NBA.com/Rocky Widner
It wasn’t the most glamorous week for Andrew Bogut. While the Warriors continued to rack up wins, Bogut was on the receiving end of a few unfortunate plays. It started on national television against the Dallas Mavericks last Wednesday. Golden State was down by 22 points at one point in the first half. Tyson Chandler put Andrew Bogut on a poster with this ally-oop slam dunk. Golden State was once again looking lackadaisical on the defensive end. This has become a tendency for them in recent weeks. After an ugly first half that featured Dallas scoring 42 points in the first quarter, Stephen Curry took over. It was his 51-point performance that rescued Golden State in a 128-114 win.
Bogut struggled with foul trouble that limited him to 22 minutes of action. His absence was felt through Dallas’ offensive explosion in the first half. When Bogut was on the court, he contributed with six points and eight rebounds. It wasn’t a very good performance for him though. Tyson Chandler got the better of him throughout the night. His athleticism flustered Bogut on both ends of the court. It was rare to see Bogut struggle in such a high-profile matchup. In the end, the heroics of Curry’s 51-point performance kept Golden State as the top team in the Western conference.
Golden State couldn’t keep their winning streak going, as they fell short in Friday night’s showdown against Atlanta. In the heavily publicized game against the Hawks, the Warriors allowed far too many open looks. Atlanta connected on fifteen three-pointers and attempted 22 more free throws than them (37 to 15). Bogut contributed with five points, seven rebounds, and three blocks in 22 minutes of action. It was another average performance from him that featured four turnovers. While his interior defense was better in this game, it wasn’t the outstanding performance that you’d expect from him in a big game. This was the second consecutive game in which the Warriors allowed more than 110 points. A telling sign that the entire team, including Bogut needs to tighten up.
The spotlight was on head coach Steve Kerr, as the Warriors traveled to New York on the following night. Kerr infamously chose to coach the Warriors over the Knicks, which really shouldn’t have been considered as a bold move. It was silly how the media tried to publicize in July how Golden State was an average team. Then, they classified the Knicks as a great opportunity to succeed. Despite only winning by a score of 106-92, Golden State was in complete control. Bogut played only eighteen minutes, although had a solid performance with seven points and seven rebounds. Andrew did have an incident with Jose Calderon that seemed like an unfortunate elbow from a missed shot. The comfortable win brought their margin up to forty on the season.
http://youtu.be/bZUio7Uk9Uk
Accidental or deliberate elbow from Bogut?
The east coast road trip of easy games continued, although it wasn’t comfortable as it has been in recent weeks. Golden State looked sluggish throughout the game, but pulled through with a 89-84 win over the lowly Philadelphia 76ers. Bogut contributed with four points, nine rebounds, and three assists in 30 minutes. It was his first game in playing 30 minutes, since November 25th against Miami. Both Curry and Thompson struggled shooting from the field, which led to the starters and overall defense having to step up. The Warriors forced 27 turnovers in one of their best defensive performances of the year.
Before the all-star break begins, Golden State will play the lowly Minnesota Timberwolves tonight to keep their streak alive of being the only NBA team with single digit losses. It has to be considered a remarkable achievement to have only nine losses in February. This team has jelled into becoming an absolute juggernaut. Bogut has looked rejuvenated throughout the season and his presence has been felt. Australia’s main news sitefocused on Bogut’s impact defensively in an excellent piece.
Photo: New York Post
The Brooklyn Nets continue to be unpredictable with Lionel Hollins leading the helm. They continue to win games that nobody expects them to win. After a massive upset against the Clippers, they end up getting completely blown out a few games later. It’s been an odd rookie season for Bojan Bogdanovic, who continues to find his niche in the rotation. Bojan had one of his better games from Brooklyn’s shocking 109-93 win over the Toronto Raptors.
In 22 minutes of action, Bogdanovic scored 11 points on three of five shooting. His three-point shooting was on point in converting three out of four attempts. His stat sheet also included five rebounds and a beautiful no-look pass to fellow rookie Cory Jefferson for a highlight-reel dunk. Bojan hasn’t really shown much as a passer, but it was a crafty play that was capitalized by a thunderous slam. It was a big win for Brooklyn against the much more-talented division rival. The night ended in bizarre fashion, as Demar DeRozan took his frustrations out on Bogdanovic with an unnecessary foul. That led to an automatic ejection for DeRozan. From his productive play to late-game nonsense, it was one of the more positive games from this season.
DeMar DeRozan takes a cheap shot on Bojan Bogdanovic
After a solid game against Toronto, Bogdanovic’s minutes increased in the Nets 92-88 win over the Knicks on Friday. Bojan played 31 minutes and scored eight points on two of six shooting. It was a lackluster game that the Nets should have wrapped up earlier in the fourth quarter. A key Jarrett Jack three-pointer sealed the win against the lowly Knicks. The win gave Brooklyn an actual three-game winning streak. Momentum seemed to have picked up on a team full of declining players.
That momentum ended quickly against Washington on the following night. It was another one of those road games that Brooklyn got off to a slow start and never recovered from in a 114-77 defeat. Washington was up 58-38 at halftime led by a complete team domination. John Wall was the catalyst, but the Wizards connected on 45 percent of their three-point attempts. Let’s include the 51 to 38 rebound advantage and the rout was on. Bogdanovic scored seven points on two of five shooting in 20 minutes of action. This game was essentially over before it even started for Bogdanovic. Washington’s ball movement was too overwhelming for a slow Nets defense.
Brooklyn continued their inconsistent play by blowing a 17-point lead in a 103-97 loss to Milwaukee. After Joe Johnson and Jarrett Jack were scoring at will in the first quarter, the turnovers and shaky play from the second unit ensued. Deron Williams is still rusty from a long layoff, while Bogdanovic shot just one for five from three-point range. Bogdanovic still managed to put together a decent stat line of nine points and six rebounds in 28 minutes. His ability to be more active on the glass has helped to an extent, as the Nets are 23rd in the league in rebounding. Bojan continues to make strides, but the team still continues to languish.
The slow starts on the road continued, as the Nets found themselves down 32-15 to the Memphis Grizzlies last night. It was Lionel Hollins first game back in Memphis, yet his team were completely outplayed in the first quarter. They managed to put together a respectable effort in the 95-86 defeat. Brooklyn played much defensively in the second half, but hindered their comeback with 20 turnovers. Bogdanovic struggled by shooting just one of five from the field in 15 minutes of action. After going on a three-game winning streak, Brooklyn now finds themselves on a three-game losing streak.
Brooklyn will head into the all-star break at 21-31. They are still within a game of the final playoff spot. It’ll be interesting to see how active the Nets are in possible trades. Rumors have been swirling daily about possible trades for Brook Lopez and Deron Williams. For Bogdanovic, it has been an up-and-down season that has led him to losing his starting spot twice. Bojan has played well enough to earn a spot in the rising stars challenge on Friday. On one final note, Nets Daily posted an interview of former Nets shooting guard Zoran Plannic about his thoughts on Bogdanovic and the landscape of the Nets.
Brian Spurlock/USA Today
It has been a quiet week for Damjan Rudez, but a tremendous week for the Indiana Pacers. In what was expected to be their most difficult stretch of the season, they managed to win three out of their four games. The winning streak began last Wednesday in a 114-109 win against the Detroit Pistons. Rudez scored six points on two of six shooting, as the small forward continues to look for openings on the perimeter. Four of his shots were from three-point range. Indiana shot a season high of 60 percent from the field, where Roy Hibbert and David West had their way inside the paint.
The upsets continued in a 103-99 win against the Cleveland Cavaliers. That upset victory ended Cleveland’s 12-game winning streak. Rudez only played eight minutes, yet scored six points on two of three shooting. His lack of speed may have worried Frank Vogel against a team that likes to get out in transition. With C.J Miles exploding for 26 points and George Hill connecting on several ridiculous shots, Indiana was set on their rotation. They wanted sturdy defenders and players that can play at a high pace consistently. Indiana’s tight defense forced 15 turnovers, which propelled them to their biggest upset of the season.
Indiana continued to win, as they went into Charlotte and won 103-102. Hill played the hero role again by scoring on a baseline layup with four seconds left. Indiana was down 56-37 to an injury-ravaged Hornets team at one point. They came back in the second half led by another complete team effort. Rudez played only fifteen minutes, although scored on his lone three-point attempt. It was another game that Rudez had to take a backseat in. Indiana is still trying to figure out their rotation in possibly challenging for an eighth seed. It was these types of performances that can get them back in the hunt. Vogel is one of the more unpredictable coaches, when it comes to sticking with a set rotation.
It was another disappointing night for Rudez against the NBA champions. While Indiana put together a spirited effort in a 95-93 defeat to the San Antonio Spurs, Rudez struggled significantly. In just 12 minutes of action, Damjan missed all three of his shots and had three turnovers. Another telling sign of his struggles was from having the worst plus/minus on the team at minus 13. After putting together a few productive games, Rudez has gone back to his struggling ways on both sides of the court.
Before the all-star break begins, Indiana will play New Orleans tonight. At 20-33, they remain only three games out of the final seed. With rumors about Paul George possibly being ready by March, don’t count Indiana out in making a second-half push for the eighth seed. With a scrappy defense and solid foundation of players, they are going to remain competitive throughout the rest of this season.
Photo: Clarke Evans/NBA.com
Justin Hamilton received extensive minutes for the first time since December 19th against the Wizards. The seven-footer from LSU played 28 minutes in the rematch from last year’s NBA finals. San Antonio won 98-85, as both teams are headed in complete different directions. Hamilton contributed with two points, five rebounds, and four assists in what was a promising game. With Hassan Whiteside injured, Hamilton’s size was needed against the Spurs. Justin was late on several rotations defensively, but still showed promise in being active on both sides of the court. Miami didn’t stand a chance without Whiteside and Dwayne Wade. Besides playing two minutes against the New York Knicks on Monday, it was another quiet week for Hamilton.
Before Miami heads for a much-needed break, they will be nationally televised tonight. They take on LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers in a very difficult game. At 22-29, they are clinging onto the seventh seed. With no timetable return for Wade, Miami could be in danger of missing the playoffs. Hamilton might be due for more playing time in the coming weeks.
Twitter: @Allen_Strk
great job Allen, very in-depth!
the Raptors are looking really great this year from what I’ve seen. well-coached, with talent and depth. they’ll cause some real problems in the east.