DG147 - Part 2

Let's continue now with our look at pro basketball players with dreads during the 2012-13 season in part 2 of dread gallery #147.
And we begin with a question: To reduce (your dreads) or not to reduce? For most players the answer is a quick and simple no. After all, what's the point of letting your dreads grow long if you're not going to show them off when you're on the court. Unfortunately not everyone shares my opinion. In fact, for three of the 10 players with dreads in the NBA this season you never knew from game-to-game if they were going to let their dreads flow or keep them stifled. We already saw Cartier Martin in Part 1. Now let's look at the other two.
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1. For Jordan Hill there is no middle ground. When he reduces his dreads, the 6-10, 235-pound reserve center for the L.A. Lakers clumps them together so tightly that it's difficult to tell that he even has dreads. If your seats are in the upper deck, he looks like any other player with clean cut hair. And when he has them flowing freely, he barely holds them back at all, never bunching them, and wearing a band so close to his head that they get nearly full extension when he's on the court - like here on Nov. 11 as he battles for a rebound against Kings F James Johnson during 1st half at Staples Center. Hill had 8 points, 7 rebounds, and a season high 4 turnovers in 19 minutes in this game as Lakers improved to 3-2 with a 103-90 victory over Kings.

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2. Jordan Hill is almost blinded by his dreads as he looks to shoot against Nets F Kris Humphries during 1st half on Nov. 20. Heck, maybe he was blinded - he hit just 2 for 7 from the field, finishing with 4 points in a 95-90 home win over Brooklyn.
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3. Both Jordan Hill and Blazers rookie C Meyers Leonard were strong on the boards in the game at Los Angeles on Dec. 28; but on this play Hill pursues the rebound with just a bit more gusto than Leonard. Leonard did have 7 rebounds in 17 minutes. Hill finished with 8 points and 8 rebounds in 25 minutes as Lakers improved to 15-15 with a 104-87 win over Portland.
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4. Warriors C David Lee cheats as he and Jordan Hill battle for a rebound during 1st half at Oakland on Dec. 22. Hill scored 14 points (one of his 8 games in double figures) and grabbed 8 rebounds in 21 minutes as Lakers spoiled Christmas for Warriors' fans, coming back from a 14-point deficit in 4th quarter to defeat Warriors 118-115 in overtime.
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5. It was the night after Christmas, midway through 3rd quarter at Denver, and rather than get ferociously dunked on by Nuggets F Kenneth Faried, C Dwight Howard commits a flagrant foul on Faried, and Jordan Hill comes out on the short end of it too. Knocked off balance by Howard's two-hand shove to the face, Faried's arm accidentally smacks Hill right in the face. Jordan had to come out of the game briefly but was OK. Hill had a productive 13 minutes, finishing with 9 points and 9 rebounds; but Nuggets, scoring 69 points in 2nd half, whipped Lakers 126-114. 
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6. Jordan Hill takes one in the head again in another game against Denver, this one at home on Jan. 6 and not nearly as painful as 11 days earlier, as G Andre Iguodala pins the ball to his forehead just after he was fouled by C Kosta Koufos with 5:32 remaining in 4th quarter. Hill made both FT to pull Lakers within 99-93, but Nuggets held on to win 112-105. Hill had 13 points and 5 rebounds in the game - his last game of the regular season. At some point during the game he injured his hip, and the next day it was announced that he had a torn labrum. He had surgery two weeks later and was expected to be out for the rest of the season. But he made it back (at less than 100%) in time for the playoffs and (with reduced dreads) had a total 10 points and 11 rebounds in final 3 games of the Lakers' series with the Spurs, which San Antonio swept 4-0. For the regular season Hill played 29 games (1 start) and averaged a career best 6.7 points (49.7 FG%) and a career best 5.7 rebounds in 16 MPG. He's expected to be fully recovered in time for the start of next season; and with Dwight Howard no longer on the team, he's likely to be on the court much more often in 2014.
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7. There were only a handful of games, as usual, when veteran G Marquis Daniels didn't have his dreads reduced. One of those games was on Dec. 29, as he drives against Heat G Mario Chalmers during 1st quarter at Milwaukee. Daniels had only 2 points (1-9 FG) and 4 rebounds, but Bucks outscored Miami 35-14 in 4th quarter and rolled to a 104-85 victory.
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8. On the Heat's second visit to Milwaukee on Mar. 15 it was the opposite of their first trip - Daniels played well, but his team didn't win. Marquis tries not to lose the ball to F LeBron James (left photo) during 1st half and watches G Dwyane Wade put up a short shot (right photo). Daniels finished with 14 points, 3 rebounds, 3 assists, and 2 steals, but Heat extended their winning streak to 21 with a 107-94 victory.
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9. Nets G Joe Johnson gets past Marquis Daniels and ends up hitting jump shot in the lane, tying the score at 4 early in 1st quarter on Dec. 26. Marquis had 5 points and 5 rebounds in 21 minutes in a 108-93 win over Nets.
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Unfortunately those were the only decent photos I could find of Daniels this season. For the majority of games .....

10 ...... Whether guarding Lakers G Kobe Bryant on Mar. 28 (top left) or Heat G Dwyane Wade during the playoffs on Apr. 23 (bottom left), Marquis kept his dreads reduced. Now I've been a Marquis Daniels fan for a long time - since he was in college at Auburn, even before he had dreads; and I'm thrilled to see he's still in the league after 10 years. So I'm not too disappointed about the reduced dreads, especially since he's been doing this for several seasons now. It's a shame though, because he should have the best dreads in the league - but doesn't. After three seasons with Dallas, three seasons with Indiana, and three seasons with Boston, Daniels, a 6-6, 200-pounder, played 59

games (33 starts) in his first season with Milwaukee - his most games played since 2007-08 - and averaged 5.5 points (37.6 FG%), 2.5 rebounds, and 1.1 assists in 18 MPG. Will he be around for two more seasons with the Bucks? Probably not - he is currently a free agent. Hopefully he's still got a couple more seasons to go in his career, even if it means two more seasons complaining about reduced dreads. 







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To see some of the best dreads in Europe (although not necessarily the best players with dreads) this season, the best place to start looking was the country of Turkey.

11. 6-10, 250-pound C Torin Francis kept alive his streak of not playing with the same team for more than one season. He played this season in the TBL for Aliaga Petkim, the 9th European team he has played for since his senior year at Notre Dame in 2006. Francis guards Galatasaray Istanbul C Boniface Ndong (top right) in Aliaga's 79-67 road loss on Oct. 20, a game in which Torin had 6 points and 6 rebounds. At bottom right, Francis again plays defense, but I can't figure out which player or team this was against. Aliaga finished in 11th place (out of 16 teams) with a 9-21 record; but Francis played well, appearing in 32 games (27 starts) and averaging 10.8 points (50 FG%) and 9.7 rebounds (3rd best in the league) in 27 MPG. Torin will still be in Turkey next season but with a different team (of course), having just signed with Olin Edirne, which went 8-22 this season.  








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12. In the TBL on Oct. 28, as Torin Francis fouls Antalya BSB G Hakan Demirel on a drive to the basket, the #41 in blue watching the play is 6-9, 220-pound F Warren Carter. Francis had 14 points and 11 rebounds in the game, while Carter scored 23 points in Antalya's 92-74 road win, one of just 6 games they won this season. Sorry I couldn't find a better photo than this of Carter. Warren wasn't around for all of Antalya's 6-25 season. He left after 16 games (11 starts) - the club was having financial difficulties - averaging 12.6 points (54.1 FG%) and 4.6 rebounds in 25 MPG. From there he went to Venezuelan team Trotamundos de Carabobo, where he scored 28 points in one game but scored in double figures only three other times in 10 games. As mentioned in Part 1, he was released on Apr.11 when the team signed Courtney Fortson, after averaging 11.3 points (53.7 FG%), 5.0 rebounds, and 1.9 assists in 22 MPG. There's no word yet on where he'll be playing next season. 
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13. For the first time since he became a pro in the fall of 2008, you had to go somewhere other than France to see the sick dreads of F Randal Falker. The 6-8, 230-pounder played this season for Turkish club Besiktas Istanbul, here going to the basket against G Deividas Dulkys of Lietuvos Rytas Vilnius in a Euroleague game on Nov. 8. Falker had 6 points and 9 rebounds in Besiktas' 73-67 victory. Besiktas advanced to the second stage of Euroleague but were eliminated after going 2-12 in their 8-team group during that stage. Falker played in 21 Euroleague games but appeared in just 11 of the team's 30 games in the TBL. Overall Falker played 32 games (4 starts) and averaged only 2.7 points (46.9 FG%) and 3.5 rebounds in 14 MPG. Besiktas went 19-11 (6th place) in the TBL and were swept 2-0 in their quarterfinal playoff series. After sitting on the bench too much this season, Randal is going back to France next season after signing with Sluc Nancy.
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14. Also playing in Turkey for the first time this season but at a lower level (TBL2) was former Dayton G Rob Lowery - for a team called Best Balikesir Kulubu. Here in a game on Dec. 7, Lowery grabs a rebound (left) and tries to knock the ball away from F Jermaine Dearman (right) of Gelisim Koleji. Lowery had 21 points, 7 rebounds, and 5 assists as Best Balikesir got the 72-63 road win. Lowery finish 9th in scoring and assists in TBL2 and 7th in steals. For the season the 6-3, 175-pounder played 30 games (all starts) and averaged 17.3 points (43.8 FG%), 4.9 rebounds, 3,9 assists, and 1.8 steals in 34 MPG. Best Balikesir finished in 8th place with a 19-15 record and lost to top seeded Uzak 2-1 in the playoffs (after winning Game 1 on the road). Having played in Germany, Czech Republic, and Turkey, Lowery is headed to Italy next season after signing with second-division team Lighthouse Trapani.
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15. And speaking of Italy, here's 6-5, 210-pound G David Moss, playing his 6th season in Italy and his 3rd straight for Montepaschi Siena. Montepaschi won their 7th Serie A championship in a row, but it wasn't easy after finishing just 18-12 (5th place) during the regular season. In Game 7 of the quarterfinals on May 22 C Pops Mensah-Bonsu of EA7 Emporio Armani Milano reaches from behind trying to poke the ball away from Moss (left). The home team won the first 6 games of the series until Montepaschi won Game 7 on the road 90-80, with Moss contributing 14 points and 5 rebounds. Moss puts up a shot against Cimberio Varese F Ebi Ere (right) in Game 2 of the semifinals on May 28, a game Montepaschi lost 64-62. Montepaschi blew a 3-1 lead in the series but again won Game 7 on the road to advance to the finals.
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16. Here's a good shot of David Moss' long dreads, as he defends against G Jordan Taylor of Virtus Roma in Game 4 of the finals on June 17. Moss had 16 points and 4 rebounds and Montepaschi's other player with dreads, Daniel Hackett (in background watching the play) had 16 points and 4 rebounds as Montepaschi took a 3-1 series lead with an 81-71 home victory. Montepaschi clinched their third series on the road with a victory in Game 5 two days later. With all the playoff games, and with Montepaschi also playing 24 Euroleague games, Moss appeared in 76 games this season (75 starts) and averaged 11.0 points (45.2 FG%) 4.1 rebounds, and 1.6 assists in 30 MPG. He led the team in scoring 11 times, with a season high 26 points in Game 3 of the quarterfinals. After winning the championship in all three of his seasons with Montepaschi, David will be trying to prevent an 8-peat by Montepaschi next season after signing with EA7 Armani.
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17. As for Daniel Hackett, he has played all 4 of his pro seasons in Italy since his senior season at USC in 2009, and this was his first season with Montepaschi Siena. He was born in Italy in 1987, near the end of his father's 9-year career in Italy. Here the 6-5, 215-pound G drives to the basket against G Mike Green of Cimberio Varese on May 30. Hackett had 13 points and 6 rebounds as Montepaschi took a 2-1 lead in the semifinals with a 72-59 home victory. After coming off the bench for most of the season, Daniel moved into the starting lineup after Montepaschi lost their first playoff game by 24 points, and he scored in double figures in 15 of the team's final 18 games. And he was named MVP of the finals after averaging 14 PPG, 4.2 RPG, and 5.2 APG in the 4-1 win over Virtus Roma. For the whole season he played 71 games (22 starts) and averaged 9.8 points (44.2 FG%), 3.2 rebounds, 3.4 assists, and 1.2 steals in 25 MPG. He'll be back with Montepaschi next season.
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18. Here are a familiar face - and dreads; but it's been a while since we've seen them. As you may recall, Justin Rutty made my all-America with dreads team a couple of times when he was at Quinnipiac; but until a few minutes ago I didn't know where he played last season. And that's because he didn't - not really. He signed to play for a team in Uruguay, but for some reason he released after playing only two games. This season Rutty, the 6-7, 245-pound lefthander began what figures to become a long European tour with a stop in Switzerland - playing for BBC Nyon. On the left Rutty follows through on a shot in an Oct.21 home game against Starwings - in which he scored 22 points as Nyon picked up their first win of the season 89-77. On the right Justin takes it to the basket against F Edwin Draughan in a 92-64 home loss to Benetton Fribourg on Nov. 10. The bad news - Nyon was terrible this season, finishing 5-21. The only reason they made the playoffs was that a team that had started the season with a 13-5 record folded. That moved Nyon up from 9th place to 8th and into the playoffs, where they were swept. The good news - Rutty was fantastic. He led the LNA in scoring and rebounding and was named league MVP. In 29 games (all starts) he averaged 20.8 points (50.8 FG%) and 11.4 rebounds in 37 MPG. Next stop on the tour for Rutty is France, where he'll play for 2nd division team Boulazac Basket Dordogne in 2014.
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19. Justin Rutty's dreads were not the only sick dreads in Switzerland this season. Returning to the LNA after a one year absence were the very long dreads of Benetton Fribourg F Arizona Reid, shown here looking to make a move against F Loris Vallotton of Nyon on Nov. 10. Reid had 16 points and 5 assists in Benetton's 92-64 road win.
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20. Arizona Reid, a 6-5, 205-pounder, gets set to put up a shot - something he did often on May 14 - against F Derek Stockalper of Lugano Tigers in Game 4 of a semifinal playoff series. Reid played all 40 minutes, finishing with 41 points (15-30 FG), 9 rebounds, and 8 assists to lead Benetton to an 86-81 road victory that tied the series 2-2. But two days later he scored 7 points and Benetton lost Game 5 at home. Benetton had finished in 2nd place during the regular season with a 20-6 record. In 33 games (29 starts) Reid averaged 16.5 points (44.2 FG%), 7.6 rebounds, and 2.6 assists in 31 MPG. He currently is unsigned for next season.
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And now we come to a couple of my favorite players with great dreads. Certainly I would like to have as many pictures of Raymond Sykes and Brian Greene as I did in DG129 last year. But because it was hard finding photos of the teams they played for this season, I'll only have a few photos this time.

21. Raymond Sykes, a 6-9, 220-pound C, played his 2012-13 season in the same league as Rob Lowery - the TBL2 in Turkey, for Bandirma Kirmizi. Here on Oct. 30 he shoots an underhand layup against Vestelspor Manisa. Sykes hit 9 of 13 from the field, finishing with 24 points and 6 rebounds in Bandirma's 86-74 home win.
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22. A contender for the longest basketball dreads in Euriope, Raymond Sykes tries not to let Gelisim G Michael Porrini knock the ball away from him in a game on Feb. 1. Sykes recorded his 10th double-double of the season with 21 points and 12 rebounds as Bandirma Kirmizi pulled out a 72-71 road win. He ended the season with 13 double-doubles.
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23. Here's Raymond Sykes in action against Akhisar Belediye on Mar. 30, driving to the basket against F Tyrone Nelson (right photo) and trying to block a shot by F Darrius Morrow (left). Raymond had just 8 points and 9 rebounds as Bandirma lost at Akhisar 74-71 in overtime. Sykes led Bandirma Kirmizi in scoring and rebounding, but the team finished in 9th place with a 17-17 record, barely missing the playoffs. Sykes finished 7th in TBL2 in scoring, 8th in rebounding, and 3rd in blocked shots. For the season he played and started all 34 games, averaging 17.4 points (55.8 FG%), 9.3 rebounds, and 1.6 blocked shots in 32 MPG.
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24. Trying to make a little extra cash, Raymond Sykes then went to Venezuela, playing for Bucaneros de LaGuaira, but played in only 5 games between May 19 and June 14, averaging 14.0 points and 7.2 rebounds before leaving the team. You know, when Raymond was at Clemson (2005-09) his best season was when he averaged 8 points and 5 rebounds as a senior. And even though he obviously had outstanding athletic ability, I never thought he'd still be playing 4 years later. But obviously, he's gotten and better and is still improving. After two decent seasons in the D-League, he had a good season going in Germany last season before a broken foot ruined it, and this season he averaged 17.4 PPG. Sykes nearly made the Portland Trail Blazers' roster just before the start of the 2010-11 season; so if he keeps on improving, it's not out of the question we'll get to see these dreads in the NBA at some point in the future. But where will we see them in 2014? Don't know, as he has not signed with any team yet.
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25. In part 1, I mentioned that the super long dreads of Brian Greene could not be seen in the Ukrainian Superleague this season. Why? Because after playing 4 pro seasons in Europe (two and a half of them in Ukraine) the 6-5, 210-pound former FAMU star did things differently this season. I don't know why (maybe he was recovering from an injury or maybe he just wanted to take a break from Europe), but he didn't begin his season until April, playing in the NBL in New Zealand for the HBS Bank Hawks, a team based in the city of Napier. It was a challenge finding any photos, but I did save some from the Hawks' June 12 game at Wellington Saints, which just happened to be Greene's most eventful game of the season. Greene tries to block a shot by G Corey Webster (left photo) and defends a shot (kind of) by F Casey Frank (right photo). Brian finished with 29 points, 10 rebounds, and 6 steals in 33 minutes, but the Saints won 92-80. And that wasn't all ......
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26. ..... Near the end of the game ..... If F Bryant Markson had not been in the way (left photo), we would have gotten a clear view of Saints player/coach Dillon Boucher with his hands around Greene's throat. And if the photographer had waited just one more second, this would have been a shot of Boucher trying to yank a handful of Greene's dreads out of his scalp. Now why, you ask, would Dillon stoop to such depths? Well, Greene, apparently angry and frustrated that the referees were ignoring Boucher's dirty tactics throughout the game, took matters into his own hands by throwing the ball at Boucher, who responded by trying to strangle him. The photo on the right looks like Greene after the scuffle, as his jersey is all wrinkled up. Fortunately they speak English in New Zealand, so if you like, you can read more about the game in a couple of articles - the first from the Hawks' website and the other from Hawke's Bay Today:
http://www.sportsground.co.nz/Article.asp?SiteID=14891&ArticleID=26172
http://www.hawkesbaytoday.co.nz/news/no-place-for-dirty-dillons-import/1908384/
Both Greene and Dillon ended up being suspended for one game. Of course, in this day and age, everybody's got a camera, so there is a video of the incident - not a very clear one, but clear enough to see what was going on: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kxjhk6UzuIE
WTF? Greene got suspended for that? At least he calmed down quickly and didn't get all Renaldo Balkman about it. And Boucher, come on man. What was that? The ball barely touched you. I guess Boucher must be, as Lou Henson once said, a classic bully. He can dish it out but he can't take it.
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27. Brian Greene's dreads are at their gravity-defying best in a game on Apr.27 in which the Hawks blew an 11-point halftime lead and lost at home to Oceanagold Nuggets 81-74. Unfortunately I was only able to save the thumbnail, so clicking on the photo won't do you any good. If you want a look at the big picture, click on the link below to a photo gallery of the game (this photo is the first one in the gallery): http://snpa.photoshelter.com/gallery-image/Napier-NBL-Basketball-Hawks-v-Nuggets-April-27/G0000nArnSGyPuJM/I0000_cfzW77GwaE
And if you like, here is an interesting article on Greene from just before the start of the season: http://www.stuff.co.nz/hawkes-bay-sun/sport/8501187/Hawks-import-ready-to-prey-on-opponents
Unfortunately the preseason optimism didn't result in very many wins. The Hawks finished tied for 6th place (out of 9 teams) with a 5-11 record. Greene led the Hawks in scoring and was named 2nd team all-NBL after finishing 7th in the league in scoring, 4th in rebounding, 5th in steals, and 7th in blocked shots. In 14 games (13 starts) he averaged 19.5 points (45.9 FG%), 9.4 rebounds, 2.4 assists, 2.1 steals, and 1.1 blocked shots in 30 MPG. There's no word yet on where Brian will be playing next season, but I bet it ain't gonna be New Zealand.
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If you brought out your yardstick, it likely would confirm that Brian Greene's dreads rank the longest of any pro basketball player not in the NBA. But what about the NBA? Who has the longest dreads in the Association? I might cast my vote for Marquis Daniels. But also in serious contention is a player new to the league this season, Dallas Mavericks F Jae Crowder.
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28. Here's a good look at just how long those dreads are, as Crowder defends against Knicks F Carmelo Anthony on Nov. 9. Crowder was on the court for 30 minutes and 'held' Anthony to 31 points (lol). Jae finished with 7 points, 3 rebounds, 4 turnovers, and 5 fouls in the Mavericks' 104-94 road loss.
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29. Heat F LeBron James reacts as if Jae Crowder has the touch of a bee sting during this play on Dec. 20 at Dallas. Or maybe the king is just offended that a 2nd round draft pick would dare to lay his peasant hands on him. Crowder 'held' (lol) LeBron to 24, with James hitting 9 of 13 from the field. 
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30. Because one just isn't enough ..... The only complaint I have about Jae Crowder is that he uses two bands around his dreads instead of one, as shown here as he gets set for his first NBA start on Nov. 7 against Toronto. This, of course, keeps his dreads from moving around as much as we'd like to see and makes them look less impressive than if had just one band. But we're used to seeing him this way. He had this look last season when he was at Marquette, although those bands did seem to be spaced farther apart this season. Crowder had 8 points (3-4 FG) and 4 rebounds in 27 minutes in his first start as Mavericks defeated Raptors 109-104. 
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31. Jae Crowder seemingly had close encounters with all the league's superstars during his first two months in the NBA. Here he tries to defend Lakers G Kobe Bryant on a drive to the basket at Dallas on Nov. 24. With Mavs star player Dirk Nowitzki out due to injury until Dec. 23, Crowder got a lot of playing time early, playing at least 10 minutes in the Mavericks' first 10 games of the season and in 24 of the first 28 games.
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32. Again on Nov. 24, Kobe loses the ball to Crowder during 2nd quarter for one of his 6 turnovers in the game - and one of Crowder's season high 4 steals. Jae also had 15 points, 4 rebounds, and 2 assists, but Lakers stormed out to a 65-38 halftime lead and cruised to an easy 115-89 win.
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33. Heat F Shane Battier is called for a foul as Jae Crowder takes it to the basket late in 3rd quarter on Dec. 20. Jae hit both free throws to cut the Miami lead to 34. Crowder finished with 15 points, 3 rebounds, and 3 assists as the Heat slaughtered the Mavs 110-95.
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34. With 4:57 remaining in 4th quarter and Mavericks leading by 9 at Orlando on Jan. 20, Jae Crowder takes a foul to deny Magic G Arron Afflalo an easy shot. It was Crowder's only foul of the night, and he immediately took a seat on the bench for the rest of the game. Jae (pronounced like the jetter 'J') had 7 points and 4 rebounds as the Mavericks picked up a road win 111-105 over the Magic.
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35. The long arm of Pacers F Paul George reaches in and steals the ball from Jae Crowder with 3:37 remaining in game on Nov. 16 at Indianapolis. Crowder also turned the ball over on Mavs' next possession. But the outcome had already been decided by then. Crowder finished with 4 points and 3 rebounds, but  Pacers outscored Mavericks 55-34 in 2nd half to win easily 103-83.
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36. Some lucky fans in the expensive seats at American Airlines Center got their money's worth on Dec. 10, as Jae Crowder ends up in their lap while going after a loose ball during 1st half. Crowder finished with 11 points, 4 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 steals, and was +24 as Mavericks jumped to a 65-43 halftime lead and cruised to a 119-96 home win over Sacramento.
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37. Jae Crowder, 6-6, 235-pound rookie F, dribbles Timberwolves F Mickael Gelabale into a screen set by F Dirk Nowitzki during 1st half on Mar. 10 at Minneapolis. Gelabale scored more points than Crowder (13-7), but Mavericks picked up their 3rd win in a row 100-77.
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38. Smart fantasy players included Jae Crowder in their lineups on Mar. 12, because you knew he was going to have a good game at Milwaukee. Here Crowder goes up and hits a layup between C Larry Sanders (#8) and F Ersan Ilyasova with 6:59 to play in 2nd quarter, cutting Bucks lead to 45-38. Playing his first NBA game in the same building that was his home during his two college seasons at Marquette, Jae hit 6 of 9 from the field, had 14 points, 8 rebounds, and 3 assists, and was +14 as Mavericks defeated Bucks 115-108.
Crowder was a star during his two seasons at Marquette and was named Big East player of the year during his senior year in 2012. So I was more than a bit disappointed when he was not drafted in the 1st round. He ended up being selected with the 4th pick in round 2. But despite the 2nd-round status, it became apparent almost immediately that he was going to make the team. Although the Mavericks finished with a 41-41 record and missed the playoffs, his first season can be described as very promising. I mean, he didn't look - or play - like a rookie. He had a few really nice games, and you can definitely expect him to get a lot better in the future. The biggest negative was his shooting - 38.4 % on FG and 64.4% on FT - no doubt something he's practicing hard this summer. In 2012-13 Crowder played 78 games (16 starts) and averaged 5.0 points, 2.4 rebounds, 1.2 assists, and 0.8 steals in 17 MPG. Look for those numbers to go up as his dreads get even longer in the seasons ahead.
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NEXT

This concludes (finally) my coverage of basketball for this year. It is now officially football season in the house of dread. I still have a couple of leftovers from the 2012 season ......
Wait a minute .... What's that, you say? ..... What? ..... Huh? ..... Who? ..... Kenneth Faried? ..... Where are the Kenneth Faried photos? ..... Oh ..... Oops .....
No, I didn't forget about him. I'm just messing with you. I saved plenty of Kenneth Faried photos. And I hope you enjoy the Kenneth Faried section of DG147 as much as I enjoy watching him play.
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39. Kenneth Faried, 6-8, 228-pound F in his 2nd season with the Denver Nuggets, looks like he's nailing Heat G Dwyane Wade with a WWE-style leg drop as they go to the floor after Wade was fouled (not by Faried) during 2nd quarter on Nov. 3. Faried made a season high 11 FG (in 15 attempts) and finished with 22 points and 12 rebounds for his first double-double of the season, but Nuggets fell to 0-3 with a 119-116 road loss to Miami. As you may recall, Coach Karl kept Faried on the bench for the first month of his rookie season; but Kenneth was in the starting lineup on opening night this season. 
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40. Kenneth Faried battles for a rebound against Heat F LeBron on Nov. 15 at Denver. In a scheduling oddity, the Nuggets and Heat faced each other for both of their meetings even before we reached Thanksgiving.
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41. This time Kenneth Faried gets the handle on a rebound, between F Mike Miller and G Norris Cole. Faried grabbed a career high 20 rebounds in the game.
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42. Kenneth Faried goes up to reject a driving layup attempt by Norris Cole early in 4th quarter. It was his only blocked shot of the game. In addition to his 20 rebounds Faried scored 16 points (but was 5 for 16 from the field). Nuggets nearly came back from a 19-point deficit midway through 3rd quarter, but Miami held on for a 98-93 win and a sweep of the season series.
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43. Kenneth Faried is fouled by Pistons C Greg Monroe as he goes up for a short shot early in 3rd quarter on Nov. 6 at Denver. Faried made 1 of the 2 free throws to give Nuggets a 7-point lead. Faried finished with 15 points and 8 rebounds as Nuggets, after beginning the season by going 0-3 on a road trip, picked up their 1st win of the season, defeating Detroit in their home opener 109-97.
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44. No foul was called here, just good clean basketball (?) as Kenneth Faried battles for position against Blazers F Luke Babbitt during 1st quarter at Portland on Dec. 20. Faried grabbed 8 rebounds in 18 minutes, but scored only 6 points (3-10 FG); and he was -13, making him the worst player on the court on this night as Blazers won 101-93 to end Nuggets' 3-game winning streak.
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45. Faried fared much better against Babbitt and the Blazers in their next meeting on Jan. 20, here taking down an offensive rebound against Babitt (his 10th rebound of the game) with 6:56 remaining in 3rd quarter. Faried made a layup 4 seconds later to give Denver a 1-point lead. Kenneth finished with 21 points (9-12 FG) and 11 rebounds, and was +7 as the Nuggets won their 5th in a row, edging Portland 115-111 in OT.
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46. Kenneth Faried comes down with the rebound against Bulls C Joakim Noah during 3rd quarter at Denver on Feb. 7. Faried was 9 for 10 from the field, finishing with 21 points and 12 rebounds in 26 minutes as Nuggets outscored Bulls 37-16 in 3rd quarter to break open a close game and went on to win 128-96. 
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47. Joakim Noah wins this battle against Kenneth Faried, rejecting his shot in the lane with 9:01 remaining in 1st quarter at Chicago on Mar. 18 (the Bulls always bring out the green uniforms for their home game closest to St. Patrick's Day). With teammate Wilson Chandler on fire (13-21 FG, 35 points), Faried played only 15 minutes, finishing with 8 points and a season low 2 rebounds. Nuggets, benefiting from two controversial goaltending calls down the stretch, escaped with a 119-118 victory in overtime for a sweep of the season series. 
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48. Kenneth Faried reaches down but loses the battle for possession to Jazz G Jamaal Tinsley on Nov. 26 at Salt Lake City.
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49. Usually it's Kenneth Faried doing the dunking, but this time he gets dunked on by F Derrick Favors, giving the Jazz a 97-93 lead midway through 4th quarter on Nov. 26. Nuggets had led by 16 points in 2nd quarter; but after scoring 65 points in 1st half, they scored only 38 in 2nd half. Faried finished with 21 points and 9 rebounds but missed 1 of 2 FT with 28 seconds to play, leaving Nuggets 1 point behind, and Utah held on to win 105-103.
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50. In the Nuggets' next meeting against the Jazz at home on Jan. 5, Kenneth Faried tries to draw an offensive foul against G Randy Foye but instead is called for a blocking foul as Foye puts up a shot with 5:08 remaining in 3rd quarter. Foye made both FT, cutting Nuggets' lead to 69-60. Faried recorded his 14th double-double of the season, finishing with 15 points (7-10 FG) and 10 rebounds in a 110-91 victory.
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51. Kenneth Faried draws the contact, but not a foul, as he shoots and misses a shot against Timberwolves C Nikola Pekovic with 8:06 remaining in 1st quarter on Dec. 12. Faried had 14 rebounds and a season high 26 points in the game, but Nuggets lost at Minnesota 108-105.
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52. Kenneth Faried reacts as if Pau Gasol has bad breath or something while defending the Lakers' F on Dec. 26 at Denver.
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53. Kenneth Faried comes down with the one-handed rebound next to C Jordan Hill (his 6th rebound of the game already) with 3:23 remaining in 1st quarter and Nuggets leading by 5 on Dec. 26. Later in the game .....
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54. ..... Knocked to the floor as the result of Dwight Howard's flagrant foul (the one in photo #5), Kenneth Faried takes a moment to make sure his face is still in one piece and regain his senses with 5:02 to go in 3rd quarter. Faried came down the lane trying for his 4th dunk of the game, but Howard had other ideas. Here's the story and the video of the play from CBS Sports.com (the video freezes a lot, but it's the best one I could find): http://www.cbssports.com/nba/eye-on-basketball/21460496/dwight-howard-fined-35000-for-flagrant-2-foul-on-kenneth-faried
Faried got up and made 1 of his 2 free throws but then had to come out of the game for a few minutes. But he was OK. Kenneth scored just 2 more points the rest of the night but had already done enough damage and finished with 21 points and 15 rebounds in a 126-114 win over the L.A. Lakers.
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The Nuggets had a difficult early schedule, with 22 of their first 32 games on the road. When they made it through that stretch with a 17-15 record, you knew that good things were coming when the calendar turned to 2013. 
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55. After going on a 6-game winning streak earlier in January, Nuggets won 9 in a row between Jan. 20 and Feb. 9. The streak began with a thrilling 121-118 home victory over Oklahoma City. Kenneth Faried scores on a 3-foot jump hook over G Kevin Martin (right photo) to put Denver ahead to stay 117-116 with 46 seconds remaining in OT. Faried finished the game with 16 points, 10 rebounds, 4 assists, and 4 blocked shots. Then in the 9th win of the streak, Faried hits a shot in the lane and is fouled by Cavaliers F Tristan Thompson (left photo) midway through 1st quarter at Cleveland on Feb. 9. The 3-point play cut Cavs' lead to 17-15. Faried had 17 points and 7 rebounds in a 111-103 victory.
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56. The streak ended in Boston on Feb. 10. With Nuggets down 2 with 5.4 seconds remaining in 4th quarter, Kenneth Faried, after having already missed the first of 2 FT, charges down the lane trying to get the rebound after also missing the second FT, as G Andre Miller (#24) and Celtics G Avery Bradley also go for the ball. The ball went out of bounds, with the officials ruling Bradley touched it last. Nuggets would then hit a shot with 0.8 seconds to go to send the game into overtime, but Celtics eventually prevailed 118-114 in triple OT, with Faried finishing with 14 points and 12 rebounds.
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57. The All-Star break wasn't much of a break for Kenneth Faried. He was quite busy on the first two days of All-Star Weekend (Feb. 15-17) in Houston. Kenneth slams home 2 of his 40 points (left photo) in the Rising Stars Challenge on Friday night. The 40 points (on 18 of 22 from the field) and 10 rebounds earned him the game MVP award. And on Saturday night Kenneth goes between the legs (right photo) before dunking on his 2nd dunk in the Slam Dunk Contest. He scored a perfect 50 on this dunk (video first link below), but combined with the 39 he got on his first dunk, he did not advance to the finals. If you like, the second link below is a photo gallery of all of Faried's activities during the weekend.
http://www.nba.com/video/channels/allstar/2013/02/17/20130216-dunk-r2-faried.nba/index.html

http://www.nba.com/nuggets/gallery/farieds-all-star-weekend

Of course, one day (hopefully soon) it'd be nice to see Faried playing in the game on Sunday.
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58. Kenneth Faried brings down another rebound with style against the Thunder on Mar. 19. Faried record his 28th double-double of the season (he finished the season with 30), with 13 points and 15 rebounds as the Nuggets won their 13th in a row - and their 3rd straight against the Thunder - 114-104 at Oklahoma City.
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59. Kenneth Faried reacts as this rebound gets away from him and Hornets C Robin Lopez during 1st half at New Orleans on Mar. 25. Faried had 13 points and 7 rebounds; but Hornets, who entered the game with a 24-46 record, jumped out to a 59-38 halftime lead and went on to end Nuggets' 15-game winning streak, 110-86.
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60. Kenneth Faried demonstrates some serious hang time after a pair of alley-oop slam dunks - next to Chris Copeland (left photo) after taking a pass from G Ty Lawson to give Nuggets a 31-point lead over Knicks during 3rd quarter of a 117-94 home win on Mar. 13, a game in which Faried had 11 points and 10 rebounds and was +28 in just 25 minutes; and at Utah on Apr. 3 (right photo) after a feed from half court by G Andre Miller, giving Denver a 71-56 lead, their largest of the game to that point, with 5:22 to go in 3rd quarter. Kenneth hit 8 of 10 from the field and scored 19 points in 26 minutes as Nuggets defeated Jazz 113-96. Here's the video of the slam against Utah: http://www.nba.com/video/channels/top_plays/2013/04/03/20130403-play-of-the-day.nba/index.html
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61. Kenneth Faried is called for a foul as Mavericks G Darren Collison tries to shoot with 3:16 remaining in 4th quarter at Denver on Apr. 4. Collison made both FT to give Dallas a 90-87 lead. With Nuggets trailing by 1 and 10.8 seconds to play, Faried missed a pair of FT, but Nuggets got the rebound and hit a shot with 2.8 seconds to go to win it 95-94 and improve to 34-3 at home. If you are going to have long dreads, this is how they should look when you're on the court - bunched together with ONE band (are you listening Jae Crowder) placed about 8 inches or so from the head.
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62. Kenneth Faried tries to maintain possession of the ball despite resistance from F Dirk Nowitzki and G O.J. Mayo during overtime at Dallas on Apr. 12. Faried had his last double-double of the regular season with 11 points and 10 rebounds, but Mavericks won 108-105 to end Nuggets' 5-game winning streak. 
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63. With Nuggets sprinting toward the finish line and battling three other teams for the #2 playoff seed in the West, trouble starts brewing on Apr. 14. Kenneth Faried cries out after stepping on the foot of Blazers G Will Barton (not pictured) while driving to the basket early in 1st quarter .....
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64. "I never felt a pain like that a day in my life," said Faried, who up to that point had not missed a single game due to injury in his two seasons with the Nuggets or during his entire 4-year college career at Morehead State. Fortunately it was nothing more than a sprained ankle; but with the playoffs only a week away, it was more bad news for the Nuggets, who had lost their other starting F, Danilo Gallinari, ten days earlier with a torn ACL.
Winning 23 of their final 26 games, Nuggets finished with a 57-25 record, their best record since joining the NBA in 1976 (when the NBA and ABA merged). They were 2nd in the Northwest Division and 3rd overall in the Western Conference, matching them up against #6 seed Golden State Warriors in the 1st round, a team they had won 3 of 4 against but hadn't faced since mid-January.









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65. Kenneth Faried defends a shot by Warriors F Carl Landry during 1st quarter of Game 2 of the series at Denver on Apr. 23. After missing the final two games of the regular season and Game 1 of the playoffs, Faried was back on the court for 21 minutes in Game 2; but he probably shouldn't have been. He had just 4 points and 2 rebounds and committed 5 fouls in those 21 minutes. After winning Game 1, Nuggets lost home court advantage in Game 2, falling to Warriors, who shot a sizzling 65% from the field, 131-117.
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66. Obviously feeling much better for Game 3 on Apr. 26, Kenneth Faried dunks off a pass from F Corey Brewer to give Nuggets a 2-point lead on their first possession of 2nd quarter. Kenneth hit 6 for 7 from the field, finishing with 15 points and 7 rebounds in 30 minutes; but Nuggets, after scoring 66 points in 1st half, scored only 42 in 2nd half as Warriors roared back from a 12-point deficit to win 110-108.
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67. Early in 1st quarter of Game 4 on Apr. 28, Kenneth Faried fails to box out C Andrew Bogut and pays the price. Bogut beats him to the rebound of a miss by F Harrison Barnes dunks on him to put Warriors in front 6-5. It was the first of 3 dunks by Bogut in a 3-minute span. 
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68. Kenneth Faried takes one in the ribs from Harrison Barnes while battling for position during Game 4. Faried finished with 8 points and 12 rebounds. But it was another hot shooting night for Golden State - 55.7% from the field. Warriors outscored Nuggets 22-7 in final 5 minutes of 3rd quarter to take a 91-72 lead and cruised to a 115-101 win and a 3-1 lead in the series.
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69. Kenneth Faried absorbs his 2nd flagrant foul of the night, as F Draymond Green nails him early in 4th quarter with Nuggets leading 15 in Game 5 on Apr. 30. Faried took some and certainly dished some out too, leaving the Warriors complaining about his physical play. Kenneth picked up his first double-double of the series, finishing with 13 points and 10 rebounds. Warriors went on a 26-10 run to close within 96-91 with 5:09 to play, but Nuggets held on to win Game 5 107-100 and stay alive. 
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70. Kenneth Faried has his dreads touch the bottom of the backboard as he dunks in an alley-oop pass from G Andre Iguodala, giving Nuggets a 42-38 lead late in 2nd quarter at Oakland on May 2. Faried had another double-double in Game 6, finishing with 11 points and 11 rebounds.
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71. After Nuggets missed two shots that would have tied the game in the closing seconds, Kenneth Faried fouls G Jarrett Jack intentionally to stop the clock with 7.3 seconds to play. Jack hit both FT to clinch the game and the series for Warriors. After trailing by 18 with 8:30 to go, Nuggets' frantic rally came up short, as Warriors held on to win 92-88 and take the series 4-2. It was the second straight 1st-round exit from the playoffs for the Nuggets; but this one hurt much more than last season's 4-3 loss to the Lakers because they were one of the best teams in the league this year and had high hopes. After Faried led the nation in rebounding his senior year in college, it's kind of disappointing that he finished 15th in the NBA this season. But remember the Nuggets had great depth this year, and Kenneth played only 28 minutes per game. He also was in the top 10 in FG percentage, finishing in 9th place at 55.2%. For the regular season he played 80 games (all starts) and averaged 11.5 points, 9.2 rebounds, and 1.0 blocked shots. He got worse as a FT shooter, shooting 61% this season compared with 66% last season. Now 23 years old, Kenneth still has a lot of improving to do, and it should be continue to be a lot of fun watching him as he does that improving in the years ahead. 
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Now that does conclude my basketball coverage. We're now just 2 weeks away from the start of the 2013 football season. But as I mentioned earlier, I still have some business to take care of from last season, including my dreaded dozen list and my crystal ball's report card, both coming soon.