Seven Devils enter playoffs as regular-season wraps up
Jazz Just Miss Home Court Advantage
Perhaps no team in the NBA had a better second half of the season than the Utah Jazz, and Carlos Boozer is a big reason why. After a dominant February that saw the bruising forward average 21.2 points, 13.0 rebounds, and 3.3 assists per game, Boozer followed that up with 19.4 points, 11.2 rebounds, and 2.9 assists per game in March. Since January 9th, the Jazz won 34 of 46 games and missed the #2 seed in the incredibly competitive Western Conference by just two games. In the final game of the regular season, the Jazz had a chance to lock in the #3 seed, but with Boozer sidelined with a strained oblique muscle, Utah fell to fellow Blue Devil Grant Hill and the Phoenix Suns, leaving them tied atop the Pacific division with Denver and slotted in the #5 spot for the Western Conference playoffs. They open up the 2010 NBA Postseason at Denver on Saturday night. Boozer is currently listed as a game-time decision.
Hill/Suns Finish Strong
Despite Utah’s strong performance in the second half of the season, it was the Phoenix Suns that managed to top them in the end to grab the #3 seed in the NBA Playoffs. After playing all 82 games for the first time in his career last season, Grant Hill missed duplicating that feat this season by one game, as the versatile forward started every game for the Suns except a January 26th tilt against the Bobcats. Thanks to Grant, the Suns were able to keep up their high level of play in the latter half of the season despite losing their backup point guard for all of February and half of March, as Hill often backed up Steve Nash as the floor general during that stretch. The Suns finished the season on a 14-2 tear and head into the playoffs as one of the NBA’s hottest teams. They host the Portland Trailblazers Sunday night in the first game of what they hope will be a long postseason run.
McRoberts Solidly in Pacers Rotation
The opportunities for Josh McRoberts were few and far between in his first two seasons in the NBA, but this season in Indiana, the athletic forward has gradually worked his way into more and more playing time. Thanks to strong recent performances, including 14 points, 12 rebounds, 2 assists, and 2 blocks in a win over Washington, and 18 points, 12 rebounds, and 2 steals in a win over Houston, McRoberts has become a regular part of the Pacers’ rotation, playing major minutes in each of Indiana’s last 11 games to finish the season. In addition to putting up solid numbers across the stat sheet, Josh has also made some highlight reels, including NBA.com’s Dunk of the Night and Dish of the Night (to fellow Blue Devil Mike Dunleavy) on April 4th against the Rockets.
Henderson Makes an Impression
McRoberts isn’t the only recent Blue Devil addition to the league making some spectacular plays. Gerald Henderson hasn’t seen a lot of playing time during the course of the season for the playoff-bound Bobcats, but in his first extended playing time of the year against the Nets on April 12th, Gerald put on a show. The athletic wing scored 14 points, grabbed seven rebounds, and wowed the crowd with back-to-back spectacular plays, including NBA.com’s Dunk of the Night, followed by this terrific up-and-under move. The Bobcats have earned their first trip to the NBA Playoffs in franchise history this season, and will face off with the Orlando Magic in the first round.
Deng’s Return Powers Bulls to Playoffs
Luol Deng is back in the Bulls lineup and ready for a playoff run. That Chicago could even make the playoffs was looking like a long shot just a few weeks ago. With Deng missing 11 straight games in March with a calf injury and playing injured for several others, the Bulls suffered through a ten-game losing streak and looked like they were out of the postseason picture for sure. However, the versatile forward’s return came just in time, as he reappeared for the club’s final eight games. Of those, the Bulls won six, including victories over playoff teams Boston, Cleveland (who they match up with in the first round), and Charlotte. They also secured a pivotal victory over Toronto, who was fighting them for the final playoff spot.
During that decisive run, Lu came up huge numerous times, but perhaps no performance was bigger than his 22 points and 10 rebounds in a one-point victory over first place Cleveland on April 8th. Now, the Bulls’ second-leading scorer and third-leading rebounder looks to continue his strong play into the postseason, as Chicago matches up with Danny Ferry’s Cavaliers starting Saturday afternoon.
Duhon Again Leading Knicks
Following the February NBA trade deadline, Chris Duhon saw his playing time for the New York Knicks take a serious hit. The Knicks’ record-holder for assists in a single game fell out of the rotation as the team appeared to be going in another direction in preparation for the 2010 free agency period. However, as has always been the case, Chris kept working and found himself back in the starting lineup for the latter part of the season. For the month of April, the steady floor general averaged 10.0 points and 4.5 assists per game against only 1.8 turnovers.
J.J. Entering Playoffs on Hot Streak
J.J. Redick finished the month of March off in style, leading the Magic to a win over the Denver Nuggets with a 23-point performance. His hot shooting didn’t stop there, as Redick scored in double-figures in six of eight games in April, averaging 11.5 points per game on 50.8% shooting from the field and a fantastic 47.8% from long range. The savvy guard also added 2.1 rebounds and 3.0 assists with only 1.0 turnovers per game in 22.8 minutes per contest off the Orlando bench. For the regular season, J.J. finished as the Magic’s fifth-leading scorer at 9.6 points per game, leading three-point shooter at 40.5%, and third in A:TO ratio at 2.51-to-1. Redick enters the playoffs as the Magic’s top scoring threat off the bench. They host the Bobcats in the first round starting Saturday.
Battier Injury Grounds Rockets
In the ultra-competitive Western Conference, losing your best defensive player and team leader for the last 14 games of the season usually doesn’t turn out well for your playoff hopes. Such was the case for the Houston Rockets, who lost Shane Battier to a hyperextended knee for almost a month to end the season. They subsequently lost eight of their final 14 games after having won five of six prior to Battier’s injury. The Rockets finished 9th in the Western Conference and missed the playoffs for the first time since Shane has been with the team. In fact, this will mark Battier’s first time missing the playoffs in his last seven NBA seasons. The last time he sat out the postseason was in his second year in the league with the Memphis Grizzlies. The Grizz haven’t seen the postseason since Battier was traded to Houston.
Other Playoff Notes
*Shelden Williams and the Boston Celtics finished the regular season as the #4 seed in the Eastern Conference and will host the Miami Heat in their first-round series starting Saturday night.
*Speaking of the Heat, Shavlik Randolph was added to the Heat roster in early April and will likely be active for the Playoffs. Shav had 8 points and 6 rebounds in 23 minutes Wednesday night against the Nets. The Blue Devils wrapped up the regular season with 14 former players in the league, tied with UCLA for tops amongst all college alumni groups.
Duke Blue Planet NBA Fantasy League Final Standings
The Blue Devil NBA Fantasy team had a very strong season, leading the standings for much of the season before slipping to second place down the stretch due to injuries. When fully healthy, the Duke squad stayed well ahead of the pack. Still, finishing second in a 10-team field as strong as this one is quite an accomplishment… perhaps not on par with winning a fourth National Championship, but pretty good nonetheless.
1. UCLA Bruins: 23,490.7
2. Duke Blue Devils: 20,787.6
3. Florida Gators: 17,876.4
4. UConn Huskies: 17,819.3
5. North Carolina Tar Heels: 16,631.3
6. Arizona Wildcats: 15,880.4
7. Kansas Jayhawks: 11,528.1
8. Texas Longhorns: 10,845.0
9. Kentucky Wilcats: 9452.4
10. Memphis Tigers: 8071.7
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.
Quote of the Week
“Gerald finally got a chance to play and prove how dumb his coach is.”
Charlotte Bobcats coach Larry Brown, after Henderson’s strong performance April 12th vs. the Nets
Tags: "carlos boozer", "grant hill", "jj redick", "josh McRoberts", "shane battier"
