- George Diaz of the Orlando Sentinel: "The Lakers got three championships with Shaq. The Magic got Rony Seikaly, Ike Austin and an 'Hasta La Vista' letter from Fran Vazquez. It is why the rest of the sports nation dismisses Orlando and its signature sports franchise as a bunch of small-time country bumpkins, only with Mickey Mouse ears instead of straw hats. Now look. The Magic are heading to The Big City with the cement ponds, movie stars and everything. Los Angeles is Disneyland (Anaheim, I know; but close enough, kids). Orlando is Disney World. Los Angeles is the iconic Hollywood sign. Orlando is that cheesy miniature replica of the Statue of Liberty at Orange Avenue and Magnolia Street at the I-4 on-ramp. Los Angeles is Jack Nicholson, the Academy Award guy. Orlando is Dennis Salvagio, the Fat Guy. Bring on the jokes. See if this team cares."
- Broderick Turner of the Los Angeles Times: "So often you hear NBA coaches say matchups make a series. Well, in the NBA Finals between the Lakers and Orlando Magic, it is a most intriguing matchup between teams with different personalities. Game 1 is Thursday night at Staples Center. The Lakers run the triangle offense, relying on moving bodies and the ball, as well as on spacing. When that doesn't work, the Lakers go to Kobe Bryant, who often delivers like no one else in the NBA. The Magic has a dominant presence inside with center Dwight Howard, but Orlando also lives by the jumper, particularly the three-pointer. 'It's a team that presents a lot of tough matchups,' Lakers forward Pau Gasol said. 'They have a lot of guys that are just very talented offensively. You have to be aware of them obviously, know your personnel but also try to take advantage of your strengths, of our strengths and attack them.' The Lakers want to use all their weapons, getting the ball down low to Gasol and Andrew Bynum, knocking down outside shots, cutting to the basket. 'I feel like we have to be concerned about doing what we do,' said Lakers assistant coach Brian Shaw, who is in charge of scouting the Magic. 'I think if we do what we're supposed to do, that if we do our jobs properly, we'll be OK.' "
- Brian Windhorst of The Plain Dealer: "Ben Wallace is hurting. Mixed with the end of season blues, he's wondering if he's played his last game in the NBA. The Cavaliers forward said Sunday he is considering retiring, even though there's one season and $14 million left on a contract that he seems surprisingly willing to walk away from. He is planning to sit down and discuss the issue with his family in the coming weeks. ... 'I've got to sit down and talk with my family and see what I feel,' Wallace said. 'It isn't getting any easier for me. It is tough going out there every night with something hurting and not being able to give the effort you want to give. I love the game and respect the game too much to be going out there half-hearted.' ... 'I tried to tell everybody before I signed this deal that for me it wasn't about the money,' Wallace said. 'I was never into it for the money and if it comes down to it to where I feel I can't be productive on the floor, I'm not going to come back and try to hold this team hostage because I have another year on this contract. That isn't me, I'm bigger than that.' There is also a possibility that Wallace could negotiate a buyout of his deal and take a percentage of what he's owed."
- Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel: "It is no coincidence that Heat guard Dwyane Wade and Raptors forward Chris Bosh, to the dollar, hold similar contracts. Wade will earn $14,410,581 in 2009-10. So will Bosh. Both can opt out after the coming season. Or both could earn $17,149,243 in 2010-11. Such is the measure of having the same agent, in this case Chicago-based Henry Thomas. While an amiable sort, Thomas also tends to remain low key to the point of reticence. When it comes to the two following a similar free-agent path, he leaves the talking to others. So Dwyane, for all the renewed speculation about a Wade-LeBron free-agent pairing in 2010, what should be made of the Bosh-Wade bond under Thomas? 'The only thing about that is Henry is a big player in 2010 because he has two of the players that people are talking about and wanting,' Wade said. 'Besides that, it really has no other indication of anything.' "
- Phil Jasner of the Philadelphia Daily News: "Eddie Jordan is the 76ers' new coach. Pete Carril is Yoda. Jordan, who will be formally introduced today at a news conference, is known for running the Princeton offense. Carril is the Princeton offense. The Princeton offense, Carril's legacy to the game, is legendary. It involves the sheer basics: passing, cutting, continuous motion, luring defenses away from the basket to create back-door layups, hitting enough perimeter shots to allow everything else to unfold. It requires, at the very least, skill and patience. Jordan, in a previous existence as the coach of the Sacramento Kings, absorbed all he could from Carril, the former Princeton coach who has, off and on, been involved with the Kings franchise, either as an assistant coach or as a special assistant to Geoff Petrie, their president of basketball operations. ... Jordan believes the organizational aspects of his style can only help the Sixers. 'From what I saw, I think more organization on a consistent basis would've helped this team,' Jordan told the Daily News last night. 'The offense is always good for the best players, and it's also good for the ones who don't score a lot going one-on-one.' "
- Mike Sorensen of the Deseret News: "Because I don't cover the Jazz on a regular basis, I can't say which players get along with whom. But I watched a few games late in the year and know when a more-talented Jazz team can lose to the likes of Golden State and Minnesota on their own home floor with a higher playoff seed on the line, something is missing. Like chemistry. If a certain player -- let's call him CB -- doesn't get along real well with the rest of his teammates, then perhaps he isn't that valuable. If another player -- let's call him AK -- only gets real motivated when he's starting and involved more in the offense, how important is he to the club? ... Perhaps the Jazz might be better off letting one of their high-priced players opt out without trying to re-sign them, or sign and try to pick up an energetic young player, who is willing to work hard and be part of the team. Someone like Paul Millsap. The problem is, there's no way to predict how certain players are going to play together, although some are obviously more team-oriented than others. But in looking at next year's roster, Jazz officials should be more concerned about trying to put the right team on the floor, rather than the best collection of players."
- Mike Baldwin
of The Oklahoman: "Some call it grit. During this year's NBA playoffs, 'nastiness' was a term used to describe the Houston Rockets' and Denver Nuggets' ability to go toe-to-toe with the highly favored Los Angeles Lakers. Call it what you want, but Malik Rose, who won two NBA titles with the San Antonio Spurs, said developing toughness is essential. ... Rose said team chemistry is vital, but developing an edge in practice produces benefits during an 82-game regular-season grind. 'They just need another year playing together,' Rose said. 'Once they get over that hump and learn what it takes to win consistently, they'll be very good. At times, they played very well. They just need another year of maturity.' And maybe a little more nastiness. '... practices were too fun. A little elbow or a little fight here or there in practice, being physical, pushing and shoving is good.' " - Ronald Tillery of the Memphis Commercial Appeal: "He is the president's choice. That doesn't exactly count for anything in professional basketball, but Tyreke Evans' name certainly resonates in high places as the NBA draft approaches. When President Barack Obama was recently invited to the Palms Casino and Hotel in Las Vegas -- operated by Sacramento Kings owners Joe and Gavin Maloof -- he told their brother, Phil, whom the Kings should take with the fourth overall pick. '(Obama) liked Blake Griffin, of course, (Hasheem) Thabeet from Connecticut, and he loved the kid from Memphis -- Tyreke Evans,' Palms co-owner George Maloof told the Las Vegas Review-Journal. Evans' reaction? 'That's big,' the former University of Memphis combo guard said. 'I didn't even know he knew who I was. I knew he watched a lot of college basketball, but for him to mention my name is pretty big.' As far as Evans is concerned, Obama is like a lot of astute hoops heads analyzing the June 25 draft. In other words, there are more than one or two players available with the ability to impact a team right away."
- Mike Wells of The Indianapolis Star: "The Pacers have more pressing needs than adding another point guard to the roster. That brings me back to the low-post scoring. How many times did you watch a Pacer jack up an ill-advised 3-pointer or drive the lane and throw up a wild shot because that was their only option since there wasn't anybody to throw the ball to down low? A lot. The Pacers need a player they can dump the ball to in the post and work inside-out late in games. I say go with DeJuan Blair if the Pittsburgh forward is still on the board at No. 13. Blair compared his game to Utah's Paul Milsap, Minnesota's Craig Smith and Boston's Glen 'Big Baby' Davis, who are all considered undersized power forwards."
- Jerry Zgoda of the Minneapolis Star Tribune: "The Timberwolves today open four days of predraft group workouts that are expected to draw representatives from as many as 17 NBA teams. Separate groups of players will work out morning and afternoon today through Thursday at the team's Target Center facility. Today's participants are players the Wolves will consider for their 18th and 28th picks in the first round or with their two second-round picks in the June 25 draft. The best of the bunch: Ohio State freshman center B.J. Mullens, UCLA guard Darren Collison, Gonzaga forward Austin Daye, Israeli forward Omri Casspi and North Carolina forward Danny Green."
- Mike McGraw of the Arlington Heights Daily Herald: "The Bulls head into the June 25 draft without any single glaring need. Their overall team wish list would include better interior defense, a post-up scorer, a taller shooting guard, someone who has a chance of guarding LeBron James and more speed or outside shooting to complement point guard Derrick Rose. In other words, they're in a spot to take the best player available player and hope he becomes an asset. Since the Bulls are getting close to the luxury tax, unloading a pick or taking someone who will play overseas for a couple of years is another option."
Sort comments by: Most Recent | First Posted
Comments that include profanity, or personal attacks, or antisocial behavior such as "spamming" or "trolling," or other inappropriate comments or material will be removed from the site. We will take steps to block users who violate any of our terms of use. You are fully responsible for the content that you post.
TRUEHOOP CONTRIBUTORS
Henry AbbottTrueHoop ESPN Archive |
J.A. AdandeTrueHoop ESPN Archive |
Kevin ArnovitzTrueHoop ESPN Archive |
Chris BroussardTrueHoop ESPN Archive |
Chad FordTrueHoop ESPN Archive |
John HollingerTrueHoop ESPN Archive |
Chris SheridanTrueHoop ESPN Archive |
Marc SteinTrueHoop ESPN Archive |
