The Pistons are wearing their Motor City jerseys tonight. I’m a big fan of the weird jerseys. I even like the Warriors’ sleeved ones. I think I’m the only one. They make Andrew Bogut look like your dad, and I think that’s a great thing.
Anyway, I love the Pistons’ Motor City jerseys. The Blazers did it first, with the Rip City jerseys. The only problem with them is every team can’t have them, at least not in the same format. I’m sure the Bobcats would want Queen City, and there’s about fifteen of those, so I don’t think that would work. Personally, I always think of Regina, Saskatchewan as the Queen City. Maybe that’s just because I’m half Canadian.
What I’m trying to say is that if my hometown, Baltimore, ever gets another team, I hope they have alternate jerseys with Charm City on the front. Of course, Baltimore will never have a team again. Alas. And don’t try and tell me about how DC is just an hour down the road, and I should be a Wizards fan, because Washington is not Baltimore and that’s just the way we like it. Of course, if I want to actually see a game, it has to be the Wizards. Looking for Wizards tickets? Look no further.
We see them as seeing us as just another suburb, and we have a problem with that, whether or not it’s true. That’s why Orioles-Nationals is just about the only interleague baseball rivalry that means much of anything to the fans. At least the Orioles fans. We may have an inferiority complex, but screw DC.
Enough regionalism. Let’s get to the latest from around the NBA:
Seems like a strange time to be finding this out, but the New York Daily News’ Frank Isola reports that Iman Shumpert had knee surgery over the summer: “Iman Shumpert had a second left knee operation over the summer, the Daily News has learned and it is unclear if the unreported surgery could impact his trade value with the desperate Knicks trying to package Shumpert in a number of proposed deals including one for Boston’s Rajon Rondo. According to a source, Shumpert had arthroscopic surgery on his left knee last July that the Knicks never reported. In September, the Daily News reported that Amar’e Stoudemire had knee surgery over the summer which the Knicks also elected not to make public. Shumpert originally tore the ACL and meniscus in his left knee against the Miami Heat during Game 1 of the 2012 NBA Playoffs. Shumpert didn’t return until Jan. 17, 2013 and has experienced soreness on several occasions, including the Knicks second round playoff series against Indiana. In October, Mike Woodson cryptically said that Shumpert “battled this summer with some of his injuries” and added that Shumpert did experience knee pain but left it at that.”-
Knicks looking to upgrade at PG, have eye on Rondo. But sources say no interest on Celtics’ part
— Chris Broussard (@Chris_Broussard) November 18, 2013
Another of the Knicks’ players is getting disgruntled, reports Ian Begley of ESPNNewYork.com: “Knicks forward Amar’e Stoudemire is growing frustrated with the minutes limit the team has placed on him. “It’s making me look like my game is gone or that I don’t have game anymore because when you play five minutes, it’s just tough to really get in a rhythm,” Stoudemire said before Saturday night’s 110-90 loss to the Atlanta Hawks. In an effort to protect his oft-injured knees, the Knicks have placed Stoudemire on a limit of 10 minutes per game. He has been playing two five-minute intervals. “It’s tough to play five minutes and expect to be great in five minutes. It’s almost impossible,” he said. “By the time you get up and down and get adjusted to the speed of the game, it’s already three minutes, and then in two minutes you’re out of there. And if you miss a shot, it feels [like] the world is collapsing on you because you’re expected to do so much and somewhat win the game in five minutes and it’s tough. It’s hard to deal with.””-
Every current rumble on coaching grapevine says Mike Woodson is safe right now. Can you blame him for how these Knicks look sans TChandler?
— Marc Stein (@ESPNSteinLine) November 17, 2013
The Rockets do intend to deal Omer Asik, but they don’t have anything workable just yet, writes Marc Stein of ESPN.com: “The center was scratched from Saturday’s home game against Denver essentially because he’s so unhappy with his new role that he’s in no state to play. Word is Asik has been asking the Rockets pretty much once a week, since Dwight Howard’s arrival in July, to please trade him elsewhere. And now losing his starting spot, on top of what was already a reduced role, has clearly knocked the 27-year-old back. Sources with knowledge of the situation told ESPN.com that Asik was challenged by coaches and teammates this week for not being “engaged” in the wake of the lineup change, which took effect when Asik was moved to the bench for Wednesday’s game in Philadelphia. And he hasn’t played since the challenge, logging zero minutes Thursday night in New York while in uniform and not even dressing against the Nuggets. The new challenge for the Rockets, then, is getting Asik’s mind right and getting him back on the floor as soon as possible, given the very real chance that a workable trade won’t materialize until after Dec. 15, when dozens of players who signed new contracts in July become eligible to be moved.”-
Kobe followed up yesterday’s light practice with shooting today. D’Antoni says that KB being ready come Friday is improbable
— Dave McMenamin (@mcten) November 17, 2013
The Cavs’ players-only meeting didn’t seem to go too well, but Mary Schmitt Boyer of the Cleveland Plain Dealer reports that a couple of vets think it was good: “Veterans Jarrett Jack and C.J. Miles are confident the Cavaliers cleared the air during a players-only meeting after Wednesday’s 124-95 loss at Minnesota and are ready to move forward. “Any team that’s good, or strives to be good, you have to police yourself, period, point blank,” Jack said before Saturday’s game against the Washington Wizards at Verizon Center. “There’s only so much the coaches can say. There’s only so much other individuals can say. We’re the guys out there in the fox hole with each other and I think what we say to each other is the measuring stick.” Miles said it was too soon to tell if the meeting really helped, but he sensed that it did. “We talked about what we wanted to do and what we wanted to continue to try to do as a team — just the little things we felt we needed to put out on the table…and what we can do to get everybody on the same page all the time,” he said. “That was pretty much it. Guys basically agreed to what we wanted to do and we’re just going to keep moving forward.” Asked if he thought the team was good going forward, he smiled and said, “100 percent.””- Al Jefferson went to the Bobcats this offseason, which was a headscratcher for some. But Gary Washburn of the Boston Globe tells us why Jefferson went to the Cats, who are once again probably not a playoff team: “There were questions as to whether a franchise such as Charlotte, with such little history and success, would be able to attract a premium free agent. Jefferson, who has averaged 16.4 points and 9 rebounds in his career, answered that. “First of all they were attracted to me, they wanted me to be part of their family,” he said. “For the record, being a free agent is not fun. It’s nothing like I thought it would be. Charlotte was the team who showed interest in me. To me, that’s all I needed with the coaching staff, [coach Steve Clifford], Patrick Ewing, Mark Price, Kemba Walker, [Kidd-Gilchrist]. To me, that’s where I wanted to be and I made a decision.” And this time, Jefferson feels at home, hoping this is more than a temporary stay. “I could see [finishing my career] here because they’re headed in the right direction,” he said. “And they wanted me to be a part of it.””
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Dan Malone is in his fourth year as a journalism student at the University of King’s College in Halifax, Nova Scotia, and spent this summer as a features intern at the Cape Cod Times. He blogs, edits and learns things on the fly for Sheridan Hoops. Follow him on Twitter.