- The stat geeks who run the Rockets are looking for more stat geeks.
- Reports of Clipper owner Donald Sterling making an appearance in the Clipper locker room on Monday to yell at the players, while supporting the coach. Kevin Arnovitz of ClipperBlog: "The timing is curious, and by casual observation, the effort Monday night was relatively vigorous compared to what we saw immediately after the break. A team owner certainly has the right to lash out at his team whenever he feels like it. But to berate a squad when its two most efficient scorers and best wing defender aren't suited up just seems tone-deaf, particularly when the owner excludes the staff from his wholesale criticism."
- There's something wrong with Luol Deng. He may be able to return soon. Or not. In the meantime, when people ask him why he's not playing, he'll have to throw out the phrase "early anterior tibial stress fracture."
- OK, so last night, in a tie game against Indiana, Brandon Roy was at the free throw line to shoot two free throws with 1.7 seconds left. He made the first, and then, as he stood there eying up the second, I couldn't help but think: He should make this. But if he doesn't, it's not the worst thing in the world for Portland. With a make, the Pacers get an instant timeout, the ball at halfcourt, and a near-guarantee of a decent shot. (As it happened, Jarrett Jack did launch a potential game-winning 3, but missed.) If Roy intentionally misses the free throw, however, Portland is essentially the best rebounding team in the league. There is some percent chance Roy's team gets the rebound. There is another slight chance that the ball is tapped, and some or all of the 1.7 runs off the clock. Maybe it goes out of bounds, or a Pacer fouls a Blazer. Weird things happen. Even if Indiana gets a clean rebound and calls an immediate timeout that's going to run off a fraction of a second. With 0.1 left, every coach would miss that second free throw intentionally. But what about with 0.5, or 0.8? How about a whole second? At what point does this strategy fail? I have a feeling the normal coaching urge to make the free throw with 1.7 left is really, and probably rightly, driven by one over-arching fear: You're inviting a scrum to fight for that loose ball. And in scrums, fouls get called. Heaven forbid that's on you: You're up one and they're at the free throw line.
- Ben from BlazersEdge on what it's like to be Jarrett Jack: "The ball is in his hands. His team is down two. The clock is nearly expired. The General Manager that traded him less than a year ago is looking on not 40 feet away. His friend, Brandon Roy, is looking on from perhaps half that distance. His former teammate, Travis Outlaw, is flying past him. It's a clean look. 20,000 people who loudly cheered his pregame introduction wait in silent anticipation. A chance to be a legend."
- Stephon Marbury, weird even back then. (Includes offensive language.) And the Onion, imaging Marbury as Shakespearean villain, hell-bent on turning the Celtics against themselves.
- Very funny ad with Christian Laettner, poking fun at himself living in the past.
- Rob Mahoney of the Two Man Game on Josh Howard in the Mavericks' win over the Spurs: "He was grimacing notably in the first half as he trotted up and down the court, but his bum ankle didn't prevent him from being assertive with his moves or consistent with his shooting stroke. Just the fact that he played sent a message, and going off for 12 straight Maverick points in the first quarter blared that message through a megaphone. The new-old Josh isn't having a 'coming-out party,' (he's been playing active, focused basketball for a few games now), but it's good to reap the benefits of a flashback Josh performance against our old friends the Spurs."
- Video of an absolutely brilliant prank. A half-court, blind-folded shot, a nice young man who is convinced he won a half-million dollars. (UPDATE: This was payback for another prank -- slightly PG-13 for language -- that did not end well.)
- The Sun-Sentinel's Ira Winderman: "Why would anyone, ever, pass the ball to Joel Anthony while he's moving? More than a decade later, Anthony makes John Salley look as if he had good hands."
- Fancy NBA attendance pie charts. I'm linking mainly because I like pie charts.
- I talked to some NBA people yesterday about all my "travel writing," and several said they would be interested to see that TrueHoop readers will come up as proposed re-writes. Here is where you can have your say.
- Ron Artest tells Ross Siler of the Salt Lake Tribune that some of his on-court antics, including an issue last year with Matt Harpring, were an effort to make Kings' basketball more fun: "Unlike when I was in Sacramento, I had to get the crowd riled, all rowdy, just to make it a fun, entertaining game. When I come here, the Rockets are already entertaining."
- Another coaching question, this one from Nets vs. Celtics. The Nets were down four, with 7.5 seconds left, and have the ball. Go for three, or two? I'm happy with two, but I suspect I'm in the minority. My main thought is: Without an immediate score, you lose. And about half of two-pointers go in, compared to about a third of 3-pointers. (I realize there are more wrinkles.) My first priority would be to extend the game. If you are lucky enough to get the ball back in a one-possession game, then you can go for 3. While if you miss this first 3, it's pretty much over. For the record, Devin Harris missed a 3, the Celtics got the rebound, and it was game over.
- UPDATE: (Insider) Some numbers showing Stephon Marbury to be the anti-Shane Battier, if you will.
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