BAD LUCK HAS BEEN VERY PAINFUL : INJURIES HAVE TAKEN TOLL ON BEST IN WEST; ONLY FIRST-PLACE UTAH HAS SURVIVED UNSCATHED.Byline: MARC STEIN Marc Stein is a sports reporter. He began writing for ESPN.com in 2000 and signed on full-time in 2002 to serve as the site's senior National Basketball Association writer. In the NBA NBA abbr. 1. National Basketball Association 2. National Boxing Association NBA (US) n abbr (= National Basketball Association) → Basketball-Dachverband (= , there is only one way to win the West. Staying healthy. Which, to be frank, means getting lucky. At the 60-game pole, only one of the five preseason contenders for the Western Conference crown has had the fortune of being injury-free. Not surprisingly, that team - the Utah Jazz - has the best record in the region. Everyone else - starting with San Antonio San Antonio (săn ăntō`nēō, əntōn`), city (1990 pop. 935,933), seat of Bexar co., S central Tex., at the source of the San Antonio River; inc. 1837. and followed by Houston, the Lakers and Seattle - has been forced to play for long stretches at less-than-full strength, which makes it difficult to judge who really is the favorite to oppose Chicago in the Finals in June. The Spurs were eliminated early from that chase, losing David Robinson David Robinson or Dave Robinson is a name shared by the following individuals:
The Rockets sailed to a 21-2 start before each of their thirtysomething stars developed health problems. Hakeem Olajuwon Hakeem Abdul Olajuwon (born Akeem Abdul Olajuwon on January 21, 1963) is a retired Nigerian-American professional basketball player in the National Basketball Association (NBA). hasn't missed too many games, in spite of repeated heart scares, but Charles Barkley This article is about the basketball player. For the politican, see Charles E. Barkley Charles Wade Barkley (born February 20 1963) is a retired American professional basketball player. and Clyde Drexler Clyde Austin Drexler (born June 22, 1962 in New Orleans, Louisiana) is a former National Basketball Association shooting guard. A ten-time All-Star and member of the Basketball Hall of Fame, he was named one of basketball's fifty greatest players by the NBA. are still banged up and point guard Brent Price Hartley Brent Price (born December 9 1968 in Shawnee, Oklahoma) is an American former professional basketball player in the NBA. He is the younger brother of former Cleveland Cavaliers point guard Mark Price. is out for the rest of the season with a knee tear. The Lakers, following the Rockets' path, have plummeted from first to fourth in the conference standings since losing Shaquille O'Neal Shaquille Rashaun O'Neal (pronounced "shak-KEEL") (born March 6, 1972 in Newark, New Jersey), frequently referred to simply as Shaq, is an American professional basketball player, generally regarded as one of the most dominant in the National Basketball Association (NBA). and Robert Horry Robert Horry (born August 25, 1970 in Harford County, Maryland) is an American National Basketball Association basketball player. Currently playing for the San Antonio Spurs, Horry is is known for his ability to make clutch shots in big games. in a span of five days in February. And, as if on cue, the Sonics lost Detlef Schrempf Detlef Schrempf (born January 21 1963, in Leverkusen, Germany) is a former NBA basketball player. High school and college career Schrempf moved to the U.S. his junior year of high school, attending Centralia High in Washington state for two years, leading the Tigers to this week to a partially torn foot tendon not long after Lakers coach Del Harris suggested ``that if Seattle or Utah gets hurt, they won't be in front for long, either.'' Schedule-wise, the Jazz actually faces the most difficulty down the stretch, given its problems away from home. Thirteen of Utah's final 22 games are on the road, including a seven-game, 11-day swing that features only one Western Conference club (Minnesota). The Jazz also must contend with its failure to land a much-needed boost - potentially provided by either Chris Mullin Chris Mullin may refer to:
But, in the Year of the Injury, remember one thing: Karl Malone and John Stockton have combined to miss fewer than 10 games in their careers. And it should be painfully obvious by now that the way basketball is played out West these days, the healthiest team wins. Not so jazzy jazz·y adj. jazz·i·er, jazz·i·est 1. Resembling jazz in form or nature; rhythmical. 2. Slang Showy; flashy: a jazzy car. : Devoted viewers of ESPN ESPN Entertainment and Sports Programming Network undoubtedly saw Harper's infamous ``You go live in Utah'' remark after vetoing a trade to the Jazz just before the Feb. 20 deadline. On Wednesday, Dallas made its first trip to Salt Lake City since the deal collapsed and Harper, as you'd expect, received a massive dose of abuse from the locals - even though he couldn't do more than sit on the bench in street clothes because of a strained groin. ``Being booed by these fans is the least of my worries,'' said Harper, who was ripped on Utah talk shows all day and sent numerous ``gifts'' from angry fans at the team hotel. ``It's the Mavericks' fans who have stuck by me during my 14 years. I'm going to retire a Maverick. I don't get it. I say I don't want to play in Utah, and it's like an earthquake up here.'' Perhaps the furor was so forceful because Harper made Utah think he wanted to go there before telling new Mavs general manager Don Nelson to make the swap. And no one felt more slighted by Harper's comments than the Mailman, who got an apology on his answering machine from Harper but still hasn't forgiven his fellow veteran. ``I can't imagine that a guy, after playing all this time, would get a legitimate shot at winning a championship and decide not to go,'' Malone said. ``I just don't understand that. I can't believe he nixed the trade, but to heck with him not coming here. ``There's more to it than that. There's no need to talk about my state like that. I love it here and I take offense when somebody like Derek Harper says stuff like that. He doesn't know anything about living in Utah.'' Quiet time: New York New York, state, United States New York, Middle Atlantic state of the United States. It is bordered by Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and the Atlantic Ocean (E), New Jersey and Pennsylvania (S), Lakes Erie and Ontario and the Canadian province of coach Jeff Van Gundy Jeff Van Gundy (born January 19, 1962 in Hemet, California) is an American basketball head coach, most recently with the National Basketball Association's Houston Rockets. Van Gundy attended Nazareth College (1985). wasn't talking to ESPN or anyone else this week. Not with the Chicago Bulls in town for today's showdown at Madison Square Garden Current arenas in the National Hockey League Western Conference Eastern Conference - and not after the teams' last meeting, when Van Gundy told a Chicago radio audience that Michael Jordan only befriends opponents to con them . . . to which Jordan responded by scoring 51 points. ``You had your fun with me last time,'' said Van Gundy, who insists to this day that his remarks were meant to be complimentary. ``I'll not be saying anything this time.'' Too bad Van Gundy's boss didn't echo that silence. Knicks general manager Ernie Grunfeld has actually (foolishly?) provided fresh bulletin-board material, asserting in a recent tabloid story that New York finally has a team capable of unseating Chicago. The headline over that story: ``Beatabulls.'' Hot but not smokin': Surely you have seen the numbers. Twelve blocked shots one night. Nine rejections in another game. Then last week's 23 points, 18 rebounds and nine assists against Boston. Those are just a few of the outstanding performances put together in recent weeks by Vlade Divac, who deserves as much credit as Glen Rice and Anthony Mason for Charlotte's unexpectedly stellar season. And now we have a possible explanation: Our beloved Vlade has finally quit smoking. For real. ``Something is happening,'' Divac said. ``I don't know Don't know (DK, DKed) "Don't know the trade." A Street expression used whenever one party lacks knowledge of a trade or receives conflicting instructions from the other party. how much quitting smoking has to do with it, but I'm sure it's (a factor).'' Divac, 29, began puffing at age 15 in his native Yugoslavia. Despite the Lakers' repeated attempts to convince him to quit, it wasn't until this summer, right around the time of his trade to Charlotte, that 5-year-old soon Luka found a pack of cigarettes at home and wanted to try one because Daddy smokes. ``That was last summer, before I go to Olympics,'' Divac said. ``I said, `You got me, little fellow.' . . . I feel so good now. I'm so proud I did something good. I'm lucky I did it before the season. Now I see a difference. I had wanted to quit before. I was always, `Oh, I've got to quit.' But nothing helped. ``I started smoking because it made you cool, you know. You know how it is. In Europe, everybody smokes.'' On Tobacco Road, Divac won't smoke anything other than victory cigars - although he has had many more opportunities to succumb to that temptation than anyone in the league could have imagined. TECHNICAL FOUL Golden State WarriorsFriday night's victory over Orlando was just their second in 26 games against winning teams. And since 11 of Golden State's final 23 opponents have records over .500, it looks as if Phoenix is the Clippers' only threat for the last playoff spot in the West. PLAYER WATCH Anthony Mason, Charlotte Mason is apparently still angry about being snubbed for the All-Star Game. He has recorded triple-doubles in three of his past five outings, including the first consecutive triple-doubles in franchise history. ``With a team like this, it could be an average,'' the ever-modest Mason said. ``We've got a lot of great shooters and great finishers, and that's all you need.'' SAY WHAT? ``Dad, if you're going to put in some new plays, put in the ones the Bulls use because they always seem to work.'' - Adam Adubato, the 5-year-old son of new Orlando coach Richie Adubato, with some free X-and-O advice. TOP 10 & NO. 29 1. Chicago Comment: Why bother any more? 2. Utah Comment: Health is biggest asset 3. New York Comment: Should win the Atlantic 4. Miami Comment: Starting to slip 5. Seattle Comment: Concentration still lacking 6. Houston Comment: No one handles injuries better 7. Detroit Comment: Hill's help is fading 8. Atlanta Comment: Pistons look passable pass·a·ble adj. 1. That can be passed, traversed, or crossed; navigable: a passable road. 2. Acceptable for general circulation: passable currency. 3. 9. Lakers Comment: Not quite panic time 10. Charlotte Comment: Rice continues to sizzle siz·zle intr.v. siz·zled, siz·zling, siz·zles 1. To make the hissing sound characteristic of frying fat. 2. To seethe with anger or indignation. 3. 29. Vancouver Comment: Makes the Spurs look good L.A. AT PLAY LAKERS Today- vs. New Jersey, 6:30 p.m. Wednesday- vs. Golden State, 7:30 p.m. Friday- vs. Clippers, 7:30 p.m. Finally, games they can win CLIPPERS Monday- vs. Golden State, 7:30 p.m. Tuesday- at Portland, 7 p.m. Thursday- vs. Phoenix, 7:30 p.m. Friday- at Lakers, 7:30 p.m. Suns are gaining fast CAPTION(S): Box Box: TECHNICAL FOUL (see text) |
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