Points in the Paint

» May 15, 2009 7:16 PM | By Brandon Hoffman

John Krolik for SLAM: “Windows in the NBA are small. And if they lose, history will go to work on Kobe’s resume. The slow path Kobe’s taken to escape from Shaq’s shadow and lead a team to the promised land by himself turns into a cautionary tale, a journey began by ego and ending in misery. Near-misses against the Pistons and Celtics turn into just plain misses. Shane Battier goes from Kobe’s greatest challenge into the Man Who Stopped the Mamba. If he goes off and captures the final game, he was saving his best for when it mattered most-if he’s stopped, then we’re forced to look at the fact he’s shot 32-75 in the Lakers’ three losses and conclude that Kobe might just not have ‘it’ anymore.”

Ronald Tillery of the Memphis Commercial Appeal: “Miles was charged with misdemeanor marijuana possession because the amount of the drug was less than 2.5 grams, which would have been a felony. He was later freed on $100 bond. Grizzlies management did not respond to a request for a statement on the matter. Miles is an unrestricted free agent. He played in 34 games for the Griz this season. Although the Griz haven’t publicly stated their intentions, their plan was always to start next season without Miles. The Griz grew weary of Miles’ waning work ethic and his relationship with rookie guard O.J. Mayo. There was widespread concern in the organization about Miles’ off-the-court influence on Mayo near the end of the season.”

Marc J. Spears of the Boston Globe: “Allen acknowledged that Orlando is playing a defense similar to a box-and-one. And even when screens are set, both Magic defenders often rotate to him when he gets the ball. ‘The game plan is to stay with him at all times,’ said Magic forward Rashard Lewis, who played with Allen in Seattle. ‘They run him off a lot of screens. Even if he’s coming off a screen with a [big man], we have to help and the whole defense has to shift over. Even when we double-team Paul Pierce and we try to leave [Rajon] Rondo open to shoot the jump shot, the guy that is guarding Ray Allen or Eddie House has to stay on him tight.’ To get a good idea of what Allen is going through, check him out when he does not have the ball. ‘They are not leaving me,’ Allen said. ‘They’re not leaving me. They’re chasing me. If the play is [away], guys are up on me.’”

Nuggets Coach George Karl on the atmosphere at the Pepsi Center: “I think the two things that happened that are pretty amazing, haven’t seen happen in the NBA in a long time is, it seems like our fans cheers louder when we make a defensive play than an offensive play, and also when Chris Andersen comes in to the game. There’s an amazing energy and spirit that comes on to the court and most of Chris’ spectacular plays are defensive plays. And, he has a tremendous way of taking a good offensive possession by the opposing team, and turning it in to a good offensive possession for us. A lot of Chris’ defensive plays turn in to 4-point plays.”

Matt Steinmetz of FanHouse: “The first thing you notice if you’ve been watching the Rockets is how hard they’re playing and how much they’re scrapping and competing. That’s not something that was borne out of Yao’s injury. Fact is, Houston’s been playing hard the whole series against the Lakers, and they played hard the entire series against Portland. While we’re at it, ditto for the regular season. The point is that the Rockets’ tenacity is a direct reflection of Adelman. You don’t play as hard as the Rockets do unless you have a certain amount of respect for your head coach.”