Gameday Dish: Nets and Wizards Looking to Reboot

December 16 by Leave a Comment

The Washington Wizards will pay a visit to the New Jersey Nets tonight in Newark. The Wiz have yet to come out on top away from home this season and are currently on a 5-game losing streak. The Nets are winless in 8 and trail behind the Wizards with the worst record in the East. One thing is for certain tonight – one of these squads will pull out of their early-season tailspins and walk away victorious.

The Wiz, playing without first overall pick PG John Wall and sixth-year PF Andray Blatche, fell to the visiting Los Angeles Lakers Tuesday night 103-89 in D.C. Both of these leading scorers are expected to be out of action again this evening, as well as Yi Jianlian, who will miss 2-4 weeks with a sprained right MCL.

The Nets also have to contend with some major adjust-ments to their roster. SG Anthony Morrow, who ranks third on the team in scoring with 12.8 ppg, will be sidelined for the next 2-3 weeks due to a hamstring injury he suffered during warmups before Tuesday’s 82-77 loss to the Sixers. Meanwhile Sasha Vujacic, who was sporting yellow and purple at the Prudential Center just a few days ago, might debut his new red, white and blue duds tonight.

New Jersey acquired combo guard Vujacic and two first-round picks yesterday in exchange for Terrence Williams, Joe Smith and two second-round picks. The former Laker and NBA champion should bring some needed energy on the defensive end and top-notch outside marksman-ship on offense. The Nets can certainly use his scoring abilities as they currently rank 29th in the NBA in points per game at 92.7. And veteran Vujacic’s championship experience will be valuable to this young Nets franchise that is in the throws of rebuilding and learning how to win.

This game is the first of three meetings between these Eastern Conference teams this season. The Wizards have bested the Nets the last 5 times they’ve played and beaten them 4 consecutive times in New Jersey. A bright spot for New Jersey is seveth-year PG Devon Harris, who has averaged 23 points in his last four meetings with Washington.

Tonight Ian and I go up against Steve and fellow YES announcer Marv on TNT. Should be interesting to see how the ratings compare. You can help out Bird and the Czar by tuning into Wizards @ Nets at 7:00 PM ET on YES.

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Gameday Dish: New Look Announcers

December 14 by Leave a Comment

Ian and I decided to repurpose our Ask the Announcers segment in order to reintroduce eighties-style shutter shades during our Sixers at Nets broadcast. But apparently Kanye West beat us to the punch by about three years. Though we missed that trend, I think we might be onto something color-wise since the Birdman’s glasses matched Jrue Holiday’s sneakers and our stage manager Adam Geller’s jacket. Then again, Adam’s jacket was ultimately rejected from the coat drive so maybe not.

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Gameday Dish: Magic in the Rose Garden

December 9 by Leave a Comment

The Orlando Magic, owners of a 15-6 record (second best in the Eastern conference) come to Stumptown for their only Oregon appearance at the start of a 4-game road trip. The Trailblazers, 10-11, are one victory away from getting to .500 after winning the first two games of their current 3-game homestand.

The Magic lost Monday night in Florida to the Atlanta Hawks 80-74. However they were missing their starting point guard Jameer Nelson for the third straight game. Nelson was still recovering from a nasty flu bug that also affected Dwight Howard, J.J. Redick and Mickael Pietrus the previous two games.  Orlando went 37% from the floor and were only 4 for 22 behind the arc.

The Blazers beat the Phoenix Suns on Tuesday night 106-99. They also were without their starting 1-guard, 12-year vet Andre Miller. Miller was suspended by the NBA for “excessive and unnecessary contact” with rookie sensation Blake Griffin in Portland’s victory on Sunday against the L.A. Clippers. Miller had played in every game since January 24th, 2003 – a streak of 632 games (the longest among active players) until he was hit with the suspension.

Both of these squads are excellent on the defensive end of the floor. The Magic lead the NBA in points allowed at 90.8, and the Trailblazers currently are 7th in that category at 95.6.

Yesterday was seventh-year big man Dwight Howard’s 25th birthday. Maybe as a belated gift to himself, the 3x-first team all-NBA center can raise his 12.7ppg against the Blazers in Portland, his lowest average against any road opponent over his career.

In addition 13th year vet Vince Carter averaged a measly 7 ppg against the Blazers in two meetings last year as these teams each won on their homecourts.

Tune in tonight at 10:30PM ET on TNT to see if the Magic can regain their health and winning ways against the host Trailblazers in Portland, aka “The Greenest City in America”.

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Gameday Dish: Hawks Host the Nets

December 7 by Leave a Comment

The Atlanta Hawks are flying high after last night’s huge win over the Magic in Orlando. And they accomplished this feat despite the absence of All-Star guard Joe Johnson, who underwent arthroscopic surgery on his right elbow. Johnson could be sidelined for another month, so the Hawks must formulate a way to win without him.

Atlanta decided to go big against Orlando. They played Al Horford at the power forward position, moved Josh Smith over to the small forward spot, and started Jason Collins at center. Atlanta finally toppled their Southeast Division rivals after losing six straight, including last year’s playoff sweep. Smith came away with 19 points and 13 rebounds, while Horford added 16 points and 10 boards.

We’ll see if this lineup continues to work its magic against the Nets tonight when they compete for the second time this season. The Nets bested Atlanta 107-101 in overtime at New Jersey a couple weeks back. But it’s mostly been down hill for the Nets ever since. They dropped five of their last six games and took a beating from Boston on Sunday. Brook Lopez and Devin Harris, who average a combined 35.8 ppg, were held to 12 total points. The Nets will look for a boost from their leaders and fight to regain their footing before falling deeper into a rut.

Ian Eagle and I have the call from Philips Arena at 7:00 PM ET on YES.

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Gameday Dish: Pacific Division Rivals Suns vs. Warriors

December 2 by Leave a Comment

I hear a certain pro contest set to take place somewhere in Ohio tonight is causing quite a stir.  Something about a Florida team, some eighth-year pro, hard feelings, high drama …

Well, while Cleveland pursues a collective catharsis out East, here in the Bay Area the Warriors and coach Keith Smart will welcome Alvin Gentry’s Suns for a Pacific Division matchup. And neither side is taking a ‘cavalier’ approach to this first meeting of the 2010-11 season.

Though the postseason is a ways out, it looks like both teams could very well be among those fighting for one of the final playoff spots in the West based on their current conference standings.

Phoenix last played on Sunday when they lost to the host Denver Nuggets 138-133 in the highest scoring game this season in the NBA. Golden State is also coming off of a defeat. They were bested 118-98 by the visiting San Antonio Spurs on Tuesday.

However, Golden State had a few bright spots in the lopsided affair to hearten their outlook heading into tonight’s battle. Steph Curry scored 32, and David Lee had 18 points and 7 boards in his second game back after missing an 8-game stretch with an elbow infection, during which time the Warriors went 1-7.

The last regular season meeting between these two squads was on March 22nd with Phoenix winning 133-131 in Oakland. During the 2010 season, the Warriors lost 3 of 4 against the Suns, and have lost 8 of the last 10 overall.

Phoenix ranks first in the league in points per game at 109.4.  But the flip side of that coin is points allowed at 111.9, which is 30th and last overall in the NBA. Either way you add it up, this evening’s competition should be a high-scoring one.

Golden State’s young guns Stephen Curry and Monta Ellis will face Phoenix’s veteran backcourt comprised of Steve Nash and Jason Richardson, who spent his first six years in the league playing for Golden State. Curry and Ellis are averaging a combined total of 45 ppg, while Richardson and Nash are combining for 40 ppg.

Part II of tonight’s double-header on TNT gets underway at 10:30 PM ET. Lebron’s hyped-up Heat vs. Cavs homecoming match is sure to get your blood boiling, so stay tuned to the Suns-Warriors afterwards for an up-tempo cool-down brought to you by Kevin Harlan and the Czar.

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