khandor’s sports blog

According to the good folks at Raptors Republic, Toronto would be best served by selecting Avery Bradley [G, 6-3, 180, 19 yrs/Texas] with the No. 13 [overall] Pick of the 2010 NBA Draft, if the proceedings follow the path prescribed by the collection of team blogs asked to contribute to the TrueHoop Network’s annual mock draft yesterday:

1 John Wall, PG [Washington Wizards]

2 Evan Turner, G/F [Philadelphia 76ers]

3 Derrick Favors, PF [New Jersey Nets]

4 Wesley Johnson, F [Minnesota Timberwolves]

5 DeMarcus Cousins, C [Sacramento Kings]

6 Greg Monroe, C [Golden State Warriors]

7 Ekpe Udoh, PF [Detroit Pistons]

8 Al-Farouq Aminu, G/F [Los Angeles Clippers]

9 Xavier Henry, G/F [Utah Jazz]

10 Paul George, G/F [Indiana Pacers]

11 Cole Aldrich, C [New Orleans Hornets]

12 Ed Davis, PF [Memphis Grizzlies]

13 Avery Bradley, G [Toronto Raptors]

Unfortunately …

Yours truly does NOT share this same opinion.

If the Raptors exercise their right to make the No. 13 [overall] Selection tomorrow night and Gordon Hayward, Luke Babbitt and Hassan Whiteside are each on the board, then, the Raptors would be making a serious blunder if they use this pick on a combination guard with the attributes of Avery Bradley.

RATIONALE

While there is little doubt that Avery Bradley has what it takes to become a solid player in the NBA, when you consider his:

i. Relative quickness at the position he plays best;
ii. Explosive power;
iii. Size; and,
iv. Specific skill-set; 

there is still considerable doubt as to whether or not he has what it takes to become a “star” player in the best pro basketball league in the world.

However, when you look at the attributes of the following 3 players:

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Gordon Hayward, SF, 6-8, 200, Soph, 20 yrs/Butler
Scouting Report, Stats

Butler’s Hayward creates buzz at 19-and-under national team trials

Hayward’s Q rating should explode this summer, though, following a freshman year at Butler in which he averaged 13.1 points and 6.5 rebounds, and helped the Bulldogs reach the NCAA tournament after being picked to finish fifth in the Horizon League. On Wednesday morning at USA Basketball’s 19-and-under trials, there was more buzz over Hayward than any other player in camp.

Sharing a court with mega-recruits like Florida-bound Kenny Boynton and former top 100 big men such as Minnesota’s Ralph Sampson III and Georgia’s Howard Thompkins, Hayward dominated an early scrimmage with his stellar long-range shooting (6-of-9 from the field for 15 points) and passing ability (three assists, no turnovers). He had the gallery of NBA scouts and college coaches atwitter. “This Hayward kid is impressive,” one scout remarked. “He’s not just a shooter, either — he can put the ball on the floor and make plays.”

No one was rushing to put him on their 2010 draft boards — Hayward still projects as a 3-4 year college player who, at 200 pounds, has yet to fill out his frame — but he could eventually become Butler’s first NBA player since Ralph “Buckshot” O’Brien in 1953. In the meantime, after making Jamie Dixon‘s 12-man roster for the 19-and-under team, Hayward should begin to be viewed as a high-level national talent rather than merely the All-Horizon League player he was as a freshman. As Butler’s Stevens says, Hayward is a player “with a very high ceiling.”

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Luke Babbitt, SF, 6-7, 215, Soph, 21 yrs/Nevada
Scouting Report, Stats

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Hassan Whiteside, C, 6-11, 235, Fresh, 21 yrs/Marshall
Scouting Report, Stats

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there should be little-to-no doubt, whatsoever, that each one has the ability to become a PRIMETIME player in the NBA, in the not-too-distant future.

If your team is gifted with the opportunity to select a player who …

OPTION A
Was named 1 of the 5 best players at the 2009 U19 Men’s FIBA World Championship, or

OPTION B
Has an individual game which resembles a high motor, hybrid version of two members of the original USA Dream Team [i.e. Larry Bird and Chris Mullin], or

OPTION C
Has the ability to average 5.4 blocked shots per game, as a freshman in college + a 7 foot, 7 inch wingspan + a father whose DNA allowed him to play professional football in the NFL and CFL, as a 6-4, 250 defensive end,

you do NOT pass THAT up for a combo guard whose best “skills” are found on the “defensive” side of the floor, and in his ability to “create his own shot”, on offense.

Whether or not the Raptors are eventually able to re-sign Chris Bosh should actually be irrelevant … when it comes to making this specific decision … if any of these 3 players is still on the board and Toronto has the chance to make the No. 13 [overall] Selection in the 2010 NBA Draft.

This year’s draft will take place on Thursday [June 24].

According to 3 recent ‘mock drafts’, the first 10 selections are likely to play out in the following ways:

Which would then mean the following group of players will not be available to the Raptors with the #13 pick:

while at least 2 of the following group of players shown below in neon green will most likely still be available when Toronto makes the #13 selection:

The key poll question for today is:

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Related:

Revisiting Draft Rater [includes John Hollinger's subjective Draft Board]

For the benefit of those of you playing along at home …

This is what the Final Results would look like, if yours truly had been invited to participate in this year’s ‘exclusive’ NBA Playoffs handicapping event:

TrueHoop Stat Geek Smackdown Contest 2010

Participants

Mrs. Abbott – Henry’s mother [Mom]

Prof. David Berri – Wages of Wins Journal

John Hollinger – ESPN NBA Insider

Stephen Ilardi – Adjusted Plus/Minus

Jeffrey Ma – Bringing Down The House/21

Neil Paine – Basketball Reference Blog

Kevin Pelton – Basketball Prospectus

Haralabos Voulgaris – Former professional gambler

khandor – Sports Consultant

Correct Team Selected = 5 points

Correct Games Number Selected = 2 additional points 
 

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khandor’s Individual Series Selections

1st Round
WINNERS: Cleveland/#1, Orlando/#2, Atlanta/#3, Boston/#4, Los Angeles/#5, San Antonio/#6, Phoenix/#7 and Utah/#8
LOSERS: Zero/#0

2nd Round
WINNERS: Orlando/#9, Los Angeles/#10
LOSERS: Cleveland/#1 and San Antonio/#2

3rd Round
WINNERS: Los Angeles/#11
LOSERS: Orlando/#3

Finals
WINNER: Los Angeles/#12

Bold - Correct game number call.

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Congratulations to Jeffrey Ma for emerging victorious in this year’s ‘official’ contest!

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PS. For those who would like to verify the individual series selections made by Khandor’s Sports Service [KSS], please feel free to contact Prof. Berri, directly, as he was, in fact, sent each of those specific calls, via email, prior to the start of each round. Prof. Berri is currently working at Southern Utah University and his email address is available to the public at their web site.

If, before, there was but one …

today, there are now two such men … of tremendous, character, accomplishment and reknown.

A salute to the Poet Gladiator, from Barcelona …

for playing as ‘hard’ as he did in this series, with both his head and his heart, and without whom these LA Lakers would not have won back-to-back NBA Championships. 

The NBA is a league with 63 years of history, and any franchise which truly aspires to win the championship, one day in the future, but refuses to acknowledge the primacy of the 3 main aspects of basketball success …

#1 Team Defense,

#2 Rebounding,

and,

#3 Team [not individual] Offense

… is simply kidding itself, as well as its loyal fanbase.

As Pat Riley so aptly said, years ago, while winning back-to-back titles with the original ShowTime LA Lakers:

“No Rebounds; No Rings.”

and,

as KG & Co. have so eloquently and rhythmically espoused, en masse, for the last few years …

What it takes to win the NBA Championship really does involve making a total Team Commitment to playing the game the RIGHT WAY.

Congratulations to the LA Lakers organization for learning its lessons well, and being able to ‘walk the walk.’

Over the last 13 months, this is some of what’s been written in this space about the Lakers’ mercurial one: 

Ron Artest is a foxhole guy … [May 7, 2009]

Yet another reason to root-root for Ron-Ron this season [Jan 14, 2010]

In the wee hours of this morning, in the aftermath of Los Angeles’ victory in Game 7, this is what was said about him by the ZenMaster, himself, and Doc Rivers, and Glen Davis, and Sekou Smith:

Artest Sings Redemption’s Song

Kobe Bryant walked out of the Staples Center Thursday night with his fifth NBA title and his second straight Finals MVP. He praised the “Spaniard” [Pau Gasol] specifically for all his help in reaching this career milestone.

The MVP on this night, however, was none other than Ron Artest.

No one walked out of the building without seeing that, not after his 20 points, five rebounds, five steals and iron will helped drag the Lakers back from a 13-point deficit to beat back a Celtics team that controlled the action for much of the night.

“Ron Artest was the most valuable player tonight,” Lakers coach Phil Jackson said. “He brought life to our team, he brought life to the crowd.”

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June 17 2010, Part I

June 17 2010, Part II

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Kudos to the man … from Queensbridge, NY … who always seeks to KEEP IT REAL!

Related:

Artest delivers crazy finish to title

… at one of the game’s most venerable locations, looking back on 4 of the all-time great shots in golf history is like taking an exhilerating stroll down memory lane.

#4 Nicklaus’ 1-iron at Pebble Beach, 1972

#3 Woods’ chip shot at Augusta National, 2005

#2 Mize’s chip shot at Augusta National, 1987

#1 Watson’s chip shot at Pebble Beach, 1982  

Even “Hollywood” cannot script dramatic happenings like the ones which can sometimes occur in real life, given the time, place and specific circumstances.

Before the 2009-2010 NBA regular season began, the Los Angeles Lakers were identified by yours truly as the best team in the league, provided that they could remain relatively healthy over the course of this season.

There is only 1 game remaining in this year’s NBA Finals and the Lakers are poised to make that pre-season forecast come true.

Los Angeles was destined to be the best team in the NBA this season when you consider all three main phases of the game:

1. Team Offense;

2. Team Defensive ;

and,

3. Team Rebounding.

As long as the referees do not unnecessarily insert themselves into the equation, by burdening either Kobe Bryant or Pau Gasol with serious early foul trouble, and Los Angeles continues to play unselfishly, the Lakers will win The Battle of the Boards in Game 7 and, thus, their 2nd consecutive NBA crown.

When a team is able to:

i. Effectively execute a well-coordinated Team Offense, like Tex Winter’s Triangle, which is predicated upon sharing the basketball;

ii. Employ a number of talented individual players who are solid Team Defenders, e.g. Kobe Bryant, Ron Artest, Pau Gasol, Andrew Bynum, Lamar Odom, Derek Fisher, Shannon Brown, Luke Walton and Josh Powell;

iii. Consistently REBOUND the ball, at both ends of the floor;

iv. Repeatedly draw upon its “Collective Breath” … courtesy of an authentic elite level head coach; 

and, then,

v. Put the ball in the hands of the best player in the game today, for its most crucial possessions … both, offensively and defensively, given his ability to defend on-the-ball, as well … to orchestrate their symphony;

it is going to win the league championship.

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PS. If both Kevin Garnett and Kendrick Perkins had been 100% healthy, it might have been a different story.

The 2010 NBA Draft will take place in 7 days.

This summer there are several players available who should be able to develop into outstanding NBAers, including household names like John Wall [PG/OG] and Evan Turner [OG/SF], currently atop every list of the so-called “draft experts”.

From a Raptors perspective, however, Toronto is situated in the #13 position and is, therefore, unlikely to have access to those players.

Nevertheless …

If the Raptors want to make significant strides going forward this off-season … regardless what Chris Bosh eventually decides to do, as far as re-signing with the team [or not] is concerned … their rabid fans should focus their attention on the following players who are likely to be picked in the 1st Round on Thursday, June 24, 2010:

[in alphabetical order]

Should Toronto manage to select one of these players they will have succeeded in upgrading the talent on their current roster and positioned themselves to make gradual progress up the standings in the Eastern Conference.