Ron Borges of the Boston Herald: “For every Celtics foe, it will be like this because they not only won the world championship last year, they talked about it to their fallen opponents along the way. Now it is a new year and it has begun to dawn on them that those guys remember such slights and so every game becomes a lot more important to them than it can ever be for the defending champions. The pressure of that, night after night, week after week can wear on you and so it has on a Celtics team that has played a lot of games in a short stretch with few nights spent in their own beds in between. Tomorrow night these same tired Celtics must go to Cleveland to face the red-hot Cavaliers, who won their 18th straight at home last night, destroying by 30 points the same Charlotte Bobcats who beat the Celtics Tuesday night. A measure of how life is for the defending champions is that many of the Cavs, including LeBron James, sat in their locker room after beating Charlotte and watched the end of the Rockets’ win on TV. When it was over, someone asked James about tomorrow night and he admitted, ‘I can’t sit here and say it’s just another game.’”
Marc Berman of the New York Post: “D’Antoni feels his once-vaunted offensive machine has turned into a jalopy as his Knicks are on pace for another 50-loss season. They dropped to 13-20 after losing 107-99 to the Thunder (5-30). ‘There really is something to be said about people playing in a losing situation for a while and get in bad habits,’ D’Antoni said. ‘Bad habits you have to break and it takes time.’ The Knicks’ offense, once leading the league, has fallen to fourth at 103.9 points per game, with D’Antoni pointing out his ‘Seven Seconds or Less’ attack has noticeably been creaking. He blamed it partly on Nate Robinson and Al Harrington playing too selfishly. The Knicks had just 13 assists Tuesday. ‘We’re going to get back to running more, that’s on me,’ D’Antoni said. ‘We got too much 1-on-1 playing. . . . We’re just jacking shots up sometimes.’”
Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle: “Contrary, to expectations, there are few perfect games. This one was far from it. But that was the point. It’s imperfections led to the difference, to the win and maybe even the way out of the sinking spiral in which the Rockets had seemed trapped. It’s not just about playing hard, though the Rockets did. That is supposed to be assumed, and nothing good can happen unless that happens first. Playing hard is not enough. It’s a start. Basketball is never about the first step, it’s about the next step, about the adjustment, about determination and fortitude. For weeks, when things went wrong, the Rockets sulked. They pouted lower lips and pointed fingers and moaned about their misfortune (real though it may be) to be so beset by injuries and changing lineups. Most of all, when things went wrong in the game, they lacked the toughness to have to the fortitude to respond. The Rockets beat the Celtics not because they were so wonderful, but because of the way they responded when they weren’t.”
Mike McGraw of the Arlington Heights Daily Herald: “Lindsey Hunter took lessons in how to be a worthwhile NBA mentor from Bill Laimbeer, of all people. The Bulls veteran entered the league with the Detroit Pistons in 1993, when a few remnants of the Bad Boy championship era still remained. Three, to be specific: Laimbeer, Isiah Thomas and Joe Dumars. Laimbeer retired early that season, and Thomas’ career ended after 58 games with a torn Achilles’ tendon, while Dumars led a team that eventually finished 22-60. That poor record set the stage for the Pistons drafting Grant Hill. ‘Laimbeer was actually a great guy,’ Hunter said. ‘People don’t really know that. I know you all (Bulls fans) don’t like him. When (fellow rookie) Allan (Houston) and I first got there, we thought it was like, ‘Just stay out of his way.’ ‘But he went out of his way to talk to us and it was cool. Other than kicking the basketballs into the stands and making us go get them.’”
Ross Siler of The Salt Lake Tribune: “Millsap’s All-Star case gets stronger almost by the game. He had 27 points and 14 rebounds for his 19th consecutive double-double Wednesday against New Orleans. That’s the longest double-double streak by any NBA player since Kevin Garnett and the longest streak by a Jazz player since John Stockton. Not only that, Millsap outplayed New Orleans’ David West, an All-Star selection last season who was coming off a career-high 40-point game Tuesday against the Lakers. West had 13 points and six rebounds but went 4 of 14 with three turnovers. For a stretch early in the second quarter, the Jazz’s best offensive option seemed to be missing jumpers and watching Millsap go after the rebound and score. Millsap set the tone as the Jazz embarrassed New Orleans 55-26 on the glass. You also might as well copy and paste this, because you’ll never read Jerry Sloan gush about a player the way he did Millsap after Wednesday’s game. ‘I don’t know what we’re going to do with Millsap, he keeps getting better every game,’ Sloan said. ‘He’s played very hard.’”
Jeff McDonald of the San Antonio Express-News: “Thirty-four games into his 12th NBA season, Duncan appears to be as fresh and as limber as he did 34 games into his first. Heading into tonight’s home game against the injury-decimated Los Angeles Clippers, Duncan is averaging 20.8 points, his most since 2003-04, and shooting 51.9 percent from the field. Those numbers are up slightly from 19.3 points and 49.7 percent last season. On his way to an 11th consecutive All-Star appearance, Duncan has quarterbacked the Spurs to a 23-11 record, good for first place in the Southwest Division by a game over the New Orleans Hornets (21-11). The Spurs and Nuggets (25-12) are tied for second in the Western Conference behind the vaunted Los Angeles Lakers. Duncan shrugs off the incremental increase in his offensive statistics. He doesn’t know what the fuss is about. ‘Everything is kind of running through me right now, maybe more so than in the past,’ Duncan said. ‘It helps that the ball is going in a little bit more than usual.’”
Sam Amick of the Sacramento Bee: “He is lacking more than playing time these days. He’s lacking confidence.The Udrih-Kenny Natt combination is certainly an oil-water mix for the moment. As Udrih shares at the end of a revealing eight-minute interview you can find below, he’s looking for pats on the back from his coach and instead gets quizzical looks or head shakes and a short leash. If Udrih could peek inside the family rooms of so many fans who have watched him play this season, however, he would likely see the same expression of disappointment.But Udrih’s ability to play out of this funk is nothing short of a dire necessity for the Kings. They need him to earn the contract that so many folks around the league can’t believe he was given, both because those are big paychecks being handed out and because he is a vital player on a team whose vitals are fading. And beyond the dollar amount, they can ill afford to have Udrih’s value dip to these depths for their own purposes and any potential for future trade.”
Neil Paine of Basketball-Reference.com: What Can We Expect From Starbury?
Mike Wells of the Indianapolis Star: “I’ve told a number of people this, including Pacers PR man David Benner as we sat next to each other Wednesday, this is the best locker room I’ve had the opportunity to cover since I’ve been in Indiana and second overall (2003-04 Timberwolves were great). There’s no jealousy or any cliques on the team. There’s no finger pointing. I don’t walk in the locker room and feel like there’s any tension between players as in years past. The chemistry should get even better now that Mike Dunleavy is back. Dunleavy definitely looked rusty early on in his first regular-season game since last April. At the same time, though, you felt his presence on the court. Guys followed his lead by constantly moving without the ball.”
Chris Tomasson of the Rocky Mountain News: “What the Nuggets need now is an impact player who could help them with playoff positioning and to advance in the postseason for the first time since 1994. They will spend the days before the Feb. 19 trade deadline looking for that player. ‘I think the window of opportunity to maybe try to make a trade that will impact our team has gotten better because of being under the tax line,” said Karl, whose team also made a trade on Monday in sending Cheikh Samb to the Clippers in a move that helped their tax situation. ‘I think our organization, led by (owner Stan Kroenke) has done a great job of having a plan. The plan has not always made the coaches happy. But the plan has been committed. And we have now reached the goal.‘And so now what’s the next plan? Hopefully, the next plan is maybe come trade deadline there will be an opportunity to make this team a better team and we can get it done under the reins of staying under the tax.’ That the Nuggets got under the tax line after last summer flirting with a payroll of nearly $90 million is amazing. But they had to give up some of their bargaining chips to do it.”
Ronald Tillery of the Memphis Commercial Appeal: “How do NBA teams spell luxury tax relief these days? M-E-M-P-H-I-S. For the second time in the past month the Grizzlies consummated a trade in which they helped a team move farther away from the league’s dollar-for-dollar penalty for exceeding the luxury tax threshold. In return, the Griz again gave up little to nothing and received cash considerations. That was basically the crux of a deal late Wednesday afternoon when the Griz traded a conditional 2012 second-round draft pick to the Miami Heat for guard Shaun Livingston and an undisclosed amount of cash. Memphis pulled off a similar transaction Dec. 24 when it sent a conditional 2011 second-round pick to Houston for veteran guard Steve Francis, a 2009 second-round pick and $3 million.”
Don Seeholzer of the Pioneer Press: “From a 13-game losing streak to six wins in their past eight games, the Timberwolves have made quite a turnaround over the past two weeks. Coach Kevin McHale had the simplest of answers when asked to explain the difference. ‘Probably confidence, I would say,’ McHale said after the Wolves ran their winning streak to four games Wednesday night with a resounding 129-87 victory over the Oklahoma City Thunder. ‘They’re confident. They’re feeling good about playing basketball.’ Guard Randy Foye, who tied his career high with 32 points in just three quarters, sounded the same theme. ‘I feel as though our confidence is growing,’ he said. ‘Not only because we’re getting the wins, (but) because we’re winning the way that we want to win. We’re playing together, we’re getting stops on defense and we’re rebounding.’ Hard to believe this is the same team that started 0-8 under McHale, who improved to 6-10 since replacing the fired Randy Wittman less than a month ago.”
Mark Madsen: “McHale’s coaching style reminds me a little bit of my first coach and NBA mentor, Phil Jackson. The one thing they both really have in common is that during practice they’re both all over people and once the game starts they don’t say a whole lot. It allows you as a player to relax, play loose, and just try to make a play without looking over your shoulder. They both cared a lot about effort an energy. Phil Jackson used to always talk about playing with energy. McHale has a new tradition that no coach I’ve ever played for has used. At the end of practice or a game or before a game when everybody on the team puts their hand in for the break, (‘one, two, three, TEAM, or WIN, chant), McHale takes a different approach. Everybody puts their hand in and then McHale will single out one guy and ask for example, ‘Craig Smith, what do you have for us today?’ Craig might say ‘Family’ (as he did once) and then on ‘three’ everyone chants ‘FAMILY!’ I like this as it keeps everyone on their toes and everyone thinking about what they want the chant to be if McHale picks them.”
Chris Mannix of CNNSI.com: “DiLeo says he would like the Sixers to play a style similar to the New York Knicks, who have embraced Mike D’Antoni’s run-and-gun philosophy. But the Sixers have no one on the roster who is considered a pure shooter. Indeed, no Sixer who has attempted more than 30 threes has connected on better than 33 percent of them. Philadelphia’s ‘gunners’ include Green (32.8 percent), Young (32.5 percent) and Williams (26.3 percent). Not exactly Jason Kapono, Mike Miller and Kyle Korver. Still, DiLeo remains committed to launching more three-pointers in hopes of connecting on between 5-7 shots per game. The team has added extra shooting drills to practices and been told that it has the freedom to launch at any point in the shot clock. ‘When guys are playing in the summer, there are a lot of three-point shots going up,’ said Iguodala. ‘We just have to make sure we don’t take bad threes. We have to make sure we keep going to the basket. And if there is an open three, take it.’ While instilling long-range confidence in his players is foremost on DiLeo’s mind, finding another perimeter threat is what concerns Stefanski.”
Rick Bonnell of The Charlotte Observer: “Brown’s coaching style is about holding people accountable. It’s authoritative and old-school. I think he’s concerned that by making excuses for his players publicly, he gives license to them excusing themselves privately. It seems harsh, but I get where he’d arrive at this view. Larry entertained several reporters the other night with ABA stories about playing four games in four nights and playing on opposite sides of the country on consecutive nights. This wasn’t one of those back-in-my-day harangues. It was simply Larry laughing at the craziness of those times. But I can sure see why, with that history, he’d expect his players to compete every night in this age of charter flights and five-star hotels.”
Adrian Wojnaroski of Yahoo! Sports: “After a nasty parting in Dallas with Mark Cuban, Nelson returned to the kind of circumstance that he loved: an underdog with no expectations. Cuban always insisted that Nellie never wanted to coach when the burden changed, but loved it when no one expected much of his teams. Those go-go Warriors of Baron Davis and Jackson were a cast of misfits and rejects who found a purpose and passion under Nellie. It was a one-hit wonder in ‘07, an epic upset of the Mavs that turned out to be a vapor. Now, Davis is gone to the Clippers, the Warriors have been decimated with a blend of injuries and youth that have conspired for a 10-26 record. Beyond the money, the biggest reason for Nelson to stay on the job comes next season: He’ll pass Lenny Wilkens’ 1,332 coaching victories for the most in NBA history. ‘It means nothing to me at this point in my life,’ Nelson said. ‘It’s not something that’s a goal of mine at all. I’d rather not have it than have it. … Lenny deserves to have it.’ Those surrounding Nelson laugh when they hear him talk that way, because the record does matter to him.”
Jeff Caplan of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram: “A new process allows teams to send questionable calls to the league office on a game-by-game basis via a designated Web site. A league official reviews the play and provides the team with an interpretation. ‘We like it,’ Cuban said. ‘We have been pretty good at picking the plays we challenge. We seem to have a pretty high batting average. I’m not sure how the league uses this information going forward, though.’ For instance, if the league agreed that Nowitzki was fouled when no call was made in the Minnesota game, is that information forwarded to all referees to be on the lookout for a certain kind of foul in a specific situation against Nowitzki? And what repercussions do refs face for a bad call? Perhaps nothing more than an explanation and acceptance of a bad call is realistic in a high-speed game played by giant men. It won’t change an outcome, but it might at least make a team feel vindicated. It certainly won’t stop the Mavs, or anyone else, from lobbying.”
John Hollinger of ESPN.com: “It’s possible the No. 9 team in the West will have 10 more wins than the No. 8 team in the East — yet the latter club will be the one that makes the postseason. It’s possible a second-round series in the East will feature two teams with records better than anybody in the West. And it’s possible, although unlikely, that the Lakers could make the Finals without playing a single 50-win team, while Detroit’s path to the Finals could involve three 60-win teams in succession. Suffice it to say, if the current standings hold up the rest of the way, we’re going to have a very interesting playoff bracket, one that should only heighten the ongoing debate about whether it’s worthwhile to seed the entire playoffs rather than split it into two conferences. In the past this discussion had focused almost entirely on the glaring disparity between East and West, but this year there’s a new twist — a top-heavy East that features three heavyweights but may only have six or seven teams that are truly worthy of being in the postseason, and a middle-heavy West that lacks a real No. 2 but has eight teams of nearly equal quality piled up behind the Lakers.”
