March 2014 Basketball Wiretap

Heat Drove 27 Times Compared To 11 For Pacers In Game 4

May 27, 2014 2:11 PM

The Miami Heat had 27 drives to the basket for 33 points in Game 4, according to SportVU data.

The Indiana Pacers, however, had just 11 drives for 10 points.

LeBron James had 10 drives compared to zero for Paul George.

George said following the game that the Pacers attacked the basket as much as the Heat.

"You can't tell me we don't attack the basket as much as they attack the basket."

Brian Kopp/Stats.com

Tags: Indiana Pacers, Miami Heat, NBA, NBA B-Ball IQ, NBA Playoffs

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Cole On Stephenson Has Been 'Huge' For Heat

May 27, 2014 1:44 PM

The Miami Heat changed the complexion of the series by having Norris Cole defend Lance Stephenson. This move allowed the Heat to hide Ray Allen on George Hill.

“We fell into it,” assistant coach Dan Craig told Lowe on Sunday. “We said, ‘Hey, Norris is our best on-ball defender, and Lance is creating a lot of their offense.’ That matchup has been huge for us.”

Cole has hounded Stephenson all over the floor and the height and weight disadvantage hasn't been an issue.

“I never even look at height and weight,” Cole said after Game 3. “I don’t even care.”

Zach Lowe/Grantland

Tags: Norris Cole, Miami Heat, NBA, NBA B-Ball IQ, NBA Playoffs

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Stephenson: LeBron Showing 'Sign Of Weakness' By Responding To Taunts

May 25, 2014 6:23 PM

Lance Stephenson and LeBron James exchanged words during the Miami Heat's Game 3 win over the Indiana Pacers on Saturday.

Stephenson believes he is getting under the skin of James, who earlier Sunday said he does not want to get in a verbal back and forth with Stephenson.

"To me, I think it's a sign of weakness because he never used to say nothing to me," Stephenson said. "I always used to be the one who used to be the one that say, 'I'm going to get under you. I'm going to do something to get you mad' Now he's trying to do it to me. I feel like it's a weakness.

"I'm doing something right and I'm getting under his skin. I definitely have to keep stepping up to the plate and be aggressive when he does that."

James also bypassed any comparisons between he and Stephenson during last season's Eastern Conference finals.

"No. I don't need to get off with Stephenson," James said. "One thing I'm not going to do is give y'all a storyline with LeBron and Stephenson. I'm not going to do that. It's the Pacers versus the Heat."

Shandel Richardson/Sun Sentinel

Tags: Lance Stephenson, LeBron James, Indiana Pacers, Miami Heat, NBA, NBA B-Ball IQ

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Chris Bosh Understands Post Play Isn't Strength For Him Anymore

May 24, 2014 11:32 PM

Chris Bosh made it clear on Saturday that his days of playing in the post are not as consistent as they once were.

"I don't bang anybody anymore," Bosh said. "It's a tired thing for me. It's not my strength and I understand that."

Bosh has gradually made the transition into a perimeter-oriented player since signing with the Heat in 2010. Bosh jokingly said the decision was easy once "I found out you could get one more point for shooting threes."

"Just playing at an elite level, you play better defenders," Bosh said. "It gets tiring. What they ask us to do, to blitz the screen and roll, every single one, close out and get back. I wasn't this same weight. I was already 20-30 pounds lighter than anybody else. All that stuff just takes my energy."

Shandel Richardson/Sun Sentinel

Tags: Chris Bosh, Miami Heat, NBA, NBA B-Ball IQ

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Thunder Considering Changes To Starting Lineup For Game 3

May 24, 2014 1:43 PM

Scott Brooks admitted on Saturday that he is considering changes to the Oklahoma City Thunder's lineup ahead of Game 3 of the Western Conference Finals on Sunday.

"We've made changes before," Brooks said. "We have time to think about that."

Serge Ibaka could be available for Game 3, which would move him into the starting lineup. Other possible changes could include Caron Butler being inserted to the starting five, as Brooks did late in the Thunder's first round series against Memphis.

Ibaka remains day-to-day and the Thunder said he did not participate in practice on Saturday.

Darnell Mayberry/The Oklahoman

Tags: Oklahoma City Thunder, NBA, NBA B-Ball IQ

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Taj Gibson Told He'll Start For Bulls Next Season

May 23, 2014 10:55 PM

Taj Gibson was told by the Chicago Bulls' coaching staff that he will start next season.

The Bulls are widely expected to trade or amnesty Carlos Boozer.

Gibson confirmed that he has been told “to get my body and mind right to be a starter.’’

“I mean this will be exciting,’’ Gibson said in a phone interview. “This is what I’ve always thought about. When I started [those six games] for Boozer when he was hurt during the season, I just know how excited I was, how good it felt to come to the arena.’’

The Bulls also figure to pursue Kevin Love and Carmelo Anthony.

Joe Cowley/Chicago Sun-Times

Tags: Taj Gibson, Chicago Bulls, NBA, NBA B-Ball IQ

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Heat Appreciate Spoelstra's Willingness To Accept Input

May 23, 2014 1:18 PM

The Miami Heat have long appreciated the willingness of Erik Spoelstra to take their input into his decision-making.

LeBron James, for example, suggested in Game 2 that Norris Cole defend Lance Stephenson.

“It’s being made a little bit more than it is, but I’ll go along with it,” Spoelstra said. “It happens all the time. It wasn’t as major as people are making it out to be.”

“In certain moments he trusts us to come up with what we feel is best,” Dwyane Wade said. “… We wouldn’t be champions if we didn’t have it. We wouldn’t be the team we are today if we didn’t have the trust from both sides to understand we don’t have all the answers, they don’t have all the answers. We’re figuring it all out together. A lot of it is on the fly at times.”

Barry Jackson/Miami Herald

Tags: Miami Heat, NBA, NBA B-Ball IQ

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Spurs, Bulls, Grizzlies Have Highest Average Lottery Draw Since 1994

May 22, 2014 1:42 PM

The San Antonio Spurs have been in the lottery just once since 1994, but they made it count by winning it in 1997 to draft Tim Duncan.

The following list is the average pick of every team when they're in the lottery, which is of course dependent on order of finish along with whether they moved up or down.

San Antonio Spurs: 1.0
Chicago Bulls: 3.1
Memphis Grizzlies: 4.2
Atlanta Hawks: 5.1
Los Angeles Clippers: 5.6
Washington Wizards: 5.8
Charlotte Hornets/Bobcats: 6.2
Philadelphia 76ers: 6.4
New Jersey/Brooklyn Nets: 6.5
Minnesota Timberwolves: 6.7
Miami Heat: 6.8
Denver Nuggets: 6.9
Cleveland Cavaliers: 7.1
Toronto Raptors: 7.1
Boston Celtics: 7.5
Milwaukee Bucks: 7.5
Orlando Magic: 7.7
New York Knicks: 7.8
Portland Trail Blazers: 7.9
Detroit Pistons: 7.9
Golden State Warriors: 8.0
Sacramento Kings: 8.1
New Orleans Hornets/Pelicans: 8.4
Seattle SuperSonics/OKC Thunder: 8.5
Dallas Mavericks: 8.6
Los Angeles Lakers: 9.0
Phoenix Suns: 10.5
Utah Jazz: 10.8
Houston Rockets: 10.8
Indiana Pacers: 11.4

Matt Norlander/CBS Sports

Tags: Chicago Bulls, Memphis Grizzlies, San Antonio Spurs, NBA, NBA NBA Draft, NBA Draft General, NBA B-Ball IQ

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Buford: Spurs Have Specific List Of Non-Negotiable Deal-Breakers

May 20, 2014 6:41 PM

R.C. Buford was named 2014 Executive of the Year and the San Antonio Spurs are again in the Western Conference Finals.

The Spurs have done a masterful job of rebuilding the team on the fly even as Tim Duncan, Manu Ginobili and Tony Parker get deeper into their thirties.

“We have a specific list of deal-breakers that are non-negotiable,’’ Buford said. “If players want New York or LA, they’re not going to come here. … If someone’s more interested in winning scoring titles, this probably isn’t the place for them."

When the New York Knicks hired Phil Jackson, many in the NBA wondered why they wouldn't make that type of offer for someone like Buford.

“He believes he’s got the greatest job in the league and works with the greatest people,’’ the source said. “Why would he want to leave that?’’

Marc Berman/New York Post

Tags: San Antonio Spurs, NBA, NBA B-Ball IQ

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Knicks Have Traded/Swapped 1st Round Pick In 13 Of Past 27 Years

May 20, 2014 11:07 AM

The New York Knicks have traded or swapped their first round pick in 13 of the past 27 years.

1988 - 11th overall pick went to Bulls in a swap of picks via the Charles Oakley trade. Bulls took Will Perdue. Knicks grabbed Rod Strickland at No. 19. 

1989 - No. 22 pick went to Blazers (Byron Irvin) via Kiki Vandeweghe trade. 

1993 - No. 26 pick went to Orlando (Geert Hammink) via 3-team trade (Clippers) for Charles Smith and Doc Rivers. 

1995 - No. 24 pick went to Mavericks (Loren Meyer) via Rolando Blackman trade. 

1998 - No. 16 pick went to Rockets (Bryce Drew) from Blazers, originally from Chris Dudley trade. 

2000 - Acquired No. 18 pick from Raptors in Dudley trade, then flipped it later to 76ers for rights to Mirsad Turckan. 

2001 - No. 18 pick went to Rockets (Jason Collins), originally to Suns in Luc Longley trade. 

2002 - No. 7 pick (Nene) went to Nuggets via Antonio McDyess trade. 

2004 - No. 16 pick (Kirk Snyder) went to Jazz, originally to Suns in Stephon Marbury trade. 

2006 - No. 2 pick (LaMarcus Aldridge) went to Bulls in Eddy Curry trade. 

2007 - No. 9 pick (Joakim Noah) went to Bulls as swap in Curry trade. Used No. 23 to take Wilson Chandler. 

2010 - No. 9 pick (Gordon Hayward) went to Jazz, via Suns, via Marbury trade. 

2012 - No. 16 pick went to Rockets (Royce White) via Jared Jeffries/Jordan Hill salary dump trade. 

2014 - Lottery pick goes to Magic (Dwight Howard trade) via Nuggets via Carmelo Anthony trade. 

Alan Hahn/Newsday

Tags: New York Knicks, NBA, NBA NBA Draft, NBA Draft General, NBA B-Ball IQ

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Love Trade Interest Coming From Same Teams As Garnett In 2007

RealGM Staff Report

Thunder Find Effective Lineup With Collison-Adams Combo

Ian Levy/FiveThirtyEight

LeBron, Westbrook, Paul, Leonard, Mills Had Best PER In 2nd Round

RealGM Staff Report

Stephen Curry Found Losing Jackson Difficult But Agrees With Kerr Hire

Marcus Thompson/San Jose Mercury News

Prokhorov: Nets Clawed Back Into Contention After Difficult Start

RealGM Staff Report

Van Gundy High On Greg Monroe

Vincent Ellis/Detroit Free-Press

Clippers Playing At Fastest Playoff Pace Since 2002

Tom Haberstroh/ESPN

LeBron Scored 36 Of 49 Game 4 Points At Line Or Restricted Area

Kirk Goldsberry/Grantland

Joe Johnson Claims LeBron 'Flopped' Late In Game 4

Mitch Abramson/New York Daily News

LeBron, Westbrook, Paul, Aldridge, Durant Lead Playoffs In PER

RealGM Staff Report

Steven Adams Expected To Become Rugby Player, Instead Becomes An NBA Agitator

Billy Witz/New York Times

Kevin Garnett: We Got To Slow Down Ray Allen

Ethan J. Skolnick/Bleacher Report

Kobe On Considering Clippers In 2004: Was Sterling Willing To Spend?

Dave McMenamin/ESPN

Greg Oden Admits 'I'm One Of The Biggest Busts In NBA History'

Mark Titus/Grantland

LeBron, Aldridge, Westbrook Lead In Playoff PER

RealGM Staff Report

Rockets Plan To Sign 'Terrific Free Agent' With Cap Space

Mark Berman/Fox Houston

Stan Van Gundy: Warriors Had Success But Something Wasn't Working

NBCSN (via Jimmy Spencer)

Redick: Chris Paul Has 'That Napoleon Complex'

Billy Witz/New York Times

Forman: Studies Show Grit Is No. 1 Factor In Having Success

David Haugh/Chicago Tribune

Valanciunas To Work Out With Olajuwon In Offseason

RealGM Staff Report