SH Blog: Calipari to coach in Brooklyn? Shabazz’s stock falling?

Shabazz Muhammad

Scott Howard-Cooper of NBA.com reports on Shabazz Muhammad’s falling draft stock: “In truth, though, it’s not the biggest problem for the UCLA wing so obviously planning to come out as a one-and-done that coach Ben Howland noted at the time that March 2 against Arizona was the final college home game for Muhammad, an unusual level of honesty regarding the draft. The real issue is that Muhammad has played his way down the board, from beginning 2012-13 as a possibility for the No. 1 pick to realistically falling out of the top five on June 27. Muhammad could touch the middle of the lottery in a development that would have been tough to envision when he opened the season as a mega-recruit already projected as a scoring weapon in the NBA, and it will not be because of a birth certificate. It will be because of his play. “I’d like to see if he can pass the ball,” one scout said, the implication being that it doesn’t happen, before adding, “He’s a scorer, not a shooter.” Muhammad works on volume, in other words, not efficiency. “He doesn’t really make anybody better,” an executive said. “He is athletic. And he can score in a lot of ways. But I’m not sure what he does for everyone around him.” One general manager, expressing the same concerns and coming up with other twists of semantics to diplomatically call Muhammad selfish, called Muhammad a “really talented kid.” But also noted that “some nights he looks like the No. 15 pick.” “

An interesting take on the draft, via Ric Bucher of CSN Bay Area: “Up until now, most of the player assessment coming from NBA sources is scout-driven. They’re the ones charged with following players all season. Now is the time GMs turn their attention to scouting draft talent and they often come with their own strong perspectives; hence, the impression that a player has suddenly jumped or fallen in the eyes of those watching him. In many cases, it’s because new eyes are seeing him for the first time. That, at least, is one explanation I received.”

• The Lakers are still in playoff position in the West, but Mike D’Antoni isn’t happy with them. Writes Dave McMenamin of ESPNLosAngeles.com: “In a season in which the Los Angeles Lakers have pushed the reset button seemingly a half-dozen times already, Friday’s 103-100 loss to the Washington Wizards left coach Mike D’Antoni sounding like he’d prefer to reach for the off switch at this point.”This is a good team that just for whatever reason can’t collectively mentally get stimulated to [play hard] every time,” D’Antoni said after the Lakers wasted an 18-point first-half lead. “I told them today, we put our hands in [the huddle], and you guys have probably seen it, we say, ‘Championship,’ and go out [on the floor]. That’s laughable. Championship? You got to be kidding me. Nobody understands the importance of every possession offensively and defensively. Every time they got to come out with some kind of determination to be a good basketball team, and [until] then, we’re just, we’re fooling ourselves. Right now, that’s what we’re doing. We’re just making a ‘sham-mockery’ out of it.” The game marked the Lakers’ second straight loss to an opponent with a record hovering around 20 games below .500 after L.A. was blown out 99-76 in Phoenix on Monday.”

• Chris Tomasson of Fox Sports Florida talked to LeBron James about the Heat’s now 25-game winning streak: “It’s not a goal,’’ James said. “It’s never been a goal of mine. I think we’re taking each and every game as its own. We need to prepare for the next one, which is Sunday. I’m not going to sit here and downplay and act like I don’t know what the record is. I know it’s 33. But we don’t get caught up in saying we got eight games to get it. We just play our next game and see what happens.’’

• The team closest behind those Lakers is the Jazz, who have fallen out of the playoff position they were in last season. There may be an unusual reason for that, writes Bill Oram of the Salt Lake Tribune: “Having eight players bound for free agency may be taking a toll on the Jazz, coach Tyrone Corbin said Friday, and could be partly to blame for the team’s late-season struggles. “It may have a little something to do with where we are,” Corbin said. “We can’t do anything about it. We’ve got to play our way through it, that stuff we can’t do anything about until it’s time to do something about it.” Paul Millsap and Al Jefferson headline a large group of Jazz players who will be unrestricted once the season ends, and Corbin said factors such as wanting to produce bigger numbers and not getting hurt could impact individuals’ performances at this point in the year. “All that stuff could come into play,” Corbin said. “I’ve been a free agent before. You’ve got a lot of things that come into play now.” In addition to the two frontcourt leaders, Mo Williams, DeMarre Carroll, Randy Foye, Earl Watson and Jamaal Tinsley all will be seeking new contracts.”

• Mark Cuban will always be Mark Cuban, and part of being Mark Cuban is being very involved in the Dallas Mavericks. Tim MacMahon of ESPNDallas.com talked to Cuban about O.J. Mayo: “Cuban believes (Jason) Terry’s development in Dallas should be an example for Mayo. “They’re completely different players, but I think O.J. can learn a lot from Jet,” Cuban said. “Jet really got better when he became catch and shoot or one dribble and shoot. I think that’s something that O.J. needs to add to his game, and I’ve told that to him.” Mayo’s work ethic is one thing that can’t be questioned. That’s the primary reason Cuban believes that Mayo, who is extremely likely to exercise his right to be a free agent again this summer, can improve drastically. “What I love about O.J. is nobody works harder to get better,” Cuban said. “Not just on shooting, which everybody works on, but his knowledge of the game, his dedication to the game. It’s really, really surprised me how committed he is.” “
• The Magic will be without their leading scorer for the rest of the season, reports Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel: “Arron Afflalo, the Orlando Magic’s leading scorer, will miss the team’s final 12 games this regular season after he injured his right hamstring Friday night, team officials said. Afflalo has been diagnosed with a strained hamstring, and team officials plan to treat the injury with rest and physical therapy. Afflalo’s absence will force coach Jacque Vaughn to give additional time to backup guard Beno Udrih and also to youngsters E’Twaun Moore, DeQuan Jones and Doron Lamb. Maurice Harkless, already the team’s starting small forward, will take on a more significant role in the team’s offense.”

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Dan Malone is a third-year journalism student at the University of King’s College in Halifax, Nova Scotia. He blogs, edits and learns things on the fly for Sheridan Hoops. Follow him on Twitter.