Sacramento Kings Are Running Out of Time to Look in the Mirror
December 13th, 2016 by Grant Hughes No comments »
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Diagnosing symptoms isn't a problem for the Sacramento Kings.
But curing the disease sure is.
That's a serious issue for a team struggling in the present and facing looming questions about its future, because what good is accurate self-assessment if it doesn't lead to change?
A crummy 3-6 stretch since Nov. 25—marked by inconsistent defensive effort, a lack of ball movement and haphazard rotations—has the Kings slotted ninth in the Western Conference. And with the trio of wins coming against the Brooklyn Nets, Dallas Mavericks and Los Angeles Lakers, it's been weeks since Sacramento logged a quality victory.
After each recent defeat, the Kings offered mostly accurate analysis.
"I don't understand these starts to games," DeMarcus Cousins told Bleacher Report after getting blown out in the first quarter of a 117-104 loss to the Houston Rockets. "We have to have multiple efforts in the beginning of the game or we're going to ...
Warriors vs. Pelicans: Live Score, Highlights and Reaction
December 13th, 2016 by David Kenyon No comments »
Warriors 113, Pelicans 109—Final
Draymond Green provided a clutch defensive play and two game-icing free throws to help the Golden State Warriors fend off the New Orleans Pelicans on Tuesday night.
Leading by two points with less than 10 seconds remaining, Green knocked the ball away from Anthony Davis. He connected on a pair of shots from the charity stripe to seal the victory, also recording his first triple-double of the season.
Green added four steals to his 12 points, 12 rebounds and 10 assists, and Stephen Curry paced the Warriors (22-4) with 30 points. Kevin Durant netted 27, and Klay Thompson chipped in 17.
However, New Orleans (8-18) gave Golden State a good run thanks to 28 points and five blocks from Davis. Plus, Langston Galloway exploded for 20 points, while fellow reserve Tim Frazier accumulated 13 points and seven assists.
Bleacher Report provided scoring updates, highlights and reactions throughout the Western Conference tilt.Read ...
Chicago Bulls vs. Minnesota Timberwolves: Live Score, Highlights and Reaction
December 13th, 2016 by Matthew Schmidt No comments »
Zach LaVine scored 24 points, Andrew Wiggins added 23 and the Minnesota Timberwolves rallied from a 21-point deficit to shock the Chicago Bulls 99-94 in Tom Thibodeau's return to the United Center on Tuesday night.
This game marked the first time Timberwolves head coach Thibodeau faced his former team since being fired by the Bulls in May 2015.
Thibodeau's young squad did not get off to a good start, as Chicago jumped out to a 26-6 lead in the first quarter.
The Bulls led by as many as 21 in the first half, but the Timberwolves closed the second quarter on a 16-1 run to trim the deficit to four heading into the break.
Minnesota proceeded to hold Chicago to 38 points over the final 24 minutes and come away with an impressive road victory.
The Timberwolves won despite shooting just 6-of-21 from three-point range and a pedestrian 44.2 percent from the floor overall.
Jimmy Butler ...
Victor Oladipo Injury: Updates on Thunder Guard’s Wrist and Return
December 13th, 2016 by Adam Wells No comments »
Oklahoma City Thunder guard Victor Oladipo is dealing with a sprained wrist suffered on Dec. 11 and hasn't played since.
It is currently unclear when he'll return to the court.
Continue for updates.
Oladipo Out vs. Jazz
Wednesday, Dec. 14
Oladipo will not be available on Wednesday against Utah, according to Brett Dawson of the Oklahoman.
Donovan Comments on Oladipo's Injury
Tuesday, Dec. 13
"He’s doing fine," Oklahoma City coach Billy Donovan explained, per Dawson. "It's probably just sore, stiff strained right now."
Oladipo Has Become Key Piece to Thunder
Oladipo was part of a huge draft-night trade involving the Orlando Magic. The Thunder acquired the 24-year-old as part of a package that sent Serge Ibaka to Orlando.
Even though Kevin Durant had not yet decided he would join the Golden State Warriors at the time of the deal, Oladipo's presence did give the Thunder more versatility with his strong defensive skills.
There's no question Russell Westbrook is the leader for Oklahoma City moving forward, but ...
Stanley Johnson Trade Rumors: Latest News and Speculation on Pistons Wing
December 13th, 2016 by Joseph Zucker No comments »
After moving down to the Detroit Pistons' NBA Development League affiliate in order to get more playing time, Stanley Johnson may be looking for a change of scenery to get his career back on track.
Continue for updates.
Johnson's Situation Piquing Opposing GMs' Interest
Tuesday, Dec. 13
CSN Chicago's Vincent Goodwill (via CSNNE.com) reported Sunday that the Pistons have so far been reticent to any trade offers for Johnson. Goodwill added that Johnson's recent struggles may entice opposing general managers to increase their pursuits if they feel his future in Detroit is in jeopardy.
Johnson appeared in one game for the Grand Rapids Drive, a 107-96 loss to the Delaware 87ers last Saturday. He scored 26 points, grabbed five rebounds and dished out four assists.
The D-League shared highlights from his performance:
The Pistons recalled Johnson and two others from the Drive on Monday.
The 2016-17 season hasn't gone according to plan for the 20-year-old. He's averaging 3.5 points on 38.9 percent ...
Alex Ovechkin Ties Keith Tkachuk for 31st on All-Time Goals List
December 13th, 2016 by Bleacher Report Milestones No comments »
Washington Capitals winger Alex Ovechkin notched his 538th career goal in Sunday's game against the Vancouver Canucks, tying him with Keith Tkachuk for 31st on the all-time goals list, per Sportsnet Stats.
Ovechkin's tally came on the power play in the first period of the contest, giving him 13 total goals for the season. It was also his 200th career power-play point, making him just the 18th player to reach that milestone, per Stephen Whyno of the Associated Press.
The star sniper added an assist in the third period as the Capitals went on to blank the Canucks, 3-0, and move to 17-7-3 on the season. The Capitals have now won four games in a row and reside fifth in the Metropolitan division, though they have games in hand on all but one of the teams ahead of them.
Although Ovechkin has gotten off to a slow start by his standards—notching just 13 goals in ...
Quarter-Season Grades for Each Golden State Warriors Player
December 13th, 2016 by Zach Buckley No comments »
The 2016-17 Golden State Warriors look every bit the part of NBA steamroller.
Their league-best marks—too numerous to list in totality—include the following: .840 win percentage, plus-11.9 net efficiency rating, 118 points averaged per game, 49.8 field-goal percentage and plus-12 average margin of victory. They have 14 double-digit wins and only four total losses.
How have the new-look Dubs climbed this high this quickly?
The ingredient list includes everything from head coach Steve Kerr's egalitarian approach to general manager Bob Myers' mastery, but it draws heavily from the fact this roster is historically loaded.
All 15 individual parts have combined to make this an on-court colossus, but the degree of impact wildly varies. With Golden State having turned the first corner on its 82-game trek, we have enough data to assess each player's quarter-campaign.
The players are presented in ascending order of importance, based on both subjective (eye test, value, performance vs. expectations) and objective ...
NBA Trade Rumors: Analyzing Buzz on DeMarcus Cousins, Stanley Johnson and More
December 13th, 2016 by Timothy Rapp No comments »
Poor performances. Bad fits. The need to rebuild. An overload of players at one position. Impending free agency. All are solid reasons to move on from a player, and all generally lead to a barrel of rumors during the NBA season.
Such was the case below, where we'll break down some of the latest buzz making the rounds.
DeMarcus Cousins, C, Sacramento Kings
Another day, another DeMarcus Cousins rumor. The latest addition to the ongoing series comes from Adam Kaufman of WBZ NewsRadio:
This, of course, is contingent on two things that have seemed pretty unlikely to this point:
The Sacramento Kings actually showing a willingness to trade Cousins
The Boston Celtics actually showing a willingness to move the first-round pick they'll be receiving from the Brooklyn Nets that almost assuredly will be a top-five selection
Certainly, Cousins in Boston would make sense.
The Celtics need an upgrade at center, and Cousins is in the process of ...
LA Clippers Still Trying to Rediscover Early-Season Swagger
December 13th, 2016 by Josh Martin No comments »
LOS ANGELES — The Los Angeles Clippers scratched and clawed their way to a 121-120 win over the Portland Trail Blazers Monday night—and broke Lawler's Law along the way—but it was Blake Griffin who bore the brunt of the abuse.
After skipping Saturday's game against the New Orleans Pelicans to rest a sore knee, Griffin suffered a scratch under his eye and a bloody lip courtesy of Mason Plumlee's elbow in the fourth quarter.
"I'm very self-conscious right now," Griffin quipped, noting how swollen and numb his stitched upper lip was.
Despite ending their four-game home stand with consecutive victories, the Clippers have every reason to feel anxious about where they stand as they get ready to hit the road again.
The 133-105 weekend win over the Pelicans came with Anthony Davis, Jrue Holiday and E'Twaun Moore all in street clothes. The Clippers can take some pride in sweeping the season series from a ...
Monday NBA Roundup: Raptors’ Old-School Offense Looks Historically Potent
December 12th, 2016 by Grant Hughes No comments »
With every offensive explosion, buckets-from-all-angles barrage and 30-point quarter, it's getting clearer: Nobody told DeMar DeRozan or the Toronto Raptors about regression.
Toronto cut the Milwaukee Bucks and their defense to ribbons during Monday's 122-100 win, flashing the depth and breadth of an offense that is now on pace to finish as the second-best in recorded NBA history (which goes back to the 1973-74 season in Basketball-Reference's database).
As for that Bucks defensive rating? It slipped from 11th to 12th. So there's your regression, in a manner of speaking.
The Raptors did their usual thing, relying on DeRozan's in-between moves and foul-drawing prowess along with Kyle Lowry's steady stewardship and a potent cast of reserve scorers. It was another prime example of how Toronto's historically effective attack continues to confound in its diversity.
And its oddity.
As the modern game prizes three-point shooting and tic-tac-toe passing, the Raps are doing their own thing. They rank ...