Sporting Alert

College Football, NCAAB, NBA, NFL

doc rivers

Lakers, Clippers win in NBA preseason

by Leave a Comment

LOS ANGELES (Sporting Alert) — The Los Angeles Lakers and the Los Angeles Clippers both picked up NBA preseason wins on Wednesday night.

Blake Griffin and Chris Paul returned from a night off to lead the Clippers past the Phoenix Suns, 108-105, while the Lakers, playing without Kobe Bryant, beat the Portland Trail Blazers, 94-86.

For the LA Clippers, Griffin poured in 35 points on 14 of 26 shooting and pulled down seven rebounds and Chris Paul added 34 points on 12 of 18, and nine assists, five rebounds and four steals in the victory.

Shooting guard J.J. Redick also added 13 points and Spencer Hawes had 10 rebounds for the Clippers, which picked up its second win from seven outings in preseason.

Doc Rivers’ side is 5-2 in the warmups, but team leader Paul is backing them to get thins right to start the season, despite the slow start.

“We’re returning the same starting five as we had last year, but it’s not as easy as that,” he said on the Clippers website.

“At some point, we’ll start clicking on all cylinders, but it’s a process.”

Former Clippers point guard Eric Bledsoe led the Phoenix Suns with 27 points, while Gerald Green supported with 23 in the defeat. Marcus Morris had 17 points and eight boards and twin brother Markieff Morris added 12 points in the defeat.

Los Angeles Clippers head coach Rivers rested center DeAndre Jordan and shooting guard Jamal Crawford, while guard Jordan Farmar misses the gave with a lower back injury.

LAKERS WIN TOO

Rookie Julius Randle paced the Lakers past the Portland Trail Blazers at Citizens Business Bank Arena.

Randle collected 11 of his 17 points in the fourth quarter and pulled down eight boards off the bench in his team’s win.

“Every game, I feel more comfortable,” Randle said after the contest. “It’s the same looks, the same everything.

“I’m just knocking them down. Obviously I’m just taking advantage of opportunities.”

Jeremy Lin finished with 13 points and five assists, while Wesley Johnson and Wayne Ellington each scored 11 points on the night.

C.J. McCollum had 17 points and Meyers Leonard ended with 13 for the Trail Blazers, which played without four starters, as LaMarcus Aldridge, Wesley Matthews, Nicolas Batum and Robin Lopez all sat out.

The Lakers will take on the Sacramento Kings in Las Vegas on Friday in their final exhibition, while the Blazers are at the Los Angeles Clippers to end their warm fixtures.

OTHER GAMES ON THE NIGHT

Elsewhere on Wednesday night, Carmelo Anthony scored 30 points, including the go ahead jumper with less than 13 seconds left to lift the New York Knicks past the Washington Wizards 103-100 at Madison Square Garden.

John Wall scored 29 points and Otto Porter Jr. added 22 points in the defeat for the Wizards.

There were also wins for the Rockets over the Magic, 90-89, Celtics finished up its preseason with a 100-86 win over the Nets, while Memphis beat Cleveland, who rested LeBron James, 96-92 and Atlanta, 117, picked up a win over San Antonio, 107

Wednesday, October 22 Preseason Scores

Houston 90, Orlando 89
Boston 100, Brooklyn 86
New York 103, Washington 100
Toronto 92, Maccabi Haifa 85
Memphis 96, Cleveland 92
Minnesota 110, Milwaukee 91
Atlanta 117, San Antonio 107
LA Lakers 94, Portland 86
LA Clippers 108, Phoenix 105

Watch Blake Griffin acrobatic Game 7 shot against Warriors

by Leave a Comment

LOS ANGELES (Sporting Alert) — Blake Griffin scored 24 points and hit an unbelievable acrobatic shot late in the fourth quarter to help the Los Angles Clippers beat the Golden State Warriors, 126-121 in Game 7 of their first-round playoff series at STAPLES on Saturday night.

Griffin, who went 10 of 18 from the field also dished out six assists, pulled down five rebounds and had three steals and three blocks in an allround performance on the night.

However, the talking point was the All-Star’s drove past his marker before throwing up his shot while twisting in the air as he got fouled in traffic with 56 seconds left in the game.

Chris Paul, who has been bothered by a hamstring problem had 22 points and 14 assists, Jamal Crawford added 22 points, while J.J. Redick finished with 20, DeAndre Jordan collected 15 points, 18 rebounds and three blocks and Matt Barnes scored 13 points in the victory for the third-seeded LA Clippers on the night.

The Clippers, who went through a tough week dealing with the matters concerning banned owner Donald Sterling, were emotional after the game.

And it was not just the players, as head coach Doc Rivers showed his side as well down the stretch.

“I just thought with all this stuff, this team just needed this win,” Rivers said. “This was a hard week.

“It feels like two months. I just needed to be able to smile and laugh and cheer, and be proud of something. And I was very proud of my players.”

Paul added: “I’m just happy we pulled it out. It’s going to sound crazy, but it was all about tonight.

“Everything else was in the past. We didn’t dwell on all that stuff, and not to diminish how serious everything has been in the past week or so.

“It was all about basketball tonight.”

Stephen Curry, who hit big shots time-after-time throughout the series and again on Saturday night led Golden State with 33 points and nine assists, while Draymond Green scored 24 points in the defeat.

Klay Thompson scored 15 points and seven assists, Andre Iguodala finished with 14 points and seven boards and David Lee added 13 points and 13 rebounds for the Warriors.

“We fought so hard this whole series, this whole season,” Curry said. “It stings. It’s disappointing for sure.”

J.J. Redick to come off the bench: LA Clippers v Mavericks on TNT Overtime

by Leave a Comment

LOS ANGELES (Sporting Alert) — The Los Angeles Clippers and the Dallas Mavericks clash in a Western Conference battle at the STAPLES Center on Thursday night.

Live Streaming coverage of the game is on TNT Overtime, as well TNT TV Channel.

Clippers coach Doc Rivers says shooting guard J.J. Redick will come off the bench during the game Thursday after missing the last 25 games with a bulging disk in his lower back.

“He’s playing,” Rivers said. “We’re going to play J.J. at a limited basis today.

“That’s why I’m not going to start him because we can’t play him a lot.”

The LA Clippers (54-22) have already wrapped up the Pacific Division title and are sitting third in the Western Conference behind the San Antonio Spurs and the Oklahoma City Thunder (54-19).

The Dallas Mavericks (44-31), meanwhile, are sitting seventh in the West, but the fight continues for a playoffs spot, with Memphis and Phoenix all sharing the same record.

Dallas will seek to rebound from Tuesday night’s 122-120 overtime defeat to the Golden State Warriors.

LA Clippers v Denver Nuggets on WatchESPN and ESPN

by Leave a Comment

Denver, CO (Sporting Alert) — Darren Collison is again absent for the Los Angeles Clippers and will not play against the Denver Nuggets (29-37) on Monday night.

Following Live GameCast Streaming | Watch Live NBA Streaming on WatchESPN/ESPN

Collison did not travel with the team and misses the game because of a stomach virus that also saw him skipping the win over the Cleveland Cavaliers on Sunday night.

Collison as drafted into Doc Rivers’ starter team for the LA Clippers (48-20) after Jamal Crawford was recently sidelined with a strained left calf and J.J. Redick, who had been replaced by Crawford, went out indefinitely with a bulging disk in his lower back.

The 26-year-old is averaging 10.8 points per game this season, is averaging 16.3 points per game in March while shooting 49.4 percent from the field from those seven games played.

Meanwhile, Willie Green will again start in Collison’s place and join Chris Paul, Blake Griffin, Matt Barnes and DeAndre Jordan.

Los Angeles Clippers have won 11 successive games and will look to make it 12 on Monday night.

Denver Nuggets: Ty Lawson (PG) Randy Foye (SG) Wilson Chandler (SF) Kenneth Faried (PF) Timofey Mozgov (C) .

Los Angeles Clippers: Chris Paul (PG) Willie Green (SG) Matt Barnes (SF) Blake Griffin (PF) DeAndre Jordan (C).

Redick Starts: Clippers v Lakers Live on ESPN, WatchESPN/ESPN3

by Leave a Comment

LOS ANGELES (Sporting Alert) — Guard J.J. Redick will return to the starting line-up for the Los Angeles Clippers in tonight’s clash with rivals LA Lakers.

Watch LA Clippers v LA Lakers Live on ESPN, WatchESPN/ESPN3

LA Clippers head coach Coach Doc Rivers confirmed the return of Redick, who had missed 21 games because of a torn ligament in his shooting wrist.

Redick’s return means that Jamal Crawford will return to the bench, but as usual, he will see lots of minutes as the first man off the bench.

Redick, who been out since November, has been working out recently and he says he is “good to go.”

“I’m good to go. I wouldn’t be playing if I wasn’t,” he said.

The Clippers continue to be without the injured star point guard Chris Paul, who has a shoulder problem.

Clippers: Darren Collison (PG) J.J. Redick (SG) Jared Dudley (SF) Blake Griffin (PF) DeAndre Jordan (C)

Lakers: Kendall Marshall (PG) Jodie Meeks (SG) Wesley Johnson (SF) Pau Gasol (PF) Robert Sacre (C)

Boston v LA Clippers Live ESPN Scoreboard, GameCast

by Leave a Comment

Boston, MA (Sporting Alert) — Here are the starting lineups for tonight’s NBA fixture between the Boston Celtics and Los Angeles Clippers at TD Garden, Boston, MA.

Follow Live on ESPN Scoreboard | Live ESPN GameCast

Boston forward Kris Humphries is still recovering from a bruised right knee and will not play tonight the club said ahead of the start of the game, which means more minutes for both Brandon Bass and Jeff Green.

The game also marks a first return for former Celtics coach Doc Rivers, who said he expects to get a tough time from the Boston fans after leaving to take the Clippers opened post last summer.

Boston team: Jordan Crawford (PG) Avery Bradley (SG) Jeff Green (SF) Brandon Bass (PF) Jared Sullinger (C)

LA Clippers team: Chris Paul (PG) Willie Green (SG) Jared Dudley (SF) Blake Griffin (PF) DeAndre Jordan (C)

Final Score: Chris Paul leads Clippers past Warriors with 42pts, 15ast

by Leave a Comment

LOS ANGELES (Sporting Alert) — Chris Paul took charge early on his way to scoring 42 points and 15 assists and the Los Angeles Clippers defeated Golden State Warriors 126-115 at STAPLES Center Thursday night.

Paul, who was told by coach Doc Rivers to start assert himself early in games, came out the gate flying as he pushed Golden State on the back early. The star point guard also had six steals in the win.

Blake Griffin had 23 points and 10 rebounds before fouling late in the fourth quarter, while Jamal Crawford and J.J. Redick each finished with 17 points.

Center DeAndre Jordan added 17 rebounds and nine points in the victory for the Clippers who bounced back from the 116-103 loss to the Lakers Tuesday night.

Stephen Curry knocked down nine of his 14 three-point attempts against the Clippers Thursday night on his way to top scoring with 39 points and nine assists for Golden State.

The sharp shooter was, however, disappointed with his 11.

”When you’re on the road playing against a team like that, one that thrives off turnovers and easy baskets, you can’t give them a game like that,” Curry said.

”It’s disappointing for me to let my shooting performance be overshadowed by my 11 turnovers. But it’s not going to keep me down.”

David Lee scored 22 points and pulled down five rebounds before fouling out of the game, while center Andrew Bogut added 17 points and guard Andre Iguodala finished with a double-double of 14 points and 11 assists in the defeat.

Final Score

1 2 3 4 Total
Golden State 26 29 25 35 115
LA Clippers 36 32 25 33 126
Golden State LA Clippers
Pts S. Curry, 38 Pts C. Paul, 42 Pts
Reb D. Green, 8 Rbs D. Jordan, 17 Rbs
Asts A. Iguodala, 11 Asts C. Paul, 15 Asts

Boston Celtics guard Rajon Rondo tears ACL, done for season

by Leave a Comment

The Boston Celtics have just been dealt a massive blow of their season, following the news that All-Star point guard Rajon Rondo has torn his ACL.

Rondo was active during the Boston Celtics’ shootaround on Sunday, but after struggling to bare the pain, the star guard was taken to the hospital for an MRI where it was discovered that he, indeed has torn his ACL and is out for the rest of the season.

Rondo is set for surgery, but a date has yet to be determined.

Boston Celtics will now have its hands full, but with a collection of guards, including Jason Terry and Courtney Lee, Doc Rivers’ team could be in safe hands.

It is also believed that Terry will now be see an increase in his regular minutes on the floor with Rondo out.

Boston Celtics “not a good team right now”

by Leave a Comment

BOSTON (Sporting Alert) — Celtics head coach Doc Rivers has warned not to expect too much, at least not right now from his team, claiming that Boston at the moment is just not good enough.

The Boston Celtics (12-12) suffered a 100-89 defeat at the Chicago Bulls on Tuesday night, its third defeat in a row and Rivers is hoping his team will start getting things right soon.

“We’re going to keep searching, this team is not a good team right now,” Rivers said, according to the Boston Globe. “It’s who we are right now.

“I’ve been saying that. This is who we are. We’re a .500 team and we play like that. We’ve won two games in a row [once this] season. Right now we’re not a good team. We’re going to find it, but we’re not right now.”

Boston, which started its road trip with a 12-9 record, suffered a 101-89 defeat to the  Houston Rockets, 103-88 against San Antonio, before the defeat to the Chicago Bulls to drop all three games away from home.

The Celtics were also losing for the fifth time in eight games in December.

Rivers’ team returns home on Wednesday night where it will face Kyrie Irving and the Cleveland Cavaliers, which have won just two games on the road.

There are currently 442 Boston vs Cleveland tickets available for as low as $28