Nick Borges 9y

First Cup: Friday

  • Ronald Tillery of The Commercial-Appeal: On a night when the Grizzlies emphatically avenged their worst loss of the season, they suffered a couple of disappointments. No teammates joined starter Marc Gasol on the NBA All-Star team when reserves were announced Thursday night before the Grizzlies’ 99-69 victory over the Denver Nuggets in FedExForum. Memphis enjoyed a 33-point lead in the second half but did so without injured swingman Vince Carter. The 17-year veteran left with a left foot injury before halftime. Carter, who celebrated his 38th birthday on Monday, will undergo an MRI Friday to determine the extent of his injury. The fear is Carter might have a fracture. Memphis was already playing without point guard Mike Conley, who sat out a second straight game due to a left wrist sprain.

  • Christopher Dempsey of The Denver Post: The taste from the Nuggets' latest ugly loss was so bitter, coach Brian Shaw couldn't get his mouth to say any words to his team afterward. But he had plenty on his mind. "I don't feel like we came and competed from the very beginning of the game," Shaw said Thursday. "And I wish in these kinds of situations, I'd have more respect if guys just told me they didn't feel like playing tonight from the start. I'm just sick and tired of one night getting a certain kind of effort, (and) the next night we don't show up, we don't compete. You come out and you compete, and then if you don't have it, then you don't have it and you can live with it. Tonight we just didn't compete. It's a broken record." The Nuggets' 99-69 loss to Memphis was one of their poorest energy efforts of the season. Denver's points were a season low for the team. The Nuggets shot only 33.3 percent from the field.

  • Helene Elliott of the Los Angeles Times: The applause swelled as fans at Staples Center rose to their feet Thursday, generously welcoming back Pau Gasol and the memories of better times, of moments such as the one shown on the video board of Gasol leaning on the NBA championship trophy after one of the two titles he helped the Lakers win in his seven seasons here. Gasol, touched by the reception, clappedand aimed two thumbs-up toward the crowd. Many fans wore T-shirts the Lakers gave them as they entered imprinted with the words "Thanks Pau" on the front and a list of his Lakers statistics on the back. The opening notes of the theme from "Welcome Back, Kotter" played but were cut off, ending as abruptly as Gasol's Lakers career ended last summer when he signed with Chicago as a free agent for less money than the Lakers offered him to stay. To the thoughtful and sensitive Gasol, there was no price to put on peace of mind, feeling wanted, or the chance to play for a contender. He took the Bulls' three-year, $22-million contract over the faltering Lakers' proposed deals of three years for $29 million or two years for $23 million, and so far his choice has worked out for him competitively and emotionally. ... Gasol said he expected it to be emotional for him as he played in a "special building" in front of some of the many friends he made here. Bryant was absent from the pregame ceremony, recovering from season-ending rotator cuff surgery, but thanks to Gasol, the pleasant memories of better days were very much present.

  • Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times: Well played by Tom Thibodeau. The Bulls coach was asked before the 123-118 double-overtime loss to the Los Angeles Lakers on Thursday about his job status and relationship with the front office, and took the high road. “I’m not getting into any of that stuff," Thibodeau said. “I’m just worried about what we have to do. I’m not going to comment on all this rumor stuff and all that nonsense. Just get ready for the next game." Asked if he could at least discuss the relationship with VP of basketball operations John Paxson and general manager Gar Forman, the coach replied, “Nah, nah, next question. Next question." There actually were next questions to ask, and obvious ones, especially after another low-energy, slow start by a team that continued to be Jekyll and Hyde on a game-to-game basis. After winning their game of the year against Golden State on Tuesday, to fall to a Lakers team that had a nine-game losing streak going, bordered on embarrassment. And for the Bulls (30-18) it was the same old suspects.

  • Scott Agness of VigilantSports.com: Thursday’s NBA game at Bankers Life Fieldhouse was rather unusual for one Pacers (17-31) player. Luis Scola, specifically. He dressed, warmed up, but did not check in to the team’s 103-82 beatdown of the New York Knicks (9-38). It’s not, however, like he was blindsided by the move. On Wednesday at practice, head coach Frank Vogel talked with Scola, 34, the oldest player on roster (he’s got David West by four months), to inform him of the decision. “I tried to convince him,” Scola said postgame, “but he had argument and felt like it was the right thing. It’s his call at the end of the day.” Scola is averaging 9.0 points and 6.3 rebounds in over 20 minutes per game this season as the Pacers’ backup power forward. ... Are you big into streaks and records? That was 277 straight games for you?“I’m not hurt. That’s fine. It doesn’t really matter. It doesn’t change a lot. I’ve played a lot of games and what I want is to play the most positive games. It doesn’t matter if they’re in the row or not,” said Scola. My takeaway from our conversation was that as a fierce competitor and a veteran that is used to playing, this was hard on him. To his credit, he answered every question and did not cut out postgame like some players do. ... The last time Scola missed a game was back on April 13, 2011 when he was part of the Houston Rockets organization.

  • Peter Botte of the New York Daily News: The Knicks improbably had the chance to match their win total for the entire first half in just a half-dozen games to open the back stretch. Instead, they only matched the lethargy and poor defensive play that resulted in them hitting the season’s midpoint in London two weeks ago with an NBA-worst 5-36 mark. Playing without injured big men Amar’e Stoudemire and Cole Aldrich, the Knicks were dominated inside, outscored 35-12 in the third quarter and blown out Thursday night by the Pacers, 103-82, at Bankers Life Fieldhouse. “I think they just stayed the course and I kind of think we ran out of gas tonight, to be honest with you,” Carmelo Anthony said. “They got their inside game established. . . . They saw that, that was their scheme from the beginning, pound the paint, attack, get the ball to their big men, knowing we were shorthanded from a big-man standpoint."

  • Charles F. Gardner of the Journal Sentinel: Dwyane Wade's hamstring injury suffered against the Bucks on Tuesday could give Brandon Knight one more chance to make the Eastern Conference all-star squad. Knight was left off the seven-man reserve group selected by Eastern Conference coaches, and Wade was chosen for his 11th NBA All-Star Game. But if Wade is unable to play — and that seems likely — NBA Commissioner Adam Silver will have to name a replacement. Knight, the 23-year-old Bucks point guard who has led the team to a winning record in the East, and Atlanta sharpshooter Kyle Korver are expected to be the leading contenders for that spot. ... If Knight is not added to the team, the Bucks' string of having no all-star representatives will extend to an 11th season. The last to be chosen was Michael Redd in 2004.

  • Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel: Kyle O'Quinn and Victor Oladipo are close friends. So when O'Quinn offered Oladipo a suggestion on what to do during All-Star Weekend's dunk contest, O'Quinn meant it sincerely, thinking it could help Oladipo win the event. O'Quinn thinks Oladipo should borrow from the beloved Eddie Murphy movie "Coming to America." "He wants me to come out as Prince Akeem and have rose bearers and the whole nine," Oladipo said Thursday. "I was like, 'That's not happening.' " ... O'Quinn even would like to see someone sing "She's Your Queen," which actor Paul Bates sang in the movie in a high falsetto. Oladipo dislikes O'Quinn's idea. In fact, Oladipo said he thinks O'Quinn's idea is "probably one of the worst" suggestions he's received. O'Quinn shakes his head when he hears that. He won't provide any additional ideas.

  • Marc Berman of the New York Post: Bill Bradley is a Knicks legend and former U.S. Senator and now an admitted former ball doctor. Bradley told The Post in a phone interview Thursday he used to regularly deflate basketballs — but only when he felt they were above specifications and overinflated. Bradley, whose nickname was “Dollar Bill,” said he performed his ball magic before and during games. He said he believes referees knew what he was up to but didn’t care. Bradley’s remarks come in the wake of the resurfacing of Phil Jackson’s 1986 quotes in which he said the Knicks’ 1973 championship team deflated balls to gain a competitive edge. It prevented long rebounds as the club was undersized up front. Jackson tweeted Wednesday it was not illegal and the balls still met specifications.

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