One of the worst enemies you can possibly have is time. That guy just about always wins. Shaquille O'Neal fights change on and off the court, and finds it's tough to get good results. Karen Crouse reports in The New York Times: "[Pat] Riley said he wanted O'Neal to venture out from under the basket for hook shots and try to score off the pick-and-roll. O'Neal so far has resisted - so vehemently in one recent practice that Mourning reportedly had to step between O'Neal and Riley. 'I don't have a rough spot with Pat,' O'Neal said. 'I want to win, but I've been winning my way. I'm not going to change at 35, 36.' O'Neal talked about the difficulties of juggling the public life of a professional athlete and a personal relationship. He said that he has been told that a high percentage of professional athletes' marriages end in divorce postcareer. 'It's more difficult for women married to guys like us,' he said. 'We're moody. We're arrogant. We're stupid. We're selfish. In order for me to be the type athlete I am, I have to be like that. Some guys don't have the ability to turn it on and turn it off. I probably didn't have that ability.' Antoine Walker, a former Miami player whose new team, the Minnesota Timberwolves, lost to his old team here Monday, said: 'Usually you can come home and have a happy home and have your kids kind of make you feel better when things are not going well for you. I'm sure he's struggling, because I know he's a big family person.'"
Trouble in Utah, where last year's Western Conference Finalists have gone 2-8 in their last ten. People are starting to get bitter. Ross Siler of the Salt Lake Tribune: "Jazz guard Gordan Giricek wasn't backing down from the shouting match, coach Jerry Sloan was pointing toward the exit and assistant coach Tyrone Corbin was trying to step in between the two. That was the scene during a timeout with 7:50 left in the second quarter, when Giricek and Sloan had it out. Giricek was sent to the locker room for the rest of the game and afterward suspended for the final two games of this road trip."
Dave McMenamin of NBA.com: "Only two teams that made The Finals in the last 20 years failed to make the playoffs the following season. Those two teams, the 1998-99 Chicago Bulls and the 2004-05 L.A. Lakers, could blame the loss of Hall of Famers (Jordan, Pippen, O'Neal) as the cause of their rapid decline. The 2007-08 Cleveland Cavaliers are threatening to become the third. After a lackluster 108-90 loss to a Knicks team that came into the game with a 7-17 record, Cleveland's record stands at just 11-15. If the playoffs started today, the Cavaliers would be the No. 8 seed in the East (view standings). Philadelphia, New Jersey and Milwaukee all sit just a half game back of the hapless Cavs, who have a 1-4 combined record this year against the 76ers (0-1), the Nets (0-2) and the Bucks (1-1)."
The agent shenanigans with Yi Jianlian this summer no doubt cost the Bucks some extra cash in long-distance phone calls, legal fees, translation, and travel expenses. They'll earn that back and then some, if this deal is any indication.
TrueHoop reader Frans emails: "Something I've always wondered: Is it tougher for guys in the Eastern Conference to fly out West and play games which would last late into the night based on their internal clocks? An 8 pm start time on the Pacific would be like Eastern guys starting to play at 11 pm." I could make some kind of joke about NBA players not going to bed before 4 am, so what's the difference, but I don't really believe that to be true for anything like everyone. My hunch is that it sure can't help.
The Grizzlies beat the Spurs last night, but their mascot wasn't there. Ronald Tillery of the Memphis Commercial Appeal: "The man who wears the Grizz costume and serves as the team's mascot is taking a leave of absence to deal with a medical issue. Eric McMahon was recently diagnosed with Hodgkin's lymphoma and will be out indefinitely to undergo treatment. The team will not replace McMahon during his absence, so Grizz will be absent at any community appearances for the foreseeable future. Players, meanwhile, will wear a 00 patch on their warm-ups representing Grizz's jersey number to show support for McMahon. 'I'd like to thank the Grizzlies organization for all their support as I begin treatment for Hodgkin's lymphoma,' McMahon said in a statement." Click the link above for McMahon's contact information.
The Celtics a white team? J.A. Adande really wants you to reconsider that notion. And he makes a strong case that they're one of the blackest teams in NBA history.
If David Lee gets that jumpshot to fall, he'll be scoring in bunches, because he can sure finish at the rim, and he can find the open man, which will make him a tough cover.
How about microphones everywhere? Mark Madsen writes on his blog that players are talking about it: "I guess they are putting microphones on NBA coaches for nationally televised games. That is the buzz I've been hearing around the league. I am really surprised the networks and the coaches decided to do this. I just want to know who at the TV network has the job of listening in to the coach the whole game and trying to figure out what they can put on the air and what they can't play. In addition, most coaches have their right hand man that they talk to privately back and forth during the game. To draw some sort of parallel, think about someone having your family miked up for a week. To me it's tough to imagine that." Jerry Brown of the East Valley Tribune on an incident last night: "After the Dallas game announcer gave him the wrong number of fouls for the second time, Raja Bell walked over and gave him a four-lettered piece of his mind -- right above the ESPN open microphone. Bell saw the mic, walked back over and put his hands over it in sheepish apology."
Brian McCormick on Nazr Mohammed for Walter Herrmann and Primoz Brezec: "I don't know what the Bobcats are thinking. If you gave me the choice of any of the three players, Nazr would probably be my third choice. He's a nice role player. However, Herrmann can shoot and brings energy and Brezec is a poor man's Zydrunas Ilgauskas. ... And the Pistons save money. ... If Hermann develops a little more Nocioni in his game, watch out. Joe Dumars is a lock for Executive of the Year when you combine this trade with the Jarvis Hayes signing. Every year, just when people think the Pistons are going to slip, Dumars keeps them at the top." That said, Mohammed has looked good so far in Charlotte.
The Warriors beat the lowly Timberwolves' last night, but only after staking them to an eight-point half-time lead. Golden State of Mind takes a stab at what Don Nelson may have said at halftime: "&#$%, $%@, #$%@, and you better start %#$@$@$ playing defense. Now let's hold hands and sing Kumbaya."
Basketbawful: "Life got you down? Don't worry. You too can harness the miraculous power of Odenization. But how, you ask? Just follow Jeremy's simple, step-by-step instructions: 'It involves closing your senses to the outside world and only thinking of Greg Oden, his monotone voice, and how great it is that he's going to be a Portland Trailblazer.' This may require you to become a Trailblazer fan, so if you aren't one already, start now."
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