After being waived by the Boston Celtics following training camp this fall, Dahntay Jones spent the past month evaluating his options for a return to the NBA. While he received interest from Cleveland and Orlando, among others, Dahntay chose to sign with the Sacramento Kings, providing them with an experienced perimeter defender and a spectacular athlete on the wing. He wasted no time before announcing his presence to the league in a big way. In his second game in a Kings uniform, the 6’6” guard scored nine points on 3-of-6 shooting in only 16 minutes, but it was this dunk that earned him the Top Play of the Day on both Sportscenter and NBA.com. The return of Jones to the league gives Duke 13 players in the NBA, tied with Connecticut for the most of any college program.
Elton Brand Update
As mentioned in last week’s blog, Elton Brand had a checkup with his surgeon in Delaware last week. The news was good, as Elton has been cleared for increased activity and remains on target for a possible February return to the court. Here’s more…
Line of the Week
The Chicago Bulls are starting to turn their season around, with a 6-3 record in their last nine games, and Luol Deng is a big reason why. Predicted to compete for an All-Star selection in the preseason, Luol struggled early along with the rest of his team, but the last couple of weeks have seen the emergence of the player everyone expected to see this year. In those nine games, Deng has had 29 or more points three times, and Friday was Luol’s best all-around performance of the season in a win against the Knicks, as he recorded 29 points on 13-of-19 (68.4%) shooting along with 10 rebounds and two assists.
Top Performer
The initial returns for the NBA’s All-Star balloting are in, and Carlos Boozer is currently fourth in the voting among Western Conference forwards behind Carmelo Anthony, Dirk Nowitzki, and Tim Duncan. Regardless of the fan vote, Boozer is a virtual lock for his second All-Star selection thanks to his consistently dominating performances throughout the season. Last week was no exception, as Carlos averaged 24.0 points, 13.5 rebounds, 3.5 assists, and 3.0 steals in four games. You can go to NBA.com to vote for the All-Star starters, or just follow this link… Several other Blue Devils are on the ballot, including Grant Hill, Corey Maggette, Mike Dunleavy, Jr., and Luol Deng.
Blue Devils Leading NBA Teams
Few statistics tell the whole story of a player’s contribution to his team, but 82games.com comes close with its “Roland Rating.” The Roland Rating is based on a net +/- score much like that used in professional hockey. The +/- score for a player is the difference between how a team performs with that player on the court versus how that team performs with that player off the court. In other words, if the Bulls outscore their opponent by 15 points during the time that Luol Deng is on the court, but get outscored by their opponent by five points when Deng is off the court, then his net +/- score for that game is +20. The Roland Rating takes net +/- scores and adjusts for several factors including game tempo and which players are on the floor together. The resulting statistic is a great measure of just how much a specific player contributes to his team. As you might expect, several Blue Devils are first or second on their respective teams in Roland Ratings: Luol Deng (+6.1), Mike Dunleavy, Jr. (+8.6), Corey Maggette (+7.3), and Carlos Boozer (+8.9). These players aren’t simply putting up good statistical numbers… they are helping their teams win games.
Duke Blue Planet NBA Fantasy League Update
There was not much movement in the standings this week, as Duke continues to hold its ground within striking distance of the lead while waiting for Elton Brand’s return. The Blue Devils have separated themselves from the middle of the pack, however, now leading fourth place Arizona by over 1000 fantasy points.
1. North Carolina Tar Heels: 5666.8
2. Connecticut Huskies: 5534.1
3. Duke Blue Devils: 5206.4
4. Arizona Wildcats: 4190.8
5. Flordia Gators: 4101.6
6. Kentucky Wildcats: 3635.6
7. Kansas Jayhawks: 3161.3
Scoring summary: one point for each point scored, 1.5 point for each rebound, two points for each assist, steal or block, 0.5 points for each 3-pointer made, and -1.2 points for each turnover. Field-goal percentage is included by subtracting 0.2 points for each field goal attempt and adding 0.5 points for each field goal made, which would mean you break even by shooting 40% from the field.
One of the reasons Duke trails the leaders in the standings is the simple fact that they have played fewer games. The Blue Devil players have played 12 fewer games on the season than UNC’s alumni and 23 fewer games than the alumni from Connecticut. The addition of Dahntay Jones to the league could help make up for some of that difference.
Quote of the Week
“There is something of a Grant Hill love-in raging across the league, his tale of perseverance serving as a welcome counterpoint to the melee in Detroit between Pistons fans and certain Pacers. Hill is Everything That Is Right with the NBA. So he receives a line of well-wishers before games, a steady stream of shoulder bumps (an NBA player’s equivalent to sending flowers) from opponents and cheers from enemy crowds.”
-Sports Illustrated’s Chris Ballard
