'Nasty News - Traversing Time & Space' Vol: 26

[nasty daddy]

http://www.hoopsworld.com/Story.asp?story_id=11573

Yet another option for the Suns could be the Detroit Pistons – another Central squad – that have been rumored to have interest in bringing in Stoudemire. The Pistons find themselves in a transitional period, as Rasheed Wallace and Allen Iverson both have huge expiring deals, allowing the team to either trade them or let them walk at the end of the season with nothing to show for either of them.

[nasty daddy]

http://www.hoopsworld.com/HeadlineStori ... TORY_16414

The future of Suns coach Terry Porter was generating just as many questions Friday when this supposed party weekend began in the expected uncomfortable manner for the beleaguered hosts of the NBA All-Star Game. Talk shows in Phoenix have been buzzing since the Suns' loss in Cleveland on Wednesday with the growing belief that Porter will no longer be coaching the team when the Suns reconvene for practice Monday to prepare for the final 31 games of his first season. Suns owner Robert Sarver insisted otherwise in an e-mail to ESPN.com, saying: "We have not made that decision."

Sarver, though, did add that "obviously we need to improve and are evaluating everything." NBA front-office sources say that the Suns' team-wide evaluation still includes the possible trading of Stoudemire or Shaquille O'Neal before Thursday's deadline and indeed extends to Porter, even though he's barely halfway through his debut season as Mike D'Antoni's replacement. Sarver and Porter were spotted meeting Friday morning at a Phoenix hotel.

With the Suns engulfed by turmoil and mired at 28-23 after a 6-10 slide leading into the break, leaving them ninth in an eight-team playoff race in the West, one source describes Porter's firing before season's end as "probable."Sources indicate that assistant coach Alvin Gentry -- who has been a head coach three times previously (Heat, Pistons and Clippers) and ranks as a holdover from the D'Antoni era well-liked by Suns players -- is almost certain to take over for Porter should the Suns elect to make an in-season change.

[nasty daddy]

http://www.hoopsworld.com/HeadlineStori ... TORY_16414

This was supposed to be a glorious moment for Phoenix basketball, turning a Suns town into a hoop-topia. But just as it gathers the basketball world's attention, the local franchise is in chaos, with Stoudemire trade talk and Suns General Manager Steve Kerr awakening Friday to a New York Post report that said he is set to replace Terry Porter as the team's coach, which Kerr denies."That's an erroneous rumor," said Suns Managing Partner Robert Sarver, who attended a tech summit Friday with Porter.

Amar'e Stoudemire said he likes Porter, too: "He can help us, but right now it's not working."

Suns center Shaquille O'Neal gave Porter the best player backing all season."Hopefully, Terry is given a chance," said O'Neal, whose team went to 28-23 with 17 double-digit losses and a 6-10 pre-All-Star break stretch. "It's really not his fault. Guys really have to buy into the system." Porter signed a three-year contract in June, but the third season is not guaranteed, meaning a firing would cost the Suns about $2 million for his salary next season.

[nasty daddy]

http://www.hoopsworld.com/Chat.asp?CHAT_TOPICS_ID=154

The Pistons are pretty tough to read right now. They've definitely thrown their hat into the Amar'e circus and I think their package isn't a bad one when you consider what it is that the Suns are looking for in return. Cap relief? Here's Rasheed Wallace (and he's a starter). Depth and youth? Here's Amir Johnson, who many believe still has a high ceiling. I'm assuming that the rub is where you go from here, and that's where these teams would have to negotiate.

Phoenix would want something more - a draft pick or another young player, specifically. Knowing Dumars, he may be unwilling to do so and this whole thing could conceivably fall apart right there.

If the Pistons can't get Amar'e, I think they'll make a run at one more unexpected player - maybe Carlos Boozer, actually, but I doubt the Jazz trade him. After exhausting their options, I expect the Pistons to probably end up standing pat, letting Wallace and AI expire, and then having a really wild and crazy summer where they'll be linked to every free agent.

[nasty daddy]

http://www.hoopsworld.com/Chat.asp?CHAT_TOPICS_ID=154

E'Twaun Moore scored 16 points and grabbed 10 rebounds and Purdue (No. 23 ESPN/USA Today, No. 20 AP) outlasted the Hawkeyes 49-45 on Saturday.

JaJuan Johnson added 13 points, including a key late jumper, and the Boilermakers won their second straight after suffering back-to-back losses at Ohio State and Illinois.

Jake Kelly led all scorers with 19 points for the Hawkeyes. They played without starting point guard Jeff Peterson, who has a strained hamstring, and forward Cyrus Tate, who hasn't fully recovered from a high ankle sprain.

[nasty daddy]

http://sports.espn.go.com/ncb/recap?gameId=290450264

Guards Justin Dentmon and Isaiah Thomas combined for 45 points, Jon Brockman added 21 points and 18 rebounds and Washington used a nearly flawless first half to stay on top of Pac-10 Conference standings with a 103-84 win over Oregon on Saturday.

Dentmon continued his stellar play during the conference slate with 14 of his 21 points in the first half, while Thomas scored 24 for Washington (19-6, 10-3 Pac-10), which will head to Los Angeles next week with a 1 1/2-game lead in the conference race.

Tajuan Porter led Oregon with a season-high 33 points, 27 in the second half.

[nasty daddy]

http://sports.espn.go.com/ncb/recap?gameId=290450183

"What can you say? We played hard," said Syracuse center Arinze Onuaku, who had 15 points and 13 rebounds for his first double-double in more than a month. "We thought we had it. Then they hit a couple of big shots. This is the type of game we've come to expect."

Flynn finished with 25 points and a career-high 13 assists, and Devendorf added 23 points. Andy Rautins and Rick Jackson each added 13 points for Syracuse.

Chris Wright had 25 points before fouling out in the extra session to lead Georgetown. Austin Freeman added 19 points, DaJuan Summers 17, and Greg Monroe had 16 points and 11 rebounds.

[nasty daddy]

http://sports.espn.go.com/ncb/recap?gameId=290450142

DeMarre Carroll and reserve Matt Lawrence had 13 points apiece and Missouri (No. 19 ESPN/USA Today, No. 17 AP) hit seven of its first nine shots after the break, pulling away for a 70-47 victory over cold-shooting Nebraska on Saturday.

J.T. Tiller added 11 points and four assists and Marcus Denmon had 10 points for Missouri (22-4, 9-2 Big 12), which won its 17th in a row at home and eventually capitalized on momentum built from a two-point victory over No. 16 Kansas five days earlier.

Brandon Richardson had 12 points for Nebraska, which flopped in an attempt to win four straight in the Big 12 for the first time since 1999. Nebraska had won its previous two on the road and was playing for the first time since beating Texas at home a week earlier.

[nasty daddy]

http://sports.espn.go.com/ncb/recap?gameId=290452306

Cole Aldrich had 21 points, Sherron Collins added 19 and the 16th-ranked Jayhawks used defensive pressure to overcome a 16-point first-half deficit and beat rival Kansas State 85-74 on Saturday.

Freshman Marcus Morris played his most aggressive game of the season, finishing with 15 points, seven rebounds, four assists and three steals. Brady Morningstar made all four of his 3-point attempts for 12 points and Kansas was 8-for-12 from beyond the arc for its 38th win in the past 40 meetings against Kansas State. The Jayhawks are 25-1 in Manhattan since 1984.

Denis Clemente led Kansas State with 26 points and Jacob Pullen added 22 for the Wildcats, who have lost three straight to Kansas.

[nasty daddy]

http://sports.espn.go.com/ncb/recap?gameId=290452752

Brad Redford matched his career high with 15 points, all of them from behind the arc, and the Musketeers pulled out of their rut by dominating the second half and beating Fordham 88-53 on Saturday.

"I thought we did a really good job," said Dante Jackson, who scored 13 points. "Early on, it went back-and-forth and we traded baskets. It was good for us to be able to buckle down and get some stops."

Sophomore guard Mike Moore led Fordham with a career-high 24 points.

[nasty daddy]

http://sports.espn.go.com/ncb/recap?gameId=290452572

Tyreke Evans scored 19 points, including nine straight during the clinching run, and Antonio Anderson and Robert Dozier added 12 apiece to lead Memphis (No. 10 ESPN/USA Today, No. 8 AP) to a 72-47 win over Southern Miss on Saturday.

Jeremy Wise scored 15 points and Courtney Beasley added 12 for Southern Miss, which has lost five straight.

Roburt Sallie added 11 for Memphis, hitting all three 3-point shots, and Doneal Mack had 10.

[nasty daddy]

http://sports.espn.go.com/ncb/recap?gameId=290450154

Al-Farouq Aminu scored 17 points to help the Demon Deacons (No. 8 ESPN/USA Today, No. 7 AP) beat No. 25 Florida State 86-63 on Saturday, extending their unbeaten run against ranked teams while bouncing back from a frustrating stretch that followed their appearance at No. 1.

Jeff Teague added 15 points for the Demon Deacons (19-4, 6-4 Atlantic Coast Conference), who led the entire way and spent much of the game shooting better than 50 percent. Wake Forest used a 13-0 run in the second half to take control, turning a 12-point halftime lead into a 30-point margin late in the game to end the Seminoles' three-game winning streak.

Toney Douglas led FSU with 22 points, but he got little help from his teammates when the game was within reach late in the first half.

[nasty daddy]

http://sports.espn.go.com/ncb/recap?gameId=290460012

Nic Wise scored 26 points and Jordan Hill had 22 points and 13 rebounds to lead Arizona to an 84-72 victory over the Bruins (No. 6 ESPN/USA Today, No. 11 AP) on Saturday, the Wildcats' seventh win in a row.

Darren Collison scored 26 for the Bruins, including 6-of-10 on 3-pointers. Four of his 3s came in a late outburst that twice cut the lead to nine, the last on Josh Shipp's layup after an Arizona turnover with 1:08 to play.

Chase Budinger had 18 points and five steals and Zane Johnson scored 11 for the Wildcats, who have won six straight conference games.

[nasty daddy]

http://sports.espn.go.com/ncb/recap?gameId=290450221

Sam Young had 18 points, DeJuan Blair added 17, and point guard Levance Fields had 13 assists and no turnovers for the Panthers, who tied a school record by shooting 67.4 percent from the field ahead of their showdown at No. 1 UConn on Monday.

Jermaine Dixon added 14 points and Gilbert Brown 12 for the Panthers (23-2, 10-2 Big East), who shot 72 percent in the first half and missed only eight two-point field goal attempts the entire game.

Mike Williams had 17 points and Larry Davis 13 for Cincinnati (17-9,7-6), which came into the game having won three straight and five of six, but still lacking a signature victory for its NCAA tournament resume that a win at a top-five team would have provided.

[nasty daddy]

http://sports.espn.go.com/ncb/recap?gameId=290450201

Griffin set career highs with 40 points and 23 rebounds to break a school record with his 22nd double-double of the season, and No. 2 Oklahoma throttled Texas Tech 95-74 Saturday for its 13th straight win.

Cade Davis went 5-for-9 from 3-point range and added 17 points, and Willie Warren scored 15 for Oklahoma.

Nick Okorie set a new career high for the second straight game with 24 points and Mike Singletary finished with 16 points for Texas Tech (12-13, 2-8) in its 11th straight road loss.

[nasty daddy]

http://sports.espn.go.com/ncb/recap?gameId=290452550

The 7-foot-3 junior center nearly had his second triple-double in two weeks, finishing with career-highs of 25 points and 20 rebounds while blocking nine shots Saturday in No. 1 Connecticut's 62-54 victory over Seton Hall, the Huskies' 13th straight win.

Jeff Adrien had 14 points and 15 rebounds -- his 44th career double-double -- for Connecticut, which finished with a 55-43 rebound advantage and blocked 11 shots. The Huskies have led the nation in blocks the past seven seasons and are second in Division I with an average of 7.4.

Robert Mitchell had eight points and 15 rebounds for the Pirates (14-10, 5-7), who had won their past five, all in the Big East, and shot 31.2 percent (24-for-77) for the game.

[nasty daddy]

http://www.nba.com/2009/allstar2009/01/ ... index.html

The Haier Shooting Stars competition leads off the NBA portion of All-Star Saturday (8 p.m. ET, TNT). The co-ed event, featuring NBA legends and WNBA stars, was introduced at the 2004 All-Star weekend in Los Angeles with the local trio of Derek Fisher, Lisa Leslie and Magic Johnson capturing the title. The Spurs own two of the five titles.

The object of the Haier Shooting Stars competition is for each team to make shots from six locations of increasing difficulty in the fastest time. The shots must come in order on the floor and within a set order among the three-person teams. Each team chooses a specific order of shooting (Player A, B and C) and each shot must be made (unlimited attempts) before the next player begins shooting. The order:
Shot 1: 10-foot bank shot from right-side angle (Player A)
Shot 2: 15-foot shot from left side-angle (Player B)
Shot 3: NBA 3-point shot from top of the arc/straight on (Player C)
Shot 4: 18-foot shot from right-side baseline (Player A)
Shot 5: NBA 3-Pt. shot from left side angle (Player B)
Shot 6: Shot from just inside half-court/straight on (Player C, Player A, Player B, repeat)

The Participants
Team San Antonio: Tim Duncan, David Robinson and Becky Hammon
Team Detroit: Arron Afflalo, Bill Laimbeer and Katie Smith
Team Los Angeles: Derek Fisher, Michael Cooper and Lisa Leslie
Team Phoenix: Leandro Barbosa, Dan Majerle and Tangela Smith

[nasty daddy]

http://www.nba.com/dunk/

Robinson Takes Down Defending Champion
Nate Robinson tugged on Superman's cape -- and won. The diminutive New York Knicks guard beat defending champion Dwight Howard of Orlando in an electrifying slam dunk contest on Saturday night, winning 52 percent of fans' votes. Clad in an all-green Knicks uniform with green shoes, Robinson used Howard as a prop in the final round, springboarding over the 6-foot-11 center to jam.

"Dwight was a great sport letting me dunk over him," said Robinson, who also won in 2006.

[nasty daddy]

http://www.nba.com/2009/allstar2009/01/ ... index.html

Phoenix team falters from downtown, Detroit takes title
The team from Phoenix was almost perfect in the eighth annual Haier Shooting Stars competition at All-Star Saturday Night. But almost doesn't count, and Team Detroit came away with its second win in the last three years.

Phoenix hit its first five shots and made it to halfcourt in just 14 seconds, but the halfcourt heave was the team's undoing. The three shooters from Phoenix -- Leandro Barbosa, Dan Majerle and Tangela Smith -- needed more than 20 attempts there before Majerle finally sank one. By that time, Team Detroit was celebrating its victory.

Detroit needed 13 attempts to get through its first five shots, but only seven from halfcourt as the Shock's Katie Smith drained her third try from long distance. Smith helped her coach, Bill Laimbeer, become the first person to win a second Shooting Stars title. He teamed with Swin Cash and Chauncey Billups when Detroit won in 2007. Smith and Laimbeer were joined by Arron Afflalo this time around. They completed their final round run in a time of 58.4 seconds. "I'm happy Katie got some more hardware," Laimbeer said afterward. "She has collected a whole bunch of gold medals with a WNBA championship and MVP. Now she has got another one."

[nasty daddy]

http://www.nba.com/2009/allstar2009/01/ ... index.html

Top pick Rose finishes Skills Challenge with a flair
Last June, Derrick Rose was the first player selected in the 2008 Draft. On All-Star Saturday Night, Rose was first again. Finishing off his winning time of 35.3 seconds with an emphatic double-pump reverse dunk, the Chicago Bulls guard became the first rookie to win the PlayStation Skills Challenge when he defeated New Jersey's Devin Harris in the championship round. "It means a lot," Rose said of the win. "I'm a part of history with some of the greatest players in the league that have won this award."

Rose, who leads all rookies with 6.3 assists per game, finished the course 4.4 seconds faster than the Nets' point guard did. Rose also breezed through his first round with a time of 33.3 seconds, 3.3 seconds ahead of Harris, 4.2 seconds ahead of Cleveland's Mo Williams and nearly a quarter of a minute faster than San Antonio's Tony Parker's 50.8 seconds. The Spurs' point guard now holds the dubious distinction of having the two slowest times ever recorded in Skills Challenge history. In 2003, Parker finished the course in 45.5 seconds. Rose, however, made his two runs look easy, never using more than two attempts at any station in either round. He admitted, however, one station proved to be a little nerve-wracking. "The bounce pass," Rose said. "I knew when I got those two in, the crowd got to me and I came up a little short on my jump shots. I was scared a little bit. "But the bounce pass was the hardest thing."

In the championship round, Harris found the top of the key jumper to be the most difficult. Harris has shown an improved outside shot this season, but his stroke left him when it counted. He needed four attempts to sink the 20-footer. Rose needed only two shots to complete the shooting station. And despite needing two passes to get through the outlet station, Rose had plenty of time to measure his funky dunk. Rose said he was inspired by a two-time Skills Challenge champ to finish off his win with flair. "I always saw D-Wade [dunk] at the end," Rose said. Maybe next year, Rose can be the first player since Wade to go back-to-back. "I really can't wait," Rose said. "Of course the season isn't over with, but next year -- this summer, I'll work harder, work on my weaknesses and just go hard throughout the whole summer."