Coach Karl benches JR Smith for the rest of the series...

[Court_vision]

Wow...even if the Nuggets come back, "he's done".

<TABLE cellSpacing=8 cellPadding=0 width="100%" border=0><TBODY><TR><TD class=wiretap_key_header>Karl Benches Smith For Remainder Of Series</TD></TR><TR><TD>2nd May, 2007 - 2:56 am</TD></TR><TR><TD>San Antonio Express-News -
Nuggets coach George Karl, who said the Spurs had "out-tricked" the Nuggets in winning Game 3, is about to pull the dirtiest trick of the series on the Spurs: He's sitting mistake-prone J.R. Smith for as long as the series lasts.

"He's done," Karl said.

Asked if the ill-advised, 26-foot shot Smith launched when the Nuggets trailed by four points with 26.9 seconds remaining in Monday's Game 4 had been the "straw that broke the camel's back" for Smith, Karl nodded his head.

"That shot," Karl said, "I have no idea what planet that came from. And, of course, the one with eight seconds to go from 50 feet."

"I just love that," Karl said, his voice dripping with sarcasm, of Smith's heave near the end of the game. "I love the dignity of the game being insulted right in front of me."

Asked why he had played him in Game 4 after the costly mistakes Smith had made in Game 3, Karl defended his decision.

"He's a good-bad player," Karl said. "You evaluate his good and evaluate his bad. He had good plays in Game 3 and he had good plays in the game before that. But you've got to be mentally more secure and tougher than he showed in Game 4."</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>

[Sarah]

Re: Coach Karl benches JR Smith for the rest of the series...

Nah, it is not Jr Smith fault they are currently lossing in the series. SA is just a very good team that has seen what the best teams in the West has to offer from Nelson's DAL, Shaq-Kobe, and PHX's west side gunslinging style. The only way for JR Smith to improve is to exposed him to the situation, not pull him out because he is inexperience. The Carmelo and Iverson tandem needs some time to flourished especially that Carmelo is still learning while Iverson is trying to find the chemistry between them. Karl is just too impatient.

[HMcCoy]

Re: Coach Karl benches JR Smith for the rest of the series...

"I just love that," Karl said, his voice dripping with sarcasm, of Smith's heave near the end of the game. "I love the dignity of the game being insulted right in front of me."

[Sarah]

Re: Coach Karl benches JR Smith for the rest of the series...

Karl needs to wake up, this is the new NBA now. There is no dignity left, not even the refs have dignity nowadays. Even Stern doesn't have dignity anymore. Look what he did to the NBA, he made players like Ewing obsolete.

[TheMatrix31]

Re: Coach Karl benches JR Smith for the rest of the series...

Good. I would have benched him forever for that RIDICULOUS shot that ruined the whole damn thing Monday night.

Ugh. MORON!

[Sarah]

Re: Coach Karl benches JR Smith for the rest of the series...

Good. I would have benched him forever for that RIDICULOUS shot that ruined the whole damn thing Monday night.

Ugh. MORON!

That is why Stern needs to up the age of the players before they can get in the NBA. Let them stay in school for at least 3 years so thier IQ (at least in basketball) will improve. But then again, there are a lot of players who stayed in school and still a moron.

[The Chef]

Re: Coach Karl benches JR Smith for the rest of the series...

Karl needs to wake up, this is the new NBA now. There is no dignity left, not even the refs have dignity nowadays. Even Stern doesn't have dignity anymore. Look what he did to the NBA, he made players like Ewing obsolete.

What??? How did Stern make players like Ewing obsolete? Its not like there are a bunch of good big men waiting to get into the league and with the way the game is gearing more and more towards smaller lineups I dont see how its Sterns fault. We were somewhat spoiled with the amount of great big men who were playing at the same time throughout the 90's, Olajuwon, Ewing, David Robinson, Shaq, Mourning, Brad Daugherty wasnt bad, Rony Seikly was under rated imo, Mutumbo and Im sure Im forgetting someone. Now how many true centers who were actually good have come into the NBA in the last 10 years? Duncan was a PF, Eric Montross had a lot of hype but didnt deliver, Brendan Haywood is in the same catagory as Montross. Besides Camby, Ilguaskus, Yao Ming and maybe Kaman I cant think of anyone else that really came out and delivered and thats not because of Stern, there is a reason that Oden is rumored to go # 1 and its because hes a big man who can play, if it wasnt for that then Durant would go # 1 every single time, and still may in reality.

[P2K]

Re: Coach Karl benches JR Smith for the rest of the series...

It's all falling apart. Finally.

[Psyblast]

Re: Coach Karl benches JR Smith for the rest of the series...

I believe JR Smith is what Jerry Seinfeld and Keith Hernandez would refer to as, a "chucker".

George Karl's the man.

Oh, and P2K...you're a little insane, lol.

[Sarah]

Re: Coach Karl benches JR Smith for the rest of the series...

When the rules were chang in favor of the offense, who do think enforce that rule? As a result, the big guys suddenly became almost obsolete. Players like Ben Wallace, Shaq, Duncan and others suddenly became a liability in offense because they can't run as fast. They are powerful in terms of strength but not in speed. This type of guys tend to be better in terms of defense than a smaller frame tall players like Bargnani or Dirk. Shaq, Ewing and Malone slow the game down, but with this new rules everybody just wanted to run and gun. SA is probably the only team left that has yet to adopt the run and gun system, while almost everyone else tend to balance the gamestyle between speed and slow gameplay. Back then, any team who will go small will be punished tremendously but now, if you are big and slow you better have a coach like Riley or Popovich.

[bigeastbumrush]

Re: Coach Karl benches JR Smith for the rest of the series...

George Karl with coaching problems...what a shocker!

I'm sure Mardy Collins & Isaiah Thomas are laughing their butts off.

It's Karma George.

I hope San Antonio runs up the score in the elimination game.

Pops is too classy for that but I would love it.

[SteelersFreak]

Re: Coach Karl benches JR Smith for the rest of the series...

Karl needs to wake up, this is the new NBA now. There is no dignity left, not even the refs have dignity nowadays. Even Stern doesn't have dignity anymore. Look what he did to the NBA, he made players like Ewing obsolete.

So because of that it's okay to jack 26-foot shots when you are an average shooter?

I applaud Karl for doing a move, nice to see a guy with some kind of sense of discipline in the NBA.

[Court_vision]

Re: Coach Karl benches JR Smith for the rest of the series...

So because of that it's okay to jack 26-foot shots when you are an average shooter?

I applaud Karl for doing a move, nice to see a guy with some kind of sense of discipline in the NBA.

It's a big call as their bench is being killed and they don't have a lot of depth at the moment. (Karl won't play DeMarr or Reggie Evans either)

[Court_vision]

Re: Coach Karl benches JR Smith for the rest of the series...

George the Ripper at it again
<!--subtitle--><!--byline-->By Mark Kiszla
Denver Post Staff Columnist
<!--date-->Article Last Updated: 05/02/2007 12:54:58 AM MDT



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Rolling toward elimination from the NBA playoffs, the Nuggets' team bus pulled out of town Tuesday, with J.R. Smith under it.

He was thrown under the bus by coach George Karl.

"He's done," said Karl, who blasted Smith for insulting the dignity of the game and announced the Nuggets were benching the 21-year-old guard.

Down 3-1 in the best-of-seven series against the wily San Antonio Spurs, it looks as if Denver cannot possibly win.

It appears the Nuggets have found their scapegoat, though.

Smith has stunk, no doubt, missing all 12 shots he has fired from 3-point range and committing a dumb turnover in Game 3 that turned the series in favor of San Antonio.

In the basketball world according to George, it's always somebody else's fault.
But did Karl really have to go out of his way to slap down Smith, who has
been on the court for a grand total of 47 minutes against the Spurs, less than anyone in Denver's eight-man rotation?

In a rambling evaluation of his team's state of mind on the eve of a playoff elimination game, during which Karl boasted of good karma in his locker room and chastised media members for negativity, the 55-year-old NBA coach turned his attention to Smith, slamming the young player's performance in the final stages of a heartbreaking Game 4 loss.

Obviously irked by an errant 3-point jumper Smith attempted as the Nuggets trailed 93-89 with 25 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter, Karl said: "I have no idea what planet that came from."

Way to keep it positive, coach.

Maybe we should call him George the Ripper.

Karl, however, was not done kicking Smith for poor shot selection.
"And then, of course, the one with eight seconds to go, from 50 feet," said Karl, exaggerating the distance of Smith's final miss. "I just love the dignity of the game being insulted right in front of me."

What about the dignity of an athlete being trashed in public by his coach, not in the heat of the moment, but after Karl had a chance to sleep on how to deal with Smith?

If Denver players trust Karl now, they're fools.

For more than 20 years, Karl has been pointing the finger at almost everyone and anyone in his own locker room, from Joe Barry Carroll to Ray Allen to Kenyon Martin. Bad players. Good players. Hurting players.

Stop the whining already, George.

After watching videotape of a 96-89 loss to San Antonio until long after midnight, maybe Karl should have blamed himself as much as Smith for being stupid.

The Spurs' late rally was ignited by a small lineup with Manu Ginobili acting as point guard, a brilliant strategic move by San Antonio coach Gregg Popovich that left Karl dumbfounded.

The most crucial shot of the fourth quarter came after a timeout by the Spurs, when Robert Horry stood alone on the 3-point arc, and Karl looked at Big Shot Rob as if the veteran was Sideshow Bob. Right there in front of everybody, Karl insulted the intelligence of everyone who understands the game. Any coach in his right mind would have figured out a way to deny any pass to one of the best clutch shooters in NBA history.

Karl can be a fascinating basketball conversationalist, with keen insights into the game and a sharp wit that television cameras love.

But, as bosses go, Karl could make Dilbert feel lucky to be stuck in an office cubicle rather than on the Nuggets bench.

This, of course, was not the first time this season Karl has talked of punishing a young Denver player.

Karl threatened to bench Carmelo Anthony in March, only to backpedal awkwardly when some team staffers were upset by the coach's public criticism of Melo.

Know what's so sad? Nuggets center Marcus Camby, who has come to personify everything classy about a franchise working hard to win respect, stood Tuesday and faced the media outside the Denver locker room, speaking eloquently about his responsibility as a veteran to help younger Denver players through this tough time.

A few minutes later, in the same hallway, George the Ripper was at it again, embarrassing one of Camby's youngest, most fragile teammates.
The blame game makes for great headlines, but lousy relationships.

Stumped by San Antonio, Karl has offered nothing to get ice-cold Denver guard Allen Iverson cooking.

But, without thinking, Karl has offered Smith up as a scapegoat and roasted him.

Hey, George, even a wretch like me can come up with a smarter idea to bolster the Nuggets for the trials of Game 5.

Leave the dirty work of throwing players under the bus to us trained professionals in the sportswriting business.
You get paid a $3 million salary to coach players up, not put 'em down.

[luv_mist]

Re: Coach Karl benches JR Smith for the rest of the series...

Now I know why the Bulls didn't want to keep him. Funny stuff.