- Jonathan Abrams of The New York Times: "History will reflect that the Nets of 2009-10 are bad. It will also now reflect that they are not the worst team in N.B.A. history. After serving as the league’s version of the Washington Generals much of this season, the Nets stiff-armed infamy by claiming their 10th victory in their 74th game, a 90-84 victory Monday over a depleted version of the San Antonio Spurs. 'We got 10,' the public address announcer Gary Sussman said as the final buzzer sounded. 'The Nets win. The Nets wiiiiiiiiiin.' Never has a 10th victory so late in the season been so sweet. The Nets’ win means that the 1972-73 Philadelphia 76ers will keep their distinction with nine victories in an 82-game season. This is as good as it will probably get for the Nets, who collectively breathed a sigh of relief that it did not get as bad as it could have gotten. The season started ominously. The team parted with its longtime coach Lawrence Frank, set the record for most losses to start a season with 18, and bequeathed interim coaching duties on a hesitant Kiki Vandeweghe, its general manager. Along the way, the organization pointed to hopeful bright spots ahead: a move from the Meadowlands to Newark and eventually Brooklyn, their pending sale to the Russian oligarch Mikhail Prokhorov and the salary cap space they have cleared ahead of this summer’s potential free-agent bonanza."
- Tim MacMahon of ESPNDallas.com: "Dirk Nowitzki definitely wanted the triple-double once it was in reach and the Mavs' lead wasn't in jeopardy. Coach Rick Carlisle called a play specifically to free up Jason Terry around the free throw line to get a pass from Dirk. It worked to perfection, giving No. 41 his 10th assist to match his rebound total on a night he scored 34. But the second triple-double of his career definitely wasn't the first thing on Dirk's mind after the Mavs seized control of the West's No. 2 seed with the win over the Denver Nuggets. 'We needed the win,' Dirk said, 'so that’s obviously the number one stat that we’re looking at.' ... the Mavs are serious when they say Dirk's passing, which he says is still suspect will be a key if they make a playoff run. The pace tends to slow down during the playoffs. The Mavs tend to bog down when forced into their halfcourt sets. They must put a premium on ball movement, especially if the opponent is determined to double-team Dirk on almost every touch."
- Mike Bresnahan of the Los Angeles Times: "Chris Paul and Darren Collison ran circles around the Lakers in a 108-100 Hornets victory
at New Orleans Arena, leading to a seething outburst from Kobe Bryant, who punched a chair on the bench in the final minute and was still simmering half an hour later in a postgame interview that lasted all of 42 seconds. Bryant obviously didn't like what he saw unfolding in front of him. He had 31 points and Pau Gasol had 26 points and 22 rebounds, but there was almost nothing else to appease the Lakers' superstar, in case the brief postgame transcript didn't prove the point. What's happening out there in games such as this one and last Friday in Oklahoma City? 'Just didn't play well,' Bryant said. He seemed upset at the end. What was going through his mind? 'Just didn't play well,' he repeated. How quickly can the Lakers turn it around with the playoffs starting in fewer than three weeks? 'We don't have a choice,' he said. Is he frustrated? Disappointed? He answered no to both. What needed to be done Monday to get a victory? 'Had to play better,' Bryant said. On offense or defense? 'A combination of all.' Why so few words? 'For my own good,' he said. He was asked whether he would provide more insight Tuesday and walked away from a semicircle of reporters." - Frank Zicarelli of the Toronto Sun: "Hedo Turkoglu has been a major bust in his first year in Toronto after signing a five-year deal worth $53 million. There have been moments this season that cried out for meaningful change, but the Raptors decided to make a statement in the wake of last week’s development that saw Turkoglu miss 11/2 games because of a stomach ailment. At the same time Turkoglu was ill, he was spotted out on the town. The perception, for obvious reasons, is wrong, sort of like Vince Carter showing up at a Nelly concert and dancing on stage when he was supposedly rehabbing a knee injury. No one should be foolish enough to suggest the Raptors are better off without Turkoglu -- because they’re not. Say what you want about his attitude, approach and presence, but he can create on a team that lacks creators. The problem rests with how the Raptors dealt with Turkoglu in the first place after they doled out a king’s ransom for the small forward. ... As a veteran NBA observer pointed out Monday night when apprised of Turkoglu’s tumult in Toronto and if the organization can change him: 'It’s too late.' That is why a trade should not be ruled out this off-season, assuming a team wants to absorb his onerous deal, one of many potential moves that can happen and should definitely happen if the Raptors don’t make the playoffs."
- Chris Dempsey of The Denver Post: "Chauncey Billups proclaimed this as the opportune moment for his team to take a hard look in the mirror, but perhaps no one has already beat themselves up more than he has. The veteran Nuggets guard insisted he will become a more prominent voice in the locker room, the film room and the huddle as the team searches for some sort of chemistry in order to survive a rugged seven-game stretch run, five of which are against teams currently in a playoff spot. 'I don’t think it’s that complicated,' Billups said. 'For one, I think you just, when you’re in a position like this you’ve got to look in the mirror and you’ve got to look at what you can do better. And for me, as the leader of the team, I probably haven’t been doing a good enough job of leading the team in game situations and even out of game situations, film sessions, and stuff like that. I probably haven’t taken a big enough piece of the pie of the responsibility as probably I should have. I know it’s going to be easy to point to (acting coach Adrian Dantley’s) inexperience or us not having Kenyon (Martin), but I think that really you have to point to the leaders of the team, first and foremost myself and say have to do more. Period. We have to do more.' "
- Michael Cunningham of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution: "Mike Bibby’s resurgence has come just in time for the playoffs, where he will boast the most impressive resume of any Hawks player. ... March has been Bibby’s most statistically productive month since November, which is also when new arrival Jamal Crawford started to make his mark with the team. Crawford eventually took on the role of a second perimeter scorer alongside Joe Johnson and it’s usually Crawford, not Bibby, who finishes games. Also, Mike Woodson sometimes substitutes for Bibby when he struggles to keep opposing point guards from getting to the basket. All of that has meant career-low minutes for Bibby and subsequently, his points, assists, and steals are at career lows too. He said it took some time for him to adjust to a reduced role, a change he didn’t expect coming into the season. 'I am not really worried about that,” Bibby said. “I think that might be one of the reasons [for the inconsistent production] but I’m not going to put any excuses on it. I am the type of guy, I like winning. The stats are for everybody else to look at and talk about. I think the wins reflect on the team. If you are winning, you are going to be recognized no matter how many points you score.' "
- Mark Murphy of the Boston Herald: "So Sunday’s loss to San Antonio -- the Celtics worst home loss of the season because of the 21-point margin - may only seem worse because of the numerical gap. 'I don’t look on this as a step back for us,' said Paul Pierce. 'I look at it as a night when you (strayed from) your system, and now you have to get back to it.' The question is whether the Celtics, whose March form has been much better than that of January and February, can shrug off this latest loss as an aberration. The chances of that happening are better than, oh, let’s say, a month ago. 'I have confidence in this team because of the preparation I see every day,' said Ray Allen. 'But what happens is that you want it so bad that sometimes you end up trying to do it yourself.' Unilateral actions can be a problem on this team. Pierce will drop his head, take his eyes off his teammates and force his way to the rim. Overall, they all will take the lead of Nate Robinson, who knows of no other way to play. But the condition, according to Allen, is temporary."
- John Jackson of the Chicago Sun-Times: "With nine games and 15 days left in the regular season, the Bulls will need help -- a lot of help considering their tough schedule down the stretch -- if they're to rally to make the playoffs for a second consecutive year. Barring a miraculous finish, the key to their fate may be whether the Toronto Raptors allow themselves to be caught from behind. But despite that fact, the Bulls insist they haven't been scoreboard-watching and their total attention has been on their play. 'I know we have to win games any way you look at it,' coach Vinny Del Negro said. 'I have to focus in on the next game, Phoenix [tonight], and prepare us the best. There are no easy games, like I always say, and Phoenix, obviously, is a huge test for us. What happens with the other teams, I can't control. I can just control our preparation and trying to get these guys ready to go.' "
- Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel: "Logic says this should not be a time when this team is coming together. Not with so many players likely going their own way at season's end. No, this does not make much sense, a team with 13 potential impending free agents coalescing when market economics soon will make it every man for himself. Yet here stands the Miami Heat, a season-best six games above .500, as one of the hottest teams in the NBA on the eve of the playoffs. ... The cohesion of this team has nothing to do with those transparent team outings organized by coaches, the billiards tournaments, the communal dinners, the we-are-family pap thrown out by management to portray a phony appearance of fellowship. With players ranging from 21 to 31, with family men and eligible bachelors, with seven-year franchise mainstays to those in just their initial days with the team, it is a wholly diverse collection. And yet spend time with the group after a practice or shootaround, and it is as if someone sent in the clowns. The humor is sharp, but never savage. It is the millionaires cracking on the minimum scales, and the kids cracking back."
- Stephen A. Smith of The Philadelphia Inquirer: "He's skinny. That's the thing that jumps out at you first: this frail frame in a 6-foot-9 body, inviting elbows and forearms. Then you see Kevin Durant play. Suddenly, the purity of his game comes shining through. It's a sweet-looking jump shot one minute, silky moves to the basket the next, ultimately convincing basketball aficionados that the next superstar is blossoming before our very eyes. If LeBron James isn't the primary topic of discussion for MVP honors in the NBA this season, then there's Durant. And if another player is even considered, commissioner David Stern needs to demand an investigation. At age 21, Durant is the league's second-leading scorer (29.6 points per game) behind King James. He has scored 30 or more points 39 times this season, which is the most in the NBA. His squad, the Oklahoma City Thunder, is the youngest team in the league (averaging under age 25), boasting a 44-28 record, already in the thick of a playoff hunt in the Western Conference. One should wonder why they even have to play the moribund Sixers tonight at the Wachovia Center. In the interest of fairness, if nothing else."
- Mike Baldwin of The Oklahoman: "With 10 games left in the regular season, every game affecting playoff seeding, Nenad Krstic said the Thunder has nothing to lose since no one projected Oklahoma City to make the playoffs in October when the season tipped off. Veteran Nick Collison agrees. 'I don’t know why we’re the way we are, but I don’t think anybody feels any pressure,' Collison said. 'Everybody has enjoyed this season. Everybody has had a lot of fun playing.' "
- Jimmy Smith of The Times-Picayune: "Exhaustive research indicated Johns Hopkins Institute urological surgeon Dr. Patrick Walsh the best in the field, and George Shinn attended what he calls a 'health boot camp' in Florida where the diet consisted of raw foods, cancer-fighting supplements and two daily enemas that cleansed his body. The plan, Shinn said, shortened his hospital time and expedited his eventual recovery time, and slowed the disease’s progression -- doctors told him biopsy slides indicated that cancer cells were on the verge of escaping the encapsulated tumor. Upon his return to New Orleans last Thursday, Shinn’s latest test, which measures prostate specific antigens that were elevated at the time of diagnosis, indicates complete success. Now cancer free, Shinn looks ahead to the offseason, when evaluation of the franchise begins. 'The plan is to do like we’ve always done. And that is I plan to sit down with Hugh and (minority owner) Gary Chouest and our key team and just talk,' Shinn said. 'We’ll talk about everything from players to coaches to ticket sales. Go through and talk through it and put together a plan just like I did for my health, of getting back on the right track. I mean we’ve got a lot of work to do. I’ve been there before, and we’ll just get it done. All of those decisions, people asking about coaches or whatever, we’ve got to evaluate it from a business standpoint. We’ve got to do what’s best for this team for this community and that’s what we’re going to do. I feel very fortunate to have a lot of smart people with me to help me make those decisions.' '
- Paul Coro of The Arizona Republic: "There are times when the Suns' Amar'e Stoudemire looks like a tailback hitting a seam as he barrels his way toward his end zone -- the rim. Stoudemire's body is jostled like a pinball as defenders bang and clang, and there's nothing to protect Stoudemire's frame but a jersey - or so it would appear. But Stoudemire goes to battle with armor. Like most NBA players, he wears pads.The NBA version of protection may not resemble NFL shoulder pads, but padded shorts and vests are as common as high tops.What each player needs in the way of gear for protection (or superstition) varies from Stoudemire's extensive ensemble to a teammate's preference for nothing at all. 'You've got guys who hold, push, shove and hit, so the undergear keeps me protected,' said Stoudemire, a padding pioneer about three years ago, along with Kobe Bryant and LeBron James. 'You wear the combat pads to protect your ribs, back, thighs, quads. It helps. I haven't got any bruises. Normally, when you set a screen, you get kneed in a thigh or 'bowed in your ribs. It protects you from all that. It definitely helps.' Each Suns player, except veterans Steve Nash, Grant Hill and Jarron Collins and rookie Earl Clark, wears the foam-padded compression shorts (protecting hips, tailbone and outer thighs), top (protecting ribs) or both. Jason Richardson always wears padded shorts but asked for a padded vest for his last matchup with Bryant. 'I'm gonna need the armor,' he said that day of a vest with quarter-inch-thick pads, which he took off during the game."
- Jason Jones of The Sacramento Bee: "True, Tyreke Evans needed some dental work recently. But his teeth aren't Internet savvy. That distinction belongs to teammate Carl Landry's teeth, which had a Twitter account dedicated to the choppers that were once lodged in the forearm of Dallas Mavericks forward Dirk Nowitzki. 'There's probably going to be a Twitter account for Tyreke Evans' teeth, too,' said Landry, still in disbelief that someone would Tweet on behalf of his teeth. 'People just don't have anything to do.' While still with the Houston Rockets earlier this season, Landry was struck in the mouth by Nowitzki's elbow while the Mavericks' superstar was driving to the basket. Landry, despite wearing a rubber mouthpiece, lost three teeth – two of them lodging under Nowitzki's elbow. ... Evans has missed five games, more so because of the concussion than any problems with his teeth or bruised jaw. After Monday's practice at Conseco Fieldhouse, Evans admitted that getting used to his custom mouthpiece hasn't been a seamless process. 'I was feeling good until I started throwing up from that mouthpiece,' Evans said. 'Other than that, I did good.' That bit of sickness had to do with Evans getting used to breathing with the mouthpiece."
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