It's Friday evening, night two of the NCAA Tournament, round here it's more affectionately known as March Madness - here are my thoughts as they happen with the multiple games in play. It's approx. 9:30in the PM Atlantic Time at the moment and Georgetown is facing a steep deficit and another early elimination from the tournament. Villanova has climbed back into their game with North Carolina after trailing by a significant early margin (20+). Ohio State has seen it's comfortable 19 point lead trimmed and things are getting a little more tense versus Iona. Florida is up 8 at the half on Northwestern State. That's the scene.
Villanova has woken up big time since it's early deficit and are now the aggressor, just grabbed their first lead (44-42, 14min to go) since the score was 4-3. Ohio State is clicking again, forcing turnovers and scoring in transition. Thompson making athletic plays look very pedestrian. Craft has the rare ability to dominate the game on the defensive end of the floor, 7 stls on the night with 13 minutes still to play. I like Steve Kerr on the play call, great insights and explanations. Calling the game with a great like Marv Albert probably doesn't hurt. Reggie Miller on the other hand, not so much. Not sure how I feel about this new Jackie Robinson '42' biopic? If you're doing it right, it certainly can't be rated PG, no? Georgetown has been it's own worst enemy here in the second half, so many wasted possessions with poor long range shots. The Otto Porter, best G-Town player since Allen Iverson, discussions can cease to exist. Florida Gulf Coast just dunked all over Georgetown up 9 with 2 minutes to go and it looks like a 2 seed is going down to a 15 seed. FGC legit. This is happening. Starks a couple late 3's, keeping it interesting. Game over, FGC big upset. Reggie Miller disputes Len Elmore's claim his son predicted the upset, nice. North Ca rolina head coach Roy Williams benched his starters because they squandered their large lead vs. Villanova. His starters sat several minutes early in the second half before returning to play with a renewed energy and passion. Interesting coaching move in such a big game, granted Roy had the insurance of a small lead to begin his 'message', it was still a gutsy play and seems to have paid off, I love how much of the college game comes down to the coaches, their preparation and in-game decisions. Returned to Ohio State game, now out of hand, see you in the round of 32 Brutus. Villanova continues to get the ball inside and make UNC pay. UNC up 4 with 1:27 to play. Villanova having trouble getting a look, with their pick and roll action. UNC bucket and the foul off the Villanova desperation miss. You can book this one. UNC up 8 under a min. Florida has been very efficient in the second half, seeing their lead push out to 20+. Turnovers on one end and good looks on other is a good recipe for success. Somewhere a curvy gal loosens her diaphragm. "Aaron Craft is the best leader in college basketball", Barkley is right when he says that. Sometimes a guard can have a dominant impact in the tournament even if they aren't a dominant athlete, which is rare at the professional level think Mateen Cleaves, Gerry McNamara, Khalid El Amin, Andre Miller, Juan Dixon. I think it's hilarious when an analyst, in this case it was Sam Mitchell, says something along the lines of "Georgetown needs to play Georgetown basketball", what kind of insight is that? If it was the 'Showtime' Lakers and they were in a low scoring grind it out game I could understand this reference, yes they need to play Laker basketball, they need to pick up the pace - but to suggest they need to play "team _______ basketball" and insinuate it's the style they play when they are playing well is really no insight at all, might as well say "they need to play, the way they play, when they are playing well", oh really, thanks for that. Enjoy the rest of tonght's games. Have a laugh at my expense, lots of red in that bracket.
Peace
Quick observations/thoughts on what has been a most interesting season to this point:
The Best Is Ahead: Paul George, Jrue Holliday, Eric Bledsoe, Kenneth Faried, The Denver Nuggets,
The Best is Behind: The Boston Celtics, The Los Angeles Lakers, Manu
Ginobili, Deron Williams, Low Post Scoring, Joe Johnson, Shawn Marion,
Michael Beasley,
Defense isn't overrated. Take the Memphis Grizzilies 93.5 Points Per Game (26th in league) vs. 89.2 Point Allowed Per Game (1st in the league), Indiana Pacers 94.4 PPG (22nd), 90.0 vs. PAPG (2nd) and the Chicago Bulls 92.3 PPG (29th Overall) vs. 92.3 PAPG (3rd). Good for a 122-77 (.613) overall record. Just saying.
The Celtics have shown admirable heart and pride in the wake of
Rondo's departure, but they don't have that guy (Rondo) who can steal a
big game on his own. I know C's fans want me to say this, after all,
these Celts are thriving off the 'Us Vs. The World'/'Nobody Believes in
Us!' mentality to this point.
We all felt great about Golden State. Now they can go back to being Golden State.
We all felt great about the Los Angeles Clippers. Now they can go back.... not yet, these Clips might just be for real.
NBA
PG play truly has hit a golden era, with elite talents like Paul,
Westbrook, Rondo, Rose, Parker, Curry, Williams (gulp), Nash (double
gulp) already established, and with players like Kyrie Irving, Jrue
Holliday, Ty Lawson, Damian Lillard, Jeff Teague, and Brandon Jennings
all on the rise, the ball truly is in good hands.
Death. Taxes. The San Antonio Spurs.
Is the ROY award already safely stored in Damian Lillard's home
trophy cabinet? It should be.. Maybe 4 years in college does help at
that position.
Granted Larry Sanders is no where near being the leagues best player, he might be the most watchable.
The
Heat's streak has been nothing short of impressive, a mix of dominant
wins and gut check grinds, they've got the whole league on notice.
LeBron continually sticks to his sportsman rhetoric imploring it's
"simply about striving for continuous improvement", somehow even when
his game should be inevitably cresting he seems to find 'continuous
improvement'. Best in the world.
LeBron has pushed the gap between him and Durant a little wider this
season, especially with his increased awareness of maximizing each
possession. His FG% and increased work below the free throw line is a
testament to his growth into unquestionably the world's best basketball
talent.
That
said, Durant is a worthy 'Malone' to LeBron's 'MJ'. Playing with an
increased edge to his game this year. Durant has also expanded his game -
incorporating more of a facilitating do-it-all role with the departure
of James Harden.
Speaking of James Harden, safe to say he has answered any skeptics
questions with regard to whether or not he was a 'franchise' guy. The
Rockets are looking pretty smart right about now.
Oklahoma City may not have gotten enough for Harden, but they still
made off alright and who knows what they would have gotten for him with
less leverage down the line. They've landed on their feet with Kevin
Martin, plus they'll have more financial flexibility going forward. All
of that said, imagine - Harden, Durant, Ibaka, and Westbrook all out
there for one more season? If both the Rockets and Thunder did alright
in this trade, I guess it was just us fans that lost. 70 wins would have
been realistic.
While the Rudy Gay era seemingly had gotten off to a great start,
let's remember those times while we're paying for his 37M contract over
the next two years. Being a realist. There will be tough times, Rudy Gay
is not a franchise player. Heads up.
I understand Calderon had to go, that said, I will miss watching him operate a screen and roll.
The
Lakers are easily the most laughable...wait intriguing...no,
laughable....yet intriguing .500 team in recent memory. None of the
pieces seem to fit and the architect is a 'specialist' who only seems
to have one style of play. If Kobe isn't willing this team to an
additional 6-8 wins, playoffs aren't even a question. What's gotten into
Kobe this year anyway, chatty fella all the sudden.
In my estimation the Slam Dunk Contest is not really broken it just
needs participants to accept that they're aren't many new original dunks
out there; gimmicks are not a way to make up for this lack of
room for physical creativity. It's gotten to the point where its either a
corny gimmick dunk or the degree of difficulty is so out of whack that
the dunk is next to impossible to complete without numerous attempts,
which greatly detracts from the flow of the event. My suggestion, do
moderately difficult dunks with incredible enthusiasm, athleticism,
speed and power and that will be enough for most of us. Superstars in
the event would undeniably help, but isn't a necessity. That said, put
me down for 50$ in the Lebron v. Blake Griffin dunk fund.
The Skills Competition is broken and is silly, re-vamp it or lose it.
Guys who don't get enough love (Until now): Chandler Parsons has been a huge part of the quick resurgence in Houston, Nickola Vucevic (11.5 RPG) has been a beast Orlando - the unlikely best player in last summer's Dwight Howard, Andrew Bynum, Andre Igoudala flopbuster. Mike Conley
has been a crucial part of the Grizz's success this season. I think
it's his development that helped management come to it's decision to let
Gay go. Knowing that the Grizz are in better hands letting Conley
decide where to put the ball at the end of games, than they were just
clearing out and letting Gay create a mid range jumper. Beyond that
everything else Gay brought to the table was expendable for the price
tag.
Kyrie Irving leapfrogged his way from the fringe of being an NBA All
Star to being an NBA Superstar during All Star Weekend. What a coming
out party,Uncle Drew has arrived.
The Knicks are not ready to compete with the Miami Heat for the
Eastern Conference title. Sad to say, but not from what I've seen.
Let's forecast the biggest question marks each team
faces going forward into the stretch run of the NBA season, where
clearly some teams have very different motivations than others. I'll
organize the teams in order of questions they face on their way to the
title or their improving future. i.e. The better the team, the fewer the
question marks. I think that makes sense.
Miami
Heat - ? - Can anyone beat the Heat? With so many questions of the Heat
over the past 2 seasons it seems that they've flipped the script in
2013 and now the questions only apply to their competition. The Heat's
only real concern remains their ability to protect the rim and control
the backboard in their own paint. Chris Anderson seems to have provided a
lift. Can Bosh and LeBron do enough rebounding to limit the minutes of
Anderson and Anthony, allowing the Heat to run the small line ups they
like best? Few questions here. Streaking in the Quad.
Oklahoma
City Thunder - ?? - The Thunder have played with an edge, perhaps
slighted by doubters following Harden's departure? Whatever the case,
the Thunder have looked like a top tier team throughout the season;
Durant and Westbrook have been brilliant again, but it's been Ibaka's
continued development that has been a big part of their return to last
seasons form. Questions that remain: Have the Thunder gained enough
experience from last season to make it over the hump in 2013? Will the
Thunder miss James Harden's ability to create in the half court late in
playoff games when the defense begins to tighten up? (A la the 2012 WCF
v. the Spurs) Will Russell Westbrook continue to make the transition
from self interest to team interest?
San Antonio Spurs -
?? - Despite another run of regular season dominance, it's all about
post season production for these veteran Spurs who have been through
about as many battles as Napoleon. Can the Spurs old bodies hold up?
Does Ginobili still have any of his late game heroics left? Is the ball
in Parker's hands in the crunch now? Will the Spurs (re: Tim Duncan)
make one last final stand before heading off into the sunset? How will
Popovich draw my admiration yet again?
Los Angeles
Clippers - ??? - The Clips have been a pleasant surprise this season,
talent living up to expectations, a rarity these days. Despite the
elevation in their status out West, a post season bid could hardly count
as sufficient for the new 'kings' of L.A.. Can the Clippers play well
enough in the half court to excel within the usual confines of playoff
basketball? Will coach Vinny Del Negro have to shorten up his bench in
the playoffs? At who's expense? (You know CP3 is going to get his, but
the Clips are loaded on the perimeter... Jamal Crawford, Chauncey
Billups, Willie Green, Matt Barnes, Grant Hill, Caron Butler, Eric
Bledsoe - Not everyone will get the minutes they're used to, this will
be fine if they keep winning, if they get down... maybe not so much.)
And lastly, will DeAndre Jordan do this again?
Memphis
Grizzlies - ??? - The Memphis Grizzilies are the NBA's throwback, while
everyone else seems to be looking to go small and take advantage in
transition with quickness and athleticism, the Grizzilies have chosen to
go big and this gives them a unique advantage heading into the post
season. The Grizz excel in the half court, something that figures to be a
factor in the tightened up, slowed down pace we routinely see in the
months of May and June. Can the Grizz keep up with some of the perimeter
athletes on the opponents they'll face? Can Mike Conley hold his own
against some of the other elite guards of the West? (He doesn't need to
outplay them, just hold even so their advantage inside can be played as
the Grizz's trump.) Will they miss Rudy Gay's end of game ability to
create his own shot? Without Gay in town, who shoots the last shot?
Given the right match up the Grizz should be a force to be reckoned
with.
Indiana Pacers - ???? - The Pacers have the
East's best chance at preventing a third consecutive Eastern Conference
Championship from the boys in South Beach. Even if that chance
only equates to them being a proverbial snowball in the Miami 'Heat',
see what I did there. That said, at least the Pacers represent something
of a challenge for the Heat; size up front and nearly flawless
execution on the defensive end. The Pacers play good enough on the
defensive end to keep them in most every game, it will come down to the
production of Hibbert in the middle and on the glass (a Heat weakness)
and their ability to limit turnovers, preventing transition
opportunities for the Heat. If they can keep the game in the half court
then they have a fighter's chance at pulling off the upset. Can the
George's, Paul and Hill, operate aggressively on offensive while
limiting turnovers? Can Hibbert return to the dominant offensive
presence he was for parts of last year and protect the rim from Miami's
slashers? Can Lance Stephenson and Paul George match the athleticism of
Lebron and DWade? Is Danny Granger done? Is Paul George the 'man' when
the chips are down?
New
York Knicks - ???? - Let me start by saying the Knicks are my squad, so
my optimism - as well as my pessimism should be taken with a grain of
salt. The Knicks are the poorly put together 'Big 3' that has more or
less become a 'Big 2', with the steady decline of Amare Stoudemire. Melo
has elevated his game at times this year and he does deserve some
recognition for finally becoming a bit more of a 'team' guy and a little
less of a 'me' guy. He still has his moments where he drifts back into
his selfish ways but for the most part his effort has been evident, this
hardly deserves more than a pat on the back. Tyson Chandler continues
to do his thing protecting the middle, often covering up for the many
lapses this team is prone to on the defensive end. After starting the
year with an identity of 3point shooting and a mean halfcourt defensive
intensity (18-5), the Knicks have seen their style of play shift into
the more pedestrian style of... try to outscore the opponent with
isolation plays and a series of punch and kicks for 3 point shots.
Hopefully the former was a sign of the team's real promise and the
latter is just a combination of, it's a long season, injuries, and who
the hell knows what else. Granted the Knick's shot the ball remarkably
well in their tear out of the gate, it was the effort on the defensive
end that I felt made the difference in the team's record. Can the
Knick's get back to playing the defense that got Woodson a contract
extension? Can Melo finally shake off his little brother syndrome and
rise above Lebron? Can Ray Felton get his mojo back and make the pick
and roll work again like it did early in the season? Can J.R. Smith be
relied upon to make good decisions in crucial moments? Can Jason Kidd
turn back the clock and provide some much needed leadership and
production in the backcourt? Can Iman Shumpert play his way back into
the shape that made him a lock down defender before his ACL injury last
season? Dammit, there's too many questions in New York.
Chicago
Bulls- ????? - This is a team with probably the biggest question of
anyone going forward; how to handle the Derrick Rose return situation in
Chicago? According to the doctors Rose is ready to go, but he is still
working at developing his confidence and working on his conditioning
after reporting soreness in his hamstrings following his return to
practice. He is medically prepared to play, however, is he mentally
prepared? Can he go out there and be the player that the Bulls need him
to be? Can he do this without risking any adverse long term damage to
his knees? If in fact Rose does come back the question then becomes, why
didn't the Bulls do more at the deadline to give them a greater shot at
competing with the East's elite? If they didn't think they were ready
to compete, then why risk him coming back this season at all? My initial
thought is that if a guy is ready to play, then you let him play, and I
do think they should have done more at the break to find another wing
scorer to help Rose. That said, the cupboard isn't bare, the Bulls still
have one of the best defensive gameplans and executors in the league.
Despite the major loss of Asik, (lost to Houston in off season, would
have been huge in a contest v. the Heat) the three headed monster of
Deng, Noah and Boozer are formidable up front. So the question remains,
will the Bulls bring Rose back? If the answer is yes, then like most
answers, it leads to more questions.
That's it for
teams that I think have a legitimate shot at winning their conference
(i.e. making the finals). While the following teams might not have a
shot at the title this season, there's always next season and they'll be
using the rest of the season to evaluate an answer some of their own
questions heading forward.
Denver Nuggets - ????? - The
Nuggets are one of the leagues best secrets
going 28-6 in their last 34 game, after starting out the year 18-16 on a
difficult schedule that saw them on the road for 22 of those first 34
contests. The Thunder are 24-10 over a similar sample. With numbers like
that the Nuggets probably deserve some mention along with the teams
above, I'll concede that, but I'm just not quite convinced that they've
achieved the pedigree of the teams above. Make no mistake Denver is
good, this is most attributable to their renewed effort on the defensive
end of the court which let them down in the early part of the season,
uncharacteristic of a George Karl team. Another reason for their
improvement has been the play of Ty Lawson, who continues to be an
underrated game changer at the point guard position for the Nugs. Can
this team win without a bonafide go-to guy in crunch time? Is
Javale McGee's potential worth the time and effort it may take to help
him achieve it? Can Andre Miller play forever? After years of acquiring
'pieces', are the Nuggets ready to begin building their foundation on
the likes of Gallinari, Igoudola and Lawson? Is that enough? Is Wilson
Chandler back to the Wilson Chandler of 2010? Will he ever be?
Houston Rockets - ???? - What a leap the Rockets have
made, after treading in the backwaters of the Western Conference for
nearly 3 years now the Rockets finally had the pieces they needed to
acquire the big name free agent they've coveted for so long. Transformed into a new
team, the additions of both James Harden and Jeremy Lin have seen the
Rockets become a high powered scoring offense that looks to be in a
perpetual attack mode. Asik has lived up to his billing, protecting the
rim, clearing the glass and taking out the garbage, and Chandler Parsons
has been a revelation as a fill-in-the-blanks wing scorer and defender.
The Rockets look poised to return to the playoffs and will look to
develop their young nucleus as the season pushes on. Can Thomas Robinson
return to the form that made him a top 5 lottery pick less than 12
months ago? Can the other Rocket guards find a way to give James Harden a
little more help so he doesn't wear down so much over 4 quarters? Can
the Rockets develop or land a power forward that can either spread the
floor, or help Asik with some of the heavy lifting inside?
Boston
Celtics - ????? - That's right I'm counting out the C's. Though I will
admit the Celtics probably deserve to be in the category above more than
the Knicks based on their play of late which begs the question...why
are the Celts better without their best player? (Rondo) Was keeping the
squad of aging vets together the right idea? Is Rondo the right guy to
lead this squad? How much do Paul Pierce and KG have left? Can Paul
Pierce still put this team on his back? Can Jeff Green finally achieve
the potential that made him the key to the Kendrick Perkins deal a
couple of seasons back? The times are a changin' in Boston.
Golden
State Warriors - ????? - Where did the defense go? Will Andrew Bogut
ever be able to get himself back onto the court for prolonged stays and
will he ever be able to regain the dominance he had for that one half
season in Milwaukee where he led the league in rebounding? When is Klay
Thompson going to start improving again? The Warriors made great strides
this season and a playoff berth is all but assured, that said, they
haven't been the same team on the defensive end in the second half of
the season and that has been the reason for their dramatic slide down
the Western Conference table.
Los
Angeles Lakers - ????? - There has been loads said/written about the
Lakers so I'll try and keep it brief. After being appropriately maligned
for much of the season thus far the Lakers seem to have found their
mojo at just the right time making them a presumably scary first road
match up for whoever gets the streaking Lakers in the first round. A
Clippers/Lakers series would have made for a great first round match up,
but with the recent Kobe/ Danhtay Jones brush up this now appears
unlikely. That said, I still don't think the Lakers have things totally
figured out in the way of a title run. Here's why. Can Kobe Bryant do
everything, every night, purely by his strength of 'will'? Can the
Lakers defend in the half court? Can the Lakers limit opponents
transition opportunities? Can Dwight Howard and Kobe Bryant exist in the
high pressure high intensity stage of the playoffs? Can anyone besides
Nash or Kobe score from the perimeter for the Lakers? Will Dwight Howard
be back next season? Is it time to start to look at the future in Los
Angeles?
Brooklyn Nets - ?????? - The Nets season has
to have been mildly disappointing. Deron Williams has seen his game take
a bit of a step back, and Joe Johnson and Gerald Wallace haven't really
meshed well. Long gone is Avery Johnson and that seemed to have given
them a temporary boost but the season long malaise as continue. Not the
best team in their conference, division or city, this isn't what the mad
Russian had paid for. I hope things start getting crazy in Brooklyn.
What the hell is wrong with Deron Williams? Why did they invest so much
money in Joe Johnson and Gerald Wallace? Can any of the young talents on
this squad emerge from under the perimeter rotation of vets Wallace,
Williams and Johnson? Can Brook Lopez do this again, when everyone else
plays better? Is there any value left in Kris Humphries?
Utah Jazz - ????? - Seemingly
always steady in Salt Lake, the Utah Jazz have had another solid season
in which they've seemingly over achieved yet again. I say this because
despite having some talented players on their roster, they mainly all
play the same position. Which begs the question, why didn't the Jazz
deal either Paul Millsap or Al Jefferson before the trade deadline? With
the emergence of talented young bigs Derrick Favours and former lottery
pick Enes Kanter waiting in the wings it only seemed like the right
time for the Jazz to make a move but they stood pat. I don't think this
made any sense and until Utah answer it's questions up front, there will
continue to be questions about their backcourt which currently employs
Alec Burk along with 30something's - Mo Williams, Jamaal Tinsley and
Earl Watson, all of whom are trending downward. What gives?
Portland
Trailerblazers - ????? - Despite the arrival of soon to be rookie of
the year Damian Lillard, the season seems to have slipped away from
Portland. After an uplifting start to the season, the Trailblazers have
slipped down the table as the season has progressed. Wil Nicolas Batum
continue to develop his offensive production? Despite having solid or
above average players in their starting five, the Trailblazers suffered
from a lack of depth in 2012 with little else coming off the bench to
spell it's starters. Will the bench be back? The rest of their season
will be spent challenging those players to earn their spot in next
season's rotation as their depth was a key issue. Another question they
have to address is whether J.J. Hickson is in fact a Center? They
undoubtably need to bring in another big body to help protect the rim
and rebound, two things that despite his size and considerable skills,
Lamarcus Aldridge does not do well.
Milwaukee
Bucks - ????? - The Bucks are about as fun as any team in the league to
watch on a night to night basis, their two pronged attack led by Monta
Ellis and Brandon Jennings, Led by their aggressive guard play the Bucks
have never seen a defense they didn't think they could get into.
Despite his obvious short comings with regard to shot selection and
general court sense, Monta Ellis plays with a fearlessness and attacking
style reminiscent of Allen Iverson back in his productive Philly days.
The Bucks will be looking at how the recently acquired J.J. Redick fits
with their current back court make up; Ellis seems likely headed
elsewhere this summer? Do they bring Jennings back for the hefty price
tag he is almost sure to demand (and receive) in free agency this
summer. Can they help Ilyasova find the game that helped him become last
year's most improved runner up and also got him a big off season
payday? There's a lot of questions up in the air in Milwaukee, one thing
is for certain, the rest of this season will be exciting, see you in
the playoffs Milwaukee.
Atlanta
Hawks - ?????? - Same old, 6th place Atlanta Hawks. It seems every year
at this time the Atlanta Hawks are in the bottom half of the Eastern
Conference playoff race, Josh Smith is unhappy and the Hawks are talking
about making changes. Maybe this time around it will happen, but for
now the Hawks should be focused on continuing the development of Jeff
Teague as he has proven himself to be an above average starting point
guard so far this season. Can they find anyone on their bench who can
score for them on the wing? Josh Jenkins? DeShawn Stevenson? I'm
looking at you. With Louis Williams out, the Hawks have lacked wing
scoring for most of the year and they'll have to deal with continued
questions heading into next season, not to mention the Josh Smith
migraine that never seems to go away. Has change of scenery ever
appeared to be more of a necessity than for both Smith and the Hawks?
Dallas
Mavericks- ????????? - Perhaps the team with the most little
question marks is the Dallas Mavericks. While the big question might be
the status of Dirk Nowitzki, I think we all know that both he and the
Mavs want to see him back there next season, it just remains to be seen
what
will happen with all of the little questions in play. I'm referring to
all of the 1year contracts the Mavs handed out prior to the season as it
wanted to keep it's options open heading into this summer after
striking out last summer. The Mavs have kept things very fluid with
regard to their future and they can dump the 1 year contracts or reward
them. Do they bring back O.J. Mayo who played very well while Dirk was
out in the early part of the season. Is Collison a starting NBA point
guard? Vince Carter has shown a willingness to bring his still
exceptional scoring prowess off the bench for a discounted rate, will
that option still be available to them going forward? The Mavs need to
show Dirk something, or this could get ugly in Dallas. Perhaps Dwight?
Philadelphia Sixers - ?????? - Did anyone have a worse season than the
2012-13 Philadelphia 76'ers? After looking like a team on the rise last
year and getting into the playoffs before losing a hard fought series to
the Celts the Sixers looked like a team on the precipice of becoming a
contender, but in the world of 1 step forward 2 steps back, this
represents those two steps. The Sixers feeling was that in today's NBA
you need a super star, with that in mind the Sixers rolled the dice on a
talented, yet enigmatic and oft-injured center Andrew Bynum, whom the
received in the 3 way trade that sent their former leader Andre Igoudala
to Denver. Bynum has had more haircuts than post moves this season for
the Sixers as their worst fears came true when Bynum couldn't shake his
bandaids long enough to get into any action this season. The question
now becomes what do they do with Bynum who is up for a new contract, do
they let him walk? Or do they double down? I know what I'd do but that
will be the question that plagues Philly from here on out. It seems like
other decisions, namely the firing of coach Doug Collins, have already
been made. P.S. Mired in this clusterfuck, Jrue Holliday had a great
season and is another example of ho the point guard position is as deep
as I can ever remember.
Minnesota
Timberwolves - ?????? - The season has been an overwhelming
disappointment for T'Wolves fans, seemingly one of the West's 'teams to
watch' heading into this season. Unfortunately all of the optimism soon
gave way to disappointment as injury after injury plagued the Wolves
season. First Rubio and Love would be late arrivals, then they lost
Budinger and Kirelinko followed by Brandon Roy. With the season lost
the Wolves now look at what they have heading into next year as Budinger
and Love should be back for the final two months of the season. Will
Love be convinced to extend his stay in dreary Minnesota? Will the core
of Pekovic, Love, Rubio, Barea, Shved, Budinger and Williams mesh well
enough to enter next season with the same confidence they entered this
one? Can Williams take the leap from bench athlete to an all around
starting NBA athletic wing scorer/defender? If so, maybe that keeps Love
in town. If Love departs, it's back to the drawing board for the
Wolves.
Toronto
Raptors - ??????? - The Raptors began answering some of their
questions with the move of Jose Calderon, Ed Davis to in a 3 team deal
with Memphis and Detroit, landing Rudy
Gay in return. With their playoff hopes soundly put to bed the
focus shifts to next year as the Raps concerns become developing the
games of former 3rd overall pick Jonas Valanciunas, as well as 2012
rookie selection Terrence Ross. In addition the Raps will be evaluating
the recently formed nucleus of their squad as they move forward. Any
attempts at locking down an extension of Rudy Gay's already monsterous
contract should be considered vastly premature. Despite a great
beginning to his time in Toronto, I expect Rudy will round into the form
that made him expendable to the Grizzilies, which should remind us that
he is in fact not a franchise player but more of a third banana. The
development of Amir Johnson and Demar DeRozen is encouraging but this
team still needs to add some major talent up front after striking out
with bigs Ed Davis, Andreas Bargnani, in recent years. Can Rudy Gay be
counted on to lead this franchise? Can Valanciunas develop into an
starting level NBA big man? Can he be be an elite talent worth building
around? How much longer do they have to overpay Landry Fields?
Cleveland
Cavs - ??????? - The Cavaliers have had another season of ups and downs
as injuries have taken their toll. No doubt the Cavs are wishing they
had dealt the expiring contract of Anderson Varajao about 2 months into
the season when he was leading the league in rebounds, defending the
paint and basically peaking in potential trade value, his blood clot
dealt a serious blow to that value and we hope he returns no worse for
wear. That said, the Cavs lost a premium opportunity to send him away
and acquire some good young prospects going forward. Unlike many of the
other basement dwellers discussed above the Cavs do have a solid answer
from which to build it's foundation, Kyrie Irving is a legit star in
this league an should continue to be a game changer night in and night
for as long as he can stay healthy and remain on the court. (Missed
nearly the whole college season with an injury, missed games to due
injury last season, missed games this season. Just saying.) If the Cavs
are still pondering questions like, Is Alonzo Gee the answer? Now is the
time to figure that out, at the very least we've found out that Dion
Waiters can be a very good, the Mitch Richmond to Kyrie's Hardaway? The
Dumars to Irving's Zeke? Time will tell. Waiters has shown a great knack
for getting into the lane and tremendous body control in his ability to
finish. This is especially the case in games in which Irving has
missed, leading Waiters to step his game up. There's light at the end of
the tunnel.
Washington
Wizards - ?????? - The Wizards continue their attempt at changing the
culture in Washington, after a dismal start to the season there have
been some signs of encouragement for a Wizards team that appears high on
talent, and low on experience and awareness at first glance. The return
of John Wall has coincided with the Wizards improvement, I hardly think
this is a coincidence. I'm not sure if John Wall is a game changer on a
nightly basis yet, but he does serve to give the team a sense of
identity when they have him at the controls. A poor man's version of
Irving and Waiters, the backcourt of Beal and Wall seems to have the
talent and potential to be a force in the coming years. The Wiz thought
they had the athletic wing scorer/defender I keep talking about in the
form of Trevor Ariza (atleast they're paying him like one), it's been an
inonsistant year from Ariza but hopefully he has a strong close to the
season. His production has improved since Wall's return to the line up
so that's a positive, will this trend continue? Up front will aging vets
Emeka Okafor, Jason Collins and Nene all be seeing reduced minutes to
help with the development of forwards Kevin Seraphin and Kevin Booker?
(probably too late to ever be more than a hand off the bench). That said
there aren't really any other bigs on this roster, so it might be time
to start looking at the March Tourney for the best one available.
New Orleans Hornets/Pelicans - ????? - With questions of a new name
behind them, the soon to be Pelicans can move onto more important
matters such as, is Eric Gordon the real deal? Worth giving up Chris Paul
for? Hardly. Anthony Davis has improved as the season has gone on and
his future is certainly bright. Grevais Vasquez has filled the role of
point guard admirably but he seems destined to be a starter on a bad team or a back up on an elite
team. Looking down this roster there are countless question marks as the
squad features a nearly endless supply of castaways. They've got a few
pieces but are still in need of a true big wing scorer and defender.
There's lots of work to do if the Pelicans' future is going to be any
better than the Hornets' past.
Detroit Pistons - ??????? - Will Bynum is 30? Is Brandon Knight a point
guard? Do they go with Knight or Calderon going forward? How do we
develop Drummond so that both he and Monroe can be on the courting playing together going
forward? What do we do with Rodney Stuckey? (The Kings would probably
love to have him.) What can we parlay Corey Maggette's expiring contract into?
Needless to say this squad has it's issue but they're solid up front and
have some options in the back court, they, like everyone else in the
league, need a long athletic wing who can both create on defense and
defend in isolation on the wing. Think Corey Maggette, except 10 years
ago.
Phoenix Suns - ?????? - Now that
the Suns have acquired another set of twins in the Morris brothers
everything should be fine in Phoenix and if not at least the weather
will be. Gortat has been solid inside but he's still undersized and is
hardly an intimidating force in the paint, he could use a fellow big to
help protect the rim and clear the class. The Suns should probably just
focus on developing their young talents and look at making a run at the
best free agents available as they've got some cap room and a seemingly
desirable free agent locale, if only for the climate and training staff.
Phoenix has a history of putting a quality product on the floor and I
have a belief that they'll find a way to do this again soon.
Sacramento Kings - ?????? - The Kings are unquestionably the most poorly
put together roster league wide. They've sought out undersized shoot
first point guards (Isiah Thomas, Jimmer Fredette, Tyreke Evans, Toney
Douglas, Marcus Thornton) with a similar zeal to that of Matt Millen and
the Detroit Lions circa the early 2000's. And if they're not acquiring
small guards who like to chuck it, they're probably negotiating terms with
an undersized big who has limited range, that's their specialty. Here
are the questions they should be asking, is Tyreke Evans time up? Should
we build around Boogie Cousins? Should we bring in another veteran big
to mentor Cousins? Where can we get a long athletic swingman? Instead
they'll be dealing with questions like, how far is it to Seattle from
here?
Charlotte Bobcats - ??????? - It's nearly impossible
to address the
questions and concerns that face the leagues worst franchise for the
second consecutive season. Near the leagues basement in both points per
game scored and allowed, this team needs major help on both ends of the
court. Kidd Gilchrist has shown the athleticism to show he belongs, but
his offensive game is still years behind his defense. Not to mention he
has hit the rookie wall harder than Mike Stanton hits a ball. How do we
encourage Gilchrist to stay positive about his improvement while
everything around him seems to be crumbling? Kemba Walker has shown
an ability to score and get his, now he needs to continue to improve
his
ability to lead and make the game easier for his teammates. Can he be a
pure point? Does he need to be? Not a lot
to get excited about here, at least they'll find some help in the draft,
lord knows MJ isn't getting any free agents to Charlotte with his tight
pockets.
New Hip Hop 2.0
I've been
working on a Top 100 Hip Hop Songs on 2012 for some time now, a labour
of love we'll say. That should be out in the next couple days so this
will represent a Top 20 of just about everything from 2013 to this
point. Otherwise known as the 20 hip hop tracks I most want you to hear,
enjoy!
20. Love Me - Lil Wayne Feat. Future & Drake
19. All Gold Everything - Trinidad James Ft. T.I., Young Jeezy & 2 Chainz
18. Last Day - Joe Budden Feat. Juicy J & Lloyd Banks -
17. Dope - Tyga Feat. Rick Ross
16. The Rise of the Ghostface Killah - Ghostface Killah
15. Major Distribution - 50 Cent Feat. Young Jeezy & Snoop Dogg
14. Light Blue - Lupe Fiasco
13. Tears For ODB (Truly Yours) - J. Cole
12. Unorthadox - Joey Bada$$ -
11.One of Those Nights - Juicy J Feat. The Weeknd
10. Danny Brown - Hottest MC
09. Power Trip - J. Cole Feat. Miguel
08.5am in Toronto - Drake
07. Immortal - Kid Cudi
06. Jonylah Forever - Lupe Fiasco
05. Thrift Shop - Macklemore & Ryan Lewis
04.Cypher - Hit-Boy Feat. Kent M$ney, Audio Push, B Mac The Queen, Schoolboy Q, Casey Veggies, Xzibit, Rick Ross, Method Man, Redman, Raekwon
03. 1 Train - A$AP Rocky, Kendrick Lamar, Joey Bada$$, Yelawolf, Danny Brown, Action Bronson, Big K.R.I.T.
02. Started From the Bottom - Drake
01. Long Live A$AP - A$AP Rocky
Bonus Cuts:
"Pocket Full" (Notorious B.I.G. Tribute) - Obie Trice
"Y.O.L.O." - The Lonely Island Ft. Adam Levine & Kendrick Lamar
"No Guns Allowed" - Snoop Lion Feat. Drake & Cori B
"F.A.S.T. Ride - Yelawolf
"I Only Say It Cause It's True" Classified Feat. Raekwon and Kuniva
