 |  |  |
How Did That Happen?May 21 08  With the Bulls winning yesterday’s lottery, I thought it would be good to get a reaction from one of the team’s fans. Luckily, we have one who has written for us before. John Nguyen, take it away.-Chris It’s a great day to be a Chicago Bulls fan. We’re not supposed to be here. We defied the 1.7% odds and won the number one pick. This pick should be called, "Good Karma." This pick pretty much made up for many of the mistakes made since Pax took over; not trading up in 2003 with the number 7 pick and Marcus Fizer for Wade or even Chris Kaman, giving Hinrich and Nocioni huge contract extensions, not getting Iguodala and Al Jefferson, passing on Brandon Roy, listening to Scott Skiles too much, signing Ben Wallace, dumping Tyson Chandler for nothing, not getting a big man coach sooner, messing up Tyrus Thomas’ development, not pushing Skiles enough to develop Ben Gordon at point guard since 2004, and the pandora’s box created by Kobe, Gasol, and Kevin Garnett trade talks. Contrary to Dwayne Wade, the Bulls deserve the top pick because they did not tank like Miami this season or Boston of 2006-2007 for Greg Oden. The Rose vs. Beasley debate has begun to who should go number one. Both men are potential franchise players. Both men will be all stars. So who do you choose? More importantly, who does Paxson choose? Michael Beasley is being compared to a better version of Derrick Coleman, a rich man’s Carmelo Anthony, a black Dirk Nowitzki, Antawn Jamison meets Amare Stoudamire. Derrick Rose is measured up against Chris Paul and Deron Williams and has a high potential of Tony Parker with better defense and superior court vision, a more athletic version of Gary Payton, Jason Kidd with a jumpshot, Dwayne Wade with true point guard skills, and a more athletic Deron Williams. Some have even come out and say that he’s a mix of Isiah Thomas and Scottie Pippen. Who sounds more appealing? For me, it’s Derrick Rose. He is the best player available at number one. He’s too dynamic; an all in one package who boosts everyone else’s value for future trades. Rose is a prototypical point guard who only comes around once every 5 years with his amazing athleticism. Paul and Deron are not even that athletic. Rose’s basketball IQ and intangibles are off the charts shown in the NCAA tournament. He just needs more work on his jumpshot. That’s about it. Don’t get me wrong, Beasley will turn out to be a stud, too. He’s just not dynamic enough. He doesn’t play defense and doesn’t really make anyone better. A GM can always find a scoring forward like him. There’s no dry spell there. He’s also a tweener but I don’t have problem if Pax takes Beasley though. Please remember that Chicago is not supposed to be here at number one. We were stuck at number nine. Even Pax didn’t watch the draft lottery. Pax is in a situation where he cannot mess up with either kid. I’ll repeat it again like how Dante from Clerks say it, "We’re not even supposed to be here!" So Bulls fans shouldn’t be mad if we take Beasley yet by taking Beasley we are drafting by need, not BPA. The obvious choice is Rose. He’s is the starting point on winning a title maybe even winning multiple titles. It’s time to think big. Do the Bulls have a log jam at guards? Duh. Does that make Hinrich the odd man out? Absolutely. By getting Derrick Rose, Kirk already lost his starting job. He should be sweating bullets right now as we speak since Pax has praised Rose more than Beasley. Hinrich fans will try to negotiate and say, "Hinrich can be the starting 2 guard." That’s just illogical. Hinrich cannot play the SG spot. Get that out of your heads right now. I really mean it. SG means shooting guard. Last time I checked, Hinrich can’t shoot or create his own shot. He’s not a volume clutch scorer like Ben Gordon. He never was and he will never be that type of player. A Rose/Gordon backcourt sounds much menacing than a Rose/Hinrich backcourt don’t you think? Then you might say, "Hinrich can play defense where Ben’s is nonexistent." Again, where have you been this past season? Hinrich’s D is laughable, hanging on to past reputation. Hinrich will never ever be 2nd team all defense again because Chris Paul, Derrick Rose, and Rajon Rondo will battling for that. We also have Thabo Sefolosha who is the utility guard providing more length and defense so why should Hinrich be on the team now? Kirk cannot be a 6th man either because his contract is too high to be on the bench registering 20-25 minutes a game. It’s more beneficial to keep Gordon a little bit longer because he’s a basketball machine who keeps training. He will inspire hardcore work ethic in Rose and can help him in developing his jumper. Larry Hughes and Andres Nocioni are the other odd men out. If no one takes Hughes in a deal, buy him out. The last best possible thing for Hughes is to get expiring contracts for him. Pax has to consolidate his assets and try to get another big player for Rose; a 1-2 punch. Drew Gooden is not good enough to win a title. There are some names dropped: Elton Brand, Emeka Okafor, Jermaine O’Neal, Michael Beasley, and Carmelo Anthony. To be able to even think about Beasley or Melo, Pax has to work a sign and trade with Deng. If Pax can pull something like that off, hand him the GM of the Year award for 2008-2009. Even if Paxson got Beasley, that roster still needs more retooling. He still has to consolidate talent to get another good player to play with Beasley. "How did that happen? We’re not even supposed to be here!" Yet, here we are. It’s time to make the most of it now. [top image: http://www.flickr.com/photos/philchambers/]
Bulls Win LottoMay 21 08  This is a special feature from guest blogger Christopher Sells. NBA Draft Lottery 2008 results: 1. There are rumors that both Kirk Hinrich and Udonis Haslem have started packing their bags already, in anticipation of the drafting of Derrick Rose and Michael Beasley, respectively. Their names are at the top of every mock draft I’ve seen, though the order varies. So now we will go through a month of reading about who did well in what workout and what teams need what. And we’ll hear teams deny who they really want to take in an effort to throw everyone off. We’ll also see a steady stream of underclassmen returning to school, which should clear things up just a bit. [image:http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2206/2196554254_a5a1663f66_m.jpg]
ECF: Pistons vs. CelticsMay 20 08  This is a feature from guest blogger Christopher SellsEastern Conference Finals: Detroit Pistons v. Boston Celtics. If you’re surprised, then you probably haven’t been paying much attention. Tonight marks the start of what we all assumed was coming from the beginning of the season. Cleveland tried their best to throw everybody off, but it didn’t work. So these two teams, who have the best two records in the entire League, will square off for a trip to the Finals. This is old hat for Detroit. I can’t remember the last time they weren’t in the ECF (upon research, it was 2002. Coincidentally, this is also when the Celtics made their last appearance). This is a late spring ritual for the Pistons and their roster is packed with guys who have been here before. As we found out last night with the Spurs, experience does matter. The Celtics have the homecourt advantage. This is important becasue they have yet to lose a home game in the Playoffs. Of course, they’ve also not won on the road. Their main players– Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce and Ray Allen– have each reached this step, only to fail to get to play in the season’s final series. Since the season began, it has been made clear that anything less than a trip to the Finals will be considered failure. Since allowing their series with Philadelphia to be more competitive than it should have been, the Pistons dispatched the Magic in five games, two of them without injured point guard Chauncey Billups. The Celtics have seen both series they’ve been involved in go the distance, blowing Atlanta out in a Game Seven victory and getting a Herculean effort from Pierce to squeeze by the Cavs. Fatigue could be a factor, as the Celtics have played a lot of games and don’t have the deepest bench to work with. However, Detroit may only go as far as Billups’ as yet untested hamstring will let them. With Allen looking for his jumper and the Celtics trying to figure out this whole road playoff thing, I’m thinking that Detroit should win this series in six. Their depth and experience should allow them another trip to the Finals, with another shot at a champagne-soaked victory party next month. [image:http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2038/1968119059_6cc9b783e9_m.jpg]
Draft Lottery 2008May 20 08  This is a special feature from guest blogger Christopher Sells.If your team wasn’t good enough or lucky enough (read: in the Eastern Conference) to make the playoffs, today is the day that you get to feel like you’re included in the postseason. Before the Eastern Conference Finals tip off, the 14 non-playoff franchises will shed every ounce of dignity they have in the hope that they are lucky enough to get the first pick in next month’s NBA Draft. Instead of rewarding its teams that are either downright terrible or that purposely tanked with the highest spots at the Draft, the NBA devised the Lottery in 1985. While the rules have changed since that time, the premise has been that a team could not guarantee itself a shot at some coveted incoming rookie by sucking the entire season. As it stands now, the team with the worst record (the Miami Heat this year) has the best chance at getting the number one pick, at 25%. The team with the best non-playoff record (Golden State) has a .5% chance at the top pick. The odds for the remaining teams fall somewhere in between. The drawing is only held for the top three spots, so the lowest that the worst team can draft is fourth, the second worst team fifth, and so on. With the Draft position being determined, allegedly and at least partially, by chance, teams have taken to different methods, strategies and superstitions in an effort to get the coveted top pick. Some are subtle, some are ridiculous. Tonight, you can expect to see Jay-Z repping for the Nets (I assume there will be no Dynasty sign), Dwyane Wade for the Heat (there is no truth to the rumor that he’s bringing Star Jones with him), the Sonics will send Rookie of the Year Kevin Durant, the Kings will send a lucky season ticket holder who won a contest for the right to attend, and the Timberwolves will send Fred Hoiberg with a stuffed good luck bear adorned in Wolves’ gear. In case you’re wondering, the Lottery is performed behind closed doors, with no TV cameras allowed. Representatives for each team, different from the ones who will be on stage as the envelopes are opened, I presume, are present along with NBA officials and some independent auditors as the process unfolds. It’s just complicated enough to be confusing enough to inspire conspiracy theories. In case you were wondering, the teams with the worst and second-worst record has received the top pick only three times each since 1990. The third and fifth worst teams have received the top pick four times each. It could be great fun if one of the two teams in the lottery who finished at or above .500 were to land in the top three picks. Maybe then the Lottery process could be revisited or the playoff process altered. Chances are slim though. I guess I’ll have to break out some sort of good luck charm if I seriously hope for this to take place. Where did I put my lucky underwear? [image:http://farm1.static.flickr.com/49/154138777_5b9d70b198_m.jpg]
Homecourt vs. ExperienceMay 19 08  So what’s more important in a Game Seven: Experience or Homecourt? We should find out tonight when the Spurs and the Hornets face off in the second winner-take-all game in as many days. The Spurs roster is filled with playoff experience. They are, after all, the defending champions. They are also the oldest team in the league, and they’ve looked it when they’ve ventured into the Hive to take on the Hornets. The Hornets are largely a youthful team. They’ve been at their best this series when they’ve gotten out on the break and forced the Spurs to keep up with them. Perhaps not coincidentally, this has mostly happened in New Orleans. But with Tyson Chandler and David West coming off of injuries, you have to wonder if the buzz stops here. Part of me says that San Antonio will turn to their wily veteran ways to pull out the second road win of the conference semifinals. Another part of me says that New Orleans will jump on Chris Paul’s back and he’ll guide them as he has thus far to another series win. I think it’s too close to call. If you twisted my arm, I might settle on the Spurs in the first close game of the series. [image:http://flickr.com/2336/2235040811_7b84117b41_m.jpg]
Find LeBron a PGMay 19 08 This is a special feature from guest blogger Christopher Sells. It’s hard to be upset if you’re They should be thinking about getting a point guard. Clearly James is capable of handling and distributing to his teammates, but having someone to take that load off of him could allow him to preserve some energy and get some easier shots. Watching LeBron have to go one on five whenever he tried to drive the ball was painful. The Cavs should look for someone who can control an offense and get the team some points even when they aren’t running a play. Delonte West and Daniel Gibson are primarily scorers that have been forced to play point guard in There aren’t many options in free agency, so the team’s front office will have to get creative through trades or the draft. This is especially necessary because James himself is saying it. "I think what we have is very good, but we need to continue to get better. We know that," he told one of the local papers after yesterday’s game. "If that means some personnel changes that need to happen, then so be it. The teams around us in the league are continuing to get better."
[image:http://farm1.static.flickr.com/119/279543886_149fc0528f_m.jpg]
A Day Without BasketballMay 17 08  Yesterday, there were two very entertaining Game Sixes. One saw a team move on to the Conference Finals, another set up what should be an interesting Game Seven. Today, there is nothing. Unless you count the season tip-off for the WNBA. I didn’t think so. I’d like to believe that this was a scheduling quirk, but I have to believe that the NBA is trying to make us watch their women’s basketball league. This seems exactly like something they’d do. Let’s be real about it: The WNBA isn’t nearly as entertaining as the NBA. If it were, there wouldn’t be a need to resort to tactics like these to try to get us to watch the games. And, before you call me sexist, I watch women’s college basketball. Something about the WNBA just doesn’t appeal to me, though. So I suppose I’ll be sitting around tonight, not watching a basketball game for the first time in a while. If you choose to venture over to watch one of those “other” games, Good Luck.
Record BreakerMay 15 08  This is a special feature from guest blogger Christopher Sells.Kareem Abdul-Jabbar isn’t bitter about Robert Horry breaking his record for most playoff games played. This is refreshing because so many older players seem to forget that records are made to be broken and that the record they hold was once held by someone else. While Kareem isn’t upset, he does want you to know that Horry has had a slight advantage. “When I started playing, the playoffs were another round shorter. It was fewer games. But that’s just an incredible performance (by Horry), in terms of being on winning teams and helping them to go as far as they go.” There is talk that Horry has just been in the right place at the right time each year, allowing him to play each year of his 16-year career for a team that advanced past the first round of the playoffs and to pick up seven rings along the way. I’d listen to that argument more if Horry hadn’t been a solid contributor for his entire career and hit more big shots than I can even list. Let the man have his record. Even if he is passed over for the Hall of Fame, which some say is a certainty, at least his name will remain written in the record books. Until someone comes along and breaks said record, anyway. [image:http://farm1.static.flickr.com/15/21175973_2b151b359d_m.jpg]
All-Rookie TeamMay 14 08  This is a special feature from guest blogger Christopher Sells.2007-08 NBA ALL-ROOKIE FIRST TEAM
2007-08 NBA ALL-ROOKIE SECOND TEAM
The NBA announced its All-Rookie teams yesterday, as voted on by the head coaches. Coaches were not permitted to vote for their own players, because they’d probably all pick their own players. I might have elevated Moon over Thornton or Green for being a starter on a playoff team, but after the first three players, it’s really a crapshoot. Horford was the only unanimous selection to the first team. Someone honestly thought that there were five rookies who had a better season than Durant. Two coaches didn’t even include Scola on their ballot, another cast him as a second teamer. Ridiculous to me, but who know what those individuals were thinking. [image:http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2021/2109004142_6fe03acf09_m.jpg]
Hey, Spurs Fans...May 13 08  This is a special feature from guest blogger Christopher Sells.Being a fan of the Rockets, I’ve had to learn how to watch playoff basketball objectively. This is because my team will probably not be in the second round. This has been true for the last ten years. As such, I’ve had a lot of practice watching without picking sides. With that being said, I really want the San Antonio Spurs to lose. To be clear, I actually don’t mind the team itself. I appreciate Tim Duncan’s so-called “boring,” but incredibly efficient game. I really admire Tony Parker’s ability to get to the rim almost at will and to push the ball up the court at breakneck speed and create for his teammates. While Manu Ginobili flops too much for my tastes, he’s crafty with the ball, hits big shots and gives all-out effort any time he’s on the floor. Also, despite everyone in the building knowing that he is going to go left, he still is able to go left. I like the team’s defense, their ball movement and their selflessness. But I can’t stand their fans. And the sooner the Spurs lose, the sooner I can be spared their fans’ incessant fellating of the team. Quick geography lesson: I live in The problem is that these fans lack any sort of rational objectivity. It’s a peeve of mine that I’ve addressed in past writings. In the eyes of their fans, the Spurs can do no wrong. If you ask one of them, the team has never committed a foul, doesn’t whine, gets cheated by the league, doesn’t travel, is never outplayed, etc. It’s infuriating. Guess what Spurs fan? Manu, Bruce Bowen and Fabricio Oberto flop. A lot. Bowen is probably a dirty player. There’s enough video floating around YouTube to make a strong argument. Your team whines way too much. Are we to believe that the Spurs have somehow achieved perfection and are justified in their complaints every time the whistle blows against them? Parker is not fouled every time he drives to the basket. Sometimes he’s out of control or he jumps into other players. And that three that Despite their shortcomings—and every team has them, by the way—the Spurs have proven themselves to be very involved in their community, doing lots of positive things in San Antonio and even in Austin. Their performance on the court cannot be questioned, evidenced by their four titles in nine years. I read all the time about the family atmosphere the team employs and the unselfishness that has enabled them to build their dynasty. I actually want this to make its way to some Spurs fans because I want to test a theory. Despite me saying that I respect the team and the way they play, I’ll get called a Spurs hater. Because any time you’re not praising the team, you’re apparently wrong. So let’s hear it, Spurs Fan. I’m ready for it. In fact, let me say this in closing: GO HORNETS GO. And thanks for Luis Scola. [image:http://farm1.static.flickr.com/220/523199144_5e029ad8ab_m.jpg]
|
 Friends: | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
