Basketball Articles
Where could Amar'e Stoudemire Land if Traded?
Rumors of his departure had apparently calmed down since Chris Paul was traded to the Clippers but, recently, some Amar'e Stoudemire trade rumors have resurfaced.
Although I would disagree with such a move by the Knicks - especially considering the fact that he was the man who turned the ship around last year - it's important to address a trade as a real possibility. These are the New York Knicks, after-all.
Making use of ESPN's Trade Machine and a handful of rumours, I've tried to outline exactly how these deals may or may not go down, showing who would come back to New York and who (if anybody) would leave with Amar'e.
Without further ado, let's take a look at the possibilities... no comments
Memo To Dwight Howard: Just Shut Up And Focus On Basketball. Please.
Incase you hadn’t heard, Dwight Howard is apparently ready to take his talents to Chicago. Or something. On Sunday, when asked about Chicago Bulls superstar Derrick Rose, Howard told the Chicago Tribune:
"If I could play with Derrick right now and God wanted that to happen, it will happen," Howard said. "It has nothing to do with me not wanting to play with Derrick Rose. I love him. That's my brother."
Now, taken in a vacuum, those comments aren’t all that bad. Howard didn’t intimate that he was desperate to play in Chicago, or even necessarily wanted to, per se. All he said was that if the opportunity presented itself, he’d love to play with Derrick Rose. Honestly, who wouldn’t?
Of course with Dwight Howard, the problem is that you can’t his comments in a vacuum, but instead have to line them up into context with everything else he’s said over the previous few months. And for those you who haven’t been paying attention, what’s he’s basically said are the following: That he’d love to play with the Celtics. Or the Lakers. Maybe even the Mavericks or Nets. Possibly even the Clippers or Knicks.
This would all be well and good of course, except, well, Howard plays for the Orlando Magic, and there’s a pretty good chance that he’ll continue to do so for another five months. And as long as he does, he seems set on continuing to make obnoxious comments like he did Sunday, and continue to fuel the most annoying story, that-isn’t-really-a-story in sports. That topic? Where will Dwight Howard end up at the end of this season? no comments
Dwight Howard's Failure Of Leadership
The Boston Celtics train was running right through the Magic defense. Orlando needed a stop to stem the tide and keep it close enough even to have a tight game at the end. The 27-point lead was gone. That didn't matter. It was truly gut check time. The Magic still had a chance to win and make everything else irrelevant. Wins have a way of doing that.
Paul Pierce, he of the comparing the Magic to poodles after the Magic lost in the 2009 Finals after disposing of his Celtics in seven games in the second round of the Playoffs, was barking and cajoling on as a player with confidence and swagger does.
He dribbled right into the jaws of the Magic defense, getting by Hedo Turkoglu to the rim. That is usually Dwight Howard's domain. The area where players don't come near for fear of having their shot sent back embarrassingly into their face or changed so drastically that the shot misses entirely. Pierce is a veteran though. He knows how to finish these shots. He pulled up a bit short and lofted a floater toward the rim.
Who knows if it would have actually gone in and given the Celtics a four-point lead, almost putting the game out of reach considering how poor the Magic's offense played. Dwight Howard never let fate answer that question. no comments
2011/12 NBA Awards: First Quarter Mark
It just seems like yesterday that we all were enjoying the NBA lockout and all of the sudden - poof - we are already a quarter of the way through the NBA season. To mark the occasion, The Hoops Manifesto has gathered together the best basketball minds at Bloguin to vote on the early season leaders for MVP, Rookie of the Year and All-NBA honors. The envelopes, please.
Voting Panel: Jeff Fox from The Hoops Manifesto, Lives from Knicks Fanatics, College Wolf and Bonk from TWolves Blog, Andre from The Fantasy Dudes, Mookie Schiralli from A Stern Warning, Philip Rossman-Reich from Orlando Magic Daily, Don from With Malice, Sean François from Hoops Head North, Keith Petrower from Sons of Roto, and Ezra Poe from The Purple and Gold Blog.
MVP:
LeBron James - Miami (7 votes out of 11)
28.1 ppg, 8.1 rpg, 7.1 apg, 2.1 spg
Bash him all you want, but you can't deny that LeBron James is bringing it this year for Miami. Despite (because of?) Dwyane Wade's extended absence this year, James has the Heat up there in the standings with the elite.
Others receiving votes: Kobe Bryant, Derrick Rose, Kevin Durant
Rookie of the Year:
Ricky Rubio - Minnesota (7 votes out of 11)
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Wizards Oust Flip
It took 15 losses, an 0-7 road record and the 9th loss by double digits for fate to finally catch up to Flip Saunders.
Briefly into his third season as head coach of the Washington Wizards, Flip has been canned. The firing ends a dismal career in DC for Flip, where he won only 51 out of 181 games, including the lowly two wins tallied so far this season.
The ousting of Flip came in the midst of what has been a roller coaster of a season for coaches and players together.
Things got off to a shaky start from the very get go. After blowing a 20-point first half lead and eventually losing to the New Jersey Nets on opening night, Flip’s play calling was questioned by none other than his own Captain, Mr. Andray Blatche himself.
The melodrama created by the underachieving small forward set the tone for what has been an extremely morbid start to the season. The Wizards have been infested with a rash of various issues that have plagued them to a 2-15 start.
Play calling, player rotation, virtually any sense of offensive or defensive direction has been very minimally seen, if at all.
Besides the insurmountable shortcomings on the floor – shot selection, rebounding, pick and roll defense, movement without the ball – what keyed the decision to can Flip was the lack of certain intangibles, such as will, effort and energy. More often than not the Wizards simply did not seem like they had any desire to be on the floor, and last night’s game in Philly exemplified all of that.
Wizards Extreme wishes the best of luck to Flip Saunders, a well-rounded individual and an extremely talented basketball coach.
What Does Dwight REALLY Want? Part 6a: Dwight's Doomsday Scenario
January 25 is the first real deadline in theDwight Howard saga. Wednesday, as I noted in a previous post about both Dwight Howardand Ryan Anderson, is the deadline for players to sign extensions. This has been specifically noted for players ending their rookie contracts like Russell Westbrook (who signed his extension), Kevin Love (who is expected to sign his extension soon) and the Magic's own Ryan Anderson.
This is also the final date for Howard to sign an extension or for the team that acquires him to sign him to an extension. In other words Wednesday is the final date for one of those fancy extend-and-trades. Whichever team has Howard after Wednesday holds his Bird Rights for his free agency... at least in 2012.
This is a critical point that has to be remembered in the whole Dwight Howardscenario. The team that holds his Bird Rights has the ability to give Howard a fifth year in his new contract with the extra year of salary that comes with it and a higher percent increase in salary each year. That amounts to approximately an extra $30 million Howard can make by re-signing with whatever team holds his Bird Rights.
Howard will tell you money has nothing to do with his decision. His main focus is to win and to play for a team that will compete for a title year-in and year-out. That is something, we can tell him from experience is no guarantee looking into the future. Just take a look at the 2011 team and its start to the season. no comments
25 Players Whose NFL Draft Stock Soared After Insane Bowl Performances
If you had never heard of Terrance Ganaway before the Valero Alamo Bowl, I'll bet you do now.
That's of course if you stayed up late into the night to watch him.
A great bowl performance can make any player gain more name recognition. But can it help a player improve his draft stock?
Well, an impressive game certainly can't hurt.
Here are 25 players who definitely improved their standing going into the draft.
Justin Blackmon, Oklahoma State
It's not like Justin Blackmon needed a big game, as he's a sure-fire first-rounder and more than likely the top wide receiver.
But if a GM or coach didn't believe Blackmon can be a game changer, then his performance in the Fiesta Bowl sent a clear message of what he can bring to a team.
When Oklahoma State needed someone to make a play after falling behind Stanford 14-0, Blackmon tried to fire his teammates up on the sideline.
Then, he went back onto the field and caught a short pass and raced 43 yards for a touchdown. On the very next possession, he caught another Brandon Weeden pass and cruised past the Cardinal defenders for a 67-yard score.
Just like that, the game was tied at 14.
He added another 17-yard touchdown to complete the trifecta. He also had 186 receiving yards. no comments
Why Kevin Love should win MVP, but won't
Charles Barkley recently called Kevin Love on InsideTheNBA, “the best power forward in the world.” That is large praise from a large man, although less large since he joined WeightWatchers. It is possible to take it a step further: Kevin Love should win Most Valuable Player this year, but he won't.
Love worked on his body this summer, and it shows. He looks strong and healthy this year, and can use his body in the paint more effectively than ever after playing volleyball all summer. He looks bouncy, tan, and dangerous; he has probably never been in better physical shape in his life. He reportedly lost 25 pounds, and it will serve him well in this lockout shortened year; he has not looked winded in any game this year and somehow he is averaging 39.9 minutes a game(#1 in the league). That is more minutes than at any point of his career and it will serve him well statistically.
Love also wins MVP points for fan accessibility. He recently offered to pay for any Wolves fan's ticket to the Detroit game if they bought a ticket to the Kings game. Granted this is a much more sentimental argument than a fact-based won, but it doesn't hurt to point out that Love is doing every single thing that he can do to win basketball games. He'll rebound, score down low, shoot the 3, buy your ticket to the Detroit game, sweep the floor, and all the while he'll be smiling at Ricky Rubio: his new favorite player. no comments
Heat Sheet: LeBron Outduels Kobe, Lakers
Playing a quality opponent for the second straight time without Dwyane Wade, LeBron James and the rest of the Miami Heat rose to the challenge. Miami cruised to a 98-87 win over the Los Angeles Lakers in a game that makes the Heat’s recent three-game losing streak seem like distant history, improving to 10-4 on the season.
The Positives: James played well despite suffering from flu-like symptoms Thursday night. He finished with an efficient 31 points on 12-of-27 shooting from the field, eight rebounds, eight assists and four steals. The two-time MVP also had one of his signature chase-down blocks on Matt Barnes and later humiliated the 7-foot Andrew Bynum, rejecting a dunk attempt.
Although many billed this game as a LeBron vs. Kobe duel, the two seldom guarded each other. Shane Battier defended Bryant remarkably well, challenging him into tough shots. Bryant caught fire in a futile attempt to bring the Lakers all the way back from a 23-point deficit, but still shot just 8-of-21 from the field. Battier also made three 3s on offense. Chris Bosh had 15 points and eight boards, Mario Chalmers finished with 10 points and six assists and Udonis Haslem had eight points and eight boards. Mike Miller was much quieter in his second game of the season, but did play actively and make a 3-pointer.
Eddy Curry played in his first NBA game since December 2009 and showed that he could score in the post. He made a nice layup in the first quarter, scored a tip-in dunk and earned a trip to the foul line. With Dexter Pittman ill for now, it will be interesting to see if Curry can become Joel Anthony’s backup.
The Negatives: Curry was slow on defense, leaving power forwards open when Bosh or Haslem had to play pick-and-roll defense. Troy Murphy was 4-for-4 tonight thanks to pick-and-pops. In contrast, Anthony is quick enough to cover the open man. Bynum recorded 15 points and 12 rebounds, and Pau Gasol had 26 points and eight boards. The Heat did mostly defend Bynum with Anthony and Bosh, so perhaps Miami should feel good that the center didn’t score more points.
As alluded to earlier, the Lakers did get the lead down to 10, but the Heat never let it dip into single-digits. Bryant sometimes just makes those low-efficiency 3s.
The Bottom Line: The Heat looked surer of themselves Thursday night than they did when they blew leads to the Golden State Warriors and Los Angeles Clippers. This team now has some momentum, and will host the Philadelphia 76ers Saturday night at 7:30.
Westbrook signs extension, Thunder continue to become Spurs 2.0
Russell Westbrook's time has been mostly good, but there continue to be questions on whether he and Kevin Durant can co-exist. The Oklahoma City Thunder apparently don't care about those whispers. They've continued to build their team like the San Antonio Spurs did once upon a time by extending Russell Westbrook for the next five years.
Adrian Wojnarowski with Yahoo! Sports reported early Thursday afternoon that Westbrook had signed a five year, $80 million extension with Oklahoma City. The Thunder point guard is currently averaging 20 points, five assists and five rebounds a game. Those are great numbers across the board for any player not named LeBron James, but the assist totals are actually down from last two seasons where he averaged eight assists a game. History shows there's a decent chance those assist totals go up.
Aside from trading Westbrook, this was the only option for OKC and most likely the right one. At 23 years old, Westbrook has already been the second best player on a Western Conference finalist. The Thunder has the league's second best record, so why shake things up. Getting this extension done early ends any uncertainty about his future (for the next few years anyways) and I'm willing to bet will lead to better play.
What the GM Sam Presti has done in Oklahoma City is very impressive. He's definitely followed the Spurs mold of building your team through the draft (though OKC had much higher picks than San Antonio) and hitting on international talent (see: Ibaka, Serge). I still don't think Scott Brooks is the coach that gets them to the promised land, but if Durant, Westbrook and the growth of James Harden (his game, not his beard) have made the Thunder the scariest team in the Western Conference.
