- The roster for USA Basketball should come out by Thursday, but here’s a sneak peak at some of the names you can expect to see, from Marc Stein of ESPN: “Hearing: DeMarcus Cousins, LaMarcus Aldridge and Steph Curry have all earned spots in USA Basketball’s 2014 player pool to be announced THU… Paul George will undoubtedly be part of USAB’s player pool tomorrow … and don’t forget both Kevins (Durant & Love) committed last summer.”
Dwight Howard will also be included on the list, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports: “After six years away, Houston Rockets star Dwight Howard will return to USA Basketball with an intent to play in the 2014 World Cup of Basketball, league sources told Yahoo Sports. Howard’s return to the Team USA pool of players for the World Cup in Spain this summer could clear the way for the seven-time All-Star center to be part of the national team at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Brazil. USA Basketball is expected to soon announce a pool of players, including Howard, who will be available for USA Basketball training camp and the World Cup this summer. Howard could be part of an American frontcourt rotation that will likely include Kevin Durant, Kevin Love and LaMarcus Aldridge.”
Frank Isola of Daily News is reporting that Mike Woodson confronted Tyson Chandler about his comments about switching on defense: “According to a team source, Woodson recently confronted Chandler about comments the veteran center made that could be interpreted as undermining the coach’s authority. It is unclear when that conversation took place, but it could have happened last week following a loss to the Indiana Pacers, when Chandler said “we didn’t make adjustments.” That answer was in response to reporters asking Chandler to comment on Woodson’s claim that the Pacers simply outworked the Knicks. It was erroneously reported that Carmelo Anthony was criticizing Woodson when in fact Chandler took a subtle shot. On Tuesday, Chandler backtracked and explained that his explosive comments following Monday’s 103-80 loss to the Brooklyn Nets were not being directed at Woodson. It sounded a lot like damage control since Chandler had claimed that the Nets “out-schemed” the Knicks. At best Chandler’s remarks indicated that he was praising rookie head coach Jason Kidd and taking a shot at Woodson.”
Luol Deng and Joakim Noah shared thoughts about playing against each other on Wednesday, from Mary Schmitt Boyer of The Plain Dealer: ‘It will probably be weird,” Joakim Noah told reporters after Monday’s overtime victory over the Lakers. “It will probably be strange, but I still want to kick his ass. I love Luol. He’s my brother. But when that ball goes up, he’s not going to be my brother any more.” Deng has been in touch with his former teammates and expects nothing but their best effort — and some trash talking. “I’m sure they’re going to go after me as guys that I’m close with, friends,” he said. “But when the ball goes up there’s going to be nothing better for them than to beat me and vice versa. I can’t wait to beat them. So it will be interesting. It’s a game that definitely whoever wins … you’re going to be hearing from whoever wins a lot.”
Brandon Jennings is having trouble deciding whether he should shoot or pass, from Vincent Goodwill of The Detroit News: “It’s well-known he’s doing more than refining his game from his years in Milwaukee, where he chucked up shots because he had to; it’s almost a full overhaul now, perhaps leading to overanalyzing his game. “I think I’m just thinking too much, trying to find guys instead of looking for my shot,” Jennings said. “So when I do, I’m out of rhythm because I’m not looking for it.”… “It’s been a little difficult, but it’s definitely going to take some time,” Jennings said. “I’m still gonna keep doing what I’m doing. This is a learning year for me, trying to be able to run a team. In Milwaukee I was just playing basketball and shooting at will. This year, I’m taking a step back.”… “If I get rolling with assists early, I kind of forget about myself, when I should take a couple shots here and there to feel things out,” he said.
- Interestingly, Mo Cheeks thinks it’s just a matter of him missing shots more so than a thinking issue: “He just didn’t shoot the ball well. It’s not about thinking,” Cheeks said. “Part of the game is thinking. It’s a happy medium where you run offense or take shots. It’s not something new. You have shots, you take them. You make them or miss them.” Cheeks made it clear he doesn’t subscribe to the theory of overthinking, but he wants Jennings to toe the line from aggression to recklessness. “He’s got to be aggressive in the game,” Cheeks said. “You cannot be afraid to make a mistake. You’re gonna make mistakes. Play to his ability and his ability is good enough for him and good enough for us.”
- Landry Fields is expected to miss some time after undergoing surgery, according to USA Today: “Toronto Raptors forward Landry Fields has surgery Tuesday to address the ulnar nerve release on his right wrist and the team announced it anticipates he will return to light basketball-related activities in three weeks. The surgery was performed by Dr. Brent Graham at Toronto Western Hospital. Fields has appeared in 23 games with one start. He was averaging 2.4 points, 2.2 rebounds and 11.9 minutes.”
Dan Gilbert is looking to give away an amount of money that would put the lottery to shame for anyone with a perfect bracket, according to Boyer of The Plain Dealer: “Quicken Loans, owned by Cleveland Cavaliers owner Dan Gilbert, will award a $1 billion prize to anyone who fills out a perfect 2014 NCAA tournament bracket. It’s the Quicken Loans Billion Dollar Bracket Challenge, insured by Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway. “We’ve seen a lot of contests offering a million dollars for putting together a good bracket, which got us thinking, what is the perfect bracket worth?” Quicken Loans president Jay Farner said in a press release issued by the company. “We decided a billion dollars seems right for such an impressive feat.” How impressive? According to the short-form official rules, the odds of picking a perfect bracket are 1 in 4,294,967,296. According to those short-form rules published on the Quicken Loans Facebook page, the contest is open to legal residents of the U.S. 21 years and older. No purchase is necessary. One entry per household. The grand prize will be payable in annual payments of $25 million for 40 years or as a one-time payment of $500 million. There also will be 20 first-place prizes of $100,000 each for the best brackets that are not perfect to use toward buying, refinancing or remodeling a home.”
Brett Brown talked about the importance of pace and how he wants the 76ers to play the game, from Zach Lowe of Grantland: “It’s hard for guys to play that fast on offense and still give full effort on defense, right? The Houston coaches have talked about how hard that is, especially for their perimeter guys. It is! It’s exacerbated with us, because at times we’re gonna play our key players 38 minutes, because you have to. And we have a young roster, so we turn it over a lot, and the game is flying back and forth. I think I misjudged the repercussions of the pace, even though I’ve extremely proud of that pace. If I had to do it again, I’d do it every time over. Play this fast, you mean? No doubt. I put a premium on fitness to our guys. I asked them to come in with career-best fitness levels, and when you do that, we’re gonna run at what I hope is the fastest pace you’ve ever run at. But it really does come with some punishment.”
JaVale McGee is taking baby steps towards making a return to the court, from Christopher Dempsey of The Denver Post: “Center JaVale McGee, who has been out since early November with a stress fracture in his left tibia, has recently begun some lower body activity, getting some limited work in on an elliptical machine. “It doesn’t put any pain on my shin because my foot is never leaving the platform,” McGee said. “That’s the only thing I can do. I can’t ride the bike or treadmill. McGee said he’s encouraged by this step, “being able to get a sweat anaerobically” which has coincided with good returns from x-rays done on his tibia, but was quick to make it known that it remains very early in the process. “It’s definitely an early step,” McGee said. “I’m just staying positive and trying to stay in shape and get stronger. There remains no timetable for his return. “The biggest step is just for it to heal,” McGee said. “So, either way, if I get on the elliptical and go an hour, it doesn’t matter if my shin doesn’t heal.”
James Park is the chief blogger of Sheridan Hoops. You can find him on twitter @SheridanBlog.
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