Cavaliers Rounding The Corner?
It seemed like a little over a week ago the sky was falling if you were a Cleveland Cavalier fan, but it’s amazing what a week or two can do for you in the NBA. The Cavs were without LeBron for a couple weeks, and he made his return in Phoenix where the team lost. Since then The Cavaliers faced The Lakers, Clippers, and The Chicago Bulls which they won all three games. LeBron certainly looked like he needed the rest, but his teammates are stepping up around him as well. Kevin Love is progressing in his role which is weird to say considering he’s one of the bigger pieces on the team.
Love battled back spasms in The Lakers game where he played through some obvious pain that could be a lingering issue even though he played Monday night against Chicago. Cleveland’s trades have not only given this team new life, but The Cavaliers might be starting to click on all cylinders at just the right time. Up next on The Cavaliers schedule is The Utah Jazz tonight where Cleveland hopes to continue the winning streak vs. a underachieving team.
Oklahoma City Thunder: Battle Against the NBA Continues
Oklahoma City has faced an uphill battle all season long with the injuries to Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook falling below .500. On Tuesday night the team went above .500 for the first time this season surprisingly. Russell Westbrook has played some great basketball when he’s been healthy and able to play and would be a front runner for MVP candidate if he wasn’t hit with an injury that forced him to miss some time. Of course Durant and Westbrook looked good Wednesday, but there’s still concern that the Thunder bench just doesn’t have enough depth even with the addition of Dion Waiters who had 3 points last night. Reggie Jackson and Anthony Morrow had 28 combined points, but can they really rely on those guys to do that consistently? Jackson has been up and down all year and Morrow we’ve seen has been injury prone in the past.
Oklahoma City was in talks to trade for Center Brook Lopez which is a move I still think they should pursue if they only have to give up Kendrick Perkins and Jeremy Lamb. Moving Steven Adams to The Thunder bench makes the team deeper and brings an energy off the bench that is much needed. Even if Oklahoma City brings Lopez off the bench they can hopefully keep him healthy enough in time for the playoffs.
Thibodeau On The Hot Seat? Big mistake
It’s tough to believe a team that is 27-16 on the year with Derrick Rose playing under certain minutes restrictions could be on the hot seat, but according to Sheridan Hoops this very well could be true. Head Coach Tom Thibodeau has a 232-123 record and it should be noted that Derrick Rose has not been on this roster for two years which is impressive. After Monday nights loss To The Cavaliers they did look out of sorts like Rose said, but I still think this is a talented roster that can have success it’s just a matter of players buying in. If Chicago does fire Thibodeau it obviously wouldn’t be until the end of the season and I see that move being a mistake.
Thibodeau is one of the more talented coaches in the league he’s been pressed with tough choices due to injury and they’ve paid off from making Joakim Noah the center piece of your offense because of his passing ability to signing D.J. Augustine or Aaron Brooks to fills the void Rose left when injured. Thibodeau gets the best from his players and will make a system work around the talent level he has which is what a good coach does. Let Thibodeau figure out all the pieces he has and this roster could do some damage. I still see this rumor as being in the early stages, but I could be wrong. If Chicago is thinking of a coaching change they better have a coach selected that they want to run with this veteran roster otherwise Chicago could be in trouble.
Ray Allen Rumors Starting up yet again
Ray Allen told the South Florida Sun-Sentinel that “At his age(39) he needs to stay in shape” this may be the case, but I think he’s going to sign with a team after the All-Star Break. Obviously almost every team in The NBA that is a contender is going to have a level of interest, but the real question does Allen have interest in them? I expect Allen to monitor how teams are playing and then make his choice, and I think it comes down to Cleveland, San Antonio, or Golden State with Golden State making the most sense to me.
Stephen Curry’s Mom fines him for turnovers?
Stephen Curry has made a huge leap from last year to this year and is in consideration for MVP, but his Mom doesn’t care she still doesn’t like turnovers. Curry averages 3.2 turnovers per game which is good considering the minutes he plays. His Mom though will fine him $100 per turnover each game which isn’t much considering Curry makes $10 million per year, but still some tough love from Mom.
Sonya came up with the idea of fining her son a few seasons ago, frustrated at watching him lose the ball too many times in one game. She checked with her husband, former NBA guard Dell, on what would be a reasonable number of turnovers to hold Stephen to per game; they settled on three. Anything more than that, he owes his mother: $100 per giveaway. Anything under is subtracted from his total.
At the end of the season, Curry doesn’t write his mother a check; she just lets him know — usually through his wife, Ayesha — what fashion items she has had her eye on.
“It keeps me on the edge every game,” he said. “I know she’s going to text me or have some witty one-liner about what she’s going to buy with all of my gifts.”
Quote from: The San Francisco Chronicle
Stephen Curry better watch out though his Mom could have her eyes set on a big ticket item here.
Highlight of the week (so far):
Games To Watch:
Tonight Oklahoma City Thunder vs Washington Wizards 8:00 E/ST ESPN
Houston Rockets vs. Golden State Warriors 10:30 E/ST ESPN
Tomorrow: San Antonio Spurs vs Chicago Bulls 8:00 PM E/ST TNT
Friday: Oklahoma City Thunder vs. Atlanta Hawks 7:30 PM E/ST
Saturday: Portland Trailblazers vs. Washington Wizards 10:00PM E/ST
Sunday: Oklahoma City Thunder vs. Cleveland Cavaliers 3:30PM E/ST ABC
