Blake Griffin, welcome to the club. Even before the Los Angeles Clippers could put on their headbands and lace up their sneakers, they were greeted with devastating news when prized rookie, the No. 1 overall pick in the 2009 draft, Blake Griffin was found to have a stress fracture in his left knee and the … [Read more…]
SPURS ARE LOCKED AND RELOADED
The San Antonio Spurs appeared old and overmatched against the Dallas Mavericks in the 2009 playoffs. It was the first time a Tim Duncan-led team was ousted in the first round since 2000. That was the year Duncan was sidelined with an injury. The 4-1 series loss to the Mavs could point to the fact … [Read more…]
NBA NOT FINE WITH WHINING COACHES
There is a pandemic spreading across the NBA landscape and it’s not the swine flu. There have been a rash of NBA coaches being heavily fined for critical comments toward the replacement referees. The Orlando Magic and head coach Stan Van Gundy were recently fined $35,000 each for Van Gundy’s verbal jabs at the officials … [Read more…]
JACKSON CALLS KOBE ‘DIRTY’
Apparently, Stephen Jackson is not done talking. After his much publicized blow-up during an exhibition game earlier this month against the Los Angeles Lakers where he picked up five personal fouls and one technical in less than 10 minutes, the former captain of the Golden State Warriors claims that Kobe Bryant is being allowed to … [Read more…]
FLU DOESN’T SLOW DOWN LEBRON
LeBron James returned from missing a game with the flu and scored 22 points in 19 minutes in a 105-98 preseason loss to the San Antonio Spurs on Friday night. James, who said before the game his flu recovery was going well, was 7 of 14 from the field and had six rebounds. He’s still … [Read more…]
THANK YOU, COACH WOODEN
John R. Wooden celebrated his 99th birthday on Oct. 14. That’s 99 great years for a man who is considered the greatest coach in sports and one of the most influential people in the world. I had the honor of meeting Coach Wooden in March of 1995. To this day, that was the best interview … [Read more…]
IS JACKSON WORTH THE HEADACHE?
Golden State head coach Don Nelson recently suspended forward Stephen Jackson for conduct detrimental to the team after the “stunt” he pulled during a preseason game against the Los Angeles Lakers. Jackson, who has gone public with his trade demands and has not been discreet about his displeasure with the direction the Warriors are heading, … [Read more…]
AFFLALO UPGRADES NUGGETS ‘D’
It may not be a sexy offseason transaction that made you look, but acquiring Arron Afflalo is a tremendous upgrade for the Denver Nuggets. Last season, the Nuggets used Dahntay Jones at the 2-guard and even though he did a “decent” job, Jones was very limited offensively and he’s not a shut-down, one-on-one defender who … [Read more…]
DURANT TOPS LIST OF RISING STARS
OneManFastBreak.net lists the second- and third-year players who will make the jump from above-average player to budding superstar. KEVIN DURANT, Oklahoma City Thunder, Forward Mark this down: Kevin Durant will be in the 2009 All-Star Game in Dallas, and he won’t be playing on All-Star Saturday Night. He’ll be playing in the big game on … [Read more…]
RIVERS WANTS ‘BEAR-LIKE’ DEFENSE
Doc Rivers recently sat down with the Real Training Camp crew for NBA TV and gave his state-of-the-Celtics address. He talked about the health of his All-Star forward Kevin Garnett, the addition of forward-center Rasheed Wallace and his expectations for this upcoming season. On the health of KG: “He looks great. He’s got shin problems … [Read more…]