Notes from TNT’s Coverage of the NBA – Tuesday, April 11, 2011
TNT’s ‘Win or Go Home’ NBA Playoffs Coverage tips off on Sunday, April 17 with a tripleheader and the network will provide exclusive coverage of the 2011 Eastern Conference Finals
***CLIP OF THE NIGHT***
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TNT’s Chris Webber on saving the Sacramento Kings
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TNT NBA Tip-off presented by AutoTrader.com
Ernie Johnson, Charles Barkley, Kenny Smith and Chris Webber
Barkley on the Knicks’ chances against the Celtics during their first round playoff series: “Not a chance in the world [that the Knicks can beat the Celtics]. It’s a great match-up for the Celtics. They are bigger than the Knicks, [Rajon] Rondo is going to have a terrific series because he will have advantage in the open court against Chauncey Billups and they are going to punish the Knicks on the board. The Knicks have no chance of beating the Celtics.”
Smith on whether Barkley is a Knick hater: “I’ve been asked a lot, are you [Barkley] just a Knick hater? This is a true test to see if you are a hater or not or are you just being a basketball analyst? Who would be a better match-up for the Knicks”
Barkley: “The Miami Heat.”
Smith: “I agree with you. Now I know you’re not a hater. I think the Boston Celtics is a bad match-up; they are going to slow the game down and speed the game up. The Miami Heat would have been a better match-up [for the Knicks].”
Barkley on the Miami Heat/Philadelphia 76ers match-up: “The Heat are dangerous in the playoffs, they are going to sweep Philadelphia.”
Webber on the Miami Heat being the team he’d like to face the least in the East: “The Heat are the one team in the East that I would not want to play more than any other team, even more than Chicago. Chicago has more potential, but the Heat right now, the way they are coming in, what they’ve been through all season, the way they can control the pace, I just think they’ll be tough to play in the playoffs.”
Smith on the 76ers not having a clear advantage at any position over the Heat: “This is a good match-up for the Heat against the Philadelphia 76ers. [The Sixers] don’t have anybody who can physically match up and they don’t have anybody who you can have a clear advantage against. When you play the Heat you can have an advantage at the one or five spot. Philly at the one or five doesn’t have a clear advantage that is so overpowering. They do have good guards, but they don’t have that Derrick Rose [type player] that just takes over the game.”
Barkley on former TNT analyst and current 76ers coach Doug Collins: “Doug Collins, one of our comrades, has done a fantastic job. Just like the Knicks are a bad match-up for the Celtics, this is a bad match-up for Philly. But Doug Collins has done a great job, not just a good job, but a great job [with the 76ers].”
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Game 1: Chicago Bulls (103) @ New York Knicks (90)
Announcers: Marv Albert, Mike Fratello with David Sager reporting
Fratello on Knicks GM Donnie Walsh’s contract not yet being extended: “Why hasn’t Donnie Walsh’s option year been picked up already? It’s been since the 2003-04 season that the Knicks have been to the playoffs. He had to be patient for the last couple of years while he stripped contracts, got rid of them, was able to rebuild them by doing the deals that he has done. Is there no reward for getting them back to the playoff level?”
Albert on general manager Donnie Walsh reviving the Knicks: “[Donnie Walsh] has done a remarkable job when you consider the mess that he took over. He has brought stability to the franchise, something that was lacking, he has brought respect to the franchise, something that was lacking. At the moment, the fans are happy to see them back in the playoffs and back above 500 for the first time in what, 10 years? Donnie Walsh has looked at the big picture, cleared the cap, made the move for [Amar’e] Stoudemire, who is brilliant.”
Fratello: “That’s not easy to sit through all those losses for the last couple of seasons. He took a lot of fault during that time. Everything that went wrong he said, ‘it’s my fault, it’s my fault,’ but was patient and knew what he had in his game plan.”
Fratello on the Knicks returning to the playoffs: “Making it [to the playoffs] is the first step of their comeback. It’s a long draught for the New York Knicks, but now they are back on solid ground. They know they need to add more pieces, but they have a pretty good nucleus right now.”
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Halftime
Johnson, Barkley, Smith and Webber
Barkley on his prediction that the L.A. Lakers will not win the NBA Championship: “The Los Angeles Lakers are not going to win the NBA Championship this year. Father Time has caught up with them. Every time they’ve played well, they’ve run out of gas. I don’t think they are going to win this thing this year.”
Smith on the danger of the Lakers losing streak heading into the playoffs: “I wouldn’t go as far as saying they can’t win the NBA Championship, but I will say you can’t go on a six or seven game losing streak going into the playoffs because, overall, it’s the psyche of your team. [The Lakers] are the masters of turning it on. They are the only team in the world that I’ve watched disrespect basketball, saying ‘we can turn it on when we want to.’”
Inside Awards: Rookie of the Year
Smith: Blake Griffin (Los Angeles Clippers) – “He has dominated in his position and put himself in the All-Star Game and the class of 24 of the greatest players.”
Webber: Blake Griffin (Los Angeles Clippers) – “I really like his game and I like what he’s done. I don’t think he’s a rookie in the NBA though. There is so much knowledge given to players in their first year, something someone says to you can be the difference in having a successful year and having a not so successful year.”
Barkley: Blake Griffin (Los Angeles Clippers) – “I was going to do a protest vote for Landry Fields, he’s been the most consistent rookie all year. This guy [Blake Griffin] is a fantastic player, but he shouldn’t be
Rookie of the Year.”
Johnson’s top three selections on his ballot: “Three, DeMarcus Cousins, two, John Wall and one was Blake Griffin.”
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TNT’s David Aldridge interviewed injured Knicks forward-center Amar’e Stoudemire.
Stoudemire on how he feels coming back from an ankle injury: “I feel great, the training staff has done a phenomenal job of getting me back to where I need to be, so I blessed them all with iPad 2’s. I feel great.”
Stoudemire on taking his time to return from his injury in order to be healthy for the playoffs: “I knew I’d be back for the playoffs for sure. It was just a matter of taking the proper rest and getting the right treatment to get back in time. I feel 100% right now, so if I had to play tonight I would, but we are taking precautionary measures to make sure I’m ready for the playoffs.”
Fratello on Knicks forward-center Amar’e Stoudemire serving as the ambassador for the New York Knicks: “Can you believe the overall growth in Amar’e Stoudemire, when you see him as the ambassador of his franchise around the city? Yes, there were other great players like Steve Nash playing with him in Phoenix, but now he’s so good at handling everything that’s come his way.”
TNT’s David Aldridge interviewed Bulls guard Derrick Rose following the Bulls win over the Knicks.
Rose on making a defensive effort: “We are always worried about defense. That’s going to help us in the playoffs. Every day, every practice, it’s really, really important to us. We’re just trying to get ready for the playoffs.”
Rose on Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau’s philosophy of playing his starters despite having clinched their playoff spot: “We’re winning so I can’t complain about it. We’re just trying to get better and get sharper on defense. We’re pretty good right now.”
Rose on the possibility that he will be awarded the league’s MVP: “Don’t say that. I still didn’t get it. If anything, I’m just worried about winning. People know you in this league for winning so that’s what I’m trying to do.”
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Game 2: San Antonio Spurs (93) @ L.A. Lakers (102)
Announcers: Kevin Harlan, Steve Kerr, Reggie Miller with Cheryl Miller reporting
Kerr on whether Lamar Odom will be considered a sixth man by the voters for the Sixth Man of the Year award: “It will be interesting to see if Lamar Odom is considered for the Sixth Man of the Year. With all the injuries to [Andrew] Bynum he spent about half the season starting. I think if it were a consistent thing where he came off the bench all the time he would be my runaway choice. He started too many games for people to vote for him, I don’t know if people consider him a sixth man. Let’s consider him a sixth man, he’s my Sixth Man of the Year.”
Miller on the Lakers’ issues heading into the playoffs: “Everyone in Laker-town is wondering what is wrong with the Lakers? When you get to a certain point you get a little bored with the regular season. You’re focused on the big prize and the big prize is winning a championship and having your health. That’s what Phil Jackson and Kobe Bryant and the rest of these veteran players are really thinking about and that’s the bigger prize of winning a championship.”
Kerr on needing to have players on the inside to help win a championship: “I go back to what Kevin McHale talked about after Game #7 of the championship series last year when no one could make a shot and the Lakers won because of offensive rebounding. McHale says in playoff games especially late in the series, that rim gets a little smaller, the outside jumpers don’t fall as often. It’s the team that can pound you inside and get the easy hoops that ends up winning. I think he’s exactly right. Without [Andrew] Bynum and you’ve got the other injuries, I don’t think they could win it without him this year.”
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Halftime
Johnson, Smith, Barkley and Webber
Smith on the Lakers putting themselves in position to lose players to injury: “I always say what my dad used to tell me, you keep playing around with that dog, you’re going to get bit. The Lakers played around with that dog and games like now, they matter, and you get hurt in them.”
Webber on the Portland Trail Blazers upsetting their first round opponent: “I believe that Portland is going to upset whoever they play in the first round, especially if it’s the Dallas Mavericks. Portland is going to be a team that no one wants to play in that Western Conference in that first round. They have too many looks and they are too resilient of a team.”
Inside Awards: Sixth Man of the Year
Webber: Lamar Odom (Los Angeles Lakers) – “If the big fella’ [Andrew] Bynum is down he can step in there, he is so versatile and maybe the most versatile big man in the game..
Barkley: Lamar Odom (Los Angeles Lakers) – “Odom has been fantastic. He’s probably been the Lakers’ most consistent player all year long.”
Smith: Lamar Odom (Los Angeles Lakers) – “We are all in agreement with Lamar Odom. I’ve been watching Lamar and Khole [Kardashianon] E! and it’s been a really interesting show.”
Johnson’s top three selections on his ballot: “Number three, Jason Terry, number two, Glen Davis, number one, Lamar Odom.”
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Miller on the Mavericks cheering for the Spurs to beat the Lakers to impact playoff seeding: “There is one team in Texas licking their chops, hoping that San Antonio pulls the upset and that would be the Dallas Mavericks.”
TNT’s Cheryl Miller interviewed Lakers coach Phil Jackson after the third quarter.
Jackson on his third quarter assessment of his team: “We are awful. We are really awful out there.”
Jackson on Lakers center Andrew Bynum’s injury: “We’re always worried when Andrew goes down because he’s had some bad falls. But I went in at halftime and talked to him and he said, ‘I’m going to be alright.’”
Kerr on the Lakers’ vulnerability being at its highest early in the playoffs: “I think as we look ahead to the playoffs the Lakers are more vulnerable early [in the playoffs] rather than late.”
Miller: “I totally agree. If you can steal a game or two here in Staples Center it gives them pause to think a little bit. The longer the playoffs goes and Kobe Bryant gets into a rhythm, that’s when this team is the most dangerous.”
TNT’s Cheryl Miller interviewed Lakers Lamar Odom after the game.
Odom on why the Lakers felt they could flip the switch in certain games including against the Spurs: “Overconfidence, cockiness, we all know as athletes that’s when you find yourself in the most humbling position, when you’re a little too overconfident. It happened tonight and the last couple of games. The beginning and the middle of the season we lost some games that overconfident and cockiness beat us.”
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Inside the NBA presented by Hyundai
Johnson, Smith, Barkley and Webber
Webber on Lamar Odom’s postgame statement to Cheryl Miller: “[Charles Barkley] made the statement earlier tonight that Lamar Odom might be the most consistent player on this team, in my opinion behind Kobe [Bryant]. I think he is echoing some of the frustrations that Coach [Phil] Jackson had and Kobe had. [Kenny Smith] even said that this team in nonchalant and they can’t flip the switch on, [Odom] just admitted [that] in an interview… There is one sin in being overconfident. I think one thing that can cure that is admitting it and saying, ‘we can be really good once we realize we lose because of our cockiness.’”
Barkley on the Western Conference Playoffs: “The West is probably going to be the best playoffs I’ve seen in a long time. Like I said six months ago when the season started, the East is easy, the top four teams are always going to win.”
Smith on the Spurs and the Lakers not being afraid of the first round matchups in the Playoffs: “The San Antonio Spurs and the Los Angeles Lakers are not afraid of anybody… I can guarantee you that [Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich], [Spurs forward] Tim Duncan, [Lakers guard] Kobe Bryant, [Lakers forward] Lamar Odom are not worried about who they are playing in the first round [of the NBA Playoffs]. The difference with the Lakers is that, yes, they are cocky, but they have turned the switch on. We can say that they are older and that they can’t do it, but they’ve done it. They’ve disrespected the league before. They’ve already said, ‘we don’t play hard on certain nights, we’re cocky on certain nights.’ That’s disrespectful for the talent level that you’re playing against because if you’re only excited to play against Tim Duncan, that’s disrespectful to every other guy in the NBA. [The Lakers] do that. [As for] the San Antonio Spurs, I don’t think [Popovich] thought they would be the best team in the West right now, so they’re not caring if it’s the Memphis Grizzlies [that they face in the first round of the Playoffs].”
Smith on the loyalty of the Sacramento Kings fans: “[Chris Webber] was on the great teams, I was on the terrible teams, but the difference was nothing. [The games] were sold out. The community loved you. The community supported you and they were there. I don’t think there was a difference in terms of enthusiasm if we were 9-29 or when Webber was there and they were going for NBA Championships.”
Webber on the importance of the Sacramento Kings to him personally: “I wouldn’t be myself if it wasn’t for Sacramento. I didn’t want to go there. I tried to run away from there, but they still accepted me. I can’t imagine what Sacramento would be like without basketball, or what basketball would be like without Sacramento.”
Webber on Sacramento being his basketball home: “I won’t have a basketball home if Sacramento doesn’t have a team. I have a friend [former Seattle Supersonics guard] Gary Payton [and] he doesn’t have his jersey hanging in any arena [because] there’s no team in Seattle. I don’t want the same thing, selfishly for myself, but also for the people in Sacramento.”
Webber on his efforts to keep the Kings in Sacramento: “What am I doing? I’m trying to keep the team there. How? Many ways, we don’t want to talk about it but obviously I have a group and I want to keep the team there. Can it happen and will it happen? I don’t know at this point and it’s probably a gone ship anyway, but even if that ship is leaving the shore, I’ve got an anchor and some people and we’re trying to hitch it to the back of the boat and keep pulling the team back. What else am I supposed to do? I love being here with you guys every day, but I still want to have a home in Sacramento where my team is and where I can see young guys come up. For me, hopefully it’s not a lost cause. I love Sacramento and hopefully for the fans there, we can keep the team… I just don’t want to lose the team in Sacramento.”
Barkley on his disappointment in the Maloof brothers not keeping the Kings in Sacramento: “I really like the Maloof brothers, I want to make that perfectly clear, but I’m really disappointed in them. They should have found a way to keep that team in Sacramento… I’ve always had great respect for the Maloof brothers, they’ve always been great people to me, but I’m disappointed that they did not try harder to make it work.”
Inside Awards: Coach of the Year
Barkley: Tom Thibodeau (Chicago Bulls) – “This guy has been fantastic all season. The Bulls have probably been a consistent team all year. They don’t have a lot of losing streaks, like the Lakers, Heat or the Spurs.”
Smith: Gregg Popovich (San Antonio Spurs) – “[The Spurs] are not a team that you would think would have the best record in the NBA going into the last game of the season. This is a team that was slowing down and getting old, they couldn’t figure out how to get it done, but [Popovich] has gotten it done down in San Antonio.”
Webber: George Karl (Denver Nuggets) – “He had Carmelo [Anthony] and all of the drama in the beginning of the year and the team won, then I thought they were just going to shut it down and lose after [Anthony was traded to the Knicks], but now he has a bunch of new players and he looks like he’s having as much fun coaching as he has had in awhile.”
Johnson’s top three selections on his ballot: “Three George Karl, two Gregg Popovich, one Tom Thibodeau.”
Barkley: “Ernie, you are getting so much smarter, agreeing with us. You used to be dumb…”
Webber: “He’s been hanging around you for a long time…”
Johnson: “I don’t know how it hasn’t rubbed off on me.”
Inside Awards: Most Improved Player
Smith: Kevin Love (Minnesota Timberwolves) – “This was any easy choice. When you can break the record for double-doubles, held by Moses Malone and company, then you are the most improved player.”
Webber: Derrick Rose (Chicago Bulls) – “He’s made 212 more free throws and 112 more three-pointers. Kenny, you’re an expert three-point shooter, you know how hard that is to improve.”
Barkley: Kevin Love (Minnesota Timberwolves) – “What he did this year [was] become an All-Star and have a double-double record. I agree with Kenny. If you’re in the same conversation with [Moses] Malone, that’s pretty impressive.”
Johnson’s top three selections on his ballot: “Three was Dorrell Wright, two was LaMarcus Aldridge and one Kevin Love.”
Inside Awards: Defensive Player of the Year
Webber: Dwight Howard (Orlando Magic) – “He is the man-child, but I have to say ‘what up’ to Tyson Chandler because you made a team that was not known for defense be respected defensively over there in Dallas, but with Dwight Howard, I don’t think it’s even a choice for close second.”
Barkley: Dwight Howard (Orlando Magic) – “I’ve always said that Dwight Howard is the most underrated player in the NBA. What I mean by that is that as long as this guy is on your team, you are a legitimate contender. He is phenomenal… He’s a great, great player and a great kid, but every time he has to sit out, he kills his team.”
Smith: Dwight Howard (Orlando Magic) – “How many guys in the NBA today can change the game defensively? One, Dwight Howard. There used to be a plethora of guys that could do that, but now there’s only one guy in the league that can stop the other guy from getting 20 points and get their team 20 points.”
Johnson on the unanimous vote of Dwight Howard as defensive player of the year: “I don’t think there’s any question in the defensive player of the year and he could have also been most improved.
Inside Awards: Most Valuable Player
Barkley: Derrick Rose (Chicago Bulls) – “[This guy] has been the best basketball player in the entire world. Derrick Rose of the Chicago Bulls has been fantastic and it has been beautiful to watch.”
Smith: Derrick Rose (Chicago Bulls) – “Sometimes they say that the best player doesn’t win the award. Michael Jordan didn’t win it, LeBron [James], but I’m not sure if he wasn’t the best player this year.”
Webber: Derrick Rose (Chicago Bulls) – “The one thing I like is his mentality. It’s a throwback to the olden days. I really like this guy and I really like what he’s done for his team.”
Barkley on the achievement of the Chicago Bulls this season after losing players to injuries: “Joakim Noah missed 30 games. Carlos Boozer missed 20 games. For the Chicago Bulls to have the best record in the NBA, arguably [because] we don’t know what’s going to happen tomorrow night [in Chicago’s game against the New Jersey Nets], they could have the best record in the NBA. For [Noah and Boozer], the second and third best players, to miss a total of 50 games, that’s incredible.”
Johnson’s top three selections for Most Valuable Player: “Number five, Kevin Durant. Four, Kobe Bryant. Three, LeBron James. Two, Dwight Howard. One, Derrick Rose.”
Barkley: “If you’re going to agree with us, we don’t want to hear your opinion.”
Johnson: “You didn’t go as deep as five.”
Barkley: “’Cause I don’t want to go around saying that I was number five.”
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