Game Notes: 11/13

I would have had this up earlier but I was distracted by the movie TNT put on after inside the NBA. Starring Ice T, John C. McGinley and GARY BUSEY in some sort of "most dangerous game" rip off story. It is not a good movie, but with lines like "I sleep in a bed spit head" and "Stop being a chicken spit dog and pull the mother jumping trigger", and similar edits (the humor of which has been a long time trademark of the Turner networks. Check out Kill Bill the next time it is on TNT for an even better example).




Denver – 99 at Cleveland – 110

Chauncey Billups had a nearly flawless line, JR Smith had his first positive outing in recent times, and K-Mart returned to action to give a double double and two steals in 35 minutes, but it wasn’t enough to give Denver a victory against a Cavs team that shot 57% from the field (of course, Melo’s cold shooting night and 6 TO’s didn’t help much either). LeBron came very close to his self-proclaimed “ideal line” with 22-8-11 although he was hampered slightly by 5 TO’s and 2/4 from the line (not too bad since he also shot 50% from the field). Mo Williams started the game hot and finished with 24 points, 6 assists and 2 TO’s (oddly enough, the TO number is the most refreshing of the group to see). Boobie had nice scoring stats off the bench, and Varejao added a useful 6-8 on 2/2 from the field and the line.

Side note: K-Mart was ejected on a flagrant 2 that was total hogwash with about a minute to go. I can’t remember the rules for suspensions in situations such as this, but if there is anything right in the world Stu Jackson will look at tape of this and reprimand power trippin Joey Crawford instead of the victimized K-Mart.




Dallas – 91 at Chicago – 99

Much like two nights ago, Dallas started super hot and then just evaporated… only tonight they also got floored by Ben Gordon. Josh Howard returned to the lineup and had a wonderful line going through 12 minutes, but eventually decimated his FG% to a frightening low, allowing him to turn in what might be the most difficult to swallow double double of the year. Dirk and JET had nice lines if you discount their lack of points due to awful shooting performances, even Kidd struggled to pull something useful out of this game. Erick Dampier however, oh did he shine! Taking advantage of both teams converting buckets at an atrocious rate, damp ate glass and did his best Dwight Howard impersonation, finishing with 16-18-1-1-3. Ben Gordon SLAYED tonight, collection 35-2-4 with 2 threes on golden %’s. Tyrus Thomas was actually pretty good coming off the bench tonight. Derrick Rose struggled shooting… kind of, his line overall was great, he did go 2/4 from the line but that can be attributed to his undeniable excitement over the start of the college season and his close ties to the University where he spent one year, which was plenty to get a sense of strong traditions such as missing free throws.

Weird rotation things: Joakim Noah started, picked up 2 quick fouls, was pulled… and never returned. No reports of injury, and no clue what to expect in the next Bulls game.

Side note: Larry Hughes returned to action tonight, but posted a hardly noticeable 5-2 with a three and a steal in 12 minutes.




Detroit – 107 at Golden State – 102

Kwame Brown (!!!) started for the Pistons, but did very little. The other Detroit starters (usual suspects, AI/RIP/Prince/Sheed) were all awesome in their own ways. Sheed hit threes, blocked shots and scored. Tayshaun didn’t score much, but paired a block and a steal with 16 boards. AI put in phenomenal volume on an ugly FG%. RIP was out of his mind nearly getting a triple double to go with his sexy as usual %’s and surprising 4 steals. The Warriors struggled shooting, but Biedrins collected another monster double double with 17-19. Azubuike scored well but didn’t support it with anything. Stephen Jackson’s line was essentially the same as AI’s with fewer points.

Rotation news: Corey Maggette returned for the Warriors tonight, and CJ Watson started, but Kelenna remained in the starting line up. Maggette’s minutes should inflate beyond the 28 he received tonight very soon. Brandan Wright was decent off the bench, but nothing spectacular as he only received 17 minutes (a number that led all bench players). The only thing that I can see changing with this line up is Watson going to the bench, Jackson to PG and Wright to PF. Marcus Williams looked fat, lazy and mentally unfit for even the most menial of food service jobs in his 4 minutes, and DeMarcus Nelson didn’t dress… so for now (which means today) Nellie does not seem pleased with his team’s PG situation. Of course, predicting Nellie is impossible, so take all of this with a grain of salt (or several).