Jerome Soloman of the Houston Chronicle: “Head coach Rick Adelman’ face was rather red throughout, too — not from paint, just poor play. Good thing the Rockets are one heck of a defensive team. As long as they play the first team to 80 wins, they will be OK. The addition of Ron Artest helps that cause. Artest is one heck of a player. He sets a defensive tone that will make this team very difficult to score on. Yes, the team that was one of the best defensive teams in the league last year, might be even better defensively this season. In his first minute of play as a Rocket, Artest had two steals, including a felony larceny from Rudy Gay that he took from end-to-end for an easy layup and the first two points of the game. Artest (16 points) finished with three steals in his Rockets debut, helping the Rockets force 16 Grizzlies turnovers. Adelman will take Memphis’ 38.3-percent shooting from an opponent every night as well. Wait until Shane Battier returns.”
Chris McCosky of the Detroit News: “Fact is, a better basketball team would probably have beaten the Pistons on this night. The offense is still searching for its groove. The Pistons made 15 turnovers and really didn’t establish much of a presence inside. A lot of well-executed plays weren’t finished at the basket, but there were also long stretches of disjointed play resulting in ugly shots or turnovers. ‘I thought we had a decent flow, but it’s going to take a little time,’ said Billups, who had 13 points and seven assists. ‘We are running different sets than we’ve run the last three, four, five years. We don’t have all the ins and outs down that great yet, and that’s why you see the turnovers and us not looking so great. We will get there.’ Defensively, they had no answer for Danny Granger. With Mike Dunleavy out with a knee injury, Granger was essentially the Pacers’ lone gun, and he ripped the Pistons for 33 points.”
Kevin Ding of the Orange County Register: “The Lakers won the Western Conference, got two potential defensive stoppers back healthy in Andrew Bynum and Trevor Ariza and still dared to change. That’s a credit to Phil Jackson, who is showing in this second go-around with the Lakers that he’s older than ever but quicker, too. He let Jordan Farmar loose last season with an unscripted, up-tempo attack, de-emphasizing the beloved triangle offense, and it was a boon. Now Jackson is breaking from another of his tenets about firm man-to-man, limited-help, don’t-switch defense being the prudent formation.”
John DeShazier of The Times-Picayune: “The fact that only San Antonio has been able to sustain its level over the last decade testifies to how difficult it is to do. And it screams that when a team has a chance, it’d better take advantage of it. It won’t have many, if any, opportunities to ‘wait ’til next year’ because next year, someone else is ready and willing to take its place. So all the experience the Hornets gained last season will be crucial this season. All the tests New Orleans passed as it became one of the league’s most entertaining teams and endearing stories is knowledge the team has to build upon and use. Because it’s going to need all that, and more.”
Jennifer Zdon of The Times-Picayune: Byron Scott lays out three keys for the New Orleans Hornets [Video]
Buck Harvey of the San Antonio Express-News: “The Spurs aren’t exactly themselves right now. They’ve never been 0-1 in the Duncan era. At least they had their excuses Wednesday, beginning with an Argentina-free roster. This was the first of many nights over the next month when the Spurs can say ‘we would have won with Manu.’ But not having Fab Oberto meant something, too, especially as Matt Bonner struggled with some basics. Rebounding, defense, basics such as that. The Spurs made up for their lack of bodies with their two best ones. Duncan and Tony Parker each scored 32 points, and, if they play this way for the rest of the season, the Spurs will win a few games. But the Spurs have never won just because of their stars. They’ve won because the other pieces fit snugly in place, and they didn’t Wednesday.”
Sekou K Smith of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution: “Josh Smith is a man of his word. When he was criticized for his lackluster performance during the Hawks’ preseason schedule, he warned anyone willing to listen that come Oct. 29 he would crank his game up to a high level.He was game-changer Wednesday night, and not for the obvious reasons (17 points, 10 rebounds, five blocks, four steals and no turnovers). Smith’s biggest contributions Wednesday don’t have a column in the box score. Whenever there was a loose ball to be had, Smith was one of the first players on the floor after it. He set the tone for the Hawks early with two jolting blocks of Howard, sizing up his pal since pre-school both times in highlight fashion.”
Chris Herrington of The Memphis Flyer: “Who expected O.J. Mayo to be the least impressive rookie on the floor for the Grizzlies tonight? Mayo struggled, but baby bigs Marc Gasol and, especially, Darrell Arthur, were very impressive. Gasol’s gritty 12 point, 12 rebound, 2 block performance, much of garnered while matched up against one of the league’s very best centers in Yao Ming, only underscored what he established in the preseason: That he’s a quality starting center from day one. More impressive was Arthur, who came on late in the preseason and whose role heading into the regular season was uncertain. Arthur was the fourth big man into the game tonight, but once he got on the floor, Marc Iavaroni couldn’t afford to get him off. Arthur played 27 minutes, scoring 11 points on 5-9 shooting, grabbing a game-high 15 rebounds, blocking two shots, and coming up with the highlight-reel assist of the game in the form of an interior bounce pass to Gasol for a lay-up.”
Patrick Reusse of the Minneapolis Star Tribune: “Everyone on the home side was particularly giddy about the 18 1/2 minutes played by rookie Kevin Love. He scored 12 points, with nine rebounds (four offensive) and a pair of assists. And a team official rushed to a reporter shortly after the game to announce the Wolves were a plus-20 during Love’s time on the court. Clearly, the only reason the Wolves were scrambling down the stretch was that coach Randy Wittman made the decision to play Love for a mere 8:20 in the second half.”
Brian Costa of the Miami Herald: “Few who have watched Beasley are accustomed to seeing him so hapless — and even hesitant at times — with the ball in his hands. But it was Beasley’s defense that concerned Heat coach Erik Spoelstra. ‘Michael struggled offensively, but I wasn’t even looking at that side of the ball,’ he said. ‘We’re kind of in a situation right now where there’s expectations, accountability, and to get our defense right all five guys have to be working together.’ It was in the same Manhattan building, several floors below the Knicks’ home court, that the Heat made Beasley the No. 2 pick in the 2008 Draft in June. Four months later, Beasley, 19, became the youngest player in franchise history to start for the Heat. He averaged more than 16 points per game in the preseason. And it was tempting, given the way he scored with such apparent ease at times, to think Beasley could be an impact player from the get-go. That may yet happen. But if Wednesday was any indication, the Heat will need to be patient with him.”
Peninsula is Mightier: “Dwyane Wade’s numbers on the surface were more than passable: 26 points, 7 rebounds, 9 assists in 41 minutes. But he just didn’t look like the player we gawked at in the early summer of ‘06 or the late summer of ‘08. This is Knicks vs. Heat, and even with both franchises embracing a more progressive style than the Ewing-Zo years, this game is far from USA-Argentina. That court gets awfully small when you’ve got guys like Udonis Haslem and Zach Randolph caroming about. Wade looked like he couldn’t quite figure out how to project himself onto this game, alternately forcing the action and settling for long-range shots on the way to a game-high 5 turnovers.”
Dave Feschuk of the Toronto Star: “In the City of Brotherly Love, they smelled blood. So the peanut gallery piped up. And O’Neal heard every barbed word. ‘They were talking about how I didn’t have it anymore … I wasn’t in the game … I make X amount of money,’ said O’Neal, who will make about $21 million (U.S.) this season. O’Neal didn’t ignore the blather. He turned around and faced the trash talk. ‘I said to ‘em, ‘Okay, hold on,’’ O’Neal would tell it later. ‘I said, ‘I’ll be in the game in just a second.’ In just a second, indeed, O’Neal showed his first signs of explosiveness. He drove the lane. He dunked atop Sam Dalembert, the Sixers’ shot-blocking specialist, who fouled O’Neal in the tussle. But before O’Neal stepped to the charity stripe to make his first free throw in a Toronto jersey, he stopped and pointed at his tormentors.”
Dave McMenamin of NBA.com: “In an August interview with fans on Clippers.com, Davis shared that he used to sneak into Clippers games at their old home, the Sports Arena, and has ‘great memories of watching players like Benoit Benjamin and Ron Harper.’ Anybody who glowingly looks back at Benjamin’s career with nostalgia really should be a Clipper. But there is also the ‘Hollywood’ stigma about Davis, too. The wacky viral videos, the celebrity friends who are regulars on TMZ, the commercial with Adam Sandler that aired during last season’s playoffs while Davis’ team failed to qualify and the benching by coach Don Nelson in the second half of his last game with Golden State. It makes you wonder. You can’t spell ‘Davis’ without ‘diva’ after all. He brings with him a reputation that’s as mixed as the neighborhoods of Tinsel Town.”
Jerry Brown of the East Valley Tribune: “With Shaquille O’Neal’s ‘coward’ comment still ringing in the ears of Spurs fans before Wednesday’s game, a reporter asked San Antonio coach Gregg Popovich if he would consider a mock ‘Hack-a-Shaq’ on the first possession of the game to jokingly prove that he wasn’t backing down from his strategy in last year’s playoffs. Popovich stopped. He ran his fingers through his new white beard. And then he started to grin. ‘You know, that’s not a bad idea now that I think about it. It’s a better suggestion than any of our (assistant) coaches have had all summer,’ Popovich said. ‘I could get a couple of guys in front of me and act like they were holding me back … a typical NBA fight.’ Funny guy. He was just kidding, of course. Right? Sure enough, the Suns won the tip and ex-Sun Michael Finley wrapped his arms around O’Neal to stop play five seconds into the game — a nonshooting foul. O’Neal quickly looked over at Popovich, who gave him two thumbs-up and the two shared a laugh. ‘Classic Pop. I loved it,’ Steve Nash said. ‘It would have been a fine if he didn’t do it.’”
The Hoop Doctors: Gregg Popovich goes to the Hack-a-Shaq on Phoenix’s very first possession last night [Video]
Bright Side Of The Sun: “The Phoenix Suns went into San Antonio and gave up 50% FG shooting, 32 points each to Duncan and Parker, played a balanced offense early then went to a heavy dose of Nash and Amare late and even saw Tim Duncan take a 3 pointer to tie the game in the final seconds. Sound familiar? All except Timmy’s three pointer clanging off the rim this could have been last year. Except for the highly notable fact that the Suns went 10 deep and did something I don’t recall any other team doing – the Suns second unit played together as a unit. Twice. Normally we see bench players rotate in and out and mix starters and reserves together. Not Terry Porter’s Suns. Aside from giving Diaw a bit more floor time then Lopez, the five bench players played together as a unit.”
The Thunderworld: “This state’s idols have been guys named Bud, Barry, Bob, Barry (Sanders), Eddie, Adrian and a slew of other college stars. Oklahoma is a state rabid about college sports and the Thunder will never nudge Oklahoma State or Oklahoma. But there’s a spot for this team. And that was shown by the 13,000 strong that ate up season tickets in five days. OKC is one of four cities with season ticket waiting lists. Let me say that again: Oklahoma City is in the same company as Boston, Los Angeles and Phoenix. Oklahoma City. Mind blowing. So you outsides, hate on Oklahoma City all you want. Call them the Bennett City Hijackers, call them Kevin Durant’s team, or don’t even acknowledge them at all. But just know that this city finally has something to hold on to – an identity outside of what happened on April 19, 1995 or what you perceive us to be.”
Eric Neel of ESPN.com: When their son was born with a debilitating disease, CeCe and Carlos Boozer pulled their family together
Golden State of Mind: “Nellie talks about playing the young guys, but when it comes down to real game scenarios where he wants to win, those guys never touch the court. Can you blame him? He’s got his best guys out on the court in a close game. He simply can’t afford to give up a bucket here or bucket there because of the young guys. You saw how quick he was to pull DeMarcus Nelson – he played just 2.5 minutes before being pulled and only 13 minutes overall. Nellie is a creature of habit and trust. If he doesn’t trust you, you won’t play. So any thoughts of Wright or Belinelli starting or playing significant minutes can just go out the window. Nellie’s going to go with who he trusts and that’s basically 6 guys: Biedrins, Jackson, Maggette, Turiaf, Harrington, and Azubuike. Jax never left the floor tonight. Harrington played 42 minutes, Kelenna played 43 minutes, and had Biedrins not fouled out, you can bet he’d be playing around 33 minutes. If this is the lineup Nellie uses, it’ll be interesting because he has to go big with it.”
The Arsenalist of Raptors Republic: “Philly only shot 6/15 in the first quarter which reprieved the Raptors’ 4/15 shooting. Had Philly been able to extend their lead during this crucial period we might’ve seen a different outcome to the game but as it turned out, the Raptors regrouped in the second quarter and made it a point to establish Jermaine O’Neal in the paint. The rest they say is history. With O’Neal displaying a plethora of moves including post-ups, mid-range jumpers and even a blow-by of Samuel Dalembert, order was restored and the Raptors offense started to click. Most impressive about O’Neal’s defense and his willingness to step in for charges, aggressively challenge guards who drove the lane and fight for rebounds. For the first time in a long time I felt comfortable that a guard driving to our key would be met with a force that was capable of repelling him consistently. Don’t get fooled by O’Neal’s lone block in the boxscore, he altered at least five shots and made the Philly guards think twice about how to finish when he was around the paint.”
The Biz of Basketball: “Turner Sports reported today that TNT’s exclusive NBA Opening Night coverage on Tuesday, Oct. 28 delivered exceptionally high ratings, household and key demo growth across the board for the network’s NBA doubleheader. TNT’s two games featured the Cleveland Cavaliers at the defending NBA Champion Boston Celtics (8 pm ET), followed by the debut of 2007-08 NBA #1 draft pick Greg Oden and the Portland Trailblazers at the defending Western Conference Champion LA Lakers.”
George E. Jordan of The Star-Ledger: “Nets owner Bruce Ratner said Wednesday that he welcomes hearing from potential investors from around the world interested in buying into his NBA franchise and its planned Brooklyn arena. But Ratner denied a report that he is already entertaining overtures from investors in Russia and Dubai as potential sources of ready cash for the team and the Atlantic Yards project that includes the arena.”
Fear The Sword: LeBron and Jay-Z stump for Obama at The Q [Video]
CelticsBlog: Ranking Every Team’s Marketing Campaign
Clips Nation: “By the way, how good are the Lakers? Well, they just beat the Clippers by 38, and that was with Gasol (13 points) and Bryant (16) being minor factors. In fact, take out Gasol’s 3 for 10 and Kobe’s 5 for 12, and the rest of the Lakers were 36 for 58 with 10 threes. That’s a 62% shooting percentage, and a 71% effective shooting percentage.”
Mike Dougherty of the Journal News: “Stephon Marbury was definitely not expecting to be left in the dust of this remodel. Even so, he’s playing nice. ‘I mean, this is a business and I understand their decision,’ Marbury said. ‘If that’s the way they want to go, I’m fine with that.’ Mike D’Antoni claims he’s playing for the future. ‘Obviously, it’s tough,’ he said. ‘There are just certain guys I want to see. It’s a delicate situation. Steph’s been great. It hasn’t been his fault. I know he’s not going to be happy about it and I wouldn’t be either. The team goes on two different tracks, and one is for the future and one is to try to win now.’”
Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports: “Everyone knew Curry was out of the rotation, but only D’Antoni and his closest associates knew that the Knicks’ new coach planned to eviscerate Marbury on Wednesday night. D’Antoni let loose the Knicks’ young kids and they brought the Garden to its feet for several ovations on the way to a 120-115 victory over the Miami Heat. The way it stands now, Marbury is destined for a season of DNP-CD in the box scores. Curry, the blubbery 7-footer, can get into shape and find minutes at center, but Marbury is done. New York is moving on, leaving Starbury, a make-believe franchise player, in its wake. ‘I hate it, and I hate it for Steph,’ D’Antoni said. He doesn’t hate it. This is empowering for the coach. His players love him for it, because they loathe life with Marbury. The fans love it, too. Almost out of pity, there was a smattering of ‘We want Steph’ chants that D’Antoni ignored, pockets drowned out by fed-up fans booing the wise guys with a basketball death wish.”
