http://www.hooplog.com/nba/derek-anderson/index.php NBA basketball news, rumors, insider analysis and more from around the country. Updated hourly by Team RxSN. Copyright 2007 Thu, 23 Feb 2006 15:11:43 -0800 http://www.movabletype.org/?v=3.2 http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss http://www.hooplog.com/nba/report-heat-acquire-anderson-from-rockets.php http://www.hooplog.com/nba/report-heat-acquire-anderson-from-rockets.php Miami Heat Thu, 23 Feb 2006 15:11:43 -0800 So the popular pickup in leagues across the country last night was surely Luther Head. I must give credit to the guy in my league who snagged him a few hours before last night’s tip off. Good thinking. Head started, played 43 minutes and poured in 28 points, grabbed 7 boards, hit 5 3s, made 9-of-17 from the field, all 5 free throws, and added 3 assists. Quite a game. Still, color me skeptical that Head will be able to keep this up, or even come close. First off, the Rockets just don’t score enough so that anyone but Yao will have consistent value when Tracy McGrady is out. Yao is clearly the team’s first option, and they slow the game down to a crawl to get him involved. Usually there’s one player that manages to have a fantasy-worthy game in addition to Yao (who it should be noted is shooting 36-for-89 – 40% -- with T-Mac out compared to 44-for-76 – 58% with him in there). Maybe it will be David Wesley, maybe Derek Anderson, maybe Head. It’s risky to be counting on any of them. The more intriguing development is that if Head does manage to have a few more games close to this level, Rafer Alston might have a really, really hard time finding those 35 mpg he needs when he comes back. It’s looking worse and worse for Rafer everyday.

Some other recently won starting jobs and thoughts on them…

Jarvis Hayes – It’s well known that we’re Wizards fanatics around here, so it’s quite rare that I’ll miss a minute of any Wizards game. Over the past week this has caused me much frustration. In an effort to shake things up, Eddie Jordan replaced the struggling (putting it quite mildly) Antonio Daniels in the starting lineup with Jarvis Hayes. I’ll say this about Hayes – he is clearly the most improved player on the Wizards this year. He was drafted as a jump shooting specialist, but the thing was, over this first two years he could not shoot. He hit 40% and 39% of his shots in his first two seasons, and also had trouble staying healthy. But something has clicked this year. His jumper has always looked smooth and now it’s actually starting to fall, as Jarvis is connecting on 46% of his shots. His ideal range is out to 20 feet or so, he’s not a great three-point shooter, but he’s taking more than ever this year, and could connect on just over 1 per game if he keeps his starting job. He’s a good rebounder when he wants to, and the Wizards could really use him crashing the boards more, but he’ll never be much of a plus there. And that’s the rub with Jarvis’s fantasy game. He’ll never hit a ton of 3s, get many steals or blocks or score all that much. He got 31 minutes in his first start last night, and if he stays around that number he’ll be a very borderline fantasy play, because he’ll need to shoot a high percentage to have much value. Also, he’s no better than the fourth option on this team. Gilbert Arenas, Antawn Jamison and Caron Butler will all get their production. Butler didn’t play as much last night, but it’s hard to see Eddie Jordan leaving him on the bench in favor of Jared Jeffries for too much longer. Hayes is worth a look if you have a roster spot to play with, but it’s hard to see him helping you out too much.

Jim Jackson – It’s hard to imagine anyone picked up JJ after his 0-for-7 stinker last night. Jackson entered the starting lineup with Leandro Barbosa out of action for a couple of weeks, but didn’t take advantage of the opportunity at all. But take a look at the minutes column – in his first game as a starter, JJ saw 35 minutes of action. Only Steve Nash and Shawn Marion, who played 42 minutes each, saw more time on the court. So if Mike D’Antoni was willing to keep JJ out there for 35 when he couldn’t hit a shot to save his life, it will be interesting to see what happens when the shot does start to fall. But that might be wishful thinking. JJ is shooting an almost impossibly bad 27% on the season, which is why he hadn’t seen more than 18 minute since the season opener before last night. Still, he’s a proven vet, and he did connect on 3 or more 3s in 18 games last season. He’s likely completely off most people’s radar right now, but there’s a slight chance he could erupt for a boat load of 3s in the next game or two. He’s worth keeping an eye on at least.

Josh Smith – So he’s making his way back into the starting lineup tonight, mercifully putting Josh Childress on the bench. Young guys coming off a strong second half, never trust ‘em. Wait, so that means Smith too, right? Eh, maybe. Anyway, Smith will move back into the starting lineup, but will that mean a big boost in his value? He played 27 and 28 minutes as a starter in the first two games of the season. Since he moved to the bench his PT has been very inconsistent, but he’s still managed to at least 30 minutes in four of those games. In those four contests that he’s seen at least 30 minutes his numbers are 11.3/5/1.8 with 1.3 steals and – here it is – 3 blocks. OK, the dude has a worse looking jump shot than your sister, as his 34% FG will attest, and every time I see him launch a jumper I cringe. If there is anyone who ¾ of his FGA should be dunks, layups, follows, alley-oops, it’s Smith. The point is, moving into the starting lineup is always a good thing. Even if he doesn’t see much more than the 30 minutes he was often getting off the bench, there is a much better chance he won’t see those killer 15 minute outings. Everything’s obviously up in the air in Atlanta, but Smith still has the potential to slot as the team’s #3 option on offense, behind Joe Johnson and Al Harrington. Smith’s blocks make him and obvious fantasy dream, but he’s a borderline play until he gets his rebounds and FG% back to where they were last year. If he can manage consistent time as a starter, I’d bet on both of those happening. I might still wait a game or two before plugging him back in there, but soon it will be time.

We’ll try to have something up on Friday, but we make no promises. Happy Thanksgiving. ]]> http://www.hooplog.com/nba/head-on.php http://www.hooplog.com/nba/head-on.php Joe Johnson Wed, 23 Nov 2005 10:53:10 -0800 Minnesota 109 Washington 98 – Another great win for Case …. Games was basically tied to start the 4th and Minnesota clutched up. That has been tough for Minny because teams have been denying the ball to KG and they haven’t had anyone else step up. The sad thing is that KG is one of the best distrubtors in the game so it should be easy to play off of him. Tonight they did Richie Frahm had 16 and Wally World had 17…. KG is one of a kind 25-13-9 … Wolves outrebounded the Wiz 45 to 31 …. I always thought Frahm was the perfect back-up to Ray Allen. He can shoot the lights out, he is strong and physical and willing to defend. Send him in for 10 minutes to beat the guy up and hit a shot or two. It always seemed perfect … Minnesota shot 54%. This jumps out because early this year Washington was playing the best defense in the league and the last few games they have stopped defending … I have always believed that Minnesota is best when they go small and play KG at the center. They won this game with a line-up of Hudson, Frahm, Wally, Griffin and KG. If Casey does that Minnesota will be tough.

Dallas 87 Atlanta 78 – Who wins a game first Atlanta or Toronto? ….. Marvin Williams made his first start …. It is almost impossible to evaluate any Hawk player because the team is so poor that someone has to score and rebound and you can’t tell if it is because they are good or if is out of existence …. Dallas only scored 11 points in the first quarter… Erick Dampier is such a bust. Tonight he played 20 minutes, was 0 for 2 fouled out and had 6 turnovers. … very strange substitution pattern by Mike Woodson the Hawks starting line-up went on a 10 to 2 run to open the game and a 9-1 run in the second half and he never played them together other then those times.

San Antonio 86 Houston 80 – Houston slips to 3-5 … Houston never led …. Yao Ming scored just one point in the second half …. The Spurs signed Alex Scales who was in the Sonics camp. He was active but did not play …. The three starters for the Rockets other then Yao and McGrady were a combined 3 for 16. That is not much help …. Van Gundy has been yo-yoing rookie Luther Head from not playing to 20+ minutes….. Juwan Howard and Derek Anderson were –14 in 20 minutes …. Interesting Yao Ming was +8 in 42 minutes. That means in the 6 minutes he was off the floor they got outscored by 14 points. ]]> http://www.hooplog.com/nba/beyond-the-box-score-november-17th.php http://www.hooplog.com/nba/beyond-the-box-score-november-17th.php Luther Head Thu, 17 Nov 2005 22:53:19 -0800 LA Clippers 109 Milwaukee 85 –Andruw Bogut had his first tough night 15 minutes and 2 points, and he was -23 … This game was done before the 4th Quarter … The Clippers are 6-2 …. Milwaukee didn’t win a game last year against the West on the road … Elton Brand was +31. That might be an NBA high for the season. .. The Clippers are 6th in the NBA in efficiency differential … The Clippers aren’t doing anything great they are just above average in every category. That leads me to believe this could be real.

Cleveland 114 Washington 99 – The Cavs might be special. They have won 4 straight and are winning at home by an average of 21 … The Cavs are #2 in the NBA in efficiency differential (offense efficiency – defensive efficiency) this is usually a great indicator of how good a team is. They are #2 in offense and #1 in offensive rebounding … The Wizards are #4 even after the loss …. AD had another no turnover game. He is amazing … Donyell Marhsall was a key in this one with a +21 … On the flip side Caron Butler was –23 for the Wiz.

Dallas 83 Denver 80 – Denver is 3-5 … Dallas trailed by 19 … DeSagana Diop had a career high 16 boards and 6 blocks. The Sonics looked hard at Diop in the off-season … Big money Erick Dampier played 11 minutes and had 4 fouls, 4 turnovers and no points. That is straight out of the Jerome James book of centering … Little Earl Boykins had a tough night he was a –20 in 25 minutes … Avery Johnson outcoached Geroge Karl. He got the game small and Marcus Camby never played in the final 16 minutes despite being +10 .. Doug Christie and Josh Howard got pulled early in the 3rd and never returned.

Houston 94 Minnesota 89 – The Wolves offense fell apart down the stretch … McGrady had 13 points in the 4th Q … Houston was able to dictate pace which Jeff Van Gundy’s teams always seem like they are able to do … Houston is having a tough time stretching the floor. They were just 1 of 10 from 3 … I have mentioned this before, but Minnesota has no one to help out when teams take away KG. That is what happened down the stretch … Houston closed the game with Rafer Alston, Jon Barry, McGrady, Juwan Howard and Ming. Derek Anderson was on the bench …. Minnesota got terrible play from their bench. They were all around –11 for the game… Houston’s sized forced Minnesota to close with Olowokandi on the floor. The Wolves are much better with a smaller line-up and KG at the 5.

Philadelphia 104 Toronto 92 – Sam Mitchell death walk continues … Philly is all of a sudden 5-3. However, their differential is not that strong so don’t be buying the Sixers yet …. The Sixers have been home for their 5 game winning streak … Rookie Charlie V had 27-13 for the Raptors. That dude can play … Jalen Rose is +/- death everynight. Last night he was –15, Mo Peterson was an amazing –26 in 23 minutes…. I don’t pup C-Web or spell his name right very often but he was great last night and they were +21 when he was on the floor.

Detroit 115 Boston 100 – Wow is Detroit good …. They are the #1 offensive efficiency team in the NBA. Consider that with their defense. That is unbeatable … Billups dropped 17 in the third quarter … Al Jefferson crushed Darko over a few plays … Boston shot 53% against Detroit and LOST … Boston is really struggling without a point guard Delonte West and Dan Dickau are not getting it done …. All five Pistons starters were in double figures and three were over 20. …. Tayshawn Prince was a +26 …

Miami 109 NOK 102 – Wade scored the final 8 to hold off an upset by NOK and force OT …. Byron Scott is not a good coach. His team losses a lot of close games … Desmond Mason is still struggling. He came off the bench and went 1 for 7. He did have 9 boards … GP played 36 minutes … Chris Paul has done a nice job of getting his shooting percentage up to 46% … Jason Williams did not play the final 12 minutes of the game.

Sacramento 119 Utah 83 --- I thought the NBDL was running yet but from looking at Utah’s roster it debuted yesterday in Sacramento. Don’t look at this as a change in Sacramento’s terrible play.

San Antonio 103 Atlanta 73 -- Great v. very bad not much more to be said.

Orlando 85 Charlotte 77 – Dwight Howard crushed Emeka Okafor. Howard had 21 and 20. We have talked about this I am not sold on Okafor. Howard has five straight double doubles…. Sean May had 15-10 his best game as a rookie. I love that pick. ]]> http://www.hooplog.com/nba/beyond-the-box-score-november-15th.php http://www.hooplog.com/nba/beyond-the-box-score-november-15th.php Chris Paul Wed, 16 Nov 2005 12:01:17 -0800 Joining the action with 1:34 left in the first and the score tied at 23. Somehow, this is the only NBA game on tonight. Which is, of course, the only reason I'm watching it. Heck, it was either this or the end of "Superman II." And I know what happens in that.

It's just too bad that Shaun Livingtson is out (again), because he is really fun to watch—and he was looking even better this summer. But still, can't complain too much. Instead we've got Sam Cassell, Elton "Perennial All-Star Except He's A Clipper" Brand, Corey Maggette Cat Mobley and Chris Wilcox. Then, on the other side, Marvin Williams, Al Harrington, Josh Smith and Joe Johnson, who should have found a way to wear No. 70,000,000 this year.

Steve Smith is announcing, which is rad. Always liked Smitty, he was gracious to a fault as a player and was always a class act. Still is.

Zeljko Rebraca? Daniel Ewing? Quinton Ross? These are your Los Angeles Clippers. Bummer that Daniel Ewing isn't wearing No. 33. Or Ewings, for that matter. Hell, if he came out in Ewings, he'd be my favorite player in the L, Blue Devil or not.

Is Tyronn Lue on the Hawks because of his championship experience?

The Hawks animated/live action promo spot is good, I guess, but "Rise Up"? What other choice do they have?

There's someone named "Edwards" playing center for the Hawks—No. 54—and I have absolutely no idea who he is. None. He's replaced by Zaza Pachulia, who really should have signed with a playoff team. Or at least an NBA one.

If I played in the NBA, I'd rock everything. Headband, tall socks, wristbands, fingerwraps, calf sleeve, elbow sleeve, ankle braces, compression shorts, knee straps. Everything.

The Hawks announcer who's not Steve Smith goes on an extended riff about Corey Maggette's body, and I don't blame him. He ever goes to Greece, the damn statues are gonna start working out. It's ridiculous. He dives to save a ball, the seats'll move out of the way.

The Clippers are up 10, and I'm not sure how. The stands are half-empty, but that's no mystery.

It's good to see that Josh Childress is letting his afro come back. Wouldn't be right without it.

I know he's been gone for a while now, but it's a shame that Jeff McInnis isn't a Clipper anymore. I don't mean it in a bad way, but he just seemed like a Clipper. Ditto for Q and D Miles.

Four-point game.

Cassell and Cat is a pretty decent backcourt, actually. Sam I Am needs to rehab his rep, Cat needs to show he can thrive without his partner in, uh, crime, Franchise. And with Wilcox, Brand and Maggette, there are plenty of assists to be had. Can't see the Clips cracking the playoffs, but they're gonna ruin a lot of people's nights. The Hawks, of course, are quite capable of ruining their own nights, thank you.

Can't remember whether the Stoudamire on the Hawks is Damon or Salim. I could look it up, but why? I assume he'll score at some point.

Chris Kaman's hair is impressively awful. (And it's Salim—just got a good look at him. I guess I'll have to look up where Damon is.) Al Harrington tries to draw a charge on Maggette, which is basically like trying to draw a charge on an 18-wheeler. Adding insult to injury, he gets whistled for the block.

The Hawks guys seem surprised that Maggette has started quickly after missing a month, but then again they didn't see him balling this summer. I did, and I can safely say he would have been ready had the season started in July. He doesn't take time off.

Someone on the Hawks has some ILL adidas. The team might be bad, but they've got a great arena and good colors. So there's that.

You can't help but admire Mike Dunleavy's commitment to the Rileyesque slicked-back do despite his obvious deficiencies.

Halftime. 50-47, Clips. And ha ha, I totally forgot that there was a doubleheader on TNT. Right now it's Heat/Rockets without Shaq or T-Mac, which honestly may be less compelling than the Hawks/Clips. OK, so maybe not, but I'm committed to this game. I think. Then again, it IS halftime. Guess I could change over for a while.

OK, this is bad. I haven't watched the new-look Heat yet, and the first possession I see has Antoine Walker and Jason Williams dribbling out the shot clock, with J Will losing it on a travel. Dwyane Wade, off in the corner, doesn't touch the ball. This is not good.

Yao Ming gets swatted by Zo, which is just plain embarassing. Not sure what he has to do, but Yao has to get MEAN. He hits layups on the next two possessions, but he needs to be dunking on people.

Can't say I ever thought Jeff Van Gundy would be coaching Rafer Alston. Is there a weirder coach/player combination in the League? Well, except Larry Brown and all of the Knicks, of course.

Antoine Walker, 3; Antoine Walker, airball 3. That's my Toine.

Yao's neck beard is quite disturbing. Two fouls in four minutes though, and who wants to sex Mutombo?

Pretty cool that Juwan Howard and Alonzo Mourning are on the court at the same time—two of the first $100 million men. It's hard to believe that anyone ever thought Juwan Howard was worth $100 million, but hey, these things happen.

Jeez, with those two, Deke and now Gary Payton on the court at the same time—what years is this?

The chances of my watching any of the rest of the Hawks/Clips game are somewhere between slim and none.

You know what would be shocking, Craig Sager? Come out one night in a grey pinstriped suit and a solid tie. Plain white shirt. Wingtips.

Marv Albert, Steve Kerr and Reggie Miller in the booth. Either team would probably take Reggie right now. Actually, there's no probably about it.

Derek Anderson's cornrows look familiar—did AI have that pattern once? Someone did. Guess you can't patent hair designs. Although Anthony Mason should have.

What the hell? The Heineken sports update looks like it's coming FROM hell. What's with the red mist?

Whoops, lost some time there. It doesn't really look like that Zo's lost much. I still think he's a loser for bailing out on New Jersey, but he's definitely still got some game. Going after shots like it was 1993, snuffing Stromile Swift like he was some high school kid.

Yao's hair is...commie. Or something. Also, he's really, really, really tall.

It's still amazingly hard to believe that Jeff and Stan Van Gundy share the same parents.

I'm going to post this at halftime so if Safari crashes I won't have a nervous breakdown. Not that anyone will really care (or notice) one way or the other.

Soooo many new guys on both of these teams, it's actually confusing. Also, David Wesley looks like Marco Pantani.

Mourning goes after EVERY SHOT inside. It would be funny if he wasn't catching a bunch of them. Actually, he's only got three blocks, but it seems like more.

Reggie Miller just murked a Run-DMC lyric. It's "kill my dog, I'ma SLAY your cat." I think.

Yao misses a dunk, which is just plain absurd.

48-44 Miami at the half. ]]> http://www.hooplog.com/nba/clippershawks.php http://www.hooplog.com/nba/clippershawks.php Joe Johnson Thu, 10 Nov 2005 18:19:00 -0800 Since RSS feeds do not seem to notice when a post is updated I will post new posts periodically throughout Blazer Survivor to help keep you updated on the results. So far John Nash and Derek Anderson have been sent packing with 78% and 93% of the vote respectively. Ruben Patterson got a 71% "bring him back". I would have to say I agree with these results, although, I still do not hold John Nash ]]> http://www.hooplog.com/nba/current-blazer-survivor-results.php http://www.hooplog.com/nba/current-blazer-survivor-results.php Derek Anderson Tue, 11 Oct 2005 15:05:25 -0800 Free agent Derek Anderson signed with the Houston Rockets on Tuesday -- yet another addition in a busy offseason for the team. Anderson, a 6-foot-5 guard, was released by the Portland Trail Blazers under the NBA's amnesty provision. ``We think we've added another top-line piece of the puzzle and a great talent,'' general manager Carroll Dawson said. http://www.hooplog.com/nba/rockets-sign-guard-derek-anderson-ap.php http://www.hooplog.com/nba/rockets-sign-guard-derek-anderson-ap.php Portland Trailblazers Tue, 23 Aug 2005 16:44:44 -0800 Jonathan Feigen has the story in the Houston Chronicle. "(A trade to Houston) was the situation that was supposed to happen," Anderson said. "Portland didn't do it for whatever reason. Maybe it will all work out the same, but I... http://www.hooplog.com/nba/blazers-almost-traded-derek-anderson-in-february.php http://www.hooplog.com/nba/blazers-almost-traded-derek-anderson-in-february.php Portland Trailblazers Fri, 19 Aug 2005 09:48:53 -0800 A day after carving out a roster spot with a tax amnesty cut, the Rockets took a small step toward filling it with another player released in a luxury-tax deduction, versatile veteran Derek Anderson. http://www.hooplog.com/nba/derek-anderson-to-visit-the-rockets.php http://www.hooplog.com/nba/derek-anderson-to-visit-the-rockets.php Houston Rockets Wed, 17 Aug 2005 09:13:40 -0800 Derek Anderson is thought to be at the top of the Lakers' list, but team sources insist only at a price: no more than half the $5-million veteran's exception for two seasons. "We basically agreed to talk this afternoon into... http://www.hooplog.com/nba/lakers-want-anderson.php http://www.hooplog.com/nba/lakers-want-anderson.php Los Angeles Lakers Tue, 16 Aug 2005 09:37:32 -0800 The Lakers' courtship of Derek Anderson lagged this week, as teams around the league waited to see who else would be released under the amnesty provision. However, with the amnesty deadline coming Monday, Anderson still appears to be their top... http://www.hooplog.com/nba/lakers-want-anderson.php http://www.hooplog.com/nba/lakers-want-anderson.php Los Angeles Lakers Fri, 12 Aug 2005 12:14:13 -0800 The Lakers, short on veteran backcourt help, were one of a half-dozen teams that showed interest in acquiring guard Derek Anderson after he became the first player waived under the "amnesty" provision, Anderson's agent said Wednesday. Anderson, who has averaged... http://www.hooplog.com/nba/anderson-is-a-guard-of-interest-for-lakers.php http://www.hooplog.com/nba/anderson-is-a-guard-of-interest-for-lakers.php Los Angeles Lakers Fri, 05 Aug 2005 09:35:04 -0800 Forum Blue and Gold breaks down the numbers, and basically it comes down to health.... http://www.hooplog.com/nba/does-derek-anderson-make-sense-for-the-lakers.php http://www.hooplog.com/nba/does-derek-anderson-make-sense-for-the-lakers.php Los Angeles Lakers Thu, 04 Aug 2005 13:16:07 -0800 Portland employs amnesty clause by releasing Derek Anderson....Van Exel also waived today....latest in busy Blazer summer. http://www.hooplog.com/nba/anderson-and-van-exel-blazers-no-more.php http://www.hooplog.com/nba/anderson-and-van-exel-blazers-no-more.php Portland Trailblazers Thu, 04 Aug 2005 09:34:30 -0800 Portland Trail Blazers guard Derek Anderson, a likely casualty of the NBA's luxury-tax amnesty provision, has emerged as a leading free-agent candidate to sign with the Lakers, sources said Tuesday.... http://www.hooplog.com/nba/blazer-guard-to-lakers.php http://www.hooplog.com/nba/blazer-guard-to-lakers.php Los Angeles Lakers Wed, 03 Aug 2005 09:02:49 -0800