Brian Windhorst of The Plain Dealer: “They are in position to perhaps earn home-court advantage throughout the playoffs, especially considering the Boston Celtics, whom the Cavs lead by two games in the loss column, are now missing five players because of injury and the Lakers are starting a stretch where they play 10 of 13 games on the road. Despite the impression the team may put out there publicly, they are keenly aware of this fact. Especially LeBron James, who is prepared to increase his playing time if needed to make sure the Cavs finish the month strong. After visits to the Clippers, Phoenix Suns and Sacramento Kings this week, the Cavs finish March with eight of nine games at home. ‘If playing time has to increase for us to win ballgames because of the race with Orlando and Boston and L.A., then it will increase,’ James said Tuesday. ‘I have no problem with that because I feel healthy. I have nicks and bruises but everybody does; I’m comfortable.’ James’ comments follow a two-game stretch where he looked tired for the first time this season. In Boston and against the Heat at home last weekend, James shot just 10-of-30 from the field and averaged just 17.5 points. But James has been working even harder, increasing his weightlifting sessions and expanding his pregame warm-ups over the past couple of weeks, a trend he established the previous few years leading up to the playoffs.”
Steve Bulpett of the Boston Herald: “Even while patching things together these days, the Celtics aren’t giving up on their goal of gaining homecourt advantage in the postseason. ‘I said at the beginning of the year, even before the season started, that the team who’s the healthiest, especially down the stretch, is the team that’s going to probably win homecourt for the playoffs,’ Pierce said. ‘So hopefully we can get healthy right in time to make our run.’ Added Rivers, ‘It’s going to be tough. I would say that, but we believe we can still do it. I mean, obviously we know it’s going to be tough. We’re just going to try to grind these games out. We’ve just got to hold the fort down for maybe a week and a half. I think we can, and if we can’t we can’t. But we’re going to sure try.’ And if they wind up having to start an important series on another team’s floor, Ray Allen still believes the C’s can succeed.”
Matt Watson of FanHouse: “Dwight Howard is on the verge of making history and no one seems to notice. He’s averaging 2.9 blocks and 14.0 rebounds a game, putting him on pace to become not only the youngest player to lead the league in blocked shots (beating out Marcus Camby by nearly a year) but also only the fifth player in NBA history to lead the league in blocks and rebounds in the same season. Who else has accomplished the double feat? Just three Hall of Famers (Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Bill Walton and Hakeem Olajuwon) and a four-time Defensive Player of the Year (Ben Wallace). If blocks were recorded during their playing days, we’d probably be able to add Bill Russell and Wilt Chamberlain to the mix, as well. Either way, it’s remarkable company. In the last 17 years, six different pivot men have combined to win the Defensive Player of the Year award 14 times, and if Howard stays on his current pace, he’ll likely become the seventh. A solid perimeter defender can shut down a top scorer, but a dominant shot-blocker and rebounder disrupts the entire offensive flow.”
Adam Lauridsen for the San Jose Mercury News: “Simply bringing the ball up the court in Nelson’s offense does not make a player a point guard. While Ellis may have been the primary ball-handler, it was Jackson that ran the offense and racked up the assists — as has been the case all year. There are two situations for a point guard to run Nelson’s offense — on the break and in the half-court. Ellis’ return did correspond with a return of the Warriors’ once-typical pace and seemed to fuel not only an offensive resurgence but a brief return to some of the chaotic, scrapping defense we briefly saw on our best teams. Ellis deserves much of the credit for the change, since no Warrior is better at pushing the ball on the break. In the half-court, however, Ellis’ inability to beat his man or get into the lane limited his ability to create for others. Nelson’s best recent point guards — Nash and Davis — thrived on the drive and kick. While Davis used speed and strength to get into the lane to draw attention, Nash used ball-handling skills and craftiness. Ellis once had the former and has never really had the latter.”
Vince Ellis of the Detroit Free Press: “Everybody has noticed how Rip Hamilton has scored since he was reinserted into the starting lineup six games ago — it’s difficult not to notice a guy averaging nearly 25 points. But Hamilton is doing more than scoring. With a career-high 14 assists in Monday’s 98-94 victory over the Orlando Magic , Hamilton is averaging 6.6 assists during the Pistons’ 5-1 stretch. Hamilton is making teams pay for double-teams when he catches the ball off a screen. He’s dumping the ball to the big men for dunks or open jumpers. He’s also passing the ball back on the weak side for open three-pointers from the wings. Backup small forward Walter Herrmann has been the main beneficiary of this tactic. It’s all about taking what the defense allows.”
Michael Wallace of the Miami Herald: “Whereas much of the hoopla lately has been focused on Wade’s offensive eruptions in recent weeks, his defense has been equally effective for the Heat team that will need one of his best efforts on that side of the ball Wednesday when the defending champion Boston Celtics visit AmericanAirlines Arena. ‘It’s all about defense,’ said Wade, who will likely split time guarding either 2008 Finals MVP Paul Pierce or sharpshooter Ray Allen. `We have to continue to understand that when we win games, it’s on the defensive end. We have to pick that up.’ As Wade’s offensive numbers have soared since the All-Star break — he is averaging more than 40 points and 11 assists since — his defense hasn’t lagged far behind. Wade had six rebounds, four steals and three blocks to go with his 48 points and 12 assists on Monday. It was the sixth time in the past 12 games that Wade has had at least three steals. He has had at least three blocks in three games over that span. There has been balance to Wade’s brilliance this season. ‘He’s got an incredible will to win,’ Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said. “You hear people throw that out there, not really sure what that means. But it’s an absolute will to impact every possession to help the team win.’”
Mark Heisler of the Los Angeles Times: “Happily, I’ve never seen a player upset at not winning an MVP. Shaq got upset that year Fred Hickman kept him from being the only unanimous pick, but that was Shaq. I remember Bryant at 22, coming off his first title, telling me before the opener in Portland the next fall that he wanted to win the MVP. It was so wild, I didn’t even write it down. Bryant subsequently announced he might have to leave to be all he could be, and engaged in a season-long feud with Shaq. By the time Kobe finally won an MVP eight years later, he had learned what it’s worth in the end: Nothing. If he wins the next three titles and no MVPs, they’ll say he was better than Michael Jordan. James, who’s already 24 and has never come closer than No. 2 in the MVP voting, would like one. (Asked what he thinks about the media deciding, he said, ‘I love you guys.’)”
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Chris Dempsey of The Denver Post: “As of now, the players are largely lacking confidence and the coach is pressing to find answers, particularly in the lineup, where player movement has taken on an early-season feel. Karl has started to shuffle the lineups a lot, most notably starting J.R. Smith. While that is fine, it has compromised their bench a bit as their perimeter scoring presence off the bench has taken a hit because of the season-long struggles of Linas Kleiza. Renaldo Balkman has seen more playing time lately. Karl played nine players in the first quarter at Utah. There is considerable instability there. Secondly, the Nuggets have not been able to correct problems in execution and attention to detail. Many of the things that made them successful and got them out to a 37-17 record they just don’t do anymore. Passing on offense is shoddy. Awareness on defense has been wishy-washy. Coaches and players have talked at length about some of this, but nothing has translated to improvement on the court and it’s hard to see if it ever will.”
Marc Berman of the New York Post: “Mike D’Antoni knew the Knicks were one half away from realistically ending their chances of staying in the playoff race. Before the game, he called their playoff hopes ‘dim.’ So at halftime, with the Knicks down nine after allowing 65 points, D’Antoni unleashed a rare diatribe designed to pep up a club that had lost five of six games and hadn’t beaten the Bucks all season. It worked as the Knicks rallied for a 120-112 victory. ‘At halftime he kind of opened everyone’s eyes as far as trying to make this push,’ said hero Larry Hughes, who finished with 39 points. ‘He said, any team that leaves this building with a victory against us, they have to be banged, scratched up and not leave without a fight. That’s how we came out for 24 minutes. We scrapped.’ D’Antoni believes that players must motivate themselves, that if they didn’t know the significance of last night’s game, they shouldn’t be in the NBA. But for one night, he became Knute Rockne.”
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Mark Alesia and Brendan O”Shaughnessy of the Indianapolis Star: “Indiana Pacers co-owner Herb Simon stressed Tuesday that he wants to keep his team in Indianapolis but was equally adamant that he can no longer afford the operating expenses at Conseco Fieldhouse or the team’s year-after-year financial losses. Simon said the Pacers have lost money nine of the past 10 years, including the year the Pacers played in the NBA Finals. (Forbes.com offers a different financial picture; see the graphic at left.) Jim Morris, president of Pacers Sports & Entertainment, said the team has lost $200 million total since Simon bought it in 1983. ‘There comes a point where you have to say, ‘Maybe I can’t do this anymore,’ ‘ Simon, 74, said in an hourlong meeting with executives and reporters at The Indianapolis Star. ‘Certainly my family, if I’m not here, is not going to be able to do it.’”
Charles F. Gardner of the Journal Sentinel: “General Manager John Hammond thinks the franchise will be able to navigate in the rough waters through the next two seasons. He wants to keep the Bucks pointing ahead, after a marked improvement in his first year as general manager and under the guidance of coach Scott Skiles. ‘We have retained optimism because we like our roster moving forward,’ Hammond said. ‘We like the fact that bringing Redd, Jefferson and Bogut back, we think we will remain a competitive team. ‘Could we, should we be a playoff team? We hope so. And we know we have tough financial constraints, but we realize there is light at the end of the tunnel for us from a financial position, in two years.’ The Bucks will have greater financial flexibility at the end of the 2010-’11 season, when the contracts of Redd, Jefferson and Dan Gadzuric come off the books. In that season, Redd will be paid $18.3 million in the final year of his six-year, $91 million deal, and Jefferson will make $15 million in the final year of a deal he signed while with the New Jersey Nets. Gadzuric will make $7.25 million in the last year of a six-year, $36 million contract he signed in the summer of 2005. At that point the Bucks could become a team with significant room beneath the salary cap and might be able to rebuild the way the Detroit Pistons did when Hammond was an executive there.”
Melody Gutierrez of the Sacramento Bee: “As a response to the bad economy, the Kings will announce season-ticket price reductions today that will cut the cost of some plans by as much as 44 percent for the 2009-10 season. One-third of all tickets in Arco Arena will be $25.50 or less, and the franchise will continue to offer 1,000 tickets at $10 for next season. The move mirrors what most NBA teams have done in recent weeks to reach out to fans struggling to pay their mortgages and retain their jobs. Some teams froze prices or focused on added incentives, which previously has been the Kings’ strategy. However, in a letter from Joe and Gavin Maloof that will be mailed to season-ticket holders, the co-owners wrote that they are responding to what fans said was most important to them – savings. The price cuts will save season-ticket holders an average of $594 and as much as $1,562 for one ticket plan compared to 2008-09 prices.”
Dan Bickley of The Arizona Republic: “There is a serious conflict on Planet Orange, a clashing of heart and mind. With every victory, the Suns crawl deeper into delusion. With every defeat, the Suns move closer to the truth. So swallow hard, say goodbye and accept that a 122-117 home loss to the Mavericks on Tuesday night closed the book on a season and memorable era of basketball. It’s over. It hurts. It’s for the best. In this case, the truth is that these Suns need to miss the playoffs. They need to take their chances in the NBA draft lottery, even though it’s considered a shallow talent pool. Maybe the Suns can catch their first real break in a long time. Maybe they end up with a top eight pick, and luck into a player who can lead this franchise into the future. After all, they certainly won’t get that player in the 2010 draft, when the Suns do not own a first-round pick.”
