With the two squads tied for the eighth seed out west, Thursday’s Nuggets-Warriors tilt was an early playoff game. But while neither team showed any inclination of advancing past the first round, the Nuggets will get there because their two stars made plays and Golden State’s didn’t.
Carmelo Anthony’s scoring (12-20 FG, 1-1 3FG, 25 PTS) was a factor with most of his damage in the third quarter with impossible to defend step-back jumpers off of isolations. His other half, Allen Iverson, likewise had an impressive game (12-21 FG, 1-2 3FG, 8-12 FT, 9 AST, 2 TO, 33 PTS), darting here, dashing there, and hitting a handful of clutch jumpers down the stretch.
Meanwhile, Stephen Jackson (5-17 FG, 2-6 3FG, 3 TO,18 PTS) and Baron Davis (9-25 FG, 1-9 3 FG, 3 TO, 20 PTS) were duds. Forget Baron’s triple double; when Denver switched to a zone defense before the second quarter, Davis eschewed any ball movement, opting instead to force a slew of ill-conceived jumpers. Davis’ decision making was juvenile and the prime factor in Golden State’s defeat.
Indeed, after George Karl switched to a zone defense, Golden State effectively beat themselves by forcing (and missing) too many bad three-pointers and by playing impulsive immature basketball.
Sure, Al Harrington did whatever he wanted to against Kenyon Martin, sure Monta Ellis continued his coming-out party with a stellar performance (13-26 FG, 5 AST, 5 STL, 6 TO, 29 PTS), and yes Andris Biedrins was a non-stop rebounding, shot-altering machine (19 REB, 2 BLK), but Golden State’s isolation filled, defenseless game was done in a by a more prolific scoring unit.
But hey, when you only know how to play with fire, expect to ultimately get burned.
It wasn’t as if the Nuggets were much better.
Kenyon Martin missed two layups, fumbled passes, and was badly outplayed by Al Harrington. Funny how in a pressure-packed, must-win contest, Kenyon’s childish, screaming, yelling, and self-promoting (and his game) was nowhere to be found. K-Mart is a bully and nothing more.
Marcus Camby’s defense had no positive impact on the game, whatsoever. And he’s everybody’s defensive player of the year?
The Nuggets starting five played even worse defense than their Warriors counterparts.
However, Denver’s second unit turned the tide in their favor. Eduardo Najera hustled, bustled, rebounded, closed-out, and hit a brace of timely jumpers. Linas Kleize as strong in the back of the Denver zone, and J.R. Smith’s big-time athleticism and unlimited range was never answered by Golden State.
It’s no coincidence that the active defense supplied by the Nugget bench coincided with Golden State putting up a modest 68 points for the final three quarters, proving that defense wins big games.
But neither Denver nor Golden State have what it takes to get anywhere near a championship.
Friday, April 11, 2008
Thursday, April 10, 2008
Spurs-Suns: San Antonio's Sun is Fading
Every Western Conference matchup is a virtual playoff game and Wednesday’s Suns-Spurs game was no different.
Aside from the usual storylines (playoff positioning and confidence heading into the second season), San Antonio needed to prove that they can hit the majority of their jumpers so their offense can run efficiently while Phoenix needed to show that their trade for Shaq truly does make them more prepared for the money season.
After watching Phoenix decimate the Spurs 96-79, it’s clear that the landscape in the West has radically shifted over the past few months: The Suns are more prepared for the playoffs than the Spurs are.
Why The Spurs Lost:
San Antonio’s jump shooting has abandoned them at the worst possible time. Against the Suns, the Spurs only shot 42% from the field. On their jumpers, San Antonio only shot 33% (12-36) with Michael Finley (3-4), Jacque Vaughn (2-2), and a meaningless jumper by Bobby Jones (1-1) skewing the percentage.
Phoenix sagged off in the second half and dared the Spurs to make jump shots, a challenge which was never met by San Antonio.
While Tim Duncan was effective against Amare Stoudamire early, Shaq’s length and massive bulk made it difficult for TD to finish under the basket in the second half. Duncan was certainly solid —9-21 FG, 3 TO, 23 PTS—but he wasn’t as spectacular as his team needed him to be considering the circumstances.
While Duncan’s help defense was as admirable as ever, Amare Stouemire exposed TD for being too slow and too upright to challenge him on the perimeter. While Duncan is the best help defender in the league, the truth is, his straight up individual defense is at best, slightly above average.
Manu Ginobli (3-12 FG, 0-4 3FG, 2-2 FT, 4 REB, 4 AST, 1 STL, 2 TO, 1 BLK, 8 PTS) made a handful of nifty passes but was a dud in every other area.
Bruce Bowen is slipping. He was unable to so much as annoy Steve Nash and made several critical defensive mistakes.
After carving up Steve Nash in the first half, Mike D’Antoni switched Grant Hill onto Parker in the second half and Hill made Parker work a mite harder to clear him to the basket. That extra second gave Phoenix’ rotations ample time to sag in and contest Parker at the hoop.
Parker also overhandled on several occasions and made key mistakes with the ball.
The Spurs did an unsatisfactory job on the backboards, yielding 40 rebounds while only gathering 36.
San Antonio rotated fairly well, but the Spurs seemed caught of guard by Phoenix’ offensive versatility.
The Spurs didn’t pressure ball handlers on any entry pass to the post, even when Shaquille O’ Neal was fronted. The lack of pressure allowed lob passes to lead Shaq to prime scoring positions at the basket.
The older, slower Spurs were a step behind the Suns throughout the second half.
Why The Suns Won:
Despite a porous first half, Shaq’s play in the second half was the biggest difference between the run-and-gun, can’t get it done, Phoenix teams of the last several years and the intriguing Suns team of 2008.
With the score tied at the half, Shaq set up in the post against Fabricio Oberto and overwhelmed him for three straight baby hooks. A fouth fouls banished Shaq to the bench, but when he came back early in the fourth, he hit two more hooks, this time over Tim Duncan.
The Spurs tried to adjust and front Shaq with Oberto and have Duncan rotate from the backside to sandwich the big man, but Shaq (7-9 FG, 9 REB, 16 PTS) was still too powerful for any Spurs defender to contend with. If Shaq can be the low post presence he’s supposed to be, the Suns will have a very difficult toy to stop in the playoffs.
Amare Stoudemire (8-13 FG, 5-5 FT, 2 AST, 21 PTS) abused any Spurs defender off the dribble and with baby hooks. Whenever a Spurs defender sagged off to protect against his first step, Stoudemire was able to drop in a number of jumpers from the outside. He wasn’t as effective in the second half, but Amare’s scoring kept the Suns close at halftime. Amare’s ability to score has rocketed upwards since he’s been moved into a power forward.
While rarely looking to shoot except to keep the defense honest (4-10 FG, 12 PTS), Steve Nash quietly controlled the game with his passing (10 AST) and his decision making (0 TO).
Leandro Barbosa (6-9 FG, 2-4 3FG, 14 PTS) was lightning in a broken field. His ability to create points out of nothing allowed the Suns offense to burst into runs, whereas the Spurs had to work diligently to generate any open look.
The Suns had great offensive balance from all of their players as at least seven Suns scored eight points or more.
Mike D’Antoni out-coached Gregg Popovich. He collapsed his defense in the second half in order to contain Tony Parker and force San Antonio’s jump shooters to beat them. He also switched Grant Hill onto Parker in the second half, making it more difficult for Parker to break into the lane. D’Antoni also broke out a zone at various points in the ball game, holding the Spurs to three made baskets in eight possessions.
No matter what lineup the Suns were in—big, small, super-small—the Suns always had the right play call to generate open looks.
The Suns won because their offense was so diverse and potent, even in the half court. Power ball with Shaq, isolations for Amare, Barbosa on the break, Nash making snappy decisions, Phoenix put so much pressure on the Spurs with their varying methods of attack.
But it should be noted, that with a tie game after the half, and only a four point lead heading into the final chapter, Phoenix made sure to get the ball to Shaq down low where the Big Diesel was never answered.
Why The Suns Could Have Lost:
Amare is still too much of a hothead to be completely reliable in the playoffs. A poor rotation led to one foul, a blatantly moving screen led to another, and a dumb charging foul led to a third. Stoudemire could have been much more of a threat if he wasn’t saddled most of the first three quarters with foul trouble.
Stoudemire refused to recover to Tim Duncan after helping in the paint, allowing Duncan to knock down two uncontested jumpers.
Shaq also committed way too many loose ball and offensive fouls limiting his minutes and effectiveness.
The Suns were poor rebounders in their zone, giving up the majority of San Antonio’s nine offensive boards.
While the Suns did allow the Spurs to shoot at will, there were innumerable open looks that San Antonio was fortunate to miss.
Boris Diaw still goes up too soft around the basket.
The Suns defense still looks average at best, a trait that has me hesitate when I look at possible Western Conference Champions. Still, the fact that their explosive offense is now centered around power basketball gives Phoenix a winning formula for the playoffs, especially considering how versatile that offense can be.
As for the Spurs, their legs are failing and their age is showing. It’s too late in the season for them to discover the fountain of youth. Unless their jump shooting miraculously returns to form, the Spurs will not be around to experience the Western Conference Finals.
Aside from the usual storylines (playoff positioning and confidence heading into the second season), San Antonio needed to prove that they can hit the majority of their jumpers so their offense can run efficiently while Phoenix needed to show that their trade for Shaq truly does make them more prepared for the money season.
After watching Phoenix decimate the Spurs 96-79, it’s clear that the landscape in the West has radically shifted over the past few months: The Suns are more prepared for the playoffs than the Spurs are.
Why The Spurs Lost:
San Antonio’s jump shooting has abandoned them at the worst possible time. Against the Suns, the Spurs only shot 42% from the field. On their jumpers, San Antonio only shot 33% (12-36) with Michael Finley (3-4), Jacque Vaughn (2-2), and a meaningless jumper by Bobby Jones (1-1) skewing the percentage.
Phoenix sagged off in the second half and dared the Spurs to make jump shots, a challenge which was never met by San Antonio.
While Tim Duncan was effective against Amare Stoudamire early, Shaq’s length and massive bulk made it difficult for TD to finish under the basket in the second half. Duncan was certainly solid —9-21 FG, 3 TO, 23 PTS—but he wasn’t as spectacular as his team needed him to be considering the circumstances.
While Duncan’s help defense was as admirable as ever, Amare Stouemire exposed TD for being too slow and too upright to challenge him on the perimeter. While Duncan is the best help defender in the league, the truth is, his straight up individual defense is at best, slightly above average.
Manu Ginobli (3-12 FG, 0-4 3FG, 2-2 FT, 4 REB, 4 AST, 1 STL, 2 TO, 1 BLK, 8 PTS) made a handful of nifty passes but was a dud in every other area.
Bruce Bowen is slipping. He was unable to so much as annoy Steve Nash and made several critical defensive mistakes.
After carving up Steve Nash in the first half, Mike D’Antoni switched Grant Hill onto Parker in the second half and Hill made Parker work a mite harder to clear him to the basket. That extra second gave Phoenix’ rotations ample time to sag in and contest Parker at the hoop.
Parker also overhandled on several occasions and made key mistakes with the ball.
The Spurs did an unsatisfactory job on the backboards, yielding 40 rebounds while only gathering 36.
San Antonio rotated fairly well, but the Spurs seemed caught of guard by Phoenix’ offensive versatility.
The Spurs didn’t pressure ball handlers on any entry pass to the post, even when Shaquille O’ Neal was fronted. The lack of pressure allowed lob passes to lead Shaq to prime scoring positions at the basket.
The older, slower Spurs were a step behind the Suns throughout the second half.
Why The Suns Won:
Despite a porous first half, Shaq’s play in the second half was the biggest difference between the run-and-gun, can’t get it done, Phoenix teams of the last several years and the intriguing Suns team of 2008.
With the score tied at the half, Shaq set up in the post against Fabricio Oberto and overwhelmed him for three straight baby hooks. A fouth fouls banished Shaq to the bench, but when he came back early in the fourth, he hit two more hooks, this time over Tim Duncan.
The Spurs tried to adjust and front Shaq with Oberto and have Duncan rotate from the backside to sandwich the big man, but Shaq (7-9 FG, 9 REB, 16 PTS) was still too powerful for any Spurs defender to contend with. If Shaq can be the low post presence he’s supposed to be, the Suns will have a very difficult toy to stop in the playoffs.
Amare Stoudemire (8-13 FG, 5-5 FT, 2 AST, 21 PTS) abused any Spurs defender off the dribble and with baby hooks. Whenever a Spurs defender sagged off to protect against his first step, Stoudemire was able to drop in a number of jumpers from the outside. He wasn’t as effective in the second half, but Amare’s scoring kept the Suns close at halftime. Amare’s ability to score has rocketed upwards since he’s been moved into a power forward.
While rarely looking to shoot except to keep the defense honest (4-10 FG, 12 PTS), Steve Nash quietly controlled the game with his passing (10 AST) and his decision making (0 TO).
Leandro Barbosa (6-9 FG, 2-4 3FG, 14 PTS) was lightning in a broken field. His ability to create points out of nothing allowed the Suns offense to burst into runs, whereas the Spurs had to work diligently to generate any open look.
The Suns had great offensive balance from all of their players as at least seven Suns scored eight points or more.
Mike D’Antoni out-coached Gregg Popovich. He collapsed his defense in the second half in order to contain Tony Parker and force San Antonio’s jump shooters to beat them. He also switched Grant Hill onto Parker in the second half, making it more difficult for Parker to break into the lane. D’Antoni also broke out a zone at various points in the ball game, holding the Spurs to three made baskets in eight possessions.
No matter what lineup the Suns were in—big, small, super-small—the Suns always had the right play call to generate open looks.
The Suns won because their offense was so diverse and potent, even in the half court. Power ball with Shaq, isolations for Amare, Barbosa on the break, Nash making snappy decisions, Phoenix put so much pressure on the Spurs with their varying methods of attack.
But it should be noted, that with a tie game after the half, and only a four point lead heading into the final chapter, Phoenix made sure to get the ball to Shaq down low where the Big Diesel was never answered.
Why The Suns Could Have Lost:
Amare is still too much of a hothead to be completely reliable in the playoffs. A poor rotation led to one foul, a blatantly moving screen led to another, and a dumb charging foul led to a third. Stoudemire could have been much more of a threat if he wasn’t saddled most of the first three quarters with foul trouble.
Stoudemire refused to recover to Tim Duncan after helping in the paint, allowing Duncan to knock down two uncontested jumpers.
Shaq also committed way too many loose ball and offensive fouls limiting his minutes and effectiveness.
The Suns were poor rebounders in their zone, giving up the majority of San Antonio’s nine offensive boards.
While the Suns did allow the Spurs to shoot at will, there were innumerable open looks that San Antonio was fortunate to miss.
Boris Diaw still goes up too soft around the basket.
The Suns defense still looks average at best, a trait that has me hesitate when I look at possible Western Conference Champions. Still, the fact that their explosive offense is now centered around power basketball gives Phoenix a winning formula for the playoffs, especially considering how versatile that offense can be.
As for the Spurs, their legs are failing and their age is showing. It’s too late in the season for them to discover the fountain of youth. Unless their jump shooting miraculously returns to form, the Spurs will not be around to experience the Western Conference Finals.
Wednesday, April 9, 2008
On The 50-Yard Line: Your NFL Update
Weighing the Balance of a College Career
At what point will the science of scouting interfere with the proof embedded within a player's collegiate performance?
Later this month, on April 26 and 27, the NFL Entry Draft will take place at the Radio City Music Hall, in New York City's Rockefeller Center. To the average onlooker, this is the event that will keep the NFL ticking, simply providing the next crop of football players to duke it out each and every Sunday (from September to February). But to the NFL die-hards, this event represents their team's ultimate investment-- the future. This is the event where all 32 squads are eager to assemble the pieces of a championship team, by seeking out key players from the collegiate ranks, to fill the various needs on their respective rosters.
With the draft nearly 2 weeks away, there's a pretty onerous question among the NFL-elite right now, particularly, who do I pick? And how high how high do I draft them? And can they come on my roster day-one and be a starter for my franchise? These are the questions that saturate the minds of Coaches, General Managers, and team personnel professionals within the coming days. So how do scouts go about picking the right guy? How do they scientifically assess players and find the next Ladainian, or the next Peyton?
Like this.
They can measure the player's height, weight, the size of a players hand from pinky to thumb; how high the guy can jump at a dead stand-still, or even better, how fast the guy runs 40 yards... without pads on, without football in hand, and without cleats; they can measure how well he runs around pylons; or how many balls he catches in a rapid-fire gauntlet-- and draw their conclusions from these findings.
But does this translate to field?
My answer: no. My suggestion: turn on the game tape.
There is something unauthentic about defining a player by his post-season measurements, as opposed to the statistics and game tape that he spent 3 to 4 years compiling. Scouts are incredibly quick to criticize a sub-par 40 time, a player who is 2 inches too short or 20 pounds under weight. They seemingly forget the kid that rushed for 2000 yards in a single season, had 150 tackles, or returned 7 kicks/punts for touchdowns-- all regardless of hand size, height, weight, etc. Accolades on the field are the proverbial pudding, and recording monster stats are the proof. Don't count out the 169-pound DeSean Jackson (Cal.), the reportedly high-running, low-strength Darren McFadden (Ark.) , or the overweight Glen Dorsey(LSU). These guys will be stars at the next level. If you don't believe me, just go watch some game-tape.
Thursday, April 3, 2008
Warriors-Mavericks: Only Dallas Looks Like A Playoff Team
With Dallas 0-10 with Jason Kidd against winning teams and Golden State getting lambasted the night before in San Antonio, Wednesday’s Mavs-Warriors game was a must win for both teams.
Despite the context only one team bothered showing up, and the Mavericks disintegrated the Warriors 111-86.
Dallas:
Dirk Nowitzki put on his best Willis Reed impersonation and gimped onto the court well ahead of his expected recovery time for his high ankle sprain. While his jumpers were flat and his mobility was compromised, Nowitzki efforted his way to 18 tough points on 6-15 shooting.
And though slow and ginger, Nowitzki nonetheless plead steadfast defense in the paint and hustled determinedly when making several defensive rotations. Even though Dirk wasn’t a huge factor on the court, his heroic presence inspired his teammates to play with confidence abounding.
Could it have been Dirk’s most courageous performance of his career?
Jason Kidd (1-6 FG, 11 REB, 17 AST, 4 STL, 5 TO, 5 PTS) was breathtaking. The majority of his assists came on the break where marvelous lead passes allowed Josh Howard and Jason Terry to gallop to the hoop in the open floor. When Dallas slowed things down, Kidd was able to penetrate at will and perfect passes routinely led to open looks. And while Kidd couldn’t contain Monta Ellis, he did have four steals and he did draw two important charges that kept the Warriors spirits sagged.
So what if Kidd can’t shoot straight? His passing and court-vision alone are good enough to be the sole factor in determining outcomes, the victory over Golden State no exception.
Energized from the get-go and allowed to go full-speed ahead on the break, Josh Howard (14-25 FG, 0-1 3FG, 7 REB, 5 AST, 28 PTS) and Jason Terry (11-21 FG, 3-9 3FG, 5 REB, 6 AST, 31 PTS) dominated the game with prolific scoring, plus Howard effectively shut down Stephen Jackson.
Erick Dampier boxed out, set screens, intimidated penetrators, and played like the physical presence Dallas needs him to be.
Even the ghost of Eddie Jones ( 5-10 FG, 3-5 3FG, 5 REB, 1 STL, 12 PTS) showed up, draining threes, chasing down rebounds, finishing alley-oops, and picking Stephen Jackson’s pocket on the way to a slammer.
The Mavericks executed brilliantly, ran the floor flawlessly, rotated timely, and challenged each and every Warriors shot. The Mavericks played exceptionally unselfish (35 assists to 45 field goals) and always looked to make the extra pass. Each player performed exactly how he needs to perform for the Mavericks to excel and Kidd’s brilliant passing set everything up.
In short, the Mavericks won because they played as if their playoff lives were at stake.
Golden State:
The helter-skelter Warriors came out in low gear and paid for it. Their offense to defense transitions were horrendously absent, their individual defense was non-existent, their offense was completely reliant on individual play. Most damning of all, they played like they didn’t think they belonged.
The only offense for Golden State came when Monta Ellis darted around screen/rolls or Baron Davis blindly put his head down in attempt to bully his way for a hoop.
Stephen Jackson (1-11 FG, 0-4 3FG, 5 REB, 2 AST, 2 STL, 2 TO, 2 PTS) played as if he were floating at sea and contemplating drowning. Golden State can live with Jackson being a black hole on offense with abhorrent shot selection, but Jackson’s defense on Howard was pathetic.
In fact, the only hints of toughness Jackson played with the entire game, were when he scowled at a referee who made a no-call on a drive, and when Jackson threw Jason Terry to the floor on a one-on-one break. When a team (or ref) doesn’t give in to Jackson’s bullying tactics, he becomes just another loser.
Al Harrington played a mistake filled game littered with silly fouls and missed layups. Harrington was pinballed around by Dirk and Dampier and was completely neutralized by Dallas’ energy. Harrington is another guy only plays well when things are going his way.
Matt Barnes’ (1-5 FG 2 PTS) confidence and playing time have evaporated.
The Warriors routinely ran nothing but isolations or rudimentary screen/rolls. While Davis and Ellis were able to have some successes, Golden State never ran any plays to get anybody else involved, except a single screen-the screener cut for Andres Biedrins which resulted in a foul. In fact, aside from Davis and Ellis, Golden State shot 13-50 from the floor.
The Warriors selfishness and lack of creativity resulted in their tallying only 10 assists. Their softness resulted in their losing the rebounding battle 56-38. Their utter disregard for defense resulted in 44 fast break points for Dallas combined to 16 for Golden State.
In short, the Warriors lost to Dallas for the same reasons that they beat Dallas in the playoffs last season and for the same reasons why they got shellacked in San Antonio by 24 the night before. When another team buckles down and plays championship-caliber basketball, Golden State can’t find it in their hearts to pull through.
With Dallas, Denver, and Golden State all with the same record fighting for the seventh and eight spots in the playoffs, Dallas won their first playoff game and Golden State lost theirs.
Despite the context only one team bothered showing up, and the Mavericks disintegrated the Warriors 111-86.
Dallas:
Dirk Nowitzki put on his best Willis Reed impersonation and gimped onto the court well ahead of his expected recovery time for his high ankle sprain. While his jumpers were flat and his mobility was compromised, Nowitzki efforted his way to 18 tough points on 6-15 shooting.
And though slow and ginger, Nowitzki nonetheless plead steadfast defense in the paint and hustled determinedly when making several defensive rotations. Even though Dirk wasn’t a huge factor on the court, his heroic presence inspired his teammates to play with confidence abounding.
Could it have been Dirk’s most courageous performance of his career?
Jason Kidd (1-6 FG, 11 REB, 17 AST, 4 STL, 5 TO, 5 PTS) was breathtaking. The majority of his assists came on the break where marvelous lead passes allowed Josh Howard and Jason Terry to gallop to the hoop in the open floor. When Dallas slowed things down, Kidd was able to penetrate at will and perfect passes routinely led to open looks. And while Kidd couldn’t contain Monta Ellis, he did have four steals and he did draw two important charges that kept the Warriors spirits sagged.
So what if Kidd can’t shoot straight? His passing and court-vision alone are good enough to be the sole factor in determining outcomes, the victory over Golden State no exception.
Energized from the get-go and allowed to go full-speed ahead on the break, Josh Howard (14-25 FG, 0-1 3FG, 7 REB, 5 AST, 28 PTS) and Jason Terry (11-21 FG, 3-9 3FG, 5 REB, 6 AST, 31 PTS) dominated the game with prolific scoring, plus Howard effectively shut down Stephen Jackson.
Erick Dampier boxed out, set screens, intimidated penetrators, and played like the physical presence Dallas needs him to be.
Even the ghost of Eddie Jones ( 5-10 FG, 3-5 3FG, 5 REB, 1 STL, 12 PTS) showed up, draining threes, chasing down rebounds, finishing alley-oops, and picking Stephen Jackson’s pocket on the way to a slammer.
The Mavericks executed brilliantly, ran the floor flawlessly, rotated timely, and challenged each and every Warriors shot. The Mavericks played exceptionally unselfish (35 assists to 45 field goals) and always looked to make the extra pass. Each player performed exactly how he needs to perform for the Mavericks to excel and Kidd’s brilliant passing set everything up.
In short, the Mavericks won because they played as if their playoff lives were at stake.
Golden State:
The helter-skelter Warriors came out in low gear and paid for it. Their offense to defense transitions were horrendously absent, their individual defense was non-existent, their offense was completely reliant on individual play. Most damning of all, they played like they didn’t think they belonged.
The only offense for Golden State came when Monta Ellis darted around screen/rolls or Baron Davis blindly put his head down in attempt to bully his way for a hoop.
Stephen Jackson (1-11 FG, 0-4 3FG, 5 REB, 2 AST, 2 STL, 2 TO, 2 PTS) played as if he were floating at sea and contemplating drowning. Golden State can live with Jackson being a black hole on offense with abhorrent shot selection, but Jackson’s defense on Howard was pathetic.
In fact, the only hints of toughness Jackson played with the entire game, were when he scowled at a referee who made a no-call on a drive, and when Jackson threw Jason Terry to the floor on a one-on-one break. When a team (or ref) doesn’t give in to Jackson’s bullying tactics, he becomes just another loser.
Al Harrington played a mistake filled game littered with silly fouls and missed layups. Harrington was pinballed around by Dirk and Dampier and was completely neutralized by Dallas’ energy. Harrington is another guy only plays well when things are going his way.
Matt Barnes’ (1-5 FG 2 PTS) confidence and playing time have evaporated.
The Warriors routinely ran nothing but isolations or rudimentary screen/rolls. While Davis and Ellis were able to have some successes, Golden State never ran any plays to get anybody else involved, except a single screen-the screener cut for Andres Biedrins which resulted in a foul. In fact, aside from Davis and Ellis, Golden State shot 13-50 from the floor.
The Warriors selfishness and lack of creativity resulted in their tallying only 10 assists. Their softness resulted in their losing the rebounding battle 56-38. Their utter disregard for defense resulted in 44 fast break points for Dallas combined to 16 for Golden State.
In short, the Warriors lost to Dallas for the same reasons that they beat Dallas in the playoffs last season and for the same reasons why they got shellacked in San Antonio by 24 the night before. When another team buckles down and plays championship-caliber basketball, Golden State can’t find it in their hearts to pull through.
With Dallas, Denver, and Golden State all with the same record fighting for the seventh and eight spots in the playoffs, Dallas won their first playoff game and Golden State lost theirs.
Sunday, March 23, 2008
Davidson vs. Goliath
History is riddled with upsets. David defeated the mighty Goliath. George Washington crossed to Trenton and suprised the Britsh to secure an American victory. Even Rocky Balboa beat Apollo Creed the second time around. However, it is a rare occurance that we see an upset of great magnitude in every day life.
Well today, Easter Sunday, was a day for upsets. I'm sure many people reading this probably have no idea where Davidson College even is, but I'm sure everyone has heard of mighty G-Town. Armed with a support cast of giants including Hibbert and Ewing Jr. Few people gave Davidson a chance. However, with a mascot like the wildcats you should probably expect a "catfight"
However, all it took was a major comeback and another all-star effort by the guard that nobody wanted. Like the ugly duckling passed over by all the major programs Stephen Curry arose from the ashes and only scored 25 of his 30 points in the second half and little Davidson upset mighty Georgetown 74-70 on Sunday to reach the NCAA tournament's round of 16. The game was ugly at points, and it was doubtful that Davidson would comeback. However, Curry with ice in his veins downed a three and drained 3 of 4 free throws in the last minutes to score victory.
I bet America will pull out a map to find tiny Davidson now.
Thursday, March 20, 2008
Cleveland Cavaliers: New Look Can Be Deceiving
After getting acclimated to each other for a month, Cleveland’s game against Detroit was the perfect opportunity to observe whether or not Ben Wallace, Joe Smith, Delonte West, and Wally Szczerbiak can be the missing pieces to Cleveland’s championship puzzle.
While an initial glance of Cleveland’s 89-73 victory over Detroit may signify that the new guys played well, Detroit’s lethargy masked the quartet’s actual effectiveness.
Ben Wallace:
Wallace started the game stale and stagnant as ever. Twice he failed to show on screen/rolls resulting in a Tayshaun Prince jumper and a drive and dish to Antonio McDyess for a layup.
Wallace failed to fight through Rasheed Wallace’s uninspired box outs, set sluggish screens, and was a complete non-factor.
But since Detroit was sleepwalking themselves, Big Ben’s shadow gradually became more effective against the Detroit Piston ghosts.
Seven times Rasheed Wallace half-heartedly ventured into the paint and attacked Big Ben. His pet move was to hold the ball for a few seconds on the left box before softly backing down Ben and then reverse pivoting off his right foot for a fallaway jumper.
The results were:
Totaling up the numbers, Rasheed ended up shooting 1-6 from the field with two free throws and four points in seven possessions. Certainly an acceptable defensive performance.
And since Ben’s juices were oozing slightly less slowly than Detroit’s, he was able to make several more timely defensive plays, such as:
On offense, Wallace was lethargic and useless, setting poor screens, lounging on the weak-side, getting rid of the ball after catching it, as if it were a hot potato.
Of Wallace’s four attempts, one was a missed tip-in, two were “avert your eyes” fadeaways, and the one that went through the hoop was a nifty (lucky) two-handed jumping heave off an offensive rebound to beat the first half buzzer.
While Wallace showed that he can still have his moments on defense, how much of his performance was the result of his courage, and how much was a result of Detroit’s comatose play?
I’d venture the latter over the former.
Delonte West:
Delonte West (3-13 FG, 1-3 3FG, 6 AST, 4 REB, 1 STL, 1 BLK, 2 TO, 7 PTS had trouble penetrating on Chauncey Billups and Rip Hamilton, and when he did turn the corner, he was unable to finish over Detroit’s length.
West hit two of four jumpers when he was left all alone after Cleveland penetration. He also made a nice baseline cut and received a brilliant pass from Zydrunas Ilgauskas for a layup. His other attempts, whether in early offense or whether attempting to create, were all well off.
West’s passing was on target and he usually put the ball in good position for his teammates to shoot. None of his two turnovers were directly related to bad passing, as one came when he couldn’t penetrate on Rodney Stuckey and he pushed him in attempt to get separation for a shot, and a second came when he expected Sasha Pavlovic to zig while Sasha chose to zag.
West is fearless, gritty, and would make a nice backup, but he’s limited athletically, a factor that will come into play later in the playoffs.
Wally Szczerbiak:
Wally’s World showed that he can still hit jumpers when an offense runs set designed to get him open. Three times, Wally was able to run around low curls and hit jumpers, and he was fouled on two more occasions. Wally also hit a catch-and-shoot three after a LeBron penetration left him open.
Later in the game when Detroit’s bigs showed on the curls and allowed the defender to catch up, Wally was forced to fire up fadeaways from the high post with no prayer of going in.
Can the Pistons run the kind of offense Wally needs to maximize his effectiveness? Probably not.
But it was nice to see Cleveland’s offense employ some weak-side movement designed to get a player in an advantageous scoring position, rather than the rudimentary driving and kicking they rely on.
Wally was physical enough to grind with any player who tried to out-tough him, but he was left in Rip Hamilton‘s, Tayshaun Prince’s, and Jarvis Hayes’ dust when he had to defend them in space.
This is another limitation that will be exploited in the playoffs.
Joe Smith:
Mr. Smith (1-1 FG, 1-2 FT, 1 REB, 1 AST, 3PTS) wasn’t asked to do much, but he reversed the ball leading to a Devin Brown jumper, he hit an 18-footer, and he competed hard for every loose ball. He’s a valuable fourth big man in a rotation.
While each of the new Cavaliers performed his role admirably against Detroit, Cleveland still has considerable flaws.
Since neither West, Szczerbiak, or Pavlovic can create their own shots, the Cavs offense is even more LeBron-centric with Larry Hughes out. The Cavs don’t have the length or quickness to defend the perimeter well, and of their four bigs, the only reliable offensive player is Zydrunas Ilgauskas. In fact, the Cavs may now be one of the least athletic teams in the NBA.
The main problem with the new Cavaliers is the same problem the old Cavaliers had: The philosophy that everything on offense has to revolve around LeBron James.
Maybe if Detroit sleepwalks through another Cavs-Pistons series, Cleveland can pull another upset; but these Cavs are too one-dimensional on offense and too slow on defense to challenge Boston in the East.
While an initial glance of Cleveland’s 89-73 victory over Detroit may signify that the new guys played well, Detroit’s lethargy masked the quartet’s actual effectiveness.
Ben Wallace:
Wallace started the game stale and stagnant as ever. Twice he failed to show on screen/rolls resulting in a Tayshaun Prince jumper and a drive and dish to Antonio McDyess for a layup.
Wallace failed to fight through Rasheed Wallace’s uninspired box outs, set sluggish screens, and was a complete non-factor.
But since Detroit was sleepwalking themselves, Big Ben’s shadow gradually became more effective against the Detroit Piston ghosts.
Seven times Rasheed Wallace half-heartedly ventured into the paint and attacked Big Ben. His pet move was to hold the ball for a few seconds on the left box before softly backing down Ben and then reverse pivoting off his right foot for a fallaway jumper.
The results were:
- A missed mid-post turnaround from the right of the lane
- A slow reverse pivot turnaround leading to a questionable foul call on Ben. (‘Sheed hit both free throws)
- A slow reverse pivot fadeaway split the nets
- The same move was bricked
- The same move was blocked
- The same move was botched
- A subtle Big Ben bump on a Rasheed sweeping hook caused an airball
Totaling up the numbers, Rasheed ended up shooting 1-6 from the field with two free throws and four points in seven possessions. Certainly an acceptable defensive performance.
And since Ben’s juices were oozing slightly less slowly than Detroit’s, he was able to make several more timely defensive plays, such as:
- Blocking an Antonio McDyess dunk attempt
- Helping off his man to block Chauncey Billups coming off a screen
- Closing Rasheed off the three-point line with the shot clock winding down, forcing a hurried miss
- It should be noted that the only time a Piston challenged Ben with any energy, Wallace was too slow rotating on a Prince drive and ended up on a poster.
On offense, Wallace was lethargic and useless, setting poor screens, lounging on the weak-side, getting rid of the ball after catching it, as if it were a hot potato.
Of Wallace’s four attempts, one was a missed tip-in, two were “avert your eyes” fadeaways, and the one that went through the hoop was a nifty (lucky) two-handed jumping heave off an offensive rebound to beat the first half buzzer.
While Wallace showed that he can still have his moments on defense, how much of his performance was the result of his courage, and how much was a result of Detroit’s comatose play?
I’d venture the latter over the former.
Delonte West:
Delonte West (3-13 FG, 1-3 3FG, 6 AST, 4 REB, 1 STL, 1 BLK, 2 TO, 7 PTS had trouble penetrating on Chauncey Billups and Rip Hamilton, and when he did turn the corner, he was unable to finish over Detroit’s length.
West hit two of four jumpers when he was left all alone after Cleveland penetration. He also made a nice baseline cut and received a brilliant pass from Zydrunas Ilgauskas for a layup. His other attempts, whether in early offense or whether attempting to create, were all well off.
West’s passing was on target and he usually put the ball in good position for his teammates to shoot. None of his two turnovers were directly related to bad passing, as one came when he couldn’t penetrate on Rodney Stuckey and he pushed him in attempt to get separation for a shot, and a second came when he expected Sasha Pavlovic to zig while Sasha chose to zag.
West is fearless, gritty, and would make a nice backup, but he’s limited athletically, a factor that will come into play later in the playoffs.
Wally Szczerbiak:
Wally’s World showed that he can still hit jumpers when an offense runs set designed to get him open. Three times, Wally was able to run around low curls and hit jumpers, and he was fouled on two more occasions. Wally also hit a catch-and-shoot three after a LeBron penetration left him open.
Later in the game when Detroit’s bigs showed on the curls and allowed the defender to catch up, Wally was forced to fire up fadeaways from the high post with no prayer of going in.
Can the Pistons run the kind of offense Wally needs to maximize his effectiveness? Probably not.
But it was nice to see Cleveland’s offense employ some weak-side movement designed to get a player in an advantageous scoring position, rather than the rudimentary driving and kicking they rely on.
Wally was physical enough to grind with any player who tried to out-tough him, but he was left in Rip Hamilton‘s, Tayshaun Prince’s, and Jarvis Hayes’ dust when he had to defend them in space.
This is another limitation that will be exploited in the playoffs.
Joe Smith:
Mr. Smith (1-1 FG, 1-2 FT, 1 REB, 1 AST, 3PTS) wasn’t asked to do much, but he reversed the ball leading to a Devin Brown jumper, he hit an 18-footer, and he competed hard for every loose ball. He’s a valuable fourth big man in a rotation.
While each of the new Cavaliers performed his role admirably against Detroit, Cleveland still has considerable flaws.
Since neither West, Szczerbiak, or Pavlovic can create their own shots, the Cavs offense is even more LeBron-centric with Larry Hughes out. The Cavs don’t have the length or quickness to defend the perimeter well, and of their four bigs, the only reliable offensive player is Zydrunas Ilgauskas. In fact, the Cavs may now be one of the least athletic teams in the NBA.
The main problem with the new Cavaliers is the same problem the old Cavaliers had: The philosophy that everything on offense has to revolve around LeBron James.
Maybe if Detroit sleepwalks through another Cavs-Pistons series, Cleveland can pull another upset; but these Cavs are too one-dimensional on offense and too slow on defense to challenge Boston in the East.
Wednesday, March 12, 2008
Boston Celtics Breakdown: Championship Caliber
It’s been a thrill going around the league and scouting all of the franchises in the NBA, from the bottom-feeders to the upstarts, the underachievers to the powerhouses, and each and every flavor of basketball in between.
And after writing about 29 teams, I thought I’d save the best for last.
With the best record in basketball, it only took the Boston Celtics a little over a quarter to thoroughly annihilate the dysfunctional Bulls in a 116-93 bloodbath which was far uglier than the final score indicated.
Obviously the Bulls aren’t on Boston’s level so Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett, and Ray Allen were bound to impress. The trio combined to shoot 15-32 from the floor, 16-17 at the line, with 49 points, 16 rebounds, and 8 assists.
However, the game did provide a perfect backdrop to showcase the rest of the Celtics: the reasons why the Celtics are championship material.
Rajon Rondo:
Rondo’s responsibilities included bringing the ball up, not making mistakes, placing his passes in positions where his teammates could score, and hitting whatever open shot he was presented with. For the game his numbers were certainly impressive (5-9 FG, 6-8 FT, 3 REB, 4 AST, 1 STL, 2 TO, 16 PTS), but doubly so considering three of his assists and none of his turnovers came in the first half when the game was still reasonably close.
Rondo rarely looked for his offense in the first half as he didn’t need to. In fact he only took a single shot attempt in the half. However, when the Bulls left him alone for a 20-footer, the youngster calmly knocked it down, a result the Celtics would love to see duplicated.
Of the rest of his field goals, Rondo had two dunks in transition, scored another layup when no Bulls defender picked him up on a one-on-four break, and knocked down a tough runner late in the fourth.
Of his four misses, all came in the second half when the game was out of reach. Two were on jumpers leaving him only 1-3 from the outlands, and two came on layups (one blocked by Ben Gordon) leaving Rondo only 1-3 on contested shots in the paint.
Still, the fact that Rondo was willing to attack the hoop (he earned eight free throws and wasn’t shy about initiating contact) showed that he’s fearless and wont back away from pressure situations.
On the other side of the court, Rondo locked Ben Gordon up on any isolation. On two Gordon attempts to break Rondo down, twice Rondo poked the dribble away and forced Gordon to go pick the ball back up. While neither play resulted in a turnover, Rondo threw off Gordon’s rhythm and disrupted his plan of attack.
Rondo also reached in and used his lightning quick hands to reach in on an Andres Nocioni drive and rip him of the ball.
Rondo is good enough defensively to lock up all but the strongest or quickest guards in the league.
Kendrick Perkins:
K-Perk (4-7 FG, 6-6 FT, 11 REB, 3 BLK, 14 PTS) was an absolute beast right from the opening tip off, letting the Bulls know that the backboards were off limits for the evening. The majority of Perkins’ rebounds came in heavy traffic, and his defense under the basket intimidated all the Bulls who ventured into the paint.
Perkins set man-sized screens, was astute to find holes in the defense whenever his teammates penetrated, and his own rumblings to the basket where akin to a rhinoceros attacking an unwary enemy.
Perkins is the enforcer that will stand up to Rasheed Wallace, Dwight Howard, and Zydrunas Ilgauskas come playoff time.
James Posey:
Posey’s jump shooting (2-7 FG, 1-6 3 FG, 4-4 FT, 6 REB, 2 AST, 2 STL, 9 PTS) never made its way to the arena and Posey committed a couple of silly fouls on defense. Still, Posey hustled and bustled the entire game and always looked to play defense right in an opponents chest.
Posey’s playing like the championship winning asset he was in 2006, instead of the lazy, unconditioned distraction he was last season.
Eddie House:
House (3-8 FG, 1-3 3FG, 1-1 FT, 5 REB, 5 AST, 3 TO, 1 BLK, 8 PTS) is a streaky three-point specialist who’s hot streaks can carry Boston to victory while his cold streaks can be offset by his teammates’ production.
He’s making quick passes under Doc Rivers, and he’ll attack sloppy dribbles as well, but he’s not a backup point guard on a championship team.
Tony Allen:
Allen (0-4 FG, 4 REB, 2 AST, 1 STL, 4 TO, 0 PTS) is a brick layer and a poor decision maker who’s best assets are his above average defense and his ability to finish on the break. He’s too mistake prone to be worthy of minutes in the playoffs.
Leon Powe:
Powe (3-6 FG, 4-4 FT, 3 REB, 2 BLK, 10 PTS) ran the court for a first half dunk and played with tremendous enthusiasm and hustle on defense. If he still is raw on his defensive techniques, his hustle and energy more than compensate.
Glen Davis:
Davis (2-2 FG, 1 AST, 1 BLK, 4 PTS) is surprisingly nimble for a man with his girth and also plays with tremendous defensive energy, fronting his man, staying with him off the dribble, blocking his shots under the basket, and never giving up on plays.
The Celtics as a whole played with an inspiring amount of energy and passion which blazed even brighter next to a Bulls squad that packed it in late in the second quarter. With the Celtics up by more than 20, midway through the fourth, there was Rajon Rondo diving headlong for a rebound. With the game winding down, James Posey crashed headfirst into press row for a loose ball.
Every loose ball was chased after, every Bulls shot was met with a raised hand, and every rotation was flawless.
Boston held Chicago to 43 first half points (a solid number), 31.8 percent shooting for the game (a championship number), outrebounded the Bulls 55-35 ( a championship number), blocked 9 shots, recorded 9 steals, took 43 free-throw attempts, and grabbed two offensive rebounds off of missed free throws.
Plus the Celtics were completely, and totally unselfish. Late in the second quarter, Rondo brought the ball up the right sideline, made a nifty entry pass to a posted Garnett who made a terrific pass to a cutting Pierce along the baseline. Even though Pierce had a very good shot at scoring over the rotating Chicago defense, he too made the extra pass finding Ray Allen all alone on the left wing for an uncontested triple.
Credit Doc Rivers for getting his team to play completely unselfish basketball. Credit Rivers again for getting everyone on his ball club to play with a fevered passion from his superstar trio to his bench warming backups. Tom Thibodeau also deserves credit for coaching his squad to play exceptional defense.
And while Garnett, Pierce, and Allen certainly deserve credit for their explosive offensive firepower, the Celtics are excelling this year because of less sexy characteristics: Their role players performing their duties harmoniously and their team wide commitment to exceptional defense.
And after writing about 29 teams, I thought I’d save the best for last.
With the best record in basketball, it only took the Boston Celtics a little over a quarter to thoroughly annihilate the dysfunctional Bulls in a 116-93 bloodbath which was far uglier than the final score indicated.
Obviously the Bulls aren’t on Boston’s level so Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett, and Ray Allen were bound to impress. The trio combined to shoot 15-32 from the floor, 16-17 at the line, with 49 points, 16 rebounds, and 8 assists.
However, the game did provide a perfect backdrop to showcase the rest of the Celtics: the reasons why the Celtics are championship material.
Rajon Rondo:
Rondo’s responsibilities included bringing the ball up, not making mistakes, placing his passes in positions where his teammates could score, and hitting whatever open shot he was presented with. For the game his numbers were certainly impressive (5-9 FG, 6-8 FT, 3 REB, 4 AST, 1 STL, 2 TO, 16 PTS), but doubly so considering three of his assists and none of his turnovers came in the first half when the game was still reasonably close.
Rondo rarely looked for his offense in the first half as he didn’t need to. In fact he only took a single shot attempt in the half. However, when the Bulls left him alone for a 20-footer, the youngster calmly knocked it down, a result the Celtics would love to see duplicated.
Of the rest of his field goals, Rondo had two dunks in transition, scored another layup when no Bulls defender picked him up on a one-on-four break, and knocked down a tough runner late in the fourth.
Of his four misses, all came in the second half when the game was out of reach. Two were on jumpers leaving him only 1-3 from the outlands, and two came on layups (one blocked by Ben Gordon) leaving Rondo only 1-3 on contested shots in the paint.
Still, the fact that Rondo was willing to attack the hoop (he earned eight free throws and wasn’t shy about initiating contact) showed that he’s fearless and wont back away from pressure situations.
On the other side of the court, Rondo locked Ben Gordon up on any isolation. On two Gordon attempts to break Rondo down, twice Rondo poked the dribble away and forced Gordon to go pick the ball back up. While neither play resulted in a turnover, Rondo threw off Gordon’s rhythm and disrupted his plan of attack.
Rondo also reached in and used his lightning quick hands to reach in on an Andres Nocioni drive and rip him of the ball.
Rondo is good enough defensively to lock up all but the strongest or quickest guards in the league.
Kendrick Perkins:
K-Perk (4-7 FG, 6-6 FT, 11 REB, 3 BLK, 14 PTS) was an absolute beast right from the opening tip off, letting the Bulls know that the backboards were off limits for the evening. The majority of Perkins’ rebounds came in heavy traffic, and his defense under the basket intimidated all the Bulls who ventured into the paint.
Perkins set man-sized screens, was astute to find holes in the defense whenever his teammates penetrated, and his own rumblings to the basket where akin to a rhinoceros attacking an unwary enemy.
Perkins is the enforcer that will stand up to Rasheed Wallace, Dwight Howard, and Zydrunas Ilgauskas come playoff time.
James Posey:
Posey’s jump shooting (2-7 FG, 1-6 3 FG, 4-4 FT, 6 REB, 2 AST, 2 STL, 9 PTS) never made its way to the arena and Posey committed a couple of silly fouls on defense. Still, Posey hustled and bustled the entire game and always looked to play defense right in an opponents chest.
Posey’s playing like the championship winning asset he was in 2006, instead of the lazy, unconditioned distraction he was last season.
Eddie House:
House (3-8 FG, 1-3 3FG, 1-1 FT, 5 REB, 5 AST, 3 TO, 1 BLK, 8 PTS) is a streaky three-point specialist who’s hot streaks can carry Boston to victory while his cold streaks can be offset by his teammates’ production.
He’s making quick passes under Doc Rivers, and he’ll attack sloppy dribbles as well, but he’s not a backup point guard on a championship team.
Tony Allen:
Allen (0-4 FG, 4 REB, 2 AST, 1 STL, 4 TO, 0 PTS) is a brick layer and a poor decision maker who’s best assets are his above average defense and his ability to finish on the break. He’s too mistake prone to be worthy of minutes in the playoffs.
Leon Powe:
Powe (3-6 FG, 4-4 FT, 3 REB, 2 BLK, 10 PTS) ran the court for a first half dunk and played with tremendous enthusiasm and hustle on defense. If he still is raw on his defensive techniques, his hustle and energy more than compensate.
Glen Davis:
Davis (2-2 FG, 1 AST, 1 BLK, 4 PTS) is surprisingly nimble for a man with his girth and also plays with tremendous defensive energy, fronting his man, staying with him off the dribble, blocking his shots under the basket, and never giving up on plays.
The Celtics as a whole played with an inspiring amount of energy and passion which blazed even brighter next to a Bulls squad that packed it in late in the second quarter. With the Celtics up by more than 20, midway through the fourth, there was Rajon Rondo diving headlong for a rebound. With the game winding down, James Posey crashed headfirst into press row for a loose ball.
Every loose ball was chased after, every Bulls shot was met with a raised hand, and every rotation was flawless.
Boston held Chicago to 43 first half points (a solid number), 31.8 percent shooting for the game (a championship number), outrebounded the Bulls 55-35 ( a championship number), blocked 9 shots, recorded 9 steals, took 43 free-throw attempts, and grabbed two offensive rebounds off of missed free throws.
Plus the Celtics were completely, and totally unselfish. Late in the second quarter, Rondo brought the ball up the right sideline, made a nifty entry pass to a posted Garnett who made a terrific pass to a cutting Pierce along the baseline. Even though Pierce had a very good shot at scoring over the rotating Chicago defense, he too made the extra pass finding Ray Allen all alone on the left wing for an uncontested triple.
Credit Doc Rivers for getting his team to play completely unselfish basketball. Credit Rivers again for getting everyone on his ball club to play with a fevered passion from his superstar trio to his bench warming backups. Tom Thibodeau also deserves credit for coaching his squad to play exceptional defense.
And while Garnett, Pierce, and Allen certainly deserve credit for their explosive offensive firepower, the Celtics are excelling this year because of less sexy characteristics: Their role players performing their duties harmoniously and their team wide commitment to exceptional defense.
Sunday, March 9, 2008
How the South was won
Well, I'm glad I actually picked a game right or all those Duke fans would be making fun of me today. If y'all don't remember I picked Carolina to beat Duke at Duke. Now some people laughed, but it seems like i got one right.
Of course whenever these two tobacco road powerhouses play, there is excitment. Carolina dominated nearly the whole game until a Duke rally eventually tied the game. Duke pretty much just lined up long range cannon Greg Paulus who showered threes at the Tar Heels before eventually falling silent in the second half.
For those who watched, Carolina's defense was much improved over the first game..and oh yeah they had Lawson back. Ty Lawson, who missed the previous meeting with a sprained left ankle, finished with 10 points for the Tar Heels, who claimed their first victory in a winner-take-all regular-season finale with Duke since 1985. They captured their 26th regular-season conference championship and third in four years under Williams, and have won three straight at Cameron for the first time since 1994-96.
And once again, Hansbourgh and company ruined senior night for the Blue Devil. Maybe J.J Redick should start a support group. I'm sure he would have lots of members.
Friday, March 7, 2008
Memphis Grizzlies Breakdown: The Worst In The West
Despite their 100-88 victory over the Nets, the Grizzlies played exactly like a 14-46 team would.
Just how brutal was it?
None of the Grizzlies bothered playing any lick of defense. Individual defense was lackadaisical, rotations were late, and during the stray chance a Memphis defender managed to stay in front of his man, the defender would never throw his hand out to contest New Jersey's shots.It was New Jersey’s own lack of energy and their wayward jumpers—rather than anything Memphis did—that contributed to the Nets 45% shooting.
Besides Dark Milicic (and only when being defended by Nenad Kristic), the Grizzlies were futile in their ventures in the pivot with Hakim Warrick and Rudy Gay missing all but one of their combined shots from the post.Juan Carlos Navarro, Kyle Lowry, and Javaris Crittenton are all shooting guards wrapped in point guard bodies.
The Grizzlies couldn’t slow down Richard Jefferson (10-18 FG, 22 PTS) and never closed out hard on Nenad Kristic’ jumpers.
Because of their fragile frames, Hakim Warrick and Rudy Gay slipped every screen making screen/rolls involving them virtually useless.
With no role players and no point guards, the Grizzlies tallied only 17 assists on their 39 field goals.
Darko Milicic’s leaden hands resulted in a number of needless Grizzlies turnovers.
Mike Conley (0-2 FG, 1-2 FT, 1 REB, 1 AST, 4 PF, 2 TO, 1 PT) was abysmal.
Of his four fouls, one was a mindless hack of Kristic after Nenad grabbed a defensive rebound; one was a terrible closeout on a Devin Harris jumper resulting in an atrocious foul; one came on a careless moving screen after a pass; and a fourth came when he didn’t move his feet quick enough on a drive and was tooted for a foul. Conley decided to drive one-on-four in transition resulting in a stupid turnover.
After leaving Marcus Williams to double Richard Jefferson on a wing, Conley stayed doubling Jefferson for three seconds after RJ passed the ball. Luckily for the Grizz, the Nets never saw Williams’ wide open dive-cut to the basket.
Because of Conley’s puny size, he wasn’t able to finish at the basket, he was strung out by screens, and he was timid where the giants live. On one third quarter drive, he beat his man and had a clear layup attempt at the basket, but he was so overly conscious of rotating bigs, that he timidly stopped and passed the ball out where Rudy Gay missed a semi-contested jumper.
Conley does deserve some recognition though. After all, it is hard for a player to make that many mistakes in only 13 minutes of playing time!
As the fourth pick of last year’s NBA draft, Conley will have to work extra hard on his strength, his psyche, and especially his court-awareness to avoid being the first bust of the 2007 draft.
With all of these flaws, mistakes, and errors, how did the Grizz manage to prevail against New Jersey?
Because Hakim Warrick (9-15 FG, 7-8 FT, 7 REB, 25 PTS) made the Nets pay for their refusal to throw a hand up on his jumpers.
Because while he’s too small, he doesn’t have great vision, and two of his layups were rejected, Kyle Lowry (5-12 FG, 4 REB, 7 AST, 1 STL, 15 PTS) had no reservations on driving to the basket and dishing out to shooters.
Because while he couldn’t stop Richard Jefferson at all, Mike Miller’s 22 points matched RJ’s total and prevented the Nets from winning that crucial matchup.
Because Jason Collins rebounded and set solid screens all game long.
On one possession, Collins set such a good screen while Hakim Warrick was curling off it, that Trent Hassell had to reach out and grab Warrick’s jersey to prevent an open look. Warrick hit his two free throws and the Grizzlies were able to add two points to their total just because Collins is fundamentally sound.
Because while his moves were bulky and mechanical, Darko Milicic (8-12 FG, 11 REB, 16 PTS) bullied Nenad Kristic and give him swirlies under the basket.
Because the Grizzlies managed to jump out to a quick 11-4 lead against the sleepwalking Nets. Realizing they had every chance to win, the Grizzlies played with energy the entire game.
The Grizzlies will be bad for the remainder of the year, and will likely be bad next season unless radical roster changes are made, or their young kids all develop ahead of schedule.
However, at least the Grizzlies have a post player in Milicic who can overpower NBA cream puffs, an athletic wing in Gay who has the talent to be a legit scorer, and the veteran Miller who can shoot, drive, pass, and rebound.
Fundamentally, the Grizzlies win was proof that in basketball, sometimes a lack of talent and a lack of execution can be made up for by simply playing hard.
Tuesday, March 4, 2008
Favre Retires
I'm sure you've heard that Brett Favre will spend the next NFL season driving an RV across country. So, what does this mean? Nothing. Just look for fewer interceptions in the League next season.
New Orleans Hornets Breakdown: Paul Is The Key
New Orleans latest victory may only have come against the lowly Knicks, but in the cannibalistic Western Conference, every road win is crucial.
In their 100-88 triumph, the Hornets displayed a number of traits characteristic of playoff teams, and a number of critical flaws as well. Since the positives outweigh the negatives, the Hornets are definitely a quality team. But how far can they go?
Let's look at Chris Paul and the rest of his nest to find out what's abuzz.
Good Paul:
Paul (11-17 FG, 2-3 3FG, 3-4 FT, 8 AST, 2 TO, 27 PTS) was terrific offensively against the Knicks, doing whatever he wanted with the ball in his hand. His pet move was to drive off a screen and use a nifty right handed pull-up dribble to unleash an array of floating layups and bankers.
Paul’s decision making off of screen/rolls was impeccable with a number of alley-oops to Tyson Chandler, mid range jumpers for David West, pull up J’s for Paul himself, or kick-out passes to open shooters resulting from his ability to create open looks for teammates.
Of Paul’s 17 shots, only a single one was forced.
Paul hit two spot-up three-balls after his man was forced to double team West in the post. Paul’s only miss from behind the line came to beat to the third quarter buzzer.
Paul looked to push the ball every time in early offense but was remarkably calm and patient allowing his team to run offensive sets.
Of Paul’s three steals, one was a simple one coming off a tipped Eddy Curry crosscourt pass, one was a result of an impressive deflection of a Nate Robinson pass, and a third was a spectacular dropping down from the weak-side to intercept a pass intended for David Lee.
I observed Paul setting two screens and they were good ones.
Paul grabbed five rebounds including two clutch ones in the final two minutes.
Paul’s total of eight assists is misleading—his teammates missed a number of open jumpers which would have raised his total.
Bad Paul:
Paul’s screen defense was embarrassing to watch. Not only would he get strung up on screens, but he’d give up on plays altogether after getting picked off. His pathetic screen defense allowed Nate Robinson to curl and shoot or stop and pop for 7-11 shooting and 17 points.
During a brief stretch in the second quarter, Paul made a bad decision to pass the ball to a well-defended David West in the post which nearly resulted in a turnover. After the Hornets inbounded the ball, Paul drove and made a terrible pass to a stationary David West which sailed out of bounds. Paul then failed to pick up Nate Robinson on defense and watched Nate take it coast-to-coast for a layup.
The key to the sequence is that Paul lost focus and cost his team a possession on offense and two points on defense. Don’t think that even such momentary daydreams will go unpunished come playoff time.
Paul’s entry passes are subpar with examples being the aforementioned near-turnover to West and a sloppy entry pass to Tyson Chandler turning into a steal for David Lee.
Even the slow as traffic Mardy Collins was able to blow by Paul and get good looks at the hoop.
Good Hornets:
David West was an efficient second option. He showed a soft touch on his 17-footers (4-8), was an effective passer out of double teams (2 AST), was able to block shots (4 BLK) and was able to shut down Malik Rose (2-7 FG) and David Lee (2-9 FG).
Tyson Chandler was a grizzly bear on the backboards, fighting his way to 18 rebounds, the majority of them in heavy traffic.
Chandler also set bruising screens, showed on screen/rolls, cut aggressively, converted garbage points, and now has a simple effective right hook which he used to exploit Eddy Curry.
Mo Peterson worked hard on defense and was able to knock down three corner threes because of Chris Paul’s penetration.
Mike James (3-5 FG, 3 REB, 0 AST, 0 TO, 7 PTS) used his quick first step to free himself for open looks.
Ryan Bowen followed a Mardy Collins dribble to poke the ball away from behind leading to a steal and Chris Paul slam.
The Hornets starters were always confident they would get an open shot, never forcing shots, never panicking if the Knick defenders took an initial set away. As a result, the Hornets stayed patient and got any open look they wanted.
If the Hornets don’t have many good on-ball perimeter defenders, their back line is tough as nails, and the team made a number of timely rotations.
Bad Hornets:
By my count, West was only 2-7 on low post moves, with two assists, and two trips to the free throw line. Since West only made one of the resulting four free-throws, one of the trips really counts as a turnover.
Chandler and West were dominated by Eddy Curry (8-11 FG, 3-6 FT, 8 REB, 19 PTS) under the basket. Chandler repeatedly was beaten down the court by Curry allowing EC to seal and gain prime post position against Chandler. Chandler also was beaten along the baseline by a Malik Rose iso (Malik Rose!), resulting in a reverse layup plus a foul.
Peja Stojakovic was dreadful from the perimeter (3-13 FG, 3-10 3FG, 9 PTS) and didn’t play a lick of defense. If Stojakovic makes more than 50% of his threes, he’s an asset; if he makes 40-50%, he’s a contributor; if me makes less than 40%, he’s a liability.
New Orleans bench is a disaster. Melvin Ely is a totally unacceptable backup. Jannero Pargo and Mike James are shoot first, last, and always point guards who can’t run an offense, defend, or play unselfishly. Rasual Butler (0-4 FG, 0-2 3FG) is a bricklayer, and Ryan Bowen is an 11th man.
The Hornets played with a disappointing lack of energy, a disturbing trend which has resulted in two losses to the Wizards, plus the dogfight against the Knicks.
The Outlook:
Chris Paul is definitely a stud of a point guard who can do whatever he wants with the ball. His slightly upgraded strength, his much improved jumper, and his willingness to pass first are what have elevated him from a very good young point guard, to one of the best point men in the NBA.
His defensive deficiencies are mitigated by the fact that aside from Jason Kidd and Derek Fisher, none of the talented point guards in the West are acceptable defenders.
Still, the effort is a concern. Will Paul continue to fight if he runs into obstacles? And will Paul’s lack of focus cost the Hornets even more losses against the NBA’s cupcakes?
The Hornets lack of experience and their putrid bench prevent them from being a contender this year, but the Hornets can definitely win a playoff series.
All they’ll need is for Stojakovic and Peterson to make the majority of their jumpers, James and Pargo to produce points off the bench, and for the team to avoid stretches of unfocused play.
Anything more will depend on Paul eliminating his mistakes and his teammates all playing up to their capabilities. Not impossible, but unlikely for this current season.
Saturday, March 1, 2008
Atlanta Hawks Breakdown: Bibby Makes The Difference
With the Hawks clawing and scratching at the Eastern Conference’s final playoff spot, they couldn’t afford a home loss to the bottom-feeding Knicks. Indeed, the Hawks ultimately took care of business with a 99-93 victory, but they didn’t look too impressive in doing so. In fact, the newest Hawk, Mike Bibby, was the difference between a win and a loss.
For the majority of the game, Bibby (4-11 FG, 1-5 3FG, 5 REB, 10 AST, 2 STL, 2 TO, 11 PTS) didn’t have the range from the perimeter. Nevertheless, he had no difficulties bringing the ball up the court and finding open teammates after accepting a screen. Bibby made excellent passes on the break, sparking Atlanta to their total of 28 fast break points.
Of his two turnovers, one was Marvin Williams’ undoing, when Williams twice bobbled nifty passes from Bibby on one possession leading to a turnover.
If Bibby wasn’t making his outside shots, and if his defense was unspectacular, he saved his best for the last two minutes of the game. That’s when Bibby:
- Correctly anticipated a Jamal Crawford left-to-right crossover, stepping in front for the charge.
- Made an on-target lob pass to Josh Smith off a high screen culminating in a lead-changing alley-oop.
- Set a sturdy wing screen on Jamal Crawford with Joe Johnson attempting to use it to gain the baseline. With Crawford knocked down and unsure who to defend, Bibby was left wide open to pump fake away a flailing Crawford, take a step in, and knock down a critical jumper.
- Calmly sank two free throws to seal the win.
When the young Hawks got flustered and needed points, Bibby was a calming presence who kept them from panicking. His clutch presence and play down the stretch allowed the Hawks to prevail against a game Knicks squad.
What about the rest of the Hawks?
Joe Johnson (8-22 FG, 2-2 FT, 8 REB, 6 AST, 2 STL, 1 TO, 1 BS, 20 PTS) is a playmaker, but he overhandles and takes too many bad shots to be an elite player.
Josh Smith (11-19 FG 1-2 3FG, 9 REB, 1 AST, 2 TO, 0 STL, 2 BS, 25 PTS) has range out to three-point land but only if he has his feet set and has time to wind up his slow release jumpers. The rest of his offensive game consists of early offense drives, long layups, catching lobs, running the floor, and knocking down mid-range pull-up jumpers.
For all of his hype, athleticism, and statistical achievements suggesting so, Smith is an unwilling defender.
When matched up with Zach Randolph. Smith was toyed with under the basket, and when Smith was defending a small forward, he didn’t move his feet at all. Smith’s closeouts were sloppy as he never came to a jump-stop while closing out, opting instead to drift to his man while the player just drove past him.
Smith only cared about playing defense when he was stride for stride with Fred Jones on the break and saw an opportunity to stuff Jones at the rim, and when he left his man to swat Quentin Richardson’s post up with 2 minutes to go—the point being, Smith only cares about the defensive plays that get on Sportcenter.
Al Horford boxes out, has an effective 15-footer, is either soft or weak (or both), and is too small to play center. Most of his points came on jumpers, or garbage points under the basket.
Marvin Williams doesn’t have the handle to play the three, and isn’t strong enough to play the four.
Smith, Marvin Williams, and Al Horford were pushed around down low by Eddy Curry, David Lee, and Randolph.
With the exception of Smith and Johnson, the Hawks were willing and able to make the extra pass to open teammates.
The Hawks make extremely good decisions on the break.
The Hawks are still young and their immature in the sense that they aren’t crisp in their half court sets, they don’t all come to play every night, and they crumble on the road. Their spectacular athleticism, and their genuine eagerness to produce is what has them knocking on Philadelphia and New Jersey’s doorstep.
Even with Bibby, the Hawks don't look like a playoff team as of yet.
Friday, February 29, 2008
Manny Being Manny: Blowing Off The Troops
The Boston Redsox visited the White House on Wednesday before taking a side trip to visit wounded soldiers at the Walter Reed Medical Center.
However, Manny, Theo Epstein, and Julian Tavarez were no-shows, they decided to opt out.
Sox CEO Larry Lucchino Chimed in:
"It wasn't a mandatory event. I think Manny's going to find out from his teammates today that he missed something. It was an exceptional day because after the White House of course we went back to Walter Reed, we had done that after the '04 championship and I think it's a good balance to the day. ...
"I don't think we'll make a big issue of it [those who didn't make the trip]. If we had chosen to make an issue of it, it would have been a mandatory appearance for people. Some of our players don't support America."
"Spring training is a very congested time, and as you might imagine, I don't want to offer any excuses, I can just see people making different value judgments. I'm not going to make a big deal out of it."
Saturday, February 23, 2008
Rockets Breakdown: Lifting Off
Over the last month, the Rockets have blasted off from landlocked mediocrity into a playoff orbit. Since Tracy McGrady is the team’s most dynamic playmaker, lets use Houston’s 112-100 victory over Miami to find out jut how far McGrady can pilot the Rocketship.
McGrady: 8-19 FG, 1-4 3FG, 6-7 FT, 3 REB, 10 AST, 1 TO, 2 STL, 23 PTS
First Half:
The Rocket offense was firing on all cylinders in the opening period with McGrady as the focal point.
McGrady was posted against a fronting Dorell Wright where he caught an over-the-top entry pass, turned, drew a double, and found Luis Scola on the baseline for a layup.
The next two possessions, McGrady would curl off down screens to the left wing where he would catch, fire, and shoot. One possession netted a basket and the other netted a plus-one.
McGrady drove right off a screen and calmly sank a 20-footer.
McGrady missed an alley-oop attempt.
The Rockets tried curling McGrady off a weak-side screen, but when McGrady curled to the basket and drew a double, his pass to a cutting Yao was over his head out-of-bounds.
A simple pass along the perimeter found Alston open for a three-pointer.
McGrady worked with Luis Scola on the left wing, passing to Scola, faking a handoff, cutting hard to the basket, then breaking off and floating out to the baseline. With Dorell Wright thoroughly confused, McGrady was able to catch and sink a 20-footer.
McGrady’s bricked a pull-up three in early offense.
McGrady exploded by Wright along the baseline and when Miami sent help, Yao Ming was all alone under the basket for a layup.
Twice McGrady didn’t have any room to penetrate after using screens so he brought the ball out and made two perfect entry passes leading to Yao baskets.
McGrady curled around a weak-side screen, caught a pass, drove to the edge of the paint and passed it out to Rafer Alston in the corner. Passes along the perimeter were too quick for the scrambling Heat and McGrady found himself reacquainted with the ball for an easy 20-foot jumper.
McGrady tried to drive and dish to Alston in the left corner but because Jason Williams didn’t have to collapse on help, the pass out was a harmless one.
McGrady drove parallel to the basket along the free throw line where he drew a crowd and found Luis Scola for an open 18-footer which was missed.
McGrady hit a wide open three towards the end of the quarter.
McGrady totaled 14 points and 5 assists for the first quarter, prodigious numbers to be sure. With McGrady playing so effectively (combining with Miami’s miserable defense), the Rocket offense exploded for 41 points. The most impressive fact was how those points and assists were totaled.
McGrady was less effective in the second quarter as he reverted to his habit of catching the ball and waiting a few seconds before deciding what to do with the ball.
Still, McGrady was patient on screen/rolls with Yao, and if nothing opened up, T-Mac was willing to bring the ball out and feed Yao in the post.
He tried to drive and dish down low but Miami collapsed their defense and knocked the ball away.
McGrady opened up for another catch-and-shoot on a down screen but he missed the jumper.
McGrady drove and found Luther Head wide open in the corner but Luther Head missed the open three.
McGrady dunked in a lob.
If McGrady hesitated too much in his decision making, he was willing to move without the ball to get open, made generally good decisions, and was generally unselfish.
Second Half:
In the second half, McGrady’s habit of holding the ball too long became an obvious detriment to Houston’s harmonious offense. The most glaring body of evidence came early in the third quarter when McGrady used a cross-screen to set himself on the left box. After receiving the ball, McGrady waited five second; one, two, three, four, five, before launching an ill-fated step back jumper. Ugh!
Miami had their bigs show aggressively on screen/rolls in the second half, stringing McGrady out. With McGrady’s screen/roll game neutralized, he reverted to attacking in early offense to try and get points. Two such adventures drew fouls on Miami, one resulted in a contested brick, and another resulted in a missed three in transition.
McGrady tried to attack the basket when isolated on Dorell Wright, but his layup attempt was moving away from the basket and was well off.
McGrady missed three standstill jumpers with no rhyme or reason in the Rockets offense.
McGrady tried to drive along the baseline but he got cut off by Miami’s help. His desperate pass to the corner was intercepted.
McGrady did have one impressive layup, a lefty drive with his right hand where McGrady switched hands at the basket to complete the layup. He also made a beautiful bounce pass against a scrambling Heat defense to Carl Landry for a dunk. McGrady had a second impressive assist when he pumped Wright out of his boots, drove, and found Landry cutting again for a dunk.
Most of McGrady’s assists in the second half were extremely lucky. On one play, a Heat player threw the ball right at T-Mac at halfcourt. All he had to was catch it and throw it to Yao who was still under the basket for an easy assist.
It should be noted that I mentioned nothing about McGrady’s defense in either half. That’s because it was consistent throughout the game. McGrady rarely got himself out of position on defense before plays started, but T-Mac was more willing to move his hands than his feet on penetrations. Since McGrady was matched up mainly on Dorell Wright, his deficiencies were rarely taken advantage of.
So what conclusions can be made about McGrady?
What about the rest of the Rockets?
Yao was too soft attacking the baskets and too slow to provide help defense when the Rockets perimeter was breeched. Still, his fadeaway jumpers are indefensible by anyone under seven-feet tall.
Rafer Alston was in control of the offensive throughout, and he hit a good amount of his three-pointers to keep the offense moving. Since he did everything required of him, it’s no surprise the Rockets scored 112 points.
Shane Battier made Dwayne Wade work hard for every shot and chipped in with four assist, five boards, and 12 points.
Carl Landry cut hard and finished strong around the basket.
While the Rockets have precious few individual defenders (McGrady, Yao, Alston, and Scola can’t guard their shadows, and they all start), the ghost of Jeff Van Gundy still resonates throughout the Rockets facilities and their team defense is exceptional.
Can the Rockets make the playoffs? If they all stay healthy, absolutely. Yao’s size, McGrady’s playmaking, and the team’s defense are attributes that few teams can overcome. However, McGrady and Ming’s injury history causes me to think twice about whether or not they’ll make it to the finish line unscathed. An injury to either of them will put the Rockets in the lottery.
Can the Rockets win a playoff series? Probably. Nobody has the size to match up with Yao Ming, and few teams have the defensive discipline or the individual defenders to hang with McGrady.
Still, Yao’s alarming habit of having his hooks blocked by the most minuscule of defenders, the Rockets paucity of good individual defenders, and McGrady’s softness and unwillingness to take the ball to the hoop when it matters most will leave the Rockets underdogs in every series. Which leads to the next question.
Can the Rockets go all the way? Absolutely not. T-Mac lacks the creativity and the will-power to lead Houston over the most elite teams in the West. The Rocketship will run out of fuel in the second round at latest.
McGrady: 8-19 FG, 1-4 3FG, 6-7 FT, 3 REB, 10 AST, 1 TO, 2 STL, 23 PTS
First Half:
The Rocket offense was firing on all cylinders in the opening period with McGrady as the focal point.
McGrady was posted against a fronting Dorell Wright where he caught an over-the-top entry pass, turned, drew a double, and found Luis Scola on the baseline for a layup.
The next two possessions, McGrady would curl off down screens to the left wing where he would catch, fire, and shoot. One possession netted a basket and the other netted a plus-one.
McGrady drove right off a screen and calmly sank a 20-footer.
McGrady missed an alley-oop attempt.
The Rockets tried curling McGrady off a weak-side screen, but when McGrady curled to the basket and drew a double, his pass to a cutting Yao was over his head out-of-bounds.
A simple pass along the perimeter found Alston open for a three-pointer.
McGrady worked with Luis Scola on the left wing, passing to Scola, faking a handoff, cutting hard to the basket, then breaking off and floating out to the baseline. With Dorell Wright thoroughly confused, McGrady was able to catch and sink a 20-footer.
McGrady’s bricked a pull-up three in early offense.
McGrady exploded by Wright along the baseline and when Miami sent help, Yao Ming was all alone under the basket for a layup.
Twice McGrady didn’t have any room to penetrate after using screens so he brought the ball out and made two perfect entry passes leading to Yao baskets.
McGrady curled around a weak-side screen, caught a pass, drove to the edge of the paint and passed it out to Rafer Alston in the corner. Passes along the perimeter were too quick for the scrambling Heat and McGrady found himself reacquainted with the ball for an easy 20-foot jumper.
McGrady tried to drive and dish to Alston in the left corner but because Jason Williams didn’t have to collapse on help, the pass out was a harmless one.
McGrady drove parallel to the basket along the free throw line where he drew a crowd and found Luis Scola for an open 18-footer which was missed.
McGrady hit a wide open three towards the end of the quarter.
McGrady totaled 14 points and 5 assists for the first quarter, prodigious numbers to be sure. With McGrady playing so effectively (combining with Miami’s miserable defense), the Rocket offense exploded for 41 points. The most impressive fact was how those points and assists were totaled.
- With McGrady curling off screens to unleash automatic jump shots.
- With McGrady penetrating and looking to dish.
- With McGrady moving without the ball to free himself for open jump shots
- With McGrady making snappy decisions with the ball instead of standing around having the game bog down.
McGrady was less effective in the second quarter as he reverted to his habit of catching the ball and waiting a few seconds before deciding what to do with the ball.
Still, McGrady was patient on screen/rolls with Yao, and if nothing opened up, T-Mac was willing to bring the ball out and feed Yao in the post.
He tried to drive and dish down low but Miami collapsed their defense and knocked the ball away.
McGrady opened up for another catch-and-shoot on a down screen but he missed the jumper.
McGrady drove and found Luther Head wide open in the corner but Luther Head missed the open three.
McGrady dunked in a lob.
If McGrady hesitated too much in his decision making, he was willing to move without the ball to get open, made generally good decisions, and was generally unselfish.
Second Half:
In the second half, McGrady’s habit of holding the ball too long became an obvious detriment to Houston’s harmonious offense. The most glaring body of evidence came early in the third quarter when McGrady used a cross-screen to set himself on the left box. After receiving the ball, McGrady waited five second; one, two, three, four, five, before launching an ill-fated step back jumper. Ugh!
Miami had their bigs show aggressively on screen/rolls in the second half, stringing McGrady out. With McGrady’s screen/roll game neutralized, he reverted to attacking in early offense to try and get points. Two such adventures drew fouls on Miami, one resulted in a contested brick, and another resulted in a missed three in transition.
McGrady tried to attack the basket when isolated on Dorell Wright, but his layup attempt was moving away from the basket and was well off.
McGrady missed three standstill jumpers with no rhyme or reason in the Rockets offense.
McGrady tried to drive along the baseline but he got cut off by Miami’s help. His desperate pass to the corner was intercepted.
McGrady did have one impressive layup, a lefty drive with his right hand where McGrady switched hands at the basket to complete the layup. He also made a beautiful bounce pass against a scrambling Heat defense to Carl Landry for a dunk. McGrady had a second impressive assist when he pumped Wright out of his boots, drove, and found Landry cutting again for a dunk.
Most of McGrady’s assists in the second half were extremely lucky. On one play, a Heat player threw the ball right at T-Mac at halfcourt. All he had to was catch it and throw it to Yao who was still under the basket for an easy assist.
It should be noted that I mentioned nothing about McGrady’s defense in either half. That’s because it was consistent throughout the game. McGrady rarely got himself out of position on defense before plays started, but T-Mac was more willing to move his hands than his feet on penetrations. Since McGrady was matched up mainly on Dorell Wright, his deficiencies were rarely taken advantage of.
So what conclusions can be made about McGrady?
- When he’s able to step into his jumpers, T-Mac is an explosive jump shooter.
- McGrady is generally unselfish and looks to pass first on his penetrations.
- McGrady is an excellent passer out of screen/rolls.
- When Rick Adelman had McGrady zigging before he caught the ball, or zagging after he caught it, the Rockets offense got whatever it wanted.
- When Miami adjusted to McGrady’s screen/roll game, he lacked the wherewithal or the extra gear to adjust.
- Though he half-heartedly went through screens, McGrady shied away from contact at all costs.
- McGrady is a below-average defender who’d get carved up guarding the league’s best wings (thank goodness for Shane Battier!).
- McGrady forced too many shots when Miami took away his first options.
- The Rocket offense sputtered when McGrady wasn’t aggressive but it stagnated altogether when he was taken out of the game.
- With Bonzi Wells no longer in Houston, the Rockets will have to depend on McGrady’s playmaking even more.
What about the rest of the Rockets?
Yao was too soft attacking the baskets and too slow to provide help defense when the Rockets perimeter was breeched. Still, his fadeaway jumpers are indefensible by anyone under seven-feet tall.
Rafer Alston was in control of the offensive throughout, and he hit a good amount of his three-pointers to keep the offense moving. Since he did everything required of him, it’s no surprise the Rockets scored 112 points.
Shane Battier made Dwayne Wade work hard for every shot and chipped in with four assist, five boards, and 12 points.
Carl Landry cut hard and finished strong around the basket.
While the Rockets have precious few individual defenders (McGrady, Yao, Alston, and Scola can’t guard their shadows, and they all start), the ghost of Jeff Van Gundy still resonates throughout the Rockets facilities and their team defense is exceptional.
Can the Rockets make the playoffs? If they all stay healthy, absolutely. Yao’s size, McGrady’s playmaking, and the team’s defense are attributes that few teams can overcome. However, McGrady and Ming’s injury history causes me to think twice about whether or not they’ll make it to the finish line unscathed. An injury to either of them will put the Rockets in the lottery.
Can the Rockets win a playoff series? Probably. Nobody has the size to match up with Yao Ming, and few teams have the defensive discipline or the individual defenders to hang with McGrady.
Still, Yao’s alarming habit of having his hooks blocked by the most minuscule of defenders, the Rockets paucity of good individual defenders, and McGrady’s softness and unwillingness to take the ball to the hoop when it matters most will leave the Rockets underdogs in every series. Which leads to the next question.
Can the Rockets go all the way? Absolutely not. T-Mac lacks the creativity and the will-power to lead Houston over the most elite teams in the West. The Rocketship will run out of fuel in the second round at latest.
Thursday, February 21, 2008
Stunning
Are you kidding me?? Duke lost to Miami. Looking to bounce back from a tough loss to Wake Forest, the Devils once again stumbled against conference foe Miami. A bit of history was made to as this was Miami's first win against the Devils in 45 years.
Miami made six of eight free throws in the final 41 seconds to preserve the upset. Duke's Nelson sank a layup with 2 seconds left to make the score 94-92, but McClinton sank two clinching free throws before Nelson hit a meaningless 3-pointer at the buzzer.
In a bit of another news down tobacco road, UNC dominated NC State. Now Duke and Carolina are tied in conference record. I look forward to the showdown at Duke in early March. The game presumably sets up which team will be a first seed in a tournament bracket. Considering the first two rounds would be in Durham and Charlotte respectively, the game is that much more important.
I for one have a tip for Coach K after the Miami game: The showdown against UNC is still a week away. Worry about your own team coach.
Tuesday, February 19, 2008
Erick Blasco's NBA Midterm Grades
With the season halfway over, it’s time to see which teams are passing this season’s tests with flying colors, and which teams still need to do more homework.
The grades aren’t only based on performance, but on expectations as well.
For example, the Sonics and Timberwolves are taking remedial classes to help them for the future, while the Mavs and Spurs are taking the most rigorous championship-level courses in a quest to become valedictorian.
Atlanta Hawks: B+
After a decade of futility, the Baby Hawks are finally growing up and knocking on the playoff door. Considering their youth and inexperience, that fact alone makes this season a successful campaign. Still, that youth and experience does pop up when you look at their 6-17 road record. Acquiring Mike Bibby shows that the team is serious about making the playoffs and he should provide stability for when his teammates get flustered away from Atlanta.
Boston Celtics: A+
We all knew they’d be good, but nobody expected they’d be this good! Credit Doc Rivers for getting his stars to defend and for implementing a totally unselfish gameplan; Pierce, Allen, and Garnett for playing completely unselfish (and beautiful to watch) basketball; Kendrick Perkins for improving his defense; James Posey for getting in shape; the young kids for playing with purpose and confidence; and Danny Ainge for mortgaging the future on a very realistic chance of bringing home a championship.
Charlotte Bobcats: F
The Bobcats have clearly gone backwards this season. Raymond Felton and Emeka Okafor have regressed, and Sam Vincent hasn’t nurtured the ‘Cats the way Bernie Bickerstaff did. The trust, the confidence, and the effort aren’t there.
Chicago Bulls: F
The Bulls got tired of Scott Skiles’ fascist tendencies early in the season and quit on him when they started to lose. Ben Wallace is washed up, Ben Gordon thinks he’s a star but isn’t, Luol Deng’s been hurt, Kirk Hinrich’s been terrible, and the only players who play with any heart are Joe Smith, Tyus Thomas, Andres Nocioni, and Joakim Noah. It’s been a complete and total failure.
Cleveland Cavaliers: C-
It isn’t hard to expect that the Cavs would struggle with such an inept supporting cast. They still need a point guard, a creative wing scorer, and a more consistent power forward. Too often it’s been LeBron James against the world. Mike Brown can only do so much with his roster: namely get them to defend, rebound, and hope LeBron James is spectacular.
Dallas Mavericks: D+
The regular season is always a joke for Dallas. Their flaw is the collective fragility of their key players, the reason why they melt when an opponent turns up the pressure. They still lose focus often, and get flustered easily, forcing Avery Johnson to waste time outs to coddle his team, get them to take deep breathes, and convince them that the sky isn’t falling. They fancy themselves as championship contenders, but they don’t have the psyche to go the distance—Unless a proven Warrior like Jason Kidd provides Dallas with a much needed spine.
Denver Nuggets: B+
Carmelo Anthony’s growth, the time needed for Carmelo and Allen Iverson to mesh, and J.R. Smith’s improved three-point shooting have the Nuggets playing inspiring ball. The team’s penchant for one-on-one play and their lack of defensive toughness still spells an early playoff exit.
Detroit Pistons: B+
The commitment to defense is back (except for Antonio McDyess’ late rotations), and the offense has been opened up some with more and more screens for Rip Hamilton to run through. Will Flip Saunders revert back to one-on-one basketball when the playoffs start?
Golden State Warriors: A
For such a full throttle team, the Warriors are remarkably consistent. Baron Davis thrives and is unselfish as the team’s ringleader, and Monta Ellis’ electric early-offense drives to the hoop offset the punch lost when Jason Richardson was traded to Charlotte. Plus, Don Nelson has his Warriors playing with a swagger that intimidates weak-hearted opponents.
Houston Rockets: C+
The Rockets got off to a not-so-surprising tough start, but have surprisingly turned things around. The point guard situation has been resolved with Rafer Alston the only healthy body remaining. The team still has Jeff Van Gundy’s defensive mindset infused in the back of their brains, and they’re becoming much more comfortable with Rick Adelman’s offensive system. Still, the team is one major injury away from reverting to also-ran status.
Indiana Pacers: C-
The Pacers are right about where they were projected to be, but the team still needs to get rid of Jermaine O’Neal, Jamaal Tinsley, Troy Murphy, and commit to a full-fledged rebuilding process. At least Mike Dunleavy has developed into an impressive and heady player.
Los Angeles Clippers: D+
Their season was over before it began with Elton Brand down for the duration. Still, the team is a veteran-laden team with no hope of competing for a playoff spot. The Corey Maggette situation is still a distraction, Sam Cassell trade rumors are a distraction, Tim Thomas is still a bonehead, and the team doesn’t know if they should keep the core and build around Brand for next season, or if they should blow things up. The Clippers are back to being their hopeless, inept selves.
Los Angeles Lakers: A+
All their young players are playing with supreme confidence. Derek Fisher’s presence has taken the pressure of Kobe and has allowed the kids to develop. And Kobe’s finding the balance between facilitating to a point of passiveness and being aggressive to the point of alienating his supporting cast. No playoff team from last year has improved themselves more than the Lakers.
Memphis Grizzlies: C-
The Grizzlies are just as bad as people expected them to be. At least the team has an opportunity to find out whether or not Rudy Gay can be their go-to scorer. Since the team is blowing up the roster to get young athletic talent or expiring contracts, expect Mike Miller to be shipped out before year’s end.
Miami Heat: F
Has any team disappointed more? Blame Pat Riley the GM for believing that Pat Riley the coach could succeed with one injured superstar, one has-been superstar, and one role player who does the most when less is needed of him. The youngsters can’t play in the league and the veterans are washed up. And this is the same team that won a championship less than two years ago?
Milwaukee Bucks: D
With all the offensive firepower on the roster, you would think the Bucks would be closer to a playoff spot than they are. The team has too many scorers, not enough role players, and not enough toughness. Plus, they’re chumps on the road with a league-worst 23 losses away from the Bradley Center.
Minnesota Timberwolves: C+
The Wolves play hard all the time and have evolved to a level where they can knock off any team at home that doesn’t take them seriously. Randy Wittman has made a player out of Sebastian Telfair and Al Jefferson is the goods. The team needs a go-to wing scorer but the future is definitely bright in the Twin Cities.
New Jersey Nets: D+
With Jason Kidd, Richard Jefferson, and Vince Carter as talented as they are, and with the playoff pedigree Kidd and Jefferson bring to the table, the fact that the Nets are seven games below .500 is a disappointment. The team has lacked an edge the entire season and has begun their rebuilding process about 6 months too late. Kidd is on the way out and it’s past time for Carter to join him.
New Orleans Hornets: A+
They showed signs as early as last year, but David West and Chris Paul have developed into stars. Byron Scott and Doc Rivers will fight it out for coach-of-the-year.
New York Knicks: F
The Knicks are still the league’s laughingstock. From Stephon Marbury’s poisonous personality, to Isiah Thomas’ hypocritical and delusional statements (the Knicks can compete for a championship, ha!), the Knicks are the definition of fail.
Orlando Magic: A-
Hedo Turkoglu is playing with supreme confidence, Rashard Lewis provides the Magic with supreme spacing, and Dwight Howard is the league’s supreme young center. If only the team had a supreme point guard and played supreme defense, they would be able to do some supreme things in the postseason.
Philadelphia 76ers: B
Andre Miller always puts the Sixers in the best position to succeed. Considering their offensively putrid front court, and all the youngsters inhabiting the roster, that the Sixers are within reach of the postseason is mighty impressive.
Phoenix Suns: C-
With Shawn Marion grumbling, the Suns had lost their edge. Instead of overwhelming overmatched opponents, the team had relaxed and regressed to the point where the rest of the West had caught up to them. With Shaq on board, can the Suns succeed while radically altering their style of play, and their half court sets?
Portland Trail Blazers: A+
The rest of the NBA has caught up with them, but the Blazers play hard, smart, and disciplined. Brandon Roy is a superstar and Greg Oden’s return next season will only make the team that much more formidable. LeMarcus Aldridge and Travis Outlaw need to get tougher, but the future of the Blazers is bright. They’ll make the playoffs next year, and will be legit contenders the year after.
Sacramento Kings: B
Considering how mismatched their roster is, that the Kings are shouting distance of .500 is impressive. Kevin Martin is a star who can be built around, now it’s up to management to trade Brad Miller and Ron Artest for more pieces of the future.
San Antonio Spurs: C-
Is it a question of the Spurs saving their energy for the postseason, or have age and injuries taken their toll? Either way, the Spurs haven’t come close to playing championship-caliber basketball since 2007 came and went. Their rotations are confused, Tim Duncan’s trademarked bank shots are coming up empty, and the team hasn’t gotten any intangibles from Robert Horry, Fabricio Oberto, Matt Bonner, and Francisco Elson. If the Spurs don’t start peaking by the end of March, this may be yet another year the Spurs can’t repeat.
Seattle Supersonics: D+
The Sonics have too many duplicates on their roster that need to be let go. One of their point guards, Damien Wilkins, one of their power forwards, and one of their project big men need to be purged. And while the sky is the limit for Kevin Durant, his frailty is such an overwhelming obstacle to just how good he can be. Have the Sonics put themselves in a better position for next year? Doubtful.
Toronto Raptors: C+
The Raptors are right about where they should be. Since they’re soft, they’ll lose to any physical team they play. Since they’re unselfish, they’ll beat any poor defensive team they play. Since they’re strictly a jump shooting team, they’ll lose to any team better than them, beat any team worse than them, and they’ll split with teams on their level based on whether their jumpers are falling or not. Adjust the curve for being in the Eastern Conference, and you have a team hovering five games over .500.
Utah Jazz: C+
Kyle Korver’s sweet shooting masks the team’s desperate need for another creative shooter. A more athletic big is also imperative. The Jazz are fine at home, but their flaws are exposed in their unsightly 12-16 road record.
Washington Wizards: B-
They overachieved with Arenas out, but injuries and the NBA have figured out that the team lacks muscle inside, that depth is a huge concern, and that the team is purely a jump shooting team. Caron Butler is the only next level player on the roster.
The grades aren’t only based on performance, but on expectations as well.
For example, the Sonics and Timberwolves are taking remedial classes to help them for the future, while the Mavs and Spurs are taking the most rigorous championship-level courses in a quest to become valedictorian.
Atlanta Hawks: B+
After a decade of futility, the Baby Hawks are finally growing up and knocking on the playoff door. Considering their youth and inexperience, that fact alone makes this season a successful campaign. Still, that youth and experience does pop up when you look at their 6-17 road record. Acquiring Mike Bibby shows that the team is serious about making the playoffs and he should provide stability for when his teammates get flustered away from Atlanta.
Boston Celtics: A+
We all knew they’d be good, but nobody expected they’d be this good! Credit Doc Rivers for getting his stars to defend and for implementing a totally unselfish gameplan; Pierce, Allen, and Garnett for playing completely unselfish (and beautiful to watch) basketball; Kendrick Perkins for improving his defense; James Posey for getting in shape; the young kids for playing with purpose and confidence; and Danny Ainge for mortgaging the future on a very realistic chance of bringing home a championship.
Charlotte Bobcats: F
The Bobcats have clearly gone backwards this season. Raymond Felton and Emeka Okafor have regressed, and Sam Vincent hasn’t nurtured the ‘Cats the way Bernie Bickerstaff did. The trust, the confidence, and the effort aren’t there.
Chicago Bulls: F
The Bulls got tired of Scott Skiles’ fascist tendencies early in the season and quit on him when they started to lose. Ben Wallace is washed up, Ben Gordon thinks he’s a star but isn’t, Luol Deng’s been hurt, Kirk Hinrich’s been terrible, and the only players who play with any heart are Joe Smith, Tyus Thomas, Andres Nocioni, and Joakim Noah. It’s been a complete and total failure.
Cleveland Cavaliers: C-
It isn’t hard to expect that the Cavs would struggle with such an inept supporting cast. They still need a point guard, a creative wing scorer, and a more consistent power forward. Too often it’s been LeBron James against the world. Mike Brown can only do so much with his roster: namely get them to defend, rebound, and hope LeBron James is spectacular.
Dallas Mavericks: D+
The regular season is always a joke for Dallas. Their flaw is the collective fragility of their key players, the reason why they melt when an opponent turns up the pressure. They still lose focus often, and get flustered easily, forcing Avery Johnson to waste time outs to coddle his team, get them to take deep breathes, and convince them that the sky isn’t falling. They fancy themselves as championship contenders, but they don’t have the psyche to go the distance—Unless a proven Warrior like Jason Kidd provides Dallas with a much needed spine.
Denver Nuggets: B+
Carmelo Anthony’s growth, the time needed for Carmelo and Allen Iverson to mesh, and J.R. Smith’s improved three-point shooting have the Nuggets playing inspiring ball. The team’s penchant for one-on-one play and their lack of defensive toughness still spells an early playoff exit.
Detroit Pistons: B+
The commitment to defense is back (except for Antonio McDyess’ late rotations), and the offense has been opened up some with more and more screens for Rip Hamilton to run through. Will Flip Saunders revert back to one-on-one basketball when the playoffs start?
Golden State Warriors: A
For such a full throttle team, the Warriors are remarkably consistent. Baron Davis thrives and is unselfish as the team’s ringleader, and Monta Ellis’ electric early-offense drives to the hoop offset the punch lost when Jason Richardson was traded to Charlotte. Plus, Don Nelson has his Warriors playing with a swagger that intimidates weak-hearted opponents.
Houston Rockets: C+
The Rockets got off to a not-so-surprising tough start, but have surprisingly turned things around. The point guard situation has been resolved with Rafer Alston the only healthy body remaining. The team still has Jeff Van Gundy’s defensive mindset infused in the back of their brains, and they’re becoming much more comfortable with Rick Adelman’s offensive system. Still, the team is one major injury away from reverting to also-ran status.
Indiana Pacers: C-
The Pacers are right about where they were projected to be, but the team still needs to get rid of Jermaine O’Neal, Jamaal Tinsley, Troy Murphy, and commit to a full-fledged rebuilding process. At least Mike Dunleavy has developed into an impressive and heady player.
Los Angeles Clippers: D+
Their season was over before it began with Elton Brand down for the duration. Still, the team is a veteran-laden team with no hope of competing for a playoff spot. The Corey Maggette situation is still a distraction, Sam Cassell trade rumors are a distraction, Tim Thomas is still a bonehead, and the team doesn’t know if they should keep the core and build around Brand for next season, or if they should blow things up. The Clippers are back to being their hopeless, inept selves.
Los Angeles Lakers: A+
All their young players are playing with supreme confidence. Derek Fisher’s presence has taken the pressure of Kobe and has allowed the kids to develop. And Kobe’s finding the balance between facilitating to a point of passiveness and being aggressive to the point of alienating his supporting cast. No playoff team from last year has improved themselves more than the Lakers.
Memphis Grizzlies: C-
The Grizzlies are just as bad as people expected them to be. At least the team has an opportunity to find out whether or not Rudy Gay can be their go-to scorer. Since the team is blowing up the roster to get young athletic talent or expiring contracts, expect Mike Miller to be shipped out before year’s end.
Miami Heat: F
Has any team disappointed more? Blame Pat Riley the GM for believing that Pat Riley the coach could succeed with one injured superstar, one has-been superstar, and one role player who does the most when less is needed of him. The youngsters can’t play in the league and the veterans are washed up. And this is the same team that won a championship less than two years ago?
Milwaukee Bucks: D
With all the offensive firepower on the roster, you would think the Bucks would be closer to a playoff spot than they are. The team has too many scorers, not enough role players, and not enough toughness. Plus, they’re chumps on the road with a league-worst 23 losses away from the Bradley Center.
Minnesota Timberwolves: C+
The Wolves play hard all the time and have evolved to a level where they can knock off any team at home that doesn’t take them seriously. Randy Wittman has made a player out of Sebastian Telfair and Al Jefferson is the goods. The team needs a go-to wing scorer but the future is definitely bright in the Twin Cities.
New Jersey Nets: D+
With Jason Kidd, Richard Jefferson, and Vince Carter as talented as they are, and with the playoff pedigree Kidd and Jefferson bring to the table, the fact that the Nets are seven games below .500 is a disappointment. The team has lacked an edge the entire season and has begun their rebuilding process about 6 months too late. Kidd is on the way out and it’s past time for Carter to join him.
New Orleans Hornets: A+
They showed signs as early as last year, but David West and Chris Paul have developed into stars. Byron Scott and Doc Rivers will fight it out for coach-of-the-year.
New York Knicks: F
The Knicks are still the league’s laughingstock. From Stephon Marbury’s poisonous personality, to Isiah Thomas’ hypocritical and delusional statements (the Knicks can compete for a championship, ha!), the Knicks are the definition of fail.
Orlando Magic: A-
Hedo Turkoglu is playing with supreme confidence, Rashard Lewis provides the Magic with supreme spacing, and Dwight Howard is the league’s supreme young center. If only the team had a supreme point guard and played supreme defense, they would be able to do some supreme things in the postseason.
Philadelphia 76ers: B
Andre Miller always puts the Sixers in the best position to succeed. Considering their offensively putrid front court, and all the youngsters inhabiting the roster, that the Sixers are within reach of the postseason is mighty impressive.
Phoenix Suns: C-
With Shawn Marion grumbling, the Suns had lost their edge. Instead of overwhelming overmatched opponents, the team had relaxed and regressed to the point where the rest of the West had caught up to them. With Shaq on board, can the Suns succeed while radically altering their style of play, and their half court sets?
Portland Trail Blazers: A+
The rest of the NBA has caught up with them, but the Blazers play hard, smart, and disciplined. Brandon Roy is a superstar and Greg Oden’s return next season will only make the team that much more formidable. LeMarcus Aldridge and Travis Outlaw need to get tougher, but the future of the Blazers is bright. They’ll make the playoffs next year, and will be legit contenders the year after.
Sacramento Kings: B
Considering how mismatched their roster is, that the Kings are shouting distance of .500 is impressive. Kevin Martin is a star who can be built around, now it’s up to management to trade Brad Miller and Ron Artest for more pieces of the future.
San Antonio Spurs: C-
Is it a question of the Spurs saving their energy for the postseason, or have age and injuries taken their toll? Either way, the Spurs haven’t come close to playing championship-caliber basketball since 2007 came and went. Their rotations are confused, Tim Duncan’s trademarked bank shots are coming up empty, and the team hasn’t gotten any intangibles from Robert Horry, Fabricio Oberto, Matt Bonner, and Francisco Elson. If the Spurs don’t start peaking by the end of March, this may be yet another year the Spurs can’t repeat.
Seattle Supersonics: D+
The Sonics have too many duplicates on their roster that need to be let go. One of their point guards, Damien Wilkins, one of their power forwards, and one of their project big men need to be purged. And while the sky is the limit for Kevin Durant, his frailty is such an overwhelming obstacle to just how good he can be. Have the Sonics put themselves in a better position for next year? Doubtful.
Toronto Raptors: C+
The Raptors are right about where they should be. Since they’re soft, they’ll lose to any physical team they play. Since they’re unselfish, they’ll beat any poor defensive team they play. Since they’re strictly a jump shooting team, they’ll lose to any team better than them, beat any team worse than them, and they’ll split with teams on their level based on whether their jumpers are falling or not. Adjust the curve for being in the Eastern Conference, and you have a team hovering five games over .500.
Utah Jazz: C+
Kyle Korver’s sweet shooting masks the team’s desperate need for another creative shooter. A more athletic big is also imperative. The Jazz are fine at home, but their flaws are exposed in their unsightly 12-16 road record.
Washington Wizards: B-
They overachieved with Arenas out, but injuries and the NBA have figured out that the team lacks muscle inside, that depth is a huge concern, and that the team is purely a jump shooting team. Caron Butler is the only next level player on the roster.
Monday, February 18, 2008
Kyle Kendrick Gets Traded To Japan
Good to see professional athletes still have a sense of humor. High five Brett Myers.
Saturday, February 16, 2008
Another Blow For The New England Patriots
They trademarked 19-0, but I wonder if they trademarked 19-0*. If not, they should have. I know that's the way I would have remembered it. The New England Patriots cheated and they got caught red handed. Unfortunately, the cheating didn't start in 2007.
They may not have won Superbowl XLII, but they may have stole another one. Among the 2007 escapade, allegations emerged that they had recorded the St. Louis Ram's practice sessions before the 2002 Superbowl.
The Patriots won the game 20-17 in the Superdome. Now that victory is tainted and it may turn out to be a very expensive win.
A law suit filed on behalf of former Rams player Willie Gary wants the Patriots, team owner Robert Kraft and head coach Bill Belichick to pay 100 million dollars for their dirty deeds.
Unfortunately for the Pats, there strategy can't include stealing the opposing parties work, in law, thats protected by the work product doctrine.
Wednesday, February 13, 2008
NFL Offseason Roundup: Atlanta Falcons
Record: 4-12
2007 Season: This was a season for the Falcons to forget and began with the Vick drama. The Falcons were never really a very good team and without Vick's heroics their record pretty much reflected the talent level. The Falcons did win four games, and do have a decent defense. However, the 2007 season is forgetable at best.
2008 Projections: The Falcons need help and they need it quick. QB was a revolving door last year, so look for the Falcons to spend a high draft pick on the position. Also, Dunn isn't getting any younger. Although the team does have Norwood, they could take a serious look at McFadden. On defense, the Falcons also need help. Hall is an excellent cover corner, but can anyone name the other CB. I thought so. The Falcons could also use more push up front. Look for them to address these issues in the draft.
2008 Season: Going to be a long season in hot-lanta. The QB will need time to develop and I doubt the Falcons will secure many free agents. The running game could keep them in a few games, but I not thinking many.
Projection: 4th NFC South
The Rocket Verse The Juice
Roger Clemens. I want him to be innocent so bad, he is a legend, he is a hero. Seven Cy Young Awards, over 350 wins, and... Steroids?
The Rocket came from humble upbringings, you know how your grandfather walked uphill to school both ways? Well in high school, Roger ran 2 miles to school and back every day, no lie. His father passed away when he was 9 years old and he was raised by his mother and his grandmother. His mother worked 3 jobs, but couldn't afford to send any of her children to college. The Rocket found the answer, Baseball. Our American past time. It's what every little boy dreams of.
Money, fame, a model wife, and great kids, he has it all. Well, except that Brian McNamee and Congress want to taint his record with HGH and Steroid allegations. It's what keeps BIg Mac McGuire out of the Hall of Fame and so many others. Will it keep one of the best pitchers of all time out too?
I can complain about the fact that Mitchell, whom prepared the Mitchell Report, is a Director on the Board of the Boston Redsox. I can point to the coincidence that so many key Yankee players were named, while David Ortiz, or any other player who contributed to the 2 Boston Redsox World Series Championship's were not named. I can go on and on, but in the end, did the Rocket use steroids?
A few Congressman have pointed out the evidence against Clemens is extremely weak. I sure hope they are right.
The hearings have convinced me of two things, McNamee is a scumbag and Congress has no place in baseball.
NFL Offseason Roundup: St. Louis Rams
Record: 3-13 2007 Season: Injuries, Injuries, Injuries. Bulger was in and out, and the loss of Steven Jackson for most of season didn't help. Once upon a time stalwart Orando Pace finally might be done, and unfortunately the defense didn't get any better. Furthmore, aging verterns Holt and Bruce aren't getting any younger. The Rams were hammered by division rival Seahawks, and look horrible most of the other game.
2008 Outlook: Fortunately they play in the NFC West where anything is possible. They also have the 2nd overall pick and Chris Long would look mighty good a Rams uniform. There is also other free agents to be had on defense include Haynesworth (TEN) and the corner market is very strong this year. Bulger and Jackson should be back to full form next year, but the Rams must find someone to protect Bulger. Jordan Gross of Carolina would look mighty good.
2008 Season: I still think the Rams have the pieces to win. Jackson is an all pro and Bulger still has something left in the tank. The defense has always been bad, but what changed was the Rams ability to put up points. Look for this to change in the coming year, and if the O-line is upgraded...watch out.
Projection: 3rd NFC West
Tuesday, February 12, 2008
NFL Offseason Roundup: Miami Dolphins
It's never too early to start the NFL offseason. In an immense undertaking, I will be taking a look at each of the 32 teams and evaluating talent and examining potential upgrades. The teams will be examined in Draft Order. If only some coaches read this stuff:
Record: 1-15
2007 Season: It was a dismal year. The Dolphins looked pathetic most of the time and had the worst season in franchise history. However, there were some bright spots. The aging defense held things together, and the running game was looking good until the loss of Ronnie Brown early on. Provided Brown returns from injury, the running game will be a bright spot in the '08 season. The Dolphins are also hoping Tenn Ginn Jr. takes a big step forward in '08.
2008 Offseason: The head coach is out and Bill Parcels and his goons have already began the slash and burn tactics. Last year's number 1 reciever and quarterback are gone. That is not to say that is bad thing. The Dolphins need help in all areas of the game. Their defense is old, the O-line is weak, and the QB is still young. That is not to say that the Fins can't upgrade. Potential free agent acquisitions could strengthen the O-line and players such as Pro Bowler Allen Faneca or former 1st round pick Jordan Gross from Carolina woould look good to Dolphins fans. The defense is old, but potential draft picks could solidfy this. The corner market is strong with free agents Samuel (NE) and Asomugha (OAK) potential free agents.
2008 Season: It will be a long hual for the Fins. The QB still needs time to throw the ball, but the Fins could remain competitive on the legs of Brown. If they upgrade the defense via free agency and the draft it could be a top 10 unit next year. The Dolphins are not helped with the schedule as they play 2 games against powerhouse New England.
Projected: 4th AFC East:
History in the Making
It looked like another long day for the Carolina Tar Heels. Coming off a loss to the powerhouse Blue Devils, Carolina looked to be on the verge of defeat at the hands of the Clemson Tigers. The Tigers dominated regulation and forced multiple turnovers. Tigers' player Cliff Hammonds scored 31 points, and the Tigers tallied 17 offensive rebounds. The dominating performance put the Tigers ahead by 11 with three minutes left in regulation.
But if there are two things you can count on in Carolina, it's delicious pork BBQ and the Tar Heels beating Clemson at home. As if by a miracle, the Heels tied the game in regulation eventually forcing double OT. Hansbourgh ended the night with 39 points, and led the Heels back from the jaws of defeat in a game that looked to end one of the greatest streaks in college sports history.
Despite Clemson's efforts, the game still made some history. Clemson has now lost 53 straight in Chapel Hill. Coming off a loss to Duke, and absent Lawson, Carolina needed every trick in the book to keep the streak alive. Although the night ended like any other when Carolina plays Clemson, the effort by the Tigers did prove one thing to Carolina fans: It's better to be lucky than good.
But if there are two things you can count on in Carolina, it's delicious pork BBQ and the Tar Heels beating Clemson at home. As if by a miracle, the Heels tied the game in regulation eventually forcing double OT. Hansbourgh ended the night with 39 points, and led the Heels back from the jaws of defeat in a game that looked to end one of the greatest streaks in college sports history.
Despite Clemson's efforts, the game still made some history. Clemson has now lost 53 straight in Chapel Hill. Coming off a loss to Duke, and absent Lawson, Carolina needed every trick in the book to keep the streak alive. Although the night ended like any other when Carolina plays Clemson, the effort by the Tigers did prove one thing to Carolina fans: It's better to be lucky than good.
Friday, February 8, 2008
Duke-UNC Condensed Game
UNC's Ty Lawson, who didn't play, averages 13.6 points per game. Duke won by eleven. There's an excuse for Tar Heel fans. And with Blue Devils trading 3's for 2's, I'm not sure if it would have made a difference had Lawson been on the court. At 20-1, the Dookies are off to their best start ever, and while they don't have much of a presence in the post, they may be on their way to a national champiship anyway.
National Signing Day: Saban Shines, Clemson Loads Up and the Cane's Look to Return to Greatness
First the Super Bowl, then Super Tuesday, and finally there was National Signing Day. For months college football head coaches have drooled and fought over the best high school talent across the country. The most touted of them all, Pennsylvania QB Terrelle Pryor, hasn't made up his mind yet, but there were plenty of solid athletes who did.
RB Julius Jones, the overall No. 2 prospect, decided to head to Alabama after eyeing Oklahoma and Florida State. Jones' speed should make him a playmaker for Nick Saban and the Tide whose recruiting class was one of the best, if not the best, in the nation. Bama boasts WLB/WR Mark Baron (6'2, 210, 4.5), WLB Jerrell Harris (6'3, 215, 4.5), and DT Marcel Dareus (6'4, 275, 4.95) to name a few.
Speaking of Florida State, the Seminoles got something they badly needed: a quarterback. EJ Manuel (6'5, 215, 4.6) has been on his way to Tallahassee for some time now and must have Jimbo Fisher foaming at the mouth, recalling his days of tutoring JaMarcus Russell. Manuel's dual-threat ability is just what the 'Noles needed in order to keep Bobby Bowden ahead of Joe Paterno as the winningest coach, unless Terrelle Pryor (6'6, 225, 4.4) decides to go to Happy Valley, that is. Southern California zaped five-star CB TJ Bryant (6'0, 185, 4.45) right out of Bowden's backyard.
Bowden's son, Tommy, recruited one of the nation's best classes for Clemson, most notably five-star DE Da'Quan Bowers (6'4, 265, 4.8) and five-star RB Jamie Harper (6'0, 227, 4.4) who will become even better as CJ Spiller and James Davis take him under their wings.
The Gators got help in their secondary where help was definitely needed. Will Hill (6'3, 203, 4.3) and Dee Finley (6'3, 205, 4.55), the nation's two top safeties, are headed to Gainesville to fill the void left by Reggie Nelson. OL Ricky Barnum (6'3, 260, 5.4) and WLB Ramon Buchanan (6'1, 195, 4.5) decommitted suddenly and are headed to Michigan and Miami, respectively. The Gators still wound up with a top-notch class.
Despite a gloomy season, Notre Dame held its on, signing several top defensive prospects and the No. 2 QB, Dayne Christ (6'5, 227, 4.6) whose arm-strength and name should make Touchdown Jesus proud.
But it was Randy Shannon's Hurricanes that arguably came out on top. The Cane's signed 12 ESPN 150 prospects. Arthur Brown (6'1, 225, 4.5), Sean Spence (6'1, 200, 4.69), and the already mentioned Ramon Buchanan look to return the Cane's to defensive dominance, along with top DT Marcus Fortson.
GIANT THRILLER: Manning Poised, Giants Determined and Plaxico Was Right
I didn't see this coming. The much ballyhooed New England Patriots were supposed to win this game and go down in history as arguably the best team ever. We all sat there and watched as they struggled, but in the back of our minds everyone, even Giants fans, just knew that Tom Brady, being the clutch player that he is, would somehow someway rally the Patriots back.That never happened.
Instead, it was Eli Manning, as awkward as he is, who looked poised in the pocket. And that scrambling, 32-yard pass to David Tyree will make highlight reels from now until the end of time. You can't help but wonder: how did the Patriots blow it?
Well, the easy answer is they got too cocky. No one will ever forget Plaxico Burress' controversial prediction, or the way Brady found it hysterical. Talk about eating your words.
But if you really want to know how the Patriots blew it, the answer is that none of its stars were able to shine. None. I imagine, though, that Brady might have been able shine and rally his team had his offensive line actually shown up. Those guys must've been on that trip with Tony Romo and Jessica Simpson. There is simply no excuse for the way they played on Sunday, and with the way Michael Strahan, Justin Tuck and Osi Umenyiora were able penetrate and keep Brady rattled, they sure didn't look like pro-bowlers. Randy Moss was irrelevant. Junior Seau didn't do anything. In an usual form, Bill Belichick failed to make adjustments during the game to give Brady more time, and I won't even mention the decision to go for it on 4th & 13 halfway into the third quarter on the Giants' 32-yard line with a pro-bowl kicker in the Super Bowl with a tight 7-3 score. Trash-talking Rodney Harrison gave up that famous 32-yard third-down conversion pass to Tyree. And I forget whoever blew the coverage on the very basic pass play from Manning to Burress that ended up being the game-winning touchdown.
And, oh yeah, those three points turned out to be the difference in the game.
I was rooting for the Patriots, and at kickoff, I found myself in a room full of Giants fans. It wasn't a problem, though. I just knew the Patriots would pull it out, and I'd be the only one in the room celebrating. Then I was going to go home and cut the sleeves off of all my sweatshirts a la Belichick.
Turns out I was the only one in the room not celebrating, and the sleeves of my sweatshirts remain intact.
And with that, the Giants are Super Bowl XLII champions, while the Patriots are 18 and 1, 19 and no.
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