'Nasty News - Traversing Time & Space' Vol: 58

[nasty daddy]

http://www.freep.com/article/20091201/S ... s-practice

Still no word on availability of Pistons' Ben Gordon, Charlie Villanueva
Detroit Pistons guard Ben Gordon (left ankle sprain) and forward Charlie Villanueva (broken nose) are still listed as questionable for Wednesday night's game at Chicago.

Pistons coach John Kuester said after today's practice that he will know more about their status and the starting lineup after Wednesday morning's shootaround at the United Center.Gordon didn't practice but took part in shooting drills with strength-and-conditioning coach Arnie Kander afterward. He didn't appear to have his customary lift on his jumper, and he wasn't doing any cutting, so he appears iffy to play against his former team.

Villanueva was being fitted for a mask, and it appears the only remaining question is his comfort level with the mask and his nose. Guard Rip Hamilton (severe right ankle sprain) and forward Tayshaun Prince (back) will be out against the Bulls.

[nasty daddy]

http://www.mlive.com/pistons/index.ssf/ ... thy_e.html

Ben Gordon hopes he's healthy enough to face former teammates when Pistons play Bulls
Ben Gordon looks forward to squaring off against his former Chicago Bulls teammates. Whether that happens Wednesday remains to be seen. "It's going to be a different challenge playing against my old teammates," Gordon said. "It's going to be a different feeling, so it's definitely something I'm looking forward to whenever the opportunity comes about." Gordon spent his first five NBA seasons with the Bulls before signing with the Pistons in the offseason.

He did not participate in practice but did some shooting Tuesday on the eve of the game at Chicago. Gordon is listed as questionable and expects to know more about his chances to play after the morning shootaround. Pistons coach John Kuester was asked whether it is special for a player to compete against former teammates. "Well, I just want him to play," he said, smiling. "That's the big thing. Every game is special, but I think when you go back to a place where you've played, there's no question there's a special significance."

Pistons center Ben Wallace also heads to Chicago to play former teammates. Wallace signed with the Bulls as a free agent before to the 2006-07 season and spent 1 1/2 seasons with the Bulls. "It gives you a little extra energy, extra juice," Wallace said. "But you've got to be careful. The adrenaline starts flowing and you can wear yourself out. "Ben (Gordon) is a true professional. He has been around for a while. He knows what it takes to get the job done." The Pistons would be thrilled to have Gordon back in the lineup. With Richard Hamilton and Tayshaun Prince out with injuries, Gordon has established himself as the team's most consistent scoring threat. He averaged 19.8 points and 3.3 assists per game this season before missing the past two games with a left ankle injury.

[nasty daddy]

http://www.mlive.com/pistons/index.ssf/ ... thy_e.html

Injuries leave lineup day-to-day
Kuester said he could not speculate about the starting lineup for Wednesday's game until he finds out who is available to play.

"It is not only day-to-day on the injuries," he said, "it's day-to-day on our starting lineup, too."

If Gordon can't play, it is likely the Pistons would start with the same five they did Sunday in the win against Atlanta: Chucky Atkins and Rodney Stuckey at guard, Jonas Jerebko and Jason Maxiell at forward and Wallace at center.

[nasty daddy]

http://www.mlive.com/pistons/index.ssf/ ... thy_e.html

Point guards in spotlight
The point guards could be the ones to watch when the Pistons play the Bulls. "Derrick Rose is one of the premier young point guards in this league, and he's somebody that we have to keep out of the paint," Kuester said. "(We have to make) sure we contain him as best possible and not let him get easy opportunities."

Kuester was asked to compare Rose and Stuckey, two young point guards who are thought to have bright futures. "Both of them are very talented players," Kuester said. "I think the thing that Rodney continually gets better at is his ability to guard so many players. "That's one of the things I think separates Stuckey from a lot of the point guards is his ability to defend."

Rose averages 15.6 points, 5.2 assists and 3.0 rebounds per game. Stuckey averages 17.6 points, 4.2 assists and 4.7 rebounds.

[nasty daddy]

http://blog.mlive.com/fullcourtpress/20 ... s_his.html

Charlie Villanueva unveils his new mask
Charlie Villanueva was fitted for his mask today, announcing (where else) on Twitter that the Pistons now "have two masked men." Since his injury, he's given fans really pretty remarkable access, even Tweeting right after he came out of surgery.

Ted Kulfan of the Detroit News also noted the time V devotes to talking with fans. Still though, no word on his status for tomorrow's game: Coach John Kuester said Villanueva will be fitted for a mask -- Villanueva Twittered that also. The Pistons are listing him as "questionable" for Wednesday's game in Chicago. Kulfan also reported earlier today that while Ben Gordon is still listed as questionable, he didn't look like he could put much weight on his ankle: "If it continues to progress as it has been, hopefully I'll be able to play," said Gordon, who would like to play his first game against the Bulls, for whom he starred the last five seasons. The Bulls (in particular Derrick Rose) have really missed Gordon this season, it would be nice to see him show them what they've missed.

UPDATE: With video, courtesy of Motown String Music.

Video in the link above^.

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http://www.nba.com/2009/news/12/01/buck ... ef:nbahpt2

Bucks guard Michael Redd still out with sore knee
Bucks guard Michael Redd is not traveling with the team on a two-game trip because his left knee continues to bother him.

Redd strained a ligament in his surgically repaired knee in Milwaukee's win over Detroit on Oct. 31. Redd missed nine games, returned for three and has missed the previous two after soreness returned following a loss at Oklahoma City on Nov. 27.

Andrew Bogut (left leg strain) missed six games before playing in Monday night's win over Chicago and Luc Richard Mbah a Moute (left foot sprain) has missed eight straight games. Luke Ridnour also hurt his left hamstring late in Monday night's win. He's day-to-day on the trip to Washington and Detroit.

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http://www.detroitnews.com/article/2009 ... -of-season

Kiki Vandeweghe to coach Nets for remainder of season
New Jersey Nets general manager Kiki Vandeweghe will serve as the team's coach for the rest of the season. The Nets made the official announcement Tuesday.

The Nets fired Lawrence Frank, their coach for 6 1/2 seasons, on Sunday. They lost to the Lakers under interim coach Tom Barrise that night, tying the 1988-89 Miami Heat and 1999 Los Angeles Clippers by losing 17 consecutive games to open a season.

Vandeweghe previously worked as an assistant with the Mavericks but has never been a head coach.

[nasty daddy]

http://www.nba.com/2009/news/12/01/rook ... ef:nbahpt2

Jennings, Evans named T-Mobile Rookies of the Month
The Milwaukee Bucks' Brandon Jennings and the Sacramento Kings' Tyreke Evans today were named the Eastern and Western Conference T-Mobile Rookies of the Month, respectively, for games played from the start of the season (Oct. 27) through November.

Jennings leads all rookies in scoring (21.8 ppg), assists (5.7 apg) and three-point field goal percentage (.500). On Nov. 14, Jennings scored 55 points against the Golden State Warriors, the most points by a rookie since Earl Monroe netted 56 on Feb. 13, 1968. His 55-point effort broke the Bucks rookie scoring record, previously held by Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. Accomplished in his seventh game, Jennings became the fastest NBA player to score 50 points, as well as the youngest (20 years and 52 days). Evans ranks second among rookies in scoring (18.8 ppg) and leads first-year players in minutes (36.1 mpg). He also ranks second in steals (1.33 spg), fourth in assists (4.7 apg) and fifth in rebounds (5.0 rpg) among rookies. Evans recorded 20 or more points in seven consecutive games, tying the Sacramento-era rookie record set by Lionel Simmons (1990-91). Also, he leads rookies with nine 20-point games.

Other nominees for the Eastern and Western Conference T-Mobile Rookies of the Month were Denver's Ty Lawson, Golden State's Stephen Curry, Minnesota's Jonny Flynn, New Jersey's Terrence Williams, New Orleans' Marcus Thornton, and Oklahoma City's James Harden.

[nasty daddy]

http://scores.espn.go.com/nba/recap?gameId=291201007

Carmelo Anthony scored 25 points, Chauncey Billups had 22 and the Denver Nuggets used their biggest scoring first half of the season to pull away from the short-handed Golden State Warriors for a 135-107 victory Tuesday night.

Nene (18 points) and Chris Andersen (14) were among seven Denver players scoring in double figures, helping the Nuggets finish with a season high in points and rebound emphatically from Sunday's embarrassing loss to Minnesota. The Timberwolves snapped their 15-game losing streak at Denver's expense while putting an end to the Nuggets' 17-game home-winning streak.

Anthony Morrow's 27 points led the Warriors. Vladimir Radmanovic added a season-high 17 for the Warriors, who fell to 2-8 on the road.

[nasty daddy]

http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/blog/ball_d ... nba,206021

The 10-man rotation, starring 'Reke for ROY rally
C: Cowbell Kingdom. Tyreke Evans(notes) has been a better player than Brandon Jennings(notes) so far this season.
PF: The 700 Level. Here's a novel idea: Iverson could just move back into his old house in Villanova.
SF: Silver Screen & Roll. Are the Lakers' struggles against bad teams ancient history?
SG: The Baseline. A Shoals column about Lawrence Frank, xenophobia and ghosts.
PG: Dime. Nobody is talking about Carl Landry(notes) ... except Gerald Narciso.
6th: ETB. Headline of the Day: "Jonas Jerebko is the Best Swedish-Born Player in NBA History."
7th: Truth About It. I'm sorry; "Gil just needs to be Gil" is fast becoming the lamest "excuse" in sports.
8th: CelticsHub. Did Rasheed Wallace(notes) really get shafted with that $30,000 fine?
9th: Deadspin. Tim Donaghy has finally found someone to publish his book. Nice knowin' ya, Tim.
10th: Knicks Knation. "Don't you get the feeling that Mike D'Antoni regrets leaving Phoenix?"

[nasty daddy]

http://scores.espn.go.com/nba/recap?gameId=291201022

Michael Beasley scored a season-high 27 points, Dwyane Wade had 18 points and 12 assists and the Miami Heat led from the start in beating the Portland Trail Blazers 107-100 Tuesday night.

Beasley was 8 of 15 from the field and 11 of 12 for free throws as the Heat (10-7) ended a two-game losing streak. Quentin Richardson scored 20 points and grabbed eight rebounds for Miami. The Heat shot 53.3 percent from the field (40 of 75).

Greg Oden grabbed a career-high 20 rebounds and scored 13 points to lead Portland.

[nasty daddy]

http://scores.espn.go.com/nba/recap?gameId=291201013

Andrew Bynum scored 21 points, Kobe Bryant added 18 on a light night of work and the Los Angeles Lakers beat the New Orleans Hornets 110-99 Tuesday for their seventh straight victory.

Ron Artest scored 16 points as the Lakers remained undefeated in six games since the return of Pau Gasol, who had 14 points in Los Angeles' balanced offense.

Former UCLA star Darren Collison scored 20 points for the Hornets, who lost their fifth straight road game.

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http://www.detroitnews.com/article/2009 ... op-Raptors

Gilbert Arenas heats up as Wizards top Raptors
Gilbert Arenas broke out of a scoring slump by dropping his new pass-first approach. Arenas had 22 points and nine assists, Antawn Jamison had 30 points and 12 rebounds and the Washington Wizards beat the Toronto Raptors 106-102 on Tuesday night.

Caron Butler scored 19 points, and Brendan Haywood had 15 points and nine rebounds for the Wizards, who have won three of four, including two straight on the road.

Chris Bosh had 22 points and 14 rebounds, Andrea Bargnani had 20 points and 11 rebounds and Jose Calderon added 20 points for the Raptors, who have lost four straight and eight of 10.

[nasty daddy]

http://www.detroitnews.com/article/2009 ... am-tonight

Still-healing Ben Gordon might get chance to face old team tonight
Ben Gordon keeps in touch with several former teammates -- he gives Luol Deng a call, sends a text to either Tyrus Thomas or Joakim Noah. Tonight, he'll get to see them in person, although he might miss the close on-court contact.

Yes, Gordon will reunite with his Bulls teammates when the Pistons hit the United Center. "I learned pretty early in this league, yes it's a game but it's also a business," said Gordon, who became one of the NBA's most feared sixth men with the Bulls. "I don't have any disappointed feelings. I'm happy with the way things turned out."

After averaging 20.7 points last season, Gordon is hitting for 19.8 points despite nursing a sprained left ankle (he's questionable tonight). And that's the key for his reunion: His health. "I want to be healthy enough to play, regardless of who we're playing." Gordon said. "The worst thing would be to re-injure it. I just have to be smart with it."

[nasty daddy]

http://www.detroitnews.com/article/2009 ... am-tonight

Rookie energy
Jonas Jerebko hasn't played like a rookie this season. But he is one, and it's natural to wonder if he's going to hit that proverbial "wall" at some point.

Coach John Kuester tries to convince himself that Jerebko, a second-round draft pick from Sweden, isn't going to slip. "What a pleasant surprise," Kuester said. "I keep saying that because I'm afraid he's going to hit a wall someday and I'm going to finally have to yell at him, 'You're not working hard enough, you're not working hard enough.' "

Don't worry, Jerebko said. "That won't happen," Jerebko said. "We'll see about game 75, but not now." Said Will Bynum : "He brings a huge amount of energy out there that some players can't match."

[nasty daddy]

http://www.detroitnews.com/article/2009 ... am-tonight

Veteran leadership
Chucky Atkins has been very accepting of his role.

He's encouraging, cheering players, and quick to offer advice to a younger teammate. "Bring energy and be a mentor to the young guys," Atkins said of his role.

Said Kuester: "He's going to be a coach in this league someday."

[nasty daddy]

http://www.detroitnews.com/article/2009 ... am-tonight

Scoring deficit
Take a look at this mind-blowing statistic:

If Gordon and Charlie Villanueva (broken nose) don't play against the Bulls, it would leave the Pistons with two healthy players who average more than 6.0 points: Rodney Stuckey (17.6) and Bynum (12.3).

[nasty daddy]

http://www.detroitnews.com/article/2009 ... am-tonight

By the numbers
2 Pistons road victories (2-7).
4 Games Will Bynum has scored 20-plus points (he had five last season).
53 Season-high rebounds the Pistons had vs. the Hawks on Sunday.

[nasty daddy]

http://www.detroitnews.com/article/2009 ... am-tonight

Big thief
Ben Wallace is fifth in Pistons history in steals, the only non-guard in the top five:
Player Steals
Isiah Thomas 1,861
Joe Dumars 902
Lindsey Hunter 896
Chris Ford 785
Ben Wallace 766

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http://www.detroitnews.com/article/2009 ... am-tonight

Fab four
The Pistons are fourth in victories in the NBA since the 1999-2000 season. The rankings:
Team Victories
San Antonio 576
Dallas 549
L.A. Lakers 531
Detroit 498
Utah 461