The banged-up Utah Jazz and Memphis Grizzlies will both try and rebound from costly losses as the playoffs draw near in Saturday’s best game. After upsetting the Spurs as the eighth seed in last year’s playoffs, Memphis (34-24) lost to San Antonio for the fourth time this season on Thursday, 107-97. Forward Rudy Gay said the team remains confident, “I still feel like we can match up with them or anybody.” They’ll have to prove it by not letting the Jazz sweep them
“Always buy the extra half-point.” “The Picker” says that a lot in our communications, and in the comments sections of his pick posts. It is standard operating procedure for him, and it made a difference in one of his picks last night. Wes Mathews hot a meaningless 3-pointer at the buzzer last night in Portland, meaningless only to those who did not have action on the game. It made the final score 97-94 in favor of Dallas, causing one of the picks
Not only did Dwight Howard (back) miss another game, he’s out for the rest of the regular season. Glen Davis (16 PTS, 9 REB) will maintain his increased value, but Big Baby was the lone hard worker for the Magic in a terrible effort. Ryan Anderson missed 10 of 12 shots (0-for-8 from deep) and his rebounding is off, too. Garbage time came early, so Atlanta bench players like Jannero Pargo (17) and Marvin Williams (16) padded their stats. Friday the
This had been a perfect season for Stan Van Gundy. Well, check that. In a lot of ways, it has been a nightmare season for the head coach of the Orlando Magic, who has been feuding with his trade-me, don’t-trade-me franchise center, living and dying by the 3-pointer and enduring a soap opera of a year that just keeps coming up with new twists and turns. But through it all, Van Gundy had maintained enough cool to not be called for a single
With the news that Kobe Bryant would sit out another game, the Los Angeles Lakers will turn to their big men looking for another stellar performance. If Andrew Bynum can have a repeat of his 16 points and league-high 30 rebounds as he did against San Antonio, the Lakers may be equipped for success, even if he continues his quest to shoot threes or act rebellious in various ways. The Lakers (37-22) look to build upon a two-game winning streak without their leading scorer
Looks like the caffeine was flowing at Casa de Picker today. Our man who likes to “play” basketball is weighing in with five picks tonight, hoping to improve upon his 11-7-1 record built over the past nine nights. Here is a link to the odds on tonight’s games. It’s a great link because it shows where the line opened, and where it has moved. (Last night, “The Picker” shrugged off the move from 5 to 7 1/2 points in the Clippers-Timberwolves game
After 16 months under the ownership of the NBA, the New Orleans Hornets have been sold to Tom Benson, who owns the NFL’s New Orleans Saints. The sale was announced Friday by the Saints. On the team’s Twitter account was a post that confirmed “Tom Benson as the new owner of the New Orleans (at)Hornets!” The NBA and the Hornets have yet to make an official announcement. The NBA’s Board of Governors will vote on the sale Friday afternoon, the New Orleans
With the NBA regular season winding down, it’s time for a look back at what I consider the top 10 individual performances of the year. One name is conspicuously missing, and one date on the calendar accounted for two of this season’s best performances. Here we go … 1. Tony Parker: 42 points, 9 assists, 0 turnovers in 39 minutes February 4 vs. Oklahoma City in a 107-96 Spurs victory. The four-time All-Star point guard, who I stated last week deserves consideration for the MVP