Konsolen Treiber » his cool while putting up All-Star numbers.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. - It looked as if everything was coming together for the Sacramento Kings.DeMarcus Cousins was keeping his cool while putting up All-Star numbers. Second-year coach Michael Malone had his team playing defence, and the Kings were consistently beating Western Conference contenders.One illness ended all that.Cousins came down with viral meningitis more than two weeks ago, and neither the franchise centre nor the Kings (11-13) have recovered yet. Sacramento has gone just 2-7 without Cousins — who remains out indefinitely — heading into Tuesday nights home game against Oklahoma City, which had its own health-related problems while NBA MVP Kevin Durant and co-star Russell Westbrook were out with injuries.Malone was fired late Sunday night and assistant Tyrone Corbin was promoted to interim coach. A person with knowledge of the moves confirmed the change on condition of anonymity because the team had not announced it yet.While season-long goals cant be accomplished before Christmas, the Kings and Thunder know they can sure be wrecked.How teams handle such critical times can go a long way in determining their season. That was basically the message Malone gave to his players last week.I told our guys, We have no idea when DeMarcus is coming back. So we need everybody to man up and play to the best of your ability, Malone said before his dismissal was announced.Houston has been able to manage injuries better than any team in the league.Dwight Howard missed 11 straight games with a strained right knee before returning Saturday against Denver. The Rockets (18-5) went 8-3 without the All-Star centre.The Thunder thought they could limit the damage when Durant and Westbrook went down. Instead, they started 3-12 and are trying to make the long climb back up the crowded West standings.Westbrook returned Nov. 28 after sitting out 13 games with a broken bone in his right hand. Durant came back Dec. 2 after missing the teams first 17 games with a fractured right foot.Both believe there is enough time left to get the Thunder back in a strong playoff position.___Here are some other things to look for around the NBA this week:WINNING WARRIORS: The Golden State Warriors have won a franchise-record 16 straight games, which is almost halfway to the NBA record of 33 in row set by the Los Angeles Lakers during the 1971-72 season. The Warriors play at Memphis on Tuesday and host Oklahoma City on Thursday.LANCE VS. LEBRON: Lance Stephenson and LeBron James will meet for the first time since last seasons memorable run-in during the Eastern Conference finals between Indiana and Miami, when Stephenson was caught by television cameras blowing into James ear. Both are with new teams now, but they still figure to match up against each other when Stephensons Hornets visit James and the Cavaliers on Monday night.BIGGEST LOSERS: Philadelphia gained national attention by starting 0-17 and coming within one loss of tying the record for worst start to a season. But the Sixers have hardly been the only big losers this season. Detroits 13-game losing streak ended with a win at Phoenix on Friday. Charlotte had a 10-game losing streak. Utah had a nine-game skid. The New York Knicks have put together losing streaks of 10 and seven in a row already.GARDEN SPOILER: As if things couldnt get any worse for the Knicks, its beginning to look like a very real possibility that Golden States Steve Kerr — who spurned an offer from mentor Phil Jackson to coach in New York over the summer — could coach the Western Conference in the All-Star game at Madison Square Garden on Feb. 15. The coaches of the teams with the best record in each conference will head the All-Star teams, so long as they didnt coach last years game. The Warriors entered Monday night with an NBA-best 21-2 record.BIG THREE: San Antonio beat the Knicks 109-95 on Wednesday without Tim Duncan, Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili. The Spurs are just 5-10 in games the Big Three sit out since they became teammates in 2002.___STAT LINE OF THE WEEK: Blake Griffin scored 45 points, including a 3-pointer as time expired, to lift the Los Angeles Clippers to a 121-120 overtime win against Phoenix last Monday night. He joined Dwyane Wade and Gilbert Arenas as the only players to score at least 45 points and hit a buzzer-beater in the same game in the last 10 seasons.___AP Sports Writer Josh Dubow contributed to this report.___Antonio Gonzalez can be reached at: www.twitter.com/agonzalezAP Brian Allen Rams Jersey . But unfortunately for the Niagara Falls, Ont., native, a pulled muscle wouldnt allow him to go past the second set. Japan sealed its victory over Canada in the first-round Davis Cup tie after Nishikori downed an ailing Dancevic 6-2, 1-0. Joseph Noteboom Jersey . Today, well look at five frontcourt players today, here from the Bay Area. 1. AMIR JOHNSON (Raptors): I cant figure out what the issue or problem is, but based upon what Im seeing, hes not right. http://www.ramsrookiestore.com/Rams-Marcus-Peters-Jersey/ . Funny, they looked like longtime friends during Pittsburghs 5-1 demolition of Dallas on Tuesday night. Quick to the puck and even quicker to the net, the Penguins top line overwhelmed the suddenly struggling Stars as Pittsburgh bounced back from a dismal weekend sweep at the hands of Philadelphia by jumping on Dallas early. John Franklin-Myers Jersey . The 41-year-old Northern Irishman has proved a perfect fit at Liverpool since taking over from Kenny Dalglish in the summer of 2012 and steered the team to an unexpected title challenge in the Premier League last season. Aqib Talib Jersey . -- The Minnesota Twins have granted relief pitcher Matt Guerrier his unconditional release, making the 35-year-old right-hander a free agent.MINNEAPOLIS -- Ubaldo Jimenez struck out a season-high 10 over seven-plus scoreless innings for his first win with Baltimore, and Nelson Cruz hit a two-run home run to pad his lead for the Orioles in a 3-0 victory on Friday over the Minnesota Twins. Jimenez (1-4) allowed only three hits while taking a significant step forward from five rough starts to begin his $50 million, four-year contract with the Orioles. Jimenez dropped his ERA from 6.59 to 5.19, after leaving with one out in the eighth following Eduardo Escobars double. Zach Britton stranded the runner with a groundout and a called third strike on Joe Mauer, and Tommy Hunter picked up his eighth save in nine tries by pitching the ninth. Trevor Plouffe led off with a double, but Hunter struck out the next two and ended the game on a groundout. Ricky Nolasco (2-3) gave the Twins a complete game, giving up nine hits and one walk while striking out six for his eighth career nine-inning appearance. Cruz doubled in the fourth, scoring on a double by Matt Wieters, before his soaring drive into the third deck above left field followed a leadoff single by Manny Machado in the sixth inning. Cruz, who entered the night tied for fourth in the league in homers, has gone deep eight times already with his new team. The sign that this would be Jimenezs night came in the third inning, when the first two Twins he faced reached base. The 30-year-old right-hander with the herky-jerky delivery dug in and struck out the side after that: Brian Dozier, Mauer and Plouffe. From the third into the eighth, Jimenez retired 16 of 17 batters, with the only outlier a fielding error by second baseman Jonathan Schoop that put Escobar on with two outs in the fifth. Jimenez, who threw a season-high 118 pitches, had issued 17 walks in 27 1-3 innings over those prior five starts. Threee runs allowed was his lowest total.dddddddddddd Nolasco, who received the richest deal the Twins have ever given a free agent from another team, likewise has had a rocky start to the $49 million, four-year contract he signed with the club. But only on the road, where the right-hander has taken the mound four times. In two turns at Target Field, Nolasco has allowed just four runs on 14 hits and two walks in 17 innings. These were two tired teams taking the field, each forced into a doubleheader the day before by wet weather prior to that. The Orioles swept the Pittsburgh Pirates in Baltimore on Thursday and arrived in Minneapolis around 5:30 a.m. The Twins had the benefit of being at home, but after a Wednesday night game that lasted 3:38 they were swept by the Los Angeles Dodgers on Thursday in games that took 3:01 and 5:11. The last one, the longest game in five seasons at Target Field, took 12 innings. NOTES: The Orioles will send LH Wei-Yin Chen (3-1, 4.34 ERA) to the mound on Saturday afternoon, and RH Kevin Correia (0-3, 7.33 ERA) will pitch for the Twins. Chen has won both of his road starts this year. Correia gave up eight runs in only 2 1-3 innings in his last turn. ... Correia went down to the bullpen as the emergency pitcher in case the game kept going the night before. Was he warming up, Twins manager Ron Gardenhire was asked? "No, he was freezing," Gardenhire quipped. ... Prized Orioles prospect Kevin Gausman, the fourth overall pick in the 2012 amateur draft, was diagnosed with a form of pneumonia, Showalter said, but the RHP should be able to resume pitching for Triple-A Norfolk as soon as hes feeling well again. ... The Twins announced their rained-out game against Detroit last Sunday will be made up as part of a day-night doubleheader on Aug. 23 when the Tigers make their next weekend trip to Target Field. Blackhawks Jerseys Store Cheap Wild Jerseys Cheap Red Wings Jerseys Cheap Maple Leafs Jerseys Penguins Jerseys Store Capitals Jerseys For Sale Blues Jerseys Store Cheap Kings Jerseys Adidas Lightning Jerseys Stars Jerseys For Sale Cheap Predators Jerseys Ducks Store Sharks Jerseys For Sale Cheap Sabres Jerseys Rangers Jerseys For Sale ' ' '