- Assuming Larry Hughes really won't be playing hard or long anytime soon, I think the Pistons just won this series -- without Hughes, I don't think there's any chance Chauncey Billups stays in his funk much longer. And getting Billups into a funk was one of the greatest accomplishments of the playoffs, for which Hughes deserves a ton of credit.
- Derek Fisher is leaving the Jazz again to accompany his daughter Tatum to New York for a second treatment on the retinoblastoma in her eye. He should be back in time for Game 5.
- Stay classy, Jazz fans. James Edward of the Deseret News reports: "In all, after several eyewitness accounts from media members, EnergySolutions Arena security guards and ushers, here's a list of some of the items that were tossed: empty water bottles, coins, wrappers, Carmex, towels and soft mini basketballs. Some of these items were thrown at Spurs players as they left the floor, while others were thrown at referees Steve Javie, Joe DeRosa and Ken Mauer. Two fans were taken away in handcuffs after an incident near the portal where the refs left the arena. One of those men was eventually cited for throwing a water bottle, according Salt Lake City lieutenant Steve Cheever, who added it's not that uncommon for that to happen. Jazz fans directed a great deal of their frustration at the refs throughout the game, as chants of "ref you suck" could be heard throughout the arena at least a dozen times."
- You think you'll be happy for a decade Portland fans? You think you'll be sad for a decade Boston fans? Some really smart people say that you're probably both wrong, because we humans are terrible at predicting our own emotions -- and the draft is a crapshoot.
- Two further reminders that the draft works in strange ways. First one comes from NBA Director of Scouting Marty Blake, who points out that the only rookies left playing long minutes in the playoffs are Daniel Gibson (drafted 42nd) and Paul Millsap (drafted 47th). Second one is a memory that shortly after Portland's phenonenal 2006 draft, many considered the picks of Brandon Roy, LaMarcus Aldridge, Sergio Rodriguez etc. to have been a bust.
- Mike Brown gets a blog-trashing in a post called "Get LeBron a real coach." Ever consider the possibility that LeBron James doesn't want to be answering to a taskmaster on every little thing? Mike Brown knows more than any of us about basketball, and before the age of forty he is three wins from the NBA Finals with an oddball roster. Things you're seeing on the floor that aren't exactly as you'd like them? I'd bet he's seeing them to, and wishing many of the same things. But remember, no NBA coaches have dictatorial control -- it's a player's league, and the best job security comes with the endorsement of superstars -- and Brown happens to coach for an organization that lives in fear of angering one particular player. Not blaming anything on LeBron James -- I'm just saying in such a setting you can't assume a coach is responsible for everything a team does on the floor.
- I'm not going to stop making the case that the Blazers may well take Kevin Durant with the first overall pick. Kerry Eggers of the Portland Tribune reports: "While meeting with reporters last week, Pritchard unveiled a bit of his thought process when he said: 'What you're after is low risk, high return. One of the guys is a higher risk, higher return, where the other is a little lower risk and maybe not as much return. Our job is to always try to get the highest-return player at the lowest risk we can.' Pritchard wouldn't confirm it, but I'm assuming he considers Durant the high-risk/high-return player, Oden the lower-risk player with perhaps not quite as much upside. Then Pritchard was asked if he's inclined to take risks or surer things. 'Normally, I like the higher risk,' the Portland GM answered. 'I'm a high-risk person. Sometimes to get to the championship level, you have to take big risks.' Pritchard says he wouldn't read anything into that comment, but it makes you wonder."
- Johnny Ludden of the San Antonio Express-News with a reality check: "Some Spurs officials had an unsettling afternoon when they returned to their team hotel to discover a man had apparently committed suicide by jumping from one of the building's upper floors."
- People are starting to get a little tired of flopping in the NBA, but it's hard to detect.
- If you're into the NBA draft, and you're not afraid of wikis, you really should check out the rookiepedia. It's just getting started, but I think it has massive potential as a place to pull together anything and everything online about a particular player.
- NBA in Nashville? Probably not, but with some teams looking to move, it's one place that will likely come up.
- How about P.J. Carlesimo as the next coach of the Seattle SuperSonics? I have to believe all that time in San Antonio has increased his ability to let the players have a little more control, and perhaps to scream a little less.
- Trainer and coach Brian McCormick wrote this months ago: "... an NBA team cannot afford to pass on the next Dwyane Wade for a Darko Milicic. NBA personnel must evaluate each player's desire and how much they crave greatness. And, from what I have heard about Noah, he is such an eclectic person, which makes him more interesting as a human being, but is not 100% focused on being the best basketball player in the world; however, Kevin Durant appears to be focused on greatness. This, in my opinion, will be how teams decide which of these gifted players to choose first because the top teams will be leaving talent on the board and risk making the wrong the decision. In retrospect, Wade has the mental desire to be the best, seemingly even more than a Bosh or Anthony, who are equally talented players. While Oden could be great, will he be the greatest? Does Brandan Wright want to be the best, or does Julian Wright? Will an NBA team take height and upside over the psychological traits of greatness?"
- After talking to his trainer, David Thorpe, I'm starting to get a little obsessed with Zabian Dowdell, written up here by DraftExpress. More to come on that as the draft approaches.
- See different draft preparation philosophies at work. A few days ago ESPN's Chad Ford spent time with trainer Joe Abunassar (revered for his work with Chauncey Billups and countless others) and Joakim Noah, and he wrote: "... when Noah steps back and starts working on jump shots, everyone in the gym begins to cringe a little. Noah has a wacky release. He puts the ball on the left side of his head and then shoots it across his face in a diagonal motion. It's not Shawn Marion ugly. But it's close. The crazy thing about the shot is that it goes in pretty regularly from 15 feet in. Abunassar says at this point he's not going to try to fix it, saying there isn't enough time to change his shot." Compare that to what Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress writes about spending time in David Thorpe's gym: "One thing you can say about the players here is that they just aren't allowed to shoot any other way than with perfect mechanics, with every flaw being nitpicked again and again by one of the many coaches in attendance, until the players get it right."
- Lots of thoughts about Kobe Bryant as a Dallas Maverick. Dan Shanoff says he would trade Kobe Bryant for Josh Howard. I don't think that guy will ever get traded, to be honest.
- Yahoo's Steve Kerr: "Fabricio Oberto seems to get offensive rebounds and tip-outs every time San Antonio needs an extra possession. He gets a few buckets every game just by being in the right place at the right time, and he takes charges and draws fouls just by being a pest. He's been a major thorn in the Jazz's side."
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