“For seven years, the man known as Sammy D only called one city home..”
That’s how the Kings broadcast of the Sacramento @ Philly game began. To be perfectly honest, I wasn’t very intrigued. Who would be? I mean that’s a laughable intro line, right? They made it seem as if someone who was actually relevent was coming home, totally setting the stage for a complete dud. So I LOL’d, left to go play some basketball of my own, and came home to find this thing in OT. I guess that’s why they play the game…
Random Observations:
- Highlight Recap, Shannon Brown Edition:
- Highlight Recap, Everyone Else Edition:
- Like I said… who would’ve thought the game of the day would be Sacramento at Philadelphia? With a pregame storyline that pretty much began and ended with the return of Samuel Dalembert to Philly… it just didn’t seem to be oozing with excitement. The Kings have played surprisingly well on their little road trip, though. They had won three of four coming in, and had held their two previous opponents under 100 points. That may have more to do with the Bucks and the Pace Makers than it does with the Kings, but hey, I’ll give ‘em some credit. Anyway, this thing ended up in OT on a Lou Williams three-pointer…
- Note his swag…
- The problem was, though, that that was Lou’s only bucket of the game. He went 1-12, and Philly clunked 51 of 91 shots as well as 10 freethrows. The Kings, on the other hand, made 38 of 85 shots, knocked down three more freethrows, and four extra triples. Not huge edges by any stretch, but just enough to get the job done (114-111). The Samuel Dalembert storyline was alive and well down the stretch. Dumblembert knocked down a pair of freethrows to ice the game with 12 seconds left. He also scored 13 points and grabbed 19 boards, but Paul Westphal knows what’s up: “He put them through the Sam Dalembert rollercoaster,” said the coach. Sammy’s five turnovers pretty much explain that. Marcus Thornton, who continues to make me look like a moron (remember the fantasy trade I turned down?), scored a game-high 32 points. Jrue Holiday led Philly with 28.
- It was a battle of the ’95/96 co-rookies of the year in Phoenix, but it was two far younger players who would put up gaudy numbers. Marcin Gortat, who didn’t miss a single game after breaking his nose, scored 20 points, grabbed 15 boards, and swatted three shots… but Tyson Chandler’s 16 points and 18 rebounds on five of seven from the field helped Dallas pick up a 91-83 win that essentially eliminated Phoenix. The Suns now trail the Grizzlies for the 8th spot by 4 games with just 10 remaining. Phoenix has dropped three of their last four, although it’s not like they’re playing bad basketball. They lost in triple OT to the Lakers, by six to the Hornets, and this competetive game against Dallas… but these are games they absolutely needed to stay in the race, and they just haven’t quite been good enough. Jared Dudley matched Gortat’s total of 20 points for the Suns. Dirk Nowitzki had just 15 points on 6-19, but four other Mavs scored in double figures, helping to pick up the slack. Neither team shot well in this one. Phoenix’s 1-16 three-point shooting pretty much burried them.
- I never like to see anyone get hurt, but the fact that Manu Ginobili suffered a thigh contusion during a bit of a flop attempt (certainly contact, but I don’t think Gasol leveled the dude) is a little funny to me…
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He had to leave the game after playing just 20 minutes, Popazitz got tossed as a result, and the Spurs dropped their third in a row (111-104 to the Grizzlies, who shouldn’t be discredited due to SA’s injuries, they’re missing Rudy Gay). All three of the losses have come against not only playoff teams, but teams that are playing well… still, San Antonio needs to watch their backs because the Lakers are coming in hot, trailing by just four games now. What I mean by coming in hot is that with a 102-84 win over the Hornets last night LA has now won 15 of 16 since the All-Star break. They’re really rolling… and the West’s other top teams quite honestly aren’t. Did I just kill two games with one bullet? I think I did. Oh, take note of Carl Landry’s 24/10 in place of David West. The guy is a player.
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The Celtics beat Minnesota, but it doesn’t really feel like they beat Minnesota. What I mean is that an 85-82 W over the T-Wolves isn’t really Celtics-like… well, actually, it’s all too Celtics-like lately. These guys haven’t scored 100 points since 11 games ago in a loss to the Clippers. They are still showing absolutely zero signs of chemistry. I’m not going to hit any panic buttons here… I think we’re just going to have to wait and see what happens with these guys. They could have a breakout game one of these days and just roll from there. Last night’s game was obviously not that, although they still added a win to their record. KG’s 13/13 was bigger than it appears considering that he scored Boston’s final two buckets. Michael Beasley was excellent with 28 points and 10 boards, but some of his teammates struggles (Anthony Randolph went 0-5).
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Gerald Wallace exploded for 40 points on 16-28, but Portland lost 90-99 to the Thunder, who have officially clinched a playoff spot. As good as Gerald Wallace was… well, that’s how bad the rest of the Blazers were. The rest of the crew combined to shoot 19-53. Not only that, Brandon Roy had to leave the game early with an injury. I know, you’ve got to be sh!tting me, these poor Blazers can’t catch a break. The good news is that it’s back spasms, not his knee. Russell Westbrook led OKC with 28 points. It’s looking like Oklahoma is going to meet Denver in the first round. Man, that series has potential. I don’t even know if I’d call OKC the favorite. I’d love to see Denver win a first round series as the Knicks face certain elimination (assuming they don’t completely choke the playoffs away). Is that New York grass still looking greener, Carmelo?
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The Other Games: LeBron, Dwyane, and Chris all did 30+/10+ as the Heat beat the Rockets 125-119. I believe someone on NBAtv said that this is the first time three Heat players have ever done such a thing, but don’t quote me on that. The Hawks experienced what it would’ve been like had they chosen Chris or Deron over Marvin Williams, who dropped 31 points in ATL’s 99-83 victory over the Cavs. Savor the moment, Atlanta… it will likely never happen again. Former Wizard Al Thornton scored four points in Golden State’s 114-104 win over Washington. Former Warrior Cartier Martin dropped five for the Wiz. Javale McGee put up 28/18/5 BLKs in a losing effort.
Quote of the Day: Shane Battier loves the Grizzlies’ toughness…
“To be a playoff team, you have to be tough. That’s requisite number one. I think we showed we are a tough team. I would like to play a little smarter. That’s the next step. But you have to have toughness, and there’s no doubt in this team’s toughness.”
…but he wants them to start using words like “requisite” so they can take that next step.
Photo of the Day: Gotta love a photo like this…
