http://www.sacbee.com/content/sports/story/11872641p-12759547c.html
By Joe Davidson -- Bee Staff Writer
Published 2:15 am PST Sunday, December 26, 2004
There has been enough bah, humbug material this early season to make Commissioner David Stern's lips curl as if he gulped spoiled egg nog.
But it hasn't been all sour. The NBA does have feel-good stories, even if they're hard to find amid the Pacers-Pistons melee, trade demands, benchings for boorish behavior, etc. More good will for these three:
1. Grant Hill. Once so versatile that triple doubles were becoming the norm, Hill became a medical-chart afterthought. But he has sparkled in his return this season in boosting the Orlando Magic, the NBA's worst team last season. Hill played just 47 games in his first four Orlando seasons because of ankle problems, including a staph infection so serious that when he was rushed to the hospital with a 104.5-degree fever, his shaking and convulsions became so violent that orderlies had to hold him down. Healed and hungry, he is averaging 19.4 points for one of the surprise teams in the league.
2. Charlotte Bobcats. Someone forgot to inform the Bobcats that expansion teams are supposed to just roll over. After a 1-8 start, Charlotte stunned Detroit, New York and Houston twice to reach 7-15. Emeka Okafor looks like a keeper, former Kings guard Gerald Wallace has found his place and the playing time that comes with it, and Brevin Knight is second in the league in assists.
3. Phoenix Suns. Proof that up-tempo play still works, entertains and turns teams around in a hurry can be found in the desert. With free-agent addition Steve Nash fitting in and finding a new running mate in Amare Stoudemire - bringing back memories of John Stockton and Karl Malone in Utah - the Suns have raced to the NBA's best start at 23-3, Whether they can keep up this pace throughout the playoffs doesn't matter. For now, it's a rare team worth watching every night.
By Joe Davidson -- Bee Staff Writer
Published 2:15 am PST Sunday, December 26, 2004
There has been enough bah, humbug material this early season to make Commissioner David Stern's lips curl as if he gulped spoiled egg nog.
But it hasn't been all sour. The NBA does have feel-good stories, even if they're hard to find amid the Pacers-Pistons melee, trade demands, benchings for boorish behavior, etc. More good will for these three:
1. Grant Hill. Once so versatile that triple doubles were becoming the norm, Hill became a medical-chart afterthought. But he has sparkled in his return this season in boosting the Orlando Magic, the NBA's worst team last season. Hill played just 47 games in his first four Orlando seasons because of ankle problems, including a staph infection so serious that when he was rushed to the hospital with a 104.5-degree fever, his shaking and convulsions became so violent that orderlies had to hold him down. Healed and hungry, he is averaging 19.4 points for one of the surprise teams in the league.
2. Charlotte Bobcats. Someone forgot to inform the Bobcats that expansion teams are supposed to just roll over. After a 1-8 start, Charlotte stunned Detroit, New York and Houston twice to reach 7-15. Emeka Okafor looks like a keeper, former Kings guard Gerald Wallace has found his place and the playing time that comes with it, and Brevin Knight is second in the league in assists.
3. Phoenix Suns. Proof that up-tempo play still works, entertains and turns teams around in a hurry can be found in the desert. With free-agent addition Steve Nash fitting in and finding a new running mate in Amare Stoudemire - bringing back memories of John Stockton and Karl Malone in Utah - the Suns have raced to the NBA's best start at 23-3, Whether they can keep up this pace throughout the playoffs doesn't matter. For now, it's a rare team worth watching every night.
