khandor’s sports blog

If you happen to be a die-hard fan of the LA Lakers, and would like to see the team return to the NBA Finals, asap, then, the latest news from Hollywood, re: the search for a new head coach, is the worst possible:

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Sources: Brown, Lakers in serious talks

The Lakers are focused on talks with Brown, who was fired in 2010 after five seasons in Cleveland, where he went 272-138.

Los Angeles had considered longtime assistant Brian Shaw, but the focus is now on Brown, who is currently an NBA analyst for ESPN. There could be an agreement in place within the next 24-48 hours, sources say, but nothing has been finalized. Brown expects to reach a resolution one way or another with Los Angeles on Wednesday.

The two sides are working out issues that could be dealbreakers and cause the Lakers to go to another candidate, sources said, but there’s clearly momentum toward Brown becoming the next head coach.

The Lakers and Brown’s representation were discussing salary and length of contract on Tuesday, with the Lakers trying to hold the line on terms, sources said. Those talks will continue Wednesday, with the Lakers playing hard ball.

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Mike Brown?

Really?

This must be a joke, right?

Unless, of course, Dr. Jerry Buss has completely lost his mind?

Mike Brown has already demonstrated that he is nothing like his one-time mentor, Gregg Popovich … or, Doc Rivers … or, Rick Adelman … or, Rick Carlisle … or, the as yet, untested Brian Shaw.

Mike Brown is most definitely nothing like the ZenMaster, Phil Jackson. 

Mike Brown is someone who has been incapable of exercising the required “level of control” over a superstar player – like LeBron James [in Cleveland] or Kobe Bryant [in LA] – and lacks the type of “wholly integrated system of play” which is necessary to achieve major success in the NBA.

Mike Brown is a good defensive coach. Period.

Mike Brown is not someone who will improve the Lakers’ chances of the winning the NBA title next season, or anytime soon.  

The Lakers’ major problems this year had nothing to do with their defensive systems of play … and everything to do with:

i. Their overall lack of talent, in comparison with previous editions of their team;

ii. The poor play of Derek Fisher and Steve Blake;

iii. Their lack of Team Cohesion;

and,

iv. Their overall lack of offensive discipline.

Mike Brown is not the right man to effectively address the Lakers’ specific needs.

If the Lakers do eventually go in this direction, and hire Mike Brown, what it will mean is that something FUNDAMENTAL has now changed with the day-to-day operation of this team, and that Dr. Jerry Buss [owner] and Mitch Kupchak [GM] are no longer in control of this franchise.

Prior to the start of the NBA’s Conference Semi-finals, this is how this corner would have rated the respective head coaches who were still alive in the current post-season:

EAST

1 Chicago/Tom Thibodeau [Has a chance to become special]
5 Atlanta/Larry Drew [Average]

2 Miami/Erik Spoelstra [Has a chance to become special]
3 Boston/Doc Rivers [Top Notch]

WEST

2 LA Lakers/Phil Jackson [All-Time Great]
3 Dallas/Rick Carlisle [Top Notch]

8 Memphis/Lionel Hollins [Above average and getting better each season]
4 Oklahoma City/Scott Brooks [Average]

The one series which has already been decided was effected significantly by the fact that Rick Carlisle is an elite level head coach, who just happened to “out-coach” a living legend … when it came to using his available personnel properly [i.e. the best way possible].

Although Phil Jackson is many wonderful things, as a head coach, one of them is NOT being categorized properly as an extremely flexible in-game tactician.

Like many coaches the world over, Phil Jackson is someone who is very good at what he happens to be very good at doing … which is developing a team that is very talented and getting them well-prepared to play a highly specific way without much deviation from the pre-established game-plan.

When a coach of this ilk has the best team, in a specific match-up, from a personnel standpoint, s/he usually does a terrific job getting them to perform at their highest level of effectiveness which, in turn, is usually good enough to result in a series victory.

However, when a coach of this ilk just happens to find her/himself facing an opponent that is relatively equal, in terms of overall personnel or, perhaps, even slightly superior, at least, at certain key positions, then, this type of highly structured coach is also vulnerable to getting beat by an adversary with a higher degree of versatility, when it comes to developing, implementing and executing an unorthodox game-plan.

QUESTION 1

Which set of primary rotational personnel is superior, if you line-up the players on the Mavericks’ roster and compare to the group on the Lakers’?

Dallas v Los Angeles

STARTERS
Fisher v Kidd
Bryant v Stevenson
Artest v Marion
Gasol v Nowitzki
Bynum [Def & Reb] v Chandler [Def & Reb]

KEY SUBS
Blake v Barea
Brown v Terry
Barnes [Def & Reb] v Stojakovic [Off]
Odom [Off] v Haywood [Def & Reb]

Los Angeles 1. Dallas 5.

QUESTION 2

But …

Which set is in fact superior, if the Individual Match-ups are adjusted to look like this:

Dallas v Los Angeles

STARTERS
Brown v Kidd
Bryant v Stevenson
Artest v Marion
Odom [Off, Def & Reb] v Nowitzki [Off, Def & Reb]
Gasol v Chandler

KEY SUBS
Fisher [Def & Reb] v Barea [Off]
Barnes [Def & Reb] v Terry [Off]
Walton [Def & Reb] v Stojakovic [Off]
Bynum [Def & Reb] v Haywood [Def & Reb]

Los Angeles 2. Dallas 1.

The Lakers were eliminated from the NBA Playoffs on Sunday, primarily, because their GM, Mitch Kupchak, made a series of ill-advised personnel decisions that significiantly weakened the overall strength of their roster, from the end of the 2009-2010 season.

However, Los Angles should still have been good enough to overcome this group of Dallas Mavericks, if Phil Jackson would have been willing to deviate from his highly structured rotation and used Shannon Brown [as a Starter], Lamar Odom [as a Starter], Derek Fisher [as a Key Sub], Andrew Bynum [as a Key Sub], Matt Barnes [as a Key Sub], Luke Walton [as a Key Sub] and Steve Blake [not at all] in the right way, given the personnel available to both teams AND the way that Rick Carlisle set the Mavericks’ rotation.

Kudos to the Mavericks’ head coach, who has been one of the best practicioners in the NBA for several seasons.

According to the following report …

Murphy debating between Celtics, Heat

… a veteran NBA Big Man, who averaged 14.0+ ppg and 10.0+ rpg during both the 2008-2009 and 2009-2010 seasons, now has a very interesting choice to make. 

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Between Pat Riley and Danny Ainge?

Hmmm …

Watch the following sequence of events and then identify correctly what crucial mistake the 76ers made which resulted in their loss to the Celtics [on Thursday]:

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Should they have gone “under” the pick, instead of switching?

Should they have gone “over” the pick, “shown hard” with Garnett’s defender, and then “recovered back” to their original checks?

Should they have ”trapped” the pick?

Or, should they have done something else, altogether different?

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The specific take from this corner …

The main mistake which Doug Collins made in this instance was his deployment of this specific Group of 5 players against the Quintet that Doc Rivers put on the floor:

PG – Holiday vs Rondo
OG – Williams vs Robinson
SF – Meeks vs Allen
PF – Iguodala vs Pierce
C – Young vs Garnett

which amounted to the following “Individual Match-up” categories:

For Philadelphia -> 3 Smalls [i.e. Robinson, Rondo & Allen] + 2 Mediums [Iguodala & Young]

vs

For Boston -> 3 Smalls [Robinson, Rondo & Allen] + 1 Medium [Pierce] + 1 Big [Garnett]

What Doug Collins should have done instead was use THIS specific Group of 5 players on this final possession:

PG – Iguodala [Medium] vs Rondo [Small]
OG – Williams [Small] vs Robinson [Small]
SF – Meeks [Small] vs Allen [Small]
PF – Young [Medium] vs Pierce [Medium]
C – Battie [Big] vs Garnett [Big]

… and the 76ers would have probably won this game outright, by getting a defensive stop on this possession, regardless of what specific play the Celtics decided to use.

Understanding properly how “Individual Match-ups” actually work is the key to understanding the NBA game.

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PS. If you actually watched this game on television, like yours truly did, then, you should have been able to see the look of absolute horror which came over the face of Ed Stefanski [Sixers GM] … believe it, or not, it was very much like this … when he first surveyed the floor, saw the 5 players Coach Collins sent out, from the preceding time-out, to defend against the 5 players deployed by Doc Rivers, and mouthed the following 5 words of fright and dismay: “No! What are you doing!” Right now, the 76ers might well be the best 7-15 team in the NBA, considering they have lost at least 3 games [i.e. L1, in OT; L2, in OT; and L3] in mind-boggling fashion. :-(

Related:

The Celtics game-winning pick & roll and the Sixers poor defense of it

Dying woman shows Dwight Howard what living is all about

This is why sports have always been so amazing to me – because they have the extraordinary power and potential to pull people together. Doesn’t matter if you’re black or white, Republican or Democrat, Christian or Muslim, Gator or Seminole – everybody comes together at a Magic game and roots for the same team.Peyton Manning, a white quarterback, loves to throw the football to Reggie Wayne, a black wide receiver. Magic forward Mickael Pietrus, a black man from Guadeloupe, is great friends with center Marcin Gortat, a white man from Poland.NBA, you see teams made up of players from every country and every race, and we all get along,” Boston Celtics coach Doc Rivers once told me when he coached the Magic. “We’re a pretty good model for all walks of life.”

I’ve written it before and I’ll reiterate it here: The sports world, perhaps more than any other part of our everyday lives, truly is color blind. Mostly white fans will fill an arena to cheer for mostly black basketball players.

“In the

What’s it tell you when Dwight Howard, a young, incredibly healthy black man, is inspired by Kay Kellogg, an older, incredibly sick white woman – and vice versa?

Kay’s entire body is in excruciating pain, but on Sunday night she was smiling and clapping and cheering at every point Dwight scored and every rebound he pulled down.

She cried on the way to the arena as she reflected back on all the good times Dwight and the Magic have provided her over the years.

“I was just so excited, I started to tear up,” she said. “I was thinking about all the times I’ve watched Dwight and how happy he makes me feel. I just love him and the Magic so much.”

The thing is, he was supposed to inspire her but she has ended up inspiring him. He sees how she is facing her death and it makes him want to make the most of his life. She is not depressed. She is not bitter. She just talks about how lucky she is to have lived such a wonderfully full life.

“She’s just a blessing,” Dwight says. “She’s just overwhelmed with joy every time she comes to a Magic game. … We take life for granted sometimes. One thing I learned from her is that she makes the most of every breath she takes. We all need to be like that.”

THE ROAD TO THE NBA FINALS, IN THE EASTERN CONFERENCE STILL RUNS THROUGH BOSTON … BECAUSE OF THE BIG TICKET

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Kevin Garnett tells WEEI he’ll retire as a Celtic

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Kevin Garnett says his thoughts on Boston have changed: ‘It’s not a white or black thing here’

Garnett acknowledged that he wasn’t sure about joining the Celtics before he signed because he believed he would feel like an outsider, but in the end he’s glad he did.

If he truly is back …

in regular ‘KG Mode’ … i.e. Take No Prisoners …

then, 

this year’s collection of Boston Celtics will be just as good as … if not, possibly, better than … any of the other prime-time contenders for the NBA Championship [i.e. LA Lakers, Miami Heat and Orlando Magic], top to bottom, provided that their core group of players can remain injury-free.

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

The Lakers have slightly better personnel, overall, than the Boston Celtics.

Yet, the Lakers are trailing 2-3, in this series.

Q1. How come?

A1. Primarily, because … at least, to this point … Phil Jackson is being out-coached by Doc Rivers, when it comes to using his personnel properly.

If you take a closer look at the simple game stats for the series, so far, for the players each team is using at the Power Forward and Center positions, this is what you should be able to see:

Boston is gradually … and, seemingly, inevitably … wearing down Pau Gasol because Phil Jackson is refusing to play Josh Powell, when the Celtics’ consistent use of 4 Bigs [i.e. Garnett & Perkins and Davis & Wallace] … vs just 3 Bigs … DICTATES THAT HE SHOULD RESPOND IN PRECISELY THIS MANNER.

As was first said here in the NBA Finals Preview …

What you should expect from this year’s NBA Finals [June 3 2010]

… the Lakers are, in fact, the better team in this specific match-up, except, of course, if Phil Jackson manages to get out-coached by Doc Rivers, for example, by refusing to use Josh Powell [PF] vs Glen Davis [PF], which would effectively lessen the load that Pau Gasol [PF/C] is working under trying to play against BOTH Kevin Garnett [PF/C] AND Rasheed Wallace [PF/C].

It will be extremely interesting to see:

i. How many minutes Pau Gasol, Andrew Bynum and Lamar Odom are going to play in Game 6 [and, possibly, Game 7];

ii. How effective Pau Gasol, Andrew Bynum and Lamar Odom are during the minutes which they play in Game 6 [and, possibly, Game 7]; and,

iii. Whether, or not, Phil Jackson finally decides to use a bench player with the specific skill-set of Josh Powell [PF] properly;

with only 1 rest day [and a coast-to-coast airplane flight, with a 3 hour time change] between Game 5 and Game 6, and then between Game 6 and Game 7.

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Related:

Who has outcoached Doc Rivers?

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PS. Those who perpetually under-value the work and ability of Doc Rivers, and/or the fundamental role played by an authentically elite level head coach in the day-to-day performance of NBA teams and players simply demonstrate that they fail to understand how the game of basketball actually works.

The NBA Finals [v.2009-2010] tip off this evening in Los Angeles.

While Rounds 1, 2 and 3 have produced some fair-to-good basketball, this version of the Finals should prove to be an entirely different kettle of fish.

These 2 teams are quite evenly matched.

The Lakers, however, signed Ron Artest last summer for one reason only.

i.e. To have him defend either LeBron James or Paul Pierce in the NBA Finals. 

If Ron Ron does his job properly, from a physical standpoint, and can play Da Truth to a virtual stand-off, then … all else being equal … the Lakers will be hoisting another championship banner to the rafters when the 2010-2011 kicks off in the fall.

It really is as simple as that.

Enjoy what should be a real hum-dinger of a series!

The Year was 1993.

The Date was June 2.

The Round was the Eastern Conference Finals.

The Game was #5. 

The Combatants were: [i] The mighty Chicago Bulls … coached by Phil Jackson … and, [ii] The insurgent New York Knicks … with a Point Guard [and an irstwhile head coach] named Glenn “Doc” Rivers [#25].

The Big Plays … both, made and not made … coming down-the-stretch and, in particular, the final moments … have become indelibly etched in the memory banks of any true NBA connoisseur.

“The Charles Smith, Game 5”

* Michael Jordan, 29 pts, 10 rebounds and 14 assists

* “You got to have a very strong will and a very big heart, if you go down the lane against the New York Knicks.” – Mike Fratello [TV Analyst]

* 4 failed layup attempts to take the lead on the final possession for the losing team

* Defense is the backbone! 

What the NBA Playoffs are supposed to be about!

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Related:

Doc and Phil were there (and so was Charles Smith), 17 years ago today