That Guy Scored 50?? posted by Scott Shepherd

A few days ago I posted a blog listing the best scorers in the NBA today that have yet to have a 50-point scoring game.

While researching that post, I had an even more interesting idea for a post.

It’s a list of guys who, unbelievably, had a 50-point game in their career.

Since I was using www.basketball-reference.com to research the list, we’re only going back to the 1986-87 season. It’s far enough back in time to make some of the guys on the list obscure, but not far enough back to where you won’t remember them.

In no order, here are some of the more random players to score 50 points in an NBA game over the past 24 seasons.

Vernon Maxwell

Before Ron Artest and the “Malice at the Palace”, there was Vernon Maxwell running into the stands and punching a fan. While “Mad Max” will be remembered most for that, he also finds himself in elite company as one of only 60 players to score 50 or more points in a game since the start of the 1986-87 season.

Maxwell may be most remembered for his volatility, but at one point he was very dangerous on the court as well. He dropped for 30 points in the fourth quarter on January 26th, 1991 against the Cavs en route to a career-high 51 points.

Charles Smith

The former number three overall pick had a solid first few seasons with the Clippers, but a series of knee injuries cut his career short after a few other stops. For his career, he averaged 14.4 points per game.

Though he never developed into a big time NBA player, Smith dropped 52 on the Nuggets in December of 1990. It was the only time in his nine year career the Smith scored more than 40 points in a game.
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LeBron Makes His Only Trip to "The Garden" Tonight posted by Scott Shepherd

LeBron James makes his only trip to Madison Square Garden tonight.

For the past two seasons there has been plenty of talk about LeBron bolting his hometown of Cleveland for the bright lights of New York City.

In his career, LeBron has been fantastic at the Garden. He’s averaged 30.1 points, 6.6 assists, 5.6 rebounds and 2.3 steals in ten trips to The Garden. In his last two trips to the Mecca of Basketball, he’s had a 52-10-9 game and a 50-10-8 game.

Needless to say, all eyes will be on LeBron tonight to see if he can put on another show on Broadway.

Also on tap for tonight, the undefeated Nuggets make their only trip to Miami to take on Dwyane Wade and the Heat; the Pistons look to continue their dominance over the Magic in Orlando; and the Suns try to outrun the Celtics in Boston.

I’m gonna wear out my Directv remote trying to keep up with all the games tonight. Should be a great night of basketball.

Stay tuned…

Nuggets hand Grizzlies frustrating loss posted by Brad Hurt

There are no moral victories in the NBA.  Grizzlies coach Lionel Hollins said so himself.  If there were, Sunday's 133-123 loss at Denver would have qualified.  The 10-point final margin is a bit misleading because the Grizzlies led by five after the opening quarter and hung around for much of the game.  The Grizzlies put up 40 points in the first quarter on 77 percent shooting, which at least ensured they would not start out flat on the road as they did so many times last season.  They shot the ball extremely well, finishing at 57.8% for the game.  Offense is not the problem.  What has hurt them in their first two losses is turnovers.  They gave the ball away 20 times on Sunday and 14 times in their opener against Detroit, robbing themselves of chances to build runs.  With the way they are shooting the ball right now, if they maximized their possessions, they could be undefeated or at least have played Detroit closer.  Against the Nuggets, the Grizzlies just didn't play enough defense to win.  The Nuggets weren't a whole lot better defensively, but the extra possessions they got allowed them to stay just far enough ahead of the Grizzlies to claim the win.

There is always room for improvement, especially after a loss, but the Grizzlies are far ahead of where they usually are through the first few games of a season.  They showed flashes of greatness against the Nuggets and never hit an extended lull like they have in past road games.  They did fade in the third quarter, but just as they did so many times a year ago, they roared back in the fourth quarter to make a game of it.

Fun With Box Scores posted by Scott Shepherd

In the NBA these days, it seems like there is a stat for everything. We’ve got PER, offensive efficiency ratings, defensive efficiency rating, and so on and so on.

It seems like every team in the league now employs their own stat guru. And while I’m not one to question the use of all these new statistics to evaluate NBA players (I actually kinda like them), I’m old school.

To me, all the new stats in the world can’t tell the story of an NBA game as well as the good, old fashioned box score.

Therefore, I’m starting a new feature today called “Fun With Box Scores”.

Every Monday, I’ll be posting some of the more interesting things that jumped out at me from the previous week’s box scores.

This week, they are, in no particular order:

The Cavs were +38 when LeBron was on the floor this week. They were -27 when he wasn’t.

Meanwhile, the Cavs were -3 when Shaq was on the floor and +19 when he wasn’t.

Rasheed Wallace took 8 shots on Wednesday…all three pointers. For the week, ‘Sheed attempted 36 shots. 25 of them were three pointers.

Danilo Gallinari was 8-16 from deep on Saturday. He was 1-6 on two-point shots. For the week he was 18-36 on three-point shots and 4-11 on two-point attempts.

Carmelo Anthony had 113 points in 116 minutes this week.

Greg Oden had 26 points in 99 minutes. He also had 19 fouls.

Speaking of fouls, Hasheem Thabeet had 8 in 24 minutes of play this week. In his defense, he did have four blocks, giving him a nice one block for every two fouls ratio.

First Impressions posted by Scott Shepherd

The NBA season is officially underway (unless you live in Chicago or Milwaukee).

After several hours parked in front of the NBA League Pass for the past two days, it’s time for some first impressions.

The Good

Ty Lawson

How good was he last night? I predicted the Denver Nuggets to be the third best team in the West this season, and that was assuming that Ty Lawson would play like a rookie point guard.

But his 17 points, six assists, and four rebounds, plus very solid fourth quarter minutes in a close game against a decent Utah team, shows that he may be a real X factor for this team moving forward.

Brook Lopez

Lopez was a monster last night, finishing with 27 points, 15 rebounds, five blocks, and four assists. Of course, the Nets lost, mainly because they couldn’t hold off the mighty T’Wolves down the stretch, but it certainly wasn’t because of Lopez.

Los Angeles Lakers

I know they were playing the Clippers, but the champs didn’t miss a beat. This could have been the most lopsided seven-point game I’ve ever seen.

If it hadn’t been for the extended period in the second quarter where D.J. Mbenga tried to show his limitless range the Clippers would have lost by 20.

The Lakers starters (minus their second best player, Pau Gasol), were nothing short of dominant all game. They just toyed with the Clippers for most of the game, and clamped down where it mattered most.

Boston Celtics

Denver summer league posted by john howard

With Chauncey Billups and JR Smith in the backcourt, things are looking fine in Denver. However, last year they did display some weakness coming off the bench.  They may have found some solutions.  Ty Lawson was very good during the Las Vegas summer league.  He lead the team in scoring with 17 points 4 rebounds, and 4 assists.  What was even more pleasing was that he only had 2 turnovers a game.  He may signal the end of Arron Afflalo.   The team has an option on him next year. And, if Lawson plays out like I think, Afflalo will be the odd man out.

Sonny Weems does not have a guaranteed contract.  So, this is a big summer for him. He averaged 16ppg and 6 rebounds.  Those are good numbers.  He did not shoot the ball well.  But, rebounding from the guard spot is a plus.  He may have earned himself a spot on this team.

Another guard, Coby Karl, shot lights out.  Cedric Simmons and Kareem Rush also played some.  Neither are under contract right now.

All in all, the Nuggets got a steal with Lawson. Flynn and Rubio got the headlines.  But, before it's all said and done, there will be many teams wishing they had taken Ty.

My first blog on ESPN.com 2/22/2009 posted by Sabrina

I just found my first blog that I wrote and figured I'd post it up here since it's semi-relevant to the upcoming season and what has been going on with the many changes.

27-27

As an avid Detriot Pistons fan, I’m just about ready to jump off a cliff because I just can’t stand watching them play like this anymore. If you’re a Wizards fan, you understand my pain considering we’re both 27-27 right now. Actually, I’m not punching myself in the face every time the Pistons lose because I think they can pull it together. With a new coach, new roster, and a few rookies, it’s understandable that this team isn’t quite the team it used to be. There is great potential on this team and I don’t think their record is doing them any justice considering their roster of very skilled players.

I want to start off by talking about Rodney Stuckey. As a second year rookie, he is getting a lot more playing time than he did last season. Also, last season he had to share the spotlight and Point Guard position with Chauncey Billups, who is now playing on the Denver Nuggets. Michael Curry, the current head coach, recently said that Stuckey is "the key to our team.” Stuckey is a great player, but keep in mind that this is his first year being on the court with so many minutes. He is new to the team and NBA itself and still needs the experience to be a star player. These are obvious reasons Stuckey shouldn’t be the “key” to the team. I think that with a few years, he’ll learn how to be a better player and definitely can lead the Pistons back into championship status.

National Champs send four in NBA Draft posted by Christopher Arroyo

The people who saw the 2009 NBA Draft on Thursday were in for a special treat when they saw Blake Griffin go No. 1.

Very predictable however.

Then, Hasheem Thabeet went No. 2, which was also predictable. Then things got a bit interesting.

The early shocker was Stephen Curry going number seven to the Golden State Warriors. But what was really neat was that all of the North Carolina players that declared were drafted.

The first Tar Heel chosen was Tyler Hansbrough, who went at number 13 to the Indiana Pacers. This was a good pick, for the Pacers and here is why. Indiana is not known to carry much toughness, especially in the frontcourt.

If you had the treat to see this guy in college then you would know that he’s the real deal for toughness. I think he will start the season on the bench, but he will emerge into that starting position around December.

The second Tar Heel chosen was Ty Lawson, who was picked by the Minnesota Timberwolves. Now I know many of you were wondering why Minnesota picked four guards in the first round, which three were point guards. But, rest assured, they ended up trading Lawson to the Denver Nuggets for a future first round pick.

This is the BEST team for Lawson. You’re putting one of the top, and under-appreciated, point guards in the draft on a team that is surrounded with rising talent. He is also going to appreciate being an apprentice to Denver’s Chauncey Billups.

Probably the most respected guard in the league and known for his patience and leadership on and off the court. Sadly, he will be a bench player for a few years but, learning under Billups will definitely make him one of the top point guards in the league. This was really the best move of the draft Denver should be strong under the point guard position for at least the next 10 years if all goes well.

Lakers Teamwork brings a Home a win posted by Hank Hill

Western Conference Finals Game 5: Another Battle But Kobe Makes Right Decision For Lakers Win!!!!! As I wrote in my last couple blogs teamwork wins, and LA and Cleveland have not been playing as a team, either Bryant or James wins it for their team or they have lost because Orlando and Denver have been playing with teamwork for the whole playoffs.

Last night Kobe flipped the switch and used his team by having 8 assists a game high, and driving to the hoop, this means he  then draws the double team and last night he was then kicking it out for open shots for his team mates (instead of trying to take a hard shot while doubled) and that is how the Lakers can win and were able take this one. Kobe only took 13 shots, hitting 6, but by driving to the hoop he went to the free throw line 11 times and hit 10 so Bryant only ended with 22 points because he did not just keep shooting as usual, instead he controlled the tempo and made the right passes so all the Lakers starters and bench were involved,

Fisher had 12 points, 2 assists and played good defense, Ariza also had 12 points, 5 rebounds and 4 assists. The Big men, Gasol with 14 points, 10 rebounds,4 assists, Bynum with 9 points, 2 rebounds and an assist and Odom my game MVP off the bench with 19 points, 14 rebounds and 3 assists and all three of these Big men controlled the paint and this gave LA a huge advantage and the win with a final of 103-94!! But this game was a lot closer than the scoreboard shows-- the game was tied 25-25 after 1 quater, 56-56 after 2 quarters heading into half. This was because Anthony and Billups were on fire in the first 3 quarters and C. Anthony had a game high 31 points, with 4 rebounds and 4 assists and Billups had 12 points, 3 rebounds and 5 assists, but Denver had trouble in the paint and the Lakers took control at the beginning of the 4th.

The Eastern Conference Finals -- A Very Entertaining Game posted by Hank Hill

In the Eastern Conference finals, Orlando is showing everyone that they deserve to be in the finals!!!! They beat Cleveland again last night in a battle and, I might add, a very entertaining game giving Orlando a 3-1 series' edge!!!! Crazy, they already have commercials playing that are basically saying it's Kobe vs James rather than Orlando vs Denver.  I think that's awesome as I always love the underdogs!!!

Back to last night's game. L. James played a great game scoring 44 points, 12 rebounds and 7 assists but is that enough to carry and win this for his team?  Not in this game.  Orlando was trailing most of the game, down by up to 16 points in the 1st half, then an 8 point lead going into half by the Cavs. So going into the half Cleveland looked ready and L. James was getting some help from West (17pnts), Wallace (off bench played great D), Williams (18 pnts), and IIgauskas (12 pnts). But in the second half, Orlando came out on fire with a look that said they were on a mission and were going to come back and take this, and they did. They shut everyone down on the defensive end and scored a franchise record 17 playoff threes, all when they needed them. So heading into the 4th, the Magic cut the lead from 8 to 1 and now it's anyone's game.

R. Lewis scored 17 points but 10 in the 4th -- huge!! D Howard was hitting most of his free throws which is real big in these games as every point matters. He ended with 24 points and a game high 14 rebounds. Also Alston had 26 huge points, 3 rebounds, Turkuglu scored 15 points, 7 rebounds and 8 assists, and Pietrus off the bench scored 17 points!! So as you can imagine, this was a crazy 4th quarter with a score going back and forth, then with about 5 minutes left ,Orlando hit back to back threes and led by 8.

Jazz win eighth straight, down Nuggets (AP)

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From Yahoo! Sports

Billups scores 39 as Nuggets bury Lakers 126-113 (AP)

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From Yahoo! Sports

Billups' 39 power Nuggets over Lakers (AP)

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From Yahoo! Sports

Sore Kobe game-time decision vs. Nuggets (AP)

Kobe Bryant has skipped practice with the Los Angeles Lakers to rest his sore left ankle. The Lakers will wait until game time Friday night to decide whether Bryant will play against the Denver Nuggets. Bryant received treatment on his ankle Thursday after aggravating his injury during Wednesday night's victory over Charlotte when teammate Lamar Odom stepped on his foot. [read full article]

From Yahoo! Sports

Kobe Bryant sits out practice with sore ankle (AP)

Kobe Bryant has skipped practice with the Los Angeles Lakers to rest his sore left ankle. The Lakers will wait until game time Friday night to decide whether Bryant will play against the Denver Nuggets. Bryant received treatment on his ankle Thursday after aggravating his injury during Wednesday night's victory over Charlotte when teammate Lamar Odom stepped on his foot. [read full article]

From Yahoo! Sports