http://www.cbs.sportsline.com/nba/story/9988804

Sixers' Smith missing jewelry worth $110K from hotel room

 

PHILADELPHIA -- Police are investigating a report of more than $100,000 worth of jewelry missing from the hotel room of Philadelphia 76ers forward Joe Smith.

 

Smith discovered he lost four pieces of custom-made jewelry worth $110,000 when he returned to his Philadelphia hotel room following a game against Toronto on Jan. 15, the Philadelphia Inquirer reported.

 

Smith went to police on Thursday and reported that two necklaces and a custom-made medallion vanished between 11 a.m., when he left the hotel, and 10:30 p.m. that day.

 

Police said that there had been no forced entry into the room, and that the items had not been secured in a safe. They did not have any reports of thefts from the hotel that day and were continuing their investigation.

 

Asked after practice Friday about the incident, Smith had little to say.

 

"No, I wasn't robbed," he told the newspaper. "I just had some things misplaced, but I wasn't robbed."

 

Police did not know the reason for the delay in reporting the missing jewelry.

 

Smith was acquired by the Sixers along with Andre Miller in December in the deal that sent Allen Iverson to the Denver Nuggets.

The Associated Press News Service

http://www.cbs.sportsline.com/nba/gamecenter/recap/NBA_20070210_ORL@NJ

Fourth-quarter surge propels Nets over Magic; Carter scores 32

 

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. -- The New Jersey Nets have long sought a productive backup for All-Star point guard Jason Kidd.

 

Marcus Williams appears to have ended that search.

 

Williams provided 12 clutch points off the bench and Vince Carter scored 32 points to lead the Nets to a 93-78 victory over the Orlando Magic on Saturday night.

It was second strong game by Williams in as many nights. The rookie also had 17 points Friday in the Nets 92-78 win over the Celtics in Boston.

 

"Marcus has some innate scoring ability," Nets coach Lawrence Frank said. "He gives us another guy who can not only make shots, but create shots. That's what good players do."

 

Williams is finding a scoring groove. It was the eighth time in 11 games that he scored in double figures.

 

"I think I have a lot more confidence now," Williams said. "Coach is letting me play through some of my mistakes and Jason is tutoring me, with all of the other veterans."

 

Kidd had 10 points and nine rebounds as the Nets extended their winning streak to three.

 

Dwight Howard had another excellent shooting performance for the Magic, getting 25 points on 11-of-15 from the field along with 12 rebounds. It wasn't enough as Orlando lost for the 12th time in 16 games. Darko Milicic had 16 points and 12 rebounds, and Jameer Nelson had 14.

 

Williams came in late in the third quarter to spell Kidd and immediately took charge by scoring the last six points for the Nets in the period as New Jersey took a 66-63 lead.

 

Starting the fourth quarter, Williams orchestrated a 15-8 run that sealed it. Williams scored four points in the surge and dished out three assists. When Antoine Wright scored a fast-break basket with 7:29 left, the Nets had an 81-69 lead and were in full control.

 

"Marcus Williams really hurt us," Magic coach Brian Hill said. "He came in the game and just seemed to have his way there for a little stretch. They scored 27 in the fourth quarter and the second unit was the group primarily responsible."

 

Carter scored 17 points in the first quarter for New Jersey, which was tied with Orlando at 28 after one period. Carter shot 6-of-9 from the field, including 3-of-5 from 3-point range.

 

The Nets' reserves scored the first 10 points of the second quarter and New Jersey took a 49-43 lead at the half. Rookie Josh Boone, Williams' teammate at the University of Connecticut, paced the Nets in the quarter with seven points in only six minutes.

 

The Magic clawed back in the third quarter, taking a 61-60 lead on a layup by Howard with 4:18 left. It was Orlando's first lead since Howard scored the first basket of the game.

 

It went back and forth until Williams entered with 3:02 left in the quarter and the Nets took control.

 

Notes

 

* The Nets played their 12th set of back-to-back games. They are 6-6 in the first game and 4-8 in the second.

* The Magic have only one game left before the All-Star break. They host Portland on Wednesday. The Nets have two left leading to the break: a home date with San Antonio on Tuesday before playing on the road Wednesday in Toronto.

* Nets F Richard Jefferson has progressed to a point of swimming as part of his rehabilitation. Jefferson, who underwent surgery Jan. 22 to remove "loose bodies" from his right ankle, was in the pool for the first time Saturday. There is no timetable for his return. "It's just the first step," Frank said.

* Carter reached 30 points for the 17th time this season.

 

AP NEWS

The Associated Press News Service

 

JJ Redick had 5 points on 2-5 shooting. Also had 3 assists. He played 24 minutes coming off the bench.

Steve Francis was back in the lineup for the Knicks tonight after missing 17 games. He had 13 points & 7 boards in 21 minutes off the bench for the Knickerbockers.

Az had 5 points in 10:44 for the Warriors tonight. Had a good duck of course.

What is your scale for measuring ducks? :laugh:

lol

http://insider.espn.go.com/nba/insider/columns/story?columnist=thorpe_david&page=ScoutingLeBron&lpos=spotlight&lid=tab6pos1&action=login&appRedirect=http%3a%2f%2finsider.espn.go.com%2fnba%2finsider%2fcolumns%2fstory%3fcolumnist%3dthorpe_david%26page%3dScoutingLeBron%26lpos%3dspotlight%26lid%3dtab6pos1

Scouting breakdown: How can LeBron improve?

 

My assignment is to analyze LeBron James and figure out why his offensive production has slipped this season.

 

First, some perspective.

 

James' 2005-06 season was more extraordinary than most people realize. In fact, since 1979-80 (the first season for Magic Johnson and Larry Bird), James had the best Player Efficiency Rating for any non-center age 18 to 22, posting a 28.1 PER at age 21. In other words, during those 27 years, only Shaquille O'Neal put up a better statistical season by age 22.

 

James easily outpaced Michael Jordan, Amare Stoudemire, Tracy McGrady, Kobe Bryant and all the rest.

 

Naturally, now we expect more from James. It comes with the territory.

 

Instead, James has tailed off.

 

That doesn't mean he's having a bad season -- far from it. He just turned 22, and his current PER of 23.7 would be the 10th best (since 1979-80) for players age 18 to 22.

 

And his passing is still exquisite, even if his assists are down a bit. His eye and feel for the game are truly amazing, at any age.

 

But we expected that he might be able to take his game to new heights and essentially take over the league, and it hasn't happened.

 

Specifically, his scoring has slipped from 31.4 points per game to 26.3, and that decline has been caused primarily by his decreased ability to create shots and get to the free-throw line. His free-throw shooting has become a problem as well.

 

Meanwhile, such players as Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh, who were in the same celebrated draft class of 2003, have continued to make significant strides in their fourth season.

 

My study of his half-court offensive game reveals some of the problems ∧ potential solutions.

 

On to the breakdown: INSIDER only

http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=2763202

Shoulder sidelines Nash for Sunday's All-Star Game

 

Phoenix Suns guard Steve Nash will not play in Sunday's All-Star Game because of his ailing shoulder, ESPN.com has learned.

 

Nash has missed the Suns' past three games and will also be held out of Wednesday's visit to Seattle, according to team sources.

Withdrawing from the annual Skills Challenge on All-Star Saturday as well as Sunday's game thus gives Nash two full weeks away from game conditions before the Suns play again Feb. 20 in a road date against the Los Angeles Clippers.

 

Nash, though, will be in Las Vegas alongside fellow Western Conference injury victims Yao Ming and Carlos Boozer. League rules stipulate that All-Stars must be in attendance throughout All-Star Weekend even if they are injured and require ongoing rehab treatments.

 

Nash's replacement on the West roster will be selected by NBA commissioner David Stern. A replacement for Nash will also be required for the four-man skills event that would have pit him against Kobe Bryant, LeBron James and Dwyane Wade.

Suns defiantly aren't getting to 70 now Catch.

I know, I know.

Iverson out of All-Star Game

http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/allstar2007/news/story?id=2764133

DENVER -- Allen Iverson will skip the All-Star Game because of a sprained right ankle that has bothered him for two weeks.

 

Allen Iverson

Iverson

 

Iverson was chosen as a reserve to the Western Conference squad for Sunday's game in Las Vegas, but the Denver Nuggets guard has missed seven of his last eight games after spraining his right ankle Jan. 29. The eight-time All-Star aggravated the injury Feb. 6 against New Orleans.

 

"Here is a guy who has always played with injuries and always played banged up. So if he's not able to play in the All-Star Game he must be really hurt," teammate Marcus Camby said Tuesday.

 

More than being a tough guy, Camby suggested, Iverson is a team player.

Feb 13, 2007 6:55pm ET

Grizzlies Acquire Padgett from Houston for Tsakalidis

Grizzlies.com writes, "Memphis Grizzlies President of Basketball Operations Jerry West announced today the Grizzlies have acquired forward Scott Padgett from the Houston Rockets in exchange for center Jake Tsakalidis."

Vegas is going to be NUTS this weekend with the all star game. Might be some of the best parties ever thrown this weekend.

Lakers are struggling a bit, this break couldn't have come at a better time. They have lost 7 of their last 10.

Suns are 3-4 in thier last 7 games. I think Nash has been out of all of them. They are also down 17 to Seattle right now. It will be 3-5 in their last 8.

All Star game is in 4 days.

 

When is the dunk contest ? I forgot..