October is a busy sports month. College Football and the NFL are in full swing. Baseball is drawing to a close. The NHL season is fresher than a chicory salad. And of course the Colorado hot-air ballon champioship series just kicked off -> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colorado_balloon_incident.
(By the way isn’t it amazing how quickly those wikipedia pages get made!? Furthermore who writes them?! I mean really, you don’t have anything better to do than to write a 2000 word piece about an incident that ultimately was irrelevant as soon as it became apparent that it was a hoax?! (thinking) Actually maybe I shouldn’t be the one talking given that I wrote 1400 words about the Patriots’ struggles this season. Let’s just move on before I edit Tom Brady’s wikipedia entry.)
Wait did I forget something?
That’s right the NBA season is about to start, which means that it is about time that The Average Fan delights you with his first basketball related post. Of course I wouldn’t be your sports blogger of choice if I hadn’t come up with a wrinkle to make this NBA preview more appealing and entertaining. That’s why I will break down a select group of teams and compare and contrast them. There will be 3 categories on a total of six teams who should make for a compelling 2010 NBA season.
Contender vs. Pretender
Obviously the Michael Jordan of all the categories. A one of a kind heavyweight fight.
In the “red” corner we have the defending champs, the team that owned the decade so to speak and in the “blue” corner we have a team that basically has trademarked the phrase “reload not rebuild”.
Now let’s start with the “red” team: the Los Angeles Lakers. They are on top of the world right now. They still have arguably the best player in the league (Let’s hope Lebron doesn’t read this otherwise he’ll have me assassinated just like he’ll do with Braylon Edwards. You don’t cross the King’s path. You just don’t. You should’ve known better, Braylon.) in Kobe, one of the most unselfish and niftiest forwards in the game in Gasol, a sniper in Sasha “Grease Hair” Vujacic, a Center who is ready to prove to the fans and himself that he can utilize his potential and his God-given physical abilities in Bynum, a candy-loving, all-around good guy (quite possibly the only likable player on the Lakers) and husband of Chloé Kardashian (the mere writing of those last four words made me giggle like a little school girl) in Odom who can light it up on any given night (as long as he doesn’t have a sugar low) and finally a vet who proved last season that he is still capable of stepping up to the plate when it counts in Derek Fisher. Now, that is one long and impressive list of good to great players and still … I’m not convinced. Maybe it is just that I hate the Lakers with every fiber in my body, but I simply don’t think they’ll be the kind of juggernaut they were last season.
Out of those three you choose Chloé (right)??? Really, Lamar, that's the Kardashian you want!? The NBA: "Where weird taste in women happens"
Think about it: They have lost one of their premier swing men in Trevor Ariza. An outstanding defender (he led the team in steals while only playing 24.4 minutes per game) who can single-handidly swing the momentum of a game at times and a great team player (a very underrated fact about an already underrated player).
Now if that wasn’t enough reason to worry already, if you’re a Lakers fan, than look no further than to the guy they replaced Ariza with.
That’s right, Ron Artest.
A nutcase of unfathomable proportions. One of the all time craziest lunatics in the history of not only professional basketball, not only televised sports, but probably mankind. He makes Marilyn Manson look like a square. Now combine his wackiness with the fact that he’s not the defender anymore the Lakers make him out to be and you have a recipe for disaster.
Plus who’s to say Ariza wasn’t essential for their title run last year? I guess we’ll find out the answer to this question this season.
Enough Laker talk already. Let’s take a peak over to the “blue” corner and who do we see?
The San Antonio Spurs
Now the Spurs may be a lot of things (boring for example), but they sure as hell know how to win games. They are true professionals and it all starts with the coach and their leader on the floor. (The clichè-o-meter is blinking flamboyantly right now.) That leader of course is Tim Duncan – “The Big Fundamental”. Sure he is getting old and he might not have the explosivness that used to capture the viewers attention, but he knows his strengths and was (and still is) able to adapt to his aging and the pitfalls that come with it. The best possible comparsion for the Spurs might just be the Patriots. As long as Gregg Popovich (Bill Belichick) and Tim Duncan (Tom Brady) are in place the team will be contending for championships.
"Calling all cars. Calling all cars. There was a steal at the 2009 draft. We are looking for an NBA franchise located in Texas and wearing black and white team colors."
Of course there is way more to the Spurs than just Duncan and Popovich. They have a lightning fast point guard in Parker (aka. the bastard who gets to see Eva Longoria naked on a regular basis) and a prolific scorer in Ginobili. In addition to their “big three” they have a great cast of supporting young guys, like Roger Mason Jr. (who can put the dagger in the opponent’s heart with great perimeter shooting). Now if that wasn’t enough already, they made a splash in the off-season when they traded for Richard Jefferson, somebdoy who can put up 20 points on any given night, and landed DeJuan Blair, a guy who has “beast” written all over him, in the draft (hopefully the Spurs front office didn’t forget to take the ski masks off).
Whichever way you look at it the Spurs are back. Timmi has at least one more run in him and this year could be it. All the pieces are in place and right now it sure looks like they are the team to beat, not only in the Western Conference, but in the entire Association.
The verdict:
Los Angeles Lakers = Pretender
San Antonio Spurs = Contender
Sleeper vs. Dreamer
This never-tiring (See what I did there? I chose an adjective that corresponds to the title of the category. Who says you can’t have fun with words. Hooray!) category will be duked out by the Oklahoma City Thunder and my very own Boston Celtics. Since the Celts have home field advantage on this blog we’ll start with them.
Look, I love the Celtics. I watched every moment of their magical championship run in 2008. I fended off heart attack after heart attack during last year’s first round series against a young and up-and-coming Bulls team. The point is I think I have a pretty good feel on this particular Celtics team and because of that I’m extremly worried about KG.
Let's hope Garnett "suits up" differently this season.
He was undoubtedly the emotional leader of this Celtics team, not only on the field in 2008, but even off the field last year. He is not only valuable to them because of his extraordinary (but slowly declining) skills, but also because of the attitude he brinsg to the team. He has a knack for lighting a fire under people’s butts. You saw it last year when he was fist bumping and gesturing on the bench. I believe it elevated their game. It really did, but there are red flags all over the place this year.
First of all why did they grab Shed? As an insurance for KG that’s why. Now, I know that that’s no groundbreaking news, but you have to see the implications in this particular move by the Boston front office. They themselves don’t trust Garnett’s knees and it could very well be possible that he won’t be the old KG ever again, because after all he has played a total of 1055 games. That number of games takes a grueling toll on any athlete’s body.
Now let’s look at the player who will possibly have to replace KG: Rasheed Wallace.
Shed is a controversial hothead who’s best days might be over. The Celtics went down that road last year when they signed Marbury. Didn’t really work out that well, now did it!? Why should this time be any different?
The problem is that the Celtics think they can change any player into becoming a commendable asset to the team, somebody who plays the game the “right” way. And to some degree they have been successful. Look at last year: Marbury turned from a selfish buffoon into a team player. The only problem was that now he was too afraid to take shots. He was passing up wide open jumpers left and right to the point that when he finally did take one, you had to wait for the replay to make sure you weren’t hallucinating.
Look, all I’m saying is that I don’t expect Shed to be the impact player the general public makes him out to be. Sure he’ll have the occasional “wow he really came to play today” game, but do I trust him in a game 7 against a superior opponent to put the team on his back like KG did so many times in 2008?
No.
That’s one of the main reasons why this year’s Celtics won’t be the 2008 Celtics. Everybody is two years older. Their only exciting young guy is Rondo and who knows how he will react after all the trade rumors that surrounded him this off-season. Chances are Doc Rivers will still insist on playing our alleged best defender TonyAllen during crunch time (a thought so excruciating I think I’ll have to take a painkiller for every minute he plays in a meaningful game).
But what it really comes down to is Kevin Garnett’s health (bringing us back full circle). He and Pierce are the heart and soul of this team. One alone isn’t enough.
But Celtics fans can’t complain. We won in 2008 and everything more is gravy. After all we signed up for this. We knew that the window of opportunity was only so big and another title could very well be nothing but a dream the next couple of years. Something to wish for.
Compared to the Celtics the Thunder are a sight for sore eyes. Here we have a young and exciting team and for once an NBA GM has done all the right moves. Sam Presti has created a sleeping beast that is ready to break out this season and it all starts of course with a guy who has more wingspan than a Boeing 747.
Of course I’m talking about Kevin Durant. A freakish athlet who can do just about anything with the basketball and at the same time is a great teammate. He combines deadly shooting, with superb ball handling and instinctive passing. In short, he is a joy to watch. The incredulous thing is that he has only been in the league for two years and he is already putting up vet-like stats. His stats last year include these mind-boggling numbers: FG%: .476, 3P%: .422 (!!!), 25.3 points per game. This guy is the real deal, the total package and he just turned 21 for God’s sake.
But there is more to this team than “just” Durant. Like I said Presti quickly realized that Durant is this team’s future and so he started to build around him. Rather than going for the big names, he went for guys who complemented each other on the floor and who were equipped to play their style. They are a super athletic and speedy team with guys like Jeff Green, Shaun Livingston and Russell Westbrook.
To all NBA GMs: "Take a close look at this man. He showed you how it's done. You may now go back to being atrocious at your jobs."
The only way the Thunder could be more exciting right now is if they hadn’t passed on Ricky Rubio. Can you imagine Durant catching alley-oops from Rubio. It’d be the basketball equivalent of two hot chicks kissing: sweeeeet eye candy.
Whatever way you look at it the Thunder are in a good place right now. They are gaining more momentum than twitter or facebook. (By the way you can follow me on twitter: @mrmonk1002. I’ll keep you updated on posts and new stories and I’ll even drop the occasional dime of knowledge.) They have a great fan base (my sincerest apologies to the poor people of Seattle) and, as I’ve mentioned before, a competent front office. This could very well be the year of the Thunder. Rooaaarrr.
The verdict:
Boston Celtics = Dreamer
Oklahoma City Thunder = Sleeper
On the rise vs. On the demise
The NBA is always in flow (with some exceptions of course, for example I don’t think I will see a good Bobcats team in my lifetime). It’s like watching Tonya from “The Real World/Road Rules Challenge: The Ruins”. You never know what’s going to happen next and sometimes I have the feeling some of the coaches/owners/GMs/players are smashed just like Tonya when they make their “decisions”. Teams can soar to the sky in one season and can go up in flames in the next.
So let’s look at two teams who are heading opposite ways: One has turned the no-smoking sign on and the other has dropped the oxygen masks. Your two captains on these flights are the Chicago Bulls and the Orlando Magic. Please, place your luggage in the compartment above you or beneath your seat, because the flight to Orlando could be a rough one.
Last year’s Eastern Conference champion has tried its darndest to shake things up. Here are their transactions after their embarrasing Finals appearance (It really just was an appearance, I remember that at no point during that series did I think “The Magic could maybe win this baby”. It was like going to school on a day before the holidays start: You know you’re not going to do anything anyway so you just show up. You know what Orlando!? Next time just skip school!):
June 25, 2009: Orlando acquired Vince Carter and Ryan Anderson from New Jersey in exchange for Rafer Alston, Courtney Lee and Tony Battie.
July 9, 2009: Orlando acquired a trade exception and cash considerations from the Toronto Raptors, and cash considerations from the Dallas Mavericks as part of a four-team trade. As part of a sign-and-trade deal, forward Hedo Turkoglu was traded to Toronto.
July 10, 2009: Orlando signed free agent forward Brandon Bass.
July 13, 2009: Orlando matched Dallas’ five-year offer sheet to center Marcin Gortat.
Alright, the first thing that stands out is the acquisition of Vince Carter. They rolled the dice right there. He could either be the Vince Carter from the 06-07 season who puts up 25 points per game or the Vince Carter who shots .417 form the field like he did in 2003-04. Personally, I think it will be the latter. My reasoning is simple: He is just plain old. Vince Carter was a guy who always relied on his freakish athleticism and now that he’s becoming older he can’t do the things he used to do physically. When was the last time you saw a VC highlight dunk? (counting: one Mississippi, two Mississippi, three Mississippi, alrigh times up!!!) You couldn’t think of one am I right!? A tell-tale sign for a player loosing his athletic ability and drive (something Carter has arguably never possesed anyway) are offensive rebounds. Rebounds, and offensive ones in particular, are always about who wants it more and who has the physical abilities to get it. It sounds simple, but it holds true and Carter’s offensive and defensive rebounds have declined the last three seasons (Offensive rebounds per game from 2006 to 2009: 1.4, 1.5, 0.9; Defensive rebounds per game from 2006 to 2009: 4.6, 4.5, 4.2). Convinced? Great then let’s look at the next move the Magic made.
So they trade away their third best scorer, passer and rebounder (Hedo was third in all those categories last season.) who is only 29 and replace him with a guy who is 3 years older (a sizeable age difference in NBA terms) and on the downturn of his career.
Wait what!?!?!? Did I miss something here? Does this make sense to anybody? If so then please enlighten me.
For all I know they dumped a guy who presents a unique mismatch for most teams and possesses a likewise unique combination of strenghts and abilities, namely above average shooting with above average size for a small forward.
Just a dumb, dumb move. (shaking my head vigorously)
Right when Magic fans thought it couldn’t get any worse the team signed Bass (a nice player, but ultimately won’t matter, especially not this season) and matched Dallas’ offer for Marcin Gortat.
Once again: Wait what!?!?!? The Mavs were going to do you a favor in taking on that sorry excuse for an NBA player. Seriously, the guy averaged nearly 2 fouls per game while just playing 12.6 minutes per game last season. Just to put those numbers into prespective: Rasheed Wallace only averaged one personal foul per game more last year while playing nearly 20 more minutes per game.
Anytime you can lock up a guy who is trying to break Shed’s personal fouls record you gotta do it. Even if it means paying him $ 34 million over the course of five seasons. (Shaking my head so emphatically it starts to hurt.)
Could Gortat mean "overpay" in polish?
Guarantee for 2009: Otis Smith (Orlando’s GM) will be skimming job offers in the Orlando Sentinel come June 2010.
I think you know where I’m going with this, but le’ts not kill all the excitment and wait for the verdict.
Moving on to a more enjoyable flight. Please, take your seats, because the plane to Chicago is ready for take-off.
I had the “pleasure” of taking a closer look at the Bulls when they battled my Celtics in an epic first round playoff series. Two things stood out at me:
1. They are young and they are hungry. I know it’s a cliché, but in this case it really is true. The Bulls could’ve done one of two things last year. They could’ve played the “we’re just happy to be here” card as the team that had so many young guys, some of whom had never been to the playoffs before, on it or they could’ve competed. The 2009 Chicago Bulls chose the latter and I applaud them for that (well, not litterally, because that would involve too much work and I have been on the record saying that I hate work). They didn’t just roll over like some of the other teams. (That’s right I’m talking to you, Detroit!) No, the Bulls put up a fight and they didn’t only take the Celtics to a total of 7 overtimes, which in itself is already stunning if you ask me, but they also took them to a do-or-die game 7. Now, granted the Celtics were banged up (just scroll further up), but they still were the defending champs.
2. Derrick Rose is amazing. Period. He is unbelievable. I don’t think right now we can fathom what this guys ceiling is. He is like the perfect blend between Chris Paul and Deron Williams. He possess Paul-esque quickness, speed and explosivness while presenting a mismatch to other point guards because of his Williams-like frame and body. He is athletic and has excellent ball handling and most important of all he wants IT. You can see that Jordan mentality in his eyes and in his game. He has the rare ability to take over games, demostrated by that sensational 36-point-performance in Game 1 and the near triple-double (23-11-9) in Game 3. Nonetheless he is a team player and tries to make his teammates around him better. He’s the total package if you ask me and like all players he’ll only get better with each season.
Look for Rose to step it up even more this year.
All in all the Chicago Bulls have a exciting and fun team with all the pieces in place to go on a great run this year. They have a streaky shooter who can decide games if he is hot at the right time in Salmons. They have a great energy guy in Joakim Noah. (I don’t really know why but I hate Noah’s guts and I think I’m not the onyl one. Some people just aren’t meant to be like.) They have a great athlete in Deng and the luxury of having Kirk Hinrich as a backup point guard or using him as a shooting guard.
Simply a team with a lot of upside.
The verdict:
Orlando Magic = On the demise
Chicago Bulls = On the rise
This final verdict wraps up the first ever edition of The Fan’s Perspective NBA preview. Let’s enjoy the tail end of this busiest of all sports months and hope for a bodacious new NBA season as the books on 2009 have been all written and closed shut and the first chapter of the 2010 NBA season is about to receive the first drip of ink.
(Splat!)
(Splat!)
(Splat!)