He’s taking our lunch, though
Monday, February 8th, 2010Mickey Dees and The Legend strike, once more …
Who Dat? 
Posts Tagged ‘Lebron James’
Oh, Henry … Yes! There is
Thursday, February 4th, 2010Deron Williams and the Jazz know what they’re doing
“With Chris Paul sidelined, is any point guard playing better than Deron Williams?”
There are a few things I try not to do. Among them:
- I try not to wake up my wife and kids when they’re sleeping.
- I try not to call people who have little children late at night.
- Realizing I’m a journalist, not a coach, I try not to make statements that rely strictly on my own cobbled-together basketball judgment.
- I try not to curse.
Last night I came this close to breaking all those rules …
———————————————-
Given the already stated preference of this corner, when forced to choose between CP3 and D-Will …
It’s the Age of the Point Guard, in today’s NBA [Dec 18 2009]
it is now a simple fact that the age-old …
QUESTION of …
Who is the best Point Guard in the NBA today?
… needs to be asked and, then, answered, in a different way than it’s ever been asked before …
|
Regular Season |
FG |
3PT |
FT |
Rebounds |
Misc |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Opponent |
Score |
GS |
Min |
|
M |
A |
Pct |
|
M |
A |
Pct |
|
M |
A |
Pct |
|
Off |
Def |
Tot |
|
Ast |
TO |
Stl |
Blk |
PF |
Pts |
||||||
|
MEM |
1 |
37:07 |
|
7 |
14 |
50.0 |
|
1 |
4 |
25.0 |
|
7 |
7 |
100.0 |
|
1 |
5 |
6 |
|
15 |
4 |
1 |
1 |
2 |
22 |
|||||||
|
Opponent |
Score |
GS |
Min |
|
M |
A |
Pct |
|
M |
A |
Pct |
|
M |
A |
Pct |
|
Off |
Def |
Tot |
|
Ast |
TO |
Stl |
Blk |
PF |
Pts |
||||||
|
LAC |
1 |
39:55 |
|
10 |
20 |
50.0 |
|
5 |
6 |
83.3 |
|
7 |
8 |
87.5 |
|
1 |
2 |
3 |
|
11 |
1 |
1 |
0 |
1 |
32 |
|||||||
|
@ IND |
1 |
35:39 |
|
6 |
18 |
33.3 |
|
0 |
4 |
0.0 |
|
10 |
17 |
58.8 |
|
0 |
9 |
9 |
|
13 |
5 |
2 |
4 |
2 |
22 |
|||||||
|
MIN |
1 |
30:33 |
|
3 |
8 |
37.5 |
|
1 |
3 |
33.3 |
|
5 |
6 |
83.3 |
|
0 |
6 |
6 |
|
11 |
3 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
12 |
|||||||
|
@ MIA |
1 |
38:31 |
|
9 |
23 |
39.1 |
|
2 |
9 |
22.2 |
|
12 |
17 |
70.6 |
|
0 |
9 |
9 |
|
4 |
4 |
1 |
0 |
3 |
32 |
|||||||
|
OKC |
1 |
42:38 |
|
9 |
19 |
47.4 |
|
6 |
10 |
60.0 |
|
13 |
19 |
68.4 |
|
0 |
9 |
9 |
|
12 |
6 |
1 |
1 |
2 |
37 |
|||||||
|
LAL |
1 |
40:24 |
|
13 |
25 |
52.0 |
|
1 |
9 |
11.1 |
|
10 |
13 |
76.9 |
|
0 |
5 |
5 |
|
9 |
4 |
2 |
1 |
3 |
37 |
|||||||
|
TOR |
1 |
41:01 |
|
8 |
18 |
44.4 |
|
0 |
7 |
0.0 |
|
12 |
14 |
85.7 |
|
0 |
9 |
9 |
|
11 |
3 |
3 |
3 |
1 |
28 |
|||||||
|
@ LAC |
1 |
38:54 |
|
12 |
20 |
60.0 |
|
3 |
6 |
50.0 |
|
5 |
7 |
71.4 |
|
2 |
2 |
4 |
|
4 |
5 |
2 |
1 |
3 |
32 |
|||||||
|
@ UTH |
1 |
40:25 |
|
12 |
20 |
60.0 |
|
4 |
6 |
66.7 |
|
8 |
12 |
66.7 |
|
1 |
8 |
9 |
|
6 |
5 |
5 |
1 |
1 |
36 |
|||||||
|
@ GSW |
1 |
41:37 |
|
12 |
23 |
52.2 |
|
1 |
4 |
25.0 |
|
12 |
14 |
85.7 |
|
1 |
7 |
8 |
|
11 |
2 |
2 |
4 |
1 |
37 |
|||||||
considering THE WAY a certain member of the Cleveland Cavaliers has been conducting his on-court business since approximately Jan 11 2010.
LeBron James’ Complete Game Log
———————————————————–
Loading ...———————————————————–
THE CORRECT ANSWER is … LeBron James.
[... which is something this corner has been advocating for at least the last 2+ years quite some time ... i.e. Best Point Guards in the NBA: An Update, Jan 30 2008]
———————–
PS. In sharp contrast to other NBA experts/analysts/fans/etc. … there is a good reason why many of the statements and observations which appear on this blog do, in fact, rely mostly on “cobbled-together basketball judgment” rather than elaborate prose and/or the use of unnecessarily complicated new-age statistics. For those of you who took the time to read what Henry Abbott wrote in his introduction, it’s important to always be aware of How the Principle of Opposite functions in The Game of Hoops.
Where would the Raptors be today, if …
Saturday, December 12th, 2009Following last night’s deflating home loss to the Atlanta Hawks, the conference standings in the East look like this:
| Eastern | W | L | PCT | GB | CONF | DIV | HOME | ROAD | L 10 | STREAK |
| Boston1 | 18 | 4 | 0.818 | 0.0 | 12-3 | 5-0 | 8-3 | 10-1 | 9-1 | W 9 |
| Orlando2 | 17 | 6 | 0.739 | 1.5 | 13-3 | 3-1 | 7-2 | 10-4 | 7-3 | L 2 |
| Atlanta3 | 16 | 6 | 0.727 | 2.0 | 9-4 | 2-2 | 9-2 | 7-4 | 6-4 | W 3 |
| Cleveland4 | 16 | 7 | 0.696 | 2.5 | 10-5 | 4-1 | 9-2 | 7-5 | 7-3 | W 1 |
| Miami5 | 11 | 10 | 0.524 | 6.5 | 7-5 | 3-2 | 6-6 | 5-4 | 4-6 | L 1 |
| Milwaukee6 | 10 | 11 | 0.476 | 7.5 | 6-7 | 2-3 | 8-3 | 2-8 | 2-8 | W 1 |
| Detroit7 | 10 | 12 | 0.455 | 8.0 | 8-5 | 1-3 | 7-4 | 3-8 | 5-5 | W 4 |
| Charlotte8 | 9 | 12 | 0.429 | 8.5 | 8-10 | 2-2 | 8-3 | 1-9 | 6-4 | L 1 |
| Toronto | 10 | 15 | 0.400 | 9.5 | 7-8 | 0-1 | 6-5 | 4-10 | 3-7 | L 2 |
| Chicago | 8 | 13 | 0.381 | 9.5 | 5-8 | 3-2 | 6-3 | 2-10 | 2-8 | W 1 |
| Indiana | 7 | 13 | 0.350 | 10.0 | 5-6 | 0-1 | 5-6 | 2-7 | 2-8 | W 1 |
| Washington | 7 | 13 | 0.350 | 10.0 | 6-10 | 1-4 | 4-6 | 3-7 | 4-6 | L 3 |
| New York | 8 | 15 | 0.348 | 10.5 | 4-10 | 2-2 | 4-8 | 4-7 | 5-5 | W 4 |
| Philadelphia | 5 | 18 | 0.217 | 13.5 | 5-10 | 3-2 | 3-8 | 2-10 | 0-10 | L 12 |
| New Jersey | 2 | 21 | 0.087 | 16.5 | 2-13 | 0-5 | 1-8 | 1-13 | 2-8 | L 2 |
Prior to the 2009 NBA Draft, however, these were some of the players who were recommended in this space for the Toronto Raptors:
Terrence Williams [OG-SF, New Jersey, 1st Rd]
Earl Clark [SF-PF, Phoenix, 1st Rd]
Derrick Brown [SF-PF, Charlotte, 2nd Rd]
Taj Gibson [PF, Chicago, 1st Rd]
Dante Cunningham [PF, Portland, 2nd Rd]
Marcus Thornton [OG, New Orleans, via Miami, 2nd Rd]
Nando De Colo [OG-SF, San Antonio, 2nd Rd]
Prior to the 4-team trade that involved the Raptors, Magic, Mavericks and Grizzlies, it was also suggested here that Toronto should:
|
1. Trade Jason Kapono. |
| 2. Either: A. Re-sign Shawn Marion; or, B. Let him walk away, as an UFA. |
| 3. Retain the services of their own Free Agents. |
| 4. Retain the services of useful still-young players like Kris Humphries and Roko Ukic. |
| 5. Retain the services of an experienced, NBA proven and successful head coach who prioritizes Team Defense and Rebounding. |
|
6. Obtain the services of a cost-effective veteran Back-up Point Guard, Combination Off Guard/Small Forward, and Center. |
If the Raptors would have followed those recommendations, instead of:
| 1. Drafting DeMar DeRozan [No. 9, overall]; and, |
| 2. Acquiring the services of Hedo Turkoglu, Jarrett Jack, Antoine Wright, Marco Belinelli, Amir Johnson and Sonny Weems; and, |
| 3. Giving Jay Triano a contract extension. |
culminating with a roster that looks like the middle column in the following chart:
|
TORONTO RAPTORS ROSTER |
|||
|
Role |
End 2008-2009 |
Suggested 2009-2010 |
Current 2009-2010 |
|
STARTERS |
|||
|
1 |
Jose Calderon |
Jose Calderon * |
Jose Calderon * |
|
2 |
Anthony Parker |
Anthony Parker * |
DeMar DeRozan |
|
3 |
Shawn Marion |
Jamario Moon ** |
Hedo Turkoglu |
|
4 |
Chris Bosh |
Shawn Marion * |
Chris Bosh * |
|
5 |
Andrea Bargnani |
Chris Bosh * |
Andrea Bargnani [CE] * |
|
KEY SUBS |
|||
|
6 |
Roko Ukic |
Earl Watson |
Jarrett Jack |
|
7 |
Jason Kapono |
Marcus Thornton |
Marco Belinelli |
|
8 |
Joey Graham |
Derrick Brown |
Antoine Wright |
|
9 |
Kris Humphries |
Kris Humphries * |
Reggie Evans |
|
10 |
Jake Voskuhl |
Andrea Bargnani * |
Rasho Nesterovic ** |
|
RESERVES |
|||
|
11 |
Quincy Douby |
Roko Ukic * |
Sonny Weems |
|
12 |
Pops Mensah-Bonsu |
Reggie Evans |
Amir Johnson |
|
OTHERS |
|||
|
13 |
Marcus Banks |
Marcus Banks * |
Marcus Banks * |
|
14 |
Nathan Jawai |
Joey Graham * |
Pops Mensah-Bonsu * |
|
15 |
Patrick O’Bryant |
Rasho Nesterovic ** |
Patrick O’Bryant * |
|
HC |
Jay Triano |
Jeff Van Gundy or Avery Johnson |
Jay Triano [CE] * |
|
Legend: HC – Head Coach; * - Played with team previous season; ** - Played for Raptors before; UFA – Unrestricted Free Agent; RFA – Restricted Free Agent; Blue – UFA, retained; Purple – RFA, re-acquired; Green – UFA, acquired; Red – 2009 Draft Pick; Orange – Acquired via trade; Brown – RFA, acquired; Turquoise – Signed new head coach; CE – Contract Extension. |
|||
————————————————————
Loading ...————————————————————
Yours truly thinks they would.
It’s by developing and then implementing a sound Basketball Philosophy … which emphasizes the importance of [I] Team Defense, [II] Rebounding, and [III] Shared Team Offense, in this order … maintaining general roster stability, from one season to the next, while acquiring Quality Depth, and obtaining the services of an experienced and successful NBA head coach, that the Raptors would be able to fundamentally alter the direction of their franchise and construct the type of championship-calibre organization which UFA’s like Chris Bosh, Joe Johnson, Dwyane Wade, and LeBron James, etc., would willingly CHOOSE to play for, if they have their druthers, either, this coming off season or further down-the-road.
Big Game this evening in the NBA
Wednesday, November 11th, 2009A dried up little pond?
Oh, my.
———————————————
The Cavs are Magic’s biggest rival because of aura and arrogance of Shaq
It’s about Shaq, stupid.
He’s the biggest reason the Cavs are the team Orlando most wants to beat.
He’s the guy who wrecked this franchise all those years ago. He’s the guy who called Orlando “a dried-up little pond.” He’s the guy who called Magic coach Stan Van Gundy a “nobody,” a ”bum” and a “master of panic.” He’s the guy who called Magic superstar Dwight Howard “an impostor.”
He’s also the guy who has four rings to the Magic’s none.
He robbed the Magic of a championship dynasty when he bolted for L.A. all those years ago. And now he’s trying to help another team other than the Magic win a title.
He must be stopped.
———————————————
If there’s any doubt what the biggest game is tonight, in the NBA, that quote from Shaq-daddy should, rightly, have just put an end to the debate.
The current wagering line for this match-up is:
Cleveland -1/-101
with Orlando in the 2nd half of a back-2-back, coming off last night’s victory at Charlotte.
Games like this one are frequently exceptional money-making opportunities, i.e. Khandor’s Sports Service, Games Of The Day.
Substitution Charts can tell you a great deal about the game
Friday, October 30th, 2009There are many different ways to track the performance of an individual player, or specific combinations of players, in a NBA game.
When you do this work, what you find, somteimes, can be most revealing.
This is what the “Substitution Chart” looks like for Wednesday’s game between Toronto and Cleveland.
|
TIME |
TOTAL |
TEAM |
PG |
OG |
SF |
PF |
C |
SCORE |
DIFF |
|
Q1 12:00 |
|
V |
Williams |
Parker |
James |
Varejao |
O’Neal |
6 |
-9 |
|
|
5:24 |
H |
Calderon |
DeRozan |
Turkoglu |
Bosh |
Bargnani |
15 |
+9 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
6:36 |
|
V |
Williams |
Gibson |
Parker |
James |
O’Neal |
8 |
0 |
|
|
1:25 |
H |
|
|
|
|
|
17 |
0 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
5:11 |
|
V |
Wiliams |
Gibson |
Parker |
James |
Ilgauskas |
11 |
+1 |
|
|
0:22 |
H |
|
|
|
|
|
19 |
-1 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
4:49 |
|
V |
Williams |
Gibson |
Moon |
James |
Ilgauskas |
11 |
0 |
|
|
0:07 |
H |
|
|
|
|
|
19 |
0 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
4:42 |
|
V |
|
|
|
|
|
13 |
0 |
|
|
0:55 |
H |
Calderon |
DeRozan |
Wright |
Turkoglu |
Bargnani |
21 |
0 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
3:47 |
|
V |
Gibson |
Moon |
James |
Hickson |
Ilgauskas |
16 |
+3 |
|
|
0:54 |
H |
Calderon |
Jack |
Wright |
Tukoglu |
Bargnani |
21 |
-3 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
2:53 |
|
V |
|
|
|
|
|
17 |
+1 |
|
|
0:34 |
H |
Calderon |
Jack |
Wright |
Turkoglu |
Bosh |
21 |
-1 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
2:19 |
|
V |
|
|
|
|
|
22 |
-1 |
|
|
1:54 |
H |
Calderon |
Jack |
Wright |
Johnson |
Bosh |
27 |
+1 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
0:25 |
|
V |
|
|
|
|
|
22 |
0 |
|
|
0:25 |
H |
Banks |
Jack |
DeRozan |
Johnson |
Bosh |
27 |
0 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Q2 12:00 |
|
V |
Williams |
Gibson |
Moon |
O’Neal |
Ilgauskas |
28 |
+2 |
|
|
2:11 |
H |
Jack |
Belinelli |
DeRozan |
Bosh |
Bargnani |
31 |
-2 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
9:49 |
|
V |
|
|
|
|
|
28 |
-4 |
|
|
0:48 |
H |
Jack |
Belinelli |
Turkoglu |
Bosh |
Bargnani |
35 |
+4 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
9:01 |
|
V |
Williams |
Parker |
Moon |
O’Neal |
Ilgauskas |
28 |
-2 |
|
|
1:22 |
H |
Jack |
Belinelli |
Turkoglu |
Bargnani |
Nesterovic |
37 |
+2 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
7:39 |
|
V |
Williams |
Parker |
Moon |
James |
Varejao |
32 |
+2 |
|
|
1:34 |
H |
Jack |
Belinelli |
Turkoglu |
Johnson |
Bargnani |
39 |
-2 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
6:05 |
|
V |
|
|
|
|
|
33 |
-1 |
|
|
0:15 |
H |
Calderon |
Belinelli |
Turkoglu |
Johnson |
Bargnani |
41 |
+1 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
5:50 |
|
V |
Williams |
Parker |
James |
Hickson |
Varejao |
34 |
-4 |
|
|
1:05 |
H |
|
|
|
|
|
46 |
+4 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
4:45 |
|
V |
|
|
|
|
|
34 |
0 |
|
|
0:23 |
H |
Calderon |
Belinelli |
Turkoglu |
Bosh |
Bargnani |
46 |
0 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
4:22 |
|
V |
Williams |
Parker |
James |
Varejao |
O’Neal |
36 |
-6 |
|
|
2:11 |
H |
Calderon |
Belinelli |
Wright |
Bosh |
Bargnani |
54 |
+6 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
2:11 |
|
V |
Williams |
Gibson |
Parker |
James |
O’Neal |
36 |
-2 |
|
|
0:59 |
H |
Calderon |
Belinelli |
Wright |
Bosh |
Nesterovic |
56 |
+2 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
1:12 |
|
V |
|
|
|
|
|
37 |
0 |
|
|
0:49 |
H |
Calderon |
Jack |
Belinelli |
Wright |
Nesterovic |
57 |
0 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
0:23 |
|
V |
Gibson |
Parker |
Moon |
James |
Varejao |
39 |
+2 |
|
|
0:23 |
H |
Calderon |
Jack |
Belinelli |
Bosh |
Nesterovic |
57 |
-2 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Q3 12:00 |
|
V |