Why isn’t Josh Smith in the All-Star Game? Smith has been the best and most consistent player this season on the Atlanta Hawks, who have the same record (20-14) as the Philadelphia 76ers, Los Angeles Lakers and Houston Rockets and deserve to have an All-Star. But the Hawks probably don’t deserve two All-Stars. At least that’s what the Eastern Conference coaches felt, picking Joe Johnson and snubbing Smith, whose numbers are considerably better. When Johnson had to bow out with an injury earlier
As the second half of the season looms, the contenders to finish “in the money” in fantasy hoops leagues have been established. Most likely your league’s standings look like the following: a few teams at the top battling to earn first place; a handful of teams scrapping to essentially win back their entry fee and finish third; and lowly bottom-feeders desperate to avoid the dubious distinction of finishing last. As of the All-Star Break, my 9-CAT squad is locked in a
Rajon Rondo is in; Joe Johnson is out. In a compressed season where the injuries have come one after another, it was nothing short of miraculous that all of the chosen 24 All-Stars were relatively healthy and would be in action Sunday. Until now. Johnson, a reserve on the Eastern Conference, will skip the weekend festivities to rest a sore left knee, the Atlanta Hawks announced Wednesday. The Hawks had already Johnson would sit out Wednesday’s game at New York and Thursday’s contest vs.
Did David Stern unintentionally direct Jeremy Lin to the New York Knicks? The commissioner vetoed the first Chris Paul trade, which would have sent Houston Rockets point guard Goran Dragic to the New Orleans Hornets. The Rockets had five point guards in training camp – Lin, Dragic, Kyle Lowry, Jonny Flynn and Bulgarian combo guard Ibrahim Jabeer, who did not play in either preseason game. Lin didn’t exactly burn, either, getting eight total minutes. Lowry, Dragic and Flynn had guaranteed contracts, so the
We interrupt Linsanity with this news bulletin: The San Antonio Spurs are playing even better basketball than the New York Knicks. And they are being led by a guy who didn’t go to Harvard and wouldn’t go there unless there was a symposium on internaional geopolitical trends, with wine served afterward. Good wine. Gregg Popovich does not sleep on a couch on the Lower East Side, does not have a weakness going left (political joke), and does not move merchandise at the
The return of Kyrie Irving (22 points) is great for his fantasy owners and the Cavs. The probable Rookie of the Year showed no ill effects from his recent mild concussion, and made his teammates much better. Semih Erden is suddenly a hot fantasy pickup in many leagues. The big Turk had 18 PTS on 7-8 shooting and grabbed 8 REB, cementing his role as the starting center while Anderson Varejao is out. Coming off the bench didn’t hurt Ramon
Dwight Howard notched hit 23rd double-double of the season as the Sixers fell to 0-6 when their opponent scores 100+ points. According to the Elias Sports Bureau, theCeltics have held their last 26 opponents under 100 points. That’s tied for the 6th-longest such streak in a single season in the shot clock era. The Pacers arrived at their Cleveland hotel to find Miami’s team was also staying at the Ritz-Carlton. Vogel joked, claiming they deserved it. “Take that,” he said. “You don’t
Highlight Performance: Josh Smith, ATL– If there’s one thing Smith is known for, it’s producing monstrous lines across the board. Although he doesn’t do it on a nightly basis and often comes up with duds, when he’s on, he’s one of the best fantasy players in the game. Wednesday Night was a prime example; check out this line: 28 Points (11-17 fg’s), 12 rebounds, 3 assists, 5 steals, and 3 blocks. The key with Smith is the fantastic defensive numbers he