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Eurocentric NBA highlights, bullets: Parker’s big game; Nuggets top Heat; Deng rules over Celtics; Rubio masterful as ever in first start

January 14, 2012

BallinEurope gets things rolling on Saturday with highlight clips – okay, some links to online stuff You Should Read as well, but the main point is highlight clips, right? This morning, then, a quick look at some excellent performances turned in in last night’s NBA action from the Continent’s top players. Starring Tony Parker, Luol Deng, Tiago Splitter, Ty Lawson, and of course a certain Spanish point guard you may have heard something about…

• Tony Parker contributed perhaps his best NBA performance of 2011-12 last night, with 20 points and nine assists to lead the San Antonio Spurs to a 99-83 victory over the Portland Trail Blazers. Fellow TrueHoop blog 48 Minutes of Hell does some “Statistical Sleuthing” in an excellent piece on Parker’s play in the paint and at the rim this season, for ages a strength for the Spur.

After crunching the numbers, 48 Minutes’ Aaron McGuire deduces that “The fact is, Tony Parker has been playing atrociously, *especially* at the rim, and it’s tough to say whether this should make Spurs fans excited or terrified. Why excited? It’s easy to simply chalk this up to small sample size and assume he gets better as the year goes on, which would be an instant improvement to San Antonio’s already gelling offense. Terrified is more obvious — if this represents a permanent change in his game, the Spurs are essentially down to *no* all-star caliber offensive players.”

Regardless of Parker’s play and Manu Ginobili’s absence, San Antonio has managed a competent 8-4 start with the win over the Blazers; oddly enough, they’re now 8-0 at home at 0-4 away.

Also of note: Former Baskonia big man Tiago Splitter went for 14 points off the bench; check out the nice play in aggressively working the ball inside against Gerald Wallace for a key fourth-quarter and-one at about 1:31 in the game highlight clip.

• Dirk Nowitzki scored his 23,000th career NBA point in the Dallas Mavericks’ 102-76 immolation of the Milwaukee Bucks. The defending champs are now on a 7-2 run, while the big German put in perhaps *the* clutch NBA play of last week in besting a too tightly-guarding Kevin Garnett.

• Speaking of beating the Celtics – as a Lakers fan, one never gets tired of speaking of beating the Celtics – Boston went down to the Chicago Bulls last night, 88-79, in Beantown. Derrick Rose was naturally his typical badass self, but whoa, what a line turned in by Team Britain stud Luol Deng, eh? 21 points, 16 rebounds, a steal and a block – nice.

While much of the Bulls-centric press has been devoted to D-Rose’s MVP repeat chances and/or the harmony between Joakim Noah and Carlos Boozer, Deng has suddenly caught fire in averaging 18.0 points, 14.0 rebounds, 2.66 stocks (steals plus blocks, statistic courtesy Bill Simmons) in over 44 minutes per the last three games.

• Yeah, BiE’s still a hater. So what’s better than the Miami Heat losing a third straight game? How about losing to the Denver Euronuggets despite 35 points from Lebron James?

It was a barn-burner in Denver, with the homers outlasting in a 117-104 shootout. Red-hot Žalgiris Kaunas favorite Ty Lawson (at 17.8 ppg and 7.5 apg for the surprising, league high-scoring Nuggets, where’s the bandwagon for an all-star nomination?) came back from a minor foot injury to net 24 points and nine assists while exposing weak Heat perimeter defense throughout. Off the bench, Rudy Fernandez also helped in deconstructing the Miami backcourt with 15 points on 5-of-9 shooting. Danilo Gallinari added 14 points, five rebounds and three steals.

• While watching last Tuesday’s Chicago Bulls-Minnesota Timberwolves game, BiE was struck with a revelation: The reason why Ricky Rubio has performed so well ‘Stateside is because NBA players are geared toward going hard to the hole. Blake Griffin wants to rave about “Lob City”? Hell, La Pistola’s the mayor of that town.

Unfortunately, ESPN’s Michael Wilbon quoted none other than Magic Johnson as having recognized the same thing, only way, *way* earlier. Said Magic: “[Rubio will] be better in the NBA than he is in Europe because our guys are more athletic and they run to the rim. In Europe, guys don’t really run the break; they fan out around the three-point line, they pump-fake, they look to score in other ways. Our guys are going to see a dude who can pass it like Rubio and run like hell to the rim…”

At least BiE can take solace in the fact all the hyping here did not go for naught; even Wilbon confessed he was wrong…

Rubio was the hero in his first NBA start last night as the ‘Wolves eked out the 87-80 victory at the New Orleans Hornets. Kevin Love contributed another ridiculous game (34 points including 17-of-18 from the free-throw line, 15 rebounds and three blocks), but the Human YouTube Highlight Clip is sure to snag headlines for simply coming through in the clutch at the free-throw line with 4-of-4 shooting in the final two minutes of play to seal the win.

Along the way to the final buzzer, Ricky was once again Globetrotteresque, with nine assists alley-oops, no-look behind-the-back passes, and a bouncer that even made Darko look good.

Jan 14, 2012ballineurope
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This post was published on January 14, 2012
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Comments: 9
  1. Gabe
    11 years ago

    Said Magic: “[Rubio will] be better in the NBA than he is in Europe because our guys are more athletic and they run to the rim. In Europe, guys don’t really run the break; they fan out around the three-point line, they pump-fake, they look to score in other ways. Our guys are going to see a dude who can pass it like Rubio and run like hell to the rim…” So Magic said that Rubio will do better in the NBA because NBA players “are more athletic”. Eat your heart out Niko.

    ReplyCancel
  2. Phileus
    11 years ago

    Just so I can say it before anyone else does: omg Gabe, you are on some serious drugs, you are a troll, a jerk, an idiot, you used to post on Spurstalk, etc. etc. etc.

    ReplyCancel
    • Gabe
      11 years ago

      lol You forgot to say that I should be banned. But Magic was right, with a mix of rules that favor offense and playing with more athletic players Rubio is right now looking like the Rookie of the Year. It’s funny how many of the posters on this site belittle him instead of being happy for his success. I suspect that most of them are Eastern Europeans and not Spaniards. My one concern as a USA fan is this is giving him the confidence to get better and make Team Spain even more of a threat to USA. And speaking of Spanish players Marc Gasol has really become a beast and if he isn’t an All-Star this year something is wrong. And of players in general how about Kyle Lowry? He has come out of nowhere!

      ReplyCancel
  3. John
    11 years ago

    Gabe, I agree with you, but there is no need to try to create conflict…I love watching Rubio play, there are far too few pure point guards in the NBA and I just wish the Heat had him…he would be so perfect for us.

    ReplyCancel
  4. Jack
    11 years ago

    Rubio’s own words: he plays better in NBA because it’s easier than Euroleague.

    Magic Johnson’s opinion is worthless and meaningless as he never in his life played a single Euroleague game.

    ReplyCancel
    • Gabe
      11 years ago

      Yes Magic Johnson, arguably the best point guard to ever play basketball, opinion is worthless and meaningless.

      ReplyCancel
  5. John
    11 years ago

    He says its easier to play offensively, not to win.

    ReplyCancel
  6. Spencer B. Jones
    11 years ago

    The 6 ft 10 in (209 cm) McHale played basketball at the power forward position for the University of Minnesota from 1976 to 1980, with career averages of 15.2 points and 8.5 rebounds per game.

    ReplyCancel
    • Os Davis
      11 years ago

      @ Spencer: Huh, that’s interesting. 😐

      ReplyCancel
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  1. Eurocentric NBA highlights, bullets Parker's big game; Nuggets top Heat; Deng … | Chicago Bulls NBA News Blog
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  2. Eurocentric NBA highlights, bullets: Parker's big game; Nuggets top Heat; Deng … |
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ballineurope
11 years ago 12 Comments EuroLeague, More, NBA/NCAAbasketball highlights, Bill Simmons, Blake Griffin, Boston Celtics, Caja Laboral Baskonia, Carlos Boozer, Chicago Bulls, Dallas Mavericks, Danilo Gallinari, Darko Milicic, Denver Nuggets, Derrick Rose, Dirk Nowitzki, ESPN, Gerald Wallace, Joakim Noah, Kevin Garnett, Kevin Love, Lebron James, Luol Deng, Magic Johnson, Manu Ginobili, Miami Heat, Michael Wilbon, Milwaukee Bucks, Minnesota Timberwolves, NBA, New Orleans Hornets, Portland Trail Blazers, Ricky Rubio, Rudy Fernandez, San Antonio Spurs, Team Britain, Tiago Splitter, Tony Parker, TrueHoop, Ty Lawson, YouTube, Zalgiris Kaunas
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BallinEurope.com was founded in September 2007 by Christophe Ney (who now runs the excellent scouting-themed website European Prospects) and Tobias Seitz, both then bloggers for FIBA.com with over 10 years’ worth of experience in the professional basketball world each. The mission then was to “provide a very unique perspective of Basketball in and about Europe.”
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