Archives › Rob Mahoney
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Some praise is in order for the Denver Nuggets: they had a chance to sign an empty name (a Brian Cook, a Mikki Moore, or a Mark Blount), and instead signed something of a player. According to ESPN’s Marc Stein, Denver has signed Brian Butch, the reigning D-League All-Star game MVP, for the rest of…
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Last night definitely qualifies as a weird night in the NBA. Milwaukee’s momentum came to a grinding halt with a potentially season-ending injury to Andrew Bogut, despite the fact that the Bucks bested the streaking Suns 107-98. The New Jersey Nets won a game by 28 points. It’s already a bit weird that the Miami…
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UPDATE 4/4 4:41 AM: Bogut’s injury is actually more serious and more complicated than originally thought. According to Charles F. Gardner of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, not only is his right elbow dislocated, but he also suffered a right wrist sprain and broke his right hand. Gardner’s source indicated that Bogut will likely undergo season-ending…
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Amar'e has been taking no prisoners, but will take Player of the Month honors
Apr 3, 2010, 8:33 PM EDT
Without even attempting to understand Amar’e Stoudemire’s motivations, I will say this: there are times when Amar’e qualifies as a basketball force that’s somehow more than unstoppable. He’s capable of being an on-court power that is completely dominating and intimidating, and his combination of size, speed, and athleticism should make him a sure-fire candidate for…
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Kenyon Martin has always struck me as a man who takes himself entirely too seriously. His career is marked by tough guy posturing in every conceivable form, to the point where Martin is at times a caricature of himself. I just want someone to grab K-Mart by both shoulders, look deep into his eyes, and…
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Robin Lopez has been quite good for the Phoenix Suns this year, and his health is, in many ways, key to their late-season success. Without Lopez in the lineup, the Suns are a sub-par defensive team forced to rely on Jarron Collins, as Alvin Gentry is now committed to playing Amar’e Stoudemire at his natural…
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In many ways, Spencer Hawes is treated as a scapegoat for many of the Sacramento Kings’ shortcomings, which isn’t very fair. It’s easy to forget that Hawes is just 21 years old, a year younger than Andrew Bynum and Greg Oden, to put things in context. He has plenty of holes in his game, but…
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Marcus Camby's future a bit hazy, but could be in New York
Apr 2, 2010, 11:16 AM EDT
The Portland Trailblazers made an absolute steal at the deadline when they nabbed Marcus Camby, simultaneously adding a defensive presence and filling a positional need. Camby has been tremendous for Portland, and without him, Blazer fans would be looking at long nights with Juwan Howard playing extended minutes at center. In that scenario we all…
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Throughout the Tracy McGrady saga in Houston, I never got the vibe that McGrady really grasped what was going on. The very idea that a team would choose not to play him for the sake of chemistry seemed to baffle T-Mac, and to be fair, I imagine that any player of similar standing would have…
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The Thunder have undoubtedly been the most surprising team of the season, and with that surprise comes some unreasonable perceptions. For starters, the notion that the Thunder are a good offensive team because they have Kevin Durant, one of the best scorers in the league, is laughably false. Similarly, because the Durantula is, as mentioned,…
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The Dallas Mavericks have this odd tendency to win lots and lots of basketball games. Or at least the post-2000 Mavericks have such a tendency. Before that, Dallas suffered a decade of basketball incompetence, boasting win totals of 40 and 36 in their most successful seasons. In the 90s, the Mavs won 30.3% of their…
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The Houston Rockets have been one of the most entertaining teams this season, mostly due to their status as the NBA’s resident hustle junkies. Tracy McGrady barely played and Yao Ming barely practiced, but an outmatched group of confident role players took to the court with excellent effort and great team chemistry. The only problem…
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MVP race: the league now presents you, the fan, with the illusion of power
Mar 31, 2010, 12:25 PM EDT
According to InsideHoops.com, for the first time ever fans will be able to vote for the winner of the MVP award at the end of the season, integrating fan selection into a process that was formerly decided by media members. In principle, it’s a victory for the common man. Extending voting rights to all is…
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Last night’s Bulls-Suns game may not have seemed like a marquee match-up, but it went to the wire and held some rather significant playoff implications. That, and Flip Murray decided to throw in 23 points on just 12 shots just for the hell of it. The Bulls took away the Suns’ early 12-point lead behind…
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It’s been quite a season for the D-League, and amid a flurry of late-season call-ups, Washington will add one more to the list. According to Scott Schroeder of Ridiculous Upside, the Wiz will sign Cedric Jackson of the Erie Bayhawks. Now, Jackson is neither the most impressive D-League prospect called up this season nor the…
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There’s nothing wrong with taking time to deliberate a purchase, whether that purchase is a big screen TV, a new car, or the services of D-League All-Star point guard. So the Oklahoma City Thunder brought Shakur in for a 10-day contract, didn’t re-up him for a second, stewed over the decision for a few days,…
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Understanding the specifics of the Cavs' re-acquisition of Zydrunas Ilgauskas
Mar 30, 2010, 11:12 AM EDT
There’s been plenty of argument on whether or not the Cavs should be allowed to re-sign Zydrunas Ilgauskas after parting ways with him in a trade at the deadline, but not much analysis on why they’re allowed to re-sign him. As is the case with almost every cap-related issue, we turn to Larry Coon. Coon…
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There’s something very ominous about saying a player is out for the season. It’s as if every injured player is Michael Redd, losing another season of their career in semi-tragic fashion. Then you realize that every player that’s been declared “out for the season,” for non-playoff teams at least, is really just missing about eight…
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“I love D’Antoni, he’s the dope. Spending time with him in the Olympics, his offensive mindset is unbelievable. He’s got the best plays I’ve ever been around — on a whim. It’s like rappers when they come out on the top of the dome with quotes. He’s got plays in the back of his head…
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According to Michael Lee of the Washington Post, Randy Foye will miss the next 7-10 days with a left wrist sprain and could very well be done for the season. I consider this evidence that the basketball gods, wherever they are, are merciful entities indeed. If only all of the Wizards’ mainstays were so lucky.…
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“The money is going to be the same, no matter where I go. It’s about winning. I’m finishing my seventh year. Contending for a championship is all I want. I never made it past the first round. I just want to be a contender.”– Chris Bosh, according to Michael Wallace of the Miami Herald, when…
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The “end” of the Memphis’ Grizzlies season just relies on a few mathematical kinks. The Grizz currently sit at ninth in the West, putting them just outside the post-season crowd. That’s an impressive feat given Memphis’ preseason projections, but the 6.5 games that stand between Memphis and the impressive Portland Trailblazers might as well be…
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The Cleveland Cavaliers are the gluttons of the Eastern Conference. It wasn’t enough to have the best record in the East, they had to trade for Antawn Jamison. Then it wasn’t enough to trade for Antawn Jamison, they had to get a full return on their only investment in the deal, Zydrunas Ilgauskas. And now,…
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Wizards just don't get it, let Alonzo Gee sign with Spurs
Mar 29, 2010, 10:47 AM EDT
Alonzo Gee has been one of the few bright spots for the Washington Wizards over the past 20 days. I’m sure plenty of Wiz fans (y’know, the ones who haven’t been completely disenfranchised by the ongoing circus that is their team) didn’t quite know what to expect with Gee, but he’s shown himself to be…
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In the NBA (and all professional sports for that matter), players have a fine line to walk when discussing their opponents. Don’t give them enough credit, and they feel wronged and the comments become bulletin board material. Give them too much credit, and there’s a perceived psychological shift and the comments become bulletin board material.…
