Jordan Crawford denied saying anything derogatory about Carmelo Anthony’s wife after Game 5, according to Gary Washburn of Boston Globe: “I don’t know what happened. I don’t know what happened, you know what I’m saying?” he told the Globe. “I was on the bench the whole game, I don’t know why they was talking to me. They gotta be upset, their (expletives) tightening up. Of course they upset. They a little tight.” When asked if he said anything to Anthony, Crawford said: “Nah, they was talking to me baby. They was talking to me. Yeah, they like me. I think it’s that smile I keep carrying. I think we’re playing freely, not thinking as much.”
Crawford’s denial did not stop Carmelo Anthony’s wife Lala from calling out the seldom used guard on Instagram, saying Crawford was on the bench for a reason:
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Wizards rookie Bradley Beal
Bradley Beal discussed ending up third in the voting for Rookie of the Year, from Michael Lee of Washington Post: ““I can still remember all my conversations with Coach Donovan,” Beal said, recently, shaking his head. “This year went really fast, probably the fastest year of basketball I’ve ever played. It’s definitely been a fun year.” “It was everything I thought it would be and a little bit more,” Beal said of the NBA. “I know there would be times when I would struggle. Guys are a lot stronger, faster – and these guys are good. That’s what a lot of people don’t realize. You may never have heard of anybody, but they can play. They’re not here for no reason.”… “It’s 82 games. It’s like 2 1/2 college seasons,” Beal said. “It wasn’t too bad. The speed of the game, the physicality of the game really didn’t bother me too much. I definitely had hard falls, but that’s just me being me I guess. It’s just something I have to adjust too and definitely get stronger. I’m definitely still growing as a kid – I mean as a man. I definitely have a lot of room to improve in my game and body wise.”
Jarrett Jack may want to stay with the Golden State Warriors, but he will test free agency regardless, according to Marcus Thompson of Mercury News: “According to multiple team sources, the Warriors initiated extension talks with guard Jarrett Jack back in January. But Jack shut down such talks before they got rolling, looking to focus on the season and wanting to experience free agency. Jack, who drew interest from multiple teams during the trade deadline, is in the last year of his contract paying him $5 million this season. He is expected to be a fairly well sought after this offseason, especially with the postseason he’s having, as multiple teams are looking for a point guard. Multiple teams are looking for point guards — including Utah, Charlotte, Toronto and possibly Milwaukee (since Brandon Jennings is a restricted free agent). Plus, Jack has proven to be a difference-maker off the bench, which has intrigued multiple teams that already have a point guard, such as the Los Angeles Lakers and San Antonio Spurs.
Zach Randolph doesn’t feel sorry for Blake Griffin’s sprained ankle. Why? Because he has a sprained ankle of his own, from Kevin Arnovitz of ESPN: “Memphis Grizzlies forward Zach Randolph expressed no sympathy on Thursday for the condition of Los Angeles Clippers forward Blake Griffin. Asked how Griffin’s high right ankle sprain injury might affect the matchup of power forwards when the two teams meet on Friday for Game 6 of their first-round series, Randolph was dismissive, reminding reporters that he was nursing his own injuries. “Banged up?” Randolph said. “I’m banged up. You forgot about my ankle? Banged up. My ankle is as big as a balloon. Talk to the trainers. I’m getting treatment every day. It’s the playoffs.”
Mark Jackson was curiously fined by the league for comments he made about the Nuggets after Game 5, from Thompson: “The NBA announced Warriors head coach Mark Jackson has been fined $25,000 for making public comments in an attempt to influence the officiating. The fine, levied by Stu Jackson, the NBA executive vice president basketball operations, were based on comments Jackson made after the Warriors lost Game 5 at Denver. Jackson said the Nuggets were roughing up point guard Stephen Curry. He was especially upset that in the first quarter, Denver forward Kenneth Faried tried to trip Curry — which Jackson took as an attempt at Curry’s oft-injured ankles. It is widely believed, and obviously the NBA thinks so, that Jackson was setting the tone for Game 6. Curry, despite Denver’s physical play, didn’t get to the free throw line once in Game 5.”
- The New York Knicks absolutely hate beat writer Frank Isola. In fact, he believes Tom Thibodeau was run out of town for leaking stuff to him, from Deadspin: “Isola said he had a good relationship with Barry Watkins, the team’s former head of public relations, but it has been a different story with Jonathan Supranowitz, who assumed the post in 2006. “I haven’t spoken to the guy in four years,” Isola said. “First of all, because he’s evil. And he’s a bad guy. Supranowitz. He’s the worst.” He blames Supranowitz for the ouster of former Knicks assistant coach Tom Thibodeau, who is now the head coach of the Chicago Bulls. “I’ve known Tom Thibodeau for 15, 16 years,” Isola said. “He has never once given me a story. We were just very friendly. Whenever I used to get a story, he used to accuse Tom Thibodeau. Here’s a guy who might be coach of the year, but they wanted to run him out of the organization not because he didn’t do his job well—he was great at his job. They thought he was leaking stuff to me. This is how dangerous some of the people are in this organization. Tom is the most loyal employee you’ll find, and these knuckleheads ran him out because they thought he was telling me stuff. I mean, give me a break.”