Hov's Kings - Retired

[kibaxx7]

Yep those green J's are classic, lovin' them

And nice interview with Chase. He will make a great duo with Tyreke soon, just give them time.

[hova-]

Thierry •, Chase's performance has really gone down lately. His shooting could be way better considering I rarely take long range shots with him.

Evans is rock solid, but not superstar-like yet.

[Valor]

Everybody seems to like the jerseys

Of course we do! really wish they are still around in real life

[Devin112]

Seeing those jerseys makes me think of Shawn Kemp.

If the Kings head down to Anaheim and become the Royals I might have to start up another dynasty.

[kibaxx7]

If the Kings head down to Anaheim and become the Royals I might have to start up another dynasty.

That would be a perfect scenario for a comeback from you, man. Still remember your Clips!

[hova-]

Yeah, your Clipps were the first really decent Photoshop dynasty that I remember. Cool to see you looking by.

[hova-]

Demarcus Cousins' 2nd consecutive double-double helped Seattle to rally past the Pistons in overtime.


Sonics need overtime to outlast Pistons after Randolph's game-tying three

Box Scores

SEATTLE, November 9th (AP) - Tyreke Evans scores 31 and Omri Casspi adds 26 as the Supersonics grab a late win against the winless Pistons

It was definitely not the most anticipated matchup when the winless Detroit Pistons (0-8) went to visit the not so much better (1-8) Seattle Supersonics at Key Arena this night, but in the end, every fan watching the game could say that he was witnessing a thriller.

The Pistons started off well and were able to grab the first lead of the game. Rookie George Randolph scored 13 points in the first half beating his season average even before halftime (10.2ppg).

The Sonics had problems to stop the young forward out of UNC. "I know him from College and he was really more of a spot up shooter for his Tar Heels last year. He's playing totally different on NBA level now. That's what intelligent players can and will do. They will try to hurt you in different ways. He did that", Sonics headcoach Hova said after the game.

Randolph, an only .265% three point shooter in his first year in the NBA, did his best to attack the rim and draw fouls. He had a team-high 28 points and also added 7 boars in the game.

Seattle though had their own scorer, Tyreke Evans, who played with a bruised hip and scored 8 points in the first quarter. Both teams had 8 fouls in the first which was pretty much a foul-festival.

The Pistons went hot in the 2nd quarter and grabbed a 11-point lead at halftime shooting .51% compared to the Sonics' .37%.


Terrico White (l.) with the big stuff. George Randolph (r.) had a career-high 28 points.

After halftime, the Seattle Supersonics managed to find their way back into the game thanks to stellar defense. They limited the Pistons to only 15 points in the 3rd and held George Randolph to 1-5 from the field.

Demarcus Cousins, who had 8 points in the 3rd quarter, got called for his 4th foul early and had to sit out for the rest of the quarter, but the Sonics were able to come within four after the third.

Chris Hova's team came out of the gates on fire, starting off the 4th quarter with a 16-6 run. It was Demarcus Cousins' stellar post game, that helped the Sonics grabbing the lead.

"He was hitting those akward looking baby-hooks left and right, but got a little bit too many calls to my taste", Pistons Coach Brian Hill said after the game. Cousins went 12-20 from the free throw line.

With two minutes left in the game, the Pistons nevertheless led the game, 94-93. Omri Casspi hit two consecutive threes after scoring only five points in the game before. Being down by two, Ben Gordon, who only hit 5 of his 23 shot attempts, countered Casspi's three to give the Pistons a 99-98 lead with 35 seconds left in regulation.

Casspi once again hit a post up shot and with a one point lead it was Jarvis Hayes, who managed to steal the ball from Rodney Stuckey with 6 seconds left on the clock. The Pistons had to foul Hayes who stayed ice-cold and hit both shots, giving the Sonics a 99-102 lead. What then happened, made Coach Hova going nuts.

The Pistons took a timeout, inbounded the ball and then "we did not foul, god damn", the Sonics Coach said. "I told them to foul whoever gets the ball, send him to the line for two shots and then grab that damn win".

The Sonics did not foul however and George Randolph took his first three point shot of the game contested by Jarvis Hayes. Randolph missed, but the rebounded ball landed once again in the Pistons hands. Randolph got a second look, this time wide open, and knocked down the clutch three with the buzzer.


Dante Cunningham (l.) with the poster dunk. Luis Chase (r.) played injured, but still had a double-double.

In overtime though, the Pistons weren't able to hurt Seattle at all. Jason Thompson fouled out on the first possession when he tried to defend Demarcus Cousins. Cousins himself also fouled out with the Sonics having a 104-111 lead.

Omri Casspi scored 10 of his 25 in OT to seal the deal for the Sonics. "In overtime, we just fed Omri (Casspi), you could see the confidence on his face", Luis Chase, who had his first career double-double said. Casspi hit all of his three shots from down-town in overtime.

Take a look at the game highlights (with Randolph's buzzer beating three as the second last highlight) and Casspi's highlights from the game down low.

Quote Of The Game

"For sure this was a special win. You know these little pay-back cards? I recently got one and I must say, I love to pay back", Coach Hova on Joe Dumars.

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NOTES: Detroit is still winless ... the Sonics had a season-high 55 free throws ... Tyreke Evans had 31 points in only 34 minutes ... Demarcus Cousins had at least two blocks in the last four games ... Rodney Stuckey struggled with fouls all game long ... the Sonics have now won their 2nd home game ... George Randolph was originally drafted by the Sonics, but traded for Luis Chase ... comparison of ex-players from the trade: Jason Maxiell (5p/14r/2b - 2/5FG) - Jason Thompson (11p/15r/2b - 4-12FG)

[kibaxx7]

Retro night Nice to see Cousins finally being a constant threat.

[Axel The Great]

Wow, 55 free throws. Nice contribution from Casspi off the bench.

[hova-]

Thierry •, yeah Cousins is really playing well. If he did shoot like .50% from the field he would be the perfect center. I managed to get a few blocks with him lately and his rebounding is excellent - I hope I can shoot the ball better with him in the next games.


Axel., 55 is too many. I will change the slider a bit, but I have to say that I did not get that many FTs before. Also it was an overtime match. But as I said, I might decrease the sliders a bit.
Casspi was like crazy. Dude has a three point stroke. If he starts hitting two in a row, he can shoot it in the defenders face (especially a smaller one like Gordon) all the time.

Thanks for your replies guys

[Houndy]

The Pistons got owned for ripping you off!

Casspi is really good, has an awesome 3 point touch

[dare]

Good thing I didn't miss a lot of updates, nice couple of wins in there. Cousins is really doing good, Chase outside shots needs to have a lot of improving.

[hova-]

Houndy, yes, I must admit I had no trust at him at the beginning of the season because he just did not improve his game a lot, but he can still be a game changer with his shooting.

dare, health is first, second and third. Thanks for looking by. Cousins is more of a beasty guy right now. He is big and gets all those boards and contests shots. He did not do this last season for me. Chase's outside shot is so weak that I don't even take threes with him. Only hail marys so far. Up to 13 feet he's decent.

[hova-]

Player Information

Position: SG (PG)
Age: 22
Height: 6-6
Weight: 220 lbs.
College: Memphis
Years Pro: 3
PER: 21.32 (30th in the league - last year: 24.8)
Estimated Wins Added: 0.8 (last year: 7.8 )


Offense

Talking about Tyreke Evans means talking about his offense. Evans 22.2 points per game are good enough for 16th in the league and last year he finished as the 10th best scorer with 23.1 points per game.
Evans has a quick first step and can blow by defenders quickly which allows him to drive to the basket easily. He was able to get to the line 84 times in 11 games so far this season, last year he had 538 free throw attempts (7.6 per game).

Evans' newest weapon is a very solid mid-range jumper from 12-18 feet. Although his shooting percentage is down from last year (.457% compared to .482%), Evans has definitely improved his shot (but rather not his shot selection). So far, he also has been hitting the three, shooting 8-18 en route for .444% this season (compared to .308% last season). A solid development which also comes from the fact that he is not dominating the ball like last year.

This year, Evans is only averaging 2.2 assists (4.7 last year) per game, simply because of the arrival of Luis Chase. Evans also commits less turnovers (2.1 compared to 2.5). His free throw shooting has gone up from .745% to .786% so far.

Evans' go-to-move right now seems to be a scenario where he gets the ball on the right wing, jab steps and blows past the defender. When the help comes over, his signature double-pump layup to avoid the D has been stellar this season. Evans' trueshooting could be better though, as he only holds a percentage of .547%.

Leadership

Although Tyreke Evans takes pride in being the franchise player for Seattle, his leadership quality has still to be doubted. Last year, it was more a thing of having the ball in his hands for most of the time, but he has never been very good at leading a team with spirit and responsibility off the court. Evans lets his game do the talking, but many say this is not enough when you want to be the leader of a franchise.

This year, it's even tougher, with Luis Chase dominating the ball a lot on offense making Evans look more like a side-kick at times (although he still averages 6 points more than the 2nd best scorer, Omri Casspi).
Evans has to learn to enter the team huddle as a leader, especially on an unexperienced team like the Sonics. Right now it seems like Jarvis Hayes and Nazr Mohammed are the leaders in Seattle, not the best two options as they are role players on this Sonics squad.

Contract

Tyreke Evans' contract situation is on hold after he refused to sign a max contract with the Sonics during offseason. Evans stated that he'd "love to stay in Seattle", but does not yet "know how this teams will be looking in one or two years". Not a lot of trust the shooting guard his showing in his team, but can you really blame him for that?

In days where Carmelo or LeBron just don't give anything about their franchises or even running contracts, Tyreke Evans seems to avoid such a stress by just sitting down and looking how things are going to develop. Right now, Evans is earning 4.5M$ for the season, and the Sonics have a team option for another year worth 5.25M$.

It's a good thing to see Evans not signing a max contract just to make money but rather wait and take less, to get more success later.

Defense

On defense, Tyreke Evans is not known for being a stopper, still he has everything it takes to become one in future days. This season, his steals per game have gone down from 1.9 to 1.4, which is still a very good number. Evans understands to play the passing lanes and create easy points on the break. When it comes to one-on-one defense, he is still lacking experience, but has the body to keep up with anybody, be it on the post or on the perimetre. He is quick enough to not let you blow past him, and he has the height to contest fade-aways. At 220 lbs, he still needs to add some weight though, to be able to absorb contact better.

Evans is like the young Kobe Bryant on defense. He is quick and motivated, but only as time comes, he will be more than solid on D.

Injury

Tyreke Evans is not known for being injury prone, but he's also not called Mr. Steel. To name the numbers, Evans missed 10 games in his rookie season and had to play with pain for a good amount of games.

In his sophomore season last year, he had a calf injury that forced him to sit out 12 games early in the season which hurt the Sonics on the long run. This season, Evans is having problems with his hip lately and although he has not played more than 34 minutes per game this season and last season, he seems to be quite fragile at times.

While he's far away from being a Yao or Grant Hill, Evans' health should be observed before signing him to a new contract.

Athleticism

While athleticism is not everything in the NBA, it should obviously be mentioned when checking a player. Tyreke Evans' athleticism gets an A+ when we talk about quickness and explosiveness.

Although he's 6-6 high, the ex-Tiger can run past everyone in a second. That's why John Calipari was working with him at Memphis (drive n motion offense) and that's why it's tough for anybody to stop Evans in this league.

Talking about air, Tyreke Evans does not really look special. Evans had 32 dunks last season and does not get up high very often. His height may be a reason, as he has superb length for a shooting guard.

[Justine.]

Wow excellent article. Really loving the features like this Just a little question, is there a way on how to know the number of dunks a player did?

[hova-]

Justine., thanks man Nah, it's just me estimating. I know that Evans does not dunk the ball very often, not even once per game (which isn't much for a video game).

[shadowgrin]

Excellent presentation of that article.

is there a way on how to know the number of dunks a player did?

http://www.cbssports.com/nba/dunk-o-meter/yearly

[Justine.]

shadowgrin, I mean in 2k11 But thanks for that reference

[hova-]

Nets outhustle Heat, bring Miami first loss of the season

The Miami Heat have lost their first game of the season as the New Jersey Nets beat them last night at Prudential Center in Newark.

The Nets used balanced scoring and tough work on the boards to outplay the Heat. Brook Lopez had 22 points and Carl Landry added 20 and 14 rebounds.

The Heat had no other player than their big three in double figures with LeBron scoring a game-high 36 points along with 7 assists and 8 rebounds.

The Heat stay on top of the Eastern Conference at 9-1 whilst the Nets move one spot up and stand at 5th with 6-5.

Granger, Pacers defeat Bulls on the road

The Indiana Pacers were able to grab their 6th win of the season (6-3) when they beat the Chicago Bulls at United Center yesterday.

Once again it was Danny Granger dominating on offense as he scored 41 points. Granger is averaging 29.9 points per game this season (2nd in the league).

The Bulls could not keep their winning streak of three going and fall to 5-2 now. Carlos Boozer had 24 points and 10 boards, Derrick Rose added 16 points and 9 assists.

Detroit wins battle of winless teams @Phoenix

The Detroit Pistons were able to grab their first win of the season as they defeated the Phoenix Suns 102-92 last night.

Ben Gordon scored 22 points and Rodney Stuckey added 20 to counter Steve Nash's 21 points and 6 dimes.

The Pistons hold a record of 1-10 now and the Suns are still looking for their first win of the season at 0-10.

Rumours say that Suns coach Alvin Gentry will be fired soon. We keep you up to date on the situation in Phoenix.

Lakers take revenge, beat Clippers 106-103

The Los Angeles Lakers are back on winning ways as they managed to grab their fifth win in a row after starting 0-3 to the season.

Kobe Bryant led six Lakers in double-figures with 18 points. Blake Griffin had a game-high 22 points but only 6 boards as the Lakers outrebounded the Clippers 42-33.

Both teams stand at 5-3 after the game as the Lakers will travel to Miami for the big showdown with the Miami Heat.

Nets take down Sonics, Evans leaves court

The New Jersey Nets beat the Seattle Supersonics just one night after winning against Miami. Man of the match in the 109-112 win was Brook Lopez, who had 25 points and 14 boards.

Deron Williams dished out 11 assists and scored 22 points and ex-Sonic Carl Landry added 19.

For the Sonics, Omri Casspi recorded a game-high 36 points. He scored all of them in the 2nd half where he went 5-8 from downtown. Tyreke Evans added 17 points but had to leave the court in the fourth after colliding mid-air with a Nets player and going down hard. MRI is scheduled for tomorrow, we keep you up to date on Evans' status.

Demarcus Cousins had his third straight double-double with 13 and 10 and he also added 4 blocks. Luis Chase had 13 points on 3-7 shooting.

[Lamrock]

Holy shit, the player check is awesome! Team record isn't though.

[kibaxx7]

Lovin' the player check. You're gonna do it with with your whole roster?

[|)e8*]

Go nets!!

[hova-]

███ Sonics' Evans out for two weeks
SEATTLE (AP)

Sonics guard Tyreke Evans will be out for at least two weeks with a separated shoulder. "We're pretty glad, because at first it looked like ligaments were torn, but the MRI confirmed that he will only need to rest until the swelling is better", an employee of the Sonics medical stuff said.

Evans came down hard on his shoulder in the Sonics' loss against the Nets two days ago. The shooting guard is averaging 22.2 points and 4.7 rebounds for the 2-9 Sonics this season.

███ Suns fire Gentry, hire Kuester
PHOENIX (AP)

After a tough start to the season with ten consecutive losses, the Phoenix Suns decided to dismiss head coach Alvin Gentry and hire the former Pistons coach John Kuester.

The Suns recently lost two games in two days, one against the Pistons who were also winless at that time. Kuester will try to rework the whole concept and stop playing run&gun basketball.

Rumours have also been spreading recently that with the new coach incoming, a Steve Nash trade will be the next move on the Suns' rebuilding agenda. GM Steve Kerr did not want to comment on that matter.

███ LeBron: "Lakers should fear us"
MIAMI(AP)

One day before the big showdown between the Lakers and the Heat at American Airlines Center in Miami, LeBron James told reporters that the Lakers should fear the Heat.

"We were the better team last year, and if it wasn't for the Celtics, we would have taken down L.A. We are the best team right now once again, and they should definitely fear us", LeBron said.

The Heat are going into the game with a record of 10-1 after beating Spurs 80-93. The Lakers are third in the West with 7-4 after losing to the Magic last night.

LeBron James is leading the league in scoring at 29.5 points per game, Kobe Bryant ranks third (behind Danny Granger) with 27.4 points per game.

███ Meredith's shooting slump continues
NEW YORK (AP)

New York Knickerbocker's number one pick Lance Meredith is still adapting to NBA level and has performed well lately, but still struggles with his shooting this season.

The former Huskie is shooting .395% from the field and .188% from downtown. He only shot over .500% from the field in three games this season so far.

"I don't know what's the problem. I'm taking shots I took at College, too. I'm also hitting my freethrows. It's quite mysterious", the big man, who hits .87% from the foul line says.

Overall, Meredith is getting better and better in the league as he showed in the Knicks' win over Boston last night. Meredith had a career-high 28 points, 7 boards and also added four assists, steals and blocks.

So far, the first pick of 2011 is averaging 14.5 points, 9.7 rebounds, 4.7 assists and 1.7 blocks per game.

███ Spurs, Celtics struggling
SAN ANTONIO - BOSTON (AP)

The San Antonio Spurs and Boston Celtics, both Conference semi finalists last year, started off the season struggling.

Right now, both teams own a record of 4-8 wins sitting at the bottom area of their Conferences.

"It's tough to say why we're having these problems at the moment, but I doubt it's the age of the roster, we will come back for sure", said Tim Duncan, who is statistically playing a great seaons (22.7 ppg/11.3rpg/3.0apg).

"We just can't let teams like New York beat us, we are the Eastern Champion", said small forward Paul Pierce, the Cs' topscorer with 21.6 points per game.

[hova-]

Lamrock, thanks man. I'm working on that record. T-Wolves, Bulls and Sixers are up next. We can win two of these three even without Reke.

Thierry •, thanks T. Well it's up to you readers. Would you rather like it about my players or players from all over the league?

|)e8*, the Nets are tough to play. They have no real go-to-guy, but four guys who can hurt you in D-Will, Lopez, Crawford and Outlaw.

Thanks for replying. Glad you liked the player check

[Valor]

Awesome "Player Check"

and Lebron should shut up for once