Euroleague in NBA?

Now that the Beijing Olympic is over, the entries on this blog will be sluggish. But Halley will do her best to give you the juiciest news about the National Basketball Association and other interesting basketball leagues.

And yes, the author has found the juiciest news in the league which is the collaboration of the NBA with Euroleague. You heard the lady right. The Euroleague will set foot in America to play in the preseason games. The Lietuvos Rytas [Lithuania], FC Barcelona [Spain] and CSKA Moscow [Russia] could play against the Golden State Warriors, Toronto Raptors, Orlando Magic, Los Angeles Lakers and Clippers.

"We value the chance to partner with NBA teams in their own arenas. There are basketball fans of all types in North America whom we plan to entertain with our own distinct playing style. We are sure they will appreciate again that the international game has a lot to offer our sport," said Jordi Bertomeu, the Euroleague Basketball CEO.

It'll definitely be a blast! Can't wait for the next season. =)

Surprise Surprise!

The truth hasn't sinked in yet. The Toronto Raptors [23-19] defeated the Boston Celtics [33-7] to 114-112! The difference my only be two points but for the Raptors it's one great win against the top Eastern Conference contender. I wonder what's going on on the Celtics locker room? Hmm. Let's get down to the numbers, okay. 5 Celtics are in double-figures which include Kevin Garnett [26 pts], Paul Pierce [19 pts], Ray Allen [19 pts], Tony Allen [15 pts], and Rajon Rondo [14 pts]. On the other side of the court, comes Chris Bosh and Anthony Parker each with 23 pts. Jose Calderon ate something really good for he had 24 pts and 13 assists, his season-high I guess. Carlos Delfino also poured in 15 pts for the Raptors win against the Celtics 114-112. "It was really important to beat them - so we could see if we could. We knew how to play them after already playing them three times.'' - Jose Calderon

"We're better." - Kobe Bryant, LA Lakers

I Was Wrong

Okay, so I was wrong in expecting that the San Antonio Spurs would win against the Detroit Pistons and coach Gregg Popovich a 600th win. The San Antonio Spurs are 23-11 dropping behind the Dallas Mavericks, Phoenix Suns, LA Lakers, & Portland Trailblazers [!!!]. The game between the San Antonio Spurs and the Detroit Pistons proved that the Pistons want to put an end to their losing streak. "We could lose five or six games in a row, but we're the type of team, we don't hang our heads and walk around moping,'' said Rasheed Wallace, who collected 23 pts, 15 rebounds, and 2 blocks. The Pistons outscored the Spurs during the 1st half. As for the Spurs, well, they're still trying to get into their rhythm with 43.3% shooting percentage that's much better than 31.9%, right? "This is a good team. I think, in my opinion, this is one of the teams we'll see in the finals,'' Wallace said. "So, it's always a good game with us and San Antonio.''

“It's still basketball, it's still a game we all love. It's still a matter of going out there and having fun,” said Michael Finley. Righteous, that is. But the truth is I'm starting to get distressed and desperate. I know I shouldn't be looking at the standing just yet, but the Spurs are now on 5th spot. The Spurs have to get back into their rhythm. They don't have back-to-back games this month, so, they better get back soon or they'll be knocked out soon by New Orleans Hornets & Denver Nuggets.

Antonio McDyess said “just walking” into the AT&T Center last year “made me sick to my stomach.”
"Perseverance, I guess that's the word. We are a veteran team, and we showed that tonight in the way we erased a blowout." said Rasheed Wallace.

31.9

31.9 is the number that initially registered in my mind & I find the thought of it very awful. Extremely awful. The San Antonio Spurs [20-8] lost to the Toronto Raptors [16-4] 83-73 and they were shooting only 31.9 percent plus 19 turnovers. Now, the Spurs got their second loss at home [15-2]. Tim Duncan got a double-double 16 pts and 13 rebounds and add 5 turnovers [great eh! grrhh]. And Tony Parker? He's got 15 pts, "only" 7 turnovers, & 4 assists. Michael Finley had 20 pts, Bruce Bowen got 7 pts, Matt Bonner gave up 10 pts, while Ime Udoka posted 5 pts. Technical fouls were called on Tim Duncan, Matt Bonner, & Gregg Popovich, who was ejected with only 5:59 minutes left during the 4th quarter.



"They're a good basketball team. They're the defending world champs. And we beat them on this floor," Mitchell said. The Raptors had their Bargnani in the starting lineup. The Raptors leading scorer was the ace 3-pointer Jason Kapono. Jose Calderon put up 14 pts 7 rebounds, & 5 assists. And Andrea Bargnani got 11 pts and 3 blocks. Chris Bosh was silent with 10 pts & 9 rebounds. The Spurs-Raptors game is one of the lowest scoring percentage of the Spurs. "I think they were looking for some calls they didn't get. For us, we want it to be a situation where the ball is getting poked loose and guys are coming all over the place." - Kris Humphries, Toronto Raptors

Recap: Spurs-Raptors @ NBA.com