TrueHoop: Daily Bullets
- More Coach Wooden, on his 99th birthday, as relayed by Esquire: "Coming off the floor after the NCAA semifinal win over Louisville in 1975, it just hit me: Time to go. It was an emotional thing. I can't explain it. I went to the dressing room, congratulated my players. I said, 'I don't know how we'll do against Kentucky, but regardless of the outcome, I never had a team give me more pleasure. It's been a great year, and I'm proud of you. This will be the last team I'll ever coach.'"
- Baron Davis' tactical advantage, in video.
- The Magic shoot the lights out.
- Joakim Noah made three hook shots in one game. He was also a monster getting blocks and rebounds.
- The suggestion Paul Pierce would re-work his contract to help the Celtics get more talent in the long run. (First discussed here.)
- Optimism, from a plus/minus expert, about Kevin Durant's future. Also, Wayne Winston's plus/minus case for Russell Westbrook. And, a smart look at how other Thunder players performed with and without Durant.
- Pistons fans are in love with Will Bynum.
- It's in the realm of possibility that Jerry Sloan could end his career with more wins than any other NBA coach.
- Phil Jackson is a big believer that geography can play a big role in helping a team win.
- Bret LaGree of Hoopinion on Larry Brown's ejection via replacement referee: "Larry got his 2nd T from Kevin Scott, who never got within 35 feet of Brown before, during, or after the call. Brown tried to engage any of the refs on the occasion of his ejection but none would speak with or possibly even look at him. Rather than deal with the issue directly, Scott walked to the opposite end of the court and appeared to attempt to enlist a befuddled police officer in asking/making Brown leave the court."
- The Knicks and Nets have both claimed to have the most cap space of any team in 2010. Who's right?
- The Bulls like each other.
- Dean Oliver, the Denver Nuggets' statistical consultant, and the case for drafting Ty Lawson. Also, I think Oliver is in a very small club of team stats experts: He gets to inform the front office on personnel decisions, and the coaching staff on game strategy. Also, Lawson was part of a Nugget lineup that played very well in Beijing.
- Hope in Philadelphia, where a 3-0 preseason has people feeling good. Elton Brand tells Philadunkia: "All the major injuries are totally behind me and I feel great. Plus Thaddeus Young and Andre Iguodala have gotten better over the summer as well as I so we're going to have a good formidable team."
- The Blazers -- one of those teams that has had a messed up cable deal that makes it hard for some fans to watch games -- say that by January they hope to have video of every game streaming live on their website, which would be an NBA first.
- Jermaine Taylor and Chase Budinger didn't get a lot of attention on draft day, but they're looking pretty good in preseason.
- Rasual Butler makes the Clippers better.
- Gregg Popovich has inspired winemakers, and now vegetable growers.
- Kevin Durant's one-game plus/minus in last night's OT victory over the Suns: plus-24. That's what I'm talking about!
- An old video clip of Delonte West and Paul Pierce, pre-Ray Allen and Kevin Garnett trades, talking about how good the Celtics are going to be.
- In my review of SonicsGate yesterday, I listed four goals of the movie. Producer Adam Brown adds two more: To preserve the history of the Seattle SuperSonics. Since that history is now officially owned by Clay Bennett, we needed to document some of the good times as well as the team's demise. OKC didn't celebrate in June 1979, and they didn't cry in May 1994. We did, and we deserve this document to remind us of that. Also, to get the issue back in people's mouths here in Washington with the primary goal of getting an NBA team back. Ultimately we have to convince our politicians that a 50% privately funded arena deal will create jobs and boost the economy while allowing us to regain this cultural asset."
- Malcolm Gladwell on the ethics of a gladiator mentality.
- A prediction this year's champion will come from the East, where David Berri's numbers say Orlando, Boston and Cleveland are far ahead of the rest of the conference.
- They asked all the Blazers which NBA players they respect the most. Kobe Bryant and Tim Duncan tie for first with three votes each.
- Chris Douglas-Roberts has the messiest locker of all Nets, and he doesn't like getting taped up for games, because the tape hurts the skin on the bottom of his feet. Also, word that Douglas-Roberts and Courtney Lee are locked into a "nasty" battle for playing time.
- The Madrid team's whole starting front line is injured for their exhibition against the Jazz this afternoon. Madrid's new coach, Ettore Messina, blogs about the slow work of integrating many new players. On Sports.ru, he also writes about a player who won't be playing for Madrid: "As we agreed terms with [Pablo] Prigioni, a possibility to talk to Ricky Rubio came up. So, good offers were made both to Joventut Badalona and the player himself. After a week of thinking, Ricky decided that he wanted to spend the following two years (before leaving for the NBA) in Barcelona, close to his family and friends. At that point there was no way persuading him to come to Madrid. Though, obviously, we still wish him good luck." Worth noting that Messina has the impression Rubio will come to the NBA in two years -- even though it would make financial sense to wait for three.
- Antawn Jamison doing yoga.
- Sergio Rodriguez, for a moment, forgot which team he was on.
- I have a pet theory that long players who can hit open jumpers, pass and play D all over the court are super valuable to any team. Suns rookie Earl Clark could be one of those guys.
- Weird thing: Dennis Rodman is one of the best players in NBA history, thanks to the fact that nobody has really ever rebounded like he did. That's what makes him great. Yet it's clearly not what people most loved about him. Here's how I know that: I just spent 20 minutes trying to find a really good highlight reel of his rebounding prowess. I thought it would be something we could all learn from, especially about recognizing and pursuing rebounds out of your area. And there are a zillion highlight reels of the guy. But as far as I can tell just about all of them are mostly dunks, fights, blocks, 3-pointers and clowning. It feels a little like we love those elements of basketball so much that even when we're celebrating a great rebounder, we won't actually do so with, you know, rebounds.
- It's getting to be just about time for Julian Wright to show what he can do. How did the young Hornet fare in a preseason game against the Hawks? Bret LaGree of Hoopinion was there: "Julian Wright has a great (I fear it may be an innate) ability to overcomplicate a situation, to try to squeeze three moves into a play where only one is necessary but that wasn't in evidence tonight. At the start of the game, he and Morris Peterson would spot up outside the arc, leaving the paint (extended) to Paul and West, maybe Sean Marks if he set a ball-screen for Paul. Wright would cut to the basket if his man helped defensively. The three he missed was in rhythm and as good a look from that range as he's likely to have. The 16' jumper he made on the baseline in third quarter looked very instinctual. He was far superior to the Hawks 2nd/3rd string in the fourth quarter."
- The assertion that if roles were reversed -- Will Bynum has been a first-round pick, and Rodney Stuckey had been undrafted -- Bynum would be the Pistons' starter.
- "More Than a Game" -- the LeBron James documentary -- is said to rank up there in the sports documentary world with the Muhammad Ali story "When We Were Kings." High praise, indeed.
- "We Believe" proved to be a bad tagline for the Clippers.
- Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel: "The officiating by the replacements was so atrocious that fill-in official Robbie Robinson could become the first referee to ever be fired twice by the NBA."
- Clark Matthews, writing for Daily Thunder, on the cheap seats in Oklahoma City: "Do we have to keep calling the third tier 'Loud City?' I know the Hornet marketing team, which did an excellent job selling the sport to this market, came up with the idea, and a lot of people have embraced this, but I've sat up there a lot. It isn't loud and it's not a city."
- Pacer rookie A.J. Price wore the wrong gear to practice and couldn't be in the team photo. Travis Diener, writing on the Indianapolis Star's website: "Those darn rookies. You've got to hold their hands through everything."
- After all the Michael Beasley turmoil this off-season, and talking to so many people he's close to ... I have to say that I am 500% rooting for that guy to have a great year. He's mega-talented, and could be an MVP-type NBA player. It's a good thing for people to achieve their potential, and Chris Sheridan's (Insider) report from Heat training camp says that Beasley has been an absolute beast so far. For instance, on their tough sprint testing, he beat last year's time by ten seconds. I hope it's a sign of good things to come.
- The L.A. Times has sources who say the Lakers and Kobe Bryant are homing in on a contract extension.
- Kobe Bryant vs. Derrick Rose, in video game trash talk. Rose "can't even get to the second round."
- Congratulations to Rob Neyer, Jamie Greenthal et al for launching the SweetSpot Network, which is sort of like the TrueHoop Network, but for baseball.
- The Timberwolves' expanding international audience.
- Remember Wayne Winston said that every lineup with Kobe Bryant, Lamar Odom and Pau Gasol was really really good? Consider that Andrew Bynum wants to be on the floor to close games. Phil Jackson is unconvinced. And, thanks to loose ligaments, Bynum's knees have been called "ticking time bombs," which doesn't seem like a nice thing to say to somebody. UPDATE: Also worth noting, John Hollinger's projection system projects Bynum to contribute more than Kobe Bryant or any other Laker this season.
- According to PER, Boris Diaw played better in Charlotte than he did earlier in Phoenix. Was that an aberration, or did the new situation make a permanent improvement? Should we expect the "typical" Diaw this season, or the new one?
- A proudly geeky tool to help you compare lineups per possession instead of per minute. (Via The Two Man Game)
- Bret Lagree of Hoopinion with observations from Hawks' training camp: "Josh Smith would play hard every minute of every game if he got to play against Mike Woodson. ... Jason Collins can dunk in an empty gym. I would have lost that bet."
- Thunder co-owner Aubrey McClendon has sold off more assets.
- New insight into whatever it is that's bothering Monta Ellis.
- Arash Markazi of Sports Illustrated: "For an interview with SI.com the other day, Artest hired Natalin Avci, a 23-year-old Turkish model he had met recently in a hotel lobby, and a camera crew for a photo shoot for the heck of it. 'The only purpose is to have fun,' Artest said."
- The Suns are thrilled with that they've been seeing from Channing Frye.
- Richmond, Virginia is a complicated town for Allen Iverson.
- Milwaukee coach Scott Skiles has a brilliant way around the NBA's ban on criticizing replacement referees: "A huge percentage of our fouls," he says, "were legitimate."
- Kevin Arnovitz of ClipperBlog, toying with the notion of The Return of Baron Davis: "Baron is an unquestionably better conditioned man this October. He seems genuinely mortified by his status as an accessory to last year's debacle. Although he's not surrounded by perfect complements to his game, he knows he can trust Eric Gordon, experiment with Blake Griffin, and have Rasual Butler as a viable option in the corner for a kickout 3. Contrast that to what he was offered at the outset of last season. Davis' ego is bruised -- and that's a good thing. Whatever pleasure he derives from his extracurriculars, he understands that without some corresponding gratification in the league, those accouterments aren't worth much. The documentaries, cross-cultural endeavors and clubs are all nice -- but Baron Davis can't be Baron Davis unless he's part of the league's constellation of stars and playing basketball well into May."
- John Hollinger's player ratings are posted, and Kevin Durant is the story (Insider). He's poised, says Hollinger, to lead the league in points per minute. There are a ton of reasons to be very excited about what's next from him. But there are still things he's really not good at: "There's no question about Durant's scoring; it's all the other elements of his game that raise eyebrows. He's a very poor passer and makes far too many turnovers for a jump shooter, weaknesses encapsulated by a -3.10 Pure Point Rating that was the fifth-worst among small forwards. Durant also gave a poor accounting at the defensive end, with the Thunder surrendering 8.2 points more per 40 minutes with him on the court than off it. His adjusted plus-minus was a horrid -8.62 points per 100 possessions, a stat that's even more alarming because the Thunder had a bad bench. His rating from his rookie year wasn't much better."
- Some guy says he got punched in the face. That's the what. The why? Story is it has something to do with NFL player Braylon Edwards having a real dislike for LeBron James.
- There have been some suggestions lately that Lamar Odom -- impending reality TV presence, celebrity husband -- may be craving the spotlight more than in the past. Exhibit Q, for questionable: About 85:15 into this video, he's wearing a wireless microphone in training camp. He sure appears to be headed to the bathroom. Before going, though, he looks off-camera, presumably at the tech in charge of his mic, taps the mic, and says "I'm good." As in, no need to unclip me for this.
- Byron Scott in the Shreveport Times, with potentially bad news for Chauncey Billups, who likes to post up small guards, and plays for a Hornets' rival: "A lot of times guys are trying to post [Chris Paul] up, but our guys that are six, seven inches taller than him are having a hard time in the post because he's so strong now. A lot of it comes with maturity and age. You get a little bit stronger and a little bit bigger. But the biggest thing is that he hasn't lost any of his flexibility or quickness." (Via Hornets247)
- One pre-season game in, Taj Gibson seems comfortable in the NBA.
- Hey look, it's Jamal Mashburn, Jason Kidd and that other guy who used to be famous.
- "Mad Men" fans, that's not Don Draper on the Nuggets' preseason roster. That's Donte Draper, and he made a highlight reel.
- Danny Ainge, Rick Carlisle, Mike Dunleavy, Danny Ferry, Daryl Morey, Sam Presti, Ed Stefanski ... meet your new team in charge of modernizing how the NBA uses instant replay. Change is upon us.
- Tim Varner of 48 Minutes of Hell watching DeJuan Blair: "Will any rookie outperform DeJuan Blair on a per minute basis? I doubt it. He looks sensational. He's the exact same rebounder we saw at Pitt, plus he has soft hands, can finish around the basket, is an efficient passer and, surprise, surprise, has a little bit of a spot up game. Clippers fans, don't kill me. DeJuan Blair is Blake Griffin's biggest obstacle on his path toward the ROY. Don't get me wrong. The total minutes thing will remove Blair from the conversation, but per minute ..." Whether it happens like that or not, the fact that a sober-minded observer like Varner says it could is reason enough to praise the Spurs for making good use of the draft's 37th pick. Also, Varner says Manu Ginobili looks tremendous.
- Michael Redd is playing like a healthy man.
- If the Nets had a lot of rubles to spend on players, what would the roster look like?
- Shaquille O'Neal once saw LeBron James pass the ball, and still thinks it's amazing.
- Nicolas Batum is called the best player in a Blazer scrimmage. Martell Webster, the guy who had Batum's starting small forward spot before his injury, says he hopes Batum is the starter.
- The Salt Lake Tribune's Ross Siler in London, where it is said the NBA would one like to have a permanent NBA team: "It should be noted that The O2 [arena], built by the same people as Staples Center, would be the most impressive NBA arena today if it housed a team."
- You think the Lakers will retire Shaquille O'Neal's jersey? With bridges burned in Orlando and Miami, not much to show for his time in Phoenix, and twilight years in Cleveland ... O'Neal has the chance to become the greatest NBA player ever to not have his jersey retired.
- So, if Gilbert Arenas won't entertain us with off-court wit ... who will?
- The Spurs drafted, in DeJuan Blair, a player who grabbed a greater percentage of offensive rebounds than some teams. Blair, by himself, was a better offensive rebounder than Colorado was all together. The thing is, the Spurs are the worst offensive rebounding team in large part because they don't stick around to grab them, preferring instead to get back on defense. So ... how will Popovich play Blair? Something to watch.
- Little Amare Stoudemire.
- NCAA, if you're looking for an example of somebody who came to college for the basketball, but stayed for the academics ... here's your guy.
- Portland owner Paul Allen -- who knew? -- has just survived a profound health scare.
- Mike Dunleavy says he homebrewed what we now call effective field goal percentage in contract negotiations during his playing days.
- Video of Hakeem Olajuwon working out with Hasheem Thabeet and just a little time with Kobe Bryant. What a contrast in students for Olajuwon, huh? Maybe the most gifted and fluid offensive wing force in the modern NBA, compared to a big man whose offense, some scouts say, doesn't even belong in the NBA.
- The NBA offered some referees $575,000 to retire.
- First significant injury of the season: Bull Aaron Gray. Tyreke Evans has been sitting, too, although no word that it's serious.
- Shooting 3s from the corner: A good idea.
- NBA TV's Real Training Camp focused on the Denver Nuggets, and Roundball Mining Company's Jeremy has insight: "J.R. Smith is traditionally a slow starter, and in past Real Training Camps he has not had good shooting performances. Today he was on fire. In fact, I do not remember seeing him miss a shot. J.R. will be out the first seven games of the season, but hopefully when he comes back for game eight he will be shooting like he did today."
- Assessing the Thunder's depth chart, which is confusing thanks to multiple players who play multiple positions.
- The Bucks had a crisis last season: No one could hit a 3. Jeremy of Bucksketball: "But the Bucks have taken steps to rectify the situation, right? Supposedly. Don't get me wrong, the Bucks have done a thing or two this off season designed to rectify the three point shooting problem, I'm just not certain I'm buying all the moves. They've brought on Carlos Delfino, an alleged shooter; Ersan Ilyasova, a possible shooter; and will be bringing back a healthy Michael Redd, a slightly overrated shooter. In the process of adding (and re-adding in Redd's case) these three the Bucks managed to lose one of their best shooters from last year in Charlie Villanueva ..."
- RapsFan of RaptorsRepublic on Bryan Colangelo: "We all read between the lines, that BC swung for the fences this summer and put together what he thought was a solid team that improved over last season (and to a degree I do share this sentiment), but when he actually came out said the goal is 50 wins, wow. You would have hoped he learned his lesson from last season's claim that this was the most talented team he has assembled in Toronto, and managed expectations. He went the other direction, and what that has done is fuse most fans, and the media to a degree, with a new sense of optimism."
- Brandon Roy tells Benjamin Golliver of BlazersEdge about the sneaky defense the Blazers are working on: "It's a man defense but it's that we're so tight and we're helping so much it appears that it's a zone just to throw the opponent off."
- Charles Barkley says Twitter is for losers.
- Ron Artest, comic book character.
- What obligation to teams have to their fans to keep them informed about injuries? Zach Lowe of CelticsHub: "As for the state of [Kevin] Garnett's knee toward the end of last season, it's reasonable to assume the Celitcs knew more than they revealed publicly. To us, as outsiders, it seemed a near certainty that Garnett would play in the post-season; the announcement that he would not came as a surprise gut punch. But the team likely knew the odds were against Garnett playing. At the very least, they knew there was a significant chance he would not play. Should they have told us that? Do they owe us that sort of openness?"
- Stan Van Gundy follows many different kinds of new basketball statistics, and is particularly a fan of John Hollinger's work. He also says Otis Smith's easiest decision of the off-season was bringing Adonal Foyle back.
- Beno Udrih says the Kings lacked direction last season (when they were coached by Reggie Theus until mid-December, then Kenny Natt): "We were definitely confused."
- Sam Amico, on the ClevelandFan.com, writing about Cavs guard Mo Wiliams: "Williams preferred to keep things light, continuously insisting that he's beat everyone on the team in pool. But that was news to fellow backcourt-mate Daniel Gibson. 'Oh no he hasn't,' Gibson said with a grin. 'He hasn't played everyone. That sounds like a challenge to me. Tell him I accept.'"
- A tale of Brandon Roy interrupting his own workout to greet a rookie, and invite him to come in to work out together the next day. Dante Cunningham tells BlazersEdge: "That's somebody that I want to go to battle with."
- I've talked to many team stat people who don't know which other teams even have stat experts. Everyone knows about the Rockets, Mavericks, Cavaliers, Nuggets, Celtics, Spurs and Blazers. Jeff Bower, Hornets GM, tells Hornets247 that his team has been on it for years, and has their own internal measures and databases. He also describes Vince Carter and Antonio McDyess as two of the bigger off-season acquisitions.
- Drew Gooden, holding it together.
- Clipperblog's Kevin Arnovitz: "Baron Davis looks fantastic, a shadow of his 2008 self. How did he get in such good shape over the summer? 'Crack,' Davis said in jest, before attributing his svelte physique to a summer regimen that had him either in the gym or in Asia -- both sure-fire ways to drop LBs."
- Alando Tucker loses a bet, has to grow a rat tail like Eddie Murphy in "Coming to America."
- Tony Parker will be doing limited duty in Spurs' training camp. That could be an opportunity for George Hill, who looked good in summer league.
- Jeremy from Bucksketball quotes Scott Skiles on Luc Richard Mbah a Moute: "Whatever Luc's high water mark as a player is going to be in the league he's going to reach it. When he's done playing you're going to say he's gotten the most out of his ability."
- Patty Mills was drafted in the second round by the Blazers, then broke his foot. He's almost recovered, though, and angling to make the NBA. (Via BlazersEdge)
- "All hell fell loose." It's a new saying, and I love it. Credit Tracy McGrady.
- Jerry Sloan urges his players to cut the replacement referees some slack.
- LaMarcus Aldridge is disappointed his contract isn't done.
- UPDATE: Watch a Warriors' practice live online right now.
- UPDATE: It's back! The infamous off-season "15 pounds of muscle." A year ago we dug into this phenomenon. In an Oregonlive podcast, the Oregonian's Jason Quick made the point that the last time you saw all these players they were gaunt, gassed and spent by the rigors of the season. A lot of players are looking big and ripped for that reason alone. A TrueHoop reader urged us to consider what 15 pounds of meat would look like. That's like a Thanksgiving turkey. Is it really possible to add that much bulk?
- Kobe Bryant called Hakeem Olajuwon, and Mark Berman of MyFoxHouston reports on the tutorial that followed: "'He gave me the biggest compliment,' Olajuwon said. '(He said) You are the best (at the) mid-post and post move. He wanted me to show my moves to him.' Olajuwon said his style of play in the paint is really suited for a guy like Bryant. 'In my mind most of my moves for a guy (with) that agility can use it better than the big guy. Because my moves are not really for the big guy. It's for the guards and small forwards. So he would benefit most on the post because of his agility. It was so much fun because how he picks it up. I worked with him for two hours, step by step.' Olajuwon expects Bryant to be even better than he was last season when he led the Lakers to the NBA Championship. 'Adding those moves to his game, watch out for him this year,' Olajuwon said."
- Another health setback for Mike Dunleavy -- the Pacers say he won't practice until November at the soonest.
- Is Tracy McGrady ready to go? He was expected back from surgery in December. UPDATE: Not so fast. November 23, at the earliest.
- NBA referees calling your local high-school game? Mike McGraw of the Daily Herald: "Locked out NBA referees Danny Crawford and Marc Davis will stay in shape by working three fall-league high school games at the Bulls-Sox Academy in Lisle on Sunday night."
- Heli-skiiing to a Nirvana soundtrack, flipping a jet ski, and playing in a charity game against Scottie Pippen ... video highlights of the athletic life of Mikhail Prokhorov, would-be Nets owner.
- PG-13 for language, talk of sex, the number of mouse clicks required, and mainly just craziness ... a longish imagining of various things about Dirk Nowitzki.
- Randy Foye's harsh family tale, as told by the Washington Post's Michael Lee: "His father, Antonio -- whom Foye only faintly remembers -- was killed in a motorcycle accident when Randy was just 2 years old. Three years later, his mother, Regina Foye, climbed into a truck and disappeared. To this day, Foye doesn't know if he was abandoned or she was murdered. Her whereabouts remain a mystery more than 21 years later, but her likeness is tattooed on his chest. Foye said relatives sometime weep when they see his 20-month old daughter, Paige, because she bears a striking resemblance to Regina." (Via Truth About It)
- Quotes about Devin Harris, Courtney Lee, Terrence Williams, Brook Lopez ... the Nets don't have a title team right now, but they're assembling a growing list of keepers.
- Jessica Camerato of WEEI on Shelden Williams as father: "'He was the most supportive person ever,' [his wife, and WNBA star Candace] Parker said. 'I was working out a lot during my pregnancy, and after practice was over he'd stay at the gym with me. I'd be at home and he'd make me get off the couch and go work out because he knew how bad I wanted to come back after my pregnancy. He was great about if I wanted something. Vanilla wafers were my favorite thing during pregnancy, so he stocked up on vanilla wafers for me and he was just really great. He was with me from the start to the finish. He was very into it, he made all of the doctor's visits that he could. I'd reschedule them so he could be there, so he was very supportive."
- A blog is aiming to take 400 kids, who couldn't normally afford to go, to an NBA game.
- Daryl Morey gets a contract extension.
- Quincy Jones' brother, a respected Seattle judge, is presiding over one last legal fight about the Sonics' departure: Season ticket holders say they were deceived, in marketing materials, into thinking the team had committed to stay. The judge threw out many aspects of the case, but the essential deception claim is intact and headed to a jury to decide damages. (Via SuperSonicSoul)
- The Blazer off-season -- fruitless pursuit of Hedo Turkoglu, Paul Millsap and maybe Lamar Odom -- has been called a waste. But it resulted in Andre Miller and Kevin Pritchard is happy and optimistic. "This is a team that we believe in ... we want to win our division and then we want to go deeper in the playoffs. ... We're not afraid to say we want to go deeper in the playoffs."
- If you see Bucks guard Charlie Bell working at your local Wendy's, order the 10-piece chicken -- he serves up 11 just because.
- UPDATE: A must-read tribute to Jim Carroll, basketball player who shared the court with Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, had drug trouble, and became a professional artist and writer. You probably know his book "The Basketball Diaries."
- LeBron James, would you rather win five titles in other cities, or one title in Cleveland? Ask Ohio's Ron Harper, who never got the one in Cleveland, and would kill for it.
- Who's pumped up for training camp to start? Blazer assistant Monty Williams on training camp, as reported by Oregon Sports Live: "It's like digging a ditch. It's not that exciting."
- Does the reality of Twitter, and a world where players talk to fans unfiltered, increase the importance of good character? Sixer GM Ed Stefanski says yes, and he's probably largely right. Reclusive weirdos will take a hit. But I'm not sure character is exactly the thing being measured. Maybe more communication skills, or charisma. No one has had more Twitter success than Shaquille O'Neal, but teams collapse all around him, and he's famously not a hard worker. Is he a character guy? Not so much. But he's funny.
- If Marc Stein's looking glum today, it's because his most recent soccer tour of Great Britain just ended.
- A fascinating discussion of zone defense, and its effect on the NBA.
- Basketball fans who feel the need to learn more about Russia all of a sudden, I'd recommend that you start here, with some fascinating insight into the world of international soft drinks. (Yes, I had to work really really hard to find a way to justify linking to this on a basketball blog.)
- What is the Bulls' strength? One appears to be the bench.
- The 2007-2008 Celtics were one of the best defensive teams in NBA history.
- A while ago, I wrote a post about how Kobe Bryant was loved for his destructive qualities (mostly of opponents, but also the rim), while I think his genius is in building ... houses, and teams. Well, the destructive part makes for better video, like this monster by a TrueHoop reader.
- UPDATE: Many short videos of LeBron James being silly when he was in high school.
- Joe Fingerhut, a young man from St. Louis, whose dad raised him on loving the Celtics, decided to take his dad to a Celtics/Pacers game for Christmas. As a special treat, Joe wrote all kinds of letters, e-mails and faxes basically begging to be able to have a minute of Larry Bird's time; the game would be a dream come true if they could meet the Legend while there. Eventually, Fingerhut writes in a great retelling of the whole happy tale on his blog, the phone rang: "Hello, this is Joe. Hi Joe, this is Larry Bird of the Indiana Pacers. (Silence--breathless, out of breath, unable to speak, not thinking. . .) Hello? YES! I am here, hi! Are you serious?)
- This fall, the Supreme Court will hear a court case called American Needle vs. the NFL. I read a lot of stuff about it, so you don't have to! The skinny: It could affect the NBA in various profound ways. At issue is whether a major sports league like the NFL or the NBA is one entity, or a collection of individual entities. If it's one thing, then that entity enjoys exemption from anti-trust law, which empowers the NBA to impose things like age limits without fearing certain kinds of lawsuits. Michael McCann makes a fascinating point, however ... if the NBA is one entity, then NBA players may be entitled to a percentage of revenues from ventures like NBA China.
- What we learned about NBA prospects from watching Eurobasket.
- Ben from BlazersEdge: "When asked about his team's offensive efficiency, Pritchard smiled and pointed at ESPN's John Hollinger, stating that Hollinger was 'the expert in the world' when it came to efficiency. In my opinion, not enough reporters chuckled knowingly in appreciation at this insider hat tip."
- Thanks to that old shin injury, Tyler Hansbrough won't be 100% for training camp.
- Vlade Divac, quoted by Marc Stein: "People here [in America] are making a big deal about ring or no ring. I was playing against the Lakers and I remember someone [in the crowd] shouted, 'How many rings you got?' I told him one. He looked at me [funny], so I said, 'I got one in '89 when I got married, I got a ring from my wife.' That's the most important thing."
- James White, dunk machine bench-warmer, is a Nugget.
- Oklahoma City Thunder, the hedge maze.
- Everyone is very excited about the Nets' new potential owner. Me too! While I am against a lot of the shenanigans involving eminent domain and the arena, I'm fired up to see the Nets create a lot of excitement. Just one little consideration, for NBA owners, 23 of whom must approve the sale: In welcoming the richest "oligarch" to the NBA ranks, kindly reassure me that Mikhail Prokhorov is not one of those Russian power brokers whose enemies in the press seem to get murdered? I'm kidding. Mostly. And, some are worried about all the public subsidies in that stadium project potentially paying off to a foreign corporation.
- High hopes for Jrue Holiday.
- Is that Gilbert Arenas in that photograph? My answer: No. Certainly not. That's no NBA physique.
- What do stromtroopers do on their days off? A photo essay. Looks to me like they're rehearsing to be an NBA halftime show. (Via Kottke)
- Brett at Queen City Hoops blogger has built, from scratch, a trade machinish thing that analyzes a players' offensive and defensive efficiency, and then lets you see how a team's performance would change with different player in his place. It's like the trade machine, without the salary concerns, but loaded up with stat geekery. Give it a whirl -- he's looking for feedback.
- I always love it when Chris Douglas-Roberts talks about basketball. He talks a beautiful game. Hope it proves to be that he plays one in the NBA too. He says that he had nice tickets to the Jay-Z concert, but passed it up to go to the gym. Of course, however, what really caught my attention in his blog post was word that he has bengal kittens who have already destroyed part of his house. My first thought: BENGAL TIGERS! IS HE NUTS? But YouTube has the answers: Bengal cats are house-sized, crazy strong cats.
- Sean May says he took six days off at the beginning of the summer, but he has been "grinding ever since." Some video of the Kings' optional workouts going on now.
- Brian Scalabrine spent much of the off-season avoiding basketball, for fear of another concussion.
- Delonte West is in Cleveland, and has met with the Cavs. Worth noting, however, that he is facing two gun charges, despite his three guns. Turns out the shotgun in the guitar case is A-OK.
- Weird staged hype-machine basketball event, starring LeBron James, in France.
- Last week I linked to this and wondered aloud if any NBA teams would adopt "value pricing." Bingo.
- A basketball blog with its own preview magazine. Hmm ...
- Andre Iguodala says his cable bill is now paid, and he's tweeting from a three-hour physical.
- The Plain Dealer's Brian Windhorst on Delonte West (who was arrested last week with three guns on him, his dad says it was about personal protection): "West opened himself up to the fans by talking about his struggle with bipolar disorder. It not only endeared him even more to the fan base that was attracted to his style of play and personality, but also to people who have battled mood disorders and depression. Mail poured into the Cavs from people who West had inspired. West then went out and had the best season of his career, his first as a full-time starter. He was a significant factor in the Cavs winning 66 games. But behind the scenes there was never a doubt that he was often battling with his emotional problems."
- Bethlehem Shoals of FreeDarko: "West is bipolar; so am I. That doesn't make me unsympathetic to his situation -- on the contrary, to me it's almost mundane, the kind of thing you wake up from and shake your head at. Not that I've ever ended up strapped to the teeth on a mini-bike, re-enacting a scene from a s----- movie. But since no one got hurt, and the explanation is obvious, the specifics are neither here nor there. This is what happens when you go off your meds. The legal system knows this, and presumably, Delonte is a little closer to figuring it out."
- A letter from the wife of a referee to David Stern. Julie Davis, wife of Marc Davis, writes (in a letter obtained by Fanhouse's Tim Povtak): "I would guess that most of the NBA office employees do not miss their kid's school plays, parent-teacher conferences, sports practices and games, graduations, Christmas mornings, and other holidays. Their husbands and wives do not have to explain to their children each morning and night for 10 months of the year that daddy or mommy will not be coming home again today and won't be home again for the next ten days either. I can tell you from first-hand experience that three, four and five year olds do not get that concept very well."
- Jeremy from Roundball Mining Company: "I refereed a few intramural games in college. There were three leagues, A, B and C. I refereed C league games. As you probably figured out A was the top competitive league and C was the recreational league full of people who may or may not have played before. You would think that the C league would be pretty laid back and easy to ref. Some of the guys on my floor played on a team called "Wish There Was a D League.” I am pretty sure they never got on the refs. On some nights you had teams like my floor mates who just wanted to run around and were happy to make fools of themselves, but on other nights the participants seemed to think they were battling it out for the Larry O'Brien trophy and as a result I took quite a bit of abuse. I remember being glared at days after a game when a guy from one of the games I worked passed me on the sidewalk. The whole point of this is I do not know who on earth would want to be a referee."
- Former NBA center Leroy Ellis has managed life's disasters -- a murdered son, a terminal cancer diagnosis -- with an exceptionally strong spirit and an even-keeled attitude.
- Spencer Hawes, spontaneous cheerleader.
- Rod Benson is as funny as people get, and has turned himself into a big name in the basketball blogging community. So ... has that made him more valuable as a box-office draw? The Utah Flash owner Brandt Andersen is asked that question by SaltCityHoops: "So you don't think there is any value added to a player by becoming kind of an online celebrity? Not at all. Like I said, the only thing that really matters is if you can play, and you win on the court. So it doesn't matter when a guy like Rod Benson comes to town? Rod doesn't draw at all. I love reading his stuff, he's a great writer and a funny guy, but he doesn't affect our gate at all."
- Andre Iguodala had his cable cut off.
- TrueHoop reader Steve writes: "Allen Iverson was present at the first Eurobasket semifinal, Spain vs Greece, sitting in the front row behind the basket that Spain played on offensively during the second quarter. TV cameras showed him twice towards the end of the second quarter (at around four minutes to play, I guess)." Iverson has been in Europe on a tour for Reebok.
- The Onion: "Athletes Can Play Through Those Injuries, Says Man Who Gets Sore From Sitting Too Long"
- Video of people dunking on Shaquille O'Neal.
- Markus Carr, professional basketball player in Europe, and serial entrepreneur with a series of fascinating tales.
- If Trevor Ariza had taken the Cavaliers' free agent money instead of the Rockets' he reportedly would have been $2 million poorer because of Ohio state tax.
- Kenyon Martin talks about his spat with Mark Cuban on Denver's 104.3 The Fan: "He apologized to my mom and that's all he had to do. Just move on from it. He has a team to run down there and I have a job to kick their butt every time we play them." (Via Sports Radio Interviews)
- Yesterday I blogged a little about Kobe Bryant. To the many Bryant fans who reached out convinced that I had been excessively negative: Ask fans of any celebrity ... if the people "going after" your hero are using evidence-based analysis and a measured tone, there is nothing to worry about. My mild criticism (blended with a ton of praise!) fell far short of people on the Laker payroll like Phil Jackson and Tex Winter have said in print. What I wrote may not make you happy, but it's par for the course. Not everything said about every international media superstar is positive, and that's OK. That doesn't mean anyone's out to get you.
- On the other hand ... there is an undeniable joy in a well-written negative review. And Tom Ziller of Sactown Royalty tees off on the Kings for signing Desmond Mason, who is something of a poster-child for NBA players who, new kinds of stats demonstrate, are not good. Mason has also been seriously injured, and is at an age where almost every NBA player is in decline. Coach Paul Westphal gave various rationales, calling the signing a "no lose situation" while pointing out it would motivate the young players to fight for playing time. Ziller tackles each. "I disagree that it's a 'no-lose situation' -- that roster spot could be going to a younger player, a back-up center, a fan favorite, Chris Bosh's best friend from third grade, a younger player, Tom Ziller or a younger player. If you were hoping for one of those guys, and instead get Desmond Mason, well that seems to be a loss. ... Before signing Desmond Mason, there was the chance Donte Greene or Omri Casspi might goof off in practice, unworried about the possibility of losing their invisible spot in the rotation because there isn't a 32-year-old breathing down their necks. NO MORE. Desmond Mason will prevent further popcorn shenanigans! I am a loyal fan. I want to see Greene and Casspi (and Tyreke Evans) play. I'm not a coach, but I think there are ways to motivate young players without threatening them with a terrible, old player coming off knee surgery. Try cupcakes! Little children such Greene and Casspi loves cupcakes." UPDATE: And a defense of the signing.
- In contrasting aging benchwarmer signee news, Blazer bloggers are cool with the signing of different aging benchwarmer: Juwan Howard.
- David Stern made a convincing point the other day. The NBA delivers about $2 billion a year to its players, and no other league comes close. That's why he isn't so stressed about losing a player here or there to Europe. However, I'd point out that one country in particular -- Spain -- seems to have the knack for producing players who turn down major NBA opportunities. Ricky Rubio and Fran Vasquez were both lottery picks who weren't exactly gaga for the NBA. Matt Moore of Hardwood Paroxysm discusses, brilliantly, the case of Juan Carlos Navarro, who made a cameo in Memphis a few years ago: "The impression you get from interviews with Navarro is that he just didn't care that much about the NBA. He loves Spain. It's his home. And versus the States, where there will be constant questions about his style, his ability, and his talent simply because he hasn't played in the AAU tournaments or Rucker Park or the NCAA Tournament, in Spain, he's considered mega-successful. Would you rather be a pauper in heaven or a prince in Hell? What if Hell was actually your home, and instead of the brimstone pits, it was nice beaches, beautiful women, amazing food and way more money than you can make in heaven?"
- But for that anti-gay rant, Tim Hardaway, posits Ira Winderman of the Sun-Sentinel, would have had his jersey retired alongside Alonzo Mourning. Instead, Mourning flew solo as the first Heat player to enjoy the honor. Instead, it has been announced, Hardaway will enjoy that honor on October 28.
- The Rockets promote Gersson Rosas. It's not a name most people know, but it's a non-trivial day for Latin-American hoops. In 2006, Rosas (then a scout) wrote on Rockets.com about how he got to the NBA: "As a native of Colombia, South America, I utilized my culture and ability to speak Spanish to develop a background in Latin American basketball through various means. Growing up in Houston, I was fortunate to have been exposed to some good University of Houston teams during the 1980's that consisted of a number of players from Latin American countries, including Brazil (Rolando Ferreira), Colombia (Alvaro Teheran, Rafael Carrasco, Angel Sanz) and Venezuela (Carl Herrera, David Diaz), which piqued my interest regarding the impact of Latin American basketball players in the United States. Throughout college, I partnered with various sports agents on projects that consisted of placing undrafted or free agent players in South American professional leagues. In addition, some of my other responsibilities with these projects included individual basketball development, draft preparation and player relations. These experiences were beneficial, as I was able to build up deliberate relationships with basketball personnel throughout Latin America, which in turn led to more opportunities. One of which was working with Oscar Torres of Venezuela during his tenure with the Houston Rockets, on a wide range of tasks that included everything from individual basketball workouts to English classes. As a result of this experience, I assisted the Venezuelan basketball federation, which Torres was a member of, at the 2002 World Championships in Indianapolis, Indiana. My experiences and background in Latin American basketball has granted me the opportunity to become a scout/video coordinator for the Houston Rockets."
- The Suns want fans to take light rail to the game.
- To anyone who ever wanted to see every NBA referee fired ... careful what you wish for. I totally agree that the current crop of referees is not perfect. But who is? And replacing them all wholesale ... I'm not optimistic.
- A 2007 profile of Kings incoming rookie Jon Brockman, by the Seattle Times' Bob Condotta, reveals the ridiculous number of times Brockman has broken his nose. (His style of play may be hard-nosed. But his nose, apparently, isn't.) It comes in a discussion about Brockman's religion. "'It's something I was born into,' he said. 'At the same time, I didn't realize the importance of it until middle school, high school, when I really started thinking about and just knowing that it's something you aren't just born into but have to do on your own to show that you really believe what
you believe.' He has heard people question, however, how his beliefs jibe with his intense style of play. 'Because I'm so aggressive, people are like, 'That's not very Christian,'' he said. 'But I don't see it as that at all. Basketball is a physical sport, that's the way it should be played. It's a whole lot of using your body and getting in position and some people get hurt in the process. But the main thing is, I'll be as quick to help someone up as knock them down.' He also points out that he has gotten as much as he has given at times. He has suffered five broken noses, three or four broken fingers, a broken wrist, turf toe, a badly pulled hamstring and torn shoulder muscles, the latter earlier this season."
- A suggestion, via Twitter, that a Bryon Russell vs. Michael Jordan match may be in the works.
- LeBron James is coming to New York ... to promote the movie "More Than a Game." A Nike press release about the visit (taking place this Sunday), makes clear it will be another opportunity for James to demonstrate his lack of steadfast commitment to Ohio. One line that caught my eye: "As part of the celebration, James will be presented with an exclusive pair of Nike Air Max LeBron VII's featuring a New York City-inspired design created by local artist Tomokazu Matsuyama."
- Imagining replacement refs.
- I once read an interview with some celebrity, can't remember which one. She explained why she only did big budget movies: Studios will market the hell out of them, for fear of having a colossal failure. So they usually succeed, and make her look like a good investment! In those cases, the executives are emotionally invested, too. Their reputations are on the line. Cheap movies, though, can be dropped, without any reflection on the executives. So in some weird way, wasting money is the surest way to making money, if you see what I mean. Anyway, Rob Mahoney detects a bit of the same dynamic at the end of the Mavericks' roster. There are three candidates to cut, and one of them has a fat salary, which may help him stick around. The team has to pay either way, but cutting a guy like that, having once invested so much, could be an embarrassing admission of defeat.
- The Suns get a sponsor on their practice jerseys.
- An inspiring tale of overcoming cancer, starring three miniature NBA basketballs.
- Jared Wade of Eight Points Nine Seconds: "Not only is he an All-American basketball player, but Tyler Hansbrough is, to my knowledge, the first NBA star to also crossover into the social networking-based dog-catching profession."
- Morris Almond, a former Jazz pick and a fine young man (who once wrote for TrueHoop) will be in camp with the Magic. Ross Siler of the Salt Lake Tribune: "Almond was widely expected to go to camp with New York after playing in summer league with the Knicks. Instead, he'll get the chance to prove to the Magic that they never can have enough three-point shooters. I've said it here before not to count out Almond. He's been a slow starter his entire basketball life, whether it was being stuck in Josh Smith's shadow in high school or his first two college seasons at Rice. We'll see ifthe pattern repeats itself in the NBA."
- David Stern talked NBA basketball in a barbershop in Harlem. TrueHoop reader Armando Lara-Millán (Fellow of the American Sociological Association, MFP, Department of Sociology at Northwestern University) writes: "What is interesting to me is that the issues that come up are the issues that continue to strike NBA fans of color as policy inspired by racism -- The NBA age limit rule, the dress code, and the fallout from the melee. I was reminded at why these these issues continue to drum up discussions about racism amongst any group of NBA fans of color: a big organization is attempting to regulate a group of people of color so that they behave morally and ethically in ways that are comfortable for white fans. You will notice, actual talk about the content of NBA playing is very limited."
- "Black Rushmore," a new Gilbert Arenas tattoo.
- Steve Nash, Hall of Famer?
- Hard to argue he isn't grown up yet: Kevin Durant reportedly organized 6:30 am pickup games, which he'd play in before his summer University of Texas class on ... adolescence.
- Ryan at the Basketball Geek goes in-depth discussing a new book by Wayne Winston. Winston is one of the big names in basketball statistics, who is under contract with prominent referee-basher Mark Cuban's Dallas Mavericks. So, when Ryan writes about one particular part of the book, I'm dying to know more: "In the next chapters, Are NBA Officials Prejudiced? and Did Tim Donaghy Fix NBA Games?, Wayne shows how we might try to analyze these topics, and what conclusions we'd want to arrive at based on the analysis." Good tease! (Also, Winston explains why Sebastian Telfair is an underrated gem.)
- There have been so many stories of professional athletes being misled or ripped off in various financial schemes. This is a refreshing and new angle. Horace Grant is reportedly due a payment of nearly $1.5 million. He made a mutual fund investment on the basis of representations it was extremely safe. Turned out, it wasn't, and now he's getting his money back.
- A suggestion that the NBA might have better referees if they busted the union and started from scratch. I have my doubts. Before declaring any such thing, I'd want to see evidence that the recent hires from the D-League -- the referees who presumably most approximate what we'd have as replacements -- were in some way more accurate than the old ones.
- This is a teaser, and the payoff is, if you sign up ... getting to watch video of two people you don't know playing a video game. That counts? That's enough? That's teasable?
- The Blazers hired Hersey Hawkins as player development director. Attention lucrative market to the north in search of an NBA team to love: In case Brandon Roy, Martell Webster, Nate McMillan and Paul Allen didn't have enough Seattle ties for you ... Chris Bowles, who had that title previously, and got the Blazers doing some interesting stuff, has a new job with the team.
- Have you seen the hot new rumors about the European big man the Spurs are in love with? Those rumors are three months old!
- Marvin Williams just signed a contract worth around $40 million. I'm thinking it might be time to buy his family Leage Pass. Here he is in an interview with HoopsTV: "The Hawks have seven nationally televised games on their regular-season schedule this year, equal to the total amount the franchise has had over the past 11 seasons combined. Have any thoughts on the Hawks moving into the NBA spotlight? That's huge. Huge. I think every player loves top be on national television, but especially me being from the Seattle area, my family doesn't get a chance to see me play very often, so having all those games on national television is big. It's big for the Atlanta Hawks organization. It just shows people around the League and the world that we are getting better."
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 |
