Nenad Krstic out for the year - Mikki Moore now becomes a worthy pickup. He'll not be an all-star, but he may approach a double-double territory. The Net's other options are Collins and the ancient Uncle Cliffy and a rookie, Josh Boone.
Rashard Lewis out for two months - Mickael Gelabale, who is averaging 10 points a game in his last five, is a long-armed, active and athletic rookie from France who is going to benefit from this opportunity. Everyone knows about Damien Wilkins. Consider taking the chance in deeper leagues on this guy. He makes his shots within the flow of the offense. Warning - this guy is not going to get a lot of assists. He is points and rebounds and may add a few steals and blocks once he starts to get burn.
The Portland situation - Now that Brandon Roy is back, he'll be getting major minutes. Nate is too smart to bench Jarrett Jack or Zach and Travis Outlaw is becoming a real force. So who suffers? One, Martell Webster is going to lose his starting spot to Roy and a lot of his minutes. Two, Ime Udoka is likely going to lose time as a result of the scramble for minutes among the mid-sized players. Conclusion? If you own either Webster or Udoka, you will watch their production like a hawk and look for a swap-out for another FA when you figure out which of them is getting the shaft, if not both. This will cut into the burn of other Portland guards, but other than Juan Dixon in a deep league you don't own any of them anyway, right?
Denver - Fascinating situation! AI and Boykins looked like they had played together for years in their first game together. The problem is, two midget guards is a great problem defensively. The other problem? Boykins is the only real point on the roster. Iverson is more of a shooting guard, really. I am sure that 'Melo and AI will do well together and I am sure that Camby will go back to the same level of production once he returns. The issue is, how much value does J R Smith lose and how much can Boykins play?
The Answer is that Iverson is going to be pumped up by this opportunity and help make Denver a handful even with the diminuitive Boykins running at the point. I think George Karl can live with a Boykins when he has an eraser like Camby at the basket. I think that Smith will get opportunities as well. There will be times when Karl plays the three of them together. So don't drop either of these players.
Possibly Denver will look for a trade to obtain a taller point guard, ala an Earl Watson. I hope not, because I think that the Boykins-Smith-Iverson triumverate works in an uptempo environment.
Bigs like Evans and Najera will, in the long run, lose a bit of playing time. Nene will get the minutes that Camby is on the bench and Kleiza will get some time that Evans or Najera will lose because he fits better in the frantic post-Iverson offense that Karl will want to run. Look to drop Evans or Najera if you have them for another FA forward if possible, because after Denver gets to full strength they are likely to become a bit less productive.
Philadelphia - Willie Green is fool's gold, IMHO. I think he will hurt your shooting percentage too much to gleefully grab off of the FA pile. I think Iggy and Sam and Korver will uptick for their owners, while it looks like something is up with CWebb. Will he get moved? It is very possible. The situation with people like Rodney Carney depends largely on what happens with Webber and it is too early to call right now.
Boston - Does this team have even one point guard worth discussing? Yech! Portland was so smart to dump Telfair on this team. Both Gerald Green and Tony Allen are worth owning in most leagues while Paul Pierce is injured and out. Perkins coming back puts Kandi's butt back on the bench but if Doc Rivers has a brain Al Jefferson will keep getting minutes. Ryan Gomes will keep getting time as well. When Wally gets back, get ready to drop either Green or Allen, depending on what Doc does. Be cautious about Perkins, who may be a force but is still raw and foul-prone and the owner of bad percentages.
The Celtics are hard to figure because Doc's mind is hard to read. What does he really want out of this team and what pace does he want to maintain? IMHO, Sea Bass should grab a seat and be a change-of-pace reserve and Delonte should start at the point. Jefferson, Gomes and Perkins would be the front line starters along with Pierce. Wally would be my sixth man, getting more minutes than Perkins during the course of the game, and Allen and Green would be my 7-8 men. Telfair and Rondo would compete for the backup point minutes and Scalabrine might get 5-6 minutes a game but I might lean more towards Powe. I would point a shotgun at Kandi if he tried to get off of the bench.
Saturday, December 23, 2006
Monday, December 18, 2006
David Stern - Chump, Coward, or Idiot? Pick one...
You have got to be kidding me...
Stern Aware, but did not act - "I just read this on ESPN.com:
There was speculation Thomas would be penalized for his comments to Anthony. Stern acknowledged hearing about it, but said he relied only on "definitive information" when handing out punishments."
What's with Stern letting the Knicks off easy? What more "definitive information" does he need than to see Isiah Thomas warn the Nuggets: "I wouldn't go near the basket... wouldn't be a good idea"? What is he waiting for that's more clear than a visible threat 91 seconds before that threat was carried out? Is Stern really that anti-player that he's not going to take out the kingpin who ordered the hard foul in the first place?
Of course, Thomas and the Knicks claim that "I wouldn't go near the basket" simply meant that Zeke would have shown some class if he were playing. But then why wouldn't it be a good idea, which is what he followed it up with? Was he concerned that the gods of good sportsmanship would race down and smite the Nuggets for their poor display? Of course not. This is simply more spin on the Knicks' part.
More Damning Evidence
Something I didn't mention in last night's initial post about the threat was that Thomas had Mardy Collins on the court again in a blowout, just one night after committing a late-game flagrant. If Zeke really didn't want Collins to become a hit-goon, then a) why did he not correct Collins' behavior or at least b) why did he put Collins in the same exact situation 24 hours later? If Thomas didn't explicitly instruct Collins and the Knicks to flagrantly foul any Nuggets player going to the paint (though it looks like he probably did), at least his instructions were implicit by not solving the situation that arose 24 hours earlier. And how come it took Mardy Collins less than 45 seconds after entering the game for the first time to commit the hard foul? Also, don't forget that just a few weeks ago, Thomas clearly yelled to his players to "break [Bruce Bowen's] feet. Sounds like a hit-goon to me. Boo.
Also, it appears that Zeke's excuse that the Nuggets had their starters on the floor doesn't seem very solid either. At the 2:01 mark, before Collins was put in the game, the Knicks had Stephon Marbury (starter, 33 minutes per game), Jared Jeffries (starter, 28 mpg), Channing Frye (starter, 23 mpg), David Lee (former starter, 27 mpg), and Nate Robinson (key role player, 20 mpg) on the court. That's not exactly emptying your bench, Zeke. So it doesn't seem as bad when the Nuggets had four starters on the court when the Knicks had three and two key role players.
Edit: Adding up the minutes per game of the players who were on the court at the 2:01 mark, the Knicks had a total of 132 mpg on the court, compared to the Nuggets' total of 156 mpg. When you consider that the Knicks have a significantly deeper bench, and therefore everyone sees less minutes, it looks even more like both teams were still competing.
Furthermore, are the Knicks going to do anything about hot-headed Nate Robinson? They've stood by for the last year as he's willing to attack just about anyone. Of course, Robinson will claim - and the Knicks will back him - that he was simply defending a teammate. Unfortunately, that doesn't fly as an explanation. If he was so gung-ho about defending his teammates, why has he physically attacked two of them in the past year - Malik Rose and Jerome James? The "team unity" explanation pales in comparison to the "tough guy looking for a fight" explanation. If the Knicks cared about Robinson as a person, then there will be an extended suspension until he seeks out professional to help him overcome his anger issues.
The further I step away from this incident and take the long view, it appears the Knicks as an organization hold more and more responsibility - especially Isiah Thomas, who's running the circus. If David Stern won't hold him accountable, and Jim Dolan won't hold him accountable, is he invincible? I mean, the players are taking their punishment. What's so special about Isiah Thomas?
So, is Stern a chump? Does Zeke Thomas have him buffaloed somehow, or perhaps Knicks owner Dolan?
Is Stern a coward? Is he afraid to take on Isiah Thomas?
Is David Stern an idiot? Has he no idea what precedent he has set?
Witnesses on the scene, with verification from the MSG Network clip, attested that Thomas warned Carmelo Anthony about repercussions should he go to the hole. Mardy Collins had, just about 24 hours earlier, committed a flagrant foul against a Pacer late in a game the Pacers were winning easily and here was Collins, late of thug-factory Temple, in the game again...is there any doubt what took place? Thomas wanted to hurt a Nugget player and his bonus was seeing the top two Nuggets scorers get suspended. In the ultra-competitive West this could cost the Nuggets a playoff berth.
Now coaches know how to get a competitive advantage. Find a player on your roster with inferior talent and scruples and sic him on a rival's top player. If all goes well, the rival will have one of his best guys suspended and all you lose is the end-of-the-bench guy. Heck, with David Stern in charge, one of your thugs might get less time than the poor guy that gets attacked in the first place... witness that Mardy Collins is only suspended for six games while the guy he attacked, J R Smith, gets ten!!!!!!
If Jim Dolan has any scruples and common sense, he will now fire Zeke Thomas for cause and no self-respecting organization will ever hire the punk again. New Yorkers are too smart to be fooled, as you can see here.
Now that David Stern has demonstrated his lack of leadership and wisdom (and in spades!), will Jim Dolan do the right thing and throw Zeke Thomas out on his butt? The world of NBA fans is watching and waiting...and we are NOT happy!
Stern Aware, but did not act - "I just read this on ESPN.com:
There was speculation Thomas would be penalized for his comments to Anthony. Stern acknowledged hearing about it, but said he relied only on "definitive information" when handing out punishments."
What's with Stern letting the Knicks off easy? What more "definitive information" does he need than to see Isiah Thomas warn the Nuggets: "I wouldn't go near the basket... wouldn't be a good idea"? What is he waiting for that's more clear than a visible threat 91 seconds before that threat was carried out? Is Stern really that anti-player that he's not going to take out the kingpin who ordered the hard foul in the first place?
Of course, Thomas and the Knicks claim that "I wouldn't go near the basket" simply meant that Zeke would have shown some class if he were playing. But then why wouldn't it be a good idea, which is what he followed it up with? Was he concerned that the gods of good sportsmanship would race down and smite the Nuggets for their poor display? Of course not. This is simply more spin on the Knicks' part.
More Damning Evidence
Something I didn't mention in last night's initial post about the threat was that Thomas had Mardy Collins on the court again in a blowout, just one night after committing a late-game flagrant. If Zeke really didn't want Collins to become a hit-goon, then a) why did he not correct Collins' behavior or at least b) why did he put Collins in the same exact situation 24 hours later? If Thomas didn't explicitly instruct Collins and the Knicks to flagrantly foul any Nuggets player going to the paint (though it looks like he probably did), at least his instructions were implicit by not solving the situation that arose 24 hours earlier. And how come it took Mardy Collins less than 45 seconds after entering the game for the first time to commit the hard foul? Also, don't forget that just a few weeks ago, Thomas clearly yelled to his players to "break [Bruce Bowen's] feet. Sounds like a hit-goon to me. Boo.
Also, it appears that Zeke's excuse that the Nuggets had their starters on the floor doesn't seem very solid either. At the 2:01 mark, before Collins was put in the game, the Knicks had Stephon Marbury (starter, 33 minutes per game), Jared Jeffries (starter, 28 mpg), Channing Frye (starter, 23 mpg), David Lee (former starter, 27 mpg), and Nate Robinson (key role player, 20 mpg) on the court. That's not exactly emptying your bench, Zeke. So it doesn't seem as bad when the Nuggets had four starters on the court when the Knicks had three and two key role players.
Edit: Adding up the minutes per game of the players who were on the court at the 2:01 mark, the Knicks had a total of 132 mpg on the court, compared to the Nuggets' total of 156 mpg. When you consider that the Knicks have a significantly deeper bench, and therefore everyone sees less minutes, it looks even more like both teams were still competing.
Furthermore, are the Knicks going to do anything about hot-headed Nate Robinson? They've stood by for the last year as he's willing to attack just about anyone. Of course, Robinson will claim - and the Knicks will back him - that he was simply defending a teammate. Unfortunately, that doesn't fly as an explanation. If he was so gung-ho about defending his teammates, why has he physically attacked two of them in the past year - Malik Rose and Jerome James? The "team unity" explanation pales in comparison to the "tough guy looking for a fight" explanation. If the Knicks cared about Robinson as a person, then there will be an extended suspension until he seeks out professional to help him overcome his anger issues.
The further I step away from this incident and take the long view, it appears the Knicks as an organization hold more and more responsibility - especially Isiah Thomas, who's running the circus. If David Stern won't hold him accountable, and Jim Dolan won't hold him accountable, is he invincible? I mean, the players are taking their punishment. What's so special about Isiah Thomas?
So, is Stern a chump? Does Zeke Thomas have him buffaloed somehow, or perhaps Knicks owner Dolan?
Is Stern a coward? Is he afraid to take on Isiah Thomas?
Is David Stern an idiot? Has he no idea what precedent he has set?
Witnesses on the scene, with verification from the MSG Network clip, attested that Thomas warned Carmelo Anthony about repercussions should he go to the hole. Mardy Collins had, just about 24 hours earlier, committed a flagrant foul against a Pacer late in a game the Pacers were winning easily and here was Collins, late of thug-factory Temple, in the game again...is there any doubt what took place? Thomas wanted to hurt a Nugget player and his bonus was seeing the top two Nuggets scorers get suspended. In the ultra-competitive West this could cost the Nuggets a playoff berth.
Now coaches know how to get a competitive advantage. Find a player on your roster with inferior talent and scruples and sic him on a rival's top player. If all goes well, the rival will have one of his best guys suspended and all you lose is the end-of-the-bench guy. Heck, with David Stern in charge, one of your thugs might get less time than the poor guy that gets attacked in the first place... witness that Mardy Collins is only suspended for six games while the guy he attacked, J R Smith, gets ten!!!!!!
If Jim Dolan has any scruples and common sense, he will now fire Zeke Thomas for cause and no self-respecting organization will ever hire the punk again. New Yorkers are too smart to be fooled, as you can see here.
Now that David Stern has demonstrated his lack of leadership and wisdom (and in spades!), will Jim Dolan do the right thing and throw Zeke Thomas out on his butt? The world of NBA fans is watching and waiting...and we are NOT happy!
Thursday, December 14, 2006
Letter to Ronnie Nunn, director of officials
From Hoopshype.com comes one of the most intelligent and wise postings concerning the charge/block calls around the basket. Dennis Hans is the author.
Dear Ronnie Nunn,
I recently finished the first month of my first season as a subscriber to the league's official cable channel, NBA TV, where you appear each Wednesday to educate viewers on the rules and how refs go about their work. You do a terrific job explaining the nuances of each play and the rule or rules in question, and I'm persuaded that the refs have the toughest job on the court. I'm also persuaded that many of the rules are a mess, and that we could make the refs' job easier, and the game more safe and fun to watch, if we fixed them. Let's consider one class of plays that's a frequent topic of your segments: block/charge (B/C) calls.
I was stunned to hear your November 8 explanation for a disastrous and dangerous development – B/C calls involving help defenders that are determined largely by who beats who “to the spot. ” You said that coaches are coaching their players to try to beat drivers “to the spot,” and that the league is reffing accordingly so that refs and coaches are on the same page. While “beat to the spot” is a useful concept for judging contact between a dribbler and primary defender (so long as the ref isn't sucked in by an out-of-control Devin Harris or Darrell Armstrong hurtling laterally or backwards to create a smidge of contact and thus the illusion of an offensive foul), it's all wrong for help-defense plays.
In adopting this approach, the NBA is catering to the very control-freak coaches who've done so much to muck up the game. In the glory days of the 1980s, this play required the help defender to be directly in the path well before the driver leaves his feet, thus giving the driver a chance to maneuver and thus avoid a collision (much as defenders are given the space to avoid screens). This contributed to a more free-flowing offense, a faster pace and fewer B/C collisions than today. Exceptions abounded, particularly on any team that employed Dick Harter as an assistant coach, but in general help defenders were more likely to use their feet to avoid collisions while getting themselves in position – on the ground or off – to make a play on the ball with their hands.
Today's “beat to the spot” nonsense makes the help defender's job considerably easier, and it amounts to a huge subsidy to mediocre defenders (e.g, the Collins twins, James Posey, Michael Doleac, Jason Kapono, Antoine Walker, Anderson Varejao, Kyle Korver, Othella Harrington – it's a long list) whose stock would plummet if in help situations they had to make a play on the ball. The NBA boasts that its players are “the greatest athletes in the world,” but this rule is affirmative action for stiffs, as well as B/C obsessed non-stiffs such as Robert Horry, Andres Nocioni, Jared Jeffries, Jermaine O'Neal and Shane Battier.
I understand that you and the refs don't write or interpret the rules, so I'm not faulting you for lunatic rule interpretations imposed by higher-ups. But I do fault you for not publicly pointing out their idiocy and danger.
I've been writing for several years about how the evolving interpretation of the B/C call has, over time, dramatically changed the character of the NBA game for the worse. Granted, a variety of factors have contributed to the game becoming progressively more slow and ugly since 1990, but in my view there's a direct correlation between making the charge-seeking help defender's job easier and offenses becoming more tentative and players' movements more herky-jerky. NBA acceptance of blatant traveling was a tacit acknowledgement that dribble penetration would all but disappear and league-wide scoring would fall below 90 if the rule was enforced. While the 2004-05 ban on perimeter touching has resulted in a slightly faster pace, more room to maneuver for the league's most gifted players, and the emergence of a few genuinely enjoyable teams, most notably the Suns, the trend of catering to charge seekers has accelerated.
In the past few seasons we have had the frightening spectacle of help defenders sprinting from the weak side or from under the basket – often directly at the driver – to get planted outside the restricted line a split second before the driver (who may be airborne or about to elevate) reaches that spot. This has led to a number of scary collisions and falls (I'll cite some examples below) and surely has James Naismith rolling over in his grave.
Read the entire post here, it will be worth your while!
Andres Nocioni is one of my favorite players. He hustles his butt off on both ends of the court and has a wide range of skills. He is one of the best at taking advantage of this rule but he has the will and athleticism to defend properly, so I will applaud him every time he gets the "charge" call under the present rules, but I will be gratified if the NBA wises up and takes Hans' advice to change this particular rule. Yap all you want about the new ball, but the ball isn't putting people into the hospital.
I wish we could get rid of the "rookie rule" that must be passed out to every referee in the NBA. I actually interviewed one, who demanded that he remain anonymous, in order to get more insight into this little-known facet of officiating.
Me: "So, how long have you been reffing in the NBA?"
AnonymousRef: "Long enough to have been up for a part in "Forget Paris." I'm still ticked off that they cut me out of it. They wound up giving the referee parts to actors!
Me: Sometimes it looks like you guys are having fun out there.
AR: "Sure, it is almost like being a player, it can be fun but you have to keep your concentration. I still get to see someone like Dywane Wade make a miracle move out there and I can tell ya', it's better up close than it is on TV!"
Me: "What are you guys saying to the players out there?"
AR: "Mostly we're talking about why what they did was a foul and why what the other guy did wasn't a foul. We maybe make a joke about another player, or comment on some hottie in the stands, that kind of thing. Some of it I just can't repeat..."
Me: "Anyway, I want to talk about the rookie rule."
AR: "What rookie rule?"
Me: "I happen to have a copy of the rule, it's been in the proprietary referee's handbook and I just happened to have access to it."
AR: "Hey, you aren't supposed to have that...", reaching for the booklet in my left hand. He views it, throws it down, "That's just an old Baseball Digest!"
Me: "You think I was going to bring the real thing with me? Oh, no. But I copied the page with the rookie rule, which reads as follows..."
AR: "I thought we were gonna talk about "Forget Paris!"
Me: "Forget 'Forget Paris', this is what it says:
1) If a rookie and a veteran collide, the foul is on the rookie.
2) If a rookie and a veteran almost collide, the foul is on the rookie.
3) If it is way too obvious that the foul is on the rookie, don't call anything at all.
4) However, in order to avoid suspicion, call the foul on the veteran exactly once in every seven times that the veteran actually fouls the rookie.
5) However, on the rookie's home court, change that number to one in three."
AR: "That's ridiculous, there is no such rule, show me the book!"
Me: "Forget the book. I noticed earlier this year when you guys called a foul on Tyrus Thomas' nose for breaking itself on Alonzo Mourning's elbow and then later this year the blood, lips and teeth of LaMarcus Aldridge dared to foul..."
AR: "Hold it, enough, okay. So what? Fans want the established stars to succeed. Rookies gotta pay their dues, no big deal."
Me: "So you admit to the rule?"
AR: "Yeah, yeah, it's right after the section about "fouls for breathing on Kobe" and just before the "call a couple of extra fouls on Mark Cuban's team" paragraph.
Me: About time somebody admitted to it.
AR: "Eh, I'm getting ready to retire before long anyway. Dick Bavetta called me "the old guy" last week and it made me start to think about a changing jobs."
Me: "Really, what were you planning on doing next?"
AR: "A blogger friend of mine told me I was right about as often as the 9th Circuit Court and I might as well be a judge. You don't have to run much so I could do that in my sleep! I guess you go back to school to do that, right?"
Me: "Well, you couldn't do any worse than the guys they have there now. Hey, good luck for the rest of the season."
(There is some factual truth to the rumor that AR is simply a doppelganger for the alter ego of yours truly. No animals were hurt in the making of this blog post.)
Dear Ronnie Nunn,
I recently finished the first month of my first season as a subscriber to the league's official cable channel, NBA TV, where you appear each Wednesday to educate viewers on the rules and how refs go about their work. You do a terrific job explaining the nuances of each play and the rule or rules in question, and I'm persuaded that the refs have the toughest job on the court. I'm also persuaded that many of the rules are a mess, and that we could make the refs' job easier, and the game more safe and fun to watch, if we fixed them. Let's consider one class of plays that's a frequent topic of your segments: block/charge (B/C) calls.
I was stunned to hear your November 8 explanation for a disastrous and dangerous development – B/C calls involving help defenders that are determined largely by who beats who “to the spot. ” You said that coaches are coaching their players to try to beat drivers “to the spot,” and that the league is reffing accordingly so that refs and coaches are on the same page. While “beat to the spot” is a useful concept for judging contact between a dribbler and primary defender (so long as the ref isn't sucked in by an out-of-control Devin Harris or Darrell Armstrong hurtling laterally or backwards to create a smidge of contact and thus the illusion of an offensive foul), it's all wrong for help-defense plays.
In adopting this approach, the NBA is catering to the very control-freak coaches who've done so much to muck up the game. In the glory days of the 1980s, this play required the help defender to be directly in the path well before the driver leaves his feet, thus giving the driver a chance to maneuver and thus avoid a collision (much as defenders are given the space to avoid screens). This contributed to a more free-flowing offense, a faster pace and fewer B/C collisions than today. Exceptions abounded, particularly on any team that employed Dick Harter as an assistant coach, but in general help defenders were more likely to use their feet to avoid collisions while getting themselves in position – on the ground or off – to make a play on the ball with their hands.
Today's “beat to the spot” nonsense makes the help defender's job considerably easier, and it amounts to a huge subsidy to mediocre defenders (e.g, the Collins twins, James Posey, Michael Doleac, Jason Kapono, Antoine Walker, Anderson Varejao, Kyle Korver, Othella Harrington – it's a long list) whose stock would plummet if in help situations they had to make a play on the ball. The NBA boasts that its players are “the greatest athletes in the world,” but this rule is affirmative action for stiffs, as well as B/C obsessed non-stiffs such as Robert Horry, Andres Nocioni, Jared Jeffries, Jermaine O'Neal and Shane Battier.
I understand that you and the refs don't write or interpret the rules, so I'm not faulting you for lunatic rule interpretations imposed by higher-ups. But I do fault you for not publicly pointing out their idiocy and danger.
I've been writing for several years about how the evolving interpretation of the B/C call has, over time, dramatically changed the character of the NBA game for the worse. Granted, a variety of factors have contributed to the game becoming progressively more slow and ugly since 1990, but in my view there's a direct correlation between making the charge-seeking help defender's job easier and offenses becoming more tentative and players' movements more herky-jerky. NBA acceptance of blatant traveling was a tacit acknowledgement that dribble penetration would all but disappear and league-wide scoring would fall below 90 if the rule was enforced. While the 2004-05 ban on perimeter touching has resulted in a slightly faster pace, more room to maneuver for the league's most gifted players, and the emergence of a few genuinely enjoyable teams, most notably the Suns, the trend of catering to charge seekers has accelerated.
In the past few seasons we have had the frightening spectacle of help defenders sprinting from the weak side or from under the basket – often directly at the driver – to get planted outside the restricted line a split second before the driver (who may be airborne or about to elevate) reaches that spot. This has led to a number of scary collisions and falls (I'll cite some examples below) and surely has James Naismith rolling over in his grave.
Read the entire post here, it will be worth your while!
Andres Nocioni is one of my favorite players. He hustles his butt off on both ends of the court and has a wide range of skills. He is one of the best at taking advantage of this rule but he has the will and athleticism to defend properly, so I will applaud him every time he gets the "charge" call under the present rules, but I will be gratified if the NBA wises up and takes Hans' advice to change this particular rule. Yap all you want about the new ball, but the ball isn't putting people into the hospital.
I wish we could get rid of the "rookie rule" that must be passed out to every referee in the NBA. I actually interviewed one, who demanded that he remain anonymous, in order to get more insight into this little-known facet of officiating.
Me: "So, how long have you been reffing in the NBA?"
AnonymousRef: "Long enough to have been up for a part in "Forget Paris." I'm still ticked off that they cut me out of it. They wound up giving the referee parts to actors!
Me: Sometimes it looks like you guys are having fun out there.
AR: "Sure, it is almost like being a player, it can be fun but you have to keep your concentration. I still get to see someone like Dywane Wade make a miracle move out there and I can tell ya', it's better up close than it is on TV!"
Me: "What are you guys saying to the players out there?"
AR: "Mostly we're talking about why what they did was a foul and why what the other guy did wasn't a foul. We maybe make a joke about another player, or comment on some hottie in the stands, that kind of thing. Some of it I just can't repeat..."
Me: "Anyway, I want to talk about the rookie rule."
AR: "What rookie rule?"
Me: "I happen to have a copy of the rule, it's been in the proprietary referee's handbook and I just happened to have access to it."
AR: "Hey, you aren't supposed to have that...", reaching for the booklet in my left hand. He views it, throws it down, "That's just an old Baseball Digest!"
Me: "You think I was going to bring the real thing with me? Oh, no. But I copied the page with the rookie rule, which reads as follows..."
AR: "I thought we were gonna talk about "Forget Paris!"
Me: "Forget 'Forget Paris', this is what it says:
1) If a rookie and a veteran collide, the foul is on the rookie.
2) If a rookie and a veteran almost collide, the foul is on the rookie.
3) If it is way too obvious that the foul is on the rookie, don't call anything at all.
4) However, in order to avoid suspicion, call the foul on the veteran exactly once in every seven times that the veteran actually fouls the rookie.
5) However, on the rookie's home court, change that number to one in three."
AR: "That's ridiculous, there is no such rule, show me the book!"
Me: "Forget the book. I noticed earlier this year when you guys called a foul on Tyrus Thomas' nose for breaking itself on Alonzo Mourning's elbow and then later this year the blood, lips and teeth of LaMarcus Aldridge dared to foul..."
AR: "Hold it, enough, okay. So what? Fans want the established stars to succeed. Rookies gotta pay their dues, no big deal."
Me: "So you admit to the rule?"
AR: "Yeah, yeah, it's right after the section about "fouls for breathing on Kobe" and just before the "call a couple of extra fouls on Mark Cuban's team" paragraph.
Me: About time somebody admitted to it.
AR: "Eh, I'm getting ready to retire before long anyway. Dick Bavetta called me "the old guy" last week and it made me start to think about a changing jobs."
Me: "Really, what were you planning on doing next?"
AR: "A blogger friend of mine told me I was right about as often as the 9th Circuit Court and I might as well be a judge. You don't have to run much so I could do that in my sleep! I guess you go back to school to do that, right?"
Me: "Well, you couldn't do any worse than the guys they have there now. Hey, good luck for the rest of the season."
(There is some factual truth to the rumor that AR is simply a doppelganger for the alter ego of yours truly. No animals were hurt in the making of this blog post.)
Wednesday, December 13, 2006
AI-Yi-Iverson!
AI is being traded, so they say. Eventually. Ya-freakin'-hoo!
It has always been hard for me to get Iverson. I mean, the guy is a warrior on the court, fearlessly throwing himself into groups of much bigger guys to score the basketball, flying with great quickness past even the best defenders, never afraid to take the big shot or go for the great pass. He steals more basketballs in a month that Eddy Curry would in two years. He is a hustler who gets results.
The downside has been his off-court woes. How is it Philly allowed him to get so out of control? If I was paying the man that much money, I would have fined him for every missed appearance and then begun benching him for a quarter, then a game, then suspending him for a game, for a week, until he got the idea. You always start tough and then back off. No one ever started tough with AI and he thought practices and team events were opportunities to show everyone how much bigger he was than the team and so it goes. He was a constant headache to management while being a treat to fans.
I really don't think it has anything to do with cornrows or tats or bling. This isn't about black and white, or gangsta versus suit. It's about responsibility to teammates that goes beyond just 94 feet of hardwood flooring.
Winning with Iverson is possible with the right parts in place. Philly never really had what they needed to surround him with a championship team. Hey, its hard to do or everyone would be doing it. The secret is having at least one more great player who is willing to share the spotlight, a top flight complementary player, a defensive stopper in the paint to cover for AI when he goes for a steal and misses or when he is being attacked by a bigger player, and decent defensive-minded, pick-setting bodies off the bench. Oh, and at least one good spot-up shooter available for the pass out to the corner when Allen drives to the middle and has no shot. Chris Webber of five years ago would have been the second star. Iggy is the complementary guy. Korver is the shooter. Dalembert is the shot-blocker. The decent role-players? Heck, guys like Ollie and Green just aren't good enough to fit that bill and Carney is a couple of years away. Randolph is hurt. This Sixer team is going nowhere.
But Iverson is going somewhere. Where? Lots of ideas out there including Golden State.
"One of the deals King was strongly considering is with Golden State, for point guard Baron Davis, center Andris Biedrins and a third unidentified player. In addition to Iverson, the Warriors would get backup center Steven Hunter. While a source close to one of the players involved called the deal "done," the Sixers remain quiet about where they will be sending Iverson."
Now if the 76'ers pull off that deal, they will be making one of the great historic trades ever. Biedrins has become AK-47 in platform sneakers with an upside like 1995 Microsoft stock. BDizzle is nearly as good as AI by himself, when he is actually healthy that is. The unnamed player has been rumored to be people like Troy "The Horse" Murphy or even Monta Ellis, who is something of an AI as a colt. Hunter isn't good enough to give Dalembert the boot. Surely Golden State isn't that stupid!
TWolvesblog sketches some possibilities here.
Boston has a lot of drooling fans that want to see AI come there. Philly probably doesn't want to let him land so close, however. Charlotte makes sense, but AI apparently says no way! Sacramento, the Clips, Denver, Dallas, the Bulls, the Magic...and the Wolves.
I say, let it be the Wolves! AI and KG would be some kind of Frank Miller version of MJ and Scottie, with Mike James in the role of Kerr/Paxson/Armstrong/Hodges and Eddie Griffin as the weird 90% angle away from Dennis Rodman. Philly would get Ricky Davis, Randy Foye, Troy Hudson and maybe Marko Jaric or something along those lines. They might have to bring a third team into the mix to even up contracts and come up with a draft choice. But it would make sense.
Garnett is great, but he is Pippen-great, the kind of guy who would be even better with another superstar around. He doesn't have to have the ball that much and really, really wants to win for a change. He is Kareem without a Magic or a Big O, he is Malone without Stockton. Give Kevin an AI, who wants to dominate the ball but will give it up to the big guy for the finish and the TWolves become relevant again!
I do come at all of this from a selfish standpoint, since I own Allen Iverson in two fantasy basketball leagues and I really count on his scoring and steals to help me win games. Heck, his assists are pretty good as well. But a line of zeroes just doesn't warm the old heart.
In an aside, didn't Philly's Billy King just totally blow this thing? It's like the Artest case, when Indy said they were dumping him and then the process went on and on and on and on....and on. Why didn't King just stifle and work to make a trade happen before announcing that Iverson was gonzo and even making sure his locker was cleaned out and the nameplate removed!!! It was like the 76'ers weren't just moving AI, they were having an exorcism!
Making it known that Iverson was gone took part of King's leverage away, so it is likely that he gets no better than 75 cents on the talent dollar in return at best. It had better be young talent, and he had better hope the lottery pick he has for next season is a good one, because Iverson was the best player in Philly since, well, since guys like Barkley played there. This is just another bad break for Philly fans. Oh well, at least CWebb might play in the fourth quarter now, mwuhahahahahahaha!
It has always been hard for me to get Iverson. I mean, the guy is a warrior on the court, fearlessly throwing himself into groups of much bigger guys to score the basketball, flying with great quickness past even the best defenders, never afraid to take the big shot or go for the great pass. He steals more basketballs in a month that Eddy Curry would in two years. He is a hustler who gets results.
The downside has been his off-court woes. How is it Philly allowed him to get so out of control? If I was paying the man that much money, I would have fined him for every missed appearance and then begun benching him for a quarter, then a game, then suspending him for a game, for a week, until he got the idea. You always start tough and then back off. No one ever started tough with AI and he thought practices and team events were opportunities to show everyone how much bigger he was than the team and so it goes. He was a constant headache to management while being a treat to fans.
I really don't think it has anything to do with cornrows or tats or bling. This isn't about black and white, or gangsta versus suit. It's about responsibility to teammates that goes beyond just 94 feet of hardwood flooring.
Winning with Iverson is possible with the right parts in place. Philly never really had what they needed to surround him with a championship team. Hey, its hard to do or everyone would be doing it. The secret is having at least one more great player who is willing to share the spotlight, a top flight complementary player, a defensive stopper in the paint to cover for AI when he goes for a steal and misses or when he is being attacked by a bigger player, and decent defensive-minded, pick-setting bodies off the bench. Oh, and at least one good spot-up shooter available for the pass out to the corner when Allen drives to the middle and has no shot. Chris Webber of five years ago would have been the second star. Iggy is the complementary guy. Korver is the shooter. Dalembert is the shot-blocker. The decent role-players? Heck, guys like Ollie and Green just aren't good enough to fit that bill and Carney is a couple of years away. Randolph is hurt. This Sixer team is going nowhere.
But Iverson is going somewhere. Where? Lots of ideas out there including Golden State.
"One of the deals King was strongly considering is with Golden State, for point guard Baron Davis, center Andris Biedrins and a third unidentified player. In addition to Iverson, the Warriors would get backup center Steven Hunter. While a source close to one of the players involved called the deal "done," the Sixers remain quiet about where they will be sending Iverson."
Now if the 76'ers pull off that deal, they will be making one of the great historic trades ever. Biedrins has become AK-47 in platform sneakers with an upside like 1995 Microsoft stock. BDizzle is nearly as good as AI by himself, when he is actually healthy that is. The unnamed player has been rumored to be people like Troy "The Horse" Murphy or even Monta Ellis, who is something of an AI as a colt. Hunter isn't good enough to give Dalembert the boot. Surely Golden State isn't that stupid!
TWolvesblog sketches some possibilities here.
Boston has a lot of drooling fans that want to see AI come there. Philly probably doesn't want to let him land so close, however. Charlotte makes sense, but AI apparently says no way! Sacramento, the Clips, Denver, Dallas, the Bulls, the Magic...and the Wolves.
I say, let it be the Wolves! AI and KG would be some kind of Frank Miller version of MJ and Scottie, with Mike James in the role of Kerr/Paxson/Armstrong/Hodges and Eddie Griffin as the weird 90% angle away from Dennis Rodman. Philly would get Ricky Davis, Randy Foye, Troy Hudson and maybe Marko Jaric or something along those lines. They might have to bring a third team into the mix to even up contracts and come up with a draft choice. But it would make sense.
Garnett is great, but he is Pippen-great, the kind of guy who would be even better with another superstar around. He doesn't have to have the ball that much and really, really wants to win for a change. He is Kareem without a Magic or a Big O, he is Malone without Stockton. Give Kevin an AI, who wants to dominate the ball but will give it up to the big guy for the finish and the TWolves become relevant again!
I do come at all of this from a selfish standpoint, since I own Allen Iverson in two fantasy basketball leagues and I really count on his scoring and steals to help me win games. Heck, his assists are pretty good as well. But a line of zeroes just doesn't warm the old heart.
In an aside, didn't Philly's Billy King just totally blow this thing? It's like the Artest case, when Indy said they were dumping him and then the process went on and on and on and on....and on. Why didn't King just stifle and work to make a trade happen before announcing that Iverson was gonzo and even making sure his locker was cleaned out and the nameplate removed!!! It was like the 76'ers weren't just moving AI, they were having an exorcism!
Making it known that Iverson was gone took part of King's leverage away, so it is likely that he gets no better than 75 cents on the talent dollar in return at best. It had better be young talent, and he had better hope the lottery pick he has for next season is a good one, because Iverson was the best player in Philly since, well, since guys like Barkley played there. This is just another bad break for Philly fans. Oh well, at least CWebb might play in the fourth quarter now, mwuhahahahahahaha!
Monday, December 11, 2006
Auditing your H2H fantasy basketball team
I am going to use a standard category Yahoo H2H league to go over roster auditing and roster management techniques and hopefully also receive a bit of valuable feedback as well. The guinea pig for this will be the Ballers H2H Keeper League (which is league ID #47162, for those who care.) This league keeps five players from each season, so most of the 14-man roster is not going to carry over, making it very much like a redraft league.
Ballers is a 12 team league, with 14 roster spots and 10 active spots (PG, SG, G, SF, PF, F, C, C, Util, Util, BN, BN, BN, BN) open for each day, with daily changes.
Categories are FG%, FT%, 3PTM, PTS, REB, AST, ST, BLK, TO. These are very common settings. So, we begin:
Viewing Team Stats
The league front page will list the standings, and I am doing well in this league so far so that is very good. I'm in second place, one game out of first and a half-a-game ahead of the third place player. But it is very early, too soon to tell from early results just how good my team is. I need to do an audit.
Won-Lost records
First, I select the Head-to-Head Stats link at the top right of the header just above the standings. This will display 9 columns, one for each category, with your won-lost record for each stat for each week played. The default will give you the shooting percentage as first column selected, but you can click on the link at the top of each column to compare where you stand for each category. Now, it is nice to know that I am 6-0 in blocked shots but only 1-5 in FT% but that is dependent partly on how good my team has played and partly on who I was playing. So I select the Totals link at the top left, just to the side of Win-Loss.
Totals
Now this shows me how I have compared so far to the entire league. My won-lost in FG% was 4-2, but I lead the whole league with a .488 percentage so I am happy with that cat. I may be 1-5 in FT%, but my .764 percentage is right in the middle (6th place) so I am not quite as bad as I seem there. As I scan the columns, I find that I am second in rebounds, second in steals and third in points in addition to first in FG%. So I am now quite sure of my strongest categories. I am mediocre in assists, 3PTM, FT%, TO and blocks. But I see that with 159 blocks so far this year, I would be in third place if I'd just had 5 more. A little improvement there can really make that category much stronger.
Conclusion
I have strong categories and average categories, but no bad ones, so I will be consistently good. I'll be better if I can upgrade one more category to the strong side and right now blocks looks like my best category to look to upgrade.
Scanning the roster
Clicking on my My Team tab brings up my players and who they are playing today. I can choose all sorts of options to display here with splits and stats and ranks, etc. However, to get a good feel for how good my team is I will first do something different.
Players
I click the Players tab and all available free agents appear, ranked by default along preseason ranking lines. But I can select Sort By options at the top of the columns and so I change the default settings to Status = radarthanyouthink (my team name) and Position = remains on all players and Stats = Season (avg)
Now I can see what each player is averaging for each category for the season. There are also columns for O-Rank (beginning ranks for the season, by Yahoo) and Rank. I usually sort by Rank first. Here are my players, listed according to season average rank:
Rashard Lewis
(Sea - SF)
Jason Kidd
(NJ - PG)
Leandro Barbosa
(Pho - PG)
Andre Iguodala
(Phi - SG,SF)
Tim Duncan
(SA - PF,C)
Luol Deng
(Chi - SG,SF)
David Lee
(NY - SF,PF)
Wally Szczerbiak
(Bos - SG,SF)
David West
(NOK - PF)
Ime Udoka
(Por - SF)
Zydrunas Ilgauskas
(Cle - C)
Devin Harris
(Dal - PG)
Erick Dampier
(Dal - C)
Chris Kaman
(LAC - C)
Now I have 3 players in the top 25, 4 more between 38 and 68 and a total of 9 from ranks 1-91. Mathematically I would expect to have 8 at most, so that is good. My top 9 ballplayers are too good to consider dropping, obviously.
The next three are Udoka (#121), Ilgauskas (#128) and Harris (#129). They are possible drops.
My last three are the likely drag on my team so far. They are Dampier (#145) and Kaman (#205). Both are centers and it is likely that the remaining free agent centers are pretty lame, so I have to be careful about dropping either of them, too.
The reality of position management
In a Yahoo H2H league, you need versatility so that you can play as many players as you can during the week. To ensure this, you try for a minimum of at least three players eligible at every position with the exception of center, where you should have four because there are two "C" positions to fill each day. So how does my current lineup look?
PG- 3, and one of them is Harris, so if I decide to drop or trade him I need to replace him with another point guard-eligible player.
SG- 3, all in the top 91. No changes to make here.
SF- 6, but 3 of them are my SG guys. Udoka at #121 is the only guy I might consider dropping here.
PF- 3, once of which is also a SF, one of which is also a C. All rank high, no drops here.
G and F positions are filled with the above players as well, as you likely already know if you've played the Yahoo game.
C- 4. For my way of thinking, this is the minimum you want at the position. So even though 3 of the 4 guys are among my 4 worst players by Yahoo ranking, I would have to replace any of them with another center.
Conclusion
I might drop Harris for another PG, or I could afford to drop Udoka for a player at any position. If I drop a center I have to replace him with a center but I suspect injuries have caused Kaman to underperform and he will get better. I also expect Big "Z" to improve his performance, so my centers I am unlikely to touch. It comes down to Harris or Udoka. Both are starters for their teams but both are on a short leash. Udoka is far exceeding expectations right now and I know a trade or just a change of mind could plop him on the bench. He is the most vulnerable guy I have, it seems.
Before making a move
Now I click on individual cat columns to see if Harris and Udoka are expendable in my strong areas or if they are a drag on my average cats. Finally, do I see an opportunity to really boost my blocks while keeping the other cats strong by replacing one of them? I switch from Season(avg) to Last Week (avg) in the drop-down menu for Stats to consider trends. I may look at the last month averages, too.
I am reminded that Wally Szczerbiak has been out recently and that David West has been off for almost a month. Wally will certainly boost my 3PTM and percentages and points when he returns while West will help with points, rebounds and blocks...blocks! Yes, he will block around a shot a game and that is enough to really help that particular category.
I decide that I just need to get healthy and at first glance I don't need to make any changes. But we'll take a look at scouring the FA/Waiver wire in the next post anyway and maybe use a different team to actually make a change. Ciaou!
Ballers is a 12 team league, with 14 roster spots and 10 active spots (PG, SG, G, SF, PF, F, C, C, Util, Util, BN, BN, BN, BN) open for each day, with daily changes.
Categories are FG%, FT%, 3PTM, PTS, REB, AST, ST, BLK, TO. These are very common settings. So, we begin:
Viewing Team Stats
The league front page will list the standings, and I am doing well in this league so far so that is very good. I'm in second place, one game out of first and a half-a-game ahead of the third place player. But it is very early, too soon to tell from early results just how good my team is. I need to do an audit.
Won-Lost records
First, I select the Head-to-Head Stats link at the top right of the header just above the standings. This will display 9 columns, one for each category, with your won-lost record for each stat for each week played. The default will give you the shooting percentage as first column selected, but you can click on the link at the top of each column to compare where you stand for each category. Now, it is nice to know that I am 6-0 in blocked shots but only 1-5 in FT% but that is dependent partly on how good my team has played and partly on who I was playing. So I select the Totals link at the top left, just to the side of Win-Loss.
Totals
Now this shows me how I have compared so far to the entire league. My won-lost in FG% was 4-2, but I lead the whole league with a .488 percentage so I am happy with that cat. I may be 1-5 in FT%, but my .764 percentage is right in the middle (6th place) so I am not quite as bad as I seem there. As I scan the columns, I find that I am second in rebounds, second in steals and third in points in addition to first in FG%. So I am now quite sure of my strongest categories. I am mediocre in assists, 3PTM, FT%, TO and blocks. But I see that with 159 blocks so far this year, I would be in third place if I'd just had 5 more. A little improvement there can really make that category much stronger.
Conclusion
I have strong categories and average categories, but no bad ones, so I will be consistently good. I'll be better if I can upgrade one more category to the strong side and right now blocks looks like my best category to look to upgrade.
Scanning the roster
Clicking on my My Team tab brings up my players and who they are playing today. I can choose all sorts of options to display here with splits and stats and ranks, etc. However, to get a good feel for how good my team is I will first do something different.
Players
I click the Players tab and all available free agents appear, ranked by default along preseason ranking lines. But I can select Sort By options at the top of the columns and so I change the default settings to Status = radarthanyouthink (my team name) and Position = remains on all players and Stats = Season (avg)
Now I can see what each player is averaging for each category for the season. There are also columns for O-Rank (beginning ranks for the season, by Yahoo) and Rank. I usually sort by Rank first. Here are my players, listed according to season average rank:
Rashard Lewis
(Sea - SF)
Jason Kidd
(NJ - PG)
Leandro Barbosa
(Pho - PG)
Andre Iguodala
(Phi - SG,SF)
Tim Duncan
(SA - PF,C)
Luol Deng
(Chi - SG,SF)
David Lee
(NY - SF,PF)
Wally Szczerbiak
(Bos - SG,SF)
David West
(NOK - PF)
Ime Udoka
(Por - SF)
Zydrunas Ilgauskas
(Cle - C)
Devin Harris
(Dal - PG)
Erick Dampier
(Dal - C)
Chris Kaman
(LAC - C)
Now I have 3 players in the top 25, 4 more between 38 and 68 and a total of 9 from ranks 1-91. Mathematically I would expect to have 8 at most, so that is good. My top 9 ballplayers are too good to consider dropping, obviously.
The next three are Udoka (#121), Ilgauskas (#128) and Harris (#129). They are possible drops.
My last three are the likely drag on my team so far. They are Dampier (#145) and Kaman (#205). Both are centers and it is likely that the remaining free agent centers are pretty lame, so I have to be careful about dropping either of them, too.
The reality of position management
In a Yahoo H2H league, you need versatility so that you can play as many players as you can during the week. To ensure this, you try for a minimum of at least three players eligible at every position with the exception of center, where you should have four because there are two "C" positions to fill each day. So how does my current lineup look?
PG- 3, and one of them is Harris, so if I decide to drop or trade him I need to replace him with another point guard-eligible player.
SG- 3, all in the top 91. No changes to make here.
SF- 6, but 3 of them are my SG guys. Udoka at #121 is the only guy I might consider dropping here.
PF- 3, once of which is also a SF, one of which is also a C. All rank high, no drops here.
G and F positions are filled with the above players as well, as you likely already know if you've played the Yahoo game.
C- 4. For my way of thinking, this is the minimum you want at the position. So even though 3 of the 4 guys are among my 4 worst players by Yahoo ranking, I would have to replace any of them with another center.
Conclusion
I might drop Harris for another PG, or I could afford to drop Udoka for a player at any position. If I drop a center I have to replace him with a center but I suspect injuries have caused Kaman to underperform and he will get better. I also expect Big "Z" to improve his performance, so my centers I am unlikely to touch. It comes down to Harris or Udoka. Both are starters for their teams but both are on a short leash. Udoka is far exceeding expectations right now and I know a trade or just a change of mind could plop him on the bench. He is the most vulnerable guy I have, it seems.
Before making a move
Now I click on individual cat columns to see if Harris and Udoka are expendable in my strong areas or if they are a drag on my average cats. Finally, do I see an opportunity to really boost my blocks while keeping the other cats strong by replacing one of them? I switch from Season(avg) to Last Week (avg) in the drop-down menu for Stats to consider trends. I may look at the last month averages, too.
I am reminded that Wally Szczerbiak has been out recently and that David West has been off for almost a month. Wally will certainly boost my 3PTM and percentages and points when he returns while West will help with points, rebounds and blocks...blocks! Yes, he will block around a shot a game and that is enough to really help that particular category.
I decide that I just need to get healthy and at first glance I don't need to make any changes. But we'll take a look at scouring the FA/Waiver wire in the next post anyway and maybe use a different team to actually make a change. Ciaou!
Saturday, December 09, 2006
Fantasy Basketballers Beware!
Recent news makes some players the equivalent of fantasy fool's gold:
Bobby Simmons - Looks like he is done for the year with three different leg and foot injuries. Yearly leagues, especially the H2H leagues, see him being dropped left and right. But a lot of keeper and dynasty leagues are holding on to the guy.
Hey, think about it...the guy has had only one good year, by the time he comes back to Milwaukee he will be a reserve at best and he may never be as athletic as he once was. In case you didn't notice, athleticism and hustle were a big part of his game previously. Drop him even in dynasty leagues and pick up a young guy with promise, like an Earl Barron or a Thabo Sefolosha. Two-three years from now you will thank me!
Josh Childress - Hairline fracture of the foot. He will be gone at least another month! Can your team really afford a big blank spot where Childress' production should be? In most yearly leagues, he should be dropped. Roto leagues? Just bench him if you can. Dynasty leagues? Bench him if you can, look for a trade maybe as well. He does put up decent numbers with good percentages when he is healty, for a bench guy. Just keep in mind, when they say four weeks, it is sometimes six, or even eight!!!
Jannero Pargo and Rasual Butler - David West, Peja Stojakovic and Bobby Jackson are out. Repeat and remember...Pargo and Butler are only temporary comforts during this long fantasy season. Therefore, don't drop someone relatively dependable in favor of one of these guys, because they will soon be spending more time on the bench again.
Speedy Claxton - He depends on...wait for it...his speed! Really? Amazing. Get this - he is coming back from knee surgery and having issues with the pain and it has also hindered his...yes...speed! Tyronne Lue isn't really a true point guard. Nevertheless, barring a trade, Lue should continue to get the lion's share of the time at point while Speedy is healing. Atlanta gave Claxton a four year contract, you think they are still thinking it was smart to pass on Chris Paul?
Gerald Wallace - Time to trade this guy. He'll never help your shooting percentages and the way the team is being put together in Charlotte he's going to get far fewer chances to block shots. He isn't a big scorer, either, so if he isn't piling up mad amounts of blocks and steals he isn't worth a lot. Find someone who believes in him and trade him ASAP!
Vlad Radmanovic and Smuch Parker - Let me end up with a couple of Lakers. We already see that the development of Luke Walton is going to make Radman less relevant. Now Jordan Farmar is taking minutes away from Parker. Both these guys are becoming more reserve-type performers in case you haven't noticed, and now would be a good time to look for buyers who don't foresee the future.
There are other guys who are more obvious, like Damon Stoudamire, but you probably know who they are already. Good luck!
Bobby Simmons - Looks like he is done for the year with three different leg and foot injuries. Yearly leagues, especially the H2H leagues, see him being dropped left and right. But a lot of keeper and dynasty leagues are holding on to the guy.
Hey, think about it...the guy has had only one good year, by the time he comes back to Milwaukee he will be a reserve at best and he may never be as athletic as he once was. In case you didn't notice, athleticism and hustle were a big part of his game previously. Drop him even in dynasty leagues and pick up a young guy with promise, like an Earl Barron or a Thabo Sefolosha. Two-three years from now you will thank me!
Josh Childress - Hairline fracture of the foot. He will be gone at least another month! Can your team really afford a big blank spot where Childress' production should be? In most yearly leagues, he should be dropped. Roto leagues? Just bench him if you can. Dynasty leagues? Bench him if you can, look for a trade maybe as well. He does put up decent numbers with good percentages when he is healty, for a bench guy. Just keep in mind, when they say four weeks, it is sometimes six, or even eight!!!
Jannero Pargo and Rasual Butler - David West, Peja Stojakovic and Bobby Jackson are out. Repeat and remember...Pargo and Butler are only temporary comforts during this long fantasy season. Therefore, don't drop someone relatively dependable in favor of one of these guys, because they will soon be spending more time on the bench again.
Speedy Claxton - He depends on...wait for it...his speed! Really? Amazing. Get this - he is coming back from knee surgery and having issues with the pain and it has also hindered his...yes...speed! Tyronne Lue isn't really a true point guard. Nevertheless, barring a trade, Lue should continue to get the lion's share of the time at point while Speedy is healing. Atlanta gave Claxton a four year contract, you think they are still thinking it was smart to pass on Chris Paul?
Gerald Wallace - Time to trade this guy. He'll never help your shooting percentages and the way the team is being put together in Charlotte he's going to get far fewer chances to block shots. He isn't a big scorer, either, so if he isn't piling up mad amounts of blocks and steals he isn't worth a lot. Find someone who believes in him and trade him ASAP!
Vlad Radmanovic and Smuch Parker - Let me end up with a couple of Lakers. We already see that the development of Luke Walton is going to make Radman less relevant. Now Jordan Farmar is taking minutes away from Parker. Both these guys are becoming more reserve-type performers in case you haven't noticed, and now would be a good time to look for buyers who don't foresee the future.
There are other guys who are more obvious, like Damon Stoudamire, but you probably know who they are already. Good luck!
Sunday, December 03, 2006
Chicagosaurus Rex Redux
I previously posted some doubts and hopes for Rex Grossman from the perspective of a Chicago Bear's fan. Allow me to quote my conclusions from that post, with added commmentary:
Grossman has too much cowboy in him right now and presses a bit too hard to make the big play. He is still learning to read defenses and make his checkdowns quickly. If a defense kills his first two options he won't have time to make it down to number three. He is short for a quarterback so he needs to work on keeping his arm slot high and he also needs to work on having his feet stable before he unloads. Right now he is making off-balanced throws and throws off of his back foot. Maybe he was picked four times on Monday but I guarantee you there was at least one time in every previous game where the defender should have had a pick and they missed it.
Unfortunately, all of this remains true. His game reveals problems with mechanics, understanding and judgment.
Don't get me wrong, Rex has a terrific arm and when he does it right he delivers a nice ball and right where it needs to be, much like Kurt Warner did consistently in the 1999-2001 or so era. He can make all the throws. But he is a work in progress, which means he may break Bear fans hearts at times. We have to hope it isn't in a playoff game.
Right now it is almost certain that he will do exactly that, ruin the Bears in a playoff game, because at the moment the Bear's defense and special teams are doing all they can to win despite the miserable play of their QB.
Here is where all those Favre comparisons come back to bite you, Bear fans. Rex is capable of throwing you right out of a game, too, just as Brett has done upon occasion. We know now that Rex can be as bad as a 2005-6 model Favre. Now the question is, can he be as good as a late 20th century model?
I presented only two of the three likely choices, the third being that Rex can be worse than Favre at his lowest. Rex followed up his New England performance with an even more excruciatingly bad showing versus Minnesota today but the defense and special teams were too good to let the Bears lose.
Versus a good New England defense, Rex was 15 of 34 for 176 yards with 0 touchdowns and 3 interceptions. Minnesota has a porous pass defense, though, so it would be logical that Rex would bounce back against the Vikings at home. Instead, Rex gave us 6 for 19, 34 yards and the familiar 0 touchies, 3 picks.
Consider that in the first 5 games of the season, Rex threw 10 TD passes versus 4 interceptions. His next 5? 8 TDs and 8 picks. His last 2? 0 TD, 6 interceptions. Does anyone detect a pattern here?
I have to wonder if Lovie Smith has it in him to bench Grossman? Bill Parcells sat Drew Bledsoe down and Tony Romo has since gone 5-1 as a starter. Mike Shanahan has replaced Jake Plummer with Jay Cutler. Heck, today during the Chicago 23-13 win, the Minnesota coach, Brad Childress, replaced Brad Johnson with Brooks Bollinger and then, when Bollinger went down with an injury, sent rookie Tavaris Jackson out to take the snaps.
Brian Griese has been a Pro Bowl quarterback. He is known for making good decisions and managing the game. With a great defense and excellent special teams and a decent running game, the only aspect of the game of football the team seems to lack is consistent NFL-level quarterbacking. Griese can provide this if he is allowed to play.
Sorry, Rex, but I want this team to have a shot at the Super Bowl. The defense, the special teams, heck, everybody deserves a shot to win it all. You are holding the team back.
Lovie, set that young man on the sidelines, hand him a clipboard and let him learn from that perspective while Brian Griese reads defenses and rides this team to the promised land.
Grossman has too much cowboy in him right now and presses a bit too hard to make the big play. He is still learning to read defenses and make his checkdowns quickly. If a defense kills his first two options he won't have time to make it down to number three. He is short for a quarterback so he needs to work on keeping his arm slot high and he also needs to work on having his feet stable before he unloads. Right now he is making off-balanced throws and throws off of his back foot. Maybe he was picked four times on Monday but I guarantee you there was at least one time in every previous game where the defender should have had a pick and they missed it.
Unfortunately, all of this remains true. His game reveals problems with mechanics, understanding and judgment.
Don't get me wrong, Rex has a terrific arm and when he does it right he delivers a nice ball and right where it needs to be, much like Kurt Warner did consistently in the 1999-2001 or so era. He can make all the throws. But he is a work in progress, which means he may break Bear fans hearts at times. We have to hope it isn't in a playoff game.
Right now it is almost certain that he will do exactly that, ruin the Bears in a playoff game, because at the moment the Bear's defense and special teams are doing all they can to win despite the miserable play of their QB.
Here is where all those Favre comparisons come back to bite you, Bear fans. Rex is capable of throwing you right out of a game, too, just as Brett has done upon occasion. We know now that Rex can be as bad as a 2005-6 model Favre. Now the question is, can he be as good as a late 20th century model?
I presented only two of the three likely choices, the third being that Rex can be worse than Favre at his lowest. Rex followed up his New England performance with an even more excruciatingly bad showing versus Minnesota today but the defense and special teams were too good to let the Bears lose.
Versus a good New England defense, Rex was 15 of 34 for 176 yards with 0 touchdowns and 3 interceptions. Minnesota has a porous pass defense, though, so it would be logical that Rex would bounce back against the Vikings at home. Instead, Rex gave us 6 for 19, 34 yards and the familiar 0 touchies, 3 picks.
Consider that in the first 5 games of the season, Rex threw 10 TD passes versus 4 interceptions. His next 5? 8 TDs and 8 picks. His last 2? 0 TD, 6 interceptions. Does anyone detect a pattern here?
I have to wonder if Lovie Smith has it in him to bench Grossman? Bill Parcells sat Drew Bledsoe down and Tony Romo has since gone 5-1 as a starter. Mike Shanahan has replaced Jake Plummer with Jay Cutler. Heck, today during the Chicago 23-13 win, the Minnesota coach, Brad Childress, replaced Brad Johnson with Brooks Bollinger and then, when Bollinger went down with an injury, sent rookie Tavaris Jackson out to take the snaps.
Brian Griese has been a Pro Bowl quarterback. He is known for making good decisions and managing the game. With a great defense and excellent special teams and a decent running game, the only aspect of the game of football the team seems to lack is consistent NFL-level quarterbacking. Griese can provide this if he is allowed to play.
Sorry, Rex, but I want this team to have a shot at the Super Bowl. The defense, the special teams, heck, everybody deserves a shot to win it all. You are holding the team back.
Lovie, set that young man on the sidelines, hand him a clipboard and let him learn from that perspective while Brian Griese reads defenses and rides this team to the promised land.
Eddy Curry, the Orlando Magic, El Chapu and other stuff
Eddy Curry is a great low-post scorer and gets a few 'bounds. But he thinks pass is something that gets you into the player's parking area and defense is something you yell at football games. Yeah, he's scoring over twenty points every night but his team is still losing. I'd attack the Knicks right down the middle whenever possible, he isn't a shot blocker and is a terrible helpside defender. A smart team will get him in foul trouble.
I still say Balkman is going to be just another Jerome Williams when he grows up. Hey, Zeke, better enroll Nate Robinson in a course of NBA defense for dummies. He really gets lost out there sometimes. Guess the Knicks are dedicated to giving the Bulls another lottery pick, eh?
Dwight Howard is blowing up. Why in the world Orlando doesn't dedicate themselves to feeding him in the post, I don't know. He'll go through long stretches without the ball while Hedo or Jameer or Grant take the shots. Howard is shooting almost 58% from the field, people! It is criminal he isn't scoring over 20 points a game! Criminal and dumb. Yes, I know the Magic are tearing up the East right now anyway. But shouldn't good try to be better?
Shots per game and FG%, Orlando Magic top five:
Dwight Howard 9.9 58.6
Grant Hill 10.2 53.6
Jameer Nelson 10.7 51.1
Carlos Arroyo 7.9 47.6
Hedo Turkoglu 10.4 36.2
Okay, YOU TELL ME who should be taking the most shots on this team, huh? (hint, the answer isn't Turkoglu).
Andres Nocioni is the real thing. El Chapu!!! Chicago rolls nicely when Luol Deng and Nocioni are both on the floor and they pretty well have to have at least one of them out there at all times. Too bad they both play the same position, really.
The Bulls can still be factors in the East. Michael Sweetney provides a nice low-post presence on the Bulls, but his defense is weak and he fouls too much. He also still needs to get in better game shape. It will be nice to see Tyrus Thomas begin to adjust to the pro game, the kid has the tools to be a real star. I hate seeing guys like Malik Allen on the court for the Bulls, or Adrian Griffin. Play guys who can give you something on both ends!!! Letting Thomas and Sweetney develop is necessary if a trade isn't going to be made for a good low-post scorer. The Chicago offense works very nicely with an inside threat, but without it they work their butts off to get a decent jumpshot out of their sets.
Kevin Martin is rapidly becoming a Ray Allen-ish player. I'm not kidding. Getting Brad Miller healthy will only make Martin and Bibby more productive. Martin has a sweet, albeit weird, stroke and he really does like to let the game come to him...only now he realizes he needs to assert himself more often for the sake of the team. Now if only Ron Artest would shoot a little less and concentrate on defense and rebounding, the Kings would make the playoffs. I think KMart would do more for them in the playoffs than Peja ever did.
White Chocolate is back, in case you didn't notice. He might be worth picking up right now in deeper leagues if you have someone who isn't carrying their share of the burden. Can't Pat Riley just bite the bullet and give Dorrell Wright a fulltime starting role? Or is there some kind of AARP discount available from playing mostly old guys? Just asking...Next year, I'll be bugging him about Earl Barron.
What ever happened to Michael Finley? You don't have him on your fantasy team, do you? Heck, even in a 16-team league he should be on the waiver wire! I also think that Horry is now a lot less "Big" and a lot more "Shot" than one would like. Good thing other guys are stepping up for the Spurs.
Sam Mitchell is getting a lot of heat, but his team is playing hard for him and winning a game now and again. You have to wonder how long this whole muscle injury thingy with Mo Pete is going to go on. Are the Raps quietly looking to trade Mr. Unnamed Player? Peterson is the primary reason the Raptors had such a long streak of games with at least one three point basket. Now that he is benched, the streak could end at any time. Last look, it was at 631 games!
Speaking of Raptors, have you noticed how Jorge Garbajosa and top pick Andrea Bargnani are adjusting to the NBA game? I guess Toronto really did figure out how to bring Europe to North America. I can see how this team has the pieces in place to become a power in the East, and soon. If they simply had a SF/SG type like a RayRay or a KMart or a Pierce or even a Redd who could take help spread the defense and be a consistent point producer, this team would be kickin'. Anthony Parker is an NBA player now, but no star. TJ Ford is a nice distributor. I do like Garbajosa and Bargnani as mobile bigs, like the Bosher, but Graham and Jones aren't real consistent shooters and Mo Pete has been consigned to Siberia.
What the heck is wrong with Chris Kaman and the Clips? How come Livingston isn't stepping up? Brand often starts slow, no worries there, and Mobley just tends to fill in the low places, but I expected Livingston and Kaman to be better this year rather than regress...and so did, I am sure, Clipper management.
I have to acknowledge that Kobe Bryant is better than he was last year, because he is getting teammates more involved. I cannot stand him and don't have him in any fantasy leagues. Still, he can drag the Lakers into the playoffs and they will be dangerous there. Ever notice that if you block Kobe or embarrass him, he plays "D" as good as Michael or Scottie did...for about two minutes? Nice to see that the younger Walton is beginning to make up for his father's awful announcing. Luke knows basketball and is so good in the triangle offense his sometimes lacking athleticism doesn't matter much.
That being said, Texas is home to the best teams in the NBA and I don't mean the Rockets. It's Spurs and Mavs who should be playing for the right to represent the West...with a caveat that the Suns, with a healthier Amare and Marion and Nash and terrific complementary players, they can beat anyone when they are rolling.
Notice how Denver and Golden State have jumped on the "7 seconds and shoot" gang? Really, few teams are as intertaining as Golden State right now. They have exciting young players, some star veterans, and they run it Donnyball style all night long. Too bad Mike Dunleavy is still as consistent as Indiana weather in November. Too bad that Baron can't stay healthy. Not certain they'll even make the playoffs, just sure they'll be worth the price of admission on the way to find out.
Denver really should make the playoffs, though. Carmelo, as I said before, has really upped his game and it seems George Karl is doing a good job of rotations with his squad. J R Smith might actually be getting a clue, and when role players like Najera and Evans are able to be who they are, no more, no less, and let the big dogs eat, then you have got a dangerous team.
Charlotte is hard to figure out, but Emeka is turning into a star and I like Adam Morrison far more than I thought I would. He has guts and the mind and heart of a star, a star who fits into the team concept...but he seriously has to tune up that free throw stroke. No way he's going to be what they need shooting 60-some percent from the foul line!
I have noticed that Rashard Lewis is playing his best ball ever this year and the Sonics will sometimes forget to pass him the ball, too. Me, if I have a guy who is on fire from outside or unstoppable inside, I keep giving him the ball. Lewis is scoring from deep and posting nicely, too. Right now Ray Allen takes 20 shots a game and Lewis gets 16. Give Lewis more shots and put the safety on errant gunners Earl Watson and Damien Wilkins. Speaking of which, remember back in October when reports had Watson putting Ridnour on the bench? Hahahahahahahahahahaha!!!!!!
I still say Balkman is going to be just another Jerome Williams when he grows up. Hey, Zeke, better enroll Nate Robinson in a course of NBA defense for dummies. He really gets lost out there sometimes. Guess the Knicks are dedicated to giving the Bulls another lottery pick, eh?
Dwight Howard is blowing up. Why in the world Orlando doesn't dedicate themselves to feeding him in the post, I don't know. He'll go through long stretches without the ball while Hedo or Jameer or Grant take the shots. Howard is shooting almost 58% from the field, people! It is criminal he isn't scoring over 20 points a game! Criminal and dumb. Yes, I know the Magic are tearing up the East right now anyway. But shouldn't good try to be better?
Shots per game and FG%, Orlando Magic top five:
Dwight Howard 9.9 58.6
Grant Hill 10.2 53.6
Jameer Nelson 10.7 51.1
Carlos Arroyo 7.9 47.6
Hedo Turkoglu 10.4 36.2
Okay, YOU TELL ME who should be taking the most shots on this team, huh? (hint, the answer isn't Turkoglu).
Andres Nocioni is the real thing. El Chapu!!! Chicago rolls nicely when Luol Deng and Nocioni are both on the floor and they pretty well have to have at least one of them out there at all times. Too bad they both play the same position, really.
The Bulls can still be factors in the East. Michael Sweetney provides a nice low-post presence on the Bulls, but his defense is weak and he fouls too much. He also still needs to get in better game shape. It will be nice to see Tyrus Thomas begin to adjust to the pro game, the kid has the tools to be a real star. I hate seeing guys like Malik Allen on the court for the Bulls, or Adrian Griffin. Play guys who can give you something on both ends!!! Letting Thomas and Sweetney develop is necessary if a trade isn't going to be made for a good low-post scorer. The Chicago offense works very nicely with an inside threat, but without it they work their butts off to get a decent jumpshot out of their sets.
Kevin Martin is rapidly becoming a Ray Allen-ish player. I'm not kidding. Getting Brad Miller healthy will only make Martin and Bibby more productive. Martin has a sweet, albeit weird, stroke and he really does like to let the game come to him...only now he realizes he needs to assert himself more often for the sake of the team. Now if only Ron Artest would shoot a little less and concentrate on defense and rebounding, the Kings would make the playoffs. I think KMart would do more for them in the playoffs than Peja ever did.
White Chocolate is back, in case you didn't notice. He might be worth picking up right now in deeper leagues if you have someone who isn't carrying their share of the burden. Can't Pat Riley just bite the bullet and give Dorrell Wright a fulltime starting role? Or is there some kind of AARP discount available from playing mostly old guys? Just asking...Next year, I'll be bugging him about Earl Barron.
What ever happened to Michael Finley? You don't have him on your fantasy team, do you? Heck, even in a 16-team league he should be on the waiver wire! I also think that Horry is now a lot less "Big" and a lot more "Shot" than one would like. Good thing other guys are stepping up for the Spurs.
Sam Mitchell is getting a lot of heat, but his team is playing hard for him and winning a game now and again. You have to wonder how long this whole muscle injury thingy with Mo Pete is going to go on. Are the Raps quietly looking to trade Mr. Unnamed Player? Peterson is the primary reason the Raptors had such a long streak of games with at least one three point basket. Now that he is benched, the streak could end at any time. Last look, it was at 631 games!
Speaking of Raptors, have you noticed how Jorge Garbajosa and top pick Andrea Bargnani are adjusting to the NBA game? I guess Toronto really did figure out how to bring Europe to North America. I can see how this team has the pieces in place to become a power in the East, and soon. If they simply had a SF/SG type like a RayRay or a KMart or a Pierce or even a Redd who could take help spread the defense and be a consistent point producer, this team would be kickin'. Anthony Parker is an NBA player now, but no star. TJ Ford is a nice distributor. I do like Garbajosa and Bargnani as mobile bigs, like the Bosher, but Graham and Jones aren't real consistent shooters and Mo Pete has been consigned to Siberia.
What the heck is wrong with Chris Kaman and the Clips? How come Livingston isn't stepping up? Brand often starts slow, no worries there, and Mobley just tends to fill in the low places, but I expected Livingston and Kaman to be better this year rather than regress...and so did, I am sure, Clipper management.
I have to acknowledge that Kobe Bryant is better than he was last year, because he is getting teammates more involved. I cannot stand him and don't have him in any fantasy leagues. Still, he can drag the Lakers into the playoffs and they will be dangerous there. Ever notice that if you block Kobe or embarrass him, he plays "D" as good as Michael or Scottie did...for about two minutes? Nice to see that the younger Walton is beginning to make up for his father's awful announcing. Luke knows basketball and is so good in the triangle offense his sometimes lacking athleticism doesn't matter much.
That being said, Texas is home to the best teams in the NBA and I don't mean the Rockets. It's Spurs and Mavs who should be playing for the right to represent the West...with a caveat that the Suns, with a healthier Amare and Marion and Nash and terrific complementary players, they can beat anyone when they are rolling.
Notice how Denver and Golden State have jumped on the "7 seconds and shoot" gang? Really, few teams are as intertaining as Golden State right now. They have exciting young players, some star veterans, and they run it Donnyball style all night long. Too bad Mike Dunleavy is still as consistent as Indiana weather in November. Too bad that Baron can't stay healthy. Not certain they'll even make the playoffs, just sure they'll be worth the price of admission on the way to find out.
Denver really should make the playoffs, though. Carmelo, as I said before, has really upped his game and it seems George Karl is doing a good job of rotations with his squad. J R Smith might actually be getting a clue, and when role players like Najera and Evans are able to be who they are, no more, no less, and let the big dogs eat, then you have got a dangerous team.
Charlotte is hard to figure out, but Emeka is turning into a star and I like Adam Morrison far more than I thought I would. He has guts and the mind and heart of a star, a star who fits into the team concept...but he seriously has to tune up that free throw stroke. No way he's going to be what they need shooting 60-some percent from the foul line!
I have noticed that Rashard Lewis is playing his best ball ever this year and the Sonics will sometimes forget to pass him the ball, too. Me, if I have a guy who is on fire from outside or unstoppable inside, I keep giving him the ball. Lewis is scoring from deep and posting nicely, too. Right now Ray Allen takes 20 shots a game and Lewis gets 16. Give Lewis more shots and put the safety on errant gunners Earl Watson and Damien Wilkins. Speaking of which, remember back in October when reports had Watson putting Ridnour on the bench? Hahahahahahahahahahaha!!!!!!
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