates haven’t exploited this.
Acie Law on the high screen and roll right wing, fakes left, explodes right, gets into the paint and gets fouled.
Charlotte holding for the final shot, Augustin waving his way into the paint, finding Carroll who makes the 19 footer. At the end of the first quarter Atlanta lead 23-22. Good run by Charlotte to end the half.
Second Quarter
Augustin with a veteran play getting Law to bite on a pump fake three off the dribble, then drawing contact and earning a trip to the line for three. Augustin has been struggling with his shot during preseason and was taking a 24 foot shot off the dribble while moving away from the rim … bad foul.
Charlotte’s second unit is falling behind. Atlanta lead 32-24 after three minutes in the second.
Atlanta ahead 36-26 halfway through the second … stuttered play from behind sides.
Horford loses the defensive rebound off a missed FT out of bounds, Woodson is flabberghasted. Sits down and throws his hands in the air. Unhappy with the effort. Bobcats shooting 5 straight FTs over the last minute, making four of them to close the gap. Next possession starts off a turnover, fastbreak opportunity, makes the bucket and hits another FT. Not sure what the call was there. Tech? on Woodson? Maybe.
Flip Murray stops the bleeding …. Richardson driving baseline for a tough layup, fouled again, shooting two, makes two. That’s 19 FTs for the Bobcats shortly after passing the halfway point in the second quarter. Larry Brown will be happy. Turnover Hawks, another bad pass thrown out of bounds. Bobcats almost give it right back as Augusting falls over in the paint, but the ball bobbles out to a Bobcats player, cross court pass as the Hawks scrambling leaves them out of position, Jason Richardson right wing open three pointer, nails it.
Loose ball foul on Horford attacking the offensive glass, Emeka heads to the line, makes two. The Bobcats have taken back the lead for the first time since the early moments in the game. Charlotte leading 40-39.
Lovely drive and dish by Felton, Felton driving from the top of the key down and across the paint, defense helps, Felton throws it over his head to the left hand side of the lane, Emeka flushes it home.
Richardson runs the screen and roll with Emeka along the left sideline, Zaza traps him, Richardson squeezes the pass off, Emeka finishes inside. Scrath that, turnover, looks like Richardson stepped out of bounds first.
Great effort by Horford to keep that offensive board alive, he didn’t come away with it and mishandled it, but it fell out to a teammate, Hawks swing the ball outside from the right all the way over to the left wing, JJ nails a three pointer.
Final minute, Felton worms his way into the paint for a layup. One point game. Turnover Atlanta, breakaway, big tim slam from Gerald Wallace as he raced ahead of everyone and had a chance to put on a show with that dunk. Another turnover Atlanta, Bobcats bringing it back up, Felton decides to drive, spins through the paint, loses control of the ball, turnover, nope Atlanta don’t come away with the ball, Charlotte hold onto it … and are forced into a timeout after good pressure by Atlanta’s defense. There’s 24 seconds left in the game, 13 on the shot clock. Bobcats miss a jumper. Hawks come the other way, Flip Murray creating off the dribble, jumping into a crowd, goes nowhere and airballs the shot but the refs give him a foul. Never stood a chance of scoring there without a foul, Charlotte did foul him though. Hawks take the lead back.
Halftime
Hawks lead 24-20 on the backboards. Atlanta have shot only 41% from the field, Bobcats only 36%. Both teams doing a good job getting to the line, Atlanta getting 15 FTs, Bobcats 22 FTs.
Josh Smith played only 8 minutes in the first half due to foul trouble
Third Quarter
Joe Johnson fighting down on the right block, easily beats the defender for the layup. I’d absolute love to see Joe Johnson play down in the post more often. The guy is a beast down there.
Felton steal, fastbreak, Bibby fouls at midcourt to deny the easy opportunity. Joe Johnson came off a high screen, got the pass, gave a hesitation dribble, drived inside, tried to throw a .. hook pass I suppose … but it was deflected out to Felton. Bobcats inbound the ball, Felton down to Sean May on the right block, spin move baseline, draws the foul. Bobcats lead 52-50 after the opening two minutes in the third.
Herb Brown busy scribbling onto an A4 pad on the sideline
Gerald Wallace earns his trip to the line and makes the three point play. He has 8 points and 3 rebounds. He’s been quiet on the offensive end. Richardson and Wallace are a combined 4-13 from the floor.
Josh Smith lasted three minutes before picking up his fourth foul. He hasn’t had an impact on this game at all.
Hawks are led by Joe Johnson with 15 points … he’s 6-10 from the floor, 2-2 from three, 1-1 from the line … next two Hawks scorers are Evans and Murray who have combined for 21 points and 12 free throws. Nobody else has more than 6. Without the contribution from those two guys off the bench this would be one of those many games last year where Johnson is playing by himself on the offensive end with no second scorer to back his play. JJ hits a nice floater to make it 17 points.
Hawks leading 62-58 with 5 minutes to paly in the third. Both teams exchanging punches, neither squad playing well, neither squad capable of pulling away. It’s a fairly drab affair. The players are putting forth a lot of effort but they’re not achieving a whole lot.
Gerald Wallace posts up Johnson 17 feet out right wing, faces up, drains the jumper. Horford responds with a 17 footer of his own, once again Joe Johnson is involved as he creates the open shot for Horford. That’s the second long jumper Horford has made in the quarter, the other also created by JJ, and was just a step inside the three point line. One basket (Dudley) and a bunch of FTs as both sides end the quarter.
The Bobcats have done a very good job forcing Joe Johnson to turn the ball over. They’re coverging tightly on his penetration and getting into the passing lanes well.
Fourth Quarter
Hawks leading 72-70
Okafor has put up 16 points, 9 boards and 2 blocks through three. Only 26 minutes. 5-7 from the floor, 6-7 from the line.
Larry Brown will be pleased at his team’s efforts to get to the FT line. They’ve remained aggressive throughout the game (peaking in the second) and now have 29 FTs. Brown has been critical of his team’s aversion to drive into the paint, and also their willingness to settle for jumpers … this is more like what he’s looking for. The Bobcats did it for off and on (opening quarter against Orlando), but haven’t done it consistently yet.
Shannon Brown knifing into the paint off a pretty crossover and finishing. I enjoyed that.
Fastbreak Hawks, pass across to Brown, he skies for the dunk, Josh Smith there to take the charge. Good work by Smith.
Sean May is back in the game. He’s barely played tonight. He’s back down on the low post, aggressive move baseline, draws contact and gets a trip to the line for his troubles. He makes one of two. He has 6 points and 4 rebounds … not sure how much he’s played but it’s not a lot.
This is anyone’s game. Likely go down to the wire with each teams trading baskets and neiter team able to take control of the game. Feels like whoever has the ball last will find a way to win. Hopefully one of the sides will step up and pull away.
Josh Smith picks up his fifth foul after smacking DJ Augustin to the ground off the ball on the offensive end. Smith was looking to set a screen, then move from the left block to the right block for a post up, was in a hurry didn’t keep his feet still. Smith has played 16 minutes tonight, no rebounds, no assists either for that matter, five missed shots, only three points. Actually I was wrong, not his fifth foul, that’s six, he’s finished. Smith exploded after the call and drew a tech.
Charlotte lead 78-76 with 8 minutes to go
Al Horford is the second leading scorer among the starters with 9 points. Joe Johnson hasn’t received much help from Horford/Smith/Bibby tonight. Horford has done very good work on the backboards though, pulling down 11 boards in under 30 minutes. Zaza ties the game with two FTs. Timeout.
Zaza makes another FT to put Atlanta ahead 81-78. Sean May fouled out on that one.
Nice drive and finish from Raymond Felton
Final five minutes
The starters are mostly on the floor. Flip Murray is on in place of Josh Smith for the Hawks. For the Bobcats it’s Carroll in place of Sean May. Both teams gunning for the win tonight. I’d like to see Atlanta post up Al Horford, he has Gerald Wallace on him.
Instead they allow Flip to take Carroll off the bounce, he gets into the paint again and will go back to the line again. He makes the first, misses the second, rebound Okafor. Hawks lead 86-82. Bobcats come back and take it hard to the rim (Felton), miss the contested layup, tap back up, miss, defensive rebound, Hawks run out but don’t get an easy basket. Mike Bibby with a long three point, nails it. Richardson responds with a three pointer from the right wing.
J-Rich taking it to the rim strongly again, scores the hoop this time.
Mike Bibby isn’t phased, he sets up the Hawks offense and nails another long (18 footer) jumper.
Al Horford open from 17 feet, thought about it, declined. He obviously doesn’t have too much faith in that shot of his, just yet anyway, because he had a great look. Back out to Bibby who’s fouled, makes both FTs.
Final minute
Hawks lead 95-89
I’m going to call it. So-so performances from both sides. Hawks win.
This game is taking place somewhere over in China. First glimpse of the Bucks this season. I’ve seen a game or two of GSW already.
First Half
Nice battle at center tonight between the two newly extended big men – Bogut and Biedrins.
Villanueva posts up inside, misses the gimme, defensive rebound and outlet, intercepted by Charlie, to Bogut, dunk, missed. Warriors run the other way with Randolph making the layup. Next possession, Randolph drives into the paint, Bogut draws the charge.
Biedrins trying to front Bogut, doing an atrocious job of it, too far towards the baseline, pass right down the middle is open and exploited, foul Biedrins.
Ridnour with a poor drive and kick – picked up his dribble to early limiting his options, his kickout was to a player with no room forcing him to take a difficult shot late in the clock.
Biedrins bricks a 9 footer off the right hand side of the lane, to himself, layup. Good work following your own shot Andris.
The Bucks prized lottery pick checks in … and he hits an open 19 footer top of the key on his first possession. I think that was Ridnour who made the pass.
Michael Redd bringing the ball up court, high screen, behind the back dribble, fallaway off balance, 20 feet out, back iron
Joe Alexander wins the jump ball with Anthony Randolph but hit it so hard it went out of bounds. Turnover Warriors after the inbounds, fastbreak 3-on-1, Alexander filling the right lane, Ridnour finds him, touch pass, dunk opposite wing. Next Warriors possession, another turnover (Alexander steal?), another 3-on-1 this time Alexander the recipient of the extra pass and dunking it home. Timeout.
Lot of running here in the early going, nice pass ahead of Ridnour to Alexander who makes the layup and the foul. Misses the FT. Milwaukee lead 24-17
Anthony Randolph with the follow slam and scream. He follows that up on the other end with a block that sends the ball 40 feet the other way. Next possession, gets a defensive rebound, then brings the ball up against the backcourt pressure of Alexander going behind his back twice. #31 nails a long jumper for GSW – Kurz? I think that’s Kurz.
Redd slicing and dicing his way to the hoop but misses his layup, and falls down. Doesn’t get back up quickly enough, fails to get back on defense, Stephen Jackson nails a three. That’s his man.
Charlie V posting up Wright, hook shot, Wright goes for the block, Charlie hits the shot. Wright gave up position too deep in the paint, left too much defending to be done after the catch and got punished for it.
Lue misses a jumper out of the left corner, then gives away a silly foul on a play where he had no chance of stealing the ball. Fouls 75 feet from the rim are a joy for a coach.
Richard Jefferson nails a three from the left corner
Corey Maggette posting up Mbah a Moute, Moute three quartering him, pass makes it’s way inside, Moute forced to foul. Maggette turns and faces up the rookie on the left wing, drives middle, draws the foul and makes two FTs. His playing time was short. Michael Redd back in.
Now Richard Jefferson gives a foul 50 feet away from the rim. Both happend to CJ Watson, both times he hit the deck.
Jackson makes two quick turnovers. The first a long outlet pass that was off the mark. The second a bad bounce pass to Kurz who didn’t bother to roll to the rim with any haste, he was going at a snail’s pace and that’s why the ball went out of bounds. Both guys fault … Jacks should have seen his butt moving too slowly and not thrown the pass.
Joe Alexander is fairly well built. He looks a good bit bigger than Richard Jefferson.
Jackson is starting to get frustrated. He was in a great mood earlier in the game. Consummate teammate, lots of communication, focused look on his face. Now he’s scowling and starting to run his mouth. I think he’ll get his concentration levels back in a moment but his teammates need to step up, that’ll help ligthen his angst.
Corey Maggette with a strong move inside, and the foul, and misses the FT
Warriors leading 44-41
The Warriors aren’t in control of the tempo but Milwaukee is happily equaling their pace. This style of play suits GSW. MIlwaukee will suffer a couple of runs tonight and will be a step behind several times tonight because of those runs. Warriors uneven play is the only reason they’re not up double digits already. MIlwaukee have actually look the better side but I think they’re playing against themselves at times (the tempo), GSW are just making intermittent mistakes. Whoever solves their problems first will win.
Alexander face up J right elbow extended, misses badly off the side iron
Brandon Wright giving up easy position inside the paint again, this time to Elson, Elson draws the foul after an aggressive attempt at finishing the play. Milwaukee show some full court pressure, Redd just about sticks with Corey Maggette as he brought the ball up the floor.
Richard Henderix checks into the game. This guy would/could have had a good role on this team this season if Ronny Turiaf wasn’t signed, but he was and now I expect Henderix to spend the season on the bench.
This time Corey Maggette blows past Redd in the open court, and Redd fouls him 45 feet from the rim. Third foul that far or further from the rim in the quarter …. that’s insane. Milwaukee’s efforts defensively have been pathetic. Oh god, another one, at least this was a loose ball foul, but still 90 feet from the rim and you had no chance at the rebound, why reach? Henderix makes two FTs.
Joe Alexander with a nice drive and finish off the glass
Ridnour doing an excellent job on the last few possessions of getting Milwaukee into their offensive sets quickly. Sessions is in the game alongside Ridnour. He gets fouled, misses the first FT, Ridnour gives him a pat on the back, makes the second FT.
Bucks backcourt pressure troubling Golden State. The Warriors insist on dribbling up through the pressure and potential traps instead of passing ahead.
Nice passing by the Bucks on the break again, Charlie V finishing with the slam.
Both teams trading turnovers on fastbreaks there. Another turnover, there’s a lot of turnovers in this game. Lot of sloppy play. Lot of bad defense.
Good work to deflect the alley oop pass to Villanueva
Bucks lead 60-56 at the half
Halftime
The Warriors turned the ball over 17 times in the first half. The Bucks 12 times. That’s 29 turnovers already!
Warriors are shooting 56% from the field … why they’re losing is the lack of shots. Bucks shooting a good 49%.
Second Half
The level of play here needs to increase to sustain my interest in it
Jackson opens the third with a long two pointer, Villanueva responds with a smooth floater off the drive. Next possession, GSW turn the ball over. Bucks come back up, Warriors leave Charlie open 20 feet out top of the key, open J, he sticks it.
CJ Watson had a layup but instead tried to a do fancy pass and ensured his team no easy basket in transition.
Nelson runs over Ridnour on his way to the rim on the break, layup. Surprising no call considering the contact. Nelson follows it up with another driving layup on the next possession.
All the players seem to be complaining for fouls
Watson takes it to the rim and finishes a difficult off balance runner. That’s 6 straight points on layups given up by Milwaukee. The defense tonight has been ….
Quick push off a made basket by Milwaukee, Ridnour to Redd on the wing, three pointer, nails it
Jackson gets a technical for punching the air in frustration after no getting the call. The players are not happy at all with the refs. Neither team. You could see that Jacks technical coming for a long time.
Warriors have almost turned the ball over twice on this possession, very luck to get that three pointer from Nelson. They’re still irritatingly sloppy with the ball. And Milwaukee is still irritatingly letting them get into the paint at will off the dribble.
Oh, that was a nice dunk by Nelson on Villanueva’s dome on the break
Another turnover, this time by Lue, Brandon Wright picked his pocket while Lue dribbled around in a circle at the FT line
Another turnover … fastbreak the other way, pass ahead, Bellinelli scores the layup.
Dickau just got toasted on a dribble drive, that was predictable no? Why is he in the game?
Another turnover, this time Dickau, Milwaukee settle for a three pointer on the fastbreak and miss
Golden State leading 83-80 at the end of the third quarter
Yeah I tried to stick in there with the best of them, but I couldn’t take any more of this. Very poor game.
The first ever Deron Williams-Derrick Rose matchup …. don’t forget Deron went to Illinois and led them to NCAA Championship game, so he’ll have some crowd support tonight too. Gets a large ovation as the starting lineups are announced. This game is actually being played at Illinois University so Williams will get even more cheers.
First Quarter
Derrick Rose is back into the starting lineup. Hinrich, Deng, Thomas and Gooden the other starters.
Kirilenko remains on the bench with CJ Miles in his place. The rest of the Jazz regular starters are in the lineup.
Steal Ronnie Brewer ahead to Deron, Deron runs the break, into the paint, throws a lob straight up in the air, just leaving it there for the trailing Ronnie Brewer, slam dunk. That’s a nice dunk.
Chicago out to an early 11-6 lead
Gooden with the hand off to Rose high on the left wing, Rose turns the corner quickly and explodes to the rim, kickout to Thomas, misses the jumper
Lovely bullet pass by Memo who was trailing the play and flashing across the lane, Memo is fouled and finishes the layup. Carlos Boozer played a key role in that fastbreak with the defensive rebound and quick outlet before he even touched back down onto the ground.
Deron drives, dishes out to Memo, Memo swings it to CJ Miles, three pointer top of the key, hits it. Jazz take a lead and are on a 8-0.
Timeout
We’re halfway through the first quarter now
Rose finding Hinrich in the corner, Kirk misses the three pointer
Boozer low post on Gooden, Gooden reaches, Boozer spins by on the opposite side (middle of the lane) and gets the lefty layup. Good move by Boozer.
Luol Deng finding a lane to the offensive boards, falls right to him, layup
Ronnie Price nails a three at the end of the shot clock
Bulls settling for long jumpers ….. this is becoming a bad habit for the Bulls. Feels like every single game I watch them I’m saying this. Kirk missing a three from the top of the key.
Timeout
Ben Gordon enters the game – his first preseason game? I think so – He beats Ronnie Brewer off the dribble easily, gets into the paint, hits the teardrop and draws the foul. Misses the FT. Next possession, Ben Gordon nails a three pointer.
Gooden low post, backing down, turns towards the baseline and takes a fadeaway from 16 feet, side iron
Ronnie falling over, shovel pass off to Boozer, Carlos finishes
Rose with a nice steal, Boozer fouls to stop Rose getting a breakaway dunk
Gordon driving on Boozer again, into the paint again, teardrop again, Brewer stays in the play well and blocks the shot …. fastbreak the other way, Ronnie leading the break left wing, lob to Price, alley oop dunk, fouled before he could finish. Misses the first, makes the second.
Utah lead 26-21 as the first quarter comes to a close
Second Quarter
Noah wearing goggles … looks sort of scray. Not in the I’m built like a tank way, but in the I’m going to eat your arm way. Noah needs to start acting a little crazy now, that’ll help his intimidating image. Like Rick Fox did from time to time.
Utah leading 34-26
Excellent block by Andrei Kirilenko on the fastbreak, Tyrus Thomas coming down the right wing, flying up high for the dunk, AK from the weakside came across and erased it
Joakim Noah with an excellent block on Deron Williams floater, Deron down the middle of the lane, Noah from the left plays some volleyball with Deron’s shot.
Hinrich bumps into Memo, draws the foul, has enough strength to to finish
Gordon using some magic off the dribble to create separation, Korver staying with him, step back three, Korver blocks it out of bounds.
Hinrich takes a fallaway along the baseline after the drive, after only 10 seconds off the shot clock
Lovely pass by Deron Williams from 30 feet out over the top of the defense to Memo who’s defender was a good four feet away from him, layup Memo plus the foul
Rose re-enters the game
Hinrich on the drive and kick along the baseline to Nocioni in the left corner, three pointer good
Coach Webber (Illinois) checks in for a quick interview. Says a lot of complimetary things about Williams. Jazz announcers say that Deron took his team out to the Rib-Eye for dinner the night before.
Hinrich with a beautiful crossover, freezes his defender, good lane to the rim, Brevin Knight help defense, slaps the ball loose as Hinrich was rising up for the layup. Great late defensive play.
Alley oop to Boozer, layup off the glass
Foul on Brevin Knight as he reaches in on Rose’s dribble 25 feet out on the right wing
Deron has an ice pack on his jaw while sitting on the bench. He got smacked in the face by Noah trying to win a defensive rebound.
Knight knocks loose the Bulls dribble drive, he re-injures his thumb. Looks in pain. He might be done.
Koufos makes a turnover. A bad pass to Boozer, Koufos was thinking that Boozer would pop out for a jumper but he was working his way into solid position in the post.
Utah lead 50-45 as we hit the final 40 seconds of the half, add another two for Chicago after the Noce bucket. Boozer adds two at the line. Rose comes up, 10 seconds left in the half, nice crossover by Rose on Price, beats him easily, gets into the paint, to the rim, misses the contested layup.
Halftime
Bulls have an edge on the backboards 20-17
Utah have 17 assists on 20 field goals, on 33 attempts, for a blistering 61% FG%. They are only 1-4 from downtown and only 11-17 from the line.
The Bulls have 9 assists on 16 baskets, on 42 attempts, for a poor 38% FG%. They are 3-13 from three but 12-14 from the line.
The Bulls 5 turnovers have cost them 6 points. The Jazz’s 9 turnovers have cost them 6 points.
Both Boozer and Okur have 14 points. Deron scoreless but has 7 assists and has ran the offense beautifully. Boozer adds 5 boards for good measure. Memo Okur is 7-10 from the floor, Booz 5-7.
Derrick Rose leads the Bulls with 10 points (4-9 from the floor, 2 assists), Hinrich has 7 points, Deng has 8 points, Nocioni has 9 points. Gordon adds 5 points but is only 2-7 from the floor. Tyrus Thomas had an excellent 10 rebounds in only 13 minutes, but 0-4 from the field.
Third Quarter
Williams and Rose trade buckets. Rose showing some nice hang time to finish the acrobatic layup. Deron scores 6 points in the first three minutes of the third, all drives right to the rim. Rose trying to extend the pressure to halfcourt, Deron blazes right by him, goes straight to the rim again and finishes again. Make that 8 points in three minutes for Deron to open the quarter.
Memo drawing the foul inside once again. He’s done a good job of going into the low post and causing problems. 0-4 from the FT line though, makes his fifth attempt.
Ben Gordon nails a three pointer left wing to close the gap some more.
Deron Williams to the rim again, down the right hand side of the lane, Rose does a good job keeping him to the right of the lane, two other Bulls converge, Tyrus from the weakside swats Deron’s shot out of bounds. Utah inbounds the ball and Memo scores another bucket.
Vinny Del Negro is starting to get upset. He’s aruged for about five calls in a row and he hasn’t gotten the call.
Deron Williams drives again, scores again. Rose sprints out the other way, Bulls inbound it quickly, Rose is ahead of Deron and has open space, nobody from the Jazz stop the ball as Rose swoops in for the layup. That’s twice that he’s done that to Deron in the quarter. Rose has come up limping though, didn’t land right on that layup. Timeout Jerry Sloan, he doesn’t like what he’s seeing on those two Rose breakaways no doubt. Rose is wearinig a knee brace on his right knee. Hope he’s okay and can continue tonight. Since he’s the future of the franchise, and this is a lowly preseason game, he’ll likely get taken out as a precautionary measure. On the replay it looks like he may have landed one foot on top of the other. He’s on the bench now. He’s holding his lower calf, but it might be his ankle. Likely he turned it a bit. He’s getting looked over right now. He’s wincing as the Bulls trainers bend his foot in different directions. Rose has 14 points and 5 assists halfway through the third quarter. The report has come in, Derrick has a calf cramp, it’s unkown whether he’ll return.
Deron heads to the FT line, makes a FT, he now has 11 points halfway through the quarter.
Utah leading 68-65
Bulls doing well to hang in this one
Beautiful pass by Williams, Williams drove off the right wing, jumped for what looked to be the reverse layup, wrap around pass to Boozer for the finish and foul. Excellent pass.
Boozer adds two FTs to give him 19 and 6
Brewer on the steal, Bulls get back to deny the fastbreak dunk, back to Price, Jazz work the ball around, late in the clock, high screen adn roll between Boozer and Brewer, Brewer drives right, on the side of the lane he rises up and finishes up off the glass against a lot of contact from Gray, plus gets the foul. Brewer misses the FT, offensive rebound Boozer, putback Boozer.
Under four minutes to play in the third. Tyrus Thomas making another two FTs, I think that gives him 6 points. Boozer subs out, he has 21 and 9 now.
Thomas gets his first bucket off the game after Fesenko checks in. Tyrus high post right wing, drives left into the paint, spins righgt, and muscles up the short shot over Fesenko. Fes picks up a foul on the play. His defense wasn’t as much bad, as it was Thomas having the confidence to go at him. Great block by Thomas on the other end, he pins the ball against the rim, Utah hold onto it again though … but miss their shot. A few possession later, Gordon pops up off a Tyrus screen, shoots the 20 footer top of the key on the catch, nails it.
Final minute and a half of the third. Utah lead 81-77.
Roger Powell – another ex-Illinois player – checks into the game for the Bulls. He gets a massive ovation as he moves to the scorers table. That’s nice to see.
Chicago hold it for the final shot of the quarter, Gordon working one-on-one on Brewer, drives left, gets a step on him, Price helps from the wing and knocks Gordon’s dribble loose, steal Price, fastbreak the other way, Chicago foul to avoid the easy layup.
Fourth Quarter
Utah lead 86-79
Kirk on the drive and dish to Powell along the right sideline, three pointer on the way, misses, large gasp from the crowd. They were ready to roar if that one fell.
Korver tips the rebound up over the reaching arms of a Chicago Bull (Thabo?) to himself. Nice intellgent play. Then he turns it over with a bad pass … and Chicago give it right back within 2 seconds.
Fesenko with an excellent offensive rebound in the crowd, takes a dribble to steady himself, dunk, misses it
Roger Powell rising for a big dunk, Fesenko fouls him … crowd unhappy …. crowd cheering loudly for each made free throw.
3rd illegal defensive call against Chicago tonight, Korver punishes them
Deron pump fakes the three, Gordon bites, Deron jumps into him and draws the foul … he’ll shoot three and make three
Actually those Noah glasses … they look like an elderly woman’s specs. The large wide frames.
Utah lead 92-81
Deron checks out for the night, fans get on theri feet, Deron gives a farewell salute. Deron finishes the game with 14 and 9.
Gordon nails a three pointer right wing. That’s his third three pointer.
Fesenko with a decent move, but bricks the running hook, ball fell out of his hands on the shot.
Powell nails another jumper to the joy of the crowd.
Timeout …. 8 minutes to play
Gordon hits another three pointer. That’s 16 points for Gordon off the bench. Misses another three as I write this.
Korver pulls off a screen off the elbow, he has the 15 footer, elevates, defense helps, Millsap cuts to the rim, Korver dishes it off, easy layup Millsap. Nice pass.
Utah lead 97-93 with four plus minutes left in the game. Nice block by Fesenko on the help defense.
Thomas checks out for the night. He finishes with 15 and 11. Only one rebound in the second half, 9 points though.
Gordon fouled on his pull up jumper from 20 feet on the right wing, Price getting a good chunk of his arm. Gordon makes both to tie the game 98-98. Millsap draws the foul inside on the other end, he makes two FTs. Three plus minutes to play. Gordon brings it up, comes off the high screen and roll sprinting into the paint, Price staying with him, pull up J from 13 feet, hanging on the rim, falls off, offensive rebound, another Bulls miss, Millsap snares it down. Korver right corner, drives into the paint, shoots a runner, misses, hits the offensive glass and gets his rebound, shoots a fadeaway 5 feet out in the paint, nails it. Timeout. Utah have opened a four point lead.
2:20 to play … Utah lead 102-98
Fesenko with another good block. The man who had a poor summer league and was critized at the begining of training camp has been playing his way back into good favour over the past three-four games. He still has a way to go but he’s back showing that potential we saw early last season, rather than the negative views his summer had earned.
Utah lead 103-101 … 1:30 to play
Gordon top of the key, hesitation dribble, flies by Price to the right, gets a little contact and the foul, finishes the runner off the glass. Makes the FT. Chicago up one.
Price’s ego needs stroking, he forces the drive baseline, jumps up with nowhere to go, forces the pass to avoid the turnover, almost throws it away, Nocioni deflects the pass but it falls right to Almond. Almond drives from the top of the key into the paint, runner, missed, offensive rebound, back to Price, Price again showing his ego trying to do too much, gets trapped between three Bulls, can’t get rid of it, finally passes out turnover …. Chicago run the other way, Thabo on the fastbreak, layup off the glass, misses.
Timeout Jerry Sloan. Sloan is staring right at Price for falling into that trap a moment ago, unhappy, TV break. I think Price’s ego took a blow by Gordon beating him off the dribble a few times over the past few minutes. Not like him to force the action like that, t’was unusual. Timeout Chicago before Utah even inbound the ball, it’s a 20 second one.
Price with a quick hoop
Millsap has 16 and 7 on only 6 shot attempts. Lot of trips to the line.
Chicago inbound the ball to Nocioni, he’s fouled, he makes both. Chicago up three. Chicago check in their longer more defensive orientated players. 16 seconds to play.
Ronnie Price pushes it end to end and in five seconds gets a layup
Inbounds to Ben Gordon, he’s fouled. It’s a one point game. Ronnie fouled him, that’s 6 fouls on Price, he’s done. Gordon makes two FTs, he has 23 points off the bench to lead Chicago.
Utah need a three, to Korver, pass deflected, Korver hustles and gets back possession, the defender is riding his hip, Korver has to put it up, misses
Chicago win.
Some Notes
Memo Okur, Carlos Boozer and Paul Millsap took turns tearing apart the Bulls interior. Memo went 8-11 fom the field for 17 points in only 25 minutes. Boozer dropped 21points on 8-12 shooting in 26 minutes. Millsap scroed 16 points in 25 points on 5-6 shooting. Each player went to the free throw at least five times. Chicago couldn’t do anything to keep them away from the rim.
Derrick Rose put up good numbers with 14 points and 5 assists in 24 minutes. His impact on the game was fairly average (lacked control on the game, and didn’t marshal the Bulls offense well) … but that’s not what is important.
This is his third or fourth game in the NBA, he’s 19 years, and he’s playing one of the two best point guards in the league … what’s important is whether or not he showed he belonged on the court and could compete against Williams … and he most definitely did. A very promising performance from Rose.
Deron Williams was the best player on the court. He picked apart the Bulls defense repeatedly exploiting his big men in the post, running the break, and finding cutters. He ran their offense beautifully throughout. In the third quarter he came out with onus on getting into the paint and scoring some easy baskets (scoreless first half). He finished with 14 points and 9 assists in only 25 minutes. The control he held over the game was incredible.
The Bulls fourth quarter run was spurred by their excellent firepower off the bench in Ben Gordon and Andres Nocioni. They combined for 43 points on 14-30 shooting, 8-16 from three, 7-8 from the line. Noce added 5 boards, while Gordon threw in 5 assists. They were the Bulls two highest scorers.
The starting lineup for Chicago had an up and down night. Luol Deng once again had a quiet game, he’s been coasting throughout preseason. Drew Gooden after a great night against Minnesota followed it up with a poor performance, not unusual for Drew. Gooden had as many fouls as points (4), and as many turnovers as rebounds (2) in 20 minutes of action. He got eaten alive defensively. Tyrus Thomas flew under the radar during the game, and wasn’t always involved, but quietly he put up good numbers – 16 points (3-8 from the field, 10-10 from the line) and 12 rebounds. Kirk Hinrich had a solid game, he created quite a few good shooting attempts for his teammates but struggled with his own offense.
Was listening to the Pacers-Grizzlies game (Pacers roared out of the gate, but Memphis worked their way back into the game to keep it close), missed the first few minutes of this game, tuning in halfway through the first.
First Quarter
Celtics lead 14-8 off a long Ray J
Celtics push the ball up quick, Knicks get back but KG establishes position down low on David Lee, Pierce passes it quickly inside, KG gives a quick shoulder fake towards the middle, then takes the turnaround J going the other way off the glass over David Lee. Nice basket.
Timeout
Rondo comes off the Perk screen shooting, left elbow, misses
Wilson Chandler is guarding KG, KG loses his dribble, regains control, turns and shoots over Chandler, misses
Chris Duhon is defending Pierce, that’s a terrible matchup for NY, Pierce posts him up right away, Duhon ties him up, jump ball, great work by Duhon.
New York playing three point guards right now – Nate, Steph, Duhon – Steph defends the two reasonably well as does Duhon, but small forwards? Boy I don’t know about that, especially one like Pierce.
Pierce wins the tip, taps it to KG, Nate Robinson out of nowhere, jumps with KG and they both fight for it in midair all the way down to the floor. Another jump ball. Nate got near that, KG tips it, Glen Davis saves it from going out of play. Good work BBD.
Chandler with a smooth move, one step spin and rise over the top for a 15 footer left wing
Great patience by the Knicks. Great ball movement, Chandler setting up Nate for the corner three in the end. They made about three drive and kicks and worked the ball from right to left and all the way back in the process. Pretty.
Timeout
Mardy Collins has to force the drive and runner to beat the shot clock, makes the shot in traffic (four C’s around him)
Boston lead 19-17 with two minutes to play … Knicks just turned it over on the break, had a chance to tie it
Nate splits the defense on the screen and roll, bobbles into the lane and shoots the short J, missed
Rondo makes back to back baskets (second was a nice give and go with KG on the break out of the low post) …. long outlet to Rondo who’s ahead of the pack, stolen by Nate, pass ahead, fills the right lane, gets it back, fouled on his layup attempt.
Ray on the drive and kick to Paul, three pointer left sideline, hits it
Wilson Chandler tries to go coast to coast to beat the end of quarter clock, but BBD was in the way and drew the charge.
Second Quarter
Nate on the offensive glass getting the putback
Mike Gorman “Eddy’s sweating I’ll tell you that much” on Eddy Curry
Nice drive and kick by Tony Allen to Eddie House for an open three pointer
Mardy Collins with a beautiful drive, drove left wing, stopped, pump fake, up and under, layup. So smooth, very quick on each decision and counter.
Zach Randolph is at center right now, Chandler at power forward. Chandler is disruptive defensively, using his length well to deflect passes. Another turnover and fastbreak, Steph fouled on his attempt, shoots and makes two at the line. 11-3 run NY.
Knicks lead 30-29
Tony Allen posts up on the left block, maneuvers inside nicely, Knicks converge, Tony loses it, turnover, fastbreak Knicks, wow they’re quick, Nate blazes ahead, fouled to avoid the layup, makes two FTs
Gabe Pruitt enters the game.
Tony Allen putting it on the floor, getting to the rim and finishes
Timeout
Stephon driving to the rim, misses the layup, Zach follows the empty space behind Steph, rebounds, scores the hoop and the foul, misses the FT
Leon Powe, left block, faces up, goes back to basket again, turns middle and shoots the right handed jump hook, misses
Tony Allen with a nice drive and a better pass to Leon for the flush in Randolph’s mug, Zach fouls him too.
Eddie comes up shooting off the screen, nails the three pointer with two Knicks jumping out at him
Knicks lead 39-38
Celtics look the better side and in control of the game. NY are having a few hot streaks which has kept them ahead for the last few miuntes
Tony Allen shaking and baking on Richardson, gets a step, fouled, makes two of two, Celtics lead
Gabe with a nice lob pass to KG for a layup, good vision by Pruitt to see the mismatch, saw Lee was on him and just looked up until he found KG trailing the play and heading right to the rim
Nice pass by Lee to leave the ball for Crawford who was running around him while on the ball, Jamal hits the 20 footer
Lovely pass by Randolph to Lee, he was on the move driving across the FT line, one handed pass to the cutting Lee for the layup
Steal Eddie House, Perkins leaked out ahead of everyone, gets the pass and dunk
Nice block by Perk on Lee’s driving layup
KG dribbling at 17 feet, takes the jumper, makes the jumper
House nailing another three pointer
Celtics lead 50-48 with three minutes to go, Knicks tie it up on the other end
Richardson deflects the pass into the backcourt, chases after it, goes out of bounds before he could ever get close to it
As the half draws to a close we have a tie game at 56-56
Halftime
The Knicks second unit was again giving them a huge boost. They’ve been fantastic throughout preseason. One wonders how successful they’ll be when the starters take over their regular minutes? Or will D’Antoni run a long bench and even out the minutes to an extreme? That would be interesting. Have to wait and see.
Tie game 56-56
Boston have had 5 more shots from the field, NY have 7 more FTs so slight advantage to the Celtics in terms of possessions ending with a shot at the hoop.
The Celtics have a 24-22 advantage on the backboards
The Celtics have 14 assists on 22 made field goals on 46 attempts, good for 48% from the field. They’ve also shot 6-13 from three and only 6-11 at the line.
The Knicks have 10 assists on 19 hoops from 41 attempts, that’s 46% shooting from the field. They are only 3-9 from downtown but are 15-18 from the line.
The Knicks have had 8 turnovers that have cost them 13 points, the Celtics have only 5 turnovers and they’ve only cost the club two points.
I’m going to switch to the Utah-Chicago game. The Deron Williams-Derrick Rose matchup is too good to pass up on.
Update: The Knicks won the game 104-97. They got the lead early in the third and never relinquished it. According to some Boston fans the C’s weren’t the same after Rondo went down with a sprained ankle in the third quarter, no word on the severity yet. Good win for NY. They’ve had an encouraging preseason.
Same game, different venue …. this time we’re in Barcelona, Spain. The good news is that Antawn Jamison is back in the lineup.
First Quarter
Melvin Ely and Hilton Armstrong start in place of the Hornets starting big man duo. So they’re without their 2nd and 3rd best players tonight, that’ll help even up the contest.
Washington start McGee, Jamison, Stevenson, Daniels, Butler. So four veteran guys, two borderline All-Star forwards … and rookie center.
Hornets big men draw fouls on each of New Orleans first two possessions, making three of four FTs.
Ely setting the screen on the right side of the defender, trying to send Paul into three defenders after two dribbles … Paul waits from him to cop on and set the screen on the correct side, Ely does, and later in the possession he gets a post up for his troubles, again drawing a foul and heading to the FT line.
Butler nails a face up J out of the corner
Some sights in the crowd – Thierry Henry and young Ricky Rubio
Stevenson nails a three from the left wing
Daniels throwing the lob to McGee, bad pass too high, McGee gets up there and almost puts it home, doesn’t.
Hornets lead 12-7 after 5 minutes
Butler showing good vision with a bounce pass through traffic to Blatche, but the pass is a little off target and ends up falling out of bounds
Blatche with a lovely crossover … he was at the top of the key, moving slightly to the right looking for his runner who was coming off a screen, cross back over left, beats Ely easily, and in two strides is at the rim finishing a reverse layup and draws the foul. Next two possessions Blatche makes two lovely passes. The first was an up and under on the left elbow, then as he went to shoot he spotted Jamison on the right block for the easy layup and passed the ball through three bodies to find him. The second was a behind the back pass on the fastbreak, Butler missed the layup.
Hornets lead 21-13 with four minutes to go.
Peja with the drive and kick to Posey for the corner three
Blatche backs down Ely, turns and shoots over him, bad footwork again, getting his feet tied up limiting his ability to turn and can’t jump, he’s off balance, misses, offensive rebound, draws the foul on the putback. Great second and third efforts from Andray Blatche.
Posey nails another three from the opposite wing
Hornets pulling away, leading 32-17 as the first quarter nears to a close
Second Quarter
Ely opens the court with another dunk
Mike James looks a little awkward bringing the ball up. Slower than normal, not moving side to side well defensively either. Stiff. Washington’s backcourt pressure causing New Orleans some problems getting the ball in. McGuire is defending James, he’s bothering him too.
Blatche out of control, loses his dribble, regains possession, drives, charges into a defender, turnover.
Rasual Butler with a nice spin move along the baseline to open up the lane for a layup, fouled by Blatche.
Songaila moving well without the ball, gets open in the lane, layup
Devin Brown tries to post up inside, has his shot (fadeaway) rejected
Mike James looks fine physically when he’s driving the ball … at other times he looks a little off.
James slow on that drive, tries a crossover, tries a shimmy, nothing buying, slower than the defender on each move, moves right, spins left, loses the defender good patience and clevel move, floater, misses.
Ely’s length forcing two turnovers on Songaila. His defense wasn’t great on either possession. Songaila made a poor post move and a slow cut allowing Ely to be a factor.
New Orleans lead 40-27 with 5 minutes to play in the half
Butler drives and his the runner, and the foul (James fouled him with his nose – no joke, hit his elbow with his nose), Butler now has 11 points.
Lots of turnovers today
Hornets close the half up 50-32
Third Quarter
Lovely pass and finish, alley oop from Jamison right wing to the the opposite side for McGee to flush it home. An energized McGee swats Paul’s short shot on the other end.
Jamison saves the ball from going out of bounds, tries to throw it off someone’s knees, misses, Wizards keep possession, throw it down low, McGee with a turnaround, hits it
Hornets leading 63-45
This game has no urgency in it … feels like it’s already over. More competitiveness in a pickup game.
McGee with a nice move, faked the hand off with his long arms, spun the other way towards the middle, and was fouled on his swooping finish. Impressive move.
Next possession, Juan Dixon lobs it 15 feet up in the air at the rim, McGee waits for it to drop a bit and stuffs it home with one hand. He’s going to be (in time) an animal on alley oops with his athleticims and length.
McGee left alone 20 feet from the rim, trying to make up his mind, drives, falling over, keeps his balance long enough to flip up a runner that had no chance of going in.
Ely wide open underneath the hoop, Hilton doesn’t see him, looks to pass to the wing, no passing angle, turns back to look the other way, finally spots Ely, passes Ely the ball, enough has passed so allow Washington to contest the shot from the weakside, Ely blows the layup. Ely still had enough space, should have scored that.
Hilton Armstrong creating off the dribble, making two crossovers on the drive, shuffles the pass to Mo Pete. Hilton needs to stick to his task at hand and avoid plays lie that. Hurts his dependability.
Hornets lead 71-55 as the quarter finishes
Fourth Quarter
Devin Brown makes two FTs. Neither Brown or James have put forth much a performance tonight. Both fairly quiet.
Posey nails another three pointer from the corner. Will he have his best shooting season ever this year? I think he’s got a shot.
James bullying Dixon on the drive, initiating the contact and finishing over Dixon on the leaner
McGuire with a huge offensive rebound, looked like he jumped four-five feet in the air to snatch that one.
Pecherov with the turnaround shot along the baseline
DeMarr Johnson with a great extra effort defensively to force his man back as he received the pass, unintentionally putting his foot on the halfway line in the process. Johnson has been active over the past few minutes
Washington have cut the gap. Hornets now lead 78-67
Devin Brown hits a three pointer from the top of the key
8 minutes to play, Blatche hits a putback
Paul and Peja have reentered the game. Chris Paul gives a hard foul to Blatche on the defensive end to avoid the fastbreak layup
Posey with a lovely cut from the right wing through the middle, Paul on the left wing threads the bounce pass beautifully for the layup
Blatche is creating off the dribble again. Too much handle, too far from the rim … not making me happy.
Hornets leading 93-76 with under four minutes to play
I’m going to call it. So-so game, little energy or competitiveness.
Jerry Stackhouse gets the start tonight. Jason Kidd plays also.
Damp wins the tip
Jerry Stackhouse pops out off a Nowitzki screen, 18 footer right wing, blocked by Amir. Good awareness by Amir to get out and contest that shot.
Richard Hamilton gets wide open, 10 feet off open space, after running Stackhouse through a screen.
Amir Johnson inside, posting up Dampier, footwork is a mess, goes nowhere, has to kick it back out
Rip losing Stackhouse again off a pick, another 16 footer … too easy. Next possession offensive rebound Amir, short pass to Rip, 9 footer, good Read the rest of this entry »
Jazz starting lineup - Deron, Brewer, CJ Miles, Boozer, Okur
Jazz win the tip, Memo posts up inside on Kleiza, Kleiza fronting, Jazz work it from the wing to the top, back to the wing, back up top and find the passing angle, layup
Kenyon snaring a defensive rebound off a CJ Miles miss. CJ is defending Carmelo on the other end, good test for him. Melo posts up inside, smacks CJ out of the way, layup denied by a foul. Miles isn’t strong enough to defend Anthony, gotta switch Brewer onto him or hope Anthony stays outside.
Kleiza fronting Memo, another layup
Kenyon Martin dunks one home
Okur posting up Kleiza, doesn’t back him down, decides to roll into the paint from 14 feet, takes a runner, misses. Back Kleiza down and get yourself an easy shot.
Good rebound by Kenyon Martin jumping over Boozer to win that one
Dahntay Jones driving inside and drawing the third foul on Okur
Fesenko checks into the game. He had a double double the other night against Portland.
Jones drive and kick to Kleiza in the left corner, three pointer on the way, miss
Deron holding up the break nicely, waiting for Miles to fill the lane on the far wing, finds him for the dunk
Nuggets moving the ball nicely, getting Kleiza another open three pointer, missing again, this time from the right wing
Carlos with the quick fadeaway out of the post 16 feet out along the baseline, nice shot
Nuggets shooting only 17% so far … only taken 6 shots though. Lots of FTs.
Kleiza has his pocket picked by Boozer on the drive, fastbreak, nothing there, they bring it back out, Deron Williams sets it up, then drives right down the right wing to the rim high off the glass
Jazz lead 14-10, steal Carmelo Anthony, breakaway, slam dunk
Boozer from 16 feet right elbow over Anthony on the quick shot off the pass from the post up by Brewer, misses.
Timeout
Lazy pass by Carter 40 feet from the rim over to Kenyon out beyond the three point line, picked off by Deron … fastbreak Deron alley oop to Brewer, Carter redeems himself and stops the easy opportunity.
Ooooh, designer shades from Millsap. He got whacked in the eye the other day, wearing the Antoine Carr eye gear, except stylish. Looks like a skier.
Nice cut baseline by Carter, Kenyon finds him, wrap around pass to Kleiza, layup
Kenyon Martin soaring up high for another rebound. Huge season for Kenyon, he has to have his best rebounding season of his career. Disappointing production on the backboards last season
Ronnie Brewer hits the three pointer, he has 7 points already
Nuggets push it ahead quickly, from the midcourt ahead to Kleiza filling the lane, Brewer draws the charge on Kleiza.
Good defense by JR Smith denying Brewer’s passing angles. Brewer has to attack JR and stop that, JR’s effort normally shirks after the initial attempt.
Millsap knocking down the face up J from 16 feet right wing
K-Mart slamming another dunk down, nice pass by Carter as he was falling down to find Kenyon
Utah lead 22-20 with a little over two minutes to go in the first
Brewer head fake, one dribble left, 22 footer left wing, oh in and out
Kenyon facing up Fesenko 15 feet out on the left wing, drives left, jumps up through Fesenko’s chest and draws the foul. He misses the first Ft, makes the second FT.
Smush Parker enters
Carmelo defending Millsap
Offensive rebound Ronnie Brewer, dunks, 10 points.
Juwan Howard missing the short shot in the middle of the paint
Steal Kenyon Martin as the Jazz lose it inside, opposite end of the court, Kenyon faces up right wing, drives right, spin move, layup …. another steal by Denver, nice passing, dunk
JR Smith with a good finish inside over two bodies. Nice drive by JR.
Second Quarter
Nuggets were down early but pulled their way back to take the lead 27-25 to finish the first
JR Smith off the glass, he has 6 points making all three shots
Millsap with a fallaway on the baseline
Kleiza wide open top of the key, hits it
Deron Williams bullying Parker into the paint and drawing the foul. Big test for Parker. His whole case for making the roster is his defensive ability … his defense was good three years ago but poor the past the two, so we’ll see where he is now.
Ruben Patterson right elbow extended, spins around, up top, drives left, jump stop, fadeaway, brick
JR Smith throws a 40 foot alley oop to Juwan Howard, Deron Williams intercepts it … doesn’t matter Juwan wasn’t getting up there anyway. Bad pass.
Lovely pass on the break by Williams to Almond for the layup. Deron had a nice drive and dish to Korver for a three on the right wing a few moments ago too. Great point guard.
Nuggets turn the ball over for the 9th time …. 10 minutes to play in the second quarter
Korver is 7-10 from three so far in preseason
Deron Williams with a lovely crossover, into the paint, pulls up from 9 feet and hits the short shot
Lovely layup by Patterson on the break, stepped left as if he was to pass, then stepped back right for the uncontested layup at the last moment
Patterson posts up Korver, Korver defending him well, passes out, calls for it back, drives again, defense helps, kickout, Nuggets swing the ball left to JR Smith, three pointer, nails it
Juwan Howard missing a runner, tap back in
Almond steals the offensive rebound from Juwan Howard. Too easy.
Jazz leading 40-39
Almond loose on the corner off the screen, three pointer, Nuggets get a hand up but Almond hits it anyway
Kosta Koufos runs the floor, fouled by Patterson on his layup after Miles finds him on the break
Koufos looks thick, not sure that’s all muscle though …. Koufos punishing Fazekas for a crappy box out, getting to the offensive backboards and puts it back in.
Nice video interview with Jerry Sloan, he’s very complimentary on Koufos’ attitude and how receptive he is to the coaches advice. He’s keeping the expectations low for the short time but he likes him. Thinks Koufos is the hardest worker on the team during the summer.
CJ Miles running the point at the moment, Jazz never get into their offense, has to force a contested 22 footer off the dribble, predictably misses
Nice pass by Koufos to Kirilenko who was cutting down the middle, better pass by AK to Korver in the corner, touch pass, three pointer scored.
Balkman has checked in … I don’t if it’s the light jerseys or what, but his hair looks even longer than before. He does a spin move and that thing smacks you in the face, that could hurt.
Jazz built a 10 point lead over the past three minutes with CJ running the point …. mostly due to Denver’s lackluster offense.
Koufos blew a layup, then ended up completely lost defensively, never found his man, Balkman got a layup.
Timeout
Koufos finishes inside, nice dish by Miles to find Koufos on his drive. This spell at the point should help CJ’s confidence creating with the ball in his hands.
Illegal screen by Koufos, too eager there.
Final two minutes
Utah lead 56-49
Jerry Sloan taking a moment to give Koufos some pointers. CJ cut above the eye, that’s why we have a rest in the action here.
Koufos snaring a defensive rebound with two hands, pushes into his stomach, then looks for a pass.
Carmelo top of the key, dribbling inwards, pops it, scores it
Balkman deflects the pass out of bounds
20 second timeout … final 50 seconds off the half …. Utah leading 56-51
Lyde scores inside. Utah hold it for the final shot, McNamara turns it over, fastbreak, pass ahead to Smush Parker, wide open dunk, loses the handle out of bounds.
Halftime
Some Team Stats – Utah winning 20-18 on the boards. Utah’s 10 turnovers have cost 12 points, Denver’s 12 turnovers have cost 17 points, Utah doing a much better job of punishing turnovers. The Jazz have taken 40 shots from the field and shot 52.5%, 5-10 from three, and a poor 11-17 from the line. Meanwhile Denver have taken 5 fewer shots, shot a similar percentage, shot one less FT but have made two more, while making only 2-7 three pointers. Utah have 14 assists on 21 baskets, while the Nuggets have 11 assists on 18 baskets.
No particular player stat lines pop out except for Deron Williams who has 10 points, 5 dimes, and 5 steals in 14 minutes work. Brewer leads all scorers with his 10 first quarter points. Boozer leads all rebounders with 4 boards, in only 7 minutes. Kenyon equals that in 11 minutes. Three Nuggets have 9 points as does Kyle Korver.
Switching games again (Kings-Clippers), but no report on the next one.
I’ve seen a couple of Rockets preseason games already, but this is the first for the Grizzlies. My biggest concerns for Memphis are their big men and on the defensive end so it’ll be interesting to see how they do in those two aspects against the Rockets. I’m also excited to get my first glimpse of OJ Mayo … and also how second year Mike Conley is doing.
Okay, great, Joey Dorsey will be starting for the Rockets. Good chance to see more of him. Didn’t hear who he’s starting in place of yet …. hopefully not Yao, it’s likely Yao, hopefully not Yao.
First Quarter
Yes Yao Ming will not play tonight. As expected neither will Tracy McGrady. Luis Scola will start alongside Dorsey, while DJ Strawberry gets the start alongside Artest on the wings. This should be a tough defensive lineup from Houston. The player introductions are begining now.
Memphis win the tip, turnover, breakaway Houston, two on one, open layup, blown, Dorsey rebounds, misses the put back. Memphis come away with it.
Darko posts up on the right block, pump fake, Dorsey bites, Darko takes the contact and the foul
OJ Mayo with a quick long two pointer right wing
Strawberry catches the ball out on the three point line left wing, OJ Mayo off balance, easy drive by for Strawberry, he reaches the baseline, nice bounce pass to the other side of the rim, layup Dorsey, fouled, Dorsey makes the first FT, misses the second.
OJ Mayo on the screen and roll, right wing, drives right, pull up J from 15 feet heavily contested, miss
Nice pass by Marc Gasol to Darko Milicic, he muscles up the hoop over the smaller Dorsey
OJ Mayo being denied very effectively off the dribble by Rafer Alston on the switch, he goes nowhere, passes to Gasol who throws a wild 20 foot pass, Grizzlies get nothing from the possession.
Artest has started by playing some very sloppy basketball. He’s had a bad turnover and an air ball.
Rudy Gay with a nice up and under … Ron Artest is all over the place. His head isn’t in the game. Reaching in defensively and gifting the easy opportunity for Gay. It wasn’t even a good fake, delayed reaction from Artest on the reach.
Darko dribbles up court, draws the defense, spots OJ wide open far wing for three, nails it
Conley spotting the gaps on the break, pushes it down the middle and jump stops right into the moving body of Scola, then goes up and draws the foul.
Marc Gasol left block, turnaround J baseline, miss, offensive rebound Darko, fouled on the lay in. The two big Grizzlies are taking advantage of the smaller Rockets.
Luis Scola has missed a pair of jumpers so far … he really needs to improve his jumpshooting
Rudy Gay swishes a three from the top of the key
Artest looks a step behind everything that’s happening. Gay easily beating Artest off the dribble for the layup. Artest was standing straight up 25 feet from the rim with Gay getting ready to attack him. Coach should pull him now.
Crittenton loses control off his dribble on the drive, steal Strawberry, good defense to bother Javaris.
Grizzlies lead 22-14 with four minutes to go in the first
Landry checks in
Good offensive rebound by Chuck Hayes, long pass out to Rafer Alston before he falls out of bounds, Rafer three pointer top of the key, good. Lowry stopped defending Alston once the shot went up and didn’t bother to find his man once he saw Hayes stole the rebound.
Strawberry pushing it up the floor but none of his teammates bother to run with him.
Strawberry driving from the left wing, into the paint, drive and kick out to Brooks, three pointer right wing, hits it. Houston have closed the gap to two, 23-21.
Darrell Arthur is in the game, makes two FTs
Strawberry right wing, drives right, defense jumps out, spin move to split the help, he has a layup if he doesn’t lose control, fouled first. Over the limit, he shoots two and makes two. Strawberry showing himself to be a fine player.
Warrick turn and face on Landry from 10 feet left block, drives left, Landry fouled on the bump. Warrick’s length and height really stand out next to Landry.
Hayes telegraphs a pass, almost stolen, knocked out of bounds. A pass to a teammate off the elbow on a backdoor cut from the opposite wing.
Rockets hold it for their final shot, long three from Barry, offensive rebound and putback Carl Landry.
Second Quarter
Grizzlies lead 27-25
Brooks has his pocket picked by a trap on the screen and roll, they pressure him at to midcourt before he loses possession, Warrick can’t get control of the ball, saves it before going out of bounds, Strawberry stealing in and gaining back possession for the Rockets. Then both teams trade misses.
Lovely drive and dish by Brent Barry, it was a slow drive but effective, passes through two bodies to Landry on the other side of the pain who’s fouled on his layup. Landry makes two at the line. He’s averaging 13ppg and 7rpg in the three preseason games so far, oh in 21mpg. Good production.
Arthur called for the goal tend, nice pass by Landry to Hayes for the layup.
Brooks turns on the jets but the Grizzlies get back well on D to deny a fastbreak opportunity
Brooks right corner swishing a three pointer
Arthur making a move in the post far too quickly, took himself out of the play, right block, turned and faced, one step right, spin back left, turnaround J, miss. He was too dizzy. Needs to show a bit more composure on his move, make the shot easier for himself, then it’ll fall, but that right there will be a low percentage look for a long time.
Brooks with a nice finish under contact on the break. Houston take the lead back … Memphis were ahead for a long time.
Arthur tries to make the hand off and the give and go from the left wing to left block, but Houston steal the pass. The cut wasn’t great, the pass was telegraphed. Shouldn’t have tried to force the pass. Arthur scores inside on the next possession. Arthur was a good pickup for the Grizzlies on draft night.
OJ Mayo standing too far back on his defender again, ball swung to Von Wafer, he drives left from the right wing, Mayo cheats ahead of the play, Von Wafer goes behind his back and turns the other way, Mayo forced to foul to stop the layup.
Arthur is the only big man in the lineup for the Grizzlies right now, Gay at the four.
Rockets leading 37-34 as we near the halfway point in the second.
Von Wafer throws an errant pass out of bounds. Turnover.
Brent Barry has been doing a lot of ballhandling for the Rockets
Nice pass by Artest to Hayes who made a nice cut down the lane and got himself a layup for his troubles
Conley’s J gets jammed between the rim and backboard. Jump ball at midcourt … Darko wins the tip, Conley gets it back, dribble hand off to Gay on the left wing, back to Conley, defender lagging behind, he drives baseline finishes the layup and draws teh foul, hits the FT for good measure.
Rockets look short handed tonight without Yao and Tracy. A little inept offensively. They’re working hard though. Reminiscent of the team last year after Yao went down.
Jaric with a nice fake on the pass to the corner, defenders buys it, open three pointer right wing, miss
Brooks nails another three. He’s shooting the ball brilliantly tonight.
Quick fastbreak by Memphis, great leakout by Rudy Gay to slam it home only three seconds after they secured the rebound.
44-44 tie game
Under three minutes remaining in the half
Brooks with a nice fake on the three, flies by his man, gets into the paint, to the rim, blocked by Gay, fastbreak the other way, OJ Mayo has a one-on-one, is forced into a miss
Von Wafer hits a cold blooded three and has a snare on his face as he runs back downcourt … next possession he nails another, this time the opposite wing
Darko draws the foul as he drove to the hole. Darko has 8 and 4, plus two FTs, clanks the first, makes the second. Solid first half from the big man.
Conley holds it for the final shot, drive and kick out to Gay, driving layup, good
Halftime
Houston lead 50-48
It’s a close game, but even a short handed Rockets should win this one although it’ll be a tight finish
Some team stats – Rockets lead 22-19 on the backboards. Both teams shooting 45.7% from the field on 35 attempts. Both teams have 16 FTs, Grizzlies making three more. Rockets have scored 8 of 12 attempts from downtown, that’s their lead. Grizzlies 3-7 from downtown. Rockets have 12 assists, Grizzlies have 11 dimes. Almost identical numbers across the lines.
I’m going to switch games and watch the Nuggets play. This isn’t pretty basketball.
The Raptors matchup with CSKA, good game by the way, forced me to miss the start of this one. I was planning on this being my game of choice tonight, but it was a late start and the Raps game was close until late in the fourth.
I’ve been trying to catch a Wolves game since preseason started but hadn’t managed to find the time until now. There’s a couple of things that I want to see tonight (1) Kevin Love (2) Mike Miller (3) The three point shooters Big Al has now (4) Corey Brewer (5) Randy Foye (7) General stuff about how well their offense+defense is working. I’m excited, let’s get to it.
Second Quarter
Halfway through the second, Chicago lead 40-28, make that 40-30 (Brewer knocking down the long two off the pass from Big Al).
Good run by Minnesota over the past three minutes, cutting the Bulls lead from 21 to 8 as Gomes knocks down two FTs.
Wolves applying some backcourt pressure, Kirk handles it well, but doesn’t get the Bulls into their offense well after making it up into the frontcourt. Dribbled for about 13 seconds there without making a pass or moving.
Nice quick one touch passing (four in a row) by the Bulls as they swing it inside to the FT line back to the opposite block, but no good shot came of it, and Gray missed the jumper. Tyrus made one pass too many for my liking, should have shot that one.
Gomes buries another one. Four point game, good extra pass by the veteran Ollie.
Second timeout in two minutes by Vinny Del Negro
Kevin Ollie clapping his teammates towards the bench
Thomas goes backdoor but doesn’t (1) get enough separation, or, (2) seal his man … creating a difficult passing lane … then came a sloppy pass and a turnover. With a guy as athletic as Tyrus Thomas you shouldn’t be turning the ball over when he has a clear path to the rim, just throw it up there and let him dunk it.
Deng settles for a three pointer in the left corner, bad shot, misses it too. Deng needs to drive that.
Big Al posts up Gooden, illegal defense called. Gomes takes the FT, hits the FT.
Lovely pass by Gomes in traffic to Al for the layup. Great play by Ryan Gomes off the dribble penetration.
Ollie dribbles the ball off his foot into the backcourt, turnover … his coach is displeased at that
Gomes blocks the shot, Wolves break ahead but can’t find the shot, swing it back out, over to Brewer on the opposite wing, pump fake, one dribble in and shoots, misses … defensive rebound Bulls, Hughes leads the break, pushes it fast, 3-on-1 for Chicago, terrible pass by Hughes looing for Deng on the left lane but he threw it about two feet too far ahead of Luol, turnover. Hughes had Tyrus Thomas on his other wing. Oh my.
Al Jefferson down on the block, jump hook in the lane, good, one point game
Final minute of the half
Deng goes nowhere off the dribble, has to give it up, Noce has it, takes a three, rebound Jefferson.
Gooden doing well to push Jefferson off the block, doesn’t matter, Big Al catches it, makes that one dribble one direction (right) spin back the other direction (left towards baseline) and finish with a one handed floater over the top of the defender … makes it. Al is very effective with that move.
Tie game 44-44 … Final possession … Ollie up top, can’t get to the screen and roll, good defense by Hinrich, now Hinrich puts his hands on Ollie sending him to the line. Ollie makes the first, and the second.
11 seconds remaining
Chicago will have one last chance to score before the half, Hinrich brings it up, crosses over Ollie, Carney slaps Hinrich on the shot, misses, Hinrich makes both.
4.6 seconds to go
Minnesota push it up quickly, Brewer off balance throws it up, no good. That was never going in.
Halftime
The Bulls blew a 21 point lead in the final 7 minutes of the second quarter, and ended up down at halftime.
Some team stats – Bulls lead 19-17 on the backboards. Chicago have taken five more shots, but the Wolves have taken 7 more FTs (made three) so about even in terms of shot attempts. The Bulls have 10 assists on 17 buckets shooting 49%. The Wolves have 7 assists on 15 baskets shooting 50%. The Wolves are only 60% at the line on 15 attempts, also 3-7 from three. The BUlls are 4-6 from downtown. The Wolves 9 turnovers have cost them 9 points. The Bulls 13 turnovers have cost them 11 points.
Bulls lead 9-zip in fastbreak points. Minny’s bench turned the game around outscoring Chicago 26-7.
Third Quarter
Wolves lead 46-45
Deng to Gooden on the pick and pop, bang from 12 feet baseline
Brewer hitting the offensive glass, had the rebound until Madsen got in the way and took it from him knocking it loose to the Bulls.
Lovely pass by Hinrich to the cutting Thomas on the opposite side of the court, layup
Brewer hits another jumper
Bulls sharing the ball nicely, Deng in the right corner, trying to drive, Brewer shutting him down, Deng goes nowhere has to get rid of it, Hinrich has it in the corner, drives in again, Wolves loose Gooden who pops out to 18 feet in the right corner, hits the J
Madsen’s slow feet trying to post Thomas, by the time he got around, Thomas was already darting away to create some separation. He gets the pass, Madsen fouls.
Jefferson rebounding Hughes’ missed three. I love watching Big Al rebound. Two hands everything. I love it.
Chicago lead 53-51
Nice give and go between Brewer and Al on the left wing, hand off to the cutting Brewer who went baseline, layup, misses, putback scores.
Telfair dead, Hinrich ate him alive on that possession. He harrassed him all over the court, then stopped his penetration, at this point Telfair thought it was a wise idea to pick up his dribble since he was pinned in the corner and had no passing angles, then Kirk just made himself big and active, Telfair travels trying to make a pass.
Somebody get Mark Madsen off the court … he screams out liability everywhere on the court. My goodness he’s so awkward out there.
Thoams with a runner, misses by two-three feet, brick
Bad turnover, Chicago punish them as Hinrich lays it in
Lackadaisical pass by Madsen in the backcourt, almost picked off by Deng, Brewer has space to run, pushes it straight down the middle and draws the foul as he makes the three point play to tie the game.
Minnesota have to take Madsen off the court, he’s killing Al Jefferson and the Wolves spacing offensively.
Big Al with another rebound
Halfway through the third now
High screen and roll between Hinrich and Gooden, Gooden pops out for three, Hinrich keeps driving looking for the layup, Al shadowing him well, Kirk dribbles down the right hand side of the lane, under the rim, to the left hand side, now he panics and jumps up in the air with nowhere to go for no reason, two Wolves including Al collapse on him and kill the passing angles, turnover. That was a bad turnover by Hinrich. Good D by Big Al.
Al upfake, Gooden bites, Al moves in and takes a rainbow J, makes it
59-59 tie game
Randy Foye breaks that tie with a 23 footer on the right wing
Deng misses another long jumper
Kevin Love has checked into the game … these jerseys are not friendly to his body shape. He looks ridiculously overweight and he’s not.
Derrick Rose flying by Love, fouled by Love, reverse layup missed, two FTs taken and scores one.
Deng misses another three pointer, rebound Brewer
Telfair driving inside for the acrobatic reverse layup
Deng looks to drive, Brewer has no problem sticking with him, Deng gives it up, another long jumper, defensive rebound Love, pass ahead to Brewer, he pushes it up but the Bulls get back well. Minnesota still haven’t scored a fastbreak point.
Jefferson with another bucket inside
Brewer tips away the pass inside to Deng. Brewer has been fantastic defensively.
Kevin Love with the tip off of McCants’ miss, no good
Love defending Gooden, Gooden trying to back him down, no good, drop step baseline, laying, lost Love easily.
McCants pull up J from 14 feet off the bounce, Hughes fouled him.
Gooden takes a seat. Drew has 20 points and 8 rebounds in 25 minutes on 12 shot attempts.
Rebound Mccants in the corner, up to Telfair, Telfair slows it down, holds for the final shot of the quarter, over to Craig Smith 22 feet from the rim, he drives left, throws it up, misses, Love taps it up and in.
Turnover Larry Hughes as McCants draws the charge in the backcourt
McCants inbounds, 1.9 seconds, touch pass back to Rashad, three pointer right wing? Nope
Fourth Quarter
The Wolves lead 70-63. This is WOlves largest lead of the night.
Love tips in another missed shot. Third offensive rebound for him in teh past few minutes.
kick ball by Telfair
Derrick Rose has been quiet tonight.3 and 3 in 11 minutes.
Bad defense by McCants on Deng, allowing him far too much room on his dribble, step back J from 18 feet right wing, McCants jumps into him after the release, foul.
Telfair struggling to beat the backcourt pressure, over to Love, 65 foot pass by Kevin Love to McCants over the long arms of the defender, McCants has tunnel vision, he takes right to the rim and draws the foul.
Nice bounce by Love to Smith, layup, miss, offensive rebound, foul.
Wolves lead 75-65
Nocioni nails a three pointer near the top of the key
Pick and pop with Love, three pointer, in and out
Derrick Rose driving right from the top of the key, loses his dribble, runs it down out to the right wing, slowly dribbling back up top, crossover dribble, explodes left passed Foye, takes it hard to the rim for a layup
Timeout
Foye bounced a pass off of Love’s shoulder out of bounds. Good idea by Foye, poor pass, poor awareness by Love too.
Smith misses the runner, offensive rebound Love, put back. Great stuff by Love.
Thabo with a high arcing 18 footer. He caught it in the corner, pump fake, defender went flying, took one dribble inside, and let it rip. Nice looking shot.
Wolves lead 77-72 with 8 minutes to play
McCants misses the second FT, Smith rebounds. Wolves reset. Carney looks comfortable off the dribble, swings the ball, it comes back to him, three pointer right wing, misses it.
Derrick Rose goes up for the lob, Thabo throws it at his knees, turnover
Smith takes a bounce, hits the 14 footer
Bad looping pass by Thabo, almost a turnover, Rose against the clock, forces a running 17 footer, miss
Ollie and Smith pick and roll is the Wolves go-to offense right now and the Bulls are not making ground … this is not good basketball right now
Smith pump fake, flies down the lane and almost breaks the rim with that dunk, lound roar after the slam
Turnover as Chicago throw it into the backcourt
Timeout
Under five minutes to play
Minnesota lead 83-76
Thabo steals the pass, runs down court, passes to Rose, who slices through two defenders in mid air from 13 feet out, acrobatic layup and finish by Rose
Rose bullies his way into the lane, steadies himself and jumps over Ollie to finish with a 7 foot jumper
McCants beats Thabo off the bounce easily, misses the layup. Made his life difficult instead of taking the easy open 10 footer. Instead ran into traffic and blew the play. How many times have I said that before about McCants? He drives me nuts with these plays.
Rose top of the key, goes behind his back, holds up the play waiting for Nocioni to join the action, leaves it for him – passes to the right wing – to step into a three, three pointer on the way, good
Timeout
Minnesota lead 85-83
Three minutes to play
Big Al scores inside
Rose called for a palming violation, turnover
Final two minutes
Wolves lead 88-83
Big Al left block, Ollie cuts down the middle of the paint, Jefferson finds him, layup Ollie. Wolves lead 90-83
1:36 to play
Timeout Chicago
Brewer defending Deng, Deng faces up 18 feet out, drives, spins, jumps over and gets called for pushing off as he put it home
Big Al scores inside once again
Final minute of action, Bulls down 9
The Bulls crowd has begun to leave in droves
Deng misses from 18 feet
Ollie brings the ball up, lets the clock tick, McCants can’t get over, Ollie waves him off the left wing, comes over, posts up Al, nice pass by Al to a teammate for a layup
Wolves win 96-86
I’m taking credit for this Wolves victory. They were losing 40-22 when I first tuned in. Since then they’ve outscored Chicago 74-46. So Bulls fans I’ll try not to watch too many of your games in the future okay?
Some Stats
Chicago ended up losing the rebounding by double digits 45-35.
The Bulls gave up 9 more shots and 11 more FTs to the Wolves because of their poor defensive rebounding (15 offensive boards to 26 defensive boards), and their turnovers (22). The Bulls 22 turnovers cost them 21 points.
The Wolves turned the ball over 15 times costing them 18 points so the advantage there wasn’t too large for Minnesota. Extra possessions (6) but small gains (3 points).
Big Al had 13, 7, 4 and a steal+block in 28 minutes tonight. He shot 50% from the floor but only 1-4 from the line.
Corey Brewer led the Wolves with 15 points on 11 shots while playing superb defense on Luol Deng, and adding a team leading 9 rebounds.
Four Wolves had double digits in points off the bench, while three others (two starters) had 7-8 points. It was a team effort tonight.
Kevin Love had 10 points and 8 rebounds in 19 minutes.
Luol Deng played 45 minutes and scored only 15 points. It took him 14 shots to do it also. Only 6 rebounds in all those minutes.
Drew Gooden was excellent dropping 20 and 8 in only 25 minutes, hitting 9-13 from the field. For good measure he threw in three assists and a block.
As For Minnesota
Corey Brewer …. I’m sold. His jump shot looks very good and he’s been making shots all through preseason, and earning plaudits during camp. He’s ready, this is all he needed to be a 35 minute player, and he’s there. This kid is going to be one heck of a player.
Miller didn’t play tonight, the Wolves choose to rest him.
Love played a small amount of minutes and wasn’t very involved offensively while on the court.
As For Chicago
Rose is going to be a very solid starting point guard as a rookie. They need to clear out and let him create a bit more late in games though.
Deng was very disappointing. He was very disappointing against Dallas too, and in another game I watched the Bulls play (Indiana I think). He’s having a bad preseason. Deng is really struggling to figure out how to reach that next level as a player.
Larry Hughes continues to play himself out of the rotation
Tyrus Thomas hasn’t contributed as much as I was hoping coming into this camp. He was receiving a lot of praise for his summer workouts, and frankly I was expecting more than I’ve seen. It’s still very early so he may show more in the coming games/weeks but I’ve been disappointed over the first three games I’ve seen.
This is a simple game, if Bosh+Jermaine want to dominate then they will and the Raptors will run away with the result. If they don’t it’ll be a close battle all the way, where the perimeter players decide the outcome, which will likely be a close battle because Calderon likely won’t play major minutes.
Also I’m not up on European basketball. My level of interest in CSKA is minimal, and my knowledge of their players is minimal.
First Quarter
I’ve caught bits and bobs of the Raptors games so far but always missed the start. Interesting that Bosh is doing the jump, he wins the tip.
Jermaine may not play as much tonight according to Devlin
Nice pass by Calderon to Parker as he curls off a screen into the paint for a runner
I don’t know if Calderon needs to double down to help Jermaine out, he gifted Holden a wide open jumper, which Holden missed.
Siskauskas beating Moon far too easily off the dribble, fouled, makes the runner and FT
Langdon moving quickly and efficiently off the ball, gets the step on Parker, collects the pass, takes a dribble and kicks it out to his big fora jumper. Nice play by Langdon. He came up with a defensive rebound to start that possession.
Bosh drives hard from the top of the key, goes left, goes up, shoots off the glass, too hard misses
Smodis went down … timeout … he looks fine. They’re spraying his ankle but he’s relaxed, he’ll be back. Walking comfortably.
Lorbek with the hook shot over Bosh
Sloppy pass by Calderon to Jermaine who wasn’t looking, should have shot that runner instead of making that pass
Calderon with the steal, breakaway, he has a step on Holden, gets the layup
Moon with the defensive rebound
Bosh fakes left, defender doesn’t buy it, drives right and runs into the defender, turnover. Bosh had his mind made up too early there.
Parker high screen and roll with Jermaine, going left towards the middle, crosses over, goes the other way on the screen, beats Langdon, defense has to help, lovely pass to Bosh, no finish.
Moon air balls a 20 footer off the dribble as he steps behind a screen to shoot
Langdon with an excellent pump fake, loses Parker, one dribble, shoots from the elbow, hits it. Langdon’s movement off screens is beautiful.
Parker gets caught up in a group of bodies, Langdon pops out to the top of the key, wide open, misses
Jose with a lovely pass to JO for the dunk. Calderon had a three point play moments ago.
Terence Morris picked up three fouls in four minutes, he won’t be back for awhile
Bosh with a lovely shimmy left, drive right, completely knocks the defender off balance, open path to the rim, slam dunk
CSKA lead 13-11
Jermaine O Neal doing good work on the screen and roll, forcing the ballhandler back towards the halfway line
Bosh posting up right block, backing his way down, called for a travel as he makes his move
Bargnani and Kapono enters the game
CSKA lead 19-13 as Siskauskas bags another jumper …. the amount of daylight CSKA’s wings are getting off screens is scandalous. Raptors need to a much better job tracking their mark.
Three minutes to play in the first
Siskauskas posts up Calderon, Kapono doubles, he kicks it out, CSKA swings the ball off the right block to the right wing, across the perimeter to to left corner inside to the left post, quick post up and hook shot. Nice.
Khryapa has been defending Bosh some
Kapono hitting a 17 footer after coming off a screen. Bosh was moving slightly on that screen, but did it quietly and took out the defender.
Hassan Adams is blocked inside, a frustrated Adams decides to be over aggressive defensively and picks up a ticky tack foul 30 feet from the rim. Dumb foul.
Kris Humphries out of control, driving right, spinning back to the middle, fadeaway off balance J, misses … offensive rebound Bargnani, fouled on the putback. Commentator unhappy (correctly) with Bargnani brining the ball back down instead of going straight up.
Bargnani hits from 18 feet
Bargnani gets boxed out on the defensive boards, but uses his length brilliantly to tap the ball away from the CSKA big and to himself, comes away with the rebound.
CSKA leads 25-20 after the first quarter
Second Quarter
Raptors second unit is in there now – Solomon, Adams, Kapono, Humphries, Bargnani
Lovely ball movement by CSKA ending up with a three in the corner, Holden I think, in and out unlucky
Bargnani collects the pass down low from Will Solomon’s penetration, Andrea needs a dribble to direct himself back towards the basket, fouled on his dunk attempt, makes one of two
Planicic nails the three pointer out of the left corner as Langdon throws a lovely pass along the baseline.
Humphries hits the glass and dunks the follow up. Nobody on CSKA put a body on him, he had a straight lane from 17 feet out towards the rim
Lorbek goes glass, makes the face up J from 15 feet left win
Timeout …. CSKA leading 32-25
Gherardini doing an interview, gotta love Maurizio
Great block by Bargnani on Planicic’s runner
Bargnani is heading back to the FT line, this must be his 8th attempt already? He made a nice dribble drive from the top of the key through the middle of the floor right to the rim while being fouled on the finish.
Rebound ran down by SOlomon, he looks to push the pace, penetrates, gets to the edge of the paint, out to Bargnani, Bargnani one dribble pull up J from 22 feet top of the key, hits it. Bargnani pulls down the rebound on the other end.
Bargnani fresh of his success on the previous pull up jumper, moves left pull up J from 22 feet left wing, air ball. Not a good shot to take, lot of time left on the clock, little off balance, and had a defender right there with him.
ROko Ukic checks in, will play the point
Bargnani doing a good job contesting on the screen and roll, CSKA forced to stay outside and get a shot clock violation.
Roko with a spin move on the drive, lefty finish inside
Sasha Kaun is about to check in. One of the final picks in the draft last year, the Cavs own his rights.
5 straight years the Raptors have played European competition … why so much?
Langdon with a nice drive and pull up J, created separation very well but passes out, CSKA hits the jumper
Ukic driving inside and finding Humphries, one dribble in and takes the short jumper, good
Langdron toying with Kapono, but then pulls it back and allows Kapono to get back in the play. Should have kept going, he had Kapono beat.
Kaun back out …. didn’t even notice him while he was playing
Ukic high screen and roll with Humphries, gets into the paint, acrobatic pass back to the cutting Humphries who’s fouled before he can dunk it home. Sam Mitchell calling over Roko for a few words.
Langdon swishes a 20 footer over Kapono at the shot clock buzzer, Langdon does a terrific job with quick first steps in either direction creating good separation for his shot
Parker drives inside on Langdon from the left wing, up to the top of the key, down the right hand side of the lane, and finishes with a one hander from about 6 feet
Bosh is about to check back in
The score is 42-38 CSKA
Roko Ukic looks excited as Bosh checks in, little hop in his step
Three minutes to go in the first half
Ukic fouls on a reach in as Planicic posts up Roko
Bargnani with a very poor post move, bad footwork, working against himself, off balance, clock is his enemy, has to take it, misses it
Ukic splits the help D on the screen and roll but loses the dribble, races it down, and kicks the ball out.
Planicic is a self-serving gunner for CSKA …. just like he is for his national team
Bargnani with a great block on Lorbek
Halftime
CSKA lead 45-38
Some team stats – CSKA leading 19-17 on the backboards. CSKA have taken 38 shots, hit 50% of their shots and have assists on 14 of their 19 hoops. They have only 5 turnovers costing them 8 points. The Raptors have taken 33 shots (but 8 more FTs, only making three of those extra FTs), shot only 42% and have assists on only 5 of those 14 baskets. That assist number is a bit low because of the fouls inside denying them easy baskets many of which were set up well. The Raptors have 7 turnovers costing them 9 points.
Raptors have no three pointers …. and only 4 attempts
Bargnani was the Raptors best player in the first half. He has 9 points on four shots (5-8 from the line), five rebounds, one dime and two blocks.
Ukic and Calderon did a good job of running the club. Solomon … not as much but he was alright.
Neither Bosh or Jermaine forced themselves on the game.
Langdon has been very impressive (despite his 2-6 shooting). I think he’s been their best player tonight … although their contributions have been so even across the top you could pick a few different guys. Siskaukas has been very good. Lorbek has punished the Raptors with a few jumpers and such. Khryapa has been good too.
Third Quarter
Raptors turning the ball over to start the third
Jermaine says he’ll play steady minutes over the final three preseason games to warm up for the opener
Nice high low pass from Bosh top of the key to Jermaine, stripped before he can finish. Inbounds, another turnover.
Siskauskas with a nice upfake on Calderon, hits the midrange J left wing
Lorbek in foul trouble, heads to the bench
Bosh faces up left wing about 16 feet out, drives left, spins back right, Langdon called for a foul reaching in … tough to tell, got a lot of the ball, may have fouled too.
Calderon hits a 23 footer late in the shot clock near the top of the key
Raptors get lost on their defensive rotations on the high screen and roll, khryapha slots out, wide open three pointer right wing, miss
Raptors haven’t led since being up two-nothing.
Calderon with a high looping pass out to Bosh, Bosh thinks about, thinks better of it, Calderon comes back up and gets it back, now throws another bad looping pass out to the corner, this time too much length on it and it flies out of bounds
Moon with an ugly looking three pointer, hit the side of the rim, well the corner between the rim and the backboard
Sasha Kaun re-enters, along with Morris
Bosh posting up Langdon at the elbow, Langdon doing, now reaches, fouls. Dumb foul. Bosh was going nowhere, no need to reach in.
7 minutes to play in the third.
JR Holden drills a 19 footer over Calderon …. CSKA needed that, it’d been awhile since they scored.
Nice move inside by Jermaine O Neal, right block, spins middle, lefty finish as he rolls across the lane. On the next defensive possession, Jermaine draws a charging foul on Langdon.
Planicic is back in … I really dislike watching this man play basketball
Jermaine O Neal double dribbles in the post, called for a travel
Langdon three pointer left sideline, Bosh contests it well, miss …. Bosh scores inside on the other end to make it a two point game.
Khryapa nails a long two on the pick and pop on the left wing
Jermaine posting up left block, gets the pass, quick spin move towards the baseline, fouled before he can finish with a layup …. 1 point game
Raptors on a 14-4 run
Khryapa hits another J, 16 footer on the baseline
Jermaine O Neal facing up from 16 feet left wing …. too far out bad things will happen …. Jermaine decides to drive right, into the paint, off balance runner that is too long, miss. Calderon has to learn not to pass Jermaine O Neal the ball when he’s beyond 14 feet unless Jermaine is a designated passer, never a scoring opportunity.
Raptors going through the motions offensively, not executing sharply, everything is slow, no sharp movements, no hard screens, just walking through it
Nice pass by Jermaine to Bosh, who was being fronted in the post, fouled on the finish. CSKA fouling on any easy attempt inside.
17-6 run Toronto …. tie game
Final two minutes in the third quarter
Parker only 2-6 tonight, hasn’t looked good on his jump shots.
Kapono looking to put the ball on the floor and drive as he comes off a screen and pops out around the left elbow, ugly but effective as he draws the foul. Makes two. Toronto take the lead for the first time since the opening moments of the game.
Rebound Bargnani, foul off the ball before the rebound … Does Andrea get another board in his box score?
Final minute
Planicic fouled by Calderon, using his hands, makes two FTs to tie the game
Hand off O Neal to Kapono, 21 footer baseline J, hits it
Jermaine doing well to alter that layup at the last moment forcing a miss …. CSKA get the offensive rebound though
Planicic has Bargnani on him, Bargnani doing well so far, Planicic right wing, drives right, Bargnani sticks with him, defense offers some help, drive and kick out to the to corner, missed jumper
Toronto missed all 6 three pointers in the third, now 0-10
Fourth Quarter
Raptors lead 60-58
Bosh on the right elbow, turn and face, drives right, layup
Kapono doing a good job tracking down the long rebound
Jermaine O Neal fallaway J from 9 feet falling backwards slightly, misses, offensive rebound Bargnani, he puts it back up and in
Raptors going with their three big men – Jermaine, Bosh, Bargnani
Langdon nails a jumper
Bosh faces up along the baseline, misses the shot. Was hesitant twice on that play – the first was initially after the catch on the pick and pop, the second when deciding whether to drive or not
Calderon nails a three as Holden helps inside
Jermaine is defending Siskauskas up at the top of the key … don’t like that matchup, why not Bosh or Bargnani? Siskauskas drives inside but misses the layup
9 minutes to play in the fourth … Raptors have pulled away, up 9
Lorbek back in the game, posts up Bargnani, foul called for hands on Bargnani
Bosh has 11 and 7 in the second half, only played 12-15 minutes … for the game he has 16 and 9 on 12 shot attempts
Jermaine doing a very good job denying Siskauskas’ dribble
Bosh spinning into the lane, layup, ball hanging on the rim, CSKA player jumps up and slaps it off the rim, goaltending. NBA rules folks!
O Neal catches it too far out again, luckily he backs his man down, turns baseline for the turnaround J, hits it
Lorbek answers quickly, Raptors still up 11
Lorbek is a Pacers player right? They own his rights I mean? I think so.
7 minutes to play
Kapono nails a three … 12 point game. Raptors should win this one. Humphries enters the game for Jermaine. Raptors still playing three bigs, plus one forward (Kapono) and a guard (Calderon)
Bargnani hustling back 30 feet to hang onto possession after a CSKA player was playing the passing lanes, deflected the pass into the backcourt and looked like he had a breakaway layup on, but Bargnani chased it down and made it to the ball first. Like that.
Bosh down on the left block, turns baseline, hook shot, miss
Lovely behind the back pass by Jose in the open court following his steal, pass to Humphries for the layup and foul. Timeout
Raptors up 12 with a little over 5 minutes left to play
Savlasvenko with a nice hook over Humphries
Kapono can’t catch the pass, slips through his finger tips, turnover
Lorbek posts up left side, quick turn and drive across the middle, rises up and finishes with the oustretched right hand … 8 point game
Jermaine and Parker come back in to finish the game
Four minutes to play
Nice pass inside, Jermaine denies Siskauskas inside, great block, turnover, Raptors look to push it, Calderon decides to slow it up. Raptors reset their offense. Jermaine loses possession of the ball on his drive, but if falls right to Bosh, Bosh holds it up and allows his teammates to clear out, faces up from 14 feet on the right wing, drives right, slam dunk, foul before the basket, makes two of two, lead back to 10.
Offensive foul for Lorbek, he’s fouled out, turnover …. CSKA are finished. This is over.
Toronto now 1-5, CSKA has cut it to 6 with two minutes to go … nice cut, Parker forced to foul to avoid giving up the layup. CSKA could cut it to four with two minutes left.
Bosh faces up left wing, 14 feet out, takes the jumper, nails it
Jermaine O Neal got a piece of Kaun’s shot but Kaun got the friendly roll off the rim
Nice drive and pass inside by Calderon to Jermaine for the layup
Raptors up 6, Final minute
CSKA miss, Bosh rebounds, good box out by Jermaine.
Raptors hold onto it, this is over … CSKA foul.
Very good warm up game for the Raptors. The starters played good minutes and they played against a side that executes well, so they needed a good level of sharpness to get it done.
One of the Europe Live contests …. I believe it’s in Berlin today
This is my first sight of the Wizards this season so I’m looking forward to seeing how their kids are doing, especially Blatche. The Hornets are more of a known quantity.
First Quarter
David West is sitting out tonight, in his place starts Julian Wright. The Wizards Antawn Jamison is a difficult matchup for most teams, a long strong small forward like Wright should match up well with him. Actually Jamison is not playing tonight, Songaila starts in his place. Also, Dee Brown gets the start tonight. Daniels must be resting.
Etan Thomas will start in place of Brendan Haywood, and he wins the tip
Tyson Chandler faces up from 14 feet left wing, goes glass, misses
Two minutes into the game, still no scores, both teams finding their legs. As I write this New Orleans go an a 7-0 run inside a minute with scores inside by Chandler and Paul (runner on the break) and in between a three pointer by Peja Stojakovic which was set up by the baseline penetration by Chris Paul. Blowout? Wizards are short handed tonight after all. Looks on the courts.
Alley oop to Wright, he dunks it home …. Stojakovic nails another three, a quick three on the break. That’s a 12-0 run to open the game from New Orleans. Timeout Washington. This is going to be a blowout.
Wizards need to bring on Andray Blatche. They need more offense on the floor.
Songaila posts up left block, works his way down, turns middle, ugly right hook, misses
Paul bringing up the ball, Hornets run Wright off an early screen on the right elbow, nobody goes with Wright, alley oop, slam dunk. Too easy. Good screen by Chandler to take out Songaila.
Peja steal, breakaway, layup …. 16-0 Hornets
Songaila misses a 20 footer right wing …. Mo Pete nails a quick three pointer on the other end, nope foot was on the line.
Songaila at his third attempt cleans up a miss inside. Thankfully Etan THomas makes a hoop inside. Wizards have two baskets now.
McGee and Blatche enter the game. Chandler makes two at the line, Hornets leading 20-4
Caron Butler gets an iso 16 feet out on the left wing, drives baseline, loses control of the ball out of bounds
High screen and roll for Chris Paul by Tyson Chandler, he slices and dices his way into the paint, defenders keep backing off to protect the rim, Paul takes the 14 footer, hits it
Paul passes out to Wright in the right corner, he drives left towards the center of the court, has a step on Blatche, crosses back over, gets his dribble picked off. Too smart for his own good there. Turnover. Just drive young fella.
Another alley oop, from Paul to Chandler this time
Blatche right wing, Wright on him, Blaatche drives from the three point line across the paint, lefty layup, altered by Wright, misses the inside shot. Good help D by Peterson to come over and bother Blatche also. Both Blatche and Wright go down hard. They collided on the way down. Blatche’s knee looks hurt, the trainers checking him over on the court before deciding to move him. Unknown if it’s serious or just a knock, no signals towards the bench yet so that’s positive. We have an ad break. Blatche is fine.
Posey enters the game.
Hilton Armstrong 18 feet out top of the key, pump fakes McGee – McGee jumps at everything, that has to change – Armstrong drives left, draws the foul. Makes two at the line. Armstrong has been playing well in preseason to the delight of Hornets fans.
Three minutes to play in the first quarter …. Hornets lead 26-8 …. this will be a blowout. Rasual Butler is in for Mo Pete.
Butler nails a three, Hornets up 22 points with two minutes to go in the first quarter
Armstrong pulls down in his third rebound of the quarter. Posey nails a long two on the other end. Final seconds of the quarter ticking away …. Hornets finish the first quarter leading 36-9
Second Quarter
Well there’s not a lot we can learn about the youngsters in Washington now. This game is over as a contest. The Wizards simply don’t have the defense to hold a team like New Orleans back, so it’s damn near impossible for them to make a run. The Hornets will surely rest their starters for most of the remaining three quarters.
Mike James slicing his way through the paint, nice pass to Armstrong for a layup, fouled first. Armstrong makes both at the line. Hornets lead 38-9
Nick Young posts up in the midpost right wing, nice bounce pass to his teammate cutting through the middle, layup missed.
Blatche 21 feet out on the right wing, looks to drive again, goes right on Armstrong, behind his back dribble, turns back to his left, into the paint, misses the runner. Come on big fella stay in the paint, you’re bailing out the opposition with these moves.
Butler wtih the swishing pull up J from 10 feet off the dribble drive
Linton Johnson is playing for the Wizards now. I doubt he makes their roster. He misses a 20 footer over Posey … Posey doesn’t on the other end.
Timeout
Hornets lead 45-9 …. I think the Hornets are on another 12-0 run. This is embarrassing for the Wizards. Just under 9 minutes to go in the second quarter.
Pecherov has entered the action
Rasual Butler runs off two screens, loses his man, pops out to 16 feet just above the FT line, gets the pass, hits the shot. Good patience by Mike James waiting for that to develop.
Posey help D on the penetration, kick ball. Good work by Posey.
Stevenson is at the point now. Washington very long and athletic right now – Blatche, Pecherov, Johnson, DeMarr Johnson. As I say that Washington make two changes with McGuire and Thomas coming in for the Johnsons
Armstrong fouled again inside, makes two again. Hornets lead 49-11 with 7 minutes to play in teh half. The game is starting to lose it’s intensity and energy now. Guys still competing hard enough but it’s a new game at this stage.
Butler with a nice 20 footer off the dribble, put himself in a bit of trouble picking up his dribble so close to the corner with no options on, but a nice turn to get himself enough space to get off the shot. Ryan Bowen is in the game now, he seems to be giving Washington’s offense to some confidence. Butler nails a three pointer. Blatche scores again, back to back baskets on Bowen. Bowen posts up on the other side of the court, nobody passes him the ball, James looks to go the otherway and swings the ball.
Timeout …. under five minutes left in the half … Hornets lead 54-17
The game continues to lose it’s sense of urgency
Turnover, steal Bowen, pass ahead to Posey, breakaway, dunk
Armstrong doesn’t box out on a FT, Songaila steals the rebound, layup, misses, Armstrong comes away with that.
Posey nails another three …. this man never stops beating the opponent up. Gotta love Posey.
Blatche three pointer top of the key, Posey jams a hand in his face, miss
Looking at the box score here, Blatche leads the Wizards with 5 points. That’s how ugly it’s been for Washington … oh and Blatche is 2-11 from the field. Meanwhile Posey and Butler have combined for 25 points.
Caron Butler gets his first points of the night at the FT line. Wizards full court press following the FTs, Hornets can’t get the ball in, forced into a timeout. Under three minutes remaining in the half. Hornets lead 59-20.
Jarret Jordan has been playing for the past couple of minutes for New Orleans. He’s struggling with the backcourt pressure after the timeout but Posey makes himself available for the pass ahead to help the youngster.
Etan Thomas making moves on Courtney Sims, gets a lucky bounce to go his way
Caron Butler left wing on the break, looks to drive on Posey, Posey showing no problems sticking with Butler, Butler falls over and out of bounds, turnover. Is Butler carrying an injury? He looks slow tonight, a lot like he looked late last season less the game sharpness. He hasn’t played well.
Posey at the line, making two, he now has 15 points in 15 minutes on only 6 shots.
Turnover Wizards, sloppy pass by Songaila caused the turnover. Stevenson tried to save it but couldn’t get to the byline quick enough.
Jordan looking to create off the dribble, in effect he’s doing nothing …. Stevenson slaps it away, Jordan gets it back and takes a pull up three from two feet behind the arc, misses. Etan Thomas scores again on the other end.
McGuire out of control on the break, runs into Bowen, charging foul. Washington’s 12th turnover to New Orleans 3rd
Halftime
Hornets lead 61-24
Byron Scott stops Butler on the way off the court to give him some notes on that last play. Never stops coaching.
Some team stats – Both teams have shot the ball 39 times, the Hornets have made 56.4% of their attempts while the Wizards have made just 23.1% of theirs. Due to all their misses the Wizards have hit the offensive glass hard and come up with 8 rebounds. The Wizards have a slight edge on the backboards 21-20 which was surely aided by the constant small lineups New Orleans played. The Wizards have 4 assists on 9 made baskets. The Hornets have 13 dimes on 22 baskets. The Wizards have given up 17 points off turnovers, versus four the the Hornets have given up. The Hornets are 7-13 from downtown plus perfect from the line in 10 attempts.
Posey leads NO with 15 points. Butler has 12 points, Armstrong has 8 more. They’re the three leading scorers for the Hornets. Peja also has 8. While Chris Paul dished 8 assists in 12 minutes. James has 3 more dimes. Tyson Chandler only played a few minutes, three minutes appearantly.
Hornets have 37 bench points to 12. They also have 12 fastbreak points to 2.
Nobody on the Wizards has played well
Third Quarter
This game lost a lot of it’s sense of urgency and excitement in the second quarter. If that continues in the second half I’ll likely tune out. It’ll be interesting to see how much Scott plays his starters in the third …. I can’t imagine they’ll play in the fourth.
David West is actually wearing a warm up suit on the bench, rather than a suit. I doubt he plays though, Coach is clearly resting him.
The Hornets are leading 61-24
Chris Paul gathers his teammates before the start of the third and gives out some orders
The Hornets start – Chris Paul, Mo Peterson, Peja Stojakovic, James Posey, Hilton Armstrong. No Julian Wright.
First possession of the new half, Paul sets up Posey for a three in the left corner, miss, silly foul by Armstrong after Blatche pulled down the rebound. Catch and shoot by Blatche from the FT line on the opposite end.
Wizards showing some full court pressure, Mo Pete brings it up and wiggles his in between two defenders 30 feet out before getting the ball back to Paul.
Hilton Armstrong left block, waiting for Paul and Posey to make their moves, decides against the pass, one dribble, turnaround J, miss. Hornets keep possession. Lovely bounce pass by Chris Paul to Armstrong for the flush and foul, off a screen and roll along the left sideline
Caron Butler makes his first field goal
Wizards keep the ball away from Paul again, Mo Pete bringing the ball up comfortably, he passes down low to Armstrong left block, looks for the give and go cutting right, Paul cuts left off the ball, Amrstrong finds Paul with the bounce pass, easy two. Nice pass and awareness by the big fella.
Armstrong trying to post up inside, Blatche pulls away, Amstrong falling backwards pulls onto Blatche as Andray looks to front the post, foul on Hilton.
Great steal by Butler stripping Paul right before his layup attempt …. that possession showed the danger of backcourt pressure against a player like Paul, he gets a head of steam and beats everyone right to the rim.
Stevenson and Peja trade jumpers
Wizards look better in the third quarter, more comfortable offensively.
Good aggressive rebound by McGuire down low, opposite end he posts up on the right block, turns and faces, looks to drive, sees the cutter, threads the pass beautifully, layup
Halfway through the third now …. Hornets lead 67-36
Wizards defense has picked up, Hornets struggling to find good shots
Butler with two baskets inside. Nice passes by Dee Brown. The second was a lovely 40 foot one handed bounce pass on the money to Butler who was cutting baseline off the right corner for a layup.
Hornets leading 71-38 with 5 minutes remaining in the third
Nice pass by Armstrong to the cutting Peja from the opposite wing, Peja mishandles the ball and loses it out of bounds
Incredible pass by Chris Paul but Mo Pete got lost on his way to the hoop and get to get rid of it, turning the ball over in the process
New Orleans are switching on screens all over the place. All three of Posey/Peja/Peterson feel comfortable guarding 2-4 against this Wizards team. They’re handling screens off the ball easily as a result.
Under three minutes to play in the third, Hornets still up 30 points. These will likely be the final minutes the starters play tonight.
Peja 30 feet out, Paul on the right wing, looks to go backdoor, bounce pass ahead of Chris Paul, one handed touch pass to Sims who was cutting from the left elbow, fouled on the layup. Lovely pass by Chris Paul.
Wizards enjoying a 6-0 run.
Hornets have missed their last 6 three point attempts
Paul getting into the paint easily, nice pass to Sims, layup good. Made up for those two FTs he missed moments ago.
Another beautiful pass by Paul to Sims for a layup
Hornets holding onto their 30 point lead, the score is 76-46 with 40 seconds to go as DeMarr Johnson turns the ball over. Final 35 seconds.
Paul harrassing Dee Brown, bothering him but Brown still in control, a hop in his step and he blows by Paul drawing the foul. 9 seconds to play. Dee misses the first, and the second.
Paul brings it up, high screen and roll, steps back from the screen and decides to take the three pointer, misses
Fourth Quarter – Full Time
Okay I’m going to call it here. Good win for the Hornets. The players are just waiting for the game to finally end now.
Never thought I’d end up watching two Oklahoma City preseason games, or three Rockets games, but here we are. Kevin Durant has suited up for the Thunder tonight … and Tracy McGrady is sitting out tonight.
First Quarter
The most important issue in this game is how Kevin Durant handles the defense of Ron Artest.
First possession for Thunder, Durant runs a high screen and roll with Wilcox, Rockets switch at the pick and roll, Hayes on Durant, Ron on Wilcox, Durant sizes up the situation at the top of the key and decides to go inside to Wilcox in the post, nice spin move baseline, reverse layup, Wilcox scores over Yao.
Second possession, Rockets miss a long jumper, Durant leaks out, Von Wafer forced to pick him up in transition, Durant posts up about 15 feet from the rim and just holds his man there, doesn’t try for better position but holds his ground, gets the pass, quick attack and draws the foul. Von Wafer doesn’t have defensive skills to stop Durant.
Petro nails an 18 footer over Yao Ming. Didn’t look like Yao was expecting Petro to shoot that one. Johan has a nice shooting touch, especially in that 13-16 foot range. Next possession, fresh off the success of his past jumper Petro takes another J just above the FT line, this time Yao puts a hand in his face, also Petro puts a slight fade in his shot which is unnecessary, and he ends up missing.
Yao with a quick turn into the middle lane and jump hook out of the post on the left block
OKC leading 12-6 after five minutes
Durant moves to the top of the key, he looks a lot more comfortable off the dribble, he pulls it back out, Thunder clear the floor, now a screen is coming, Durant drives on Artest, goes away from the screen, drives left, gets as far as the elbow before the Rockets defense is forced to collapse around him, Durant kicks it out to his shooter, Mason misses the long J left wing, long high rebound … Durant, Petro and a Rocket all go for it, Durant tips it from the left elbow back down into the paint directly to Wilcox for an easy basket. Great effort and foresight from Durant.
Durant has been moving nicely without the ball … just missed a J … Thunder offensive rebound, run Durant off another screen opposite side of the floor, he makes the catch and lightly probes off the dribble, passes out from the defensive attention, Watson swings the ball, Mason from three, makes the shot.
OKC lead 17-15 with four minutes to
Von Wafer has been quiet. He’s making an effort to blend in … albeit to a detriment of his abilities. Got let Von Wafer be Von Wafer, he’s not an NBA player if he’s not using that scoring/shooting ability. The rest of his game simply isn’t good enough at this juncture.
Carl Landry gets left alone after making a screen before a baseline inbounds, wide open underneath the hoop, gets the inbounds pass, slam dunk.
Rafer hotdogging with a pair of behind the back dribbles 28 feet out, makes his move driving left, Artest’s defender drops to help out leavin Ron open in the corner, Rafer finds him, Artest passes inside to Yao, Yao is fouled.
Westbrook enters the fray
Nice move down on the left block by Collison, aggressively tries to back down his man in limited space (Rockets help defender close by, ready to pounce), he shifts left, turns back right and hits a fallaway J from 12 feet.
Next possession the Thunder post up Wilcox on the left block, he makes a nice move and hits the baseline fallaway. Thunder don’t have much going for htem offensively right now but if the bigs can keep scoring in the post it won’t matter.
Westbrook drives, goes nowhere, stupidly picks up his dribble, has noone to pass to, dead in the water, now Yao loses tough with Wilcox (mix of Yao moving towards Wesbrook foolishly, and Wilcox opening up a better passing angle by moving sidewards), pass up to Wilcox 18 feet out top of the key, hits the jumper with the shot clock running down. That worked out well for Oklahoma.
Yao Ming had 9 points, 8 rebounds and 3 blocks in the first quarter.
Second Quarter
Brent Barry opens up the second with a triple from the right wing
Joey Dorsey is in the game, draws a foul on an aggressive move towards the rim.
Strawberry running the floor and getting himself a layup, nice pass ahead by whomever made it. Another fastbreak, this time Strawberry leads the break, he’s dribbling up the right wing, gives a little shoulder shake and freezes his defender, now jumps over him and hits the runner off the glass from 6 feet. Brooks adds another two with a long J, quick run by Houston.
Houston lead 33-27
With the exception of Brent Barry this Rockets’ lineup is full of players with impressive quickness … also guys who can play quality defense. Dorsey-Landry-Barry-Strawberry-Brooks is the lineup.
Brooks with a hop in his step brings the ball up and quickly gets the Rockets into their offense. The play finishes with an acrobatic drive and finish by Brooks.
Brooks gets on the break, Westbrook is waiting defensively, Brooks has the space to acceralate, he gets a step on Westbrook and has the baseline open, but goes behind his back and pops back out. Didn’t want to press, made the simple play instead of taking the risk. He had Westbrook beat and allowed him back in the play though. Thunder’s defense off the ball loses Landry on the opposite side of the floor, Landry wide open left elbow, Brooks sees him and makes a nice pass, Landry misses the shot.
Dorsey with a grown man’s offensive rebound, pushing the opponent under the basket, pinning him down underneath the hoop, one handed tapping the ball to himself as he gains control, and goes back up strong drawing the foul.
Brooks flying up the court again, Westbrook staying with him well, Westbrook’s size looks to be bothering Brooks, Brooks almost looses his dribble, keeps control, makes a nice pass to the cutting Strawberry who finishes well inside.
Durant posts up Strawberry right block, catches the pass, quick turn and shoots over the top easily, hits the shot, finishes about 16 feet from the rim by the time he shot the ball though.
Brooks with the alley oop sla
Westbrook is impossible to keep out of the paint when he’s in the open court. I don’t mean difficult, I mean impossible. The man bulls his way into the paint and draws fouls so easily. He could be a talented penetrator in this league but I have to see more from him in the halfcourt if he wants to become that. He does it again, just smacking into Brooks and blowing him out of the way, back into the paint, no foul called this time, no bucket either.
Rockets lead 46-37 with 3 minutes to play
Desmond Mason posts up Barry on the left block, backs him down, turns middle, short hook
Brooks wants Westbrook, takes Westbrook off the dribble on the right wing driving right and drawing the foul before he can get his teardrop off from 10 feet along the baseline.
Some jokers sitting midcourt and not getting off. When the timeout is over your butt gets off the floor. What type of crappy entertainers are these. The players are waiting for them to move. Scola goes over and is about to tell them where to go when they fall over and are shooed off by the refs. This is what is wrong (over commercialization and stupid sidebar entertainment) with the NBA. Leave the circus alone and let basketball be basketball.
Brooks creating off the bounce, finding Von Wafer in the right corner for a three pointer, misses
Rockets give away three fouls in the space of 40 seconds in the final two minutes. All of them unnecessary.
Brooks makes the three pointer from the top of the key following the pass out of the post from Luis Scola. Brooks has scored a lot this quarter, should be in double digits for the period.
Durant with a hop and a skip driving inside from the left wing, misses the one hander though
Watson takes a ridiculous shot … driving left wing at a high speed, defender all over him, drives into the corner and shoots a fadeaway J … obviously misses. He was going for the 2-for-1, offensive rebound Collison and putback. Good work by Nick, awful shot by Watson.
Halftime
No stats at NBA.com or ESPN.
The Rockets lead 53-47
Thunder leading 24-19 on the backboards while the Rockets lead 32-24 for points in the paint …. Rockets shooting 51% despite 2-11 three point shooting.
Third Quarter
Artest immediately picks up a foul trying to defend Durant. Durant hasn’t been that involved today. Durant beats Artest easily enough with a crossover dribble and high screen and roll, stops attacking though and pass out.
Rafer Alston with a nice backwards bounce to Yao who was rolling to the oop after the screen and roll, Yao fouled on his way to the hoop.
Desmond Mason with the high arcing fadeaway off the left block
Durant goes coast to coast after picking up an errant pass by Yao Ming … ah he blows the layup, Wilcox cleans up.
Yao is active tonight. He’s taken Petro off the dribble from 15 feet a few times, and he’s hustling to every rebound.
Rockets leading 65-57 with 5 minutes to play in the third
Smooth one handed pass off the dribble by Alston to Artest on the right wing, who’s defender had sagged off considerably, Artest shoots and misses.
Nice give and go by Hayes down low to Artest, but Hayes loses control on the way up for his layup … nice pass by Artest. Collison punishes the Rockets in transition.
Yao throws another bad pass, about 10 feet wide of the nearest Rocket, right out of bounds.
Nice play by Damien Wilkins posting up Brent Barry, turn and face, pump fake, Barry bites, Wilkins drives right by him and makes the layup. Easy basket, good work by Wilkins to create it.
Mason takes a turn on Barry, right block again, turn and face again, pump fake again, this time MAson drives left towards the middle an finishes on the other side of the rim..
Carl Landry knocks down the baseline J from 17 feet
Rockets lead 75-73, hold for a final possession … high screen and roll by Rafer with Landry, Landry rolls, nice pass, Landry draws the foul. Lot of time left on the clock, mustn’t have been able to hold for the final shot, wonder why he let the clock tick so far down. 10 seconds to play.
Rockets use their foul to give, 6 seconds to play
Nice pass to Collison out at the right elbow extended, Yao is dream world … not paying attention to the play, upfake by Collison, he drives right by Yao to the rim and is fouled. He makes two of two at the line.
Fourth Quarter
Landry with a nice spin move and one handed finish inside
Good play by Brooks to deny the alley oop finish by Collison, running back and deflecting the pass at the rim, Collison retrieves it, goes back up and draws the foul. Nick Collison has had an excellent game. He’s been fantastic and a foul drawing machine.
Brent Barry with a nice mini (5 feet variety) V cut and three pointer
Westbrook has Brooks on his heels trying to anticipate his next move, top of the key, has a screener close by, has space to drive on either side, settles for a three pointer, misses
Brent Barry is locked in tonight … lost control off the dribble as he bounced the ball of his foot, ran 10 feet to get the ball back, turns and without a moment’s hesitation drains a triple. These shots haven’t been close to hitting the rim, swishes. He’s locked in tonight.
Barry dribbled the ball there for a good 10 seconds, ran two screen and rolls and still creating nothing.
Durant draws the blocking foul on Barry on a fastbreak
Nice cut by Strawberry, Dorsey finds him, layup …. a Thunder player is on the ground, looks shaken up rather than hurt. I think it’s Wilkins but we have an ad break so no verification on that.
Durant had a nice slam off the Wilcox feed a few moments ago
Rockets lead 91-85
Strawberry cuaght out of defensive position, vulnerable, but an illegal screen was set on him. Durant could just blowed by Strawberry.
Durant faces up Strawberry right wing 18 footer, shoots over the top, misses
Barry creating off the dribble again, twice goes behind his back, still going nowhere, 8 seconds o nteh ball now, gets a second screen from Scola, slips a lovely pass to Luis for a 16 footer right elbow.
Rockets lead 93-89 with four mintues to go … Collison re-enters the game.
Rockets finishing with their second quarter unit, let’s see if Brooks sparks their offense again
Durant running the floor, Watson finds him, layup, two point game
Scola takes a funny looking running hook, a tad off balance there, misses
Thunder’s bench are up on their feet cheering everything
Durant trying to finish on the break again, this time he’s fouled, he makes two of two and ties the game. He has 8-10 points on fastbreaks alone in this quarter …. this is what he’s trying to do when he’s not hitting the defensive backboards.
Strawberry coming off a screen left wing, slices his way through the middle of the lane after the catch, gets fouled, makes two of two
Three minutes and change left to play
Durant posts up left wing 17 feet out, quick spin move towards the baseline, no help there, OKC cleared out well, Strawberry fouls Durant. Durant misses the first, makes the second.
Timeout
Strawberry fouled inside again … he’s stepping up well here for the Rockets. Makes both.
Durant posting up, doubled before the catch, but softly, Scola leaves him after the catch, he’s posting up Strawberry 21 feet from the rim, dribbles left and rises up over the top of Strawberry, hits the shot.
Scola slicing from the right wing, through the key, to the right side of the rim for a layup
Petro just nailed a 23 footer on the right wing. He had no pass open to him so thought it wise to jack up a shot … that scared the hell out of me … good thing for him that he made it.
Barry fouled at the rim on the other end as he finishes inside, three point play
Durant high screen and roll with Petro, he’s moving so quickly and comfortably off the dribble, rises fup from 20 feet right elbow extended, hits the J and is fouled, makes the FT. One point game.
1:20 left to play
Scola has it in the high post, gets rid of it to Barry after failing to find anyone initially, Barry loses the dribble, wants a foul, fastbreak, Westbrook layup, misses, Durant follow up, scores, lands awkwardly. He looks in trouble. Wants a timeout, Rockets play on, they get the timeout shortly after.
57 escond to play, OKC up 103-102
Nope …. Durant just needed a moment to walk it off. He’s okay. Let’s see if he’s as agile/quick as before.
Durant posts up, 18 feet right wing, faces up, shoots over the top of Strawberry again, hits it again
Durant loses Strawberry, Strawberry pops up right wing at the three point line, Durant jumps out, Strawberry thinks about, decides to drive, Durant fouls him on move, Strawberry will shoot two and make two. Rockets down one.
37 seconds to play ….. 20 second timeout by PJ … he’s drawing up a set play
Collison and Wilcox have combined for 31 points and 16 rebounds
Westbrook can’t get the ball in play, turnover, breakaway, Strawberry has the layup, shakes and bakes the last defender, Durant’s long reach blocks the shot off the backboard, Durant gets possession, he’s fouled, makes two. Bad foul.
OKC lead 107-104 with 30 seconds to play
Durant defending the inbounds, Strawberry gets it in easily, Brooks top of the key, beats his man, gets to the basket, Durant dropped off from Strawberry (right wing three point line), great help defense by Durant to block Brooks running layup out of bounds. Only 24 seconds left now.
This is over, I’m calling it. Good game, very good finish … Durant was special.
Impressions
Oklahoma City have done a very good job on the backboards during pre-season … imagine if they got more rebounding out of Durant.
OKC’s offense is ugly. They lack firepower in just about every way imagineable.
Did Yao Ming check out his internal clock or something? He’s playing with a desperation, in a good way. Looking to impose his will more so and a great effort defensively. It looks like he’s rejoicing in chance to play for a Championship.
I don’t think Von Wafer makes the squad. Too hit or miss, more miss than hit. He’s not what you want in a role player unfortunately. Strawberry looks the better choice, more reliable when he comes out onto the court. Von Wafer needs to do a better job of rounding out his game, and also needs to exploit his present talents to a better effect.
Durant tore Strawberry apart … DJ simply wasn’t tall enough or long enough to contest his shots. Durant looked very comfortable shooting over the top.
Durant didn’t establish post position low enough …. allowed himself to be kept in that 16-20 feet range too often. Durant did however look much improved off the dribble.
Great finish by Kevin Durant. KD put up 20 points in the final 8 minutes of this one.
Durant also added 5 rebounds, 4 assists, three steals, and two blocks.
Tracy McGrady is playing tonight for the Rockets. That’s a surprise
Ron Artest giving Paul Pierce a hard foul, by preseason standards, on his foray to the rim. Timeout. Now Pierce will head to the locker room.
Boston lead 10-9 with 7 minutes to go
Tony Allen draws a quick foul on Tracy McGrady.
Ray Allen moving beautifully off a screen off the ball, opens himself up for the pass, fakes his man right, goes left, shoots the J
Rafer Alston playing the passing lanes stealing Ray’s pass, breakaway, layup, KG with the full court sprint and swat. Great block …. next possession, leakout Rafer ahead of the pack again, Rondo from behind taps the ball loose, KG hustles to the ball but can’t keep it in play. Out of bounds Rockets ball.
Patrick O Bryant managed two minutes before heading to the bench with two early fouls
Tony Allen’s acceleration is leaving McGrady in his dust. That’s twice now that he’s blown right by him. It was on a high screen and roll with Powe, tries to thread a bounce pass back to Leon, McGrady gets a hand on it and knocks out of bounds. Good recovery.
Powe replaced O Bryant and is defending Yao Ming. Yao is defending KG on the other end. Boston can screen and roll Yao to death with KG, or just clear out and let him penetrate …. simply put Yao can’t defend KG away from the rim. Now Landry switches over to KG, KG quickly jumps over him on a turnaround J and hits it.
Lazy pass to Yao on the high post, Powe steals the pass, breakaway dunk.
Tony Allen giving up a sloppy foul hitting McGrady’s elbow and wrist on a three pointer. Tony is giving up 6-7 inches on Tracy.
The C’s go back to KG, he moves left, spins back right, fadeaway, side irons it this time
Tracy toying with Tony, head fake, gets Tony off his feet again, draws another foul 20 feet from the rim. He was in an isolation on the left wing, close to the baseline, Rondo came over to help, Tracy spun, leaned, got Tony up and drew the contact. Houston ahead 19-16 …. KG missing a 18 footer on the baseline
Timeout
This is a great matchup folks …. I’m thinking NBA Finals …. solid possibility
Ray Allen knocking down another jumper
Artest taking an off balance fallaway J off the dribble at the FT line, rebound KG
Leon Powe posting up Landry inside, turns middle for the hook, hits it, nice move
Yao Ming posting up Leon, hook shot of his own, Leon hops up and picks up a cheap foul. Soft call by the refs.
Walker loose ball foul, pushed Tracy in the back on the offensive rebound. Leon Powe taking a difficult face up jumper from 15 feet over Yao. Good confidence from the kid. Tracy heads to the line … meanwhile Rafer and Yao are down the other end, Rafer is giving Yao some advice on positioning defensively to try and handle the Powe.
Strawberry checks in, let’s see him defend Ray, so far sticking with him well
Tracy McGrady smacking the elbow into Walker, knocking him to the floor on a cut, Walker is pissed, now it calms back down …. starting up again now with Eddie House having words for Tracy, Tracy taking offense, Eddie pushing him away. Officials calling time to let the players cool down some. Refs checking the tape to see if any further action needs to be taken, I’m thinking not.
Rockets lead 23-20 with a minute to play in the first
Tracy has 8 FT attempts already. Only 1-4 from the floor, Artest only 2-6.
I think a flagrant was called on Tracy, Walker misses both FTs though, still Boston ball. Offensive foul on O Bryant, that’s three. He’s having a bad night. Three fouls, three minutes. Glen Davis in, he’ll defend Yao.
Rafer tells Yao to get his butt into the low post and stop wasting his time on the elbow, I like that, Yao complies, Rafer gets him the ball, Yao getting to fancy, bad footwork, travel. Just shoot over the top Yao. Davis is just as strong as you are, you aren’t going to smack him out of the way without a lot of hard work.
Bill Walker sneaks up on Scola from behind, picks his pocket …. but gets a charge on the other end, Scola stepped in nicely to take the charge
Second Quarter
Rockets go straight to Yao on the left block, quick spin move baseline and the slam
Walker with an agressive dribble drive and mirange J, missing
Eddie House on the steal, brings it up, stops and pops on the break, misses. Should have held it up and reset the offense … he didn’t have numbers.
Brooks blowing by Walker, top of the key, down the left, blows by Walker going baseline, nice roation by Glen Davis to cut of Brooks path to the rim, Brooks jumps by him and tries to thread the ball back to one of his bigs, out of bounds off a Celtic leg. Little out of control there.
Von Wafer knocking down a three left wing, defense slacked after he looked ot pass the ball
Leon Powe down in the post again, backing down Scola, nice spin towards the middle, draws some contact, not enough, fadeaway, rolls off the rim. Leon has always been aggressive in the paint but he’s trying to create more of his opportunites this season, especially out of teh post.
Pierce with a nice drive on Strawberry, drawing the foul
Glen Davis backing down Landry, taking a fadeaway, jumping way too far backwards, hard shot, front iron, that was predictable, loose ball foul off the ball on the rebound.
Scalabrine enters the game
Commentators talking about Mutombo … odd that we haven’t heard anything about whether or not he’ll join the team yet. Looking less likely with each passing day.
Rockets ahead 31-26 with 8 plus minutes to play in the half
Strawberry doing a great job getting a hand in Pierce’s face on that pull up jumper at the top of the key, tough defense. Surprised Pierce isn’t looking to bully him physically.
Pierce 30 feet out, high screen and roll with Eddie House, Strawberry fouls, put his hands on Pierce after Paul turned the corner.
Ray and KG back in. They’re alongside Rondo, Pierce and Davis
KG fouling Scola on the drive, KG got a lot of ball on that play but also a lot of arm
Scola strip’s Ray’s dribble, bounces out of bounds though. 9 on the shot clock, iso Pierce far side of the floor on the inbounds, faces up Artest, step back J, hits it … Rondo steals the inbounds pass. Celtics reset, get a layup attempt but miss it.
Rockets a tad small now with Scola at center, Hayes at power forward. Brooks is at the point too, Von Wafer at the two guard. Artest is the only player with good size at his position and that’s more strength than height/length.
Timeout
5 minutes to play in the first half
Rockets lead 39-31 after two Artest FTs, Artest has 6 points
The Rockets are 18-22 at the FT line already. Lot of fouls, the majority of them going against Boston. Boston are in single digits for FTs.
Pierce with a beautiful fallaway jumper off the midpost over Artest
Von Wafer with an athletic dunk soaring through the middle of the lane and stuffing it down hard
Artest and Pierce gettting tangled up, falling hard on the floor, refs all running in to break any possible altercation up. Not sure what happened there …. replay shows that their feet got tangled up together. No problems at all. Pierce will head to the line, misses the first, makes the second.
Brooks played great defense on Rajon Rondo last season. He’s done a solid job so far.
Artest drawing a foul on Pierce’s bumping, that’s three on Paul … I think that was the refs trying to avoid any problems by calling it tight for a few possessions.
KG in the left block, backing down Hayes, dribbles off his own foot, regains possession, about 8 feet from the rim, jumps up and shoots over Hayes, misses the shot. He can shoot over the top of Hayes all night long.
Houston lead 44-34
Celtics cut the lead to 5
Artest taking a poor off balance shot, another one of those step back fallaway off the dribble jumpers
Lovely spin move by Glen Davis to beat out Scola, then using the rim perfectly to avoid his shot being blocked and drew a foul on Scola.
KG hits the 20 footer left wing to tie the game
Closing in on the final minute of action
Brooks floater misses. Houston’s offense lacks firepower right now. Artest is out there by himself, Brooks is the next best option, then Von Wafer who’s trying to blend in rather than create. Scola is out there too, but he’s doing nothing.
Lot of fouls …. Pierce back to the line. Celtics move ahead by two points. 12-0 run
Celtics applying heavy backcourt pressure, troubling Houston
Scola finally makes a good offensive move, posts up Davis, spins middle, ball knocked loose by a C’s perimeter player but Scola manages to get it back and flip it up and in.
Brooks has been out of control on several possessions tonight. He’s looking to do too much out there. Story of his preseason. He needs to calm down and be more reliable otherwise he’ll lose that backup point guard spot.
Halftime
The game has been choppy so far, lot of foul calls ruining any rhythm the game could have …. but there’s a huge amount of talent on the floor. At any moment the players are capable of creating a moment of high quality, plus we have some great matchups so it’s an interesting spectacle if not a beautiful one.
Celtics lead 48-46 at halftime
The Rockets have only shot 12-32 from the floor tonight. They lack shooters without Battier and Barry out there, which has hurt spacing and has led to some guys taking harder shots. The shot selection hasn’t been great either, settling for difficult shots too often. The only reason they’ve managed 46 points at the half is the 21 points they earned at the FT line.
Boston in contrast are shooting 50% from the floor and are a threat from behind the arc. They started getting more FTs over the last 6 minutes of the half and finished with a good number of attempts, but missed too many, 11-16 from the line (three misses Billy Walker).
Boston leading the rebounding battle 21-17 … both teams doing a great job of protecting their backboards. Houston’s shooting has helped put them in this hole.
Rockets have 9 turnovers costing them 12 points, Boston have 7 turnovers costing them 4 points. Boston does an excellent job of punishing teams for their miscues.
McGrady leads Houston with 10 points but is only 1-4 from the field. Artest is 2-8. Brooks is 2-6. Alston 0-3 from the floor. Bad shooting from a lot of players.
Paul Pierce has 15 first half points on 5-6 shooting and 5-7 shooting at the line. Very efficient. Ray adds 9 points on 4-8 shooting. KG has 10 and 7 on 4-9 shooting. Leon Powe is the only other player with more than one basket, and he has two baskets for four points.
Patrick O Bryant played only 3 minutes, had three fouls, one turnover
Houston lead 18-12 in bench points, 8-3 in second chance points and the two teams are tied at 16 for points in the paint.
Third Quarter
Boston lead 48-46
The channel I was watching lost it’s transmission for a short bit, the score is now 60-56 Houston halfway through the third
Yao hits two FTs … good running by the big man, and nice pass over the top by Rafer Alston to get Yao the ball.
Boston have their bench out there now. We have House, Pruitt, Walker, Davis, O Bryant. Walker getting into it again, smacking Yao off the ball with an elbow. He’s a trouble maker.
Houston have Yao, Artest, Rafer, Landry and Strawberry out there. I’d say Tracy is finished for the night.
Yao stands off of O Bryant, he unloads from 19 feet right elbow extended, hits it
Nice passing by Houston, hand off to Artest top of the key, quick pass low to Yao on the left block, pass across the paint to the cutting Landry for the easy two … but a foul. Landry makes both FTs. Houston up 7.
Pruitt bringing it up, over to Davis top of the key, Pruitt runs to the opposite corner and sets a screen for Tony Allen, Allen cuts along the baseline, Davis mistimes the pass and throws it out of bounds.
Pierce, Garnett and Ray Allen all played 21-22 minutes. Artest just hit that mark, Yao is about to also. McGrady only played 11 minutes. Rafer and Rondo have both played 18 minutes. No Perkins tonight of course, O Bryant has been saddled with fouls so he hasn’t played much.
Nice steal by Gabe Pruitt after the loose pass by Yao, he goes coast to coast running through several Rockets on his way to the hoop. The lane was wide open, nobody protected the rim.
Yao easily backs down O Bryant, Patrick reaches in, taps the ball loose, but Yao holds onto it and looses O Bryant in the process as Patrick lost his footing … but the ball escapes Yao as he rises to dunk it. Yao leads all scorers with 16 points on 4-7 shooting and 8-9 shooting at the line, only 3 rebounds in 22 minutes though.
Artest has an ice pack on his knees. He’s likely done for the night.
Under three minutes to play in the third quarter
Screen and roll between Eddie and O Bryant on the right wing, nice bounce pass by Eddie to the rolling O Bryant, he takes a floater in the lane, makes it
Scola enters for Yao Ming … Yao is probably done for the night
Rockets have twice as many free throw attempts as Boston – 41 attempts to 21
There’s a foul on every single possession …. it’s been like that at several points tonight
Landry with a nice move down on the block over Powe. Powe returns the favour on the other end, smacking Landry out of his way for an easy lay in. Powe’s was more impressive. Landry steals an offensive rebound from Powe, goes back up, misses, offensive board Scola, can’t get it to go, out of Scola.
Fourth Quarter
Houston lead 77-72
It’ll likely be bench players for the remainder of the game. Not sure if I’ll stay for that, we’ll see who’s on the floor. I’d like to see Joey Dorsey play some minutes.
Luis Scola fouls O Bryant 23 feet from the rim on a reach in. Stupid foul. Stupid foul. Stupid foul. Scola has five fouls now. It’s been that type of game. Dorsey is the likely sub should Scola foul out.
Scola posting up O Bryant, looking good, Tony Allen double teaming, soft double, but within striking distance and bothering Scola, Scola fouled.
Brooks hitting a nice shot, pull up J from about 14 feet left wing, off the dribble drive
Great work by Leon Powe to draw the charge on Landry, that brings Hayes into the game …. and Von Wafer. Timeout after another foul.
Good work by Powe again. He began the play in the high post had no options, decided to drive right, spun back left, was off balance, knew it, kicked it out. Powe then came up top to set a screen, then back down to the post, received the pass, bullied his way inside for a four foot short shot beating his man well to get a solid look, missed the shot, his long arms kept the ball alive, tapped it up to the rim again, missed again. But good sequence, those types of plays will get basekts in the long run.
Timeout
Detroit are beating Milwaukee by 17 at halftime. The Bucks have their full complement of starters out there tonight. Bad sign. Stuckey is the star of the show according to the box score with 13 and 6 at the half, he’s played 16 minutes.
Boston lead 82-81
Battier is wearing a bright red blazer on the sideline. Good to see him wearing the team colours.
Pruitt bringing the ball up, both bigs are in the high post ready to set screens for Pruitty when he decides whether he wants to go right or left, he goes right towards O Bryant, Powe cuts directly to the right post as Pruitt is pushed far right, Powe has good position, gets the pass, quick spin to the middle, fouled on his short shot. Good teamwork there.
O Bryant taking the rolling hook in the lane, missing. He has a solid hook shot and go-to move there.
Darius MIles has checked in. He still looks overweight
Pruitt posts up Powe again, Powe turns and faces up Hayes, Hayes ties him up. Great hands by Chuck Hayes. They called that jump ball too quickly, he stripped him. Powe wins the tip.
Boston lead 86-81 with 4 minutes to play
Von Wafer slicing down the lane, Miles jumps out and puts him off just enough to send him wide of the rim, more help arrives, Von Wafer finds Scola popping out for a 17 footer on the baseline, he hits it. Next possession, fast push by Brooks, gets it to Head in the corner, three pointer on the way and the foul, good, foot was on the line, two pointer. Timeout with three minutes to play
O Bryant and Scola trading buckets down on the block
Miles faces up Von Wafer on the midpost, flies by him going right, gets fouled on the driving layup
Glen Davis left open for an 18 footer top of the key, misses the shot
Rockets miss on the other end, timeout Boston. We’re down to the final 15 seconds. The score is 89-88 Houston lead.
Pruitt on the left wing, dribbles right, driving hard on his man, good defense keeping him out of the paint, Pruitt stops on a dime at 16 feet right elbow, faces up, shoots it off the bank with Brooks in his face, hits it. Lucky?
6.6 seconds to play … Celtics up 1 … Rockets miss at the buzzer. Scola drove by O Bryant easily from the top of the key, went down the right of the lane, oh wait, that was goaltending, the refs are holding it up to make the correct call, yes Glen Davis blocked that shot after it had hit the backboard, definitely goaltending. Instead something else has been called, baseline in, just out of bounds. It sure looked like Davis tapped that after it hit the glass. Inbounds to Scola, 15 footer, good, slow release … my goodness, they check the clock, is it good? Yes it is but the timekeeper may have started the clock a tad late. What’s the refs call? Refs don’t give it. Celtics win.
Some Stats
Some team stats – Celtics had a 41-37 rebounding advantage. The Rockets shot an abysmal 24-64 from the field for 37% shooting, but they made their living at the free throw line going 40-48. The Celtics shot 49% from the floor but only 17-29 (58%) from the free throw line. Houston had 19 turnovers (Boston scored 23 points off of them), to Boston’s 15 turnovers (Houston only got 11 points off Boston’s turnovers). Boston had assists on 15 of their 36 field goals. Houston had assists on 14 of their 24 field goals.
Glen Davis had the best stat line off of Boston’s bench finishing with 12 and 6 in 26 minutes. Leon Powe fouled out after 23 minutes after 4-10 shooting for 10 points and four rebounds. Tony Allen was quiet finishing with only 3 points, playing only 12 minutes. They got some contributions from everyone but nobody else really stands out. Patrick O Bryant had a good finish to the game but struggled mightily with Yao Ming.
Luis Scola led Houston’s bench with 14 and 9 in 28 minutes. Brooks was next with nine points but had an up and down game. The rest of Houston’s bench was quiet.
The starters stats are all pretty much the same as their halftime numbers. Yao the only one who put in a good third quarter, finishing with 16 points overall.
Impressions
2009 NBA Finals?
Houston might be the best team in the West. I’ve been wondering for a month or two now if I’ve given them enough credit for how talented they are both individually and as a collective … have I lowered their ranking because of injuries rather than talent? Possibly. There’s a lot of reasons why this team can beat LA. One thing is for sure in my mind – LA and Houston are #1 and #2 in the West and by a large margin entering the season. Both squads look brilliant.
Paul Pierce is in excellent shape. Lean and mean.
The Celtics are in regular season form already. Lot of intensity and defensive effort. Good focus too.
The C’s second unit is full of great athletes and they have two bulldogs on the wings in Tony Allen and Bill Walker who are physical and attack the rim. Leon Powe looks an improved player also, he could be set for a big season. In particular Powe looks a lot better equipped to create his own shot out of the post.
Rockets big men (after Yao) lack size and length without Mutombo there.
Brooks was out of control on several possessions tonight. He’s looking to do too much out there. Story of his preseason. He needs to calm down and be more reliable otherwise he’ll lose that backup point guard spot.
Bobby Brown starting tonight for the Kings next to the four expected starters – Martin, Salmons, Moore, Miller.
OKC are starting Joe Smith and Desmond Mason, plus Watson/Collison/Wilkins.
Kings new jerseys look alright. Not a nice close up though …. still prefer last season’s uni’s.
Bobby Brown pushing the ball, nothing on, pulls up from 20 feet, hits it
Wilkins jumps up for the shot, Cisco with him, nobody to pass to, turnover. Should have taken the shot.
The Thunder are going to struggle to score tonight.
Joe Smith with a nice move down in the post, up and under, but missed the gimme after getting Moore off his feet.
Moore looking to go right back at Joe Smith, faces up from 15 feet right wing, drives right, easily beats Smith with his first step, fouled before he could finish. Makes one of two at the line.
Quick pass ahead from Brown off the made basket to Salmons, quick pass inside to the streaking Moore, he’s pushed wide, short hook around four Thunder players, missed. This name Thunder is going to take awhile to get used to.
Lovely pick and roll by Kevin Martin, Martin drawing the defense, hitting Moore who was rolling hard to the hoop and he dunked it home
Lovely hand off from Moore out of the post on the strong cut by Brown, Brown out to Salmons on the wing, three pointer, good
Kevin Martin moving nicely off a screen, catches it 20 feet out, head fake, defender bites, drives down the middle, layup
Brown leading the break, finding Salmons who’s filling the lane, fouled on the layup attempt
Nice block by Salmons denying Mason’s 14 footer, good defense there
Thunder 5-15 from the floor over the first 6 minutes. They have almost double the number of shots Sac-town have though.
Bobby Jackson enters the game
Brad Miller air balls a 17 footer right wing …. nice defense by Miller slapping lose the ball late in teh shot clock to deny the close shot. Nice defense by Salmons too on the baseline inbounds pass, OKC ran one of their wings off a high back screen, he had an open path down the middle of the lane, Salmons noticed, jumped back into the paint and made himself big making the pass and catch difficult resulting in a missed opportunity for the Thunder.
Westbrook, Wilcox and a few others have entered the game for OKC. Petro and Bryars too.
Salmons gets the ball left wing, looking to create off the bounce, he’s sizing up his man, sees a passing lane and threads the bounce pass to his big man beautifully. Missed shot.
Westbrook trying to maneuouver around the high screen and roll, gets caught up, has to pull it out, runs it again, forced wide into a non-threatening position. Good cut by Jeff Green, alley oop, dunk.
Hawes hits the 17 footer
Westbrook has the ball stripped by Jackson, out of bounds off Russell, turnover
Nice move by Hawes inside, great footwork and hook shot off the right block
Green drives on the right wing, looks to pass, Hawes traps him, Green tries to go baseline, Hawes stays with him, Green steps on the baseline. Turnover.
Wilcox down on the block, posts up, faces up, moves left, fadeaway, misses
Garcia with a good show of accelaration to beat his man off the bounce, makes it to the rim, misses
Westbrook driving on Jackson, initiates the contact, Jackson fouls him, Wesbtrook muscles it up and doesn’t get the roll but will go to the line.
Lovely drive and dish to Thompson under the rim for the layup. Good steal by Jackson to ignite the break.
Wilcox misses two FTs in ugly fashion, offensive rebound Thunder, Bryars spots up outside, three pointer, hits it
Second Quarter
16-8 rebounding advantage for OKC
Lovely bounce pass through traffic by Westbrook to Green for the layup, fouled
Hawes with another basket …. that poor Portland performance has a lit fire in his belly
Awful defense by Greene leaving Green with an easy lane to the basket, easy catch, and easy finish four feet from the rim. He was way too close to Green defensively, the ball was 25 feet away and Greene was right in Green’s mug, one fake left, cut right, then a screen, and Green had five feet of daylight and an open lane to the rim. Greene’s defense has been criticized heavily so this isn’t a surprise.
Bobby Jackson finding his way onto an offensive rebound, heading inside as the shot clock was ticking down knowing his teammate had to heave it. Smart play.
Brown back in
Kings lead 34-29 with 7 plus minutes remaining in the half
Greene 19 footer shooting off the hand off, missing wide, brick
Hawes now with 13 points after using a nice spin move. Kings go on a 6-0 run, enough to get a timeout out of PJ
Candace Parker is at the game
Hawes runs the fastbreak, remembers he shouldn’t be doing this and gets rid of the ball before he hits the three point line. That was an odd sight
Collison with the 14 footer, nice pass by Watson off the screen and roll. Collison got a friendly bounce, well four bounces each side of the rim and the backboard.
Five minutes to play in the half
Wilkins with a nice drive from the left wing through to the middle of the paint, stops at 12 feet, pump fake, gets Garcia off his feet, shoots, good.
Bobby Brown splits the trap on the screen and roll, he wiggles his way through the lane and makes a tough layup
PJ calls another timeout after another short run by Sacramento. Kings up 12 now.
Acrobatic reverse layup by Mason along the baseline, doesn’t go down, nice pass on Mason’s backdoor cut
Wilkins rains down another jumper after the hesitation dribble
Bobby Brown answers right back with a long jumper
Collison air balls a 20 footer
Salmons with a nice drive, defense collapses, out to Williams, miss. Pity that was Shelden and not Spencer.
Collison makes up for his previous jumper by hitting the offensive boards, beating out three Kings to the ball, and finishing the ensuing layup
Garcia missing a layup after some nice ball movement and the drive
Moore making a silly lob pass to the statuesque Shelden Williams, turnover, four on one, have to make that count. Kings up 16 though.
Halftime
Kings did much better on the backboards in the second quarter and pulled the 16-8 deficit to 24-23. Good work.
Both teams doing well avoiding turnovers
The Thunder have shot only 35%, 16-46 from the field … and only 5-13 from the FT line. Their offensive flaws are killing them. I miss Kevin Durant.
Spencer Hawes leads the Kings with 16 and 5. Salmons adds 11 points 4 rebounds 2 assists and quality defense, and Bobby Brown has 8 and 3.
Third Quarter
Nice pass by Martin out to Brown in the right corner, three pointer on the way, good
Hawes starting the second half after his strong display in the first …. likely we won’t be seeing Miller again tonight.
Mason posts up Salmons, faces up about 14 feet out, quick drive right towards the baseline, foul on Salmons as Mason rose for the shot
Salmons faces up from 17 feet left elbow extended, takes the J, long hard off the back iron, never looked like it had a chance
Mason with the turnaround J out of the post, hits it
Martin looks to split the screen and roll D, doesn’t, loses the ball, Sacramento hold onto it, Martin floats to the left wing, gets the ball back, open shot, hits it
Joe Smith with a 19 footer left baseline
Martin driving on Mason, blocking foul on Mason
Mikki Moore working on Nick Collison, backs him down, turns into the middle and shoots a right hook, hits it
Mason starting to feel some confidence, driving from the top of the key, takes a runner, misses
Nice spin move by Hawes on the catch, loses his man, dunk is stopped by Joe Smith’s block from the weakside. Good help D.
Smith nails another long J, this time right elbow extended
Kings lead 64-48 with 7 plus to play
Hawes air balls a hook shot out of the left block
Mason gambles on the steal, doesn’t get it, Salmons in acres of room, dribbles in for a 16 footer, makes the shot
Bobby Brown working the fastbreak nicely, gets Kevin Martin a wide open three pointer
Jason Thompson gets a piece of Collison’s face up J
Wilkins trails the break, spots up from three, nails it
11 point game
Moore has no passes on, decides to post up Smith, backs him down, shows too much of the ball, Smith fouls on the reach in, lucky boy.
Jeff Green floats along the baseline on a backdoor cut, gets the feed, dunk
11-2 Thunder run to cut the deficit to 9
The Thunder’s announcers are annoying …. they have some decent moments but overall annoying.
Donte Greene steps out of bounds on the catch, turnover …. Kings need a basket
Watson loses control of the basketball, turnover
Lovely jump stop by Thompson to wiggle by Wilcox who did well to get to the spot but was forced to foul following the agility of Jason Thompson
Petro hitting the FT line jumper, 7 point game
Petro from 17 feet off the Bryars feed
Two minutes to go in the third
Thompson runs down the rebound, dribbles up, throws a 40 foot cross court pass to Salmons, risky pass but it meets it’s mark.
Westbrook down the lane, explodes, almost jmps over Williams, fouled, he’ll shoot two
Thompson left elbow, drives left, spins right, short hook/runner, miss, taps it back, nope.
Russell Westbrook drawing the foul again driving ot the paint on the fastbreak. He’s an excellent fastbreak finisher. 5 point game.
Timeout, final minute
Kings lead 69-64
Okay I’m going to leave it here. Decent game but there was a lack of talent on the floor at times. Hard to watch the Thunder without Durant on the floor for any lenghtily period of time.
Tuning in at the end of the first quarter, start at the second
Second Quarter
Phily lead 38-22
Knicks weren’t handling screen and rolls well enough in the few minutes I saw. Lot of good opportunities there.
Elton Brand dropped 18 points and added 3 rebounds before I tuned in
Donyell Marshall looks in good shape. Moving well compared to last season.
Nice bounce pass by Chris Duhon to Malik Rose on the roll towards the hoop, Malik gets fouled. The Knicks making a 14-4 run here.
Williams drives into the paint, leaves his feet, doesn’t know what he’s going to do, no passing options open, turnover. Next possession, lovely crossover dribble top of the key, leaves his man still as a statue, forces the defense to help as he blazes down the lane, nice pass to Reggie Evans, layup, missed. Next possession, Williams again cooking his man with a crossover, but has his shot blocked … Duhon leads the break the other way, finds Steph filling the right lane, layup. Timeout Phily.
Turnovers are killing Phily this quarter. Back to back turnovers, that’s 8 for the game now.
6 minutes to play in the first half.
Loose ball, scramble down the right wing 25 feet from the hoop, ball spins back to the other side of the court, Mardy Collins is the only player there and he has an open path to the rim, wide open dunk.
Randolph posts up right block, battling with Speights, backs his way down looking to turn into the middle, spin move towards the baseline, lefty hook muscled up and in off the glass plus the foul.
Phily pick up another turnover. Ivey again, back to back turnovers for Ivey. Great D by Duhon, that brings a wide smile from D’Antoni.
Nate Robinson beats his man easily, gets into the paint, high arcing shot, fouled, misses, hits one of two at the line giving the Knicks the lead
Lou Williams kills his defender with a crossover again, layup. This kid is killing all defenders that come his way.
Nice hesitation dribble by Mardy to open up the drive, gets into the paint and hits a layup
Lovely one handed bullet pass by Nate from the top of the key to Zach under the hoop for a layup and the foul. Knicks getting easy hoops now.
Speights hitting the offensive glass, taps it ack up, doesn’t get the roll. Good work by the rookie on the defensive boards stopping Zach Randolph from getting that offensive board, Zach beat him for position and boxed him out underneath the hoop, but Speights jumped over the top and managed to tap it out of bounds to avoid an easy layup. Next possession Speights hits a jumper on the right wing. Next defensive possession, Speights draws a charging foul on Zach Randolph, moving his feet well defensively.
Chandler gets a defensive rebound over Thaddeus Young, then picks up the pace, going coast to coast, down the lane, draws the foul and finishes the layup between two defenders, misses the FT, Speights rebounds.
Knicks hold it for a final shot, Mardy Collins has it up top, Knicks spread the floor, now a high screen and roll with Lee, Lee slips behind before setting the screen, Mardy drives the opposite way, gets to the hoop, has his shot blocked, falls to Lee, layup.
Knicks made a 38-13 run to end the half
Halftime
Knicks lead 60-51
Knicks have a slight lead on the boards 23-20. Turnovers are fairly equal. Shot attempts equal. Knicks have made three more shots, plus 2 of 7 more FTs.
Andre Miller had 9 assists in 10 minutes. Elton Brand leads Phily with 18, Iggy second with 9. Williams fourth with 8 points.
Knicks have five players with 8-10 points, and two more between 6-7 points, so a very balanced effort from the Knicks. Crawford leads the Knicks with 10 first quarter points
Third Quarter
Chandler bouncing up and down with the Knicks taking four attempts on consecutive offnesive rebounds with Chandler doing a large part of the damage and getting it to go.
Crawford roasts Iguodala off the dribble and draws the foul on his penetration
Miller sets up Brand for an easy 15 footer, hits it
Chandler from behind blocking Thaddeus Young who thought he had a layup. Nice early pass ahead by Miller.
Elton Brand left block, double teamed, splits the double and finds the open man, it’s Miller 13 feet from the hoop along the baseline, defense converges, Miller throws it out to Young for a three right wing, missing
Elton Brand left block, faces up, fallaway, misses
Crawford crossing over Iguodala again but this time Iggy manages to keep a hand in his face as Crawford takes the step back J, misses
David Lee right wing 17 footer, hits it, timeout
Knicks lead 73-61
Iguodala with a nice drive on Duhon, leaves him in his dust, as he goes from left to right crossing over at the top of the key, down the paint laying it up inside
Elton Brand muscles Zach Randolph out of it down on the left block, turning middle, short hook, good
Dalembert and Brand coverging on Chandler inside, alter the shot enough to force a miss, defensive rebound Sixers
Andre Miller with some lovely dribbling, now regains his balance, drives down the baseline and throws it back to Brand for the 15 footer, Brand hits it
Iguodala running the point now, Crawford kicks the entry pass. Good work.
Wilson Chandler with another rebound.
Lovely interplay by Stephon and Duhon, outlet pass by David Lee out to the left side of the floor, Steph bringing it up along the wing, dribbling up, notices Duhon trailing him, leaves the ball behind at the three point line, sets a screen on the defender running out to meet the ball, Duhon with the shot, holds it up for Steph to pop back out for a better look from three, defender hustles to Steph, bounce pass Steph back to Duhon along the sideline, Duhon with all the time in the world nails the three pointer. Nice teamwork guys.
Knicks lead 83-69 after the Iggy jumper right wing 19 footer off the dribble
Andre Miller bullying his way into the paint, there was no gap there, and he gets his shot blocked because of it but if falls to Dalembert who is fouled to avoid the easy two. Miller has been fantastic tonight with his passing and creativity.
Sixers defense needs to pick it up a notch or two. Knicks offense is running smoothly against them.
Lou Williams muscles his way to the hoop for a layup on the fastbreak. Gotta love the the youngster doing that, he was thin two years ago.
Rebound Chandler, he’s playing power forawrd with Lee at center right now, he boxed out Reggie Evans and easily won the rebound. Good worker on the backboards.
Evans stripped by Marbury, Chandler comes up with the loose ball, fouled. Good work by Steph, Marbury set up Lee for the 18 footer along the baseline a few moments ago too … he’s doing well.
Stephon with a nice wrap-around pass to Zach on the screen and roll, Sixers defense rotates well, and deflects Zach’s cross court pass
Lou Williams beating Collins with a change of pace dribble … this guy is tough to keep out of the paint
Nate holds it for the final shot, high screen and roll, he works his way below the three point lane, passes out to Chandler … who travels on his first dribble. Lou Williams partially blocked by Nate but refs didn’t notice.
Fourth Quarter
Knicks lead 87-77
Elton Brand makes the steal out on the three point line, but loses the dribble, Steph wins it back, out to Nate, pass to Zach in the right corner, three pointer good
Rush with another turnover. He’s made a pair of unforced turnovers tonight.
Andre Miller on the break, pulls up from 14 feet, hits it
Nice pass by Mardy Collins to the cutting Malik Rose, but Rose can’t hang onto it
Z-bo iso, he takes 5 seconds before making his move, gets nothing, passes it out on the drive, no shot for anyone, missed J, offensive rebound, Knicks reset, Steph drives through the middle but misses his runner.
Kareem Rush left wing, dribbling right towards the baseline, fadeaway J, bad shot, miss
David Lee hits another baseline jumper. Automatic from 15-19 feet tonight.
Miller pulls up for the leaner from 14 feet left wing this time in transition, hits it again, lead is 11 with 7 to play
Lee loses his dribble on the drive, turnover
Speights with the turnovaround J out of the post, misses, but good shot to take.
Knicks +10 on the backboards now
Randolph razzle dazzle with some (not so) nifty ballhandling to beat Reggie off the dribble, 18 footer, Evans comes back down and owns the rebound
Follow slam by Marreese Speights.
Marbury drawing the foul in the open court, Speights reaching in, Timeout
5 minutes to play, Randolph makes a tough shot that he forced up after a self-inforced isolation play
Stephon with an over the shoulder no look shot around the rim with three Sixers around him, picking up the foul too, hits the FT, 10 points off the bench for Steph
Reiner with a nice jump hook on the baseline
Duhon bags another three pointer …. 15 point game with 4 minutes to play
Sixers turnover. The Knicks have weathered this attempted fourth quarter run by Phily.
Steph backs it up and hits a three, 18 point game
Okay I’m going to call it, good win for the Knicks
Tuning in here halfway through the first quarter. The Clippers are leading 18-14.
First Quarter
Great steal by Baron Davis to sneak up behind of Pau Gasol, and then stealing away the offensive rebound Gasol got on Ariza’s missed FT. Davis pushes it up the floor and finds Kaman for an open dunk. Nice pass.
Fisher with the quick J off the high screen and roll, hits it from 18 feet
Clippers have out-rebounded the Lakers 9-3
Gasol makes his fourth basket as he hits the 17 footer top of the key
Ricky Davis nails another three pointer
Marcus Camby has started the game on the bench. In his place starts Tim Thomas
Bynum enters the action, will play alongside Bynum
Kaman posts up Bynum, Bynum pushes him out to 17 feet, Kaman tries to back him down, Bynum fighting admirably, Kaman turns middle, gets a step, Bynum makes a recovery and bothers the shot enough to force the miss
Another post up inside by Kaman, another missed shot, offensive rebound, another missed shot. Bynum active but he can do better to deny the initial shot.
The Clippers doing a great job pushing the ball
Kobe posts up Davis, great position 4 feet from the rim left block, gets the pass, takes a falling fadeaway, makes the shot. Clippers turnover, timeout.
Tim Thomas is a decent matchup case for Gasol and the Lakers. A perimeter orientated forward with good quickness who can run the floor, could drive too but likely won’t. Let’s see how Gasol does.
Bynum walks on his post up, he made an ugly turn into Skinner, not ready to shoot and showed a huge amount of the ball
Nice give and go by Farmer to Gasol on the left elbow, Farmer runs by Gasol, gets the hand off, has a step on his man, turns well for the layup, jumps, stripped from behind by Hart. Great recovery by Jason Hart.
Kobe and Gasol take a breather. We’ll see the Thomas-Gasol matchup later. Be interesting if they try Thornton at the four against Gasol, because he will drive on Pau.
Davis wide open for a third three pointer. Radmanovic cancels that out with a three of his own
Thornton posting up Radmanovic, Lakers considering the double, waiting for Thornton’s move, Thornton spins baseline, fadeaway 17 footer along the baseline, miss, rebound Bynum. Radmanovic hits another three, cuts it to two.
Hart and Davis add two 20 foot jumpers to push the lead back to 6
Thornton switches onto Farmer, Farmer pulls it out, he’s going to take him off the dribble, Thornton stays with him, using his length well, stops the shot, shot clock violation. Farmer has to get a shot off when he holds it for the final shot of the quarter, poor play by him.
Second Quarter
Clippers lineup – Hart, Ricky D, Cuttino, Paul Davis, Brian Skinner
Jordan Farmer pushes it up quickly and hits the quick 19 footer
Ricky Davis loses Coby Karl off the ball, gets himself a layup
Bynum walks again, didn’t see it. He had good position inside and made a nice move quickly turning for the hook shot.
Radmanovic nails a three following a nice block from Skinner on Powell’s drive, following Bynum’s offensive rebound
Ricky Davis wide open on the weakside off the double team in the post, misses this time
Powell with a nice effort on the offensive board, three jumps tapping the ball to himself, unfortunately he jumped out of bounds in the end
Clippers up 41-37
Bynum popping up the 15 footer, missing
Novak open three in the corner, misses, Bynum defensive rebound
Radmanovic making a good hustle to knock that pass out of bounds of a Clipper. The initial hustle play was by Powell fighting for the offensive board, and forcing Skinner to dive out of bounds to keep it in play. Good work guys
Jordan Farmer has his pocket picked but Hart stumbles out of bounds trying to get control of the ball
Radmanovic nails another three, second straight from the left corner. He has 11, one of those three’s he must have had his foot on the line, thought that was his fourth.
DeAnrde JOrdan swats a Lakers runner
Four thirty to play
Paul Davis nails the 18 footer near the top the of the key
Lakers not getting into their offense at all, no offensive players out there besides Kobe and he’s taking it easy tonight.
DeAndre Jordan almost got another as he skies trying to block Ariza’s dunk attempt on a baseline drive. His positioning wasn’t good enough, forced him to jump into Ariza.
Novak with a swish from the corner. Boom …. oh my another swish right wing. That ball never looked close to hitting the rim on either shot. I love watching this guy shoot … and hate everything else he does.
Mike Taylor into the game now, picks up a turnover by throwing a pass with too much power on it. Taylor applying some light pressure in the backcourt, Lakers get into their offense comfortably, Heath runs off a screen off the ball in the corner, turns inward toward the the hoop, loses Taylor, nothing comes of it. Next possession, Taylor with a lovely move getting to the rim for the layup
Taylor dancing with a crossover and leaving Heath in his dust, creates a perimeter jumper for his teammate, misses
Kobe slices his way into the paint and had a dunk but tried to pass it off instead, Arzia picks up a charge. Turnover. Kobe trying to give his teammaets a chance to show their worth here today.
Kobe takes a hard fall on the defensive end after getting tied up with Mobley, he’s fine
Halftime
Far, far, far too many easy hoops for the Clippers. The Lakers defense didn’t show up tonight. Too many easy baskets in transition, too many wide open jumpers, too many baskets in the paint. Too many double teams giving space and opportunity to the Clippers. Very poor defense by the Lakers standards
The Clippers lead 59-48 and have played good basketball. They have 18 assists on 25 baskets which explains the amount of open looks they’re getting as much as their quality ball movement.
Clippers have shot the ball well shooting 49% from the floor and 40% from three. They’ve taken 14 more shots due to their lack of turnovers (1 vs 7) and lack of FTs (3 vs 11).
The Lakers have shot the ball well themselves at 48.5% but have turned the ball over too much. They’re also ahead on the backboards 20-18 after a rough start. Bynum and Powell helped turn that around.
Pau Gasol has 10 points in 11 minutes. Kobe added 8. Radmanovic has 11. No other Lakers player has more than two baskets.
Ricky Davis leads all scores with 13. 6 other players have between 6-7 points, mainly due to the balanced minutes the Clips have played
Third Quarter
Two minutes into the third quarter, still no baskets, a few turnovers
Kobe backs down Cuttino, spins into the paint and takes a turnaround J, hits it. Kobe has 10 points on four shots.
Al Thonrton hitting the backboards and getting an offensive rebound
Andrew Bynum is defending Tim Thomas now
Pau Gasol right block, faces up Kaman, drives left, baby hook, misses, nice move and good shot
Kaman with a nice defensive rebound with three Lakers around him, good outlet pass, another good shot in transition for the Clips, Lakers not getting back
Tim Thomas gives away a silly foul, that’s the penalty for the Clippers with 8 plus minutes to go in the third
Bynum turns, faces up, puts the ball on the floor, decides to back down Kaman, kicks it back out, looks for the re-post, shot clock clicking down so Fisher takes it and gets a favourable call from the ref on his jumper, makes one of two
Clippers still up 11 after the three point play by Baron Davis
Kobe Bryant backs down Cuttino, double comes, Kobe has no clear passing angle, takes the fadeaway turning away from the double and towards the baseline, misses
Lakers offense has been ugly with the three Lakers bigs out there. Not enough ball or player movement, not enough shooting either. The post up either works or they’re in trouble. Making no gains after 6 minutes of this lineup
Marcus Camby is over on the bench and dressed for the game but he has not played, doubt he comes on either at this stage
Kobe missed the shot inside the paint, Kaman rebounds, outlet, Kobe steals the outlet, takes it hard to the rim and draws the foul. Kobe was ticked off there at missing the shot.
Thornton with a lovely jump shot from 18 feet on the left wing. He has only three baskets tonight.
Baron Davis steals Kobe saved loose ball, BD hits the trailing Thornton for the dunk, nice behind the head no look pass by Baron, make that four buckets. Next possession, Baron in the open court, drives to the rim, draws the foul
Clippers lead 72-56
Three straight turnovers by the Lakers. This time Odom.
Baron Davis with a beautiful pass to the cutting Tim Thomas after Bynum trapped Baron aggressively on the screen and roll, Odom fouls him trying to block the shot. Kobe takes a seat, he’s likely done for the night.
DeAndre Jordan checks in for Kaman. Interesting to see Jordan alongside Bynum, a player he’s been compared to at times. Bynum posts him up immiedately, right block, drives left towards the middle, takes a runner, misses, little off balance.
Tim Thomas blocks Radmanovic from behind
Thornton ends up with Farmer on him in transition, posts him up, double comes, gets his teammate a shot, miss
Karl bumbles an Ariza pass out of bounds, that should have been a layup. Coby Karl has had a poor game.
The Lakers announcers are having a go at the Lakers, and Lamar Odom in particular, now for not playing this game seriously.
Thornton with back to back turnovers at midcourt against some backcourt pressure. Bad turnovers. Dunleavy gets a tech. Thornton fouls out of frustration. Lakers picking it up defensively with some trapping on the ballhandlers in the halfcourt, steal Ariza, breakaway, slam dunk. Lakers cut the lead to 12 after the Clippers had a chance to push it to 20 two minutes ago. Farmer goes coast to coast for a layup, 10 point game.
Nice spurt by the Lakers to end the quarter, led by the reserves.
Fourth Quarter
Ariza steal and a dunk, bad pass by Taylor
Lakers get another stop forcing a 24 second shot clock violation. Farmer pops up off the screen, 21 footer right wing, missing. Ariza steals the outlet pass and makes the layup. 6 point game. Only five minutes ago the Clips looked like they were going up 20.
Farmer hits a three about two feet beyond the spot where he missed a few possessions before
Karl top of the key, head fake, drives through the lane, draws the help defense, nice pass to Mbenga for the dunk, Mbenga flips it up and gets his shot blocked, fastbreak, ball in Taylor’s hands, he goes coast to coast, layup
Radmanovic lays Taylor out with a screen at midcourt, Vlad took him out, defense is short a man, Radmanovic trails and spots up from three, gets it back, nails the J
Taylor fouled on the inbounds pass. Some of his teammates apologising to him now for not calling out that screen. He makes one of two. Clips up 7.
Farmer drives on Taylor, offensive foul for a charge, beat Taylor too easily off the dribble
Radmanovic with a nice block to deny Noel
Hahaha … oh my goodness … Ricky Davis jumped up with nowhere to go, back turned to the hoop, jumping towards the hoop about 17 feet out from the rim left elbow extended, then flings the ball towards the rim over his shoulder, off the backboard, bounces off the front of the rim, back of the rim and out. Almost made it.
Five minutes to go, Lakers down 12 points
Okay I’m going to leave it there. I don’t care who wins and the players on the floor aren’t of interest to me at this moment time. Up and down game, it had it’s moments but very uneven.
It’s disappointing that the Lakers starters didn’t take this game more seriously and use it as a legitimate chance to develop some chemistry and understanding. Looks like we’re going to have to wait for the regular season to see that.
I’m excited, very excited, to see young Derrick Rose tonight. This is going to be fun.
The Bulls starting lineup is – Derrick Rose, Kirk Hinrich, Luol Deng, Tyrus Thomas, Drew Gooden
I’m a bit surprised by the lineup. Until a few days ago I didn’t think the Bulls would start both Hinrich and Rose, this is a big upgrade over Larry Hughes and is a difference maker over last season’s backcourt. I like the combination of the two. I’m also surprised not to see Joakim Noah in the lineup after a good finish to last season. Drew and Tyrus’ summer workouts must have paid of … and Noah’s less impressive summer workouts perhaps hurt himself.
First Quarter
Rose alley oop to Tyrus Thomas, Tyrus mishandles that. Dirk picks up the loose ball and pushes the other way Read the rest of this entry »
Starters for NJ today – Devin Harris, Vince Carter, Bobby Simmons, Ryan Anderson, Sean Williamson
Starters for the Heat – Marcus Banks, Dwyane Wade, Shawn Marion, Yakhouba Diawara, Mark Blount
A potential rematch of Beasley vs Williams after Sean Williams shut Beasley’s backside down in summer league early in the summer.
First Quarter
Great steal by Marcus Banks deflecting Harris’ pass at the top of the key, then diving on the floor and wrestling the ball away from Harris, then the pass ahead before he could be tied up to a streaking teammate for the breakaway dunk
Harris with the acrobatic wrap around pass in mid air off the penetration, but Williams wasn’t ready for it, turnover
Devin Harris trying an awful looping pass up over the defense across the court from the right wing to the left corner, but threw it a bit long, out of bounds, turnover. His teammate never had a chance. Bad pass.
Marion with a nice drive from the right wing going left into the lane and flipping up the runner, puts Miami ahead 13-9 here in the early going.
Josh Boone almost stealing an offensive rebound off a weak box out from Michael Beasley. Beasley has to put more effort in keeping a guy like Boone off the glass. Boone made it all the way around him from the right block, under the rim, through to the other side and got a hand on the ball until Beasley’s teammate bailed him out by snatching the ball. Not good enough.
Eddie Gill nailing a three. Next possession beats his man off the dribble getting to the rim and drawing the foul, making both FTs. Gill is fighting for a roster spot, I believe this his second tour in the Net’s training camp in as many years.
Magloire getting another run for Miami. NJ making life easy for him, his man is standing still offensively on two straight possessions, no involvement whatsoever from Josh Boone. Ditto for the third possession, until Jersey shot the ball, then the boy came alive and hustled his way to the rim tapping it back up and in. You’ve got to make Magloire move his feet, he’s slow, go out and set a screen and make him react to something.
Beasley faces up Swift on the baseline, hits the 17 footer in his face
Second Quarter
Heat lead 24-21
Chalmers has been disappointing so far today. He doesn’t look comfortable creating with the ball in his hands, and I mean not at all. He didn’t show much on the ball in his debut either. Too passive. I think he can make some plays so his problems are in his head. Slow starter? or a more serious confidence issue? It’ll be very important to see how he grows as he gains more court time over the next 25 games or so.
Nets applying some backcourt pressure, the Heat give it to Wade, Carter picks him up and does a solid job. Would have liked to have seen Wade go full speed there against Carter and force him off balance.
Beasley nails another jumper, another face up J out of the post
Beasley takes the three top of the key with about 6 seconds off the shot clock, miss. Good defensive rebound by Beasley over Williams and Marion after a Nets miss.
Bobby Simmons looks in good shape physically …. not contributing much to the game though.
Beasley with a lovely move down on the block on Anderson, great position down on the right block, makes the catch, immediate spin move towards the baseline and right hook off the glass, goaltend by Williams. Nice move. Beasley has been the second best player on the court after Wade today.
Miami lead 43-39 with 4 minutes to go in the half
Wade setting up Blount from an 18 footer left elbow extended, he makes the J
Douglas Roberts bags a jumper on the right wing. Miami bring it up, CDR playing the passing lanes, breakaway and a nice reverse slam from CDR. Now he misses a three, heat test? He had just made 3 baskets in a row.
Wade and Beasley have 28 of the team’s 47 points now
Blount makes the catch 20 feet out along the baseline, pretty much in the corner, drives baseline on Boone and dunks it home. Weak defense, you can’t let Blount do that to you.
Final minute for the half – turnover Miami, keep pull up J off the push from NJ, miss, Miami brings it back up. Banks runs the high screen and roll, creates nothing and runs into the sideline, pulls it back out to the top, runs another high screen and roll, gets Marion a decent shot, miss. NJ miss a contested shot at the buzzer. Great sequence of plays there. These teams need some help.
Third Quarter
Miami lead 49-43
Sean Williams with an out of control move out of the post which he smacked 2-3 feet wide of the rim off the side of the backboard from 6 feet. That was ugly. The post up was a reward for his defensive play the possession prior.
CDR with another steal by playing the passing lanes, he finishes with the layup
Shawn Marion with a great late attempt hitting the offenisve backboards and stealing a rebound away. He was 20 feet out but nobody put a body on him. He just sliced down the lane and got inside Anderson. Dunk.
Blount hits the 19 footer along the baseline off the feed from Wade
Banks has looked very poor tonight. Very disappointing but not surprising. He’s off to a bad start, he’d be my third string point for Miami at this stage. He needs to up his standard of play over the next couple of weeks or his season will end up exactly that.
Vince Carter will not be returning tonight. He has a strained left hamstring. Good opportunity for CDR.
Miami leading 57-53. Weak performances from both sides. There’s a lack of talent on the floor.
Harris runs the high screen and roll, turns the corner heading into the paint, stripped from behind by Wade, breakaway, foul and the layup. Great play by Wade.
Chalmers with a nice runner drawing the foul
Miami are allowing the Nets to hang around. I’m tempted to give up on this game. Just too poor.
Eddie Gill with a nice three pointer coming off the screen and roll
Chalmers driving into the paint again, getting hit by Swift, drawing the foul. Well done Chalmers. Starting to show some more assertiveness.
Another disgraceful box out by Beasley, he was out on the elbow and didn’t start moving until Boone was already getting a hand on the ball, in mid air right beside the rim. It took 15 feet for Beasley to react. Luckily for him Boone’s made a mess of the catch and blew the opportunity.
Fourth Quarter
Beasley opens the quarter with another bucket
Nice cut by Marcus Banks but he misses the layup, Heat keep possession of the ball, reset their offense with Banks, over to Beasley left elbow extended, drives left towards the hoop and draws the foul on his runner, makes two at the line. Miami lead 72-64. The Heat have no killer instinct, they’re allowing the Nets to hang around. Heck that raises a question, how much of that is instinct? How much is that a lack of quality from the supporting cast?
Beasley posts up inside again, nice spin and lefty hook but foul called on the ground.
Diawara left wing, drives right, slices down the middle through the paint, a lovely up and under in mid air and finishes the layup plus draws the foul and makes the FT. Nice play.
Devin Harris dribbles up and takes a quick three, misses, bad shot. Offensive rebound and putback Anderson.
9 minutes to play
Joel Anthony enters the game for the first time for the Miami Heat and turns the ball over immediately. He makes up for it on the other end with a good block helping his guards out on the penetration, foul elsewhere, Banks I think it was. Timeout.
Nets steal the lead with 7 minutes to go, they’re up two points. This is completely Miami’s fault. This has been a poor game. Harris races the length of the court, everyone is back, but Harris beats his man, gets into the middle of the floor, nice hesitation dribble and slithers through the Heat defenders to the rim for the layup and a FT. Another Miami turnover, Beasley. Nets come back up, Harris kills his man, Cook, off the dribble once again. You can’t let Cook defend someone like Devin Harris, that’s begging for trouble. Harris got another layup
Chalmers misses two FTs and fails to end the Nets run
Devin Harris has exited for Eddie Gill.
Miami lose the ball, Diawara gets it back, finds Beasley with a little space beyond the elbow, Beasley puts it up, hits it.
Ager drives into the paint, blocking foul on Beasley, hits the layup and gets the FT. Nets up 10 with 5 minutes to go. Miami will be hard pressed to make this lead back …. Miami aren’t playing their top horses, they don’t have the offense (or defense) to make a big run.
Chalmers with a lovely 16 feet high 5 foot floater on the drive …. steal Chalmers, he breaks into the open court keeping the ball in play, passes to Diawara for the layup. Lead is at 6 with four minutes to play. Gotta get another stop and get NJ sweating. So much for that, Eddie Gill with the fadeaway jumper off the dribble from 18 feet on the left wing.
Cook fires up a poor shot from 19 feet, contested shot.
Chalmers misses the three pointer, offensive rebound Anthony, putback, nope fouled.
Wade, Beasley and Marion have 51 of their 81 points.
Three minutes to play, 7 point game
Gill showing great control running the play for NJ
Banks over to Cook on the right wing, Cook dribbles from right to left inwards from 23 feet to 16 feet, still dribbling, fadeaway after dribbling 20 feet distance, contested shot, makes it. Tough shot.
NJ have fallen apart after a little pressure, and are fouling iditiotically on the either end allowing MIami easy points. Gill has been a bit to passive over the past couple of minutes
Anthony ties the game at 89 with 1:35 to play with one more FT, he misses it
Gill has it, bringing it up, inside to Swift, hard post move but slapped loose before he gets it up after the nice turn. Inbounds to Hassell, off balance J, missing, offensive rebound and dunk by Josh Boone. NJ lead.
This time Gill dribbles down the clock, beats Chalmers off the dribble, has the layup, Chalmers strips him. Great recovery by Chalmers. Inbounds again, top of the key to Hassell, dribbles left, clock ticking down, forces the J, brick. 24 second violation. Timeout. 30 seconds remaining.
Cook top of the key, high pick and roll four feet beyond the three, dribbles left, stops and pops form three, hits it, Miami lead. Toe on the line, two pointer.
18 seconds to play
Nets went to Eddie Gill in an iso top of the key last time … and they do it again, nope now they swing Hassell out to the right wing and give him the ball, he drives left into the paint, Heat collapse, he finds Ager, Ager from the corner, hits the side of the backboard
Overtime
There’s no way I’m watching another 5 minutes of this game. It’s been awful ever since Miami took their best players out …. and it was no picnic before that.
Some stats
Chris-Douglas Roberts finished with 18 points and 6 rebounds. Very good performance from CDR.
Beasley had 21 and 7 in only 28 minutes … but it took him 18 shots to get those 21 points, and he only had 2 defensive rebounds. I remember both and they came within about 2 minutes apart, the rest of the game he was doing next to nothing on the defensive boards. Miami need more from him on the backboards.
Devin Harris had 21 and 2. He did a poor job distributing the ball.
Wade had 21 points in 21 minutes on only 11 shots.
Joel Anthony looked good when he came on … physically similar, and some skill set similarities, to a young Theo Ratliff in Detroit. 6 rebounds in 13 minutes. Miami should be playing this kid more and finding out what he can do in big minutes. Good energy, great athleticism, and he’s their only legit shot blocking presence. Play him, find out.
NJ did a horrific job on the defensive backboards, winning only 28 of the 46 missed shots. Those second chance points killed them. CDR was the only perimeter player helping out on the backboards. Sean Williams and Stromile Swift weren’t taking care of business …. leaving Anderson and Boone alone. In contrast seven Miami players had between 5-7 rebounds.
Both teams shot the ball abysmally but that isn’t surprising. Lot of turnovers too but that’s normal for preseason.
Shawn Marion finished 6th for shot attempts on his own team despite playing 27 minutes. Miami don’t win without more of an offensive contribution from Marion. They don’t have the supporting cast for him to play off others all the time, he has to take more responsibility for his own opportunities. This is a serious concern for Miami heading into the regular season.
Lineups
Warriors – Marcus Williams, Stephen Jackson, Corey Maggette, Al Harrington, Andris Biedrins
Blazers – Jerryd Bayless, Rudy Fernandez, Travis Outlaw, LaMarcus Aldridge Greg Oden
Oden wins the tip, Blazers go right to him on the low block, double teamed immediately, Warrriors force it out of his hands.
Rudy Fernandez with a sloppy lob pass, turnover
Great play by Aldridge to keep the offensive rebound alive tapping it back outside, quick pass back inside by Fernandez to Oden, dunk
Marcus Williams loses his dribble …. it bobbles out to Harrington for a three
Bayless beating Williams off the dribble, gets Biedrins to pop out, lovely pass to Oden, Oden wrapped up like a big bear, Corey Maggette desperately trying to keep him on the ground. He does.
Nice high screen and roll between Oden and Rudy, Oden rolls to the rim, Rudy finds him, Biedrins is a bit late but decent position, Oden steadies himself and with one dribble backs Biedrins so far into the paint he could just turn and dunk.
Another foul inflicted on Greg Oden. Two more FTs, he makes the first. Timeout. 7 minutes to play in the first quarter.
Martell Webster is injured with a stress fracture in his foot and will be out for 5 weeks to 2 months. That’s awful news. Poor Martell, he was about to establish himself.
Stephen Jackson posting up young Rudy Fernandez, Rudy showing his experience and wily ways by slapping the dribble away from behind. Turnover, fastbreak, Bayless running the other way, gets the ball to Aldridge, Aldridge fouled, makes two. Golden State are racking up fouls.
Greg Oden gets in close on Biedrins, Andris dips his head and drives left from the right elbow down the middle and picks up the reaching foul on Greg. Now Fernandez picks up a reaching foul, trying to take the ball from Jackson who had beaten him on the spin.
Aldridge pops out to 19 feet top of the key, Rudy finds him, Aldridge rushes the shot as he sees the defense jumping out, miss
Defensive rebound Portland, fastbreak, Aldridge beats everyone down the floor, layup, goaltend by Turiaf. Aldridge is too quick for Turiaf.
Rudy Fernandez with a fadeaway three in the corner of the court
Rudy Fernandez with another bad turnover on a fastbreka where Blazers had numbers, giving up a wide open dunk on the other end. Four point swing.
Harrington has dribble the full length of the court several times in the first quarter.
GSW lead 26-23
Aldridge with a nice hook shot down in the paint
Batum flying out on Maggette’s corner three, he gets a piece of it and slaps it out of bounds
Rudy gives up a weak foul, Turiaf to the line, misses the first, Bayless back in for Rudy, makes the second
Blazers hold it for the final shot, Sergio Rodriguez has it, ticking down to 10, 7, high pick and pop, Sergio to Aldridge, 20 footer top of the key, miss, Przybilla tips it back up.
Second Quarter
Harrington posts up Outlaw inside, he muscles him out of it and went anywhere he wanted to go on that possesion, easy dunk
GSW have to go back to Harrington. That’s criminal. Go back to Harrington. Aw crap possession. What are you doing? Get a point guard would you?
Bayless driving to the hole and drawing the foul. Going to be saying that a lot this season.
Bayless goes behind on the back, dribbles it off his heel, loose ball, Dickau jumps on it, Joel dives/sqaushes Dickau. Jump ball, Przybilla wins the tip.
Harrington muscling his way by Outlaw on the baseline, getting the layup, Joel erases it on the help defense. That was lazy D by Outlaw, he was in no way prepared or paying attention to Harrington prior to that pass. He was out of the play before Harrington touched the ball.
Przybilla blocks another shot, this time from behind swatting Turiaf’s dunk. Oden checks back in for Joel. That’s a nice two headed monster.
Turiaf hits the 18 footer right wing
Oden created that rebound for Luke Jackson by pinning the Warriors big man under the rim, he didn’t get the rebound himself but he took the Warriors best rebounder out of the equation. Oden’s passing out of the post has been very good.
Just under 8 minutes remaining in the second
Great catch on the off target bullet pass by Travis Outlaw. Oden inside, nope he has his shot rejected by Dowell.
Greg Oden snaring another offensive carom, fouled on the way back up, he’s heading back to the FT line. Timeout.
Turiaf shooting a contested 18 footer over Oden’s long arms top of the key … bad shot … missed
Greg Oden posts up Turiaf, backs him down, short hook, misses, Diogu hits the glass, putback, swatted by Dowell, Blazers keep possession, work it back inside to Diogu, he draws another foul and will head to the line.
Portland lead 39-34
#20 Demarcus Nelson posts up Bayless, nice move, short shot good
Greg Oden posts up, double team comes from behind, Oden hits the cutter, the cutter blows the gimme, Oden get on the glass, misses the tap, keeping it alive but can’t gain control of it, spills outside, GSW get and are running the other way, fastbreak layup. Next possession, Oden fouled again.
Bayless picks up two quick fouls
Bellinelli ends up wide open from three on a long rebound, sweet shot. Warriors lead.
Oden with a man’s offensive rebound, he boxed out Turiaf, mistimed his jump, the ball was going too long, what’s he do? Taps it to himself and into the area he has boxed out, then dunks it down hard.
Halftime
The Blazers missed 30 shots in the first half, but 13 of those 30 misses ended up being offensive rebounds. Overall they’re outrebounding GSW 30-22.
Greg Oden had 10 and 9 in 14 minutes. The number of double teams, the fouls, the passing … the presence. The whole package is simply amazing.
Aldridge chimed in with 10 and 5 in 12 minutes, and Rudy Fernandez has 8 and 3. Bayless has 7 points and no assists.
Both teams are shooting awfully. The Warriors at 38%, the Blazers at 33%. Lot of FTs in the contest with both sides having about 25 attempts apiece.
Seond Half
A wild shot by Williams tapped up and in by Biedrins
Biedrins tries to front Oden, Oden seals him, dunk
Anthony Randolph and Azubuike in the game now for GSW
Blazers switch the pick and roll between Biedrins and Williams, easy dunk Biedrins
Lovely pass by Aldridge to Oden, dunk. Next possession lovely spin move by Aldridge but he misses the short shot. A few possessions later, the Blazers run on the break nothing going, Rudy pulls it out, passes it to Bayless, notices Aldridge’s man is fronting him and that the weakside is wide open, calls for it back, throws it quickly over the top, foul by Randolph on Aldridge to avoid the dunk.
Oden just picked up his fourth foul. He’s played almost 19 minutes now, the max was meant to be 20. He’s coming out now too.
Okay I’m out of time. This Blazers squad is entertaining and very good. I look forward to seeing more of them.
Great game ahead of us tonight. The Celtics will reportedly limit the minutes of their starting five in contrast to last year when they were building chemistry and played big minutes, but there will be plenty of players worth paying attention to on a revamped Celtics bench chock of block with young players. Most of all I’m excited about Tony Allen and Bill Walker. As for Phily, the starting lineup I wanted to see is here (Thad-Iggy on the wings) and a new season with heightened expectations is about to begin. I can’t wait. Great game ahead of us.
Patrick O Bryant will start tonight in place of the injured (not serious, back soon) Kendrick Perkins. I’ve been unimpressed with him whenever I’ve seen him in the past but I have such respect for Clifford Ray that I’m not going to write Paddy O Bryant off.
All this motivation crap about Boston now that they’ve won a title is just that, it’s crap. There’s no hope in hell guys like KG, Rondo, Pierce, Ray, Perk rest up after winning a title. They’re coming just as hard all over again. These guys don’t go soft, they don’t go half-effort. That’s not happening. Throw that theory out the window. It has no place in reality.
Theo Ratliff has been teaching Dalembert some tricks in training camp this season. He’s trying to help Dalembert reach his goal of becoming an All-Star defensive center.
Oh yes, Doc Rivers is attending a personal problem tonight (link). He won’t be attending the game. Tom Thibodeau will coach the team. This is his second time working the sidelines in place of Doc, the previous game was a thrilling nail-biting win early in the season in Toronto last season.
I like those white Sixers jerseys
Brand turns the ball over out of the post, steal Paul Pierce
How well Thaddeus Young can defend Pierce or Ray Allen is one of the biggest keys to the Sixers chances of beating Boston this season.
KG left baseline, faces up Brand from 18 feet, Brand gives him the J, KG takes it and makes it
Paul Pierce coming up with another loose ball, this time in the crowded paint, leads the break the other way, Phily knock it out of bounds. Baseline in, Celtics inbound the ball, swing it from right to left, to KG inside, Phily focus in, KG finds the cutter, Paul Pierce easy layup
Ray-Ray nails a three and puts Boston up 7-0
Pierce with good position inside on Thaddeus Young, KG high post passes over the top, Pierce layup
Paddy with a nice finish inside. Ray drove right to left along the baseline, found Paddy, missed the short shot, got the offensive rebound, and shot it from five feet.
Young responds with a long jumper. Nice to see his J.
Celtics are on fire. Ray and KG adding long jumpers from either side of the court. Now Rondo gets a fastbreak layup off a Phily turnover. Boston up 16-4. This is preseason right? Remember what I said, throw that crap about Boston’s motivation out of the window. Do it now. It’s garbage.
Timeout Phily
Miller posts up Rondo, Celtics collapse, Miller kicks it from the left block to the right wing, three pointer Thaddeus Young, hits it
KG left block, fadeaway J, miss
Iggy setting up Dalembert for a 14 footer along the baseline, he hits it
Great screen by KG on the catch for Ray Allen, Ray was swooping from the top of the key down the left wing, with Rondo trailing by two strides, KG pops out and nails Ray’s man, freeing Ray as the pass was been lofted in the air, Ray nails a three as the shot clock expires. Nice screen.
Phily have scrapped their way back into this. Boston lead 19-13 with 5 plus minutes to play
Boston’s ball movement has been fabulous so far
Elton Brand smacking Leon Powe backwards and finishing with a turnaround J in his face. Don’t see Powe backed down like that too often. Nice move.
Dalembert unloads a 16 footer just off that right elbow. That’s a shot he was too willing to take, and has been too willing to take in the past. He needs to be more disciplined and allow the better offensive players to get their shots. Early in the clock too.
Phily’s defense has been soft so far. They need a lot of work. They look vulnerable on every screen and roll.
Darius Miles and Tony Allen check in. Willie Green and Louis Williams have entered for Phily. Now Glen Davis gets up. Darius doing a good job right away tying up Andre Miller for a jump ball. KG checks out, he’s played excellent defense on Brand.
Tony Allen gets the ball off the tip, brings it up, gets the C’s into their offense, oh wow what a move and block, Leon Powe along the right baseline, drives right on Dalembert, spins left towards the middle, loses Dalembert, rises for the layup, Brand from the weakside erases the shot. Brand killed that. Nice move from Leon. Good confidence to make that.
Four players for Phily have accounted for their 17 points and none have less than four. Iggy hasn’t scored, or the bench.
Tony Allen draws a foul already, makes two at the line. Boston lead 24-17 with two minutes to play in the first. No knee brace folks, but he does have a sleeve along his leg.
Late call against Evans after the block by Iggy. Blocking call. Leon Powe to the line.
Louis Williams nails a 23 footer, foot on the line, two pointer left wing. He could be on the line for a big season.
Reggie Evans fouls Eddie House, after the call he gives a light hearted slap across Eddie’s head, Eddie smacks him back in the chest. He’s not taking that.
Second Quarter
Boston lead 30-24. The score doesn’t describe how dominant Boston have been or how irresistable their offense was in the first 5-7 minutes. They are in complete control of this matchup. Phil clearly second best in every respect. Good work by Phily to hang tough.
Boston’s bench played 17 minutes in the first quarter, took only two shots, got 6 FTs. Nice.
Sixers trying to pressure House/Allen in the backcourt. Allen brings it up easily, now gets it to Eddie. Slowed their offense well. Tony dribbles towards the middle, finds Leon who has excellent position inside on Ratliff, Powe bashes into Ratliff’s chest and smacks him out of the way, puts up the layup over Theo’s long reach. Great move by Powe, great work to get the position. Next possession … more backcourt pressure, up ahead to Glen Davis just inside the three point line, Davis has a clear path, he heads to the hoop, he runs someone over but they were out of position.
Green and Williams adding back to back perimeter J’s
Tony Allen is handling a lot of the basketball. Eddie House being used for some off the ball screens. See if that continues.
Tony Allen is breaking Phily’s backcourt pressure easily. Phily are trying to double him, but he’s just passing ahead …. Boston are having no problems with the pressure. Patient start by Tony Allen, love it.
Celtics lead 40-30. Timeout
Scores update – Orlando blasted Charlotte 40-9 in the opening quarter
8 minutes to play in the second quarter back in Phily
Paddy with another nice move in the post, nice pump fake to draw the foul, makes the freebies. Boston up 12.
Tony Allen gets his first turnover pushing off on the drive. Bill Walker enters the game for Glen Davis as Boston go smaller. Brian Scalabrine at the four. Tony Allen with the steal to get possession back, he leads the break, Phily get back well, House floats to the corner, Tony finds him, Phily recover, Scal trails the break spots up from the left wing, gets the pass, takes the shot, misses, Tony Allen hits the offensive boards, snatches it out of the air and is fouled on the follow up. He makes his FTs. Well done Tony Allen. Impressive tonight.
Bill Walker smacks Young in the chest and sends Thaddeus flying four feet backwards. Little over-aggressive there. Reminds me of a recent incident with KG in practice.
Marreese Speights gets his first hoop. He looks tall and long. Now he picks up a loose ball foul holding onto Scalabrine. Five minutes to play in the second quarter. This quarter feels like it’s taking forever. Pruitt in the game now. Pruitt and Scal run the pick and roll, Pruitt throws the perfect bounce pass to the rolling Scalabrine but Scal was asleep, turnover. Nice pass.
Thaddeus Young trying to beat Walker off the dribble, failing. That’s a couple times tonight that Thaddeus has failed to take his man off the bounce.
Timeout
Ivey with the floater in the lane … misses. Not sure about Ivey as a two guard. That’s something to keep an eye on. Kareem Rush is out tonight, only a day-to-day injury.
Lovely pass by Tony Allen over the top to Paddy for the layup. Nice pump fakes and patience by O Bryant to create the look.
Pruitt with a lovely floater in the lane …. two possessions later, lovely pass by Pruitt timing the pass for the trailing Bill Walker. O Bryant made a pair of nice outlet passes also.
Young nails another right wing three. He’s a shooter, he’s spent all summer working on that jumper and it looks smooth.
Boston lead 49-42 with two plus minutes to play in the half
Speights loses it, but Thaddeus makes the steal in the open court, sets up Ratliff for the wide open dunk, he misses it (didn’t jump as high or far as he thought he would), Boston have numbers up the other end, alley oop Bill Walker, dunk.
Wooow …. Bill Walker skies for an authorative dunk in Theo Ratliff’s face. Oooh. That’s a poster. Oh my oh my. Great hustle play by Giddens to come up with that lose ball, then the shuffle pass to set up Walker on the baseline. Wow, that was a dunk.
O Bryant blocking Andre Miller
Boston lead 54-44 …. Phily holding it for the final shot. Ivey has it, high screen and roll, goes nowhere, contested 22 footer, misses badly. What the hell is Ivey doing holding the ball for the final shot, that’s just stupid play from Ivey.
Halftime
Boston have 16 assists on 18 field goals. That’s how well they’re moving the ball against what should be a good Phily defense although they’ve been weak tonight.
Boston also beating them on the boards 19-15. They’ve also forced more turnovers (2 more, 9-11). Boston are shooting almost 49% compared to the 42% Phily are shooting. Boston are 14-14 from the line. Just a lovely all round performance.
Second Half
Boston lead 54-44
Thaddeus hits another one. Brings the deficit back to single digits.
2 seconds that’s how long Phily took to rebound the ball and dunk it on the other end. That was quick. Dalembert snared it off the glass, passed it off in mid air to Miller, Andre Miller threw the pass instantly 75 feet to the streaking Young, dunk. That was quick.
Phily are getting after it on the glass and looking to run more. Great push by Andre Iguodala, alley oop to Young, a little off, Young tries to guide it in, no good, rebound o Bryant, tied up, jump ball, O Bryant wins it. Boston bring it up, alley oop Rondo to O Bryant, slam dunk. Next possession, Rondo blindsights Elton Brand, breakaway dunk. Boston back up 10.
Rondo breaks the backcourt pressure, beats his man, hard push, defense has to collapse, Pierce open from three, hits the shot
Timeout
Elton Brand looks very rusty and slow defensively. Making a lot of mistakes and slow decisions.
A few possessions later, Brand wiggles his way under the rim as KG goes for the blocked shot, offensive rebound, and fouled.
Boston lead 65-61 but are in complete control of this game. The Celtics will withdraw the starters shortly. I might call the game then. Not sure if I want to stay tuned in for the youngsters or not.
Elton Brand with a nice cut as KG turns his head, lovely baseline pass by Iggy
Okay I’m going to call it. This game has ended as a spectacle. Starting to get very sloppy and Boston are about to rest their starters. I think Boston will win but Phily could if they continue playing their starters
Boston were incredibly impressive at junctures and all their youth showed promise and talent.
As for Phily … they need more time to develop some levels of fluidity and cohesion to their play. Disjointed at times, and their decisions were slow. Play of the game
Tuning in late in the second half, 5 minutes to play
Chris Mihm just left for the bench. The commentators said he was running very well, like he did three years ago. That would be big for LA.
Jordan Farmer had a lovely steal in the backcourt when Ronnie Price wasn’t paying attention to the passer, layup for Farmer
Mbenga fails to box out his man, Fesenko sneaks in by the baseline, hits the glass, layup, nope fouled. Bad play by Mbenga. Fesenko made one of two.
Lakers lead 38-36 with 3 plus minutes to play in the half
Ariza unleashes a three from the elft wing, side iron, Powell active, gets to ball, offensive rebound. Lakers reset, Mbenga turns it over, fastbreak Jazz, layup, off the glass about to fall, Mbenga goaltends. Mbenga needs to calm down and stop screwing up the simple stuff.
Halftime
Brandon Heath looked solid. Some good defense, ran the break well and set up his teammate. Good start.
Lakers lead 42-40
Andrew Bynum came off the bench, with Ariza replacing him at starting small forward. Gasol and Odom have only played 5 and 7 minutes, but the rest of the starters are low double digits.
Harpring is out injured, and Boozer did not play today although I’m not sure why. Millsap started in his place. Utah are sharing around the minutes fairly equally, about 10 minutes each for most of their players.
Lakers kicking Utah’s ass 24-14 on the backboards, with Bynum and Powell leading the way with 9 rebounds off the bench. Utah miss Boozer [edit: day-to-day sore hamstring], and don’t have Millsap/Harpring around on that second unit to help their bench.
The halftime show is showing some Bynum highlights now. First possession, Bynum runs the floor and pins his man low in the paint, gets the pass, fakes left, turnaround J right, hits it. Nice shot …. second possession, Bynum again gets good position, this time right block, Kobe brings it up right wing, passes down to Bynum, fakes the baseline cut, comes back the other side and cuts through the middle, loses the defender, defense collapses to look after Kobe’s cut, Farmer left open from three top of the key, Bynum hits him, Farmer nails it. Bynum leads the Lakers with 9 points, and is second with 4 rebounds.
Pau was effective when he was on the floor, Gasol had 6 points in on 3-3 shooting in 5 minutes.
Second Half
Gasol will sit for the rest of the game
Kobe left elbow extended, high post, faces up, gives a shimmy, rises a nd hits the J in Brewer’s face. Brewer isn’t close enough to bother that jump shot.
Okur drives on Bynum, jumps into his chest to stop Bynum from jumping, and hits the rolling hook. Nice slow move from Okur.
Lovely give and go from Ariza left wing to Bynum low post, hand off, layup. Boston ran that so well last season with KG and Posey. Ariza is the best cutter LA have, he could be deadly on those entry passes. Next possession, Kobe drives left along the baseline, Utah’s D collapses, Ariza right wing moves to the top of the key at the start of the move, cuts down the middle of the paint as Utah collapse, Kobe finds him, layup, nope fouled, hits two FTs. Lovely cut by Ariza. Ariza is a deadly weapon in this Lakers offense.
Brewer with two nice cuts along the left baseline of his own early in the third quarter. One a short shot, the other a loud dunk. More importantly he did well defending Kobe on a similar situation as the one a few moments ago, left elbow extended, he stopped the penetration and forced Kobe outside for a longer fallaway jumper which missed. Next possession of course Kobe wants revenge, and leaves Brewer standing in cement as he flies to the rim off the right wing. Nice quick move by Bryant. I like to repeat myself …. Ronnie’s defense looks like it’ll be the deciding factor on whether Utah have a legit championship aspirations this season or not.
Ariza knocking down a 22 footer top of the key
Ariza on the break, doesn’t like the drive, back out to Kobe, lovely pass by Kobe Bryant, great patience to wait for the trailing man and great vision to get him as he floats between a few Utah bodies, Powell misses the layup. On the other end the Jazz get four quick points as Deron steals the entry pass and makes an easy two.
Utah lead 66-60 bringing a timeout out of … Kurt Rambis …. I don’t see Phil Jackson there. [edit: Phil didn't attend the game]
Jazz pressure the ballhandler, another turnover, easy dunk for Okur off the steal from Kirilenko
Turnover Jazz, fastbreak Lakers, nice behind the back pass from Kobe to Ariza outside the FT line, Ariza takes a bounce and jumps over the last Jazz defender and lays it in over him
Deron Williams bringing it up the floor, Kobe meets him, he takes Kobe to the top of the key 20 feet out, nice shake to create some space, step back J, swish.
Ariza closes out on Korver, head fake Korver, one dribble right, jumper, Ariza gets back in it and blocks the shot out of bounds
Deron Williams looks fantastic out there. Much more comfortable attacking Derek Fisher.
Mihm with the 22 footer right wing, nails it …. jeez thought that was Radmanovic at first. Mihm far out from the rim on that play.
Kobe posts up Korver, spins middle, loses Korver, goes up for the slam, fouled before he dunks it on two Jazz big men. Kobe has those “MVP” chants raining down already.
14.6 seconds to play in the third, Deron has it, brings it up, high screen and roll with Millsap, Millsap pops out, Deron finds him, Kobe streaks out for the steal, doesn’t get it, Almond left open right wing, Millsap finds him, three pointer from the corner, good. His foot was on the line, make that a long two.
Fourth quarter
Jazz lead 74-67
Brevin Knight enters the game, gets a rebound, passes ahead, trails, spots up from 21 feet, hits it, quick impact
Farmer responds with a three pointer. Interesting to see how hard both teams go for the win from here. Looks like the second units will see this game out. Lamar Odom is leading the Lakers lineup alongside Mihm, Ariza, Karl, Farmer. The Jazz have Knight, Korver, Almond, Millsap and one of their big man invites – Lyde. Almond looks small, very thin. Somebody is going to beat him up.
Coby Karl with back to back buckets (well bucket and FTs). He beat both Korver and Almond easily.
Korver 18 footer right elbow extended, hits it
Mihm is down inside, turnaround J, blocked by Lyde, no wait that was a slap on the wrist, foul.
Lamar Odom has played point guard, small forward and power forward tonight. Defensively he’s defended four positions.
Farmer short armed his 19 footer
CJ Giles skies over Mihm and Lyde to get that rebound, he’s long and athletic. Giles posts up Korver, no hesitation, turns around and shoots over the top of him
Morris Almond loses Odom on the screen off the ball, open jumper left wing, misses, Utah offensive rebound, Odom slacking and not paying attention to Almond, Morris has about four feet of space, makes himself available at the left elbow, drives into Odom’s chest, smacks off him, flies backward, throws it up there, gets the foul. That did not look planned. This lad looks like he needs to bulk up.
Lamar drives on Millsap from the right wing, stop and pop and at the elbow, Millsap with him all the way, Lamar air balls it. Other end of the floor, great offensive rebound from Millsap, great hustle to get that long board, reset the offense, Millsap calls for it left baseline, he’s 18 feet out, faces up Odom, jab step, creates some space, takes the J, hits the J
Timeout with 6 minutes left in the game. Utah lead 88-82
Lakers post Bynum in the middle of the paint, turning jump hook, good
Lovely quick pass by Karl to Farmer left wing, air ball
Bynum right block, turns middle, Price from the weakside picks his pocket … Price nailed a jumper from the corner over Bynum the possession before. Good work from Ronnie.
Radmanovic with a typical sloppy loose ball foul. Four minutes to play, Jazz now ahead by 9 after two FTs by Lyde. Lyde is 300lbs, wow, some useless trivia here for you, Kevin Lyde is the all-time leader in D-League games. Next possession, Lakers miss another jumper, Radmanovic with another stupid foul after the rebound. Brevin Knight hits two, puts Utah up 11 with three twenty to play.
Bynum posts up, quick spin to the middle, little off balance, picks up his dribble, head fakes while he gains his balance, Lyde goes for it, Bynum sees the opportunity draws the foul, makes two of two.
Millsap with a very athletic move spinng and avoiding the long Lakers arms, then jumping, double pumping in the air, waiting for his man to fall to floor, then letting the shot leave his finger tips … air ball. Ah well. Looked good making that air ball and we all know that’s what really matters.
Alright I’m going to call it. Some good action in this game, but very much the first preseason game of the season for both sides.
Tony Battie says he’s happy to be back but isn’t at full strength yet. Struggling to make some of his past plays …. but the Magic believe that’ll come back with more time and practice.
Opening tip, Josh Smith wins the tip over Dwight.
Haha, Pietrus picks up a foul within 10 seconds. He was a fouling machine last season, suddenly every Magic fans’ fear is heightened.
Horford takes a jumper over Dwight, Dwight swats it
Pietrus with an athletic drive and dunk. Then picks up a defensive rebound on the other end. Pietrus has a good potential as an all-round contributor for the Magic if given a little freedom. Two possessions later, Pietrus knocks down a long jumper just inside the three point line. He’s going to have that shot all season. Good early work from Pietrus.
Josh Smith picks up a technical for mouthing off at Bob Delaney.
Atlanta missing a lot of shots but have an offensive rebound and putback from Marvin Williams. Horford has one point at the line, their only other score. Next possession, Horford 15 feet out, faces up and takes the jumper, rims long. Orlando win the rebound and run the other way, Dwight with the dunk. Timeout
Orlando lead 11-3 after four minutes
Hedo taking away Josh Smith’s drive, forcing the kickout late in the shot clock, Bibby jumper, hits it.
Jameer Nelson knocks down his second shot. The announcers praising his game shape and improvement over the summer, hoping this is the year he puts all the pieces together.
Horford drives inside, puts it up, blocked again by Howard, retrieved by Horford, puts it back up and in.
Marvin Williams jumps up in the air, hesitated on the decision, nobody to pass to, turnover. Dumb play.
Joe Johnson turns it over, he wiggled through two defenders making a spin move along the baseline splitting the help and finishing over the top. Alas he traveled. Johnson is starting to become more involved over the past few minutes.
Turkoglu shoulder fake, lean, pull back J, hits in Atlanta’s face. 20-12 Orlando.
JJ Redick enters the game and makes two long J’s off of Howard feeds. Encouraging.
Jameer Nelson on the break over to Hedo with the dipsy doo finish inside
Redick defending Joe Johnson, Joe easily beats him off the dribble and scores over the top of him. Nelson comes right back and answers, he’s started well.
Mike Woodson calls a 20 second timeout to yell at his players for the lousy defense they’re playing. Zaza is getting the brunt of it.
Orlando have shot 12-15 from the field and lead 27-18
Orlando are playing a 2-3 zone on three possessions now, with Atlanta punishing them all three times with long jumpers. Mo Evans just entered the game and he just hit that third shot, a three, against that zone.
Pietrus slicing his way through the lane, defense comes to meet him, Pietrus takes a hook shot, rims out
Redick with the steal in the open court to deny Atlanta a fastbreak after a silly turnover by Lewis, he gets it on the other end and maneuvours his way into the paint for any easy two. Announcers giving a good review of Redick’s physique and the improvement in his strength over the summer.
Pietrus flies by Mo Evans off the dribble, gets into the paint again, Zaza meets him, Pietrus tries to finish over him, it rolls out. Pietrus is an underrated slasher …. if Orlando continue to let him explore his creativity he could show a lot more than folks expect.
Horford inside working on Rashard Lewis, shot clock clicking down, forces it, air ball. Pietrus and Mo Evans battling hard throughout that possession.
Jameer has time to get off a final shot in the quarter, he has it right wing, drives to the elbow, pops, misses.
Second Quarter
Atlanta down four now. Mo Evans is looking to shoot whenever half an opening shows itself.
Rashard Lewis has looked very good in training over the last week and is doing much better in Orlando’s offense. His comfort at power forward and in the offense is much improved. Be interesting to see how that shows itself in his performances, more shot attempts? more drives? post ups? more playmaking? Keep an eye on that early in the season.
Tony Battie hitting the offensive boards and putting it back inside.
Howard with the 360 spin move on Horford, he rises for the dunk, misses it. Dwight has made a concerted effort to improve his FT shooting this offseason, he starts off by making his first two. Dwight’s main problems at the line always came when the pressure cranked up, in contrast he was a solid FT shooter when the game was in hand.
Anthony Johnson driving through the middle alley oop to Lewis, no go, falls to Dwight, easy two inside.
Marvin Williams posts up Courtney Lee inside, Magic help, he kicks it out, Bibby slices two defenders, does some “acting” and gets the call. Sideline in, Bibby takes the three, misses the three.
Battie with the hustle play saving a loose ball from going out of bounds, giving Orlando an extra possession.
42-34 Orlando with 5 minutes to play
Turkoglu weaving through the paint, spotting Battie inside, blocked by Josh Smith but fouled elsewhere. Battie will head to the line.
Josh Smith travels on the drive, gets whistled for the offensive foul first. He put his head down and plowed his way into the paint. You could hear the turnover coming a mile away.
This is a good game, the starters are playing a lot of minutes.
Hedo alley oop to Dwight, slam dunk.
Bibby in the corner, hits the baseline 18 footer
Howard posts up inside on Solomon Jones, easily beats him into the paint, shot up and … swatted by the swooping Josh Smith.
Orlando have pushed this lead to double digits multiple times but Atlanta keep coming back. Close game, Orlando up four with two minutes to go after Jones hitting two FTs. Dwight posts up Jones on the other end, Jones has no choice but to foul and send Howard to the line.
Courtney Lee picking up Bibby defensively in the open court, pass ahead to Joe Johnson, Joe beats Redick but has his shot turned the other way by Dwight Howard. Howard has four or five blocks in the first half.
Joe Johnson knocks down another jumper. 10-0 run by Atlanta.
Bibby forced to pickup Rashard Lewis, he’s struggling, Hedo goes over the top, misses the shot but is fouled by Bibby. Lewis ends the run and scores both FTs, 12 points.
Atlanta look to post up Solomon Jones inside, he has Dwight on him, Jones decides on the fadeaway J instead of attacking Dwight, he misses.
West drives, out of control, falls into Lee, gets the foul.
Halftime
51-49 Magic …. Atlanta has done well to stay in this game. Orlando should have built this lead up more.
Very good game so far, the starters are playing big minutes. Howard and Lewis leading the way with 16 and 17 minutes respectively. All of Atlant’s starters playing 14-17 minutes each. Didn’t expect to see the starters out there so much …
Good to see Courtney Lee receiving good minutes, also seeing Redick getting another opportunity and taking it with both hands. Keith Bogans hasn’t played tonight …. SVG trying out the unknowns instead. Good decision.
Howard has 6 blocks, 5 rebounds and 10 points.
Atlanta outrebounding Orlando 24-19 and have more assists 10-8. Orlando have two more turnovers, 9-7. Overall Atlanta has gotten 8 more shots, equal FTs, but have made the same as Orlando. Magic shooting 47.5% compared to 39% for Atlanta.
Lewis/Howard/Battie have 14 of Orlando’s 19 boards. Pietrus is next with two rebounds, nobody else has more than 1.
Third Quarter
Halfway through the third, 68-62 Atlanta lead. Horford leading the way with 13 and 7, their backcourt has combined for 22 points.
Lewis with the runner in the lane. He has 19 points in 22 minutes, on 7-11 shooting.
Josh Smith wide open on the weak side, lob pass, dunk
Atlanta extend the lead to 9, they’re heating up, 11-18 from the field in the third quarter
PIetrus with a 360 spin off the drive, finishes and the foul, hits the Ft
The Magic still down 9 with 3 plus minutes to play, they need to finish the third strong
AJ throws the lob to Gortat, Marcin throws it down
Pietrus goes down into the low post, backs his man down, spins into the lane and dunks it home. Showing some versatility tonight.
Acie Law with the 60 foot heave at the buzzer, hits it, it’s good
Fourth Quarter
Atlanta lead by 13, the score is 94-81.
Atlanta had 49 points in the first half, 45 points in the third quarter
Mo Evans and Acie Law have 29 points off the bench. The starting backcourt has 22. Tough to beat Atlanta when the backcourt has 51 points in three quarters. The frontcourt has 29 points themselves, plus 9 from Zaza Pachulia.
The Hawks finished 18-28 in the third
Orlando’s shooting has been great, 53%, but they have 13 less shot attempts. That’s the difference in the game right now.
Atlanta out-rebounding Orlando 30-25, have 11 offensive boards to 25 Magic defensive boards. The Magic big men are still getting no help on the backboards
Stan was laying into his squad at the end of the third about their inability to play hard for four quarters
AJ has been good tonight, all round contribution, some defense, some rebounding, some passing and assists, getting Orlando into their offense. Little scoring. Now he has a bad turnover just as Orlando were heating up. Okay but he’s playing well.
Howard had 22 points in 30 minutes on 8-13 shooting but only 6 rebounds … tough for Orlando to compete on the backboards with the big fella being dominant. Howard does have 8 blocks though.
Flip Murray missed his first four shots but has made two in a row. Good time for him to heat up.
Atlanta are up 11 with 7 and a half to play
JJ Redick right wing 20 footer, miss, Battie offensive rebound, miss, Zaza defensive board … Hawks turn it over on the other end.
Johnson top of the key, sees a hole, drives in, passes up the shot, passes out to Tony, 18 footer right wing, hits it
Mo Evans answers right back with a 25 footer. He’s driven tonight, definitely wants to stick it to Orlando
AJ weaving in again, finding Gortat for the midrange J, knocks it down. Marvin Williams misses a jumper on the other end, rebound Gortat. Orlando come up, Hedo has it, finds Battie, bank shot, hits it. Next possession, Anthony Johnson misses a three pointer, Gortat skies over Zaza and keeps it alive, nope over the back foul.
Atlanta leads 105-97 with under 5 minutes to play
Atlanta pulls away 112-99
I’m going to call it. Very good win for the Atlanta Hawks. This matchup will be the season opener for both sides in late October so we’ll see if Orlando holds a grudge
Anthony Johnson has had a good all round performance. AJ has 4 rebounds, 6 assists, 2 steals, some good D, and 8 points.
That difference in the shot attempts is the difference in the game tonight. Orlando shooting 52, holding Atlanta to 48, those 12 less shots, that’s the difference. The rebounding just hasn’t been good enough. Dwight only has 6 boards in 30 minutes, difficult for the team to compete on the backboards without Howard dominating. Tony Battie does have 7 boards in 20 minutes which is good. The perimeter players as a whole haven’t hit the boards hard enough.
Little unbalanced offensively too. Lots of contributing, but few guys being key difference makers. Hedo was decent but quiet.
I would have liked to have seen Nelson try to exploit Mike Bibby more often, that’s too good a matchup not to attack.
Atlanta won this game on the virtue of their third quarter (45 points) and hot shooting in the second half. Their backcourt was very good and their bench (Law/Mo/Zaza = 48 points) gave them a massive boost.
Miami jump out to a 11-4 or a 13-4 lead …. some score keeping problems.
Shawn Marion has 6 quick points while Wade has been creating off the dribble and setting up his teammates.
Mark Blount is supposedly in great shape coming into training camp this year
Diawara, Blount and Quinn have started alongside Wade and Marion. As for Detroit, as reported Amir Johnson replaces McDyess in the starting lineup, otherwise no changes. McDyess checks in after Detroit cuts it to an 11-9 Miami lead. Stuckey is in too.
Wade with a backdoor cut, Blount hits him, Wade finishes inside. Pistons overplaying Wade.
Young Joel Anthony checks in for Mark Blount. The 6-9 big man will be playing center this season and is the squad’s best shotblocker. He’s gotten good reviews early in training camp so one to keep an eye on as an emerging role player.
Stuckey with a jumper off the elbow
Maxiell with the alley oop, nope, Marion the other way, ahead to Cook, three pointer on the way, miss, rebound Detroit, ahead to Stuckey, he drains another jumper. Quick offense from Stuckey.
Beasley enters the fray
Herrmann and Banks also join the action, Walter immediately picking up a foul and putting Detroit in the penalty. Diawara takes two, makes two.
Beasley with the steal, fouled, timeout. He’ll shoot two. Misses the pair.
Detroit outrebounding Miami 10-1, but the Heat have forced 5 turnovers and outscored Detroit 8-2 in the paint.
Herrmann nails the long J off of the dish from Billups. I’m hoping we see more of Walter this season, he’s a player, he belongs on the court, he’d be great for Miami (or San Antonio or 20-25 other teams) but that’s another issue entirely.
Cook with the ball fake from three, gets Stuckey off his feet, drives baseline, and hits the layup
Anthony gives away a silly foul 25 feet from the rim. Detroit restart it, Basden fouls, more FTs. The game is tied at 18 before the freebies. Herrmann steps up for the FTs, hits both, Detroit lead.
Billups misses a 20 footer, Herrmann with the hustle play getting a tap on the ball and knocking it out to a teammate.
Beasley misses the long three
Detroit hold for the final shot …. 20-18 Pistons … Stuckey up top, Cook defending, Stuckey drives, off the glass, miss.
Second Quarter
Another turnover for Detroit, Banks comes the other way. Over to Beasley, fakes the shot, then passes, three second violation inside, they thought Beasley was shooting.
Beasley snares a rebound. He’s defending Wallace.
Beasley inside, shot fake, lefty drive, crossover, muscles up the layup with the right hand, fouled and finishes. Hits the FT.
Stuckey driving and fouled …. “Stuckey looks like he’s already in mid-season form” …. Rodney has 7.
Basden dribble drive shoots off the elbow, miss.
Herrmann drives, takes the runner, misses, offensive rebound, putback good. 7 points for Herrmann.
Good defense by Detroit, Miami working against the clock, Banks with 5 seconds trying to get it up, down to two, shoots, loses it. Kwame Brown did a great job there knowing the clock was against Miami, showing on a screen and forcing some time away. On the other end Kwame finishes inside.
Timeout Miami
Miami’s offense sounds like it’s struggling without Wade out there. Lot of passing with little pressure being exerted on Detroit over the past few minutes.
Stuckey toying with Banks, nice hesitation and crossover dribble to take Banks off balance, draws the foul.
Cook into Anthony, fumbles it, to Beasley, loses it ….. turnover, Basden steals it back, hits Banks, three pointer, nails it. Detroit lead by 9 now, they’ve taken control of this game ever since Wade sat down.
33-24 Detroit
Wade dribble drive, into the paint, runner, blocked … Stuckey flies down the court and scores the easy two. He has 11 points on 6 shots, that’s the difference in the game right now. Wade draws the foul on Afflalo, shoots two, makes both.
7 to play in the half
Pass intercepted by Wade, one mad fastbreak, curling right to left, layup over Stuckey
Stuckey’s shot blocked, Wade fouls Kwame trying to get the loose ball
Chalmers checks in for the first time
Afflalo air balls the shot. Chalmers contesting the shot.
Wade falls over, loses the ball.
Another turnover, third straight possession with a turnover, Rasheed with the backdoor pass but his teammate wasn’t paying attention. Timeout, Miami down 7.
Detroit shooting 48%, Miami 33%. The announcers are saying that Detroit are moving the ball very quickly, especially on reverse passes.
Wade sets up Blount again, about the fourth time he’s gotten Blount an open shot, from 18 feet, hits it.
Kwame Brown trying to back his way into the paint out of the post, gives up, out to Stuckey, 20 footer, miss.
Marion alley oop to Blount, two points. Blount has 9. Miami on a 8-0 run. Marion has been quiet offensively since the fast start.
Stuckey misses another shot. Commentators don’t think he’s doing a good job getting his teammates going, looking for his shot too much.
Blount posts inside, Detroit front the post, pass over the top, Blount gets it and is fouled inside to avoid the easy two. Blount has four boards to go with his 11 points.
Pistons with another offensive rebound, reset the offense. Amir Johnson tries to post up, dips his shoulder into Blount, offensive foul and turnover. Good work by Blount.
Chalmers passes inside to Blount, fouled. The commentators like the vision from Chalmers on the backdoor cut from Blount. One of two FTs made.
Tie game 35-35
Cheik Samb turns the ball over. That’s their 13th turnover. Miami have 5.
Wade with a beautiful move inside but throws away the pass, steal Prince. Another turnover.
Detroit miss on the other end, Chalmers chips in with a rebound. Chalmers is getting involved out there.
Bynum with the runner off the glass opening his account. Wade comes right back down the other end, draws the foul, will head to the line after a timeout.
Wade with another interception, ahead to Chalmers, he jets ahead, then measures his run for Wade to jon, back to Dwyane, right handed slam.
Bynum doing a good job pressuring the ball, making life difficult for Chalmers.
Amir Johnson taps the offensive board back up and in, off of a miss from Alex Acker.
Timeout Miami as the second half is coming to a close. This is the play I’m sure we’ll be seeing all season, high pick and roll with Wade, Wade drives inside, Detroit collapse help off of Mario Chalmers, Wade dishes to Chalmers in the corner, three pointer on the way, good. That’s one of the many reasons why Chalmers will be a great fit next to Wade.
Halftime
43-42 Miami lead at halftime
Chris Sheridan pops in for a halftime interview. Talking about the half. Feels Beasley was a little lost offensively, but did a good job defensively albeit against a passive Wallace. Thinks the Heat got back into it when Wade moved to small forward ….. Sheridan feels Wade was the best player on the USA team this summer, and also that Bosh was close for team MVP ….. Sheridan likes the Celtics to win the East, doesn’t feel there is anyone close to them. In the West, Sheridan likes both LA and Houston, loves the Artest addition, feels they’re the two best in the West and hopes they play in the Western Conference Finals …. Elton Brand the best free agent signing, Baron Davis a close second.
Detroit have 15 turnovers. Billups leads the way with 3, Herrmann and Rip have 2 apiece, 8 other players have 1 turnover each.
The Pistons are pounding Miami on the glass 24-15. Afflalo and Prince combined for 9 boards, nobody else has more than 3. Shawn Marion and Blount have 60% of Miami’s rebounds, they need more well rounded contribution on the backboards. Miami was out-rebounded in 66 of their 82 games last year, finishing last in the league last year.
Wade and Blount have 23 of Miami’s 43 points. Marion is the third leading scorer with 6, all scored in the first five minutes. Nobody else has more than one basket. For Detroit, Stuckey and Herrmann have 21 of the team’s 42 points … but they also have Rip and Billups combining for 9 more points.
Suprisingly (turnovers), Detroit has taken just as many shots as Miami and have made two more of those shots. Both teams had 36 shots, Detroit making 16. The Pistons have only 2 extra offensive rebounds over Miami …. 7 more turnovers. Odd. Okay I think the scoreboard is incorrect, Miami can’t miss 22 shots, have 4 offensive rebounds, and Detroit have 24 defensive boards. The math there is just wrong.
GSW – Hornets scoreboard
Warriors lead 53-46. Azubuike leads the Warriors with 10, but have a balanced act with 7 players having between 4-7 points. Ronny Turiaf with 4 points, 5 rebounds and 6 assists … odd stat line.
Ahh … Tyson Chandler has only played 5 minutes and has one rebound. Still the Hornets outrebounded GSW 27-22.
My preference for the second unit has played most of the half for New Orleans – Mike James, Devin Brown, Julian Wright, James Posey, Hilton Armstrong. Ely and Bowen got some minutes too.
Chris Paul played the most out of the starters playing 10 minutes. None of them have done anything special. Only two dimes for Paul, team assists low for NO without their playmaker.
Brandon Wright has played 9 minutes, almost twice as much as Anthony Randolph. Bellinelli and Marcus Williams playing also off the bench.
Second Half
Chalmers, Wade, Marion, Beasley, Blount to start the second half. That’s my pick for the starting lineup this season. Magloire and Padgett are on the bench and have yet to enter.
Bullet pass by Wade to Beasley, Beasley takes a dribble steps out of bounds.
Wallace posts up inside, quick turnaround after the pass from Billups, turnaround J, high bounce off the rim and in.
Chalmers with the steal, fastbreak, two on one with Wade, alley oop, turnover, Wade loses his shoe. Good hands by Chalmers to get the steal.
Chalmers and Beasley playing the two man game, back to Beasley for the long J, misses badly.
Beasley with a lefty hook off the glass, good.
Wade drives inside, goes baseline, shovel pass to Beasley, slam dunk. That’s the 7th assist for Wade, he’s doing a fantastic job getting good shots for his teammates.
Beasley and Amir battling inside, but called for the offensive foul, Beasley that is. Johnson comes back down the other end, looks for the pass, gets it inside, right hook, miss ….. Beasley hits the offensive glass, muscles up through Amir Johnson and draws the foul.
Chalmers boxing out inside, trying to keep Amir off the glass, no use, Miami looks for an over the back, not given.
Beasley spinning and finishing left. Nice move. Beasley heating up. Next possession, Beasley on the elbow, over to Wade, Wade looking to drive, stops pulls up for the jumper, miss, rebound tapped by Blount, Beasley fouled on the loose ball. Timeout. Great job by Beasley.
Cook with a nice cut to the basket, gets the pass and layup.
Chalmers steps out, Banks back in. Stuckey also checks back in.
Close game … 58-55 Miami.
Beasley takes Maxiell off the dribble with a left hesitation dribble, another bucket.
Nice pass by a unnamed Piston to Maxiell for the open dunk inside. Under three minutes to play in the third, timeout, Miami up 1. The Pistons were up by 12 at one time, Miami’s high was 7 in the opening minutes.
Beasley goes for the rebound, doesn’t get it, off Stuckey’s foot. 12 points in the quarter for Beasley. Leftys, right handed shots, drives, offensive boards, dunks. Showing a lot.
The announcers discussing Stuckey at the point again and his intent on holding onto the ball, and at times over dribbling and looking for his shot too often. Not servicing guys like Rip Hamilton well enough. They feel that’s the one knock on him.
Beasley misses a three, Rip running the other way, ahead to Stuckey, to Maxiell for the easy, foul Beasley. Not much contact but it avoids a basket anyway so it’s all good from Miami’s perspective. Maxiell ties it, and now puts Detroit up 1. Final minute.
Cook with a step back J, missing. Announcers think he’s lost. Rebound Prince, to Stuckey, quick push Stuckey, to Rip Hamilton, three pointer, he has 12 points on 5-8 shooting. Tayshaun has 8 rebounds tonight.
The trio of Stuckey-Hamilton-Herrmann (hasn’t played since) have 35 of Detroit’s 64 points. Sheed, Prince and Maxiell add another 18 points.
Miami’s scoring isn’t as versatile. Beasley leads the squad with 16 points, Wade has 11, and that good burst from Blount gives them another double digit scorer with 12. Their next leading scorer? Marion. Still on those 6 points from the first five minutes of the game. Cook is next with 5 points on 2-7 shooting. Miami’s offense lacks weapons … Marion has to be a good go-to scorer for Miami to make the playoffs this season.
Fourth Quarter
Cook squirrels his way into the lane, swatted by Maxiell. Announcers feel the Heat’s guards are doing a poor job now and have no organization.
Magloire into the game and gets a rebound. Padgett is also in the game, posts up, hook shot, miss, offensive rebound Magloire, fouled inside.
Miami waste the shot clock again with Banks at the point, kicked out to Banks to create a last second shot, doesn’t get it off. Second time he’s failed to get a shot off in time. Announcers say they’re not getting into their offense quickly enough, always below the 15 second mark, poor. Banks’ offensive skills as a point have held him back his entire career …. big season for him.
Diawara nails a three. Must be one of those nights where he can shoot. Won’t last long.
Another shot clock violation for Miami
8 minutes to play. Stuckey scoring again, commentators again point out his individualistic nature.
Quinn just gets off the shot before the clock expires. Stuckey turns it over on the other end, 21st turnover costing 21 points, but only 6 turnover so far in the second half which is better. Cook nails a long three to tie the game.
6 minutes to play
Lot of bench players out there now ….. big advantage for Detroit.
Maxiell hitting the 19 footer on the right wing. Padgett answers right back.
Afflalo to Stuckey, dribbling up top, drives, finds McDyess on the baseline from 15, hits it. Diawara answers with another jumper.
Stuckey takes the shot looking for his 19th point, miss, defensive rebound Miami, fastbreak, Quinn finding Padgett on the break, slam dunk. Timeout Michael Curry.
Stuckey gets another two at the line. Omar Bartlett subbed in, and is fouled straight away.
Timeout with two and a half to play, Detroit will be heading to line afterwards and have a chance to tie the game.
Quinn with a nice move inside, reverse layup up and it’s out, offensive rebound Padgett, fouled. He’s 3-4 for 6 points. Makes the first FT, and hits the second. Padgett is 6-11 240lbs with good passing skills and a solid high post player.
Stuckey gets the ball, finds McDyess, jumper on the wing, he has 8 all in the fourth, ties the game at 82-82.
Quinn drives, to Bartlett, on the wing, three pointer, missing.
Stuckey trying to do it all himself on the other end, Chalmers picks his pocket, he races ahead, finds Padgett on the four-on-one break for the slam dunk. Timeout Michael Curry. Miami up two.
The crowd is chanting defense
High pick and roll with Stuckey+McDyess coming? …. Stuckey brings it back, no over to Afflalo who will work on Cook, they help of McDyess, McDyess gets it shoots it, misses it, defensive rebound.
On the other end, Bartlett steps out of bounds when receiving the pass on the wing. Turnover.
Stuckey high point left side, over to Afflalo on the wing, out to Herrmann, long J, miss, defensive rebound Miami. Chalmers fouled and he’ll go to the line. Chalmers is an excellent FT shooter. Miami lead by 2 with 15 seconds to play. Mario misses the first, makes the second. Heat up three. Timeout Michael Curry to set up a play.
Crowd getting pumped up with some loud chants
Herrmann up top, over to Stuckey, Rodney drives, muscles by Chalmers, and shoots from behind the backboard, with a looping shot over the backboard, and it’s good. Refs say it was from the side of the backboard rather than directly behind the backboard so it’s all good.
Miami to inbound …. foul, two FTs, one of two. Timeout Detroit.
Detroit can go for the win or the tie here
Stuckey gets the down screen, is open, hits the open 16 footer. Tie game.
2.1 seconds … we’re going to overtime
Overtime.
Yeah I don’t care enough to tune in for the overtime. Detroit will win this, they should have won this game several times already … they’re bench is far superior to Miami’s, this shouldn’t be a contest. Stuckey just fouled out with about four minutes to play, he had 23 points on 8-15 shooting. Detroit still have more about them. A minute later the announcers are criticizing Miami’s ability to get into their offense – it would help if they had a scorer on the floor.
Well done to both sides.
Edit: Pistons did end up winning the game, by four.
Herrmann scored only 1 point in his final 18 minutes after scoring 11 in the first 7.
David Padgett did himself the world of good with 11 and 6 in 17 minutes.
Chalmers got the most minutes out of the guards but only because Quinn had a slight knock, and the offense ran the smoothest when Quinn was in the game. Chalmers contributed in more areas though. Marcus Banks looked like the third string. So that’s how the point guards have started for Miami as they battle for minutes.
Magloire didn’t do much in his minutes. If I was Miami I’d be cutting him, but since he’s a vet with a rep he’s likely safe. Basden seemed to be pressing at times, and with poor end results, so that was disappointing. Bartlett didn’t do a whole pile either.
Daequeen Cook had a poor game but he does have some scoring abilities which give you pause … needs better judgement though.
As for the Pistons it’s everything you’d expect from them. Stuckey of course was the star of the show.
Golden State – New Orleans
Brandon Wright didn’t play the rest of the way. Instead Anthony Randolph earned 14 second half minutes. He finished with 6 and 6, albeit with 4 turnovers. Bellinelli led the side with 14 points.
Chris Paul and David West came out in the second half on fire and put ahead NO in control of the game. Paul had 13 on 6-7 shooting, while West went for 19 on 8-9 shooting.
New Orleans played 7 bench players who all scored between 6-14 points so that’s nice. Mike James led the way with 14 and 5. Hilton Armstong tagged on 12 of his own.
Tyson finished on 5 minutes, sitting as a precautionary measure after picking up a knock.
I didn’t watch the first half. I considered this game a foregone conclusion and by a wide margin. Well at halftime I decided to check the score and Spain were within shooting distance, so I decided to tune in. I still expect team USA to win and win comfortably.
Halftime
Team USA leads 69-61 at the half. Reading a short recap of the first half, appearantly Wade has been the start of the show scoring 13 points in the second quarter to spark the US. James picked up two early fouls and started a bit out of control, making moves too fast for his own good. Shortly after LeBron drew two, Kobe picked up his second. Then Dwight picked up a flagrant on Pau Gasol, which was described as Gasol being “horse-collared”. The crowd has appearantly started to support the underdog Spanish team. Reports of Chris Bosh getting worked over in the post again, by both Gasol brothers.
Play off the half with a Rudy Fernandez crossover dribble display leading to a step back three in Wade’s face.
Second Half
Combative start to the second half. Two and a half minutes in, USA leads 73-65 off of a pair of Dwight Howard misses at the line leading to the tip and foul on offensive rebound by Carmelo Anthony
Having a look at the box score here …. Dwyane Wade leads the US with 21 points. Chris Paul has 10, there are several players between 5-8 points.
Navarro looking to Kidd off the bounce, slides into the middle of the lane, hits the floater, the score is 75-71, timeout
Even rebounding so far with Spain having a slight 18-17 edge. Turnovers are fairly even also, the US with 10 and Spain with 11. Assists also even at 10-9 Spain. The US has taken 45 shots, making 28, shooting8-17 from three and 17-24 at the line. Meanwhile Spain have hit 26 of 44 shots, are 5-10 from three, and 18-21 at the line.
Rubio looks very relaxed on the ball, finds his big man for the 15 footer, Marc Gasol swatted by Carmelo, breakaway, layup
Even scoring burden for Spain who have four players between 10-13 points – Rudy, Pau, Reyes, Navarro – Jiminez adding 9 points. A few others have scored but nobody beyond 6 points.
Loose ball, falls to Spain, quick pass inside, Kobe from the weakside swats it out of bounds
Very smart pass by Rodriguez over the top to Gasol, after he couldn’t get a safe baseline inbounds pass in, Marc with the short shot, three Americans go up for the block, foul, he hits one of two.
Score is 81-76 USA
Paul brings it up, over to Wade, Spain are in a zone, to Kobe, back to Wade, three pointer on the way, miss. Good defense, oh they didn’t secure the rebound, offensive board, pass to the baseline to LeBron, he hits the cutting Bosh, foul inside, Bosh makes both.
LeBron James is very vocal right now. You can hear him talking to just about everyone on his team, handing out instructions, on every possession. Those mics must be close to the court.
Spain miss the shot, LeBron rebounds, he has open space in front of him to push, he looks immediately moves into a full sprint, heads into the open court, there’s still space in front, he continues in, makes it to the FT line, now Spain converge, leave him tied up in mid air with nowhere to go, he gets rid of it.
Spain blow another layup, USA push it, Wade with the left corner J, hits it
Turnover Spain, bad spell here for them. They’re losing their grasp on the game. US fails to punish them for it.
Inside to Marc Gasol, he backs his way inside, spins middle, hits the shot and the foul. Nope, no continuation, foul before the shot. Sideline ball. Spain down 10. In to Navarro, he doesn’t even look to pass, runs off a high screen and roll top of the key, comes down the right hand side of the lane, muscles up a layup, hits it.
Deron with a nice midrange J on the other end, Marc Gasol tries to drive, stolen by Williams, fastbreak, he takes it to the rim, Navarro gets in the way and draws the charge. Bad call against Deron, turnover.
Lob pass from Navarro to Gasol, slam dunk, 8 point game, 1 minute to play in the third
Paul to Melo, three pointer left wing, good
Navarro drives single minded again, comes up with another floater, this one falls short
US holds it for the final shot, Wade explodes into the lane, aw, falls over, tunover
Navarro brings it up, doesn’t look to pass, glances at the clock, he’s on the right winig, has 2-3 seconds, puts on the gas, goes left on Deron Williams, beats him to the elbow, rises up with the floater, hits it. 9 point game.
Fourth Quarter
Navarro into the lane again, miss
Navarro into the lane again, miss, tap by Pau Gasol, good
USA leads 91-84 with 9 minutes to play
Sideline in, US ball, Rudy Fernandez re-enters the fray, in to Deron Williams, he pulls it back out, runs the high screen and roll, nothing going over to Kobe, Kobe holds it, he wants an iso, does nothing for several seconds, then puts it on the floor and settles for a contested 22 footer which comes up short. Rebound Rudy, he brings it up, high screen and roll left wing, he moves left, Gasol rolls down the middle to the rim, gets some separation from Bosh, lob pass to Gasol, slam dunk.
Fastbreak Spain off another US miss, ahead to the left wing, Rudy from three, nails it
Timeout
Rudy Fernandez has provided the spark. Spain believe they can win this. Two point game. Their bench is going crazy. Their starters doing fist pumps. We have a game on our hands here.
8 minutes to play
Wade overdribbles, picks up his driblle, nowhere to go, gets rid of it, poor possession, over to Kobe right wing, he drives, double pumps in mid air as he takes a running 14 footer falling to the side, hits it. That was a difficult shot. Kobe bails out a very poor possession.
USA doing everything on the perimeter and starting to go 1-on-1 now.
Spain badly choose a 20 footer, miss, rebound, fastbreak, USA coming the other way, out to Deron left wing, dagger three pointer on the way, it’s good. 5 point swing. Bad shot. Keep taking high percentage looks. No need for a contested 20 footer over the top.
Rudy Fernandez into the lane, slices between two defenders, misses the layups, defensive rebound, slapped away by Rudy, it’s falling out of bounds, Rudy saves it to LeBron, Bron races the other way, up ahead and inside to Dwight Howard, slam dunk.
Rudy left corner, misses the three, offensive rebound, back to Rudy, tries again, hits it.
Kobe Bryant left wide open in the right corner as his Spaniard fell over trying to make the defensive rotation out, hits the three. Big shot. USA have control of the game again.
Offensive rebound Pau Gasol, hard power driblle inside, layup, misses it
LeBron drives from the right wing, goes baseline, flies through the air, forces up the layup over Pau, misses, offensive rebound, muscles up the shot again, hits it.
Rudy Fernandez with the exclamation, he drives down the right on the screen and roll, Dwight switches over, Rudy sees the rim, takes him, he flies down the wing, jumps up, Dwight goes with him, Rudy stuffs it in his face and gets the foul. Nice play.
Rubio with the steal brings it up, telegraphs the lob pass, knocked out of bounds. No benefit from 2-on-1 fastbreak. Baseline inbounds, another bad lob pass, turnover.
Team USA dump it inside to Dwight, he’s fouled. This is good for Spain, you want Dwight on the FT line right now. He’s only 1-4 from the line tonight, he front rims the first one, makes the second
USA lead 103-95 with four plus minutes to play
Basline screen for Rudy to run off of, he pops out to three, gets teh pass, Wade stays with him, drives left, step back fadeaway three, tough shot, misses, offensive rebound Pau Gasol, he’s fouled inside. Gasol needs to make two here.
Howard checks out, Bosh back in. This must be over the FTs.
Gasol makes the first, makes the second. 7 point game, 4 minutes to play.
Spain in a zone
Chris Paul open on the right wing, misses the three, defensive rebound
Bosh falls over, Gasol 15 footer left wing, makes it. 5 point game, 3:25 to play.
104-99 USA
Paul brings it up, over to Wade, to Kobe, to Wade, he drives inside, out to Kobe three feet behind the three point line, jab step right, pulls the trigger, gets fouled on the shot, makes the shot. Rudy Fernandez has fouled out, Spain’s most effective scorer in the fourth is out for the finish. This is a huge loss for Spain. Kobe with ice in his veins nails the FT. USA back up 9 points after the four point play.
Spain run that baseline action for Navarro, he gets it 17 feet out, dribbles in, floater on the way, hits it.
Wade falls over, travels, not called, passes out, three pointer, miss
Navarro cuts down the left wing, defense collapses, he spots Jiminez in the right corner, three pointer, good
Four point game
LeBron penetrates from the right wing, he moves inside, finds Wade spotting up from three, Wade knocks it down.
Timeout
USA lead 111-104
Wade leads the US with 27 points on 9-12 shooting from the field. Kobe has 16, Bron 14, Melo 13, Paul 10. Bosh and Howard have 8 apiece, Deron has 7, Prince with 6 and Kidd with 2 points.
Navarro fouled on the drive, he makes the first, second rims out, Spain not active enough on the boards, US spill it, Rubio saves it off Paul, Spanish sideline in.
US lead 111-105
Jiminez misses the three pointer, big miss, crucial miss
Spain have outrebounded the US 36-29 tonight
Kobe Bryant knifes into the lane, floater ala Navarro, nails it
Pau Gasol fouls in the backcourt
Paul brings it up, 55 seconds to go, backcourt trap, pass ahead, back to Paul, he’s fouled by Navarro
USA leads 113-105, Paul hits two, this is over
Kobe fouled, ices the game with more FTs, he finishes with 20 points
Spain can be prowd of themselves. They put in a great effort tonight. They played together and played intelligently.
Team USA rightfully takes gold. They made this closer than it needed to be but well done for finishing the job this time.
Yao catches it on the left block, spins baseline, slam dunk. Too easy. Lovely smooth from the big fella. Pau is defending Yao, gotta play him more physical than that, way too easy.
Jorge Garbajosa enters the fray to steady the ship. #10 for Spain has looked shaky, a little too excited. Nice baseline drive and stuff by Pau Gasol showing he has that stuff too. Here comes Marc Gasol, it’ll be very interesting to see how he does with Yao.
Bad looping pass by Gasol, China’s lax defense doesn’t make anything of it, Rudy drains a three. Steal Rudy Fernandez, the pass was over to the right wing, the Chinese wing turned his back to the Rudy and didn’t notice him cheat over the other side, Rudy just picked the ball out of his hands, breakaway, slam dunk.
Yao is shouting a lot out there on the court. He’s hyped. He’s a madman. He’s moving fantastically, that 60-70% is hard to believe so far.
Rudy gets a high screen and roll, pops for the three off the bounce, misses. Looked a little rushed on his release. Nice drive by Fernandez down the middle, pass in traffic to Gasol, layup and the foul. Good play Rudy.
Great move by Wang Zhi Zhi knifing his way through the Spanish boddies and finishing with a finger roll.
Calderon just smacked his head pretty hard while falling. He’s alright, checking for blood, it’s in his head he’s fine.
Ricky Rubio is in the game. His ballhandling is a little sloppy, lot of high dribbles, pressure defense is bothering him a bit too. Mac Gasol steamrolls his way through the middle, charge, turnover. Wang Zhi Zhi has a three rim out, 20 seconds to play, China hold for the final shot, #4 makes a horrific play, gets caught in the trapping screen and roll, picks up his dribble 28 feet from the rim near the right hand sideline, oh my, now he’s pressured, has no passes, 5 seconds, forces it back to a teammate 6 feet behind the line, picked off by Rubio, fastbreak, nothing comes of it, good recovery by #4 to stop the open layup. Horrific play from the Chinese guard #4.
End of One
China lead 20-18 over Spain.
Marc Gasol picks up a sloppy foul showing on the screen and roll.
Nice drive and bounce pass in the lane by Garbajosa to Gasol, fouled on the layup attempt. Good work by Gasol, he went inside of the screen and roll, established inside position, Calderon reversed the ball, entry pass to the post, easy shot in the paint by Gasol. Nice play by the big fella. Calderon has taken more control of this game over the past two minutes. Okay now he throws it right out of bounds, mixed passing, more bad than good from Gasol.
#5 for China with a few nice plays. He tough drive and floater over Calderon, then he picked Calderon’s pocket, next possession he used the screen and roll well with Yao establishing him 5 feet from the rim, Yao kick it out, #5 got it back and drained a three.
Yao’s passing is slicing apart the overzealous Spanish defense. If China can make open shots they’ll win this because they’re getting a lot of looks right now.
Lovely pass down low to Yao, nice finish inside, he took up great position right in front of the rim.
Ricky Rubio rolls his way down the lane, loses his way and his dribble, picks it back up and gets it to Pau, dunk
Yao muscles it up through Marc Gasol and draws a foul on the Spaniard. Tough play from Yao, he now has 8 points as he bags both FTs.
China playing a matchup zone right now. Spain doing a poor job of attacking it, they got an open shot but it didn’t look like the shooter they wanted. Marc Gasol didn’t step into the open space in the middle for some time either, slow response from him.
China showing some full court pressure, trapping the ballhandler. Spain get it up and into their set. Lovely baseline cut by Rudy Fernandez, alley oop, he misses the slam.
China up 39-30
Spain responding with backcourt pressure of their own, immediately create a turnover, over to Rudy on the right wing, he beats his man easily, gets into the paint and finishes.
Rubio is getting some good run here
Yi with an aggressive move down on the block, dunks it at the shot clock buzzer, nice play. Three pointer #6, China up 11 points. Lovely pass by Rubio to the cutting Reyes for the layup.
Rubio jumps out as China’s guard looks to waste the clock, he jumps by Rubio easily, makes a mess of it later though, picks up his dribble, swings the ball, turnover comes next.
Yao blew the layup, Pau throws it forward, Rudy fouled one the break. He’s constantly looking to attack and score. Four point swing plus possession for Spain. Rudy has it up top, beats his man, layup, blocked, nice drive, better recovery, fastbreak China, #5 with a breakaway, layup … ooh nasty fall by the trailing Spanish defender, he got tangled up as #5 skied, landed on his head as he fell, #5 made the layup, no foul from either. He (Jiminez) was trailing the play, looked odd.
Halftime as Yi snatches the rebound out of the air, he looks athletic and angry out there
China are good value for their 46-37 lead. Spain look vulnerable, they don’t have enough scorers on the court, they’re not establishing Pau for some reason and it’s leaving them very reliant on their guards for offense. Both teams have been sloppy with the ball. China are playing with great intensity and passion which Spain simply aren’t matching.
Second Half
Pau Gasol goes inside, turnaround J in the middle of the paint, miss. Nice move.
#6 for China is having himself a nice game. He’s a thorn in Spain’s side. Very aggressive and actively looking to create something for his team.
Spain look rattled. They’re not getting into their offense here early. Rudy Fernandez just took a three that was about 5 feet behind the arc. Now he forces the drive on a break that never existed, jumps in midair, manages to get rid of it, gets it back, drives head first into the paint again, bad pass turnover as he loops over the top to no-one.
China have pushed their lead up to 15.
Rudy makes another bad lob pass in traffic, Gasol manages to hang onto it, gets fouled. Spain are nervous, they need a few easy baskets to get their act back on track. Calderon answers the bell with a driving layup. Next possession, another high screen and roll, Calderon takes the 17 footer, clang, long rebound fumbled out, Spain drop it into their backcourt, over and back called, bad call they never had control of the ball.
Yao bullies his way inside and draws the foul off the drive.
Rudy forces the drive again, forces the lob pass again, turnover again, this time he steals it back for his team making quick amends for his mis-deeds
Ricky Rubio over-committs looking for the steal, his man beats him easily, good recovery by Rubio to steal the lazy pass to the wing off the penetration
Yao pushes Gasol off balance as he tries to maneouver for a better shot, turnover
Great anticipation from Rubio to steal in behind Yao on the block and pick his pocket. Unfortuantely he turns it right back over with a charge call against him.
China lead 55-42 as Wang Zhi Zhi knocks down a tough step back fallaway J from 17 feet on the right wing, Gasol responds with a simple close shot, Zhi Zhi bags another long J. He’s starting to warm up.
Gasol flips a shot over his head that luckily goes into the bucket
Another Spanish turnover. They’re wasting chances, they’ve had several shots to bring this within single digits and keep throwing them away. Wany Zhi Zhi pounding the offensive glass, getting the follow up and the foul
End of Three
China lead 64-57 three minutes into the fourth
Yao looks lean and mean, this 60-70% looks off from his body.
Rudy gets his lob pass off the drive to Gasol to go, alley oop dunk
Rubio is harrassing number 5, great help defense down to Yao to stop the post entry pass after #5 picked up his dribble, creates the turnover as Yao is forced to tap it out of bounds hopelessly
Rudy Fernandez drives by his man, drives by Yao, finishes the layup over Yao. Nice play.
Rudy comes from the weakside and blocks the shot but they give the foul for something else, not sure what
Rubio has the 12 footer, passes it up, lazy pass intercepted, China score on the other end, quick outlet to Rudy, he breaks into the paint and scores over Yao again and gains the foul call. Great play by Rudy. Calderon comes back in for Rubio. Rubio has played better tonight, looks interesting defensively despite some bad man-to-man D, he can create some havoc with his anticipation and quick reactions.
Fastbreak to Spain, Rudy gives it up, missed layup, Rudy taps it in.
China lead 68-67, Spain have pulled all the way back. There’s under four to play, Wang Zhi Zhi nails another pull up jumper under duress against the buzzer. Intentional foul by Rudy to stop the fastbreak, Rudy looks knackered, he gets a breather.
Three minutes to play, China by three and have the ball
Navarro drives, is scared off by the looming figure of Yao Ming, throws a bad pass out of bounds off a Chinese player. Navarro makes amends with a three pointer right out fo the timeout, tie game, two minutes to play.
China’s #5 takes an ill advised contested jumper out of the corner, miss
Navarro misses the runner, rebound tracked down by Wang Zhi Zhi, nice screen and roll action, ball swung to the opposite side, Wang Zhi Zhi open in the corner, hits the three. Huge shot, he’s been making huge shots all night, great game for himself. Yi looks to check back in.
Timeout
Spain ball. They’re down two with a little over a minute to play. Quick three pointer by Navarro within 6 seconds, miss, defensive rebound China.
China staying away from Yao, #5 bricks his wide open floater badly. China’s guards too wild.
Inside to Marc Gasol, he works down low on Yao, falls over, Yao goes for the block, Gasol just heaves it up there, it goes in anyway, tie game.
19.7 seconds to play
Timeout China
They’re going to take it full court. Yao is in the backcourt to make sure they can get the pass inbounds, they change their minds and take it from center court, now Yao moves away. Inbounds, #5 dribbling, Rubio harrassing him, he reaches in, fouls, non-shooting foul.
Inbounds again, 12.4 seconds to play, Rubio harrasses #5 again and forces the ball out of bounds of #5’s leg. Great D by Rubio. Big chance he took there, a better player would have punished him for it. Spain’s ball. Timeout
6.5 seconds to work with, Rubio gets it, he drives right through the middle of the court, has a step, into the lane, takes the floater, off the rim
Overtime
China will be looking at themselves in the mirror tonight for throwing this game away. There’s no reason this should be an overtime right now. China look ragged, Spain are getting stronger, I’d be surprised if China hangs on.
Rudy throws another ridiculous lob pass. Turnover
Yao is down on the block, fallaway, front iron
Yao low block, jump hook left handed, miss
Rudy Fernandez with a nice baseline cut, layup as he collects the nice pass
Yao with the follow slam. China down 2 with three minutes to play.
Offensive rebound tapped out by Rudy, three by Garbo, miss, offensive rebound kept alive by Rudy, Spain get it, Rubio resets the offense, they go to Gasol, left post, drives left, short hook and the foul. Yao fouls out.
Okay that’s China done, this is over.
Rudy steals the inbounds pass, Spain let the clock tick away
This is over. Spain win. China deserved this but their perimeter players threw it away.
Only have time to watch this first half here. Pity.
Argentina are my favourite international team. I love watching Manu Ginobili’s brilliance and their great all round teamwork. They play with such intelligence and beauty. Scola and Oberto provide good toughness and grit in the paint. Prigioni is a very smooth point, then Nocioni on the wings. Fantastic. Love it.
The biggest factor for Argentina is Manu’s fitness, is he healthy enough to play at his highest possible level?
Steal Nocioni, slam dunk
Scola showing off a fancy dribble baseline, spin middle, running one hander in the lane, miss, tapped back in by Oberto. Scola with another lovely spin move, this time going baseline beneath the rim and rising up on the other side, unfortunately the help defender blocked his shot.
Low scoring start, tied at 6-6 2/3rds of the way through the first quarter
Delfino subs in for Manu. Hits a nice three pointer that brings a few oohs and ahhs from the crowd. Delfino is an excellent 6th man here in International ball.
Argentina have gotten a lot of good shots here in the first quarter, they’re just missing them
End of One
Lithuania lead 14-11, not much to say about the first quarter except that it’s over and hopefully the rest of the game will bring some offense to the table
I like the way Gonzales is knocking people around inside. Physical player. Sort of like Danny Fortson.
Ginobili on a breakaway, plain dunk. The crowd got juiced up for that one and were expecting a bit more. He didn’t try anything … health … health?
Argentina take the lead 17-16 as we near the midway point of the second quarter, as I say that Kaukenas nails a wide open three to take the lead back
Fastbreak Lithuania, oh nice off balance floating runner by Saras
Delfino bags another long three. He has looked Argentina’s most dangerous offensive player tonight.
Scola almost broke the backboard with that hook shot. Ugly, damn he was a good two feet off the rim too, it bounced so hard off the board that Oberto couldn’t even grab it, it almost hit Frabicio in the face.
Delfino dribbles right, step back fallaway, nice
Smooth turnaround J out of the low post by Lavrinovic
Halftime
Very uneven half of play. Neither side hitting full gear, a grind it out type of game so far. Argentina look the superior side overall but Lithunia are sharper tonight. Lithuania lead 34-30, still anyone’s game.
Marc Gasol wins the tip, quick bucket off the tip from Spain. Nice start. Hmm … Pau Gasol isn’t on the court, he’s coming off the bench. Jiminez and Reyes are the starting forwards.
Calderon knifes down the lane for a layup. Offensive rebound Gasol, out to Calderon, three pointer from the right wing good. Greece matching Spain basket for basket so far.
Marc Gasol showing nice footwork in the post, but kicks it out instead of taking the short shot he had. Someone for Greece is constantly shouting three seconds whenever Gasol gets near the paint.
Rudy Fernandez throws in a three. Himself and Calderon have all 10 Spanish points.
Vasilopoulos with the nice ball fake, defender bites on the faked pass, open three, good.
Pau gets a rising ovation as he enters the game. He didn’t last too long on the sidelines. Why bring him off the bench? He gets the first available rebound.
Rudy Fernandez bringing the ball up, early high screen and roll with Gasol, lovely pass over the top to Gasol, Gasol a little unsure of his placing on the court, gathers himself, turns his back into his man, spins middle, ugly hook shot from 7 feet in the middle of the lane off the backboard missing
Schortsanitis enters the game, immediate screen and roll, doesn’t get the pass but establishes low position inside, now recieves the ball, muscles his way to the rim and the FT line. I love this guy. Now being used as the high post passer, later in the possession they run another screen and roll, he gets low position again, lob pass, Spanish defender gets over the top and deflects it away. Turnover. Offensive rebound by the big man, bullies his way over a Spaniard, charging, turnover.
Pau Gasol gets after the offensive glass, gets the rebound, the layup and the foul. Nice work Pau.
Schortsanitis gets a straight post up inside this time, doubled on the bounce, Spain smack it away, turnover. Next possession, nice penetration and hooked around the back pass by Papaloukas to Baby Shaq for the layup, he gets fouled first, will shoot two.
Pau takes the fadeaway out of the low post, misses, offensive rebound and putback. Spain lead 20-16
End of One
Navarro now in the game, struggling a bit defensively but not attacked so no matter. Looks shaky on that first possession though.
Lovely bounce pass through traffic down the middle of the lane and between four Spaniards by Papaloukas on the screen and roll, his teammate can’t finish though
Fernandez taking the ball up instead of Navarro as Calderon is shadowed full court.
Both teams have made 8 shots, only difference is Spain have taken 10 more shots, they’ve gotten 25 shots to 15. Some of those shots have been the difference in turnovers (2), offensive rebounds (4) and FTs (8).
Diamantidis with an acrobatic baseline drive and steal.
Nice steal by Spanoulis, oh no, he loses his footing and falls over before he can take his wide open layup, falls out of bounds. Timeout. Game tied at 22. Pau Gasol had a nice bucket off the right block, turning middle for a hook shot on Spain’s last bucket. Marc Gasol re-enters the game for his brother. Almost stripped but the refs call a reaching foul on Greece, and a tech on Navarro who was levelled off the ball. Inbounds to Navarro, drives from the right wing into the middle, bounce pass in traffic, Marc Gasol can’t handle it.
Nice trap by Marc Gasol at midcourt, high pass out of it stolen by Rudy, fastbreak dunk Fernandez
Spain are very concerned about Greece’s three point shooting. They’re so close they’re consistently giving up dribble penetration, with one step the Greek attacked can get by his man. Greece need to show more ambition in getting to the rim
Oh that’s a highlight, long missed jumper, Rudy slices through the lane, glides through the air, catches it in mid air, gathers himself, reverse layup
Diamantidis throws the ball out of bounds, then stands and shouts at his teammate for not getting open in the corner leaving him no option but to throw it out of bounds.
Ricky Rubio has entered the fray. Spain lead 34-26 off his basket, a nice driving layup off the glass.
Marc Gasol blocks Schortsantsis inside, shot clock violation.
Rubio in the open court, flies through the middle, lefty layup from the opposite side of the paint, misses.
Spain have played all 12 players here in the first half and each guy has gotten at least four minutes. Too many players, too much disruption. Only four players have played double digit minutes – Calderon, Rudy, Jiminez, Marc Gasol
Halftime – Spain lead 35-28
Spanoulis and Diamantidis have combined for 17 of Greece’s 28 points with nobody else on the squad having more than one field goal. Greece have been sloppy with 10 giveaways in the first half and losing the boards 23-20 resulting in 13 more shot attempts for Spain. Spain on the other boast a very balanced attack, Rudy Fernandez leads with 9 points but after him the next largest scorer has 5, on the other hand 9 of their 12 players have scored. Only three players behind Rudy Fernandez have taken more than two shots – Gasol (2-6), Gasol (2-5), Calderon (2-5). Spain are shooting a woeful 37% [14-38] from the field and only 27% (3-11) from downtown.
Second Half
Pau Gasol starts the second half, immediate post up on the left block, backs his man down, turnaround shot shot, hits it. Next possession, drives left towards the baseline, spins back right for the hook shot, fouled before the shot. Nice move.
Navarro has started the second too as he bags a three. Fakes the post entry pass, drvies inside from the right wing, floater in the lane, good.
Calderon with a lovely full court pass, footing wasn’t quite right and got caught under the basket after the catch, kicks it back out, Navarro times the pass beautifully to the trailing Calderon on the right wing, three pointer on the way, good. Next possession, Calderon beats his man easily from the top of the arc to the rim, layup and the foul.
Timeout – Spain pulling ahead here, up 48-31, quick run.
Hey hey, Garbajosa makes a nice 17 footer.
Bourousis playing physical defense with Gasol, lot of bumping
Greece making a few baskets to cut the lead down from 19 to 13. They’re still well within shooting range. Rudy Fernandez takes it on himself, gets to the rim and draws the foul, hits the two freebies.
Greece have gone scoreless here for a minute or two after cutting the lead to 12. Wasting their opportunities.
Spain push their lead back up to 18, wait 16 as Greece earn a trip to the line, as the third quarter ends
Fourth Quarter – Spain in control and have almost wrapped this game up. Greece look weak.
…. Both teams just trading baskets
Rudy Fernandez has had a couple of excellent defensive sequences here in the fourth quarter. He had a great block on one possession and on another he denied dribble penetration, then harrassed his man further away from the hoop, didn’t bite on the pump fakes, closed in, forced his man into a tough off balance jump shot that missed badly.
Under 5 to play now with Spain up 17. They’ve gone to a second unit type of lineup.
Okay I’m calling it, victory Spain.
Disappointing game. Greece didn’t show up and Spain was fiddling around with their lineup so often that it ruined the rhythm of the match.
Blatche iso on the right wing. Drives, goes behind his back, spins into the post, now he’s confused, gets rid of the ball. Story of his career right there. The minute he ended up on the low post he looked clueless, he was very happy with the ball on the perimeter. Blatche moves back out to the corner, gets the pass, left open, 22 footer missed.
Another post up for Blatche inside, on the right block again, travel. Turnover. Nice behind the back pass on the fastbreak by Blatche.
Bayless has easily beaten his man to the rim four times in the first 5 minutes. He has a floater, a layup, a no call, and another play where he drew a foul. He’s very quick. When McGee switched onto him on the pick and roll Bayless settled for a jump shot instead of attacking the bigger player.
McGee is a lot bigger than I thought, a lot thicker, more muscle. Why is he reportedly getting pushed around by everyone he plays?
Nick Young gets his third isolation on the high post against Bayless. He has tried backing him down and turning into a jump shot all three times. The first one he effortlessly hit the 18 foot fadeaway. The second, he missed the shot but got a good look. The third he made an offensive foul dipping his shoulder.
Bayless drives into the open court, forces the transition, drive and kick, finds Kaponen on the perimeter, Kaponen resets. Interesting watching Bayless push the tempo of the rebound.
Blatche showing a hesitation dribble and pull back J from 22 feet at the top of the key.
Batum is very rangy. Very long, athletic, can jump, is quick. Looks an incredible athlete. Very active player. He’s all over the court getting his hands on passes, filling the lane on the fastbreak, rebounds. Just a little bit of everything.
Dee Brown has looked alright. He had a nice steal pressurizing Kaponen full court. He’s running their offense well but not standing out at all.
McGee has missed two long shots from 20 feet. He’s put the ball on the floor, drove and passed quickly from 20 feet. He had a nice short shot from about 7 feet on the left block, which he muscled up over a wing. Then he had a few short shots around the rim missed.
Chris Ellis is an undersized big man for the Blazers. He’s their center with Bernard Robinson playing power forward (former Bobcats 6-6 guard), They’re marshalling the paint. Ellis had two outstanding blocks were he smacked the ball in mid air about four feet higher than the release point. That was impressive. What’s not impressive, is Blatche and McGee not playing in the paint and not even trying to take advantage of these two.
Portland had no assists on their 18 points in the first quarter against 6 turnovers. Kaponen is running the point, Bayless is playing shooting guard. They’re still finding their rhythm.
Josh Davis had a nice low post turnaround J along the baseline and a step back J out of the mid post on the opposite wing from 19 feet, missing.
Bayless gets a high screen and roll to start the halfcourt offense, drives hard, draws the foul on the dribble. Another high screen and roll, hits the screener who popped out, doesn’t take it, forced to take it 4 seconds later against the clock.
Bayless playing nice defense on Johathon Wallace. Both are pressuring each other very well.
Washington lead 24-23. Washington have two assists, Blazers none.
Young settles for another long jumper off the dribble. This time a 23 footer left wing after he failed to get separation on his crossover and subsequent attempted drive. Not a good sign that he’s settling for so many jump shots.
Bayless breaks the backcourt trap, sprints into the open court, two Wizards trying to catch up with him, two Wizards back in the paint, Bayless bolts straight ahead, lefty layup finished. Nice play by Bayless.
Blatche with a nice up and under, fouled on the reverse layup. Nice move, bad defense. Couple of possessions later Blatche draws another foul on a hard drive baseline out of the midpost. Sideline ball, resets the offense, Blatche pops out to 25 feet right wing, catches the pass, he’s to hit the cutter, nobody moves, one dribble, 23 footer, miss. Settles again.
Blatche looks awkward out there. He’s a great athlete but his movements don’t look fluid. Lack of agility or balance. He’s just not comfortable changing his movements. He’s grand in a full sprint, or jumping, but not changing directions or changing quickly from a jogging run to a catch and pivot.
Blatche trying a 360 spin off the dribble for no reason, short shot, missed. Just slow down and take what the defense are giving you. Stop making your own life difficult. That was an open 13 footer, or a short shot over a smaller player if you took one small dribble inside and muscled it up.
Dee Brown gets an assist. He’s clearly Washington’s veteran presence on the floor. Only one communicating. Directing the traffic offensively. Pointing out the guys to pick up defensively and keeping his crew organized. Always coming over to give one his young teammates a hand back up after falling.
McGee misses another, now 1-8 from the field. Dee Brown and the rest of the Wizards perimeter players are passing the ball to their big men too far away from the hoop on the fastbreak. They’re passing it to Blatche/McGee 16 feet away from the rim with a packed paint in front of the them. Stop making the bigs put it on the floor.
Halftime
Bayless has 17 points at the half. Getting to the FT line a lot, shooting 9-11 from the line.
Washington are getting outrebounded 22-19. Remember Blatche and McGee against a 6-9 Ellis and 6-6 shooting guard in Robinson. Terrible.
McGee low post, left block, very poor move, just jumps and extends over the defender on the turnaround hook, hits it.McGee with a nice drive off the right baseline, shuffle pass across to Blatche, dunk. Blatche has 14 points now but they haven’t been an impressive 14.
Kaponen hits a long J off the high screen and roll. Very nice shot, very smooth.
Blatche throws a pass away, he had McGee wide open cutting to the hoop, simple pass over the top, threw it over McGee’s outstretched arms. Next possession, Blatche drives from the right wing, comes through the FT line, extends for the runner, miss. Bad shot. Out of control.
Now Dee Brown throws an awful lob pass. Wizards getting very sloppy. Kaponen leads it the other way, drives through the paint, hand off for the open layup, easy basket. Lovely play by Kaponen to create that. Blazers take back the lead. Dee Brown dribbles the ball off his leg on the other end.
28 turnovers now in this game. Very sloppy. 3 minutes to go in the third.
Wizards up 53-51 to start the fourth quarter
Blatche just led the break beautifully. Looks like he’s carrying a bit of extra weight though, looks slower than normal.
McGee with a nice shot off the left elbow. Then a fadeaway shot on the left wing from 20 feet.
Blatche step back J off the drive, three pointer out of the corner, hits it. Terrible shot to take. Wizards up 9 with 7 minutes to go.
Blatche tries to drive baseline, loses control of the ball, Nick Young gets it, dribbles back out, fadeaway three against the buzzer, brick
Kaponen with a nice floater a lovely three pointer on the break. 5-0 run Blazers
40 combined turnovers now as Bayless carries the ball
Kaponen with a lovely teardrop, oh rattles out. That was beautiful. Kaponen gets it back, clear out, long three pointer, nails it. Tie game.
McGee wild shot, off balance flung up against the backboard, brick, about three feet too high two feet too wide, that’s how far off he was from the rim
Kaponen another high screen and roll with 6 seconds to go, winds up for a three from three feet behind the arc, hits it again, this time from the right wing. Portland up one with two minutes to go.
Bayless draws the foul, hits one of two.
Robinson draws the foul on McGee, pump faking the shot blocker off his feet, misses the first, hits the second.
Nice pass by Blatche to McGuire for the easy bucket inside
Offensive rebound Bayless in traffic, one-on-one with Blatche, muscles up the layup from a standing jump and draws the foul. Great play.
McGee takes a three, hits a three on the left wing, brings the game within two, Bayless fouled on the inbounds pass. Good confidence from McGee in taking that shot, still think it’s a bad shot though.
Dwight and Javtokas exchange dunks to open the game
Kobe suffocated on his isolation play, forced into a poor fadeaway baseline jump shot. I think that was Kaukenas defending him there.
Siskauskas forced off the pick and roll by the early trap before the pick, turnover, fastbreak dunk. US off to an early 10-2. Timeout. Another turnover, steal by James, dunk again by James.
Kobe Bryant is harassing Sarunas Jasikevicius. I don’t their team very well but the announcers say he’s their only reliable ball handler so we’ll how that goes. Lovely defensive rebound and one handed outlet pass from Bryant, layup Kidd.
Javtokas fronting Dwight in the post, easy pass over the top, layup and a foul. That’s two fouls on their big man. Why would you front Dwight? US hardly ever posts him up. A fronting defender just gives them something to exploit.
Kleiza has come off the pine. You’d think they’d start him. Lavrinovcious was the player who started ahead of him. According to the announcers he’s one of the top players in Italy.
US up 19-5. Dwight has 9 of those points.
Bryant stopping Sarunas again, he’s stopping penetration and forcing him 5 feet behind the three point line, not giving him anything.
Kobe forced into a tough fallaway again. Great defense. Kobe made that one but that’s a shot you want him taking. A lot better than the US passing the ball around and getting open jumpers and layups. Kobe is 4-5 from the field now as he drains a three pointer. The defense on him has been really good, he’s just Kobe Bryant.
US lead 24-5 with three minutes to go in the first. This is a different picture than the Turkey game on the backboards, US leading 10-3 on the boards after so-so rebounding the game prior. The US should always lead the rebounding edge because their defense will be able to force bad shots leading to plenty of available rebounds.
Kleiza posts up Melo inside, gets good position 7 feet from the hoop on the edge of the paint, spins inside on the catch and forces the foul. Nice work.
Haha, oh my, that was a lucky shot by Paul. He took a 20 foot fallaway runner that was heavily contested and swishes the shot. The US was getting no joy in the halfcourt. Too concerned with making a pass instead of attacking there, again no real direction offensively. Similar complaint on the next possession. Watch this second unit closely. They have two point guards and Wade out there and while they’re extremely talented it doesn’t look like they have a plan of how to get a basket when they come down the floor. Lithuania has pulled the lead back a bit, 27-13
Nice drive and dish by Paul to Bosh for the flush. Early in the possession they looked a little dodgy again until Paul’s creativity off the dribble turned a bad possession into an easy dunk.
End of One
Very impressive showing by the US especially on the defensive end. They’ve been dominant. We’ll see if Lithuania can get back into this, they’ll likely need to slog away slowly cutting the lead down. Their zone defense has done a nice job enticing the US into some long jumpers.
That is the worst lane violation ever. Dwight Howard was halfway in the lane and Wade still took another bounce, shot the FT, and got the point. Let the players play I guess …..
Siskauskas hit a pair of threes. They’ve forced a few misses over the last minute. That defense needs to continue if they want to get back into this. As I say that Michael Redd blows by his man and gets Wade a layup. Lovely ball movement by Lithuania, the swing it from right to left to the left block to the cutter coming down the middle, layup Javtokas. Nice stuff.
Two turnovers. Deron led the first break and made a splendid pass back to LeBron as he hung in midair and made a wrap around pass backwards to James for the dunk. The second break he drew the foul in the open floor.
US doing an excellent job of running off made baskets. Dwight got excellent position inside there and was rewarded with a layup.
Timeout – US lead 45-27 – they’ve pushed their lead back up after Lithuania looked like they were starting to get into this game.
Siskauskas with the shot fake, the drive into the middle, the ball fake, the runner. Nice. Javtokas with the nice jump hook in the paint, the Spurs still hold his rights correct?
Chris Paul makes a poor pass to Bosh in traffic. Bosh was surrounded by 4 players but Paul had to make the pass because he jumped up behind the backboard with nowhere to go. Luckily Bosh made him look good and made the basket and the foul.
Halftime
US lead 56-39. They’ve been very impressive. Their pressure defense on the perimeter has been outstanding.
Lavrincious opens the half with a three pointer. He’s been quiet. Lithuania bag another long jumper. They’re continuing their 2-3 zone defensively from the second quarter. Kaukanus hits another jumper. Their defense has been doing better with the zone but the US is still scoring at a good pace, too good a pace for a comeback. Lithuania must buckle down and get more stops. Jasikevicous bags another three pointer, this lead is down to 9.
Kobe slows the ball down as he brings it up, he wants to make sure his team gets a good shot here, he drives inside, draws the foul. Sideline out. US reset their offense, Melo cuts baseline behind the zone, pass behind the hoop, layup and the foul. Melo hasn’t scored much tonight but he’s been their best go-to scorer over the last few years so let’s see if he steps up here.
Another high pick and roll, another missed defensive assignment on the role, another potential layup.
Turnover, Kidd to Anthony to James dunk. Haven’t seen many turnovers here in the second half from Lithuania. That’s been a difference maker. More shots for them (US have 9 more shots, they’re scoring 1.50 points per shot, so that’s pretty much the lead gone if shot attempts were equal) and less easy points for the US.
Another turnover, forced by Kobe, another dunk for LeBron. Great backcourt pressure from Kobe who caused the steal around halfcourt. Lead back up to 16.
Kaukenas brings it up, Kidd pressuring him, Kaukenas blows by the old man by mid-court, heads to the hoop, blocked by Howard, turnover, US running the other way.
Kidd’s man beats him stride for stride again, stops, pulls back 40 feet from the rim along the baseline, picks up his dribble, Kidd is all over him, steal, turnover, another bucket. That was a dumb play by the Lithuania player, he had Kidd but froze up. Another turnover, Kobe dunks it home. US now up 20 points, they’ve just about killed this game
Lithuania have four three pointers and two good pick and roll possessions here in the third quarter. The rest of their offensive play has been bad and it’s because of the US’ defensive pressure on the perimeter; they’re choking their ballhandlers, denying dribble penetration, clogging the passing lanes and the passer, deny inside position. Just great stuff all round on the defensive end from the US. They’re also winning the rebound battle 22-16.
Lot of dunks from the US here. Lithuania have gone to their youngsters off the bench, looks like they might be throwing in the towel. Let’s see if they bring their starters back. Wade scores 7 quick points as the US go up 25 points. End of the third quarter.
Garbage time now?
Lot of disorganized play from both sides. Lithuania are playing hard though. Oooh a windmill dunk from Wade on the alley oop from Paul off of the steal and pass from Wade. That was special. Find a clip of that dunk.
Lavrinovic rejects Tayshaun and corralls the ball. He’s been quiet. He was second team All-Euroleague last season.
This is over and it was a fun game
Great performance by the US.
The commentators were correct about Lithuania’s lack of ballhandling, that caused them problems all game. The US did an excellent job of exploiting this weakness.
Missed the start of the game. We’re tuning in halfway through the second with the US leading 37-34.
LeBron James playing tonight. He just hit a midrange J off the dribble. Turnover Turkey, Deron leads the break, pass to the left wing to LeBron, touch pass, Kobe layup. Nice passing from Williams and James.
Erden is playing for Turkey tonight. He was the final pick in the draft this year, selected by the Celtics.
US looking very dangerous off of turnovers again tonight. Their halfcourt offense looks a bit disjointed so far though. A couple of sloppy turnovers haven’t helped matters but the main problem is that their offense doesn’t seem to be heading in any particular direction.
LeBron James with two steals in a little over a minute here. US are putting a lot of pressure on the ball and creating a lot of havoc defensively, primarily on the perimeter. Another turnover, Kobe leads the break, high lob to LeBron, one handed slam. US up 50-37 now. Turkey’s offense can’t get anything going. LeBron makes another steal, beautiful recovery play. The US’ zone was all over the place and left one of Turkey’s bigs under the left hand side of the rim, LeBron was defending his man out in the opposite corner, he sprinted a good 15 feet and soared through the air to deny that easy dunk. Great stuff.
Carmelo and LeBron have 25 of the team’s 52 points. Wade is the third leading scorer adding another 8. US are getting outrebounded ever so slightly (13-12) though. US outscored Turkey 23-7 in the second quarter to get their lead.
Chris Paul making another razzle dazzle play to end the half. He got a high screen and roll at the top of the key, he cut through the middle of the paint, sold the help defense on the ball fake (pass to right wing), sliced inside for a layup. He made that look simple.
Halftime
Looks like the Turkish team has thrown in the towel. They’ve started the second half with no intensity and they’re giving up easy shots right at the rim. They’re down 21 points now. This could get ugly. They’re getting very little going offensively also which seems to be effecting their levels of effort and confidence.
This is like a layup drill. US up 25 points after the powerful flush from LeBron. Turkey are faking it just enough to make you think they’re still trying.
Turkey hit a nice three there. The US almost stole the ball four times on that possession but Turkey made the most of the broken play and found an open shooter. What happens next? Wade leaks out and gets a wide open layup off the inbounds pass. Terrible defense by Turkey.
Nice play. Turnover Turkey, long outlet from LeBron up ahead to Kobe, right by the bucket now, Kobe pounds the ball hard and high off the floorboads, Melo goes up, collects it, flushes it. Creative alley oop.
Gonlum has given the Turks some good work tonight. He’s been a threat. A few nice moves and looks to go inside a little bit. He’s been their best big man. #13 the point guard has been decent too.
US up 31 points here in the fourth. Okay I’m going to call this one because the game is pretty much dead as a contest, all that’s left is the odd highlight type play here and there.
Great defense again by the US tonight. They’re terrific at creating turnovers and making teams pay on the break.
On the dubious side, I can’t help but wonder what their offense will look like when the opposition limits their layups and actually makes them create something in the halfcourt. They’ve gotten quite a few turnovers in the halfcourt and have mostly resorted to one-on-one plays rather than team orientated stuff. Anyway it’s too early to tell about that but it’ll be interesting to watch as the level of competition picks up.
Tuning in a few minutes late. The US are up 12-6 over Canada.
Wade has 8 of their first 14 points as he hits an 18 footer on the left wing. He’s starting tonight instead of LeBron tonight and will be their 6th man when Bron returns.
Deron Williams and Chris Paul both come into the game together. This will be interesting. Paul is a better player the more he’s allowed to control the basketball. Paul drives on the fastbreak, draws the foul. Sideline in, Paul drives down the middle, gets into the middle of the paint lob pass to the right of the rim, Melo from the weakside slam dunk. Nice play. Chris Paul is bodying up the opposing point guard right now, making his life difficult. Two years ago he acclimated to the rule differences defensively quicker than anyone else on Team USA and played harrassing physical defense.
Carmelo gets an offensive rebound and layin. Great hustle from Melo. There was an interesting interview from Scoop Jackson up on ESPN talking with Melo. He makes the comparison of Melo to Barkley on that 1992 team which I think is an excellent comparison. The leading scorers and the central player to the team despite the amazing talent all around them. Melo tripled teamed in the post here, kicks a 35 foot pass cross court to Kobe Bryant, long three at the buzzer, hits it off the bank.
Canada are doing well to hang in here. The score is 26-21 US lead. Bosh just bailed out the Canadians by fouling on a hail mary off balance perimeter jumper at the buzzer, dumb foul Bosh (three FTs).
Carl English with a very nice three pointer off the high screen and roll. Looked very smooth setting himself up for that shot.
US lead 30-24. There’s been 9 three pointers already, making 27 of those points, half of the points in the game coming from behind the arc and both teams are shooting above 50% from above the arc.
Travelling violation on Deron Williams drive there, pity that was a lovely pass to Boozer through the defense for the layup. First Quarter has ended
Kobe Bryant had a nice block leading to a fastbreak, and a steal leading him into the open court for the slam dunk. Kobe’s defense is starting to rise up to another level. US lead 35-27 with 8 minutes to play in the half. Canada switching to zone for the first time, a 2-3 zone here. Wade cuts from the corner, gets the pass, layup. Too easy.
Melo tips out the miss to Kidd to start the break. Lovely instinctual play from Melo who couldn’t corrall the air ball.
Dwight Howard easily posts up Joel Anthony, backs him down, spins middle, jump hook, easy basket. Kidd is starting to kickstart the tempo. Wade scores again off the feed from Kidd. He’s 4-4 from the field, 3-3 from the line and has 12 points. Bryant has added another 9 points, that’s 21 of their 41 points.
Carmelo Anthony just added three buckets, bringing him up to 12 points. He had a lovely jab step face up jumper on the right wing. The dunk from the Paul feed wasn’t bad either.
The US have gone a big run here. They’re now ahead 54-35 as Deron Williams knocks down two at the line. Two minutes to go in the half. Mostly perimeter scoring from the US.
Halftime …. US lead 61-38
This game is very close to being over as a contest. The US are miles ahead and way too talented for the Canadians. We’ll wait a bit and see if Canada can make a run and make this somewhat interesting, otherwise the second half could get pretty dull. Running through the motions type of ball.
Dwight gets a post up, fouled inside. He has 2 points and 3 rebounds so far. The US team has largely ignored him. Very perimeter orientated play.
Lot of sloppy play from both teams here to start the second half. Both teams turning over the ball.
US ahead 72-45 with 6 minutes to go in the third. Wade just had a breakaway but was fouled from behind the ball stopping what would have a good dunk. Commentators – “Canada has now ran out of gas”, I agree.
Redd is filling it up, 3-3 from three now, 11 points. He’s missing his FTs again though. Deron found Redd in the corner on the secondary break there, good look. Redd hits another three, this time off the penetration from Deron, kickout to Paul, Paul swings it to the opposite corner on the left wing, hits it. Now he air balls a three, offensive rebound, out to Paul, three pointer. If he knocks that shot down consistently it’ll make a big difference from his previous USA tour.
Prince looks out of place on the floor. He shouldn’t be on this team. He rattles home a 20 footer off the dribble penetration and kickout.
Deron Williams faking and baking the life out of his man side stepping his way to the rim on the fastbreak
34-8 US advantage on points off turnovers. That’s their entire lead right there.
End of Three, US finish up on a 17-2 run
This is over
Jermaine Anderson hits the teardrop. He has 16 points tonight. Has looked fairly solid.
Two sensational dunks by Team USA. Kidd lead pass way ahead off the pack, one armed to Melo who was running out of bounds, touch pass back to the trailing Bosh, emphatic slam dunk as Bosh soared through the middle of the paint to the rim. Then Dwyane Wade steals the ball, ahead of the pack, puts a little english on it and slams it home. Vintage Wade, guess he’s healthy. Good game from Wade tonight. He’s done a much better job of playing within the team framework than he did in Japan.
US lead 101-58
This is over. Routine win against poor opposition.
Starting this up shortly after halftime. The Grizzlies are ahead 51-38 mainly off a nice spurt their in the second quarter where they got out very nicely on the break and got some easy baskets. OJ Mayo just hit a three to extend that lead.
Grizzlies have been gambling a fair bit defensively. Using their athleticism and activity to stop the Bucks from getting to their favourite spots
Ramon Sessions has been the most impressive player on the court. It’s a pity he doesn’t have a few more scorers around him because many of his passes have been wasted. He runs the team very nicely. Dangerous player off the dribble who can et to wherever he wants to go to. He makes quick swing passes in the halfcourt to keep everyone moving and the defense on his toes. I’m very impressed. Starter next year? Let Mo get back to his Vinnie Johnson role? We’ll see.
Mike Conley hasn’t had much of a game. A lot of fouls. Solid offensive play but not exceptional, not standing out so far. As I write that sentence Javaris Crittenton leads a lovely fastbreak, hits Conley full sprint for the nice layup. Crittenton has been very limited tonight, limited by playing next to OJ and Conley. He was sensational last year. Just too many guards on the court and not enough basketballs.
OJ Mayo just threw a four foot bounce pass through his big man’s legs. He’s upset at himself for that foolish play.
There’s been a lot of good touch passes in this summer league. Teams sharing the ball well. Quite a few tonight by both sides.
Crittenton just threw a bullet pass to his big man on the break trying to thread the needle between a very tight gap. Unfortunately his big man wasn’t looking. Another turnover. Memphis getting careless. Need to tighten it up a bit and stop looking for the flashy play. The Bucks have tried to trap the ball in the backcourt which has led to one of Memphis’ guards pushing it hard up on a 4-on-3 but consistently they’ve made bad decisions. Memphis have three guys who can play the point on the floor right? This shouldn’t be happening. Another Memphis turnover but this one was different. Bad drive by Alan Anderson going baseline, seeing the defender was there, going against two men either way and running into a brick wall, then he throws a bad pass which was about 25 feet away from the nearest Grizzlie and hit someone in the third row.
OJ Mayo just hit another three. Wide open in the corner after some nice ball movement following some dribble penetration. He had another lovely three late in the first half a crossover dribble step back three. OJ hits another three, this time on the opposite wing, he’s starting to get hot. He’s living on those long shots though, looks iffy driving unless he has an open lane to the rim where he has finished well regardless of what shot shot blocker makes it over late.
Joe Alexander has been very quiet and hasn’t done much good out there. His elevation on his jumper is special, really stands out, he should be able to get his shot over just about anyone. Not a good game for him. You could say the same for every Memphis player outside of Sessions. They’re down 21 now, early in the fourth, after that OJ three spree and a lengthily Memphis run.
This game is pretty much over. Not a good game really but it was interesting to watch because of the Grizzlies talent and Sessions. OJ hits another three as a sign off with four to go.
Fun start to the game. Clippers jump out to s 19-6 lead. DeAndre Jordan has started well, he had a very nice block on a Keith driving layup, an offensive rebound and 6 foot follow hook shot.
Mike Taylor has looked very good. He’s very quick and active off the dribble. Playing with good composure. Good pressure defense too.
Eric Gordon has also started well. He had a nice fastbreak where he slowed down enough for his lanes to be filled on either side then exploded to the rim and got fouled. He looks very difficult to stop in those situations because of his explosiveness and ability to finish. He had another nice play where he came off a screen off the ball, got the pass on the elbow, noticed his defender got caught up, took one dribble into the paint, rose up for the short jumper before the defense got fully out to him and then hit Kazekas on the move for a dunk. Good vision and court sense to get the easier shot instead of just popping off the good look from 15 feet. Read the rest of this entry »
Poor start to the game. The first quarter is just about to close. Detroit lead 14-9 with two minutes to play. Lots of fouls, lot of turnovers. There’s no fluidity to the play and nobody has really strung together a sequence of good plays. It’s definitely a defensive start with both teams defending physically and well enough.
Nice pass by Bynum on the baseline drive, shovel pass to Amir Johnson for the dunk. Fastbreak, Stuckey pull up J. The possession earlier Stuckey had a lovely dribble drive where he split the trap on the high screen and roll and danced his way into the paint drawing the foul.
Detroit have a loaded roster. Their starting lineup is Stuckey, Afflalo, Sharpe, Amir, Samb. None of their players have stood out early. They’re all just going through the motions.
Detroit picking up their defense to start the second quarter. They’ve been good defensively but not dominant. They’re trying to get after it a bit more now.
Nice pass again by Bynum. He threw a pass that looked like a jump hook from 25 feet to Plaistead off the screen and roll on his way to the hoop.
Detroit playing great full court pressure defense. They’ve completely dismantled the Lakers offense.
Walter Sharpe with a top move. Oh I like that. He just went into an iso mid post action on the left wing and muscled his way down easily into the low post and showed some nice footwork. Good D by LA to slap away the shot on the way up. Like the move. Give Walter another post up.
Okay that was nice. They went back to Sharpe in the post, big aggressive move as he backs his man back down and turns into a 10 foot right handed jump hook, miss, offensive rebound Sharpe on the other side of the rim, putback and the foul.
Sharpe is doing great work posting up his man inside. Detroit need to give him a bit more time before moving the ball. He has his man beat if you give him 3 seconds.
Samb and Johnson are getting on the boards now. Especially Samb who’s clearly bigger than everyone else. Johnson’s great leaping ability and aggressiveness in snatching the ball away from people is always fun to watch.
Sharrod Ford is settling on his jumper. He keeps fading away on his shot with nobody contesting it.
Lovely touch pass from Sharpe to Samb for the layup.
Derrick Allen sounds interesting. Appearantly he was the top scorer out in Germany last season. Let’s see what he has to offer. Early on he’s easily pushed Sharrod Ford out of the paint and away from doing anything dangerous.
Sharpe misses a three pointer off the nice drive and kick from Stuckey. Nice bullet pass on the money off the bounce.
Allen playing some very nice post defense again. This time fronting and denying the pass inside against Dunston
Pistons defense has fallen off over the past few minutes and the Lakers are getting back in the game. Not a pretty game so far.
Halftime
Coby Karl has looked comfortable attacking Afflalo. Afflalo hasn’t had his normal defensive game so far today. Karl has had a few nice passes and drives this quarter. He’s played good defense against Stuckey too.
Third quarter is almost over. 55-52 Detroit. This is a grind it out game so far. Lacks fluidity in the play.
A little over 5 minutes to go now. Detroit up 6.
Karl has had a very nice game. Much like last year. Showing he’s a solid role player and that he’s extremely intelligent on both ends of the court and a very well rounded player.
Detroit have been a 9 man team of quality that just looked to grind it out. They were all solid but nothing special to write home about.
Amir Johnson has 9 fouls in 17 minutes. Very disappointing performance for a player hoping for a big jump next season.
Joe Crawford had 4 turnovers which amazes me because I would have sworn he had 6 or 7. Wonder why that was? Maybe he was close to turning it over a bunch of times but didn’t? Maybe it was because they were bad turnovers and stood out? I don’t know. I’m not checking either. He wasn’t good enough today and he won’t make the Lakers roster without big improvements.
Stuckey with a big steal to seal the game. He’s scored a few buckets here over the last few minutes to push Detroit well ahead and up 13 points now.
