Official NBA thread

[See Red]

Praise the lord!

 

Considering how badly my sports world fell apart for a little while there, it's coming back together quite nicely! But still, just Steve Blake? I wouldn't do Earl Boykins alone for Steve Blake, let alone Earl Boykins and then some. Then again, it's not like Julius Hodge plays. Eh, I'm just glad Bad Earl's gone!

[YanksHater213]

Great deal for Denver. They get a true point man who's a good ball distributor, and has great vision on the court. They also got some cap relief which was the biggest thing they got. Steve Blake is going to have a bigger impact than most of you think.

[Manny Goes Boom]

Great deal for Denver. They get a true point man who's a good ball distributor' date=' and has great vision on the court. They also got some cap relief which was the biggest thing they got. Steve Blake is going to have a bigger impact than most of you think.[/quote']

 

I agree. I see this as a good deal for both. Steve Blake isn't a guy you jump up and down over but he's decent. And For Milwaukee they get (according to the article) a starting PG for the time being and a nice scorer in Boykins. And I always liked Hodge, only thing he did wrong was play the same position as Carmelo Anthony.

[Mr Crunchy]

can steve blake carry water to ai and camby??

that will be his biggest contribution if he can

 

this is more of a chemistry move and a move of finance

than a move to make them better on the floor

 

i like denver down the stretch if melo comes back hard

[See Red]

can steve blake carry water to ai and camby??

that will be his biggest contribution if he can

 

this is more of a chemistry move and a move of finance

than a move to make them better on the floor

 

i like denver down the stretch if melo comes back hard

 

I don't know that we can beat Dallas or San Antonio in a series. I think we can beat Phoenix just because of how we've played them in the past few years without AI, but I certainly wouldn't put money on it. People forget about JR Smith, too. He was a great pickup for giving up absolutely nothing and he's the type of player that needs space to work... imagine how much space he'll have with AI and Melo taking all the attention. People talk about the 'Melo/AI dynamic in terms of how they should be able to feed off of one another and the looks they'll be getting defensively because of one another, but I really look forward to how JR Smith responds. He's been awesome this year with bad shot selection... imagine him getting more and more open looks.

 

Anybody who's kept up with this thread should know that I'm just happy to see Earl Boykins gone.

[See Red]

'Melo comes back tomorrow! And that Steve Blake pickup has been great. He's a damn good player. I wouldn't be suprised to see him starting and JR Smith coming off of the bench and getting a lot of minutes.

[YanksHater213]

^^Said thats what should and would happen from the start.

[Moose]

One-year anniversary of 81 points.

 

Kobe has a chance to repeat tonight against the worst defensive team.

[jacksonianmarch]

The NBA is a bad league. College BBall is where its at.

[Manny Goes Boom]

The NBA is a bad league. College BBall is where its at.

 

Alot of people feel that way. I guess I'm in the minority where I like the NBA better. I guess it's because it's the first brand of basketball I was introduced to. I was never grew up following or caring about college basketball. Don't get me wrong, I like it alot. But for me, I like the pros better.

[See Red]

http://espn-ak.starwave.com/photo/2007/0122/nba_g_iverson_melo_412.jpg

 

This image will never get old.

[Mr Crunchy]

http://espn-ak.starwave.com/photo/2007/0122/nba_g_iverson_melo_412.jpg

 

This image will never get old.

 

neither will the money made by the guy who convinced all these nba players that the ink looks good on them

they look like members of a circus in namibia and there are millions of american kids looking at them as if they were cool

 

look for stock in the laser surgery fields

the people who remove tatooes are destined to be very rich once these geniouses understand how foolish they look once they turn 35

 

anyways

ive seen these phoenix like teams come and go

the old denver team immediatley comes to mind with kiki and alex english and going waaaaaay back to david thompson and issell

they could lite it up big time

they were fun but never could win it all

 

with camby on the boards they have a great rebounder

with ai they got a stud scoring weapon to compliment melo who does it all

they just may but they need to develop some offensive consistancy

f*** dallas and that cock smoker of an owner

san antone looks like theyre aging,home court will matter i feel

duncan has played late into the season 10 years running

its gotta catch him sooner or later

[See Red]

I think Melo's 15 game suspension actually helped. We saw a lot of guys step up and see what they can do in his absence. Also, AI doesn't play the greatest defense in the world but what he does do is contagious. Getting on the ground, going all out for every ball he can get to. Since he came aboard it seems like the whole team is doing it... even JR Smith who used to not even pretend to play defense.

 

Another thing about JR Smith's defense is that for the duration of his suspension, I read that he and Melo were in LA with a Nuggets trainer playing 1 on 1 every day. So having to defend a guy like 'Melo one on one for almost a full month has to help some with your defense.

 

You can tell from the game last night that the team certainly hasn't gelled yet. But you can also tell that when they do... they're going to be dangerous.

[redsoxrules]

denver could be dangerous but as it stands right now i cant see anyone beating the suns or mavs

[See Red]

denver could be dangerous but as it stands right now i cant see anyone beating the suns or mavs

 

I'm not as scared of the Suns as I am of the Mavs. We've always played the Suns close. They play as little defense as we do, so there's really no way they can stop AI and Melo. Our chances of beating them are a lot better than our chances against the Mavs. Dallas plays defense, these days.

[Moose]

Hey YanksHater, say hi to Courtney for me next time you go to a Celtic game.

 

http://www.nba.com/media/asdance07_bosb.jpg

 

I think she also made the "All-Star Dance Team."

[Moose]

Sweet 16.

 

The Suns may never lose again.

[ARod2212]

Jamal Crawford went off tonight for 52 and left with 7 minutes left in the third when the Knicks were up by 20. Nice to get some revenge against Miami, especially without Curry manning the middle.

[YanksHater213]

Hey YanksHater, say hi to Courtney for me next time you go to a Celtic game.

 

http://www.nba.com/media/asdance07_bosb.jpg

 

I think she also made the "All-Star Dance Team."

 

haha ill holla at her tomorrow night then

[redsoxrules]

Sweet 16.

 

The Suns may never lose again.

 

yeah they will, the next time they play the mavs

[Manny Goes Boom]

yeah they will' date=' the next time they play the mavs [/quote']

 

lol. We'll see. It's always a good one when they lock horns. I expect nothing less than another epic series this April between the Suns and the Mavs.

[See Red]

Nuggets need to play some defense. Losers of four straight. 'Melo and AI look good playing with one another but you can see that the chemistry still needs to develop.

 

As for the Celtics... keep losing. Kevin Durant would look good in a Celtics uniform. As would Oden, but I think Durant's the better player. He was ridiculous against Texas Tech tonight... 37 points 23 rebounds. It is absolutely not fair for a guy to shoot 5 of 9 from three and get 23 rebounds. Not fair at all.

[YanksHater213]

Durant may be the better college player right now, but Oden will be the better NBA player. You don't pass on a once in a decade center to get a wing player, which you can find plenty of solid ones in the NBA.

[BoSox34]

Wow, I was at the game last night. It's pathetic that there was an MVP chant for A LAKER in Boston in the 4th quarter...just sad.

[See Red]

Durant may be the better college player right now' date=' but Oden will be the better NBA player. You don't pass on a once in a decade center to get a wing player, which you can find plenty of solid ones in the NBA.[/quote']

 

True, but how much of what Oden did in High School and partly now was/is because he already had the body of an NBA center? I don't know, I like how Kevin Durant plays. 23 rebounds and then demands the ball at the other end.

[Beckett95]

Id take either Oden or Durant. I like Durant as a better all around player, but Oden is one of those centers that only come around every 10 years or so. Durant is absolutely nasty tho. He's like a combination of KG and T-Mac.

[YanksHater213]

You will obviously say you would take Durant if you're just a casual basketball fan that maybe watches a game here and there and looks at stats. Throw stats out the window, Durant is obviously the best player on that team, and commands how they play. Oden is on a team that is a National Championship contender with a lot of good pieces including a great point man in Conley Jr. and a great wing player/PF combo in Cook and Harris.

 

You'll look at the stats and Durants will wow you. What you don't see in the box score is the impact they have on the game. Oden's impact on the game is so much bigger than Durants. Durant is flashy and gets the stats, Oden still puts up great stats, but has a bigger and more important affect on the game. He puts fear in guys driving to the hoop. Just last night he had two beastly blocks, and Purdue wasn't driving often in fear of Oden. Teams don't have that fear of Durant. Sure ,they'll double Durant; they double Oden too.

 

Durant will put up better NBA statistics, but Oden will be an even better player. It's like David Robinson for example: one of the best centers of all time. In this era where wing players dominate, his accomplishments are diminished because he never put up the "ESPN Top 10" dunks or moves, and didn't score 30 PPG.

 

I love how Durant plays, and he will be a star too, but you CAN'T pass on a center that only comes around every so often like Oden.

 

Name me the last team who won a championship without a dominant big man. The Bulls in '98? Even then, those teams were completely different since they had Jordan. Without any Jordan teams, because having MJ would transcend having any great big man, and it's the 1990 Pistons. Shaq, Duncan, Olajuwon, etc, without them the Lakers, Spurs, Rockets, Heat, never win championships.

 

Lets just look at this more in depth:

2006 Finals: Miami Heat (Shaq) def. Dallas Mavericks (Dirk) 4-2.

2005 Finals: San Antonio Spurs (Duncan) def. Detroit Pistons (Sheed/Wallace) 4-3.

2004 Finals: Detroit Pistons (Sheed/Wallace) def. Los Angeles Lakers (Shaq) 4-1.

2003 Finals: San Antonio Spurs (Duncan) def. New Jersey Nets (can you consider K-Mart here? 17/8 that year) 4-2.

2002 Finals: Los Angeles Lakers (Shaq) def. New Jersey Nets (no big man, swept. coincidence?) 4-0.

2001 Finals: Los Angeles Lakers (Shaq) def. Philadelphia 76ers (Motumbo/Ratliff had very very good years) 4-1.

2000 Finals: Los Angeles Lakers (Shaq) def. Indiana Pacers (Dale Davis??? haha averaged a double double) 4-2.

1999 Finals: San Antonio Spurs (Duncan) def. New York Knicks (Ewing) 4-1.

 

The list goes on... Bulls with Rodman, Jazz with Malone, Sonics with Kemp, Rockets with Olajuwon, Magic with Shaq, Suns with Barkely.

 

YOU DO NOT PASS ON A CENTER LIKE ODEN FOR A WING PLAYER LIKE DURANT.

[Manny Goes Boom]

You think that highly of Oden? I haven't watched him play much at all so I don't really know much about him. I know he is a big presence, but didn't know people thought that highly of him.

[See Red]

Come on, Yankshater, that hardly makes it a fact.

 

All of those teams had more than just a great big man. San Antonio had two early on... the rest had great guards too. Shaq had Kobe, D-Wade, and earlier on Penny Hardaway. All you managed to do was prove that you need more than a great big man to win.

 

Show me the last team without a great player at the 1, 2, or 3 spot.

 

K-Mart was on that 2002 Nets team, too, but let's not kid ourselves, the Nets were great because of Jason Kidd. The Pacers got there because of Reggie Miller. Pistons don't win without Chauncey and Rip. Spurs have Manu and Tony Parker... plus, there center was both Rasho Nasterovic and Nazr Mohammed at different times. Sixers were a lottery team without Iverson. Dirk, despite being 7', plays more like Durant. Karl Malone was complimented by one of the best guards to ever play the game. The Lakers destroyed teams because they had two of the 50 greatest players to play the game.

 

Popular opinion is that Durant hasn't even come near his potential. And he will, over time, fill out and will be able to beat you inside or out.

[YanksHater213]

You can argue the Philly, Detroit, and Pacers teams were guard oriented, but not many more. The Mavs are built around Dirk. The Spurs are built around Duncan, the Jazz were built around the combo. The Lakers were built around Shaq, not Kobe. The list goes on.

 

Yes, that is true. Your team does need good guards, you need a complete team. But tell me right now, how many teams in the NBA do you know that have dominant centers? 1, 2? Those teams ALREADY have the advantage over any other team. Point guards and wing players are so much easier to replace, and even get than dominant big men.

 

Finding complimentary pieces to a dominating center is ten times easier than finding complimentary pieces for a wing player.

 

Trust me, when your team gets deep into the playoffs, the Center position will be exploited if you don't have a top notch one, especially in the Western Conference.

 

2006: Suns lost out to Mavs, Pistons lost out to Heat

2005: Suns lost out to Spurs.

 

Just in the last two years, 3 of the four teams who lost in the conference finals lost because the other team dominated them with big men. Its a simple concept, especially since you can find talented wing players on the free agent market every year.