Santa began to deliver gifts from New York

Previous Weekly Reviews: 31.10 - 6.11 | 7.11 - 13.11 | 14.11 - 20.11 | 11/21 - 11/27 | 28.11 - 4.12 | 5.12 - 11.12 | 12.12 - 18.12

HERO OF THE WEEK

Giving the other the right to settle in this category last week, in this we could not ignore Gilbert Arenas . Not only because he “shipped” 54 points to “Phoenix” a few days after 60 - “Lakers”, and completed a four-match tour of the formidable West with crazy 167 points in total. “Washington” Arenas has become a rare team that managed in a season (which half has still not passed!) To two rivals to break the winning streaks in excess of 12 matches. The fifty "tail" Gil are particularly valuable in limiting the Suns club record to 15 consecutive wins. Previously, Dallas suffered from Arenas & Co.

Read more about the most "non-format" NBA star here .

TEAM OF THE WEEK

Who would have thought that the word "New York" would be written in this column? Especially a week after Toronto! Yet the Knicks are commendable. Caught in the center of squabbles and conflicts, having lost several players due to disqualification, the outsider gave out three victories in a row, and even what!

New Yorkers dealt with Utah on the last day of our previous reporting period. On Monday, Stefon Marbury dumped the “jazzmen”, frightening the entire league, with a ball from under the ring simultaneously with a siren. A day later, the ending of the second overtime of the meeting with Charlotte turned out to be even more fantastic: the hit of David Lee (about him - a little lower) will go into the annals of the NBA history. A day later, “Chicago” visited the Big Apple, having won 11 wins in 12 matches before. It seemed that the exhausted and not fully-performing Knicks would be the favorite, but a quiet victory was obtained over formidable guests. The forces ran out right after that, when I had to fight on the road with the rebuilt “Philadelphia” with Chris Webber recovering from an injury and debutants Andre Miller and Joe Smith.

MOMENT OF THE WEEK

At the last moments of the second overtime, the meetings between “New York” and “Charlotte” had to recall the events of 17 years ago ... When the New Yorkers intercepted the ball 0.1 seconds before the siren, I immediately remembered the 1990 match, when Trent Tucker managed to to catch the transfer from out and upset “Chicago” Michael Jordan. After that incident, the NBA introduced the so-called Tucker rule, according to which it is impossible to complete a full throw in less than 0.3 seconds - only “touch”.

Modern “Nyx” remember this well, although in training such cases, of course, did not work out. Nevertheless, Jamal Crawford's pass to David Lee turned out to be ideal: the ball gently flew over the arms of the jumping gerald Wallace and was tucked into the ring with Lee's right-handed hand. New York fans could only approach Jordan with caustic condolences. Again Michael suffered ...



CONFUSES OF THE WEEK

Now a fly in the ointment in a New York barrel of honey. It just so happened that the successes of the “Knicks” were pushed by the actions of the NBA . To begin with, David Stern said that he did not find direct evidence that head coach Isaiah Thomas provoked a fight with his wards in Denison Madison Square Garden and left Isaiah without punishment. Then, in that very meeting with Utah, the judges took away 0.2 seconds remaining after the Marbury victory throw - now we know how much useful can be done in such a huge amount of time! And finally, the “Bobcats” coach Bernie Bickerstaff argued with good reason that the referees should not have stopped the meeting 0.1 seconds before the end of the second overtime and rewarded “New York” with a timeout, as the hosts knocked the ball out of Matt’s hands Carroll, didn’t get a clear ownership ...

TOPIC OF THE WEEK

Two days before the Christmas break, the NBA lost a couple of center , which today could be considered the strongest in their conferences. Poor Yao Ming, who developed a crack in his knee, often missed matches in recent years due to injuries, but now forced rest is especially offended - the Chinese spend the best season of his career! Recovery will take at least six weeks.

No less annoying is Nenad Krstic, who, by his actions in recent matches, could well qualify for participation in the All-Star Game. Have a Serb from “New Jersey” to wait: a rupture of the cruciate ligament of the knee will not allow him to appear on the floor until the start of the next championship.

LEGIONARY OF THE WEEK

Having lost two candidates at once (see the previous section), sympathizing with the cool player, but in the end losing to Steve Nash, we note the Haitian Samuel Dalembert , who in the harsh perestroika times assumed the role of one of the leaders of Philadelphia. Last week, the center scored 13.7 points, made 11.0 rebounds and 4.0 block shots, and the “76th” after 12 defeats in a row won twice.

PHOTO OF THE WEEK

12/22/2006. Denver - Sacramento. Historical moment: Allen Iverson is preparing for the first time in his career to enter the floor not in the form of “Philadelphia”. On Tuesday, Allen was traded to the Nuggets, along with rookie Ivan McFarlin for Andre Miller, Joe Smith and two picks in the first round of a future draft. The moment is also curious that Iverson first left the bench in the middle of the first quarter - next to him is reservist Reggie Evans.



FIGURES OF THE WEEK

Do not be surprised: here we will talk about student basketball. On Saturday, the Texas Tech college team, with a score of 72:60, beating the students of Bucknell University, brought their coach Bob Knight the 879th career victory , allowing him to be equal to the list leader Dean Smith. If you are a real basketball fan, these names will tell you a lot. If not, explain in a nutshell.

Smith is the legendary mentor of the North Carolina team, which has released many great players, including Michael Jordan. Knight - the most scandalous coach in the history of the NCAA, who glorified Indiana University not only with three titles and the perfect 75/76 season, in which his students did not suffer a single (!) Defeat, but also with a lot of violent antics, including public skirmishes and even brawls with players, fans and bosses. Which ultimately led to the dismissal and the transition to a modest Texas Tech.

A couple of weeks ago, Jerry Sloan from Utah won the NBA for the 1000th time, and Don Nelson in the 1200th. Keep in mind that the regular season of the professional league consists of 82 matches, and in the NCAA - of 32 ! At the same time, Knight began to train the team of the Military Academy at West Point at the age of 24, and now he is only 66!

QUOTE OF THE WEEK

"I hope the guys who started with me at the Military Academy in the 65th watched the game today and told their grandchildren: I was there when this son of a bitch won for the first time," Bobby Knight on the significance of the achievement.

And another quote from Michael Jordan, who managed to win the NCAA championship with Dean Smith and the 84 Olympics with Bobby Knight, retold by Knight: “He said that both Dean and I strive to achieve the same thing in different ways. Coach Smith is a master of quadrangular attack and trainer Knight is the master of the four-letter word. "

So that you do not doubt the latter, we offer a selection of "strong" statements by Bob Knight. Their essence will be understood even by those who do not know English ...



Chasing the week

On Wednesday , Utah won the incredibly difficult guest battle with Atlanta . In the fourth period, Jerry Sloan's wards lost 21 (!) Points, but made an incredible jerk 23: 2. Special thanks to Mehmet Okur, who sold 4 out of 5 three-pointers, including a couple in the end. And Andrei Kirilenko, getting used to the role of dispatcher (it seems he learned from the legend "Jazz" Pete Maravich). More recently, the AK-47 pleased the fans with a pass under their feet a la Pistol-Pete, and on Wednesday issued a gorgeous pass from behind directly into the hands of Carlos Boozer bursting into the ring. Perhaps this is precisely the moment that deprived the “hawks” of the remnants of the will to win.

WAITING FOR THE WEEK

Today, we could be pleased with the meeting of the Russians: they play Utah with the Clippers, but alas, there is no reason to hope for Yaroslav Korolev's exit. Because you have to tolerate something more interesting. For example, Miami’s becoming a principal visit to Chicago: in his hometown, Dwayne Wade is trying hard, but always too nervous. On Thursday in Texas will be held two super matches at once. “Dallas” takes “Phoenix”, and “San Antonio” - “Utah”. Finally, we will wait for the New Year, with the onset of which we are happy to congratulate you!

Nikolai TSYNKEVICH