Tim Hardaway Jr. Injury: Hawks Guard Out vs. Nuggets with Injured Groin
December 23rd, 2016 by Adam Wells No comments »
Tim Hardaway Jr.'s hope for a strong second season with the Atlanta Hawks hit a snag, as the fourth-year guard will not play Friday night against the Denver Nuggets due to a groin injury, per Chris Vivlamore of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
Hardaway initially injured the groin during Wednesday night's game against the Minnesota Timberwolves and had to leave the game early, via Vivlamore.
The Hawks acquired Hardaway from New York during the 2015 draft for the 19th overall pick. He struggled in two seasons with the Knicks, shooting 40.8 percent from the floor in 151 games, so Atlanta gave him an opportunity to reinvent himself.
Last year didn't present Hardaway many opportunities to make an impact. He was inactive for most of the games early in the season and was briefly demoted to the NBA Development League before returning to Atlanta on Jan. 5.
Hardaway did show promise as a deep shooter in his ...
Rudy Gay Injury: Kings Star Out vs. Timberwolves with Injured Hip
December 23rd, 2016 by Joseph Zucker No comments »
Sacramento Kings forward Rudy Gay will be out of the lineup Friday night against the Minnesota Timberwolves due to a hip injury.
James Ham of Comcast SportsNet Bay Area first reported Gay would not suit up. Jason Jones of the Sacramento Bee reported Gay was out due to a hip injury.
Gay is coming off a disappointing 2015-16 season. He missed 12 games and averaged 17.2 points per night—his lowest output since his rookie season in 2006-07.
In an interview with Blake Ellington of SB Nation's Sactown Royalty in July, Gay admitted he had been suffering from an Achilles injury: "I actually had surgery. I had Achilles tendonitis, basically micro tears in my Achilles, and for the past two seasons it's been bothering me, so I've been trying to play through it, and I got to a point where I needed to have it fixed, so I got it fixed."
Gay has already missed six ...
Richard Hamilton’s Jersey to Be Retired by Pistons: Latest Details, Reaction
December 23rd, 2016 by Adam Wells No comments »
Richard Hamilton played nine seasons for the Detroit Pistons, including in their NBA championship campaign in 2003-04, and the franchise will honor him by retiring his No. 32 jersey.
Per the Pistons' official Twitter account, Hamilton's retirement ceremony will take place during a February 26 game against the Boston Celtics.
Pistons owner Tom Gores left no doubt that recognizing Hamilton in this manner was an easy decision.
“Rip’s numbers speak for themselves ... We are excited to honor his success," Gores said, per the Pistons' official Twitter account.
Hamilton's NBA career started with the Washington Wizards after he was drafted seventh overall in 1999. He put together three solid seasons with them, averaging 15.6 points per game while primarily coming off the bench.
The Wizards dealt Hamilton to the Pistons prior to the 2002-03 season as part of a package to bring Jerry Stackhouse, who was a two-time All-Star, to Washington. Stackhouse lasted only two seasons ...
Time for the Los Angeles Lakers to Discover Who They Really Are
December 23rd, 2016 by Eric Pincus No comments »
LOS ANGELES — The Los Angeles Lakers started the season with such great promise, upsetting teams like the Golden State Warriors, Houston Rockets and Chicago Bulls in the early going. The young Lakers were the buzz of the NBA, at least for a month.
That early excitement has long since faded with the Lakers losing 11 of their last 12 games.
The Lakers will wrap up a seven-game road trip on Friday against the Orlando Magic, ending an unproductive run that has yielded just a single victory. The road has been anything but kind.
"A lot of times on the road, you get away from everything else and it's just you and your teammates. Some bonding and brotherhood can come together," coach Luke Walton said prior to the team's exodus. "Other times a seven-game road trip can wear everybody out and people get on each other's nerves."
It remains to be seen how unified the locker room ...
J.R. Smith Injury Update: Cavaliers SG Out 12-14 Weeks Following Thumb Surgery
December 23rd, 2016 by Tim Daniels No comments »
Cleveland Cavaliers shooting guard J.R. Smith is projected to miss at least three months of action after undergoing surgery Friday on his right thumb.
The Cavs provided an update on the 31-year-old veteran's status on their official website:
Cavalier guard J.R. Smith's surgery to repair a complex fracture of his right thumb was completed on Friday morning at the Crystal Clinic Orthopaedic Center in Montrose, Ohio. ... Smith will now undergo a period of recovery and rehabilitation for his thumb and his return to play timeline is currently projected at 12-14 weeks.
Smith, who's averaging 8.6 points per game this season, suffered the injury in Tuesday's victory over the Milwaukee Bucks. He scored six points in 17 minutes before exiting early. Jeff Zillgitt of USA Today noted the injury appeared to occur on an attempted steal of Giannis Antetokounmpo.
Although Cleveland lacks depth beyond its star-studded top half of the roster, it doesn't sound ...
Jimmy Howard Injury: Red Wings Goalie Out 4-6 Weeks with Injured Knee
December 23rd, 2016 by Tim Daniels No comments »
Detroit Red Wings goaltender Jimmy Howard is reportedly expected to miss at least a month of action after an MRI revealed an MCL sprain.
Helene St. James of the Detroit Free Press provided the update on Howard's status Friday, noting the official timetable for his knee injury is four to six weeks.
The 32-year-old netminder originally suffered the injury during Tuesday night's 4-1 loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning. He exited the contest in the second period after a collision involving multiple players and did not return.
Brendan Savage of MLive.com noted Wednesday the Red Wings recalled Jared Coreau from the AHL's Grand Rapids Griffins to take Howard's place on the roster. The team's new backup had a 2.18 goals-against average and .924 save percentage across 17 games in the minors this season.
For Howard, it's unfortunate timing for a health setback. He's played some of the best hockey of his career during the first ...
Quarter-Season Grades for Each New York Knicks Player
December 23rd, 2016 by Sara Peters No comments »
The fall semester is over. Time for the New York Knicks to go home for the holidays and either brag about or apologize for the grades they've earned.
In an Eastern Conference that's as tight and topsy-turvy as a game of Twister, the 16-13 Knicks are precariously ranked fifth. With an 11-4 record at home, the team has brought some swagger back to Madison Square Garden, and so nobody is failing.
That's right. Nobody.
Here's how grading works: It's a split between usage (up to 30 points), expectations (up to 30), defense performance (up to 20) and offense performance (up to 20).
The system is built so that a rotation player simply doing his job earns a C, a starter simply doing his job earns a B. Reserves who've played 100 or fewer minutes total are only given pass/fail assessments. Starters get the extra points for usage but no doubt get graded harder on expectations. ...
NBA Christmas Day Betting Preview: Warriors vs. Cavaliers Highlights Slate
December 23rd, 2016 by OddsShark.com No comments »
They have not met since June 19, when the Cleveland Cavaliers upset the Golden State Warriors 93-89 as five-point road underdogs on the NBA betting lines to win their first-ever NBA championship.
On Christmas Day, bettors will finally get the rematch they have been waiting for when the Cavaliers host the Warriors, who are -140 betting favorites (wager $140 to win $100) to win their second league title in three years at sportsbooks monitored by OddsShark.
Of course, Golden State was favored last year too and lost to Cleveland in the Finals.
The Warriors blew a 3-1 series lead to the Cavs—who are the +275 second choice (bet $100 to win $275) to capture back-to-back championships—due in part to Draymond Green’s suspension in Game 5 that seemed to turn the tide of the series. Golden State lost two of the three games in Cleveland, with each decided by double digits.
While that is the ...
Quarter-Season Grades for Each Chicago Bulls Player
December 23rd, 2016 by Kelly Scaletta No comments »
The Chicago Bulls have been dreadfully erratic this season. They began the year with a surprisingly positive 8-4 record, then sped toward disaster by losing three of their next five. They recovered by trouncing the Cleveland Cavaliers but followed that up one night later by losing to the league-worst Dallas Mavericks.
Chicago then escaped a potential death spiral by beating the San Antonio Spurs but followed that up by blowing a 21-point lead to the Minnesota Timberwolves.
The Bulls have a 14-14 record, but it’s almost as if they are two teams: One is 14-0 and the other is 0-14.
With the season over a quarter of the way through, it’s time to look at each player and evaluate his performance. Since inconsistency has been the major theme this season, consistency will be one of the primary factors in grading, along with overall performance compared to expectations. Players are listed by order of importance, last ...
Carmelo Anthony Responds to George Karl’s Criticism in Coach’s Memoir
December 23rd, 2016 by Tyler Conway No comments »
New York Knicks forward Carmelo Anthony responded to criticism former coach George Karl lobbed Thursday, telling reporters Karl never made his thoughts public when the two were with the Denver Nuggets.
Anthony said the following:
When you're there, it's a different story than what you hear after the fact. I never knew I was a...what was the word...conundrum? I don't even know what the hell that means, to be honest with you. I never knew that. ... Ask the assistant coaches, players, front-office people (in Denver), they will sing a different tune when it comes to me and our mentality as a team.
According to an excerpt of Karl's upcoming book, Furious George, per Marc Berman of the New York Post, Karl described Anthony as a "conundrum" while bemoaning his lack of commitment on the defensive end:
Carmelo was a true conundrum for me in the six years I had him. He was the best offensive player I ever coached. ...