Rafer Alston mulls Retirement

The return of Rafer Alston to his beloved Miami Heat has not been as good as he expected. Following his successful stint with the Orlando Magic, he was traded to the New Jersey Nets in exchange for the aging Vince Carter. While with the Nets, they went from being just out of playoff contention to being the worst team in the NBA. After playing in the NBA Finals, Rafer Alston wanted out and rightfully so.

After not landing Lamar Odom, the key to the Miami Heat and their new championship-contending team did not come to be. Instead, they boasted of how they had rebuilt from within. They bragged of how consistent Mario Chalmers, the breakout rookie point guard, would be in his second year. But, as the New Year approached, the Heat had established themselves as the most inconsistent team in the NBA. They struggled to beat the lowly Nets that Alston played for.

Rafer Alston and a second stint with the Miami Heat seemed like a match made in heaven. But, even after he ws signed, the Heat continued with the up-and-down play. Recently, the team has been on an upswing, but they have grown upset with Alston. The main reason that he was signed was because the team felt that he could bring some consistency. However, he has brought more of the same to a team that wants to win 50 games. On Friday, the Heat held a mandatory practice that Rafer Alston did not attend, which led to him being suspended, indefinitely. They could bring Alston back for the next game, or he could miss the remainder of the season.

The Miami Heat are upset with Alston because he does not keep frequent contact. With everything that he has been through, it appears that Rafer Alston's best season was last season. Keeping all of that in mind, Rafer Alston may just retire before the end of this season.

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NBA Scores for March 6, 2010

The NBA scores for March 6, 2010.

Warriors   90
Bobcats 101

Hawks  94
Heat   100

Nets 113
Knicks 93

Mavericks 122
Bulls            116

Rockets      112
Timberwolves 98


Spurs  102
Grizzlies 92

Cavaliers 85
Bucks    92

Pacers 105
Suns   113

Clippers 85
Jazz     107

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NBA Scores for March 5, 2010

The NBA scores for March 5, 2010.

Pistons    92
Cavaliers 99

Celtics 96
76ers    86

Bucks 102
Wizards 74

Knicks     96
Raptors 102

Lakers    83
Bobcats 98

Warriors 122
Hawks   127

Magic 97
Nets    87

Kings          100
Mavericks 108

Pacers    114
Nuggets 122

Hornets  91
Spurs   102

Thunder 104
Clippers    87

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Kobe is let down by Lakers again

The intensity and mental toughness of the defending NBA champion, Los Angeles Lakers, has been doubted all season long. One thing that has never been questioned is the intensity and mental toughness of Kobe Bryant. For one short period, during his injury, the Lakers proved that they could still win important games without their star. Upon his retun, they came in and one four games in a row.

The four game winning streak came right before their trip to Miami to play the Heat. Unlike in previous years, the Heat are not contenders. Earlier this season, Kobe Bryant hit a game-winning three pointer that sent the Heat in a downward spiral. Because of their good record and their championship aspirations compared to the Heat's playoff aspirations, the only person who took the Miami game seriously was Kobe Bryant.

For years, Kobe Bryant and Dwyane Wade, the Miami Heat star player, have been rivals. When they are playing against each other, both players turn their respective game up a notch. Despite Wade being among the best players in the NBA, his team is only an average team in an average conference. Because of that, the rest of the Laker squad does not take games against the Heat seriously. That is one of the main reasons why the Heat won in a balanced effort against the Lakers. Kobe Bryant scored 39 points, while Dwyane Wade only scored 27. Even with a lackluster effort from the Lakers, the game still went into overtime. The final score was 114-111 in favor of Miami.

The Lakers, especially Kobe Bryant, were looking to rebound against the Charlotte Bobcats. The Bobcats are the youngest franchise in the league. Their first season occurred in the season that Shaquille O'Neal had departed for the previously-mentioned Miami Heat. Because of that, the Bobcats have beaten up on the Lakers. Even last season, they swept the Lakers in the regular season series. But, this season, they were not fortunate enough to get a win in Los Angeles. Despite not winning in Los Angeles, they had to play a game in the Queen City of Charlotte, too. Expecting to bounce back after a tough loss, the Lakers were defeated 98-83. Again, Kobe Bryant led all scorers, while his teammates did not show up.

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Zydrunas Ilgauskas prepares Return to Cavaliers

Last month, the Cleveland Cavaliers dealt Zydrunas Ilgauskas in an effort to bring Antawn Jamison to the squad. Going into the playoffs, the Cavs need a good three-point shooter to match up with the shooters of the Orlando Magic. Ilgauskas had been the longest-tenured player on the team, but the trade ended that streak. Since LeBron James arrived in Cleveland, he was the only player that was there every season since. When he was traded, it was assumed that he would find his way back to Cleveland before playoff time.

Three weeks have passed since Ilgauskas was traded to the Washington Wizards. He never showed up to any of the practices and it did not take long for his contract to be bought out. This benefits Cleveland because they can now offer him less money to sign on for the rest of the season. While the Cavs are not going to be major players in the upcoming free agency period, they can offer a bit more money to their star, LeBron James. There are rumors of him leaving the team after this season.

The lure of playing alongside LeBron James is enough for the man called Big Z. Before James joined the franchise, he had played through multiple losing seasons with the Cavaliers. He was also forced to wear those horrible jerseys of the 1990s that matched the Cavs' consistent losing. In 1999, Zydrunas Ilgauskas had played in three playoff games and it would be seven years before he returned. Since that return, he has been in the playoffs every year. In 2007, he got as far as the NBA Finals with LeBron James. He knew that he would be trade bait, so being traded to the bottom-feeding Wizards did not come as much of a surprise. But, the games are over and Big Z wants to return to his team.

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Vince Carter was the Next Michael Jordan?

When he first came into the league, there was a lot of hype surrounding Vince Carter. He hailed from the University of North Carolina and he was playing for the Toronto Raptors. Early on, he showed the people how things were done. It did not take him long to become the best dunker in the league. Aside from dunking, Carter showed that he was a great player. On the opposite side of the league was Kobe Bryant, a backup guard for the Lakers. He was not much yet, but he showed flashes of what he could be.

At the time, Michael Jordan had just retired from the NBA and the media was looking to fill that void. Often, sports analysts would ask certain NBA players, current and former, about who they felt would fill Jordan's void. Almost everyone would agree that Vince Carter was that man. Early in his career, there were many parallels between himself and Michael Jordan. But, when the man, Michael Jordan, himself, was asked about who he felt was the future, he chose Kobe Bryant.

There was never any doubt that Bryant would be a good player, but to say that he would one day become the best player in the league was outrageous. Vince Carter continued to carry the Raptors on his back and he was putting up big numbers. Meanwhile, Kobe Bryant was just stepping into the role of Robin to the Batman of Shaquille O'Neal. Even with Shaq as the leader, Kobe soon began to prove his worth. By 2000, there was not a person in the league who would not agree that Bryant was every bit as good, if not better, than Vince Carter. When Carter became injury prone and Kobe became a champion, everyone began to see exactly what Michael Jordan was saying way back in 1998.

Now, ten years later, Vince Carter has become a role playing journeyman, while Kobe Bryant has made himself into the second-best player in NBA history. So, Vince Carter was the next Michael Jordan?

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The Heat finally defeat a Contender

After showing much promise last season, a lot of people expected the Miami Heat to make a big move during the offseason. That big move never came to be. As the new season approached, it was expected of the Heat to be just as good, or not as good, as they were the season before. But, they surprised the entire league when they got off to a 6-1 start. Their only loss during that stretch came when they slipped against the Phoenix Suns, but they could have won that game.

However, as the season progressed, the Heat lost close games against the Cavaliers, Lakers, and Celtics. Those losses must have gotten into the head of the Heat players. Before long, they were also losing to teams like the Raptors and the Bobcats. These losses, which could have easily been wins placed the Miami Heat in a tough situation heading into last night's game against the Lakers. The last time that the teams played, Kobe Bryant buried a buzzer-beating three pointer that gave Los Angeles a one-point win.

With that memory fresh in the minds of Dwyane Wade and Jermaine O'Neal, they came into their most-recent meeting with the Lakers as tough as they could. For most of the game, the Heat led, but late the Lakers came charging back, much like their meeting on December 4. Just like in the first meeting, the last shot in regulation was taken by Kobe Bryant, but unlike in the last meeting, it was only good enough to force overtime. In the overtime session, Carlos Arroyo held the team down. Miami escaped their most-recent home game with a close 114-111 victory over the Lakers. This win was important on many different levels. Against the top teams in the league, Miami had a combined record of 3-8. They had two early wins against the Magic, but those wins could never spark a run.

But, when their backs were against the wall, Miami lost in overtime to Boston after Dwyane Wade seemingly hit the game-winning shot. If that was not the case, they gave up in the fourth quarters to Boston, fell by one at home to Cleveland and got blown out bad on the road. Early on, the Heat played with the same confidence that it showed during the Shaquille O'Neal era. But, after their first loss to the Cavs, the team lost its stride and could not regain it. The loss to the Lakers only did more to ruin the confidence of the team and the injury to Dwyane Wade in the middle of their five-game win streak did little to help. Had Wade remained in the lineup, the Heat probably could have kept the streak going.

While their confidence has taken a lot of blows, this win over the Lakers may do something to lift them just for a little while.

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Carlos Boozer may remain in Utah

Not until he signed with the Utah Jazz was Carlos Boozer considered a star. He began his career with the Cleveland Cavaliers and he left right as LeBron James was beginning to make his mark. Boozer played with the Utah Jazz in the early stages of the post-Karl Malone era. Playing the same position as "The Mailman," Boozer had big shoes to fill. By 2006, the team was a playoff contender and they made it all of the way to the Western Conference Finals in 2007.

The favorite season of Carlos Boozer was that 2006-2007 season that saw his team push the San Antonio Spurs to five games before losing. Each year since that year, the Jazz have taken a step back. In 2008, they fell in the second round to the Los Angeles Lakers 4-2, and last season they were swept by the Lakers in the first round. Last season was Boozer's least favorite season in Utah. It angered him to lose everything that he felt that he had built and he openly demanded out.

During the summer of 2009, Miami Heat president, Pat Riley, devised a plan that included Carlos Boozer. In an attempt to please Heat star, Dwyane Wade, Riley tried to build a contender on the fly. His plan was to sign free agent forward, Lamar Odom. If Odom had signed with the Heat, they would have then made a three-way trade that would have sent Udonis Haslem to Utah in exchange for Carlos Boozer. Then, to compliment the deal, the Heat would have signed Allen Iverson. Just out of curiousity, the sports media was in favor of this deal, but when Odom re-signed with the Lakers, everyone moved on except for Boozer.

Boozer demanded that the Utah Jazz trade him to Miami because he did not want to play in Utah anymore. He is good friends with both Dwyane Wade and Jermaine O'Neal. Plus, during the offseason, he vacations in Miami. From his talks with Pat Riley, he liked him and he was willing to build a relationship with the Heat head coach, Erik Spoelstra. But, the Utah Jazz declined trading Boozer. They let him know that they ran the organization and it was not the other way around. The Jazz refused to be bullied into trading Boozer and receiving nothing in exchange. Most likely, Haslem would have returned to the Heat after his season in Utah with the Jazz.

After not being traded during the offseason, Carlos Boozer entered training camp with the Jazz. But, when the season started, he was not playing to his full potential. Because of that, the team held a session that led to them going on a winning streak. At one point, this season, the Jazz held a record of 13-15, but they got things in gear and they are right behind the Mavericks and the Nuggets for the second seed in the West. Now, it appears that Boozer is having fun on the court, instead of wishing that he was in Miami. Even as recent as the trade deadline, there were rumors of the Jazz talking with the Heat about trading Boozer. But, as the trade deadline passed, no deal went through and with his free agency coming after the season, Carlos Boozer may end up re-signing with the Utah Jazz.

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Jason Terry is done for the Season

Earlier this week, Jason Terry's face was met with an elbow. It was enough to cause a minor injury for the Dallas Mavericks' guard, but no one knew just how serious the injury would be. The exceptional play of Terry alongside Dirk Nowitski had the Mavs playing their best basketball since 2007. The team has been right there in the race for the entire season. One of the main reasons that the Mavericks have been so tough is because of the strong play of Jason Terry.

The blow to the face, as previously stated, has done more to Terry than anyone had previously thought. Right after he was hit, it was clear that he was going to need surgery to repair his face and it was expected that he was going to miss up to a week of action. Losing one of the best players on the team for a week is rough, especially this time of the season. But, further evaluation has placed Jason Terry out of the lineup for the next two months.

Jason Terry has been the extra spark for the Dallas Mavericks all season long. Without him, a lot of close games that the Mavs won would have gone the other way. Now that he is done for the season, if Dallas ends up playing more close games, they may not go in their favor. That is not a good thought with the Utah Jazz and the Denver Nuggets chasing the Mavericks down in the standings. As of March 5, 2010, the Dallas Mavericks are holding the second seed with a 41-21 record. Meanwhile, Denver is holding down third with a 40-21 record and the Jazz are standing at the fourth seed with a 39-22 record. Now that Dallas is missing its X-factor, it will be very hard for them to maintain this slim lead over two competitive teams.

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NBA Scores for March 4, 2010

The NBA scores for March 4, 2010.

Grizzlies 105
Bulls          96

Lakers 111
Heat    114

Jazz 116
Suns 108

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