ALL BALL NERVE CENTER — Nicole Muxo, a senior at Miami’s Archbishop Coleman Carroll High School and a rabid fan of the Miami Heat, decided to swing for the fences when it came time for prom: About a month ago, she extended a video invite to Miami Heat G Dwyane Wade. -
-
Credit to Muxo for having the moxie to go public with her invite. (Also, probably a shrewd move to use Wade’s fellow Chicago-native Kanye West as the video’s soundtrack.)
The video racked up tens of thousands of views, and eventually made its way to Wade. As it turned out, Wade and the Heat were busy the last few weeks, dispatching the Milwaukee Bucks and Chicago Bulls on their way to the Eastern Conference Finals. But after defeating the Bulls in five games, the Heat suddenly had the weekend off. And as Wade explained to WSVN in Miami, Muxo left nothing to chance:
“She actually DM’d me on Twitter and said, ‘This is the address, this is where I’m gonna be just in case,’ and when I got that I said, I won’t be doing nothing tomorrow night and I can go and make this a memorable moment for her.”
While many NBA players have brought their unique style to the podium during the 2013 playoffs, some trends have popped up multiple times throughout the first week.
DENIM: This postseason, players have embraced the utilitarian fabric to make bold statements. In the gallery below, Blake Griffin and Raymond Felton wear tailored denim button down shirts, while James Harden has an edgier take with a distressed shirt and plaid vest. Brandon Jennings looks summer-ready with a faded chambray shirt and white ankle pants, while LeBron James mixes it up by pairing a crisp denim button down with a black tie under a shawl collar sweater.
PINK: The color has range. Brandon Jennings spruces up a classic tan blazer with a warm pink button down, and Deron Williams wears the same shade under his gray jacket. For bolder variations, Caron Butler’s pink shirt pops under a gray suit and muted blue tie, while Matt Barnes pairs mauve pants with a black jacket and tie.
Let us know who wore these trends best, and if you could imagine them in your closet, tell us about it on Twitter using the hashtag #NBAStyle… -
Maybe accidentally bopping officials is something limited to Midwest teams, because the Bucks have gotten themselves in the mix after (literally) rising big man Larry Sanders tagged Bill Kennedy in the face last night. Unlike the Boozer-Crawford hit, which took place late in the second quarter, this incident happened during the jump ball (!!!) of the Bobcats-Bucks game from the BMO Harris Bradley Center, as you can see below:
.
As the Associated Press tells it (and the clip above shows), Kennedy went down to one knee for a couple of minutes, but ended up staying in the game — much like Crawford did on Saturday when he got hit by Boozer.
What do these incidents all mean? Apparently, NBA officials are a group you can’t keep down for very long.
What’s going on everyone? Heading to Philly to play the Sixers on Wednesday night. Tough loss against Atlanta at home on Sunday, but no time to dwell on it … stay focused, only 13 more games left!
Well, my Tar Heels are out of the NCAA’s, but I’m still doing OKwith my picks with Louisville, Ohio State, and Miami still in the running. This tournament has been crazy with the upsets. I’m happy for my home state of Florida with three remaining teams in the Sweet 16.
Since my last entry, the trade deadline came and went … losing my guys Tobias, Doron and Beno to Orlando. Tough to see them go, but best of luck to them down South! We picked up two great players in JJ and Gus from Orlando, who have been great to get to know and play beside. To build some chemistry, the team went bowling in LA and we didn’t go light on the new guys … but it was Coach Wolf who took the championship! I need to quit fishing and pick up bowling as a hobby… can’t let the coaches win next time.
Everyone keep cheering on the Bucks as we close out the year. Keep following me on twitter (@_John_Henson_) and be looking out for some Q&A sessions. Go Bucks!
John Henson, a 6-foot-11 forward from North Carolina, was the 14th player taken in the 2012 NBA Draft. Check All Ball all season long for more NBA Rooks: Diaries …
Stemming from his days as the No. 1 scorer on the Golden State Warriors, Monta Ellis has a bit of a reputation as a chucker — particularly from 3-point range. That belief (in the Warriors-era Ellis, at least) is not unfounded, especially when you review his advanced stats from those seasons. For the record, Ellis spent his first 6 1/2 seasons in Oakland. In those seasons, here’s what percentage of his points came from 3-point attempts during his Warriors years: 2005-06 (25.8 percent), 2006-07 (14.2), 2007-08 (4.2), 2008-09 (6.0), 2009-10 (16.2), 2010-11 (23.5) and 2011-12 (19.3).
This season, his first full one in Milwaukee, Ellis’ percentage of points from 3-point attempts is at 20.1 and when Ellis gets on the road this season, that percentage bumps up to 23.4. So, overall, not much of a big change in his game, even with a change of scenery.
Good thing that Ellis is so 3-happy, though, because they needed his long-range touch last night to pull off a stunner at the Toyota Center over the Houston Rockets. The Rockets seemed in control of this one early, but by halftime everything was tied up and a second half of lead changes and ties ensued. James Harden knotted the score at 107 with 34.7 seconds left and the Bucks actually had a couple of non-dramatic chances to win this, but couldn’t come through until Ellis saved their bacon.
For those that are new around these parts, the Horry scale examines a game-winning buzzer-beater (GWBB) in the categories of difficulty, game situation (was the team tied or behind at the time?), importance (playoff game or garden-variety Kings-Pistons game?) and celebration (is it over the top or too chill? Just the right panache or needs more sauce?). Then we give it an overall grade on a scale of 1-5 Robert Horrys, the patron saint of last-second daggers.
How does Ellis’ game-winning shot Wednesday night stack up? Let’s dive in …
Difficulty
Do Jennings and Ellis have a running competition to see who can sink a game winner with the least amount of time left on the clock? When Jennings made his shot against the Cavs on Nov. 4, he did so with :00.7 remaining in the game. Last night, when Ellis made his shot, there was about :00.8 on the clock when the ball left his hands. That’s just the sort of thing that Milwaukee’s explosive-if-unpredictable backcourt can do from game to game.
Back to Ellis’ shot, though: could it have been tougher? First, he’s camped out left of the 3-point line waiting for a pass from Jennings that seemingly isn’t going to come. As Jennings tries to drive on Jeremy Lin (and is subsequently cut off), Jennings pitches it to Ellis with about a second left with Ellis facing the sideline as he catches it. In one quick motion, Ellis turns to the basket, fades on the 6-foot-9 Chandler Parsons and chucks it toward the rim. Keep in mind that Ellis is listed at 6-foot-3, but that might be stretching things.
Much like the baseline floater that J.R. Smith nailed to do in the Suns earlier this season, a scorer like Ellis always knows where the rim is, knows how much space he needs and knows the shot clock/game clock situation. Unlike Smith, Ellis wasn’t faced with a designed play for him to get the ball.
In terms of difficulty, it’s hard to find a tougher shot (that the Bucks chose to take) in this situation.
Game Situation
Score tied at 107 with, Bucks have the ball at midcourt. Had Ellis missed, this one is headed to OT and a chance for the Bucks and Rockets — the current No. 8 seeds in their respective conferences — to bolster their playoff bids with a victory.
Importance
If we are going by eras in Milwaukee, the Bucks were 26-27 in the first full season of the Jennings-Ellis pairing and were 1-1 in the two games since they acquired J.J. Redick from the Orlando Magic in a trade deadline-day deal. What’s more important than eras in Milwaukee (or Houston, for that matter) is staying in the playoff race. The Bucks have less to worry on that front as the Sixers, Raptors and Pistons have a far-off-at-best shot at the postseason. In the West, the Rockets have a much tougher bid for No. 8 with the disappointing Lakers trying to get back to .500 and climb into Houston’s spot.
Overall, in terms of the playoff chase, this one likely meant more to Houston’s cause than Milwaukee’s (although a first-round date with the Heat isn’t exactly something the Bucks are savoring).
Celebration
Gotta love the mad dash for the locker room that Ellis makes after his shot. And as a confident-if-streaky shooter, Ellis told The Associated Press what we’d expect to hear from him after sinking that shot: “I just threw it up. The buzzer went off when it was rolling around the rim. Wasn’t any need for me to come back out [to see the review].” Basically, there’s no celebration here for the Bucks because Ellis just wants to get to the Houston airport and back to Milwaukee as soon as possible.
Grade
4 1/2 Horrys. Smith’s buzzer-beater against the Suns came off a clearly set play in a different situation. But to us, something about this Ellis shot has a lot in common with Smith’s in Arizona a few months ago. Call Ellis a 3-point chucker if you like (and as his shot charts show, he likes the 3-ball), but also call him Horry-like for coming through with a pretty tough shot.
The NBA season kicked into the post-All-Star break section of its schedule Tuesday night, and if you were seeking some good drama to get things started, it was found at no other place than the Barclays Center in Brooklyn. Before the Nets game against Milwaukee, ESPNNewYork.com’s Ian O’Connor wrote a pretty scathing column on Nets point guard Deron Williams and his lack of All-Star play this season. Then, the Nets tipped off the second half of their season by hosting the Bucks, a team with playoff hopes and designs on climbing into the No. 4 seed the Nets hold in the East.
A back-and-forth game ensued and the Bucks eventually built a five-point lead early in the fourth quarter, but the Nets charged back and it was their other former All-Star guard, Joe Johnson, who took over.
With the Bucks up 105-102, Johnson nailed a 3-pointer with 1.3 seconds left that had the clutch-ness of Robert Horry written all over it. Then, he did the deed again in OT with another clutch jumper, but this time, made sure it was a legit Horry Scale contender and put Milwaukee away for good.
For those that are new around these parts, the Horry scale examines a game-winning buzzer-beater (GWBB) in the categories of difficulty, game situation (was the team tied or behind at the time?), importance (playoff game or garden-variety Kings-Pistons game?) and celebration (is it over the top or too chill? Just the right panache or needs more sauce?). Then we give it an overall grade on a scale of 1-5 Robert Horrys, the patron saint of last-second daggers.
(IMPORTANT NOTE: While we loved Johnson’s game-tying 3-pointer as much as the rest of you [non-Bucks fans] did, we can’t put that one on the scale because it doesn’t qualify. We’ll mention it below and it might factor into the overall grade, too.)
How does Johnson’s game-winning shot Monday night stack up? Let’s dive in …
Difficulty
Much like the last Horry Scale shot we had around here, we’ve got a superstar going up against a role player, albeit a good defensive one in the Bucks’ Luc Mbah a Moute. Mbah a Moute needs a hug after this game as he not only got victimized on the game-winner, but on the game-tying shot, too. Of the two shots, we’d have to say the game-tying shot in the fourth quarter was more pressure-packed, given what happens if Johnson misses (a loss).
The shot Johnson takes (and makes) to win the game is one right in his wheelhouse. Hawks fans are well aware of Johnson’s ability to go one-on-one (just go Google “iso Joe Atlanta Hawks” and start reading), so Nets coach P.J. Carlesimo, one of the NBA’s better X-and-O guys, draws up two great plays for Johnson. The game-tying shot, he has Johnson serve as the inbounder, then works him off a high screen from Gerald Wallace and Andray Blatche and he drains the shot.
For the game-winner, Carlesimo has Keith Bogans as the inbounder and works Johnson off a pick from Brook Lopez. Johnson catches it near midcourt with Mbah a Moute playing great defense … until Johnson’s third dribble.
At that point, Mbah a Moute goes for a steal and Johnson has space to make it to the free-throw line extended. Despite a nice recovery from Mbah a Moute, Johnson pulls up, fades a little and the ballgame is over.
Reverse the court in your mind and watch this Johnson game-winner against the Bobcats in 2010.
.
Tell me you don’t see nearly the exact same play as last night: guard (Mike Bibby here) inbounds, Johnson works off a screen for a catch near the 3-point line, a couple of dribbles … and … ballgame.
Again, we feel for Mbah a Moute here. Much like Tayshaun Prince in Johnson’s last Horry shot, Mbah a Moute is a solid-if-not-elite perimeter defender who loses a step on the Nets’ star at the wrong time.
Game Situation
Game Situation No. 1 (but it’s not a Horry moment, mind you): Nets down three with 6.7 seconds left. Had the Bucks held on, it would have moved them closer to the Celtics for No. 7 in the East (especially since Boston lost in Denver Tuesday night). A loss, luckily for Milwaukee, kept it right where it is in the playoff chase thanks to the fact the Sixers have a ways to go to get into the conversation for No. 8. For the Nets, a loss (combined with the Bulls’ win in New Orleans) would have coughed up the No. 4 seed and given the New York media even more to over-analyze about this squad.
Game Situation No. 2 (this one counts, folks): A big 3-pointer from Bogans with 1:03 left tied this one up and the teams exchanged misses (the Bucks’ one by Larry Sanders and the Nets’ by Williams, courtesy of a Sanders block). Brandon Jennings has a chance to be the hero, but he misses a jump shot, setting up Johnson’s hero moment.
Importance
Playoff agendas — be it staying in the East’s top four (the Nets) or just staying in the race (the Bucks) — were at stake here. Brooklyn slightly strengthened its case and, despite a crushing loss at the horn, Milwaukee didn’t do that much damage to its.
Celebration
If the Nets can somehow go on a magical playoff run this season and win The Finals, we need to have a camera on Johnson once the title celebration begins. Although he’s known as “Joe Cool” to some, Johnson shows he’s not afraid to let his emotions show after draining the big shots against the Nets. The celebration has statistical backing, though, as our own John Schuhmann points out: in the final five minutes of the fourth quarter or overtime, with a score differential (either way) of five points or less this season, Johnson is shooting 90 percent.
.
Grade
4 Horrys. Although the 3-pointer in regulation didn’t count as an Horry Scale shot, being clutch twice down the stretch definitely factors into the grading around here (just as LaMarcus Aldridge). Johnson did what Aldridge did — more or less — to garner four stars: deliver a big shot to tie the game (although Johnson’s 3-pointer forced OT and Aldridge’s didn’t) and then finish the job with an Horry Scale shot. Johnson got to his sweet spot on the court, got some space from the defender and did what superstars are supposed to do: win games.
What’s going on everybody? Happy New Year! 2012 was my most memorable to date and it closed out with my family coming to Milwaukee to celebrate Christmas. It was great getting everyone up here because, with the team’s schedule and my sisters being in school, we don’t get many chances to be together. I was able to show them around the city a little bit and take them to a game.
John Henson with his sisters in Milwaukee, Christmas 2012 – Courtesy of Henson family
I took one shot of my sisters and me. You may be wondering why a Tar Heel would be willing to stand next to relatives wearing clothes from that other college down the road from Chapel Hill. Well, my sister Amber (next to me) plays basketball for Duke. Just like me, NOBODY was ready for the cold weather up here. I’m either in the gym or in my apartment because I’m not stepping foot outside unless I have to (that’s the Florida in me).
Since my last post, the team has parted ways with Coach Skiles. I want to thank Coach Skiles for his faith in me and giving me an opportunity to play early in my career. He is an outstanding coach and motivator, so I know he will be back on the sidelines in the NBA soon! Best of luck to him! Coach Boylan has taken over, which I’m comfortable with since he coached our Summer League team and that was my first introduction to NBA ball. We got our first win under Coach Boylan against Phoenix and it felt good to give the team some momentum with all the shakeups on the sidelines. We had lost four in a row before that win, so it was good for Larry, Brandon, and Monta to get the team moving in a positive direction. Larry was a beast in the fourth quarter too! There are a lot of fighters on this roster, so we’ll be good down the stretch.
I’m hosting 31 winners of an Instagram contest called “Show Me Your Milwaukee” (#showmeyourmilwaukee) to the 76ers game on January 22. I asked Bucks fans to post pictures of Milwaukee (sights, Bucks games, restaurants, etc.) and I’m using 31 (my number) of them to make a collage for my twitter (@_John_Henson_) background. It’s been cool to look through the pics and see all these places that I still haven’t been to. I guess I got some work to do in the off-season! Bucks fans, you still have until January 17 to post your Instragram photo. Keep the great photos coming.
Stay tuned for another blog entry and I hope to catch y’all soon. Go Bucks!
– JHook
John Henson, a 6-foot-11 forward from North Carolina, was the 14th player taken in the 2012 NBA Draft. Check All Ball all season long for more NBA Rooks: Diaries …
In a back-and-forth affair in Milwaukee, point guard Brandon Jennings punctuated a perplexing night (13 assists, but 13 points on 5-of-13 shooting, four turnovers) by nailing a 3-pointer as the buzzer expired to lift the Bucks to 2-0. The game was extremely competitive for the last 28 minutes, with Monta Ellis and Mike Dunleavy Jr. filling up the scoring column for the Bucks until Jennings performed a coup de grace on the Cavs.
For those that are new around these parts, the Horry scale examines a game-winning buzzer-beater (GWBB) in the categories of difficulty, game situation (was the team tied or behind at the time?), importance (playoff game or garden-variety Kings-Pistons game?), and celebration, and gives it an overall grade on a scale of 1-5 Robert Horrys, who is kind of the patron saint of last-second daggers.
How does Mr. Jennings’ shot Saturday night stack up? Let’s take a look. (more…)
Nov. 1, 2012 — These past few months have been a complete whirlwind for me. Adjusting to independence (i.e. cooking, cleaning, banking, etc.) in a brand new city has taken some getting used to, but I’m getting there. I wasn’t sure what to expect when I arrived in Milwaukee after spending most of my life in the South. But I can honestly say that I love it here. The city, the Bucks fans and the lifestyle are awesome.
Thankfully, living away from home during my three years in Chapel Hill, combined with my parents’ guidance, helped prepare me for my professional career off the court. But the NBA’s Rookie Transition Program (RTP) over the summer was four days of learning life skills that have already helped me tackle the business of professional basketball.
Imagine waking up tomorrow and going to work in your dream job. Whether it is a doctor, a pilot, a teacher, an actor, business owner or an athlete. There is no feeling in the world like it and I’m so fortunate to be where I am today. This is the exact thought that went through my head when I sat down for the RTP — I was soaking everything in. Being among my friends, former teammates and other guys I’ll be seeing on an NBA court this year. It was surreal. I wanted to know everything about what it takes to be successful in my new career and the RTP filled every gap of every question that I had. (more…)
End of quarter buzzer-beating heaves are a staple of the game. Some clank off the back of the rim. Some hit nothing but air. Some even go in. They are generally uncontested because no one wants to pick up a stupid foul while the ballhandler is careening wildly for an angle to get an impossible shot off.
Then the Raptors’ John Lucas III comes Monday night against the Bucks and hit as difficult a buzzer-beating 3-pointer as you’re gonna see.
Despite the effort of Mike Dunleavy Jr. and Beno Udrih, Lucas III was not to be denied.
Seen something that belongs on All Ball? Let us know viaemail.
Catch up on every single game-winning buzzer beater during the season and see how it rates on the Horry Scale.
