Man oh man. There is something wrong with my satellite service, so I haven't been able to watch squat. And it occured to me that a lot of you were probably busy eating, flying places, watching football, and the like.
So here is some of what we may have missed by not watching a lot of basketball over the last few days:
New Jersey! After Jason Kidd did his whole sourpuss routine, he led the Nets to three straight wins, including a close game over the Lakers. And let's not forget that the Lakers are good.
Jamario Moon continued to position himself nicely for a Red Bull endorsement. (UPDATE: A TrueHoop reader wants you to be aware, before playing basketball on Red Bull, of various health concerns including a player in Ireland who reportedly died in 2000 after drinking Red Bull.) From the Associated Press: "No Chicago player was able to defend Moon, who brought the crowd to its feet by blowing past Ben Wallace for a layup with 5:32 to play, giving Toronto a 75-68 edge. 'Coach had already pointed out to me that when I get the ball on the wing, no one is in front of me,' Moon said. 'He told me the next time I get it he wanted me to take it to the basket strong. When I turned, no one was in front of me so I just went.' Moon, who said he routinely downs a pair of energy drinks before games, has brought a welcome boost to the Raptors. 'He's done a great job,' Bosh said. 'Every team in the NBA needs somebody like that because sometimes you're flat. When you have a guy who's going to come out and run the floor like that and make some big-time blocked shots, it's going to help us out. That kind of wakes everybody up.'"
The Knicks and Bulls squared off in what you could call the "Misery Bowl" and the Bulls managed to scratch out a new low point of their season. A few weeks ago if I had told you that the Knicks would be terrible at this point, you would have shrugged. But if I added that the Bulls had been essentially healthy, but worse? Well, I mean, that's not good.
Memphis guard Juan Carlos Navarro got to face the team that drafted him and then didn't have room for him on the roster. (Now that Gilbert Arenas is hurt, by the way, I bet Washington would love to have a backcourt scorer.) Navarro only took 14 shots, but scored 28 as Memphis beat Washington.
The Bobcats had the ball and the lead with 4.7 seconds left against the Celtics, but Eddie House poked the ball away, Paul Pierce corralled it and shuttled it instantly to an open Ray Allen, who nailed the game-winning three-pointer as time expired.
In Portland, Nate McMillan gives not breaking things a try, and the team beat Sacramento on Friday. Jason Quick of the Oregonian: "The coach, who has been heavy-handed with the team all season in calling plays, shouting instructions and pulling players for mistakes, told the team that he was going to start backing off. He felt he was over-coaching by giving them too many instructions, which he felt was making them think more than just play. In the process, McMillan said he would sit in his seat more often, rather than his usual pacing up and down the sideline. 'He did that tonight, and guys just played,' Aldridge said. 'I think guys had been hesitant to take shots, but tonight, guys just took shots. We just did it ourselves, he didn't have to yell at us or break any clipboards.'"
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