[h3]Kaman: Gasol not an All-Star[/h3]
11:45AM ET
[h5]Chris Kaman |
Clippers[/h5]
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Chris Kaman has been a pleasant surprise for the Clippers this season, as he's putting up a career-best in points per game (20.4) to go along with 9.2 boards a game.
And if he had his way,
Pau Gasol, who has missed considerable time this season and doesn't have his numbers, shouldn't be picked as an All-Star reserve and slid over from power forward to center over him.
"I don't think Gasol should be in it at all,"
Kaman told FanHouse. "He's only played like 20 games (he played Thursday in his 25th out of 42 Lakers games) this year. I think there should be a number of games you should play. I think you should have to play like 80 percent of the games."
"It shouldn't be 50 percent (of games a player has logged) over a guy who plays 90 percent and who has better numbers. Not just me.
Zach Randolph, a power forward, he has better numbers (than Gasol). But he's not on the Lakers."
Kaman has a point here, but as we've seen with the fan voting, sometimes sound logic doesn't factor into the equation when it comes to rounding out the All-Star teams.
http:// [h3]Cavs signing new player?[/h3]
11:28AM ET
[h5]Cleveland Cavaliers[/h5]
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With
Mo Williams now out for 4-6 weeks, the Cavs suddenly find themselves a little thin at guard.
So might they look to sign someone on a 10-day contract to shore up depth concerns?
According to a source speaking to the Akron Beacon Journal, the team is mulling over options, and there's a chance they could go the 10-day contract route.
Add in the fact that
Delonte West could also be missing time depending on
how his test results on his finger come out today, and that might give the Cavs more reason to sign someone.
http:// [h3]Does Amare think he'll be traded?[/h3]
11:11AM ET
[h5]Amare Stoudemire |
Suns | Interested:
Heat?,
Knicks?,
Bulls?[/h5]
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Yesterday,
ESPN.com's Chad Ford listed
Amare Stoudemire as one of the hot players that could be traded by the Feb. 18 deadline. Ford also wrote "the word out of Phoenix is that there has been some tension in the locker room involving Stoudemire."</<P>
Stoudemire spoke with
Bright Side Of The Sun and says a trade is possible, a team's market size is a factor in free agency and he doesn't know about tension in the locker room.
"I'm not sure. It's possible, same as it was last year. So like I've said before my agent is conversing a lot with the front office here (in Phoenix) and we are going to come up with a decision soon."
"Market size does play a factor. There's a lot of different factors. Being able to win and if you can't win this year then how long would it take to build it to win," Stoudemire said. "It's all about being able to, and being willing to have a team that's willing to build a championship caliber team."
And finally, "What's locker room tension? What is that?"
http:// [h3]Wizards fire sale?[/h3]
11:10AM ET
[h5]Washington Wizards[/h5]
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There has been a lot of speculation as to what the Wizards will do as we get closer to the trade deadline. Do they keep
Caron Butler and
Antawn Jamison or do they deal both players and try to start rebuilding? Obviously the
Gilbert Arenas situation is not helping.
The Wizards have not received any good offers for their players. According to
The Washington Post, some teams around the NBA expect a "fire sale," while a source doesn't think they can get value for players like Butler and Jamison. The Wizards are over the tax line and they may only get deals that mostly offer expiring contracts and draft picks.
"Part of the NBA life is to always look to improve and get the best possible team out there that you can," Wizards President Ernie Grunfeld said. "Those kind of things take care of themselves. Obviously, at the trade deadline there are going to be a lot of opportunities, but we're going to keep our options open and see which direction we want to go in."
http:// [h3]Will the Jazz keep Gaines?[/h3]
11:07AM ET
[h5]Sundiata Gaines |
Jazz[/h5]
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The second 10-day contract that rookie
Sundiata Gaines signed expires on Sunday. Will the Jazz let him go or will they sign the player who beat the Cavalier with a three-point shot at the buzzer to a rest-of-the-season contract?
"I think we'll use the time we've got allotted (to decide), and sit down with coach (Jerry Sloan) and talk with him about it," Jazz general manager Kevin O'Connor told the
Deseret News Thursday.
"We'll just see what happens," Sloan said. "I don't make a decision on anything right now. He's here, and we'll go as if he's gonna be here."
http:// [h3]Will Kobe read about Montana?[/h3]
10:36AM ET
[h5]Kobe Bryant |
Lakers[/h5]
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Every season Lakers head coach Phil Jackson hands out books for the players to read during their extended road trip.
Kobe Bryant normally doesn't like the book selected for him, but what about this season's pick, "Montana 1948," a Larry Watson novel about a middle-class Montana family torn apart by a scandal in the late 1940s?
"He never reads my books so I got him a book about Montana," Jackson told the
Los Angeles Times. "I'm not looking forward to having a review from him. It was about a part of the country I grew up in, so it was something special for me to give it to him."
http:// [h3]Martin's future with Warriors?[/h3]
10:26AM ET
[h5]Cartier Martin |
Warriors[/h5]
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Cartier Martin signed a second 10-day contract on Wednesday. When it expires the Warriors will have to decide if they want to sign him to a rest-of-season contract or let him go.
"I don't really know what's going to happen until it happens," Martin told
The Oakland Tribune.
Martin's deal would be fully guaranteed for this season if the Warriors keep him.
http:// [h3]Major trade coming for Warriors?[/h3]
10:16AM ET
[h5]Golden State Warriors[/h5]
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The Warriors have struggled this season and have been decimated by injuries. General manager Larry Riley is ready to make a big trade.
"Is a little something good enough? I can tell you right now: No it isn't," Riley told the
San Francisco Chronicle. "We're not looking to do something minor. It might take trading somebody that we would rather not trade, but we need another player of substance."
"I would have liked to have had the opportunity to really evaluate these guys together, but I don't feel like we have to rush into anything," Riley also said. "I think it's extremely important to explore every option that could improve this team. I think rather than doing something that might be a knee-jerk reaction in hopes of winning a few more games this season, we need to react to things that will set us up for where we want to go in the future."
http:// [h3]Does Bosh to Mavs make sense?[/h3]
9:54AM ET
[h5]Chris Bosh |
Raptors[/h5]
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Eddie Sefko of The Dallas Morning News was asked if a trade of
Josh Howard and
Erick Dampier for
Chris Bosh makes sense for both sides.
Sefko's take: "First, the premise that Toronto is in salary-dump mode is flawed logic. They still have designs on a playoff spot and I think they will get it. And if Toronto does any deal for Bosh, it will want back more than just cap space. A good young player and draft picks, for sure. ... And we haven't even addressed the possibility that Bosh might not be all that thrilled about returning to his hometown. The pressures that come with being on the home team are great. If it works and he brought a title to Dallas, he'd be king of the town. But what if it didn't work? He might have to eventually leave, and that can get rather sticky."
http:// [h3]Mavs offer Howard for Martin?[/h3]
9:53AM ET
[h5]Kevin Martin |
Kings[/h5]
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The
Dallas Mavericks are watching
Kevin Martin's situation with the
Sacramento Kings and are willing to trade
Josh Howard for Martin.
Marc Stein, writing for ESPNDallas.com writes: "Sources close to the situation told ESPN.com that Dallas -- reluctant until recently to make Josh Howard available in trade discussions -- is prepared to part with the struggling former All-Star swingman in a deal for Martin. The Kings, though, have been telling teams that they are not ready to field offers for Martin, determined to give his fledging backcourt partnership with hot-shot rookie
Tyreke Evans an extended period of evaluation."
Stein also reports the Mavs could join the bidding for Philadelphia's
Andre Iguodala and Washington's
Caron Butler.
http:// [h3]Trade will be made if it makes sense[/h3]
9:39AM ET
[h5]Portland Trail Blazers[/h5]
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The Blazers could use some help in the frontcourt with all their injuries, but a deal will only be struck if it makes sense to general manager
Kevin Pritchard.
"If it makes sense, we'll do it," Pritchard tells
The Portland Tribune. "We're not opposed to making a deal, that's for sure."
"We needed our depth," Pritchard also says. "It has served us well and kept us in the playoff hunt. If we weren't deep, we'd have been in big trouble. ... I'm looking at the short term, but also the long term. It all depends on the player. We'll take a look at anything that makes sense, but it's much more complex now than it's ever been because of all the issues surrounding the NBA. ... There are a lot of variables. It's hard to predict what's going to happen."
http:// [h3]Roy seeks second opinion[/h3]
9:30AM ET
[h5]Brandon Roy |
Trail Blazers[/h5]
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Brandon Roy is expected to miss the next two games with a strained right hamstring. Roy has left the team on their road trip and will travel to Seattle today to get a second opinion on how to best heal the injury reports
The Oregonian.
http:// [h3]Could West be sidelined, too?[/h3]
8:47AM ET
[h5]Delonte West |
Cavaliers[/h5]
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The Cavs learned Thursday that
Mo Williams will be out for 4-6 weeks with a sprained shoulder. There is a possibility that they could be missing another guard.
The Plain Dealer reports
Delonte West, who started last night in Williams' place, suffered an injury to the ring finger on his left hand late in the fourth quarter of last night's game against the Lakers.
He left the arena wearing a splint on the finger and he's expected to have tests today to find out the extent of the injury.
http:// [h3]Jackson declines Knicks invite[/h3]
8:11AM ET
[h5]Phil Jackson |
Lakers[/h5]
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The Knicks are planning to celebrate the 1969-70 season, but Lakers head coach Phil Jackson, who was a member of that championship team, won't there.
"He can't make a trip like that during the Lakers' season," executive Jeanie Buss told the
New York Post.
The Knicks may have the celebration on Feb. 22 when they play Milwaukee.
http:// [h3]Harris trade very unlikely?[/h3]
7:45AM ET
[h5]Devin Harris |
Nets[/h5]
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Devin Harris has been mentioned a few times this week as someone who could get traded, but Nets president Rod Thorn says a deal involving the point guard is very unlikely.
"It's very, very unlikely that we'd trade Devin. I never say never, but it's very unlikely that he's going to be traded," Thorn told
The Star-Ledger Thursday. "I read the same things you do. There was one thing I saw the other day that was just wrong -- about we were talking to Washington about trading Devin for
Caron Butler? We never had one conversation with Washington about Caron Butler in five years -- period. But you expect speculation, especially when you have a team that has a record like we do."
Thorn did admit that a trade could happen because there are no absolutes.
"We value Devin. We think he's a terrific player," he said. "I don't see it happening. But again, you know me -- I never say I won't trade anybody -- because you never know what anyone's going to offer you. That's why you can never speak in absolutes. But we value Devin."
http:// [h3]Pistons tough to sell?[/h3]
7:29AM ET
[h5]Detroit Pistons[/h5]
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Pistons owner Karen Davidson announced this week that she has decided to sell the team. Will it be difficult to find a buyer?
"If the negotiating price is based on the Forbes value, there's not going to be many takers," Detroit Mercy professor of economics Mike Bernacchi tells
The Detroit News.
"People say Detroit is a great sports town, but that is way overvalued. It has to be a value based on what's happening now. I am sure the negotiations are going to be tough. The Pistons will want to sell based on what they were and what they've done. The buyer will want to buy it for where they are now and for where they are headed in the future."
Forbes values the Pistons at $479 million, while Bernacchi predicts it'll sell for $350 million.
http:// [h3]Melo best Nugget?[/h3]
5:26AM ET
[h5]Carmelo Anthony |
Nuggets[/h5]
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The
Denver Nuggets have had some great players in their history including Dan Issel, Alex English, David Thompson and Kiki Vandeweghe, but none of them would be considered as the franchises best player. Former Nuggets head coach Doug Moe says the best Nugget ever is
Carmelo Anthony.
"I'd have to say Melo," Moe told
The Denver Post. "His talent is going to win more games than anybody else. With him, I think the Nuggets are going to have more 50-win seasons than with any other player. And that's not a knock against any of those players. ... But when it's all said and done, Melo is going to be the best."
http:// [h3]Little contact means few free-throws[/h3]
4:52AM ET
[h5]Al Jefferson |
Timberwolves[/h5]
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One would think a good post scorer like
Al Jefferson would shoot a lot of free-throws, but that's not the case. Jefferson is averaging just 3.8 attempts per game this season, which is down from 2008-09 when he averaged 5.04.
Jefferson knows he needs to change his approach to his post game, which doesn't draw a lot of contact from opponents.
"One of the reasons I don't get a lot of calls from the refs is that when I ball fake, I go away from guys," Jefferson tells the
Pioneer Press. "I don't lean into guys to draw fouls. I haven't gotten that part into my game yet, where I consistently draw the contact and still go up for my shot. I do sometimes, but I'm not consistent with it. It's something I have to get better at."
