Tag Archives: NBA

#TANKCITY 2014

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#TANKCITY

“Tank City Bit**/Tank Tank City Bit**/50, 60-something losses equals Wiggins Biiiit**…..”

With the the high amount of teams looking to sell themselves out flagrantly for the chance to land a lottery pick in the 2014 NBA Draft & select players such as Andrew Wiggins, Jabari Parker, Julius Randle, Marcus Smart, Dante Exum, & others, I figured it would only be right to list the set of teams that are tanking or should be tanking. Man, there’s a lot of teams that suck right now. Let’s get started, in random order…

PHILADELPHIA

When I look at the progress of the Sixers, currently sitting at 8–20, and are the 3rd worst team in the NBA, I can already imagine the conversations that occur between the CEO of the Sixers, Scott O’Neil and his GM Sam Hinkie.

***O’Neil opens the door in Hinkie’s office to find Hinkie surfing the internet & bobbing his head to this instrumental. O’Neil immediately starts bobbing his head & starts dancing with a mean looking face***

Hinkie: Yeeeeeaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhh! Go O’Neil! Go O’Neil! Get it! Get it! Get it! Get it!

O’Neil: Hahahaha! Whooooo!! I’m loving the progress so far! I am loving it!!

Hinkie: I told you this was gonna work out. We are on our way!! Ha-haaaaa!

O’Neil: Wow! It’s so amazing! And to think, when Carter-Williams started off averaging 20 & 8, and help beat Miami with 9 steals & then beat Chicago in the same week, I was getting ready to fire your ass!

Hinkie: Yeaaaahh—–um….huh?

O’Neil: Don’t worry about it. It’s water under the bridge now. I heard Iverson’s retirement event inspired our rookie for that week. That’s cool, but make sure Allen’s not allowed in the building again until 2015. We don’t want to take any chances here.

Hinkie: No problem. ***starts typing out an email to the security department to put Iverson on the “Banned in Arena” list***

O’Neil: What’s the status on the other rookie?

Hinkie: Who, Noel?  Yeah, um, we’re still continuing to sit Nerlens for the season & we won’t put him on a weight program until after the season ends. I’ve instructed our chefs in the cafeteria to continue serving him fruits & veggies until further notice. He will continue to look malnourished I promise you. Also, on a sidenote, Hawes can’t continue playing this well either even though I know he’s in his contract year. Don’t worry, we’ll reduce those minutes just enough so that we can afford him, and then we could…

O’Neil: We’re not signing him back.

Hinkie: We’re not signing him back, so it’s all good. Errr, it’s gonna all work out. I’m not worried, Mr. O’Neil, everything’s working out according to plan. We’ll get it done. We have two draft picks, one of them will get us high in the lottery, if not both. It’s gonna work out sir, I promise.

O’Neil: Okay, okay. No problem. I don’t really like the fact that we’ve reached 50% of our target win total & it’s not even New Year’s yet, buuuut other than that….keep up the good work!

Hinkie: Thanks a lot sir.

O’Neil: Who made this beat anyway? Turn this up! Is that what the kids say?

Hinkie: I think it’s “Turnt up” or, um “Turn up”. It’s “Turn up.”

O’Neil: Yeah, yeah, that’s it. Turn up man! TURN UP!!!

***Hinkie turns the volume up in his office to maximum levels***

BOSTON

In their loss to Memphis earlier this year, starting forward Gerald Wallace played 28 minutes. In those 28 minutes, he did not make one shot. Hold up, I’m not done. He did not even TAKE a shot in 28 minutes. A 13 year veteran & starting forward did not take a shot in 28 minutes. I see you Boston, I see you. I don’t even care if they’re in contention for the Atlantic at the moment, Danny Ainge is too smart for that. He’s gonna do what he has to do.

MILWAUKEE

Larry Sanders, fresh off of signing his new contract as one of the cornerstones of the Bucks franchise, averaged 2.7 pts & 3.7 rbs before deciding to take on local club goers like Andre the Giant in a steel cage match and breaking his thumb for weeks on end. The blessing of his stupidity of course is that it made the Bucks go into tank mode by default. Now they sit way at the bottom with the worst record in the league. So in a very weird way, the Bucks management should thank him. By the way Larry, I spent $28 on you in my fantasy draft. If anything, you’re supposed to help your team tank, not mine!!! I’m suffering in the blocks department because of you!!! By the way, I’m not bitter.

Whenever he does come back though, can you imagine Milwaukee’s frontcourt with him, John Henson, & Giannis Antetokounmpo (please don’t ask me to pronounce his name) on defense? If they keep that core together, will anybody be able to get a shot off??? Add the addition of previous lottery pick Brandon Knight, and this is something that the Bucks can build upon moving forward. Even if they don’t get the #1 pick, if they can walk away with someone like Marcus Smart or Dante Exum for example to go with what they have here? My goodness. If they can develop the right way, they will make a jump into playoff contender status within 2 years if that happens.

CHARLOTTE

Jalen Rose said earlier this year in his Grantland NBA Season Preview of the Bobcats that Michael Jordan will play one game this season, and I actually agree with him. Especially if it means solidifying a top 5 pick. He’s the most competitive athlete of all time in any sport. If he sees a competition for winning the #1 spot in the draft, he’s gonna want in on it. Even if it means blowing out both of his ACL’s to get it done.

By the way, I won’t lie to you. I kind of like how this team is playing so far. Kemba Walker is starting to look like he’s about to jump another level if he hasn’t already. Al Jefferson is probably the 1st quality big man they’ve had since Tyson Chandler was still on the roster. Gerald Henderson is a quality 2-guard who’s re-upped for 3 more years at a very respectable number ($18M), and they have some solid young pieces in Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, Cody Zeller, & Jeffrey Taylor (who unfortunately they lost for the season with a ruptured Achilles vs. Detroit over the weekend). They are currently fighting for home court advantage in the Eastern Conference which is despicable in itself, but their draft pick this year is top 10 protected (Chicago has rights on their pick for anything lower than that for this season & can be rolled out as an outright unprotected pick in 2016 if not used until then). Do they go the other way here, try to dive out of the playoff spot & hope their pick lands them in the top 10 during the draft lottery? Or do they go all out for the playoffs & see where it takes them?

As much as they should make all of their 39 fans happy and play in the playoffs, they need one more young asset &/or stud to make their future really bright. They need to stay in #TankCity just a little bit longer. Unfortunately, the East is so horrible this year that they still might make the playoffs by default. It’s almost like trying to get out of a club but the bouncers keep shoving you back inside. They may not be able to leave, even if they tried. Smh….

PHOENIX

The process has already started since last summer by drafting raw center Alex Len, trading their valuable veterans Jared Dudley to the Clippers for Eric Bledsoe & Caron Butler, then sending Butler to the Bucks for a 2nd round draft pick. I like the fact of actually trying to gut out the team & start from the bottom to get better. Wanna give PJ Tucker & Gerald Green 30 minutes a night? Go right ahead! Bledsoe taking a leadership role on the team, and taking game winning shots? Why not?! Goran Dragic rolls his ankle? Take 15 games off to let it heal. Don’t worry Goran, the paychecks still clear, so take your time! I’m sure though that Suns CEO Robert Sarver & GM Ryan McDonough DEFINITELY were not expecting 1st time coach Jeff Hornacek to have this roster 6 games over. 500 (16-10) at any time during the season much less going into the New Year. I have a feeling he’ll be called into the office soon.

Underrated note:The Suns decision not to sign Bledsoe to an extension. A little surprising but why commit $10M/yr to him when he hasn’t proven that he can run a team full-time as yet? If he doesn’t live up to the hype, you can either renounce his rights or pay less than that initial value for him. If he plays great, you then lock him into a 4 year deal & you have another cornerstone to put beside potentially Wiggins, Randle, or whoever you get with what would hopefully be a top 5 pick. Right now, he’s looking like he could be worth that money. As long as no team tries to overpay for him & force their hand to match it, this was a very smart move by Phoenix.

LOS ANGELES LAKERS

I know their intention is not to tank, to appease Kobe Bryant & the Lakers fan base to continue to make the playoffs & everything…..but I really don’t understand why. After this season, only Steve Nash is under contract. You have Pau Gasol whose contract can still be used as a great trade asset, Kobe is still coming off a serious Achilles injury & now done for another 6 weeks with a fractured knee, plus we have no idea that he will even be the same player (most likely not). To me, it doesn’t make any sense to lose out on a high draft pick while trying to fight for the right to lose in 4 or 5 games to the 1st seed. This is what they need to do: Tell Kobe or better yet, massage Kobe’s mind on the idea to come back in late February or March to better get his legs underneath him for next season; beg Nash to retire (as much as it hurts me to say because he’s one of my favorite PGs of all time); trade Gasol for expiring contracts &/or a 1st round pick (if not, then just let it expire); and lose anywhere past 50+ games & collect as many ping-pong balls as possible. When free agency hits in 2014, you can sell any major free agents on the idea of rebuilding a team with all that cap space AND you have one of the top studs in the strongest draft in almost two decade on the roster to represent the future. That sets them up for the next 10 years easy.

Look, Kobe is the franchise & has been playing there longer than any Laker in team history, but he is not the future here. He will get his jersey retired in the Staples Center rafters & will get the statue like all the Laker greats….but if I was Jim Buss (& I know he would never do this), I’d would have taken the chance & let him hit the free agency market. You know he wasn’t gonna leave LA for anywhere else at this stage of his career & no team was gonna fork out the big dollars to have him relocate. It could have been possible that he might have taken less money to stay. But by committing to a 2 yr/$48M extension, you basically wipe out any chance of one of these major stars to opt out of his contract after this season & really making a push to Laker Land. If you’re say, Carmelo Anthony here, do you leave the Knicks, come to Hollywood to play a supporting role to a Laker Legend coming off of his 18th season with a recently repaired torn Achilles (& now another lower extremity injury)? I say supporting because anyone coming to LA knows it won’t be a super team here, but it’ll still be Kobe’s team & his alone until he walks away. That’s not an attractive option for major free agents trying to capitalize on their prime years. That’s part of the reason why Dwight left LA this past summer. However, say Kobe would have stayed for around $15M, put him beside a major free agent or possibly two, plus one of the studs in a major draft pick as the cornerstones, this doesn’t look like a better proposition for the Lakers for the present AND the future???

With this new Kobe injury, & all the PG’s on the roster in street clothes (including Nash who’s out another month to deal with the nerve issues in his back), it gives them some time to mull over the tanking option. I say to Laker Nation, give up this 8th seed odyssey, get the No-Limit Tank encrusted type piece & support the cause. Short term pain for long term joy, let’s do it!

TORONTO

I’m so excited about Masai Ujiri’s moves since he’s come to Toronto; I’m doing this next part Busta Rhymes style….

***Putting on Busta Rhymes cape***

First things first lemme salute the GENERAL Masai U-JIRI for the big boss moves he’s made out here. My n**** be out here taking over the MUTHA-F****** game on these n***** my n****! How he broke down the Knicks & traded f****** Bargani, Bargialani, whatever that n****’s name is…..that long-foot EYE-talian ass n****…..he got rid of that f*****-up contract, that was on some IMPERIAL shit right there! Now he got rid of that inconsistent maw-f***** Rudy Gay! That n**** sent his ass & his contract far, far away from here & shit. Got a f****** restraining order from that contract n****! My n**** Ujiri is a BEAST! This is an EXTINCTION LEVEL EVENT shit right now! He seeing the big picture right now, he see the future with that Wiggins kid, Parker, Exum, uh, uh that n**** Randle, he wiping the slate clean! I’ma tell you on tha real, U-Jiri & my n**** Lieweke, when they put they minds together…. it’s gonna be that, that…..that un-SPEAKABLE, that un-F***WITTABLE, that un-FEASIBLE, that un-CONQUERABLE type level shit! They gonna be the new bosses of this rap ball shit! Trust me my n****….trust me….

Translation: I like what Ujiri’s doing. If he gets a chance to ship out Kyle Lowry before the trade deadline, he would have cleared more than $30M off the books since he got there. He is not wasting any time at all. Masai Ujiri & Tim Lieweke have a goal to be a legitimate championship franchise & right now, the pieces that the Colangelo regime brought do not fit into that scheme. So yes, even though they are dropping off the deposit to stay in #TankCity for the next year or more Raps fans, it will be worth it in the long run as long as they stay the course here. Why fight for the right to get pummeled by Indiana or Miami in four games & keep an expensively mediocre roster together? It doesn’t make any sense, you know it & I know it. Don’t worry Raps fans, to alter the words of the illustrious poets Mobb Deep,

“We’re in this together, your pain is mine. As long as the sun shines to light up the sky, we’re in this together, your pain is mine.”

*** Of course since the Gay trade, they have gone 5-3 while beating Dallas AND Oklahoma City back-to-back on the road. Sigh. The same sigh I just let out I’m sure was done by Ujiri. Trust me, they’re not done trading just yet. I think Lowry to be safe should be walking with a carry-on suitcase at all times. ***

BROOKLYN

Whoops. They don’t own their draft picks for the next 5 years mortgaging their future to win now with pieces that include that includes 19-year vet Kevin Garnett, 16 year vet Paul Pierce, 15-year vet Jason Terry, whatever’s left of Andrei Kirilenko’s body, and former Raptor jacker Alan Anderson to surround their core (Deron Williams, Brook Lopez, & Joe Johnson) to contend for the NBA Title…..as well as 1styear coach Jason Kidd who demoted the most expensive assistant coach in NBA history Lawrence Frank ($1M per over SIX years) to file paperwork with the rest of the interns in the Brooklyn Nets Mailroom Department. To make matters worse, Lopez is now done for the season with a broken foot. For what it’s worth, I thought that this would work this summer as long as the vets helped everyone else buy into Kidd’s philosophies, and if the roster stayed healthy of course. They will still make the playoffs, but their ceiling — being lowered already from possible Finals-contending status — will now officially be “1st round or Bust” playoff contenders  now.

Here’s a question: When Mikhail Prokorov is in Russia & calls up his GM Billy King on the phone, does King pretend he doesn’t see it & let it go to voicemail? I think we both know the answer is yes. He’s lucky Prokorov doesn’t own a cell phone because for sure he would be texting him on BBM & WhatsApp and just waiting for the “R” and double checkmarks to appear respectively.

NEW YORK KNICKS

Oh yeah, they don’t own one either. Yikes. At least with Brooklyn, you could sort of blame injuries. You can’t even do that here. Personally, last year was their window to do big things, & now it’s slammed shut. There’s no way around it, this team sucks. Some Knicks fans who read this might get mad at me, but the reasonable ones know just by looking at this roster that this can’t work. Their only hope is that Chandler coming back can shore up their issues on defense, and while he helps them out in this area, he’s not Bill Russell. They’re way over the cap, guys take turns hogging the ball on offense, they don’t have any young legs to help them persevere in the open court, & if that’s not enough, they’re blanketed with the thick air of James Dolan’s ongoing overall paranoia with his franchise. If this mess hasn’t been exposed enough, just wait until they play Oklahoma City on Christmas Day. I’m almost certain by the 2nd half you’re gonna hear lots of disgruntled moans from the Madison Square Garden crowd after every Durant shot or Westbrook play, a sad Spike Lee sitting courtside & the announcers taking turns discussing the dysfunction of the team. At least it will be entertaining…..as long as you’re not a Knicks fan of course.

Underrated Note: Andrea Bargnani’s attempt to replace JaVale McGee as the lead star on Inside The NBA’s Shaqtin’ Da Fool segment. He’s done some really boneheaded things on both sides of the floor for the Knicks this year that I can’t quite remember him doing in Toronto, even though admittedly he hasn’t played as bad as I thought he was going into this season with New York. But that three that he took vs. Milwaukee at the end of the 1st OT instead of holding the ball & essentially ending the game has to be the biggest brain fart in the calendar year by far. The funniest parts of the footage:

  • The reaction of Tyson Chandler after he fought to get the rebound & passed if to Bargnani.
  • The reaction of the announcers on both New York & Milwaukee’s telecast.
  • Bargnani’s nonchalant “My bad fellas…..my bad” while tapping his chest as if he turned the ball over in the 1st quarter is underratedly hilarious.
  • The reaction of the Knick’s bench.
  • The non-reaction of Ron Artest sitting there with that, “What’s the big deal? I’ve done that before. So what??” look on his face

UTAH

I’m all for the core of Derrick Favors, Gordon Hayward, & rookie Trey Burke going into the future to build the start of a foundation, especially Burke who I think will be a stud within the next 2-3 years. Here’s the question: What happened to Enes Kanter??? I thought once he came out of the shadows of Al Jefferson & Paul Milsap, he would improve with more playing time. It’s still early in the season, but so far, it’s been underwhelming (11 pts/5.9 reb/46.4 FG%). If there was a team when a young Mormon can be a local superstar, it’s Jabari Parker. He has the totally skillset, perfect size, & the religious beliefs to take that town over. The Jazz are literally praying that they get one of the top two spots.

SACRAMENTO

They just committed $60M to DeMarcus Cousins over the next 4 years to be the face of the franchise. If that doesn’t tell you they’re tanking this season away I don’t know what will. Potentially great talent, love his skillset, but he has an Isaiah Rider maturity trait about him that scares me if I was banking on him to be the future of an Insurance company, much less an NBA team. One of my friends mentioned this after the Rudy Gay trade.  The moment Gay starts taking more shots than Cousins, Cousins might will meet Gay coming out of the shower & knock him out like Deebo did to Red when he wanted his bike back in Friday. Rudy might not want to start that, “Fella, NO stat sheets in the locker room after the game, all we care about is about wins & losses” movement in Sacto. Do your thing, but stay in your lane Rudy. For your own safety.

CHICAGO

Come on. You telling me you haven’t thought about it a little? Not even a little bit?? It hurts as a Derrick Rose fans watch him have to go through another length rehab process on his right knee after spending almost 1.5 years rehabbing his left knee. He still is the future in Chicago, but for the first time since they drafted him, they may have some doubts about that. They are currently out of the playoff race, they don’t have any guys on the team that can create shots for themselves & their teammates on a consistent basis outside of possibly Luol Deng; & not to mention Deng being an unrestricted FA at the end of the season. It may look bad, I know. I’m pretty sure if you tell Tom Thibodeau you want to go this direction, he may pull out his chair, walk out of the building, & never return. However, IF they do decide to chalk it up to a lost season with Rose being on the shelf, they can take the stance of letting Deng walk after the season & replacing him with Jimmy Butler, & hoping to pick up one of wing players in the lottery. They can also flip Boozer’s deal which expires next season for future cap space, some other players that can help shore up their weak spots and/or future picks. Once Rose returns, sure they team might look a little different, but a core with him, Noah, Butler, Lottery Pick player & cap space relief could be a better outlook for the future moving forward. It’s something to at the very least think about.

Cal Cee // South Shore Ave

Follow me on Twitter or email me at southshoreave@gmail.com

Have a safe & happy holidays everyone, & to those suffering in the Toronto Ice storm right now, stay safe, & we hope your power will be up as soon as possible.

#TheOffseason

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The Offseason.

A time when the future of fresh rookies and free agents are up in the air.  A time when GMs make boneheaded moves that sets the franchise back (i.e. Philly with Bynum Debacle 2012), and the GM’s whose genius-like decisions sets the team up for the next decade (i.e. The Heat in 2010).  Where players use the time to improve their craft to better themselves for the following season.  Me?  I like all the drama that comes with the players falling and rising in the draft, the blockbuster trades, and the discussions of rumors of different free agents, and to see who will make an owner fall all over themselves recruiting them like they‘re High School All-Americans.  With a draft expected to be one of the weakest in years, maybe ever, and a free agency period that took a big hit once Chris Paul took his name out of the running for free agency, it was entertaining enough that we had to do a wrap up of my favorite moves of the offseason thus far.

Anthony Bennett #1

The Cleveland Cavaliers went with the perceived unconventional choice and selected Andrew Bennett with the #1 overall pick in the draft.  Unconventional in the sense that most mock drafts and talking heads had a big man (Nerlens Noel or Alex Len) being selected to the Cavs in that spot. The Cavs GM, Chris Grant’s track record with the past drafts, shows he isn’t afraid to go against the grain from what most people would think.  Picking up PF Tristan Thompson 4th overall (and fellow Brampton native) in 2011, then selecting Dion Waiters at 4th overall again when most mock drafts had him pegged later in the lottery.  In following this pattern once again, he helped to make history by making Bennett the 1st Canadian player to be selected #1.  I’m fine with this & not just because of the historical significance. The fact that there was no surefire player to pick means you can take a chance on a need or potential.  In this case, they chose both. Bennett has the upside to be the best player out of this draft with the strength/post game to play the 4 yet the skillset/shooting/scoring touch to play the 3.  As Greg Anthony put it after the draft, “he’s not a tweener, he’s a hybrid, and there’s a difference between the two.” Unlike Ben McLemore, you don’t have to question if he’s going to be invisible on the floor, he brings that dog mentality on the offensive side of the floor, which is something the Cavs have been missing from their frontcourt position since LeBron left.  In addition, the beauty of him going to this team is that he’ll develop at the right pace with Kyrie Irving, being the face of the franchise and can also lean on Mike Brown & his coaching staff who has routinely cultivated one of the best defensive units in the league when he’s coaching. He can play on that rugged frontline with Thompson, Anderson Varajaeo, & now Andrew Bynum (if he can stay healthy during his short-term incentive-laden contract).  I like this team moving forward. With two Torontonian players on the roster, what are the chances they can get Irving to incorporate “Guy”, “Doggy”, and “Arms” into his slang vernacular?  25% – 30%?  I guess we’ll find out in the near future. Stay tuned……still.

Mike George

How good is his life right now? After enjoying success with his CIA Bounce AAU program in Toronto (starring Bennett and consensus #1 pick of 2014 NBA Draft Andrew Wiggins), he becomes an NBA agent to one of the most successful NBA Agency Firms, and then his client gets the #1 overall pick in his first draft???  I’d say that’s not a bad starting point to have on your résumé.

Brooklyn Nets/Boston Celtics Blockbuster Trade

Remember when I said that the Brooklyn Nets are missing some of that swagger? Problem solved with that trade! So many positives to this trade…

–  Adding Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett, & Jason Terry to this team that was viewed as soft, has heavily infused the Nets with mental toughness.  More importantly, it will rub off on Brook Lopez, Deron Williams, & Joe Johnson, especially in close games and playoff encounters.

–  Between the new vets on the team, they’ll also help everyone fall in line with Jason Kidd’s coaching philosophy.  KG/Pierce/Jet have history with him through the All Star games, Olympic runs (KG/Kidd in 2000 Sydney Olympics) & NBA Titles (Kidd/Terry with Mavs in 2011), and they will do all that they can to help him succeed as much as possible.

–  Moves them into the Indiana Pacers/Chicago Bulls category of the Eastern Conference contending teams, just one tier below Miami. Arguably having a starting five of future Hall of Famers and current All Stars could give Miami fits, especially given that 2/5ths of the lineup already have bad blood for the Heat.  A new rivalry can possibly emerge here.  I still don’t think they’ll beat Miami in a 7-game series, but if they were to meet in the playoffs, it would be an entertaining 6 or 7-game series at the very least.

–  Intensifies local rivalry that much more. The Nets have pushed past the New York Knicks as the best team in the city, and it didn’t help that the Knicks traded for Andrea Bargnani, a player who at one point in the season was available for two $50 Wal-Mart gift cards and a medium Cherry Slushie from 7-Eleven, and still no one took. Just wait Knick fans for when he goes into those spells where he’ll have 6 pts, 2 rebs, and guys blowing past him like they came off the starting blocks.  On the bright side, you might see Spike Lee on the sidelines do this every time Bargs hits a three:

I won’t even get into the Honey Nut Cheerio scandal that might now add more chapters to the story if KG is riled up enough.

–  Falls in line with Mikhail Prokorov’s five year plan that he set in 2010 to win an NBA Title.  Clearly he’s going all in with this move, not only feeling that this move will put him over the top, but is willing to eat up to $82M in luxury taxes to make it happen. Read that again. $82M! When you’re worth $13B, $82M is small change….but damn, that’s still $82M!!! To the players and other owners (outside of Paul Allen), paying this luxury tax with no regard, I’m telling you, this is the sports owner’s equivalent of a penis enhancer. The same way it is when a guy has a shiny big body Benz & pulls up in front of the club when everyone’s leaving with the windows down and a smirk that says, “Yes baby, it is that expensive….. and my dick is that big.  You coming?”  If he’s still making it rain when their cap space clears in a few years, players will be running to him like strip….um…..yeah, there’s no good way to finish that joke. Let’s just say that players will try to get caught in that rainstorm.

–  The idea of Kris Humphries and Rajon Rondo having that first conversation during the preseason. That may be awkward and priceless at the same time.

The Los Angeles Lakers, Part I. Smh.

Probably my second favorite moment of the offseason.  A franchise with the stature of the Lakers having to beg & plead approach Dwight Howard like an 80s R&B singer.  Watching them stoop to this level for a player that more than likely didn’t want to even be there in the first place was comical.  Hanging billboards across the city, and hanging a building size jersey covering a condo, to the whole #StayD12 thing. This was almost a disservice to how they do business over their franchise’s existence.  I mean, these are the Lakers!  They don’t go this route begging their free agents to stay, they expect them to stay & carry themselves in accordance to this. It was like watching someone you know who’s married and never shows any affection to his wife all of a sudden, on the threat that she might leave, starts buying her flowers, singing to her in restaurants, and posts only pictures of themselves on Facebook….. But you know it’s probably too late and he’s wasting his energy trying to keep her.  Just a sad, desperate state of affairs. Let’s come back to the Lakers in a moment.

Clipper Nation

The Los Angeles Clippers foundation got a lot stronger by adding Doc Rivers as head coach and in exchange for a 2015 first round pick, marking the first time in the team’s history that they actually paid top dollar for a head coach, while at the same time further stabilizing their culture, locking in Chris Paul to a long-term max contract, using Eric Bledsoe’s trade asset to fill some needs, and acquire, JJ Redick, Jared Dudley, & then signing/resigning Darren Collison, Matt Barnes and Ryan Hollins respectively.  It’s probably the 1st time since the first two years after Magic retired, where the Clippers have a better team on paper and on the floor than the Lakers. It now becomes a potential haven where veteran free agents and buyout guys land to make a run to the title.  Now as long as Blake Griffin and DeAndre Jordan can get something out of their post games & add some consistent, go-to low post moves, this team will be set up to challenge for the NBA title for the next decade easily. Paul & Griffin now have the shooters and playmakers around them to give them even more room to operate, and with Rivers now at the helm, they will get a higher level of play calling that never took place with Vinny Del Negro there. If they can add another big man to their roster depth, it will make them that much better prepared for the postseason. With their past history, I can’t even believe I typed out this last paragraph about the Los Angeles Clippers, even if I’m sitting in the VIP Section of the Clipper Bandwagon. Every time they seemed like they were going to build off their success (Danny Manning led teams from 1991-1993, Elton Brand – Lamar Odom – Darius Miles teams from 2001-2003, and later Brand – Sam Cassell team from 2005-06 season), management would find a way to completely screw things up. Now they look like they’re going to be a factor for the foreseeable future. Will they be able to take over Los Angeles for real in the next few years? Depending on what Laker do in the next season or two, it’s actually possible.

Los Angeles Lakers, Part 2

My favorite part of the offseason so far: the official meeting between themselves and Howard, where Kobe Bryant advised Howard that if he stays, “he will be able to teach him to win championships.” Extending my marriage analogy even further, if the Lakers’ courting him was the, “I love you, let’s stay together….” stage, the Kobe Challenge was the equivalent of saying, “….but just so you know, I’m still drinking with the fellas every Saturday night. I’m not changing that for shit!” I don’t care how indecisive, clownish & immature Howard has been these last two years, if you were him, would you wanna stay after hearing that?!  It was understood that if Howard stayed, the goal is championship or bust every season. It goes without saying….but no superstar in their prime years wants to be told they will be an apprentice to winning. Shoot, even Kobe himself nine years before, didn’t want to be a sidekick anymore to Shaq during his free agency situation, and he came fresh off his 4th Finals appearance and 3 titles in a 5 year span. Now he expects Howard, who by all accounts, wasn’t crazy about playing with Kobe in the first place – during a phone conversation before the 2012 trade deadline, and there was talk of Orlando trading Howard to the Lakers for Andrew Bynum, Kobe told him he would only be the third option on offense, which of course, turned Dwight right off – to now fall in line to learn how to win titles for possibly as long as the next three years (according to Kobe’s desire to now play 3 more years)? It’s almost as if he wanted him gone & tried to scare him off with that comment. The funny thing is, I don’t even blame Kobe for doing this.

All year long he’s had courtside seats into Howard’s psyche, & judging from what he’s seen he has to know that Dwight cannot handle the media pressures, and handle the responsibility that comes with being the face of a franchise in a major media market. This may have been his way of testing him, to see how bad he really wanted to stay with the Lakers, but he had to know at the same time, by him offering up that challenge, Howard was not coming back. Even he himself would have walked away if someone told him that a few years ago, even if he never won anything. At the end of it all, Dwight going to Houston was the right move for all parties involved. Dwight ends up playing with a younger foundation of talent and a younger superstar in James Harden, and the Lakers don’t commit close to $120M to a guy that is more than likely isn’t improving more than what he already is at this point. Laker fans can take shots at him all he wants but trust me, you were not coming close to winning a title next year with this roster and Howard as your leading man.  Even next year as well with the whole roster cleared outside of Steve Nash’s contract in 2014, unless LeBron decides to leave Miami, which I can’t see him doing regardless if they Three-Peat next season, or not.

The good thing is, it does force the Lakers management to look at themselves in the mirror a little bit, and wonder why did they lose the first free agent superstar on their roster in their team’s history. They have to clean up their situation in house and figure out if someone like Jim Buss should really be running the franchise.  Dr. Jerry Buss did the right thing in passing the team off to his child, but you really have to wonder again if he gave it to the right one.  Jeannie Buss could have been the first female CEO in league history, and with her resume of working so closely with this team, I would like to think that she would not have screwed this up. Laker fans may have to wait a while for Jimmy to grow into this role as it stands right now, but in doing so, a few years might be wasted in the process than can set the franchise back for years to come.

Sideline Notes

First N.W.A., then Common, and now D12?  Ice Cube takes an intermission break during the Kings of the Mic Tour last week to share his thoughts here (warning: explicit content). Also, Kareem had some parting shots as well on the subject….. I understand the Kevin McHale perspective, he’s one of the best low post players who has ever lived as well as Dwight’s head coach who will be around him 24/7, but all of this Hakeem-Olajuwon-will-guide-his post-game talk, will he be doing this pro bono or something?  Or will he give Howard the hometown discount?  Last I checked, he wasn’t doing this these low post clinics for free…..

Last point on D12: I feel like this legendary big man mentoring thing is a little overblown for Howard. I think they can definitely share tips that will benefit him on both sides of the ball. Offensively, I’m not sold that McHale and Olajuwon will make his offensive game jump by leaps and bounds.  Here why: Both of these former players had something that Dwight never had, which is superior footwork AND a soft touch around and away from the basket that opened up so much areas for their offensive games. That’s very hard to teach. I’d be comfortable if he was getting these lessons heading into year 2, 3 and/or 4, not heading into year 10.  Is Howard going to add that touch now after playing more than 730+ games in the league? I’m going to say no….. Right now in the City of Toronto, there is no hotter region right now in the GTA than Brampton for world class talent.  First, the NBA showed love by drafting Thompson & Bennett in the top five in two of the last three drafts, and now Hov blesses Brampton???  On his new LP “Magna Carta Holy Grail” (which was expected to sell upwards of 525K in 1st week sales, not including the Samsung Deal that netted Jay-Z $5M), the song “Crown” was produced by Ebony “Wundergirl” Oshunrinde, the first female producer to be listed on a Jay-Z album.  In hip hop, Jigga has that golden touch almost similar to Oprah Winfrey, so I say from now congrats to her as her life will forever be changed….  It’s July, basketball/hockey season is over & we are about to get into the dog days of baseball. It can only mean one thing: Fantasy Football Prepwork season!  I’m sure it has already started in the league that I’m in.  Here’s my question: After losing 5 receivers from last season, one TE to multiple surgeries in the offseason and another TE who apparently has been living his life like Bishop from Juice off the field, where the hell do you draft Tom Brady? 5th? 6th??? Let me know your thoughts….. My thoughts and prayers go out to the family of Trayvon Martin.  For almost 17 months they have waited for some sort of justice in regards to their son being killed by neighborhood watchdog George Zimmerman.  To see that not only did Zimmerman – the only one with a weapon during the confrontation – become free of this crime, and also awarded his gun back, is not only disheartening to the Martin family and anyone who believes in the law, but says everything about the gun culture that resides in the USA. This situation might be worse that the Rodney King beatings because as heinous as that was, at least Rodney (an adult) lived to see another day.  Meanwhile someone killed an unarmed child and walks with no time served. It’s another chilling reminder to show just how far we still have to go as a society. #TrayvonMartin

 

Cal Cee // South Shore Ave

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The Tunnel & The Light

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Wow!

Incredible!

My stomach’s queasy.

My head hurts.

I need a drink…..

These are the things that were rattling through my mind after watching the epic Game 6 nail biter between the Miami Heat & the San Antonio Spurs, the first truly great game of a weirdly played series. This is probably the weirdest NBA Finals that I can remember watching.  This NBA Finals resembles one of the Rocky boxing scenes where Rocky throws continuous flurries of jabs, and haymakers that all land because the boxer during the exchange forgets to try to defend any of the punches coming his way.  Only to then have it happen to him minutes later in the scene when it’s his turn to drop the gloves, and his opponent starts wailing on him.  The only thing that’s missing right now is Adrianne crying uncontrollably on Miami’s courtside seats beside the white haired woman.  The repeated blowouts, the lapses of concentration from both teams, the flurries of runs from both teams from game to game, if you didn’t know any better, you would think this pattern of win one-lose one is as choreographed and staged as those Rocky scenes before the director says cut.  Outside of Game 1, this has been an odd series to follow and watch… until Tuesday night.  With the stakes being high and everything on the line for both teams: from the way San Antonio controlled the game for three quarters, to the frantic Miami comeback and finish, it will go down as the best game of the year as well as one of the best NBA Finals game ever, as it’s destined to be replayed over and over again on NBA TV.  As we go into Game 7, here are a few things to recap:

THE SPURS BLEW A WASTED OPPORTUNITY.   More importantly, they wasted an absolute throwback game from Tim Duncan.  Back in his prime, around the time when he was collecting back to back MVPs & winning titles every other year, he would drop the hammer down during elimination games when his team needed it most.  As he gets older, there are only so many games like this that this 37-year old great has left in the reserves.  Sensing that he was so close to winning his 5th ring in his career, he came out and put on a clinic on the Heat as if he were going after his 1st, scoring 25 points in the first half alone.  The most he has scored in any half in his whole playoff career.  He raised the energy of his teammates, while killing the spirit of the Heat players and sucking the life out of the arena.  By the end of the 3rd quarter, it looked as if Miami was dazed and defeated.  Then in the 4th, Miami turned up the defence, and the Spurs were giving them back the ball like an undercooked Rib Eye to a waiter at a steakhouse. Before you knew it, the game was tied and it became a dogfight until the final buzzer of OT.  This was the time where the Spurs players were supposed to help Duncan out.  If they even took care of the ball half as bad as they did and made their free throws, we would be talking about how incredible Timmy’s Game 6 performance was, and trying to figure out where to rank it in historical context of the NBA Finals history.  If San Antonio loses this game tonight, this throwback game gets tossed on the closet floor like an old T-shirt & no one will remember it, which is a damn shame.  Duncan was supposed to leave American Airlines Arena early Wednesday morning with the Larry O’Brien trophy and possibly his 4th NBA Finals MVP.  Instead, they face the task of being the first team since the 1978 Washington Bullets to win a Game 7 NBA Finals on the road.  I’m still shaking my head here….

LEBRON’S BAD/GREAT GAME.   Years from now we’ll look at the stats of the game & say, “Wow, LeBron really came through with that triple double”, or “King James really owned that game”, but anyone watching that game was wondering if he was slowly becoming undone by the pressure of having their backs against the wall.  Taking bad shots and still looking to distribute the ball even when the Spurs had their foot on his team’s throat, it took his headband getting knocked off for him to unleash all of his athletic talents on the floor.  Taking over the 4th quarter with 18 points and imposing his effort and will on the game, the Heat completed their maniacal comeback and had a 3 point lead with less than 90 seconds to play……then Tony Parker drained that 3 in his face to tie the game.  All of a sudden, LeBron made two critical mistakes, Parker capitalized, & the Spurs were up by five.  Had it not been for Ray Allen’s beautiful 3 of his own to tie the game at 95, this would have haunted LeBron’s offseason as much as when he lost to the Mavericks two years ago.  If you compared him to Duncan through three quarters, Duncan was leaving everything on the floor while LeBron looked like he was coasting through a game vs. the Bobcats in January.  When someone is as good as he is, shouldn’t we know it at all times?  This is the 3rd time in 4 years that he looked as if his brain was subconsciously checking out during an elimination game where his team was down in the series.  Call me spoiled by the Bird/Magic/Jordan era that I grew up in, but I’d like to never question the mindset of the best player in the league during one of his biggest moments.  Once you enter those prime years as the best player in the league, those moments cannot be wasted by these things.  Not when you’re staking your claim alongside the all-time greats.  Even if he’s missing shots, we should be leaving the game saying, “Man, he was really off tonight”, instead of thinking, “Is he checking out again”???  Having a conversation with my friend Les last night, he said it best:  “It’s almost as if LeBron needs the perfect circumstances around him to get the optimal performance out of himself”.  Right opponent, right situation depending on where they are in the series, he will dominate & almost eclipse that game itself like the sun.  If his team is down in an elimination game and the supreme pressure is on him, you can see that weary signature look on his face. When the pressure hits like it did late in Game 6, you can almost see the wires frying in his head.   It’s a harsh reality for him (almost unfair), but when you win 4 MVP’s and you’re in the prime of your career surrounded by two All Stars in Wade & Bosh, that expectation comes with the territory.

WHY CRAWFORD?  The NBA for years have been fighting the image of them fixing games or having conspiracy-like overtones surrounding their playoff games, with everything coming to an apex when the Tim Donahy scandal happened.  So why would the NBA assign Joey Crawford, the NBA referee with the most negative personal history against the Spurs to ref such a pivotal game?  Why even entertain the thought of putting him out there?  I mean, it’s not exactly a secret that the Spurs have past issues with Crawford.  I don’t care if he’s in the Finals rotation, I’m almost positive they could have gotten another competent referee to ref Game 6.  I’m not saying he affected the outcome of the game & I don’t blame him for the Spurs giving up the victory Tuesday night, but by doing this, you understand why the conspiracy theorists continue to come out the woodworks.  Anyhow he refs Game 7…..

SIDELINE NOTES

The funny thing about this series is that after the excitement of Game 6, and the generating buzz of a Finals Game 7, it might not even match the buzz created by Jay-Z & Samsung during Game 5, taking over the whole commercial block between the end of the 2nd Quarter and the Halftime show.  The announcement of his new LP, “Magna Carta Holy Grail” was in short, an incredible marketing ploy for both parties.  Samsung found an innovative way to promote their phones, tablets, and apps, while Hov started an innovative buzz on his new LP, while at the same time going platinum before his LP touched a shelf or an online store.  Between this & his simmering takeover of the Sports Agency world, he is redefining the game on how to do business in music and sports.  You can read about the Samsung deal here…..  8 game winning streak huh?  Can the Blue Jays come back to take one of the wild card spots?  It’s June, it’s not too late, but they have to continue to play as well on the field as they apparently did in the offseason…..  I like the move of Jason Kidd becoming a head coach.  I think he has a great basketball mind as one of the best point guards to ever play in the NBA.  As long as he has the right assistant coaches surrounding him, he can definitely make this work to his favor…. if he was coaching The Raptors.  For a playoff team with title aspirations in the next two to three years in Brooklyn, this was the wrong move.  Lionel Hollins or George Karl gets hired to coach this team?  I’m fine with this. I feel like this was a splashy move to appease the owner as well as the media, but they should only be worried about getting wins, not making publicity wins in the New York market…..

My Game 7 prediction… I’ll stick with my original prediction & say the Heat win tonight, and by 10+ points.  I don’t see how the Spurs come back & take Game 7 after what happened on Tuesday, no matter how much it bucks the trend that no team has won 2 straight games. It’s extremely hard to win a Finals Game 7 on the road. IF by miracle or prayer Tim Duncan repeats his Game 6 performance, then it will be a much closer game. The crowd’s energy & the calls will be on the Heat’s side, & by midnight, they should be popping bottles. Hopefully, we don’t get another version of this.

 

Cal Cee // South Shore Ave

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NBA Finals Breakdown (Part 2)

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CLICK HERE TO READ PART ONE.

In Part 2 of today’s post, I’m going to give a quick breakdown of the positional matchups in the NBA Finals series between the San Antonio Spurs and The Miami Heat with a boxing-style score count. Yes, inventive I know!

POINT GUARD

Mario Chalmers vs. Tony Parker

2013 Playoff Stats: 

Chalmers: 8.9 PPG // 2.1 RPG // 3.5 APG // 77.5% FT // 30% 3P // 9.62 EFF Rating

Parker     : 23 PPG // 3.9 RPG // 7.2 ASG // 86.7% FT // 37.5% 3P // 21.8 EFF

Doesn’t seem fair does it?

Chalmers is going up against a point guard that Charles Barkley refers to as the best PG in the NBA.  I’m not 100% sure I agree with it, but by far he is the most underappreciated.  Most people don’t have him ranked in their top 5 PG list much less the top 3 (where he should be ranked). He’s the best player on the best team in the West and has been for at least the last two seasons, officially taking the reins from Tim Duncan & Manu Ginobili.  Chalmers & Norris Cole will take turns (as well as LeBron for small stretches) trying to corral Parker, as well as trying to make open jumpers & threes to offset the damage Parker will do to them on the other end of the floor.  This matchup can really hurt the Heat here, they might need to throw constant double teams (& possibly holy water) & hope he turns the ball over.

Score: Spurs 10, Heat 8 

SHOOTING GUARD

Dwyane Wade vs. Danny Green 

Wade: 14.1 PPG // 4.9 RPG // 4.9 APG // 44% FG // 74% FT // 25% 3P

Green:  9.6 PPG // 4.1 RPG // 1.9 APG // 45% FG // 71% FT // 43% 3P

** Disclaimer – This comparison is about Wade, the player in this playoffs, not the normal, healthier version. **

In most cases, Wade would dominate this matchup on a “Hakeem on Robinson” type level, but with his knees betraying him, playoff inconsistency, & struggling to fully embrace the Robin costume (let’s face it, they don’t even talk about Wade anymore when the Heat’s name comes up, & he ran Miami for years.  He’s only 31, but he’s slowly coming out of his prime.  It’s a hard adjustment).  This matchup is a little closer than you think.  Green’s not going to match up with him scoring wise, but defensively he’s going to pester Wade for stretches at a time.  The key to this matchup is for Wade to keep moving without the ball, make quick decisions, and be aggressively smart to get Green & his teammates in foul trouble. But will we even see the old Wade this series?  If so, then this series might be done a lot faster than most imagined.  The SG spot may be the most important matchup in the next two weeks to be honest, especially when a well-rested Manu Ginobili enters the game.  I actually can’t wait for him to go against Wade for seven games, in all their elite level, Euro-stepping glory.  I’m going to lean towards Wade here, “barely”, but I think he might have just enough impactful moments to win this matchup here…Just enough.

Score: Heat 10, Spurs 9

SMALL FORWARD

LeBron James vs. Kawhi Leonard 

James: 26.2 PPG // 7.3 RPG // 6.4 ASG // 51.4% FG // 77.2% FT // 38.7% 3P

Leonard: 13 PPG // 8 RPG // 1.1 ASG // 56.5% FG // 59.4% FT // 41.7% 3P

Nothing to see here, keep it moving and please use the side exits…..

……..I like Leonard,  I think he is a really solid player with a bright future.  However, asking someone to guard a 4-time MVP in the prime of his career, carving out his legacy along the very best players in NBA history, while also giving up 30+ pounds to the most physically imposing, small forward the game has ever seen, is too much to ask of anyone much less a second year player. NEXT! 

Score: Heat 10, Miami 7

POWER FORWARD

Chris Bosh vs Tim Duncan 

Bosh: 12.3 PPG // 6.6 RPG // 1.2 APG // 45.7% FG // 73.3% FT // 48.4% 3P

Duncan: 17.8 PPG // 9.2 RPG // 2.1 APG // 46% FG // 79.7% FT // 1.7 BPG

As much as people like to kill Bosh for his photo-bombing awareness, his ability to get clowned relentlessly for being himself, and everything else in between, he’s still an 8-time All Star who is very likely on the path to the Hall of Fame (sorry, it’s true), especially if he can add two more rings &/or 2-3 more All Star bids to his resume.  However, he is entering the series in a slump, averaging less than 10 points in the last 4 straight games. What’s the worst way to try to break a slump?  Facing off against Tim Duncan in a seven game series.  His focus on taking away the things that you love to do – like he did against Zach Randolph in the Western Conference Finals – is almost unprecedented.  We know the old story: he’s boring to watch, his game puts people to sleep, but the consistency of his greatness is almost unmatched.  I can throw all the stats out at you, but this may be my favorite one yet:  in his rookie year at age 21, he made the All-NBA First Team.  Sixteen years later at age 37, he made the All-NBA First Team.  Has that even happened before???? He sees the end coming soon, but with the way Roy Hibbert look like Mikan, Wilt, & Bill Russell all rolled into one against Miami, I can’t see how he doesn’t do similar damage to them.  He’s as smart mentally as Hibbert is physically imposing. I expect to see him at the line a lot, getting the Heat’s big men to use up most of their 6 fouls each.

Score: Spurs 10, Heat 9

CENTER

Udonis Haslem vs. Tiago Splitter 

Haslem: 6.3 PPG // 3.9 RPG // 0.9 SPG // 61% FG // 53.8% FT

Splitter: 6.8 PPG // 3.7 RPG // 1.8BPG // 68.2% FG // 78.3% FT

Both Haslem and Splitter are role playing big men, who make their bones playing off of their superstar teammates by collecting garbage points, finishing dump off passes, setting solid screens off the pick and roll, and playing tough defense.  They do it with slightly different styles, but both get the job done.  It’s an even matchup but I give the slight edge to Haslem.  Playing in his 4th Finals will make him more well-adjusted to the whole experience then a young player like Splitter, I’m expecting him to make less mistakes as the series prolongs.

Score: Heat 10, Spurs 9

BENCH

Both teams have a pretty solid bench, Miami: Allen, Birdman, Battier, Miller, Cole, Anthony; Spurs: Ginobilli, Diaw, Bonner, Neal, Cory Joseph. For Miami, Allen, Battier, & Miller MUST make their open shots here.  They struggled the whole Pacer series, and versus a team who averaged the 5th most bench points in the league, they will quickly fall behind if this happens again.  The Spurs have been more consistent out of the two teams throughout the playoffs, so the needle tilts to their side on this one.

Score: Spurs 10, Heat 9

COACHING

Both coaching staff in my opinion are the best in the game today.  Eric Spoelstra doesn’t get enough credit for coaching the team this season.  27–game winning streaks doesn’t just happen because you roll out the balls to your great players, then sit back, & enjoy the show.  A lot of it involves having your players dedicated to the system, while keeping them motivated for perfection in every game.  He built the system around the unique talents of his best player while making sure Wade & Bosh were having a major impact.  He brought a guy off the street (Birdman) and blended him in almost seamlessly. But this will be his biggest test, matching Xs & Os with Gregg Popovich, a legendary coach who’s 4-0 in the NBA Finals…… who has now had 10 days to plan for this series.

Score: Spurs 10, Heat 9

PREDICTION

Game 1 is probably the most critical; a team that rests this long against the Spurs usually comes out rusty.  While a team like the Heat coming off of a grueling series, will still be in game-time rhythm.  If the Spurs can shake off the rust & steal this game, it can potentially be a big blow to the Heat, as the Spurs will only get sharper as the series progresses.  Ultimately, I’m going with the Heat in 7 because they have the trump card in James, who as I mentioned before, is by far the best player in the NBA playing at his absolute peak, and in basketball, that counts for a lot. His game almost has no flaws right now, and having that specimen on your team is like having a universal key that can open any door in the building.  As long as he’s constantly attacking this defense and causing problems in the paint with his scoring and playmaking, it will eventually wear the Spurs down…. even if they only wear down in Game 7.

Cal Cee // South Shore Ave

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Game 7 & Finals Breakdown

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After a long, grueling, NBA playoff season that had all the impact-changing injuries (ie. Patrick Beverley on Russell Westbrook), heroic moments, choke jobs, reputations elevated (ie. Steph Curry, Paul George) and devalued (Hello Dwight & Blake!), we finally come down to the NBA Finals starting tonight between the San Antonio Spurs and the Miami Heat, where as much as seven potential Hall of Famers will battle it out for the Larry O’Brien trophy. Before I give out the breakdown of the Finals boxing-match style, I feel like we have to address what happened earlier this week first. Mainly…..

……what the hell happened to the Indiana Pacers in Game 7?! First, let’s give credit to the Heat for the phenomenal defense they played, specifically in the second quarter, when they went on a 33 – 16 run to change the course of the game and choke the life out of the Pacers at that point. Now, I understand that Miami, when their “Big 3” are playing aggressively, are the best team rolling in the NBA, so the viewpoint of the Pacers losing to a better team isn’t lost on me. To add to that, Indiana doesn’t have that player right now that can put a team on his back & rally from a 15-point deficit. But Game 7 isn’t just about talent alone. More than anything, it’s about imposing your will on another team, giving your best effort & leaving your heart & soul in between the lines. The Pacers showed these traits in the first six games of this series, basically battling Miami to a standstill. When Game 7 came around however, they left all of those on the team plane. After dominating the boards the entire series, they were out-rebounded by Miami 43-36 (15-8 on the offensive boards), who made more free throws (33) than Indiana attempted (20), while turning over the ball 21 times before losing 99 – 76. The way they ended off the series left you strangely bitter, almost like the first time you watched The Departed. Great movie, kept you riveted the entire time before they mailed in the last 20 minutes & you ended up leaving the theater wanting to punch something.

As far the Pacers future is concerned, their future seems pretty bright. As long as they can resign David West (which by all accounts, wants to come back), George & Roy Hibbert can keep developing & improving on their talents, either sign a legitimate point guard or send George Hill & D.J. Augustin to a Five-Star like summer camp to learn how to handle the ball in tight situations, they should be able to contend again. Here’s the thing though: the future isn’t guaranteed. Everyone feels like Miami is going to break up the team in 2014, and they might. But what if they find a loophole that keeps them contending for the rest of LeBron’s prime years? Don’t forget, Derrick Rose is coming back and adding him alone makes Chicago 15 wins better at least. Depending on the coach they hire (especially with George Karl now on the market), Brooklyn might find that edge to compete with the contenders and start to mirror the city’s swagger. If Atlanta does the unthinkable, and lands Chris Paul and Dwight Howard with their cap space to put alongside Al Horford, that will change the landscape of the Eastern conference. We just don’t know what the future holds. Everyone thought Shaq & Penny would control the rest of the 90’s in the East; they also thought the same thing about Gary Payton & Shawn Kemp in Seattle. We also thought once that Vince & TMac would rule the NBA from Toronto together, or Ray Allen, Sam Cassell and Glenn Robinson’s futures would be bright in Milwaukee; or Jermaine O’Neal/Ron Artest-led Pacers, or 50 Cent, the Game & the rest of G-Unit (just making sure you’re paying attention), and every other young squad with a ton of potential who we thought would eventually win for years and win a title. We just don’t know for sure, & that’s why when Game 7’s comes along, you have to leave everything on the floor. Because when you do & the game happens to be close, you just never know. Let’s hope Indiana doesn’t look back at this game in a few years and wonder what might have been, and hopefully they’ll use this last series as motivation to get over the hump.

CLICK HERE FOR PART 2.

Cal Cee // South Shore Ave

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The Melo Experience

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As far as their recent history shows, it can be said that the New York Knicks had a successful season. Led by Carmelo Anthony — who led the league in scoring with 28.4 PPG — the Knicks made it past the first round for the first time since the Allan Houston/Latrell Sprewell Knicks back in 2000. They won 54 games, made 891 threes (An NBA Record), sent two of their players to the All Star Game (Anthony, Tyson Chandler), as well as J.R. Smith who toned down the recklessness in his game enough to win the 6th Man award…. in a contract year.  Carmelo has emerged as the biggest marquee star the Knicks have had since Patrick Ewing. More than that, he wants to be a Knick, can handle the city’s media glare & understands its major market pressures.  That’s the good part.  Here’s the bad part: he wants to do it on his terms with the team revolving around his skill set.  Now you might be saying, “So?! All star players would want this”, & you would be right. Just as long as you understand this: No team (much less the Knicks) will ever win a title as long as Carmelo is your best player playing the way that he does.  Not even close.

People believe that Carmelo coming to New York brought the Knicks back on the map.  Well let’s rewind back a few years ago to the summer of 2010.  Back then, the Knicks cleared all of their cap space & bad contracts to land some major stars.  They figured with their blank salary cap slate, the allure of playing in a major market, & all the business opportunities available because of it, that they would go full throttle after LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, Chris Bosh, Dirk Nowitzki, Yao Ming, & Amar’e Stoudemire to come play for them & make their franchise relevant again.  But after the way they handled/bungled/mangled the last decade….. actually, let’s list just some of the events & decisions that was made:

  • They traded their long-time franchise player Patrick Ewing after 15 years with the team without letting him know beforehand. (Ewing found out about the trade in his car while in traffic);
  • Had one playoff appearance since 2001;
  • Signed Eddy Curry to 6yr/$56M contract;
  • Signed Jerome James to a $30M contract;
  • Not letting Stephon Marbury know that his father (in the stands at the time) suffered a heart attack & was rushed to the Hospital until after the game.  He died before Stephon could get to see him;
  • The Rise of Jim Dolan;
  • Signed Jerome James to a $30M contract.  No, this is not a typo.

Surprisingly, all the big named free agents blew their offers off, except for Amar’e.  So while Miami became a conglomerate onto itself, the Knicks signed Stoudemire & his uninsurable knees to a 5 yr/$100M deal.  Everyone expected the Knicks to flounder with only one star player surrounded by a bunch of young bucks & role players. Instead, he put the team on his back, raised the level & value of Raymond Felton, Danilo Gallinari, & Wilson Chandler, & had the buzz back in MSG while playing like an MVP candidate the first half of the season (26.1 PPG/8 RPG). Everyone noticed including Melo in Denver, whose impending free agency was hanging around his team like a stale fart…. while at the same time, he started angling his way to get to the new hot team.  Once Jim Dolan caught wind that Melo wanted to come to New York & that the negotiations between the two teams weren’t going fast enough, he took over the meetings, and offered up all his new valued assets with the desperation of a man offering to pay rent & hand wash panties on a first date.  Yes, even though Melo had an opt-out a few months later & could have just signed with the Knicks outright, they went ahead & traded Gallinari, Chandler, Felton & Timofey Mozgov for Carmelo & Chauncey Billups.

After a hero’s welcome for a hometown boy (even though up until then, we all thought he was raised in Baltimore but whatever), he played in his first game vs. Milwaukee, & went 10 – 25 from the field in a 114 – 108 win. TWENTY FIVE SHOTS!!! This was eventually a precursor for things to come. You know how the rest turns out, he spends the rest of the season struggling to fit his game with Amar’e but the Knicks still sneak into the playoffs.  Lost quickly to Boston in the 1st round.  Then after the team gets off to a rocky start after the lockout, Melo gets hurt, Linsanity begins, the team shares the ball & starts winning games…. until Melo starts complaining about his touches in the offense.  Mike D’Antoni resigns, Stoudemire’s knees continue to erode, and they make the playoffs under a new system on the fly, and lose again quickly in the 1st round to the Heat.

Now we have this season where Melo is playing the four & has his best regular season as a Knick.  In an offense designed for him, he gets to do what he does best: Shoot from wherever & whenever he wants. We kept hearing how much veterans like Jason Kidd helped him to become a better leader, and a more mature, complete basketball player.  Maybe it did to an extent….. But it didn’t totally reflect in his stats:

2011-12 Melo: 22.6 PPG/6.3 RPG/3.6 APG/43% FG/33% 3FG/1.1 SPG/0.4 BPG

2012-13 Melo: 28.7 PPG/6.9 RPG/2.6 APG/45% FG/38% 3FG/0.8 SPG/0.5 BPG

It also didn’t reflect in the playoffs either.  In 12 playoff games this year, he shot the ball 24 times or more in 9 games.  During the first 5 games of the six-game Boston series, he had 6 assists.  In the Pacer series, he shot 65 – 150 (43% FG).  Take away the stats in Games 2 & 6, and he shot 38%.  Ironically enough, it’s right around his playoff averages as a Knick (39.9%).  He had a teammate (Chandler) indirectly call him out for the way that the offense was sticking to his hands.  He had more fouls (29) than assists, steals, and blocks combined (14). I’m not expecting him to turn into Magic, or even LeBron all of a sudden.  He’s a scorer and that’s his strength. I understand this. But he’s gotta affect the game in more ways than just his scoring.  I always believe at some point, the team takes on the traits and personality of their leader. So when I watch the Knicks playoff games & observe guys going one on one, taking up chunks of the shot clock before heaving up a low percentage shot, it says something about Carmelo.

You always hold onto the hope that the potential of people can be reached, but after a while, you realize that this is who they are.  Eventually, you realize that with some people, the only thing that changes about them are their clothes.  Anthony is headed into his 11th season.  He’s only been out of the first round twice.  Unless he has an epiphany in the next couple of years and changes his game where he makes his team better, this is who he is.  If you’re a Knicks fan, you may want to get prepared to see him sit beside Dominique Wilkins, Allen Iverson, George Gervin, and every other historical gunner who ended his career without a ring….

……. & maybe that’s just how it’s supposed to be.

Cal Cee // South Shore Ave

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Where Brooklyn At?

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Whenever you think of Brooklyn and what it represents, many things come to mind. It’s defined by the character of the people & the gritty toughness that is ingrained in their blood. You think about the Borough’s heart. You think about its hustling mentality & spirit. You think about its style, its swagger. It’s attitude. You think about the people that were bred there: Mike Tyson, The Notorious B.I.G., and Spike Lee. You think about its rich history. You think about Ebbets Field. You think about the Brooklyn Dodgers. Shiiit, you even think about the Crooklyn Dodgers. You also think about Jay-Z & how he’s repped Brooklyn & has made himself into a cultural icon. Now, besides his affiliation with the team & maybe the uniforms he helped to design, did anything the Brooklyn Nets did this playoffs (or this season for that matter) make you think of any of those things??? Outside of maybe Reggie Evans ripping rebounds & causing mayhem in the paint, there was nothing very Brooklyn about this team.

Nobody should be surprised at how their season ended. Their whole season lacked consistency on the floor & lacked personality off the it. There was never a defining point in their season that anyone can remember, other than the four games they played against the New York Knicks this season. Even though they locked up a 4th seed & home court advantage in the Eastern Conference where only two teams won 50 games, they couldn’t have met a worse match up in Chicago, a team that ironically represents more characteristics of Brooklyn than they do. Led by Brooklyn’s own Joakim Noah, they brought their personality & swagger after Game 1 & changed the series to their own tempo. In fact, look at Chicago’s team. Noah? Hustle. Luol Deng & Jimmy Butler? Grit. Carlos Boozer? Toughness. Nate Robinson? Heart. If these teams could have switched uniforms, they would have been more BK-relatable. In Game 6, the Nets almost lost to Chicago that had Taj Gibson & Robinson battling the flu. Kirk Hinrich was out with a severely strained right calf, & Deng was sent to the hospital after undergoing a spinal tap. Not to mention, no Derrick Rose either. Yet they were still a jump ball away from possibly going into overtime. In Game 7, after going down 61-44 at the half (& their hollow comeback attempt), it’s fair to say they should have had their stripes ripped from their jerseys like a disgraced soldier. Game 7 is more about imposing your will & heart over another team. Look at this example of who left their heart on the floor:

Joe Johnson (playing with plantar fasciitis): 6 pts (2 – 14 from the field, 1-9 from 3-point land), 3 boards, 2 assists, & 1 FREE THROW from the line.

Joakim Noah (with the exact same injury): 24 pts (12-17 from the field), 14 boards (7 offensive), and 6 blocks.

You know what else Brooklyn gives you? Value & bang for your buck when you’re shopping. The Nets have committed $311 Million on their starting lineup alone….. & got knocked out of the 1st round. They have a power forward in Kris Humphries who’s making $12 Million that’s sitting on their bench. Have you seen the season Gerald Wallace just finished having??? By the way, he’s making $30 Million over the next 3 years. Joe Johnson is owed $60 Million for the next 3 years, essentially being paid like a franchise superstar yet he’s the team’s 3rd best player. The guy who tied up the team’s cap space for the next few years? Billy King. The same guy who ten years ago tied up Philadelphia’s cap space to surround Iverson with questionable contract signings. Now he gets a 4-year extension! With the firing of P.J. Carleisimo, they will be on their 3rd coach by the time training camp begins. I know Mikhail Prokhorov has deep pockets and everything, but I’m starting to think that if someone can just take him down to Fulton Mall, he’ll understand he doesn’t have to overpay for everything. I understand it is only year one of their acclimation to the Brooklyn Borough, but with the unrealistic expectations Prokhorov set of them winning a title by 2015, with this lineup, this management, & minimal cap space, it may be a while before the right team can represent this city to the fullest.

Sideline Notes

Major respect goes out the Golden State Warriors on Wednesday night. After blowing a 16-point lead in Game 1 to the Spurs, I thought they wouldn’t win another game in this series. The best time to take a victory as a team is Game 1, especially when the opponent has an 8-day layoff between series & will spend most of that 1st game shaking off rust. So when the Spurs were still able to win, I imagined between the Spurs veteran leadership & the Warriors playoff inexperience, they would not recover. Instead, they controlled the game again (they’ve actually lead 96 of 106 minutes of these two games) & walked away with a split in the series and their first win in San Antonio since Valentine’s Day in 1997. Responsible for this shift in the team’s culture is Mark Jackson & Steph Curry. Jackson shows you that coaching isn’t just about X’s & O’s, but about motivating your team & instilling belief in your players to do things they can’t sometimes see themselves. He’s clearly gotten the ears of the players, which has now taken on the personality & swagger he had as a player. As far as Curry is concerned, he’s doing something I’m not sure I have seen in the NBA in a long time, if not ever. Steph is almost like the secret player you unlock with a cheat code in a video game that allows you to make every shot possible by pressing X and L2 repeatedly. More than that, he’s become the proverbial hot goalie that you see in the NHL playoffs or the hot pitcher in the MLB playoffs. Being a Canadiens fan, I remember when Patrick Roy was standing on his head in the 1986 & 1993 playoffs essentially stealing two Stanley Cups from better teams those years. Or like Randy Johnson & Curt Schilling did the same pitching the Arizona Diamondbacks in 2001 knocking off the New York Yankees in the World Series. Whenever you have a goalie or a pitcher that hot, all conventional playoff order & rules go out the window. Much like those teams riding their insanely hot star player to glory, Golden State is doing the same with Curry. Make no mistake; Curry is at this level now, playing with an NBA Jam On Fire type confidence leaving no answer for defenses to contain him. How else do you explain this shot he pulled off in the first quarter last night? Now I don’t want to say that they’re going to win it all, much less this series vs. San Antonio. But until a team can devise a plan to stop Curry, at this point, I’m saying all bets are off now…… Is it a coincidence that Brendon Ayanbadejo & Chris Kluwe (two players strong in their stances for Gay rights) both no longer have NFL jobs after being cut this offseason? Ha ha, what am I saying? OF COURSE it’s a coincidence….. Maybe Ricky Romero should try a new position. Um, how about DH?…… Quick predictions for the rest of 2nd Round of playoffs: Dick Bavetta aka “Knick Bavetta” refs Game 6 or 7 if Knicks/Pacers series goes that far. We don’t want break Stern’s wish of having an all major-market Eastern Conference Finals. At the very least, expect lots of fishy calls in those games; OKC will lose in 6 to Memphis; Miami will win in 6…… & the Habs will come back from 3 – 1 down and win the series. Gotta have confidence right??…… ***reading last night’s box score*** ……..Ahh f***.

Cal Cee // South Shore Ave

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Does D-Rose Really Need to Play?

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SHOULD A ROSE BLOOM?

Question: Should Derrick Rose play during the playoffs this season?

Answer: No. 

…..Ok, I’ll explain. Even though Derrick Rose has been cleared to play, coming off major knee surgery can be as taxing mentally as it is physically. Basketball is a game of rhythm. If he’s not ready mentally & his rhythm isn’t right, then why play? He’s being paid $95M to represent the franchise for the rest of the decade health permitting. If he’s holding that kind of responsibility, then let him be responsible for his body to be at its best.  Those looking to ostracize him for sitting the bench aren’t thinking clearly. Asking any player (even a superstar) that missed a whole regular season to now come into a playoff series to, A) get his game rounded out & his rhythm in order and B) do so without thinking about his knee is preposterous. Or worse, to rush him in to come off the bench & play 15-20 monitored minutes a game. That’s like asking Chris Martin to come back to Coldplay, play the guitar & sing backup during a World Tour.

The Bulls’ concern SHOULD be to the future. In Game 3 the 2003 Western Conference Finals, Dirk Nowitzki badly strained his right knee against the San Antonio Spurs. Pressed with the opportunity to play the remainder of the series with a trip to the Finals on the line, Head Coach Don Nelson decided to shut down their 24-yr old cornerstone. You think they regret that decision now? Within the next 10 years, he’s surpassed 25,000 points, played in 11 All Star games, won the 2007 MVP, brought the franchise their 1st title, a future 1st ballot Hall of Famer  becoming one of the best players of his generation & helping solidify value to the franchise around the league. I’m pretty sure it was worth it for them. Now a similar situation may occur with Russell Westbrook. While the team says that he’ll be out for the rest of the playoffs following knee surgery, if OKC makes it to the Finals again in June & Westbrook is way ahead of schedule, will he get the pressure to sacrifice the long term goals for the now?

Remember when Brandon Roy had late season surgery to repair a torn meniscus in his right knee in 2010, then came back, & was ahead of schedule to play at less than 100% for the Trailblazers who didn’t have a snowball’s chance in hell of getting out of the first round vs. Phoenix? How did that turn out? His knees — never being 100% to begin with coming into the league — was never the same after the series & is most likely retiring after this season for a second time partly due to no one protecting his future in Portland. How about Gilbert Arenas who tore his MCL in 2007 after running through a 3-year span as one of the most explosive guards in the NBA? Everyone loved him when he came back early from his knee surgery…. until he started overcompensating for that same knee, ending up having more surgeries & injuries within the next 2 years.  Arenas & the Wizards haven’t been the same since. Where is he now? The Far East trying to recoup what’s left of his career (well, that & shaking off the “Gunplay” image.) It serves no purpose for Rose to come back. Protect him, protect the future of his career, and protect the franchise. By continuing to release reports on his status , Chicago’s PR team is putting the pressure on him to get back on the court & create more short-term buzz financially to the team. It’s refreshing that he’s strong enough mentally to take care of his most valuable asset: himself.

Notes

Don’t underestimate Friday’s deal that the MLSE made with appointing Tim Lieweke their President & CEO.  Anyone who hasn’t followed his career needs to sit up & take notice to the possibilities that are now open to the Toronto Sports scene. Here’s the main feature to understanding Lieweke:  Tim is a MAJOR player in the Sports & Entertainment world who only aligns himself to major projects (ie. Bringing David Beckham to MLS).  Mediocrity is NOT in his vocabulary, so for anyone thinking Bryan Colangelo is sticking around to continue what he’s been doing (ie. Wanting to sign Rudy Gay to an extension even though he has 2 more years left at $37M & has NEVER played in an All Star Game), I’m not sure what else there is to say….. Of many quotes that’s been said in basketball, the phrase, “You live by the jumper, you die by the jumper” has always been one of the truest. Well, I’m willing to live by Steph Curry’s jumper for the foreseeable future….. As much as I am on the Clippers Bandwagon (I currently reside in the VIP Section), I still can’t help but think why Blake Griffin isn’t better than he is.  I’ve had this debate with others in the last couple of months but I ask, how can he be considered the best Power Forward in the game when he gets 2 rebounds in a game? Too many times this season he’s had 5 rebounds or less beside his name. Somewhere between his rookie season & Game 5 of this series, he has regressed rebounding-wise. We really can’t expect the Clippers to go far in the post season if Griffin & DeAndre Jordan can’t control the paint & are using their hops for lobs that’ll rarely come during this time of the season.

 

Cal Cee  // South Shore Ave

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