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Happy Christmas Eve everyone! I'm going to roll out a gimmick I've been thinking about doing for a while, I call it "headline tuesday." Basically, every Tuesday I will log on to ESPNs main page and write some abstract thoughts about some of their main headlines. Lets do this.
Fake Headline: NBA cancels Christmas Day slate, cites pathetic match-ups. Commissoner Stern considers flexing games from March.
Man I wish they could flex some future games for those first three abominations. How about Getting Indiana-Miami, Portland-OKC, Suns-Mavs, we can leave Houston-San Antonio and Golden State-LAC as they are, come on David, you can do it! Alas, on to the actual headlines.
Headline # 1: Romo Gets Epidural
Essentially Tony Romo is getting an injection to see if he can play this week and potentially help the Cowboys make the playoffs. This story just irritates me on so many levels. This Cowboys team (despite what Jerry Jones may tell you) is not very good, I think we can all agree on that. Whether they get bounced in week 17 in a do-or-die game against the Eagles or the first wild-card game of the playoffs is the only pertinent question left here. So why then risk the long-term health of the quarterback you just signed to a seven year extension? Shut him down for the season, let him get healthy and come back stronger next year. If Kyle Orton manages to pull off some playoff magic along the way so be it, but I don't think this Cowboys team can win the Superbowl this year, simply not worth the risk in my opinion.
Headline # 2: Nets' Pierce Fined 15K for Flagrant on Hill
Alternate: Garnett Says Nets Still Lack Identity
Two for the price of one! Man, what a sad season for the Brooklyn Nets. This team was supposed to challenge Miami? At the rate they are going they wont even make the playoffs and to make matters worse, they will have no draft picks in one of the best lotteries of all time. The way this organization is being run is an absolute joke. At this point the classy thing to do would be to trade KG and Pierce to teams that actually have a chance of making the playoffs, don't let their career end like this, please Billy King, if anyone can make this team worse its you.
Half-baked trade idea: KG + Pierce + Deron Williams to the Suns for at least 2 of their picks, one of Dragic/Bledsoe and Emeka Okafor's expiring contract. Of course, there is no way in hell the Suns do this but I thought I'd throw it out there.
Headline # 3: Garret Not Coaching For His Job, Jones Says
Ugh, nobody likes you Jerry Jones!
Headline # 4: D'antoni: "Find Another Team If Discouraged"
Man has it finally sunk in to Laker fans that they probably will not make the playoffs this year? The fact that their winning percentage without Kobe Bryant is higher than the percentage of winning with him speaks volumes about how wacky this Lakers season has been. Lakers fans: Settle down, you have had an incredible amount of success and have been spoiled by having some of the best players ever play for you. The Lakers' management baffles me as well. The smartest course of action would be to shut Kobe and Nash down for the year, trade Gasol for picks + assets and luck into a franchise player (the most Lakers thing ever). After all that is done sign Westbrook and Love and boom! Instant-contenders (Don't think that this can't happen). Luckily for us, the Lakers are satisfied being a 10 seed and stupid enough to believe that they can make serious noise in the playoffs. Let's enjoy this while it lasts, it does not happen often to this franchise.
Headline # 5: Bettman Upholds Ban for Bruin's Thorton
Good job Gary! Well done! I would have suspended him for longer.
Headline # 6: 49ers foil Falcons, grab playoff berth
This game made sure that some crazy scenarios (including the Seahawks dropping to a 5-seed, the Saints not making the playoffs, and Arizona winning 11 games and not making it to the playoffs) are all in play for week 17, most of them are really unlucky and the big losers here are Cardinals fans who really may have the scariest team. A real shame that they peaked in a season where the NFC has so much quality teams.
This is a video that pinpoints exactly the moment Cardinal fans had their hearts ripped in half.
See you next Tuesday for more headlines.
Merry Christmas Everyone!
Tuesday, December 24, 2013
Thursday, December 19, 2013
The Curious Case of the Toronto Raptors: Coaching Edition
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"There are a lot of things that need to change with this franchise in order to undo the mistakes of previous regimes. In the next few posts, I will outline the things that need to change and make no mistake these things will happen with Masai Ujiri in charge."
I wrote those words on December 4th, Rudy Gay was traded 3 days later. In Masai we trust.
To be perfectly honest, the ruthlessness and efficiency with which Masai got rid of one of the biggest cancers in the league shocked me. I had a whole mini-series of posts delayed by the trade and the subsequent rumors that followed it, but I think that things have settled down enough to proceed. In this post I will examine the # 1 problem with the Toronto Raptors: coaching. Sadly, coaching is not only an issue this season but it seems to be an ongoing theme with this franchise. Sigh. Let's get started.
1. Player Development
I am going to start this section by posting the stats of some players:
Player 1: GP: 80 Min: 34.6 FGM-A: 7.3-17.1 TO: 2.9 PTS: 20.3
Player 2: GP: 80 Min: 27.5 FGM-A: 4.0-8.3 TO: 1.8 PTS: 9.7
Player 3: GP: 80 Min: 20.9 FGM-A: 2.8-6.9 TO: 0.9 PTS: 7.6
Player one is Kevin Durant in his rookie season. I want you to pay special attention to the amount of minutes Durant was getting as well as the amount of field-goals he got to take. At that time, Seattle (Durant played his first season there before OKC robbed him and the Sonics) knew that they were not going to be competing for a championship anytime soon; keep that in mind for what is to come. Player two and three (as most of you deduced, seeing as this is a post about the Toronto Raptors) are Jonas Valanciunas and Terrence Ross respectively. The only problem with this is that I took the Stats for Ross and Val from THIS season (their second in the league). Once again, pay close attention to the minutes and shot attempts each player is getting. Seeing something wrong with this picture? Its one thing if the Raptors were serious title contenders and other, more established players were getting the majority of minutes, but lets be honest: this team sucks. So for the love of everything that is good WHY ARE WE NOT PLAYING OUR PROMISING YOUNG PLAYERS MORE??? I realize that using Durant is an extreme example but can you imagine if Seattle did to him what the Raptors are doing to Val/Ross now? The Raptors have this whole idiotic system in place where they:
-Want to put Val in a position of success
-Punish him severely for making mistakes and/or blowing defensive assignments
-Sit him during crunch time situations
In last nights tough loss to the Bobcats Valanciunas sat from about 5 minutes left in the third until the start of Overtime. Read that sentence again, once more: can you imagine if Seattle/OKC did this with Durant and Westbrook? Shouldn't the hapless Raptors, who are not going to be winning a title anytime soon be desperately developing their young talent in hopes that the players can blossom into stars? Even if they don't pan out at least by playing them you know that you gave them a real chance and wont get burned if they start producing for another team.
2. Game Management and Blowing Leads
I touched on the game against the Bobcats last night and mentioned in the previous section that it went to Overtime. What I did not mention is that mid-way through third quarter the Raptors held a 16 point lead. The Bobcats were on the road, playing the second night of a back-to-back, and down by 16 points; had Casey been coaching them, they would have lost by 35. So how did the Bobcats claw back and win the game? Absolutely shitty decision making by Dwane Casey that's how. He threw out line-ups that featured Hansborough and Patterson (Neither guy can create his own shot but both guys love to hold the ball and try to do so anyways) he refused to call time-outs (more on this in a bit) and he refused to change things up on time. If this was the first time the Raptors blew a big lead, I would not waste time writing this, it happens to everyone. With the Raptors however, blowing big leads is a disturbing trend. Even more disturbing is the amount of one-possession losses that the Raptors have accumulated during Casey's tenure. If your coach is constantly allowing big leads to evaporate and gives fans heart attacks with his awful end-game decisions then its time to hire a new coach. I'll leave off this section with this awesome video that perfectly sums up Dwane Casey as a coach: Big lead blown, awful end-game play calling and having Aaron Gray on the court to double team Kobe Bryant during a key posession.
3. Timeouts and Player Intelligence
This section is pretty simple. Casey does not know when to call a timeout to kill a team's momentum. I can use the Bobcats game from last night as evidence. Hell, Raptors Republic a website way more devoted to this team than I am regularly gives Dwane Casey an F for his coaching performances. That link will take you to the grades from last nights game, they sum up Casey's mistakes better than I could here. Dwane Casey also sucks at educating his team about simple things such as: foul when you are losing and the other team does not have to shoot the ball because there is less than 24 seconds left in the game. Sigh (again).
I mean did this guy really orchestrate the defense that last beat Miami in a playoff series? I think we gave Rick Carlisle way too little credit on that one. Can the Raptors hire some better coaches? For once I would like them to give the job to an established coach who wins games, I am tired of the Kevin O'neil, Sam Mitchell, and Jay Triano's of the world.
Hey Masai, Feel free to fire Casey after reading this, you made us all happier by trading Rudy last time (I can hope can't I?)
I wrote those words on December 4th, Rudy Gay was traded 3 days later. In Masai we trust.
To be perfectly honest, the ruthlessness and efficiency with which Masai got rid of one of the biggest cancers in the league shocked me. I had a whole mini-series of posts delayed by the trade and the subsequent rumors that followed it, but I think that things have settled down enough to proceed. In this post I will examine the # 1 problem with the Toronto Raptors: coaching. Sadly, coaching is not only an issue this season but it seems to be an ongoing theme with this franchise. Sigh. Let's get started.
1. Player Development
I am going to start this section by posting the stats of some players:
Player 1: GP: 80 Min: 34.6 FGM-A: 7.3-17.1 TO: 2.9 PTS: 20.3
Player 2: GP: 80 Min: 27.5 FGM-A: 4.0-8.3 TO: 1.8 PTS: 9.7
Player 3: GP: 80 Min: 20.9 FGM-A: 2.8-6.9 TO: 0.9 PTS: 7.6
Player one is Kevin Durant in his rookie season. I want you to pay special attention to the amount of minutes Durant was getting as well as the amount of field-goals he got to take. At that time, Seattle (Durant played his first season there before OKC robbed him and the Sonics) knew that they were not going to be competing for a championship anytime soon; keep that in mind for what is to come. Player two and three (as most of you deduced, seeing as this is a post about the Toronto Raptors) are Jonas Valanciunas and Terrence Ross respectively. The only problem with this is that I took the Stats for Ross and Val from THIS season (their second in the league). Once again, pay close attention to the minutes and shot attempts each player is getting. Seeing something wrong with this picture? Its one thing if the Raptors were serious title contenders and other, more established players were getting the majority of minutes, but lets be honest: this team sucks. So for the love of everything that is good WHY ARE WE NOT PLAYING OUR PROMISING YOUNG PLAYERS MORE??? I realize that using Durant is an extreme example but can you imagine if Seattle did to him what the Raptors are doing to Val/Ross now? The Raptors have this whole idiotic system in place where they:
-Want to put Val in a position of success
-Punish him severely for making mistakes and/or blowing defensive assignments
-Sit him during crunch time situations
In last nights tough loss to the Bobcats Valanciunas sat from about 5 minutes left in the third until the start of Overtime. Read that sentence again, once more: can you imagine if Seattle/OKC did this with Durant and Westbrook? Shouldn't the hapless Raptors, who are not going to be winning a title anytime soon be desperately developing their young talent in hopes that the players can blossom into stars? Even if they don't pan out at least by playing them you know that you gave them a real chance and wont get burned if they start producing for another team.
2. Game Management and Blowing Leads
I touched on the game against the Bobcats last night and mentioned in the previous section that it went to Overtime. What I did not mention is that mid-way through third quarter the Raptors held a 16 point lead. The Bobcats were on the road, playing the second night of a back-to-back, and down by 16 points; had Casey been coaching them, they would have lost by 35. So how did the Bobcats claw back and win the game? Absolutely shitty decision making by Dwane Casey that's how. He threw out line-ups that featured Hansborough and Patterson (Neither guy can create his own shot but both guys love to hold the ball and try to do so anyways) he refused to call time-outs (more on this in a bit) and he refused to change things up on time. If this was the first time the Raptors blew a big lead, I would not waste time writing this, it happens to everyone. With the Raptors however, blowing big leads is a disturbing trend. Even more disturbing is the amount of one-possession losses that the Raptors have accumulated during Casey's tenure. If your coach is constantly allowing big leads to evaporate and gives fans heart attacks with his awful end-game decisions then its time to hire a new coach. I'll leave off this section with this awesome video that perfectly sums up Dwane Casey as a coach: Big lead blown, awful end-game play calling and having Aaron Gray on the court to double team Kobe Bryant during a key posession.
3. Timeouts and Player Intelligence
This section is pretty simple. Casey does not know when to call a timeout to kill a team's momentum. I can use the Bobcats game from last night as evidence. Hell, Raptors Republic a website way more devoted to this team than I am regularly gives Dwane Casey an F for his coaching performances. That link will take you to the grades from last nights game, they sum up Casey's mistakes better than I could here. Dwane Casey also sucks at educating his team about simple things such as: foul when you are losing and the other team does not have to shoot the ball because there is less than 24 seconds left in the game. Sigh (again).
I mean did this guy really orchestrate the defense that last beat Miami in a playoff series? I think we gave Rick Carlisle way too little credit on that one. Can the Raptors hire some better coaches? For once I would like them to give the job to an established coach who wins games, I am tired of the Kevin O'neil, Sam Mitchell, and Jay Triano's of the world.
Hey Masai, Feel free to fire Casey after reading this, you made us all happier by trading Rudy last time (I can hope can't I?)
Wednesday, December 4, 2013
The Curious Case of the Toronto Raptors
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One would think that Raptors fans would have grown immune to ugly (or in this case monumentally horrific) losses such as last night's 112-103 defeat to the Golden State Warriors. With this franchise as it turns out, there is no such thing as immunity.
About 20 minutes after the loss to the Warriors last night, RealGM, reddit, and Raptors Republic spawned about 500 posts of straight frustration venting about this team and this organization (I was one of them) I thought it would make me feel better, but this morning it is possible that I am even more upset, hence the un-retiring of this blog. I honestly don't even know where to begin. I could talk about how our "best" player, team captain and fearless team leader, the one who is so committed to winning that he banned others from looking at box scores following games (the irony here is too much), is so universally hated by Raptors fans right now that its making the hate for Bargnani look mild. The player in question is an absolute laughing stock in the NBA analytics community, a perennial black hole on offence who constantly takes (and makes roughly 39%) such bad shots that even Kobe Bryant and Nick Young are laughing at him. A guy with the audacity to smile after losing a game in which his team held a 27-point lead in the 3rd quarter. You know what? Lets start things off by talking about this player, for those of you who live on another planet and have never heard of the sport of basketball, the players name is Rudy Gay.
The more we see the guy play the more we realize why Memphis gladly gave him to us. Its a wonder that people didn't put two and two together when this trade happened. An underrated Memphis squad that made a deep playoff run without Rudy Gay, then fizzed out in the first round with him, and finally traded him away and made the conference finals! This trade was Colangelo's last-ditch attempt to save his job, one in which he rolled the dice on a terrible shooter, ball hog, and career loser, a perfect fit for this franchise actually. Now don't get me wrong, I really like the Raptors and I really want to see them be a successful team. However, after almost 20 years of mediocrity (and that is being polite) where the highlights of this franchise have been: one playoff series win, a dunk contest, and free pizza when they score 100 points. This is a franchise that has created a culture of quality players bolting at the first chance they get, botching draft picks in laughable fashion, and overpaying decent players who wouldn't make half as much anywhere else. In all seriousness; try to come up with a list of top 10 moments for this franchise. Odds are that beating the 70 win Bulls will be on there and quite frankly, when a regular season win in a year that you did not even crack 30 games in the W column makes your top 10, something is very very very wrong.
There are a lot of things that need to change with this franchise in order to undo the mistakes of previous regimes. In the next few posts, I will outline the things that need to change and make no mistake these things will happen with Masai Ujiri in charge.
Up next. everybody's favourite coach: Dwane Casey who may get more than one post devoted to him.
About 20 minutes after the loss to the Warriors last night, RealGM, reddit, and Raptors Republic spawned about 500 posts of straight frustration venting about this team and this organization (I was one of them) I thought it would make me feel better, but this morning it is possible that I am even more upset, hence the un-retiring of this blog. I honestly don't even know where to begin. I could talk about how our "best" player, team captain and fearless team leader, the one who is so committed to winning that he banned others from looking at box scores following games (the irony here is too much), is so universally hated by Raptors fans right now that its making the hate for Bargnani look mild. The player in question is an absolute laughing stock in the NBA analytics community, a perennial black hole on offence who constantly takes (and makes roughly 39%) such bad shots that even Kobe Bryant and Nick Young are laughing at him. A guy with the audacity to smile after losing a game in which his team held a 27-point lead in the 3rd quarter. You know what? Lets start things off by talking about this player, for those of you who live on another planet and have never heard of the sport of basketball, the players name is Rudy Gay.
The more we see the guy play the more we realize why Memphis gladly gave him to us. Its a wonder that people didn't put two and two together when this trade happened. An underrated Memphis squad that made a deep playoff run without Rudy Gay, then fizzed out in the first round with him, and finally traded him away and made the conference finals! This trade was Colangelo's last-ditch attempt to save his job, one in which he rolled the dice on a terrible shooter, ball hog, and career loser, a perfect fit for this franchise actually. Now don't get me wrong, I really like the Raptors and I really want to see them be a successful team. However, after almost 20 years of mediocrity (and that is being polite) where the highlights of this franchise have been: one playoff series win, a dunk contest, and free pizza when they score 100 points. This is a franchise that has created a culture of quality players bolting at the first chance they get, botching draft picks in laughable fashion, and overpaying decent players who wouldn't make half as much anywhere else. In all seriousness; try to come up with a list of top 10 moments for this franchise. Odds are that beating the 70 win Bulls will be on there and quite frankly, when a regular season win in a year that you did not even crack 30 games in the W column makes your top 10, something is very very very wrong.
There are a lot of things that need to change with this franchise in order to undo the mistakes of previous regimes. In the next few posts, I will outline the things that need to change and make no mistake these things will happen with Masai Ujiri in charge.
Up next. everybody's favourite coach: Dwane Casey who may get more than one post devoted to him.
Sunday, September 8, 2013
Breaking Bad Season 5 Episode 13: "To Hajiilee" Review
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This review contains MASSIVE spoilers, yes I used all caps because having this episode spoiled would make you hate life. You have been warned
Is it even possible to write a coherent review about this episode? After watching it would you care what happened for the first 40 or so minutes? I would personally skim past everything and try to analyze the way this episode finished for hours. So let's do that. Let me start off by saying that the ending absolutely sucked. Not that it was bad or anything, but when it spawns tweets like this, this, and this and also causes one of my friends (the one who tweeted that last bit of genius) to say things like: "That episode was a half-measure" you know that they fucked up. You absolutely cannot leave us with a cliffhanger in this specific situation and I am about to go into detail as to why.
First of all, assuming Hank and Gomie meet their end, their deaths would be WAY less meaningful and/or shocking because we will have had a full week from the airing of this episode to deal with it and think about it. On the other hand, if they somehow survive (my beacon of hope is that Hank is two for two in shootouts and situations like these) it would be an incredible reach by the writers, very "Hollywood" if you will. Worse yet, they could opt to just skip the shoot out and show us the aftermath and move on. I think that last option would cause riots. Its a no-win situation. We are either heavily disappointed, or are rolling our eyes at a miraculous escape. Sigh. Despite the ending of "To Hajiilee" I must say that it is an absolute gem of an episode, a true Breaking Bad classic that had all the aspects of what made this show so good over the years.
We had Walt being his despicable self with his ploy to lure Jesse to Andria's house. We had Hank finally displaying the type of police work that we saw him display when he was on the hunt for Gus. Taking Jesse's phone, figuring out that Walt buried his money, and fleecing Huel were all really good moments and were very fun to watch. The cream of the crop however, was tricking Walt into revealing the location of his buried treasure. Hank created a way in which Walt would have absolutely no chance to call for back-up or see the trap coming. Really good stuff.
Next week literally can not come fast enough. Only. Three. Left.
Overall Rating For This Episode: The tension in this episode was unbearable, the plot was fantastic, and as we round the corner and come into the home stretch; I could not imagine a better way (despite the ending). There is absolutely no doubt that this episode receives a 10/10.
Note: The Ending itself received a -092138120983/10 but it really could not ruin the overall brilliance.
Best Scene: Everything from the point that Walt saw the picture which he thought was his money all the way through to the gunfight. Absolutely the most dramatic moment of the series to date.
Best Quote: "Walter White... You are under arrest" In what may be some of his last words, there can only be one choice
-Hank
This review contains MASSIVE spoilers, yes I used all caps because having this episode spoiled would make you hate life. You have been warned
Is it even possible to write a coherent review about this episode? After watching it would you care what happened for the first 40 or so minutes? I would personally skim past everything and try to analyze the way this episode finished for hours. So let's do that. Let me start off by saying that the ending absolutely sucked. Not that it was bad or anything, but when it spawns tweets like this, this, and this and also causes one of my friends (the one who tweeted that last bit of genius) to say things like: "That episode was a half-measure" you know that they fucked up. You absolutely cannot leave us with a cliffhanger in this specific situation and I am about to go into detail as to why.
First of all, assuming Hank and Gomie meet their end, their deaths would be WAY less meaningful and/or shocking because we will have had a full week from the airing of this episode to deal with it and think about it. On the other hand, if they somehow survive (my beacon of hope is that Hank is two for two in shootouts and situations like these) it would be an incredible reach by the writers, very "Hollywood" if you will. Worse yet, they could opt to just skip the shoot out and show us the aftermath and move on. I think that last option would cause riots. Its a no-win situation. We are either heavily disappointed, or are rolling our eyes at a miraculous escape. Sigh. Despite the ending of "To Hajiilee" I must say that it is an absolute gem of an episode, a true Breaking Bad classic that had all the aspects of what made this show so good over the years.
We had Walt being his despicable self with his ploy to lure Jesse to Andria's house. We had Hank finally displaying the type of police work that we saw him display when he was on the hunt for Gus. Taking Jesse's phone, figuring out that Walt buried his money, and fleecing Huel were all really good moments and were very fun to watch. The cream of the crop however, was tricking Walt into revealing the location of his buried treasure. Hank created a way in which Walt would have absolutely no chance to call for back-up or see the trap coming. Really good stuff.
Next week literally can not come fast enough. Only. Three. Left.
Overall Rating For This Episode: The tension in this episode was unbearable, the plot was fantastic, and as we round the corner and come into the home stretch; I could not imagine a better way (despite the ending). There is absolutely no doubt that this episode receives a 10/10.
Note: The Ending itself received a -092138120983/10 but it really could not ruin the overall brilliance.
Best Scene: Everything from the point that Walt saw the picture which he thought was his money all the way through to the gunfight. Absolutely the most dramatic moment of the series to date.
Best Quote: "Walter White... You are under arrest" In what may be some of his last words, there can only be one choice
-Hank
Tuesday, September 3, 2013
Breaking Bad Season 5 Episode 12: "Rabid Dog" Review
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As always, this review will contain spoilers. If you have not seen the episode yet and do not wish to have it ruined, stop reading now and come back once you have seen it. You have been warned
"Rabid Dog" the title of this episode is a nice homage to "Problem Dog" (season four, episode seven) in the sense that it is all about Jesse and how his actions have stirred the pot once again. Last week we ended with Jesse pouring gasoline all over the White residence. Unlike the previous few episodes, this one did not pick up right at that point (although it easily could have once we saw where Jesse disappeared to) but rather at the point where Walt got to his house and noticed Jesse's car. The events that followed were a bit too "Hollywood" for my liking.
What do I mean by Hollywood? Its when a TV show sacrifices an established premise (in Breaking Bad's case its: meticulous and realistic situations) in favor of more flashy scenes that only serve to either a): advance the plot towards a desired direction quickly so that no one questions it, or b): to have a spectacular scene (think "One Minute") that has fans talking for a while. In one case I accept it and enjoy the fireworks, in the other I am bitterly disappointed and feel that the show can do better. In this episode's case some such events stand out: Walt arriving literally one second after Hank and Jesse leave his house, and the last scene. Man I hated the last scene. What are the odds that a guy who, looks like an absolute thug, is standing at a perfect distance from Walt to make it seem like he is on orders to kill the first person to approach, mean-mugs the entire time, and picks up his daughter three seconds after Jesse threatens Walt? That is pure Hollywood and this show is better than that. I could think of nine different ways that they could have done that scene better.
Having said all that, the episode did have some nice positives. Hank revealing to his partner that he could care less if Jesse dies as long as he gets Walt in the end, Marie (best season for her by far) having very realistic and emotional scenes, Skylar throwing out the suggestion to kill Jesse (at this point I do not think there is a single fan who wants her alive), and lastly, Walt making the call to our old friend Todd (also known as child murderer). This Jesse situation (can we get a clarification from the writers? Lily of the Valley poisoned Brock, not the Ricin! This is a really fristrating plot flaw) has escalated to the point where Walt is asking from help from a dangerous party. Considering the fact that we know (to some extent) what happens a year from now, I am really excited to see how things fall apart. Only four episodes to go.
Overall Rating for this episode: 7.7/10 An underwhelming episode, fueled by unrealistic plot progression that will probably wind up being the worst episode of this season. Let's just get to next week already.
Best Scene: The show runners really want people to say stuff like "OH WOW, IF JESSE ONLY WAITED ONE SECOND" yeah that is not happening. I am going with the scene where Hank convinces Jesse to help him bring down Walt.
Best Quote: "He can't keep getting away with this" - Jesse
As always, this review will contain spoilers. If you have not seen the episode yet and do not wish to have it ruined, stop reading now and come back once you have seen it. You have been warned
"Rabid Dog" the title of this episode is a nice homage to "Problem Dog" (season four, episode seven) in the sense that it is all about Jesse and how his actions have stirred the pot once again. Last week we ended with Jesse pouring gasoline all over the White residence. Unlike the previous few episodes, this one did not pick up right at that point (although it easily could have once we saw where Jesse disappeared to) but rather at the point where Walt got to his house and noticed Jesse's car. The events that followed were a bit too "Hollywood" for my liking.
What do I mean by Hollywood? Its when a TV show sacrifices an established premise (in Breaking Bad's case its: meticulous and realistic situations) in favor of more flashy scenes that only serve to either a): advance the plot towards a desired direction quickly so that no one questions it, or b): to have a spectacular scene (think "One Minute") that has fans talking for a while. In one case I accept it and enjoy the fireworks, in the other I am bitterly disappointed and feel that the show can do better. In this episode's case some such events stand out: Walt arriving literally one second after Hank and Jesse leave his house, and the last scene. Man I hated the last scene. What are the odds that a guy who, looks like an absolute thug, is standing at a perfect distance from Walt to make it seem like he is on orders to kill the first person to approach, mean-mugs the entire time, and picks up his daughter three seconds after Jesse threatens Walt? That is pure Hollywood and this show is better than that. I could think of nine different ways that they could have done that scene better.
Having said all that, the episode did have some nice positives. Hank revealing to his partner that he could care less if Jesse dies as long as he gets Walt in the end, Marie (best season for her by far) having very realistic and emotional scenes, Skylar throwing out the suggestion to kill Jesse (at this point I do not think there is a single fan who wants her alive), and lastly, Walt making the call to our old friend Todd (also known as child murderer). This Jesse situation (can we get a clarification from the writers? Lily of the Valley poisoned Brock, not the Ricin! This is a really fristrating plot flaw) has escalated to the point where Walt is asking from help from a dangerous party. Considering the fact that we know (to some extent) what happens a year from now, I am really excited to see how things fall apart. Only four episodes to go.
Overall Rating for this episode: 7.7/10 An underwhelming episode, fueled by unrealistic plot progression that will probably wind up being the worst episode of this season. Let's just get to next week already.
Best Scene: The show runners really want people to say stuff like "OH WOW, IF JESSE ONLY WAITED ONE SECOND" yeah that is not happening. I am going with the scene where Hank convinces Jesse to help him bring down Walt.
Best Quote: "He can't keep getting away with this" - Jesse
Monday, August 26, 2013
Breaking Bad Season 5 Episode 11: "Confessions" Review
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As always, this review will contain spoilers. If you have not seen the episode yet and do not wish to have it ruined, stop reading now and come back once you have seen it. You have been warned.
How good was this episode? It was so good that the last few scenes made you forget about the one that the title is about! That's how good.
The formula of the last three or so episodes has stayed the same: A quick scene of characters not central to the main story at the time, followed by things picking up exactly where last episode left off. In this case it was Todd explaining the train heist to his Nazi crew (leaving out the part where he shot a kid) and said crew asking him if he can handle the Meth cooking load. A ho-hum scene just to keep the story of the empire Walt left behind going so that we can focus on the truly good stuff, the battle between Walt and Hank. After realizing that Hank and Marie would not stop their pursuit of their children, Walter and Skylar decide that the best course of action would be to make a confession tape... with a twist!
Realizing that Hank had no real evidence against him, Walt completely turned the tables on him with his confession tape, which was not really a confession, but rather it was a bunch of intricate lies that painted Hank as the bad guy of the series and Walt as a victim. Amazing. It was the equivalent of Walt adding two random queens to this ongoing chess game between him and Hank. Hank and Marie's reactions also just added to the fun. There have been moments this series where Walt has been an absolute Boss in weaseling out of a jam and this was no exception. Heck, it might have been his best one yet. Poor Hank was so defeated that he did not even try to continue investigating, almost looking like he accepted defeat. Almost.
We expected that confession tape to be the highlight of the episode, with things winding down at the end. This is not the breaking bad style however. Instead of a calm ending to an episode I would have chalked up as further "set-up", we got fireworks. Jesse, all but forced to hit the reset button on his life by Walt and get a new identity with Saul's guy had the sort of revelation that we have been waiting for for almost two years. After meeting with Saul and agreeing to the disappearance, the seemingly minor detail of having Huel lift some marijuana off of Jesse to ensure nothing goes wrong turned into a cataclysmic mistake by Saul. It took the sudden disappearance of his drugs combined with Huel bumping into him when he did not have to, mixed in with a feeling of deja vu for Jesse to connect all of the dots and for the truth to hit him like a train. Walt. Poisoned. Brock. Now, I discussed whether or not the fact that Brock was poisoned by the Lily of the Valley (and NOT ricin) represented a massive plot flaw in the series and we came to a modest conclusion. Jesse knows that ricin was not used, but he also knows that Walt for sure poisoned Brock and that it was not an accident or Gus doing so. This realization was really cleverly foreshadowed earlier in the episode when Jesse broke down and exposed Walt for constantly manipulating things.
The episode ended with Jesse storming into the White residence pouring gasoline all over the place. Like I said, fireworks. Only five episodes remain.
Overall Rating for this episode: 9.4/10 Beautifully acted, beautifully executed, left us wanting more, classic breaking bad right there.
Best Scene (tie) Hank and Marie watching the confession tape, and everything after Jesse realizes that Huel lifted the drugs off of him.
Best Quote: "Can you for once just ask me to do something without trying to manipulate me?"
-Jesse
How good was this episode? It was so good that the last few scenes made you forget about the one that the title is about! That's how good.
The formula of the last three or so episodes has stayed the same: A quick scene of characters not central to the main story at the time, followed by things picking up exactly where last episode left off. In this case it was Todd explaining the train heist to his Nazi crew (leaving out the part where he shot a kid) and said crew asking him if he can handle the Meth cooking load. A ho-hum scene just to keep the story of the empire Walt left behind going so that we can focus on the truly good stuff, the battle between Walt and Hank. After realizing that Hank and Marie would not stop their pursuit of their children, Walter and Skylar decide that the best course of action would be to make a confession tape... with a twist!
Realizing that Hank had no real evidence against him, Walt completely turned the tables on him with his confession tape, which was not really a confession, but rather it was a bunch of intricate lies that painted Hank as the bad guy of the series and Walt as a victim. Amazing. It was the equivalent of Walt adding two random queens to this ongoing chess game between him and Hank. Hank and Marie's reactions also just added to the fun. There have been moments this series where Walt has been an absolute Boss in weaseling out of a jam and this was no exception. Heck, it might have been his best one yet. Poor Hank was so defeated that he did not even try to continue investigating, almost looking like he accepted defeat. Almost.
We expected that confession tape to be the highlight of the episode, with things winding down at the end. This is not the breaking bad style however. Instead of a calm ending to an episode I would have chalked up as further "set-up", we got fireworks. Jesse, all but forced to hit the reset button on his life by Walt and get a new identity with Saul's guy had the sort of revelation that we have been waiting for for almost two years. After meeting with Saul and agreeing to the disappearance, the seemingly minor detail of having Huel lift some marijuana off of Jesse to ensure nothing goes wrong turned into a cataclysmic mistake by Saul. It took the sudden disappearance of his drugs combined with Huel bumping into him when he did not have to, mixed in with a feeling of deja vu for Jesse to connect all of the dots and for the truth to hit him like a train. Walt. Poisoned. Brock. Now, I discussed whether or not the fact that Brock was poisoned by the Lily of the Valley (and NOT ricin) represented a massive plot flaw in the series and we came to a modest conclusion. Jesse knows that ricin was not used, but he also knows that Walt for sure poisoned Brock and that it was not an accident or Gus doing so. This realization was really cleverly foreshadowed earlier in the episode when Jesse broke down and exposed Walt for constantly manipulating things.
The episode ended with Jesse storming into the White residence pouring gasoline all over the place. Like I said, fireworks. Only five episodes remain.
Overall Rating for this episode: 9.4/10 Beautifully acted, beautifully executed, left us wanting more, classic breaking bad right there.
Best Scene (tie) Hank and Marie watching the confession tape, and everything after Jesse realizes that Huel lifted the drugs off of him.
Best Quote: "Can you for once just ask me to do something without trying to manipulate me?"
-Jesse
Monday, August 19, 2013
Breaking Bad Season 5 Episode 10: "Buried" Review
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As Always, these reviews will contain spoilers. So if you have not gotten the chance to watch this episode and do not wish to have anything ruined, stop reading now and come back once you are caught up. You have been warned.
It was always going to be hard to top "Blood Money" (The episode preceding this one) and I feel like a lot of episodes would seem worse when the bar had been raised so high the week before. Having said that, I probably liked this episode more than most of the people I discussed it with after watching it. In every sense, "Buried" is a set up episode that needs to exist to string us along to the next major event of the series. It contained a lot of substance with very little flash.
After a brief scene of a lucky individual finding the cash Jesse was distributing, Robin Hood style, across Albuquerque, and seeing Jesse in his patented 'down on the world' state, the episode picked up literally where it left off last week. Now, I do not know if they plan on having all of the episodes this season directly pick up where the last one ended, but I will say that I really enjoyed it and the way in which it was done. Hank wastes no time in trying to gather the evidence against Walt and immediately calls a shell-shocked Skylar to recruit her to testify against Walt's crimes. Fearing for her own freedom, Skylar refuses to be interrogated and creates great tension between herself and Marie (who is obviously upset that Skylar wont help close the case on why Hank was shot, although I think trying to take the baby was a but much).
The rest of the episode is a classic Walt-scrambles-to-cover-his-tracks episode that was a staple of the early seasons. He recruits Saul's 'security' to transport the money over to him in a van so that Walt can bury it in the desert. After that, he and Skylar agree that the best course of action would be to stay quiet, as Hank does not have concrete evidence against Walt. Problem solved right? Not if Lydia (dime) and Todd (child murderer) have anything to say about it. Lydia takes the meth quality problem into her own hands and visits Declan's meth enclave in the middle of nowhere. Now, even though Declan's crew was smart enough to blind-fold her, they were not smart enough to make sure she did not have anything else on her, say a tracking device, that could cause their enclave to be found out. So Lydia's solution to the poor meth quality? Kill everyone on this side of the business in an attempt to re-instate Todd as the main cook, so that her Czech Republic buyer will continue to buy the meth from her.
This is where we could have gotten an awesome scene of Todd and his crew having a gunfight against Declan's crew. Sadly, we got no such scene. The scene we did get was: Lydia cowering in a corner of the underground Meth lab and then refusing to open her eyes for the carnage once it was over (might be time to rethink your life choices Lydia). Yeah, can't really blame anyone for being disappointed here. We did get an amazing cliff-hanger at the end of the episode however, as Hank entered an interrogation room that was holding Jesse. What happens from this point is anyone's guess, I would really like next episode to open with Jesse and Hank in the interrogation room, which would continue the trend of an immediate continuation that we have seen over the last three episodes. One final thing: There is a very cool theory circulating on the internet that points out that Walt takes on the traits of people he has killed (cutting the crust off his sandwiches like Crazy-8, Driving a Volvo like Gus, taking his hard liquor on the rocks like Mike used to). I will just leave you with the fact that in the flash-forward scene from last week's episode he was wearing Jesse's jacket and using an ID with Skylar's maiden name. Six episodes left.
Overall score for this episode: 7.9/10 Nothing spectacular, something tells me this will be the lowest rated episode of the season.
Best Scene: Let's go with Lydia orchestrating the desert massacre
Best Quote: "Please don't let all I have done... be for nothing" - Walt
As Always, these reviews will contain spoilers. So if you have not gotten the chance to watch this episode and do not wish to have anything ruined, stop reading now and come back once you are caught up. You have been warned.
It was always going to be hard to top "Blood Money" (The episode preceding this one) and I feel like a lot of episodes would seem worse when the bar had been raised so high the week before. Having said that, I probably liked this episode more than most of the people I discussed it with after watching it. In every sense, "Buried" is a set up episode that needs to exist to string us along to the next major event of the series. It contained a lot of substance with very little flash.
After a brief scene of a lucky individual finding the cash Jesse was distributing, Robin Hood style, across Albuquerque, and seeing Jesse in his patented 'down on the world' state, the episode picked up literally where it left off last week. Now, I do not know if they plan on having all of the episodes this season directly pick up where the last one ended, but I will say that I really enjoyed it and the way in which it was done. Hank wastes no time in trying to gather the evidence against Walt and immediately calls a shell-shocked Skylar to recruit her to testify against Walt's crimes. Fearing for her own freedom, Skylar refuses to be interrogated and creates great tension between herself and Marie (who is obviously upset that Skylar wont help close the case on why Hank was shot, although I think trying to take the baby was a but much).
The rest of the episode is a classic Walt-scrambles-to-cover-his-tracks episode that was a staple of the early seasons. He recruits Saul's 'security' to transport the money over to him in a van so that Walt can bury it in the desert. After that, he and Skylar agree that the best course of action would be to stay quiet, as Hank does not have concrete evidence against Walt. Problem solved right? Not if Lydia (dime) and Todd (child murderer) have anything to say about it. Lydia takes the meth quality problem into her own hands and visits Declan's meth enclave in the middle of nowhere. Now, even though Declan's crew was smart enough to blind-fold her, they were not smart enough to make sure she did not have anything else on her, say a tracking device, that could cause their enclave to be found out. So Lydia's solution to the poor meth quality? Kill everyone on this side of the business in an attempt to re-instate Todd as the main cook, so that her Czech Republic buyer will continue to buy the meth from her.
This is where we could have gotten an awesome scene of Todd and his crew having a gunfight against Declan's crew. Sadly, we got no such scene. The scene we did get was: Lydia cowering in a corner of the underground Meth lab and then refusing to open her eyes for the carnage once it was over (might be time to rethink your life choices Lydia). Yeah, can't really blame anyone for being disappointed here. We did get an amazing cliff-hanger at the end of the episode however, as Hank entered an interrogation room that was holding Jesse. What happens from this point is anyone's guess, I would really like next episode to open with Jesse and Hank in the interrogation room, which would continue the trend of an immediate continuation that we have seen over the last three episodes. One final thing: There is a very cool theory circulating on the internet that points out that Walt takes on the traits of people he has killed (cutting the crust off his sandwiches like Crazy-8, Driving a Volvo like Gus, taking his hard liquor on the rocks like Mike used to). I will just leave you with the fact that in the flash-forward scene from last week's episode he was wearing Jesse's jacket and using an ID with Skylar's maiden name. Six episodes left.
Overall score for this episode: 7.9/10 Nothing spectacular, something tells me this will be the lowest rated episode of the season.
Best Scene: Let's go with Lydia orchestrating the desert massacre
Best Quote: "Please don't let all I have done... be for nothing" - Walt
Monday, August 12, 2013
Breaking Bad Season 5 Episode 9: "Blood Money" Review
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As always, these reviews will contain major spoilers so from this point on its on you.
Well that was one hell of a way to kick off the last eight episodes of the series wasn't it?
For starters, I really enjoyed the fact that, following another flash-forward scene, "Blood Money" picked up literally moments after the end of last year's mid-season finale. The writers produced a truly intriguing sequence that was all kinds of fun to watch. From Hank hiding the book in his bag, to the awkward getaway from the lunch, to his episode (of what I am assuming is his post traumatic stress disorder acting up again) in the car, everything about the scene reminded me of why I missed this show so much. The episode only got better from there.
We quickly saw that Walter could never truly be out, and that his 'Heisenberg' persona would always weigh heavily on his life. First it was Lydia coming to the car-wash in an attempt to get Walter back into the game, something Skylar (was this her first truly great moment of the series?) was having none of. Then it was Jesse attempting to give money to the families who have been affected by Walter White's rampage of evil, something that Walter quickly tried to stop by visiting Jesse again. Following those events, Walter realized that Hank is onto him which culminated in their tense confrontation at the end of the episode (something I will discuss in more detail shortly). So now we see that things were not so neatly tied up as we thought. A particularly intriguing aspect of this episode was Jesse spiraling down into an endless pool of guilt. He knows Walt well enough at this point to correctly assume that he took care of Mike. The way Aaron Paul acted out the scene where Walter "needed" him to believe tells me that Jesse did not in fact believe him, but rather Walt's lies only confirmed Jesse's suspicions. I am really interested in seeing how Jesse will (if at all) snap out of his latest funk and how it will impact the final seven episodes.
"Blood Money" was filled with many small scenes that only served to add to the entertainment of the episode. Jesse smoking in Saul's waiting room, Walter discussing expanding his car-wash empire with an indifferent Skylar, Skinny Pete and Badger having baked discussions about star trek, Hank re-opening the W.W. investigation were all small scenes that felt way bigger in the grand scheme of things just because of the way they were shot and acted. Without bogging this review down with too much details, lets get to the jewel of this episode: the match-up we have been waiting for all series: Walt vs. Hank (suffice to say round one did not disappoint at all). The beauty of Breaking Bad is that you never exactly know what is about to happen. When Walt found the tracker on his car and asked Hank about it, all bets were off. Was Hank about to arrest him? Would Walt kill him in cold blood and go on the run? Was the tracker maybe Lydia's? Well some of those questions were answered right away and some still linger. Bottom line, the face to face discussion between the brothers in-law was not only one of the most tense moments of the episode, but of the series as well. Once the scene ended and credits started rolling, there was an ominous silence in the room (I viewed the episode with a couple of friends) basically everyone trying to wrap their mind around how awesome that moment was.
That silence after an episode is when you know that it is a great one. Only seven left.
Overall score for this episode: 9/10 A fantastic opener to the final eight which added even more great moments to an already fantastic show.
Best Scene: Come on. Can it really be anything other than the immediate aftermath of Hank closing the garage leaving him and Walter isolated for one of the best lines of the series? Speaking of which.
Best Quote: "If you don't know who I am, then maybe your best course would be to tread lightly"
That is it for this week, man it is good to be back.
As always, these reviews will contain major spoilers so from this point on its on you.
Well that was one hell of a way to kick off the last eight episodes of the series wasn't it?
For starters, I really enjoyed the fact that, following another flash-forward scene, "Blood Money" picked up literally moments after the end of last year's mid-season finale. The writers produced a truly intriguing sequence that was all kinds of fun to watch. From Hank hiding the book in his bag, to the awkward getaway from the lunch, to his episode (of what I am assuming is his post traumatic stress disorder acting up again) in the car, everything about the scene reminded me of why I missed this show so much. The episode only got better from there.
We quickly saw that Walter could never truly be out, and that his 'Heisenberg' persona would always weigh heavily on his life. First it was Lydia coming to the car-wash in an attempt to get Walter back into the game, something Skylar (was this her first truly great moment of the series?) was having none of. Then it was Jesse attempting to give money to the families who have been affected by Walter White's rampage of evil, something that Walter quickly tried to stop by visiting Jesse again. Following those events, Walter realized that Hank is onto him which culminated in their tense confrontation at the end of the episode (something I will discuss in more detail shortly). So now we see that things were not so neatly tied up as we thought. A particularly intriguing aspect of this episode was Jesse spiraling down into an endless pool of guilt. He knows Walt well enough at this point to correctly assume that he took care of Mike. The way Aaron Paul acted out the scene where Walter "needed" him to believe tells me that Jesse did not in fact believe him, but rather Walt's lies only confirmed Jesse's suspicions. I am really interested in seeing how Jesse will (if at all) snap out of his latest funk and how it will impact the final seven episodes.
"Blood Money" was filled with many small scenes that only served to add to the entertainment of the episode. Jesse smoking in Saul's waiting room, Walter discussing expanding his car-wash empire with an indifferent Skylar, Skinny Pete and Badger having baked discussions about star trek, Hank re-opening the W.W. investigation were all small scenes that felt way bigger in the grand scheme of things just because of the way they were shot and acted. Without bogging this review down with too much details, lets get to the jewel of this episode: the match-up we have been waiting for all series: Walt vs. Hank (suffice to say round one did not disappoint at all). The beauty of Breaking Bad is that you never exactly know what is about to happen. When Walt found the tracker on his car and asked Hank about it, all bets were off. Was Hank about to arrest him? Would Walt kill him in cold blood and go on the run? Was the tracker maybe Lydia's? Well some of those questions were answered right away and some still linger. Bottom line, the face to face discussion between the brothers in-law was not only one of the most tense moments of the episode, but of the series as well. Once the scene ended and credits started rolling, there was an ominous silence in the room (I viewed the episode with a couple of friends) basically everyone trying to wrap their mind around how awesome that moment was.
That silence after an episode is when you know that it is a great one. Only seven left.
Overall score for this episode: 9/10 A fantastic opener to the final eight which added even more great moments to an already fantastic show.
Best Scene: Come on. Can it really be anything other than the immediate aftermath of Hank closing the garage leaving him and Walter isolated for one of the best lines of the series? Speaking of which.
Best Quote: "If you don't know who I am, then maybe your best course would be to tread lightly"
That is it for this week, man it is good to be back.
Friday, April 26, 2013
Injuries and The Heat Contender Profile
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Much apologies about the delay but as always exam season usually wins over almost anything else in life. Before breaking down the Miami Heat and their title chances (hint: they are really really good) I will quickly tangent to talk about a storyline that has gained significant steam over the last few months, that storyline is the one of injuries.
Earlier today a lot of people may have been disappointed to hear that Russell Westbrook could miss the playoffs after having surgery on his meniscus. Now, my hate for the Thunder is not hidden but even I feel bad for them. I still remember when Chris Webber went down in a heap in a year that Sacramento would almost assuredly have won the title (2003) and it sucks, it really does. You only get so many chances to win a title and Oklahoma City just lost one of them. Having said that, a lot of other teams are dealing with injuries; Rose, Bryant, Gallo, Nash, Ginobili, Lee, Rondo, Chandler, Granger, to name a few that could put a serious dent into what little chances they had to win the title in the first place (This is not even mentioning guys like Kevin Love whose absence greatly affected the Wolves season). The playoffs would be far more intriguing if everyone was healthy, that almost goes without say but isn't it time to consider the big picture here? Just earlier this year Popovich infamously benched his best players for a nationally televised game against the Miami Heat, sighting that playing four games in five nights on the road was a strain he did not want to expose his players to (something that both he and the Spurs were fined heavily for by David Stern). Pop is also among the least shy coaches when it comes to resting players and preserving them over the long haul, more than happy to throw away a few regular season wins for the long-term health of his team. Looking at the Spurs now, Pops method looks like its paying off; the Spurs seem to be getting healthy as other teams around them are crumbling with Ginobili and Parker looking like they are getting back to their best.
Injuries have clearly thrown a massive wrench into the postseason and now at least five fan bases will be left wondering what could have been if they were fully healthy for the playoffs. At what point does the NBA step in and do something? Now I am not asking for anything dramatic to be done, but how about just letting teams rest their players during the regular season without fear of being fined? Or maybe shorten the regular season by 10 games? These athletes are exerting themselves on a nightly basis for over seven months for our entertainment and we are surprised when they do serious damage to their bodies? Hopefully the occurrence of key injuries this year will alert someone with authority to do something about this in the future, because for now we know that Stern will stand pat.
The Miami Heat
One team that has not been affected by injuries to the extend that others have also happens to be the team that is the odds on favorite to win the title, the Heat. There really isn't much to profile about these guys, they can play any style: big, small, fast, slow, 3-point shooting, defense, you name it they have it. At their disposal they have three players who could be franchise players on other teams working in a system that took Miami on an astonishing 27 game winning steak. The Heat have lost only 2 games since signing Chris Andersen (who would have thought huh?) and it would be a massive surprise if they did not win their second straight title this season. The only drama at this point seems to be whether or not they can match the 01' Lakers and their 15-1 romp through the 2001 playoffs. Future editions of contender profiles will focus on what has to go right for teams to beat Miami, who will in all likely hood sweep the Bucks this weekend.
Up next: The Knicks of New York
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| One Bright side to the injury? Less outfits like this. |
Earlier today a lot of people may have been disappointed to hear that Russell Westbrook could miss the playoffs after having surgery on his meniscus. Now, my hate for the Thunder is not hidden but even I feel bad for them. I still remember when Chris Webber went down in a heap in a year that Sacramento would almost assuredly have won the title (2003) and it sucks, it really does. You only get so many chances to win a title and Oklahoma City just lost one of them. Having said that, a lot of other teams are dealing with injuries; Rose, Bryant, Gallo, Nash, Ginobili, Lee, Rondo, Chandler, Granger, to name a few that could put a serious dent into what little chances they had to win the title in the first place (This is not even mentioning guys like Kevin Love whose absence greatly affected the Wolves season). The playoffs would be far more intriguing if everyone was healthy, that almost goes without say but isn't it time to consider the big picture here? Just earlier this year Popovich infamously benched his best players for a nationally televised game against the Miami Heat, sighting that playing four games in five nights on the road was a strain he did not want to expose his players to (something that both he and the Spurs were fined heavily for by David Stern). Pop is also among the least shy coaches when it comes to resting players and preserving them over the long haul, more than happy to throw away a few regular season wins for the long-term health of his team. Looking at the Spurs now, Pops method looks like its paying off; the Spurs seem to be getting healthy as other teams around them are crumbling with Ginobili and Parker looking like they are getting back to their best.
Injuries have clearly thrown a massive wrench into the postseason and now at least five fan bases will be left wondering what could have been if they were fully healthy for the playoffs. At what point does the NBA step in and do something? Now I am not asking for anything dramatic to be done, but how about just letting teams rest their players during the regular season without fear of being fined? Or maybe shorten the regular season by 10 games? These athletes are exerting themselves on a nightly basis for over seven months for our entertainment and we are surprised when they do serious damage to their bodies? Hopefully the occurrence of key injuries this year will alert someone with authority to do something about this in the future, because for now we know that Stern will stand pat.
The Miami Heat
One team that has not been affected by injuries to the extend that others have also happens to be the team that is the odds on favorite to win the title, the Heat. There really isn't much to profile about these guys, they can play any style: big, small, fast, slow, 3-point shooting, defense, you name it they have it. At their disposal they have three players who could be franchise players on other teams working in a system that took Miami on an astonishing 27 game winning steak. The Heat have lost only 2 games since signing Chris Andersen (who would have thought huh?) and it would be a massive surprise if they did not win their second straight title this season. The only drama at this point seems to be whether or not they can match the 01' Lakers and their 15-1 romp through the 2001 playoffs. Future editions of contender profiles will focus on what has to go right for teams to beat Miami, who will in all likely hood sweep the Bucks this weekend.
Up next: The Knicks of New York
Monday, April 1, 2013
Profiling the NBA Contenders: Thunder
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With less than a quarter of the regular season left, it seems like a perfect time to spend the next few weeks taking a closer look at the contenders for the NBA title. Our first look will be on the Thunder of Oklahoma City.
Overview
Currently, OKC (I hate that this is the only short form nickname for them, it adds to my heavy dislike of this team) sits second in the Western conference with an impressive record of 54-20 (as of this writing). They have an outside shot of catching the Spurs for the one-seed, and are led by the impressive tandem of Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook. Last season, the Thunder made the NBA finals and are hoping to take that final step to win this year.
Key Players
If it wasn't for Lebron submitting one of the greatest seasons ever, Durant would be the run-away MVP, he is averaging 28.3 points, 7.9 rebounds, and 4.4 assists per game (all above his career averages) while shooting an astonishing 50% from the field, 40% from 3 and above 90% at the free-throw line. Durant has the ability to dominate playoff series, and take over in big moments, an absolute must for a team hoping to win a title. Although Durant is the best player on his team, his supporting cast is not too shabby. He is flanked by Russell Westbrook, a very dynamic and explosive player that you are not winning against if he is on his "A" game (more on this in a bit). In addition to Westbrook, the Thunder also have Serge Ibaka, one of the best interior defenders and athletes in the league along with Kevin Martin (a 20 ppg player on most other teams, but a role player on the Thunder. If Martin is your fourth best player, you are in good shape).
Strengths
Star power, a great home-court advantage, benefit of every borderline call, can protect leads, can adapt to play slow, fast, quick, or big, RussellWestbrook.
Weaknesses
Questionable coaching (especially when Scottie Brooks insisted on staying with Kendrick Perkins in the finals last year instead of starting James Harden and matching Miami's small-ball approach), poor late game execution; usually its just one guy going one-on-one and forcing a terrible shot (they get away with this because that guy is usually Kevin Durant), and Russell Westbrook.
You may have noticed that Russell Westbrook is featured as both a strength and a weakness. This is because if Westbrook brings that aforementioned "A" game, where he involves his teammates, is an absolute beast defensively, and does not force shots, the Thunder are unbeatable. However, for every "A" game Westbrook provides, he also provides games where he forces too much, shoots a long two with 22 seconds on the shot clock and blows possessions by not running the offense (not giving the ball to Durant) and looking for all the glory. Most often this results in one of those "how did we blow that game" games.
Key Question
How will the second unit and crunch time line-ups function without James Harden once the playoffs start?
Playoff Match-up Casual Fans Would Like To See Most
A duel with James Harden and the high-scoring Houston Rockets. Hands down.
Why They Will Win
Westbrook provides more "A" games than "F" games, a third (James harden would have been this) option emerges who relieves some of the burden of the offense that Durant and Westbrook provide, Derek Fisher hits some clutch shots.
Why They Will Lose
A third option does not emerge, Miami meets them in the finals, They get worn out from tough Western conference series, Scottie Brooks and Russell Westbrook blow winnable games with questionable decision making.
Next feature: Miami Heat
Overview
Currently, OKC (I hate that this is the only short form nickname for them, it adds to my heavy dislike of this team) sits second in the Western conference with an impressive record of 54-20 (as of this writing). They have an outside shot of catching the Spurs for the one-seed, and are led by the impressive tandem of Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook. Last season, the Thunder made the NBA finals and are hoping to take that final step to win this year.
Key Players
If it wasn't for Lebron submitting one of the greatest seasons ever, Durant would be the run-away MVP, he is averaging 28.3 points, 7.9 rebounds, and 4.4 assists per game (all above his career averages) while shooting an astonishing 50% from the field, 40% from 3 and above 90% at the free-throw line. Durant has the ability to dominate playoff series, and take over in big moments, an absolute must for a team hoping to win a title. Although Durant is the best player on his team, his supporting cast is not too shabby. He is flanked by Russell Westbrook, a very dynamic and explosive player that you are not winning against if he is on his "A" game (more on this in a bit). In addition to Westbrook, the Thunder also have Serge Ibaka, one of the best interior defenders and athletes in the league along with Kevin Martin (a 20 ppg player on most other teams, but a role player on the Thunder. If Martin is your fourth best player, you are in good shape).
Strengths
Star power, a great home-court advantage, benefit of every borderline call, can protect leads, can adapt to play slow, fast, quick, or big, RussellWestbrook.
Weaknesses
Questionable coaching (especially when Scottie Brooks insisted on staying with Kendrick Perkins in the finals last year instead of starting James Harden and matching Miami's small-ball approach), poor late game execution; usually its just one guy going one-on-one and forcing a terrible shot (they get away with this because that guy is usually Kevin Durant), and Russell Westbrook.
You may have noticed that Russell Westbrook is featured as both a strength and a weakness. This is because if Westbrook brings that aforementioned "A" game, where he involves his teammates, is an absolute beast defensively, and does not force shots, the Thunder are unbeatable. However, for every "A" game Westbrook provides, he also provides games where he forces too much, shoots a long two with 22 seconds on the shot clock and blows possessions by not running the offense (not giving the ball to Durant) and looking for all the glory. Most often this results in one of those "how did we blow that game" games.
Key Question
How will the second unit and crunch time line-ups function without James Harden once the playoffs start?
Playoff Match-up Casual Fans Would Like To See Most
A duel with James Harden and the high-scoring Houston Rockets. Hands down.
Why They Will Win
Westbrook provides more "A" games than "F" games, a third (James harden would have been this) option emerges who relieves some of the burden of the offense that Durant and Westbrook provide, Derek Fisher hits some clutch shots.
Why They Will Lose
A third option does not emerge, Miami meets them in the finals, They get worn out from tough Western conference series, Scottie Brooks and Russell Westbrook blow winnable games with questionable decision making.
Next feature: Miami Heat
Tuesday, March 26, 2013
Guest Post: The State of Serbian Soccer
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In, reality, all I prayed for was nothing crazy too happen, really all of this past would not be forgotten but at least buried, a dying ember if you will. Seeing as how a majority of these players were either a fetus, or in diapers sucking on Legos when the two sides took to a battle ranging from village to village, massacring each other in the worst ways imaginable (only brothers could hate each other this much, people!) I did expect what I heard from the crowds the booing of the anthem, the Nazi chanting, it was expected and it will be insane not to hear the exact same being thrown when the sides take to each other on the pitch at the Marakana, probably the Yankee Stadium of soccer stadiums in the region, not to just Red Star fans, but to the entire Balkans. Lets not forget, Maksimir was the site of where one of the sparks to the war was lit, as Red Star fans chanted “We will f*** Tajci” (A Croatian national singer, held in high regard, at that time she was one of the biggest pop stars in Yugoslavia, and had competed in the Eurovision contest)in result enraging many of the Croatian nationals as they took to the pitch in a brawl involving even the Players.
As I turn the volume of my TV set up, I looked at the starting line-up for Croatia; as expected, Stimac (the Croatian head coach) brought out the best of the best, hell even if he brought out the worst of the worst, these are Croats and like Montreal in hockey, they always putting up a fight regardless of how broken they are. Then I saw the Mihajlovic (Serbian head coach) line up, here are just some scattered thoughts when I saw it : “….What in the hell….who is Brkic? Where is Stojkovic? Where was Rukavina?, Basta?, Understandable Kolarov, and Ivanovic were there but…Nastasic…Really? Where was Kuzmanovic, arguably one of our only offensive threats? Sulejmani? Where were these players?”
With one of the more
anticipated soccer games in recent Serbian history, a friend asked me if he
could post is thoughts after Croatia’s 2-0 win. Naturally, we welcome anyone to
share their opinions on this blog; so here it is (author credit will be at the
bottom of the page, I will post my own notes in italics throughout the article
when necessary).
The loss to Australia…..6-0…6-0…The
loss too Argentina rings through my brain…Mijatovic’s missed penalty kick to
send us far in the World Cup in a game against Netherlands Mijatovic missed the penalty when the score was 1-1,( Holland would
then score in the 92’ to send them through to the quarter finals). The
national team losing their place to Denmark (who would go onto win it all in
the 1992 Euro’s), Red Star Belgrade ’91 (A
Serbian club team who lifted the European cup that year)…. All these things
flashing through my mind, as the teams take the field. The game played on
Friday March 22, 2013 was iconic, in both Croatian football, and Serbian football,
it was a game that was long overdue, a game that would be the salt on the still
fresh wounds of anyone of the nations that lost it. Mainly, it was a game to
show who was better, a mini-prolonged version of the war played out on the
pitch. However, knowing what soccer
means to Croats, not to mention how incredibly amazing Modric, and Rakitic are;
and how intense they get at even the most obscene friendly matches, I knew the
results wouldn’t be good. I have been let down by the Serbian national team
many times in any aspect of any soccer competition. (This is an understatement, the Serbian team shows up to play the big
boys, but then loses to countries that should not even be playing soccer).
In, reality, all I prayed for was nothing crazy too happen, really all of this past would not be forgotten but at least buried, a dying ember if you will. Seeing as how a majority of these players were either a fetus, or in diapers sucking on Legos when the two sides took to a battle ranging from village to village, massacring each other in the worst ways imaginable (only brothers could hate each other this much, people!) I did expect what I heard from the crowds the booing of the anthem, the Nazi chanting, it was expected and it will be insane not to hear the exact same being thrown when the sides take to each other on the pitch at the Marakana, probably the Yankee Stadium of soccer stadiums in the region, not to just Red Star fans, but to the entire Balkans. Lets not forget, Maksimir was the site of where one of the sparks to the war was lit, as Red Star fans chanted “We will f*** Tajci” (A Croatian national singer, held in high regard, at that time she was one of the biggest pop stars in Yugoslavia, and had competed in the Eurovision contest)in result enraging many of the Croatian nationals as they took to the pitch in a brawl involving even the Players.
As I turn the volume of my TV set up, I looked at the starting line-up for Croatia; as expected, Stimac (the Croatian head coach) brought out the best of the best, hell even if he brought out the worst of the worst, these are Croats and like Montreal in hockey, they always putting up a fight regardless of how broken they are. Then I saw the Mihajlovic (Serbian head coach) line up, here are just some scattered thoughts when I saw it : “….What in the hell….who is Brkic? Where is Stojkovic? Where was Rukavina?, Basta?, Understandable Kolarov, and Ivanovic were there but…Nastasic…Really? Where was Kuzmanovic, arguably one of our only offensive threats? Sulejmani? Where were these players?”
Certainly Mihajlovic didn’t think he could run
up against the stacked Croatian team with kids barely off the U21 team…What on
earth was going on? Then I made a few “calls” if you will to people of high
regard in the Serbian sports scene back in Belgrade (I FB messaged them) I
asked what the hell was going on? They responded with “You can’t mess with
politics, and the corruption of the national team.” It seems as if even on a
national level, when it came to playing our best, going head to head against
one of the biggest rivals we will ever have in any sport, the greed and
corruption of our people, the soled out souls of those in head office, the leaders
of the fan bases all had hands in setting these squads up, hell it was rumored
that a prominent Albanian businessman (Read: DRUG DEALER, ORGAN TRAFFICKER) had
his hand in the establishment of the national team. To which then I beg the
question, why are we even here? I am not by any shot in any way saying that we
would have beaten Croatia, that’s like saying Team USA could beat the Dream
Team of ’92, but it would have been damn close…closer than anyone would have
expected it to be. (Full disclosure, I
firmly believe that had Kuzmanovic, Kacar, Vidic, even Jovanovic and Krasic
played, that the game would not have been 2-0. Even of the players available to
him, Mihajlovic really screwed us over, starting some guys who could not crack
it in the MLS).
Although, Croatia had a stronger team, they provided a very weak performance especially for their level of play, Serbia hadn’t countered with much either, but in typical Balkan fashion we shot ourselves in the foot. All it took was one screw up from Kolarov (Who’s entire career will be defined by this, just ask Mijatovic who I previously mentioned up there) too open up the flood gates, and like MOB Deep rapped, “They scared to death, they shook, ain’t no such things as half way crooks.” And in a way that’s exactly what Serbia was a half way shook crook, not the real thing, no bravery, our defense collapsed, and Modric? Well even if you had a squad of police officers around him you couldn’t keep him down. And we did have enough chances on our own end. It took Kolarov to show the team that it could be done as he sprinted up field and fired a rocket at Pletikosa (that man looks like he smokes 3 packs before every game, even during games), but to no avail. Even after that there were a few more blown chances by the much younger and inexperienced Serbian squad. At the end, the Croats came out on top dominant, finally the conclusion to it all had happened. 2-0. Not bad you say? It could have been worse? Well, at least we have Tennis, Basketball, and Water-polo, and even Handball!- Really? In all my life as a basketball fan, never have I been more uptight about a basketball game like I am for a soccer one. I would trade all the other trophies in all of those sports for one great, hell, even a top 10 national soccer team. I know that I sound harsh, but who cares about all these other sports other than us? Much, like the Croats brag about Skiing: no one cares. I love Novak Djokovic, and I love Teodosic,(The best basketball player in Europe currently) of course I do, but other than a select few, who really brags about this stuff on worldwide level? When is the last time you stopped what you were doing to check the scores on the match between Patrick Rafter and Pete Sampras back in the day? Or too see the score between some basketball team in FIBA, or the NBA, unless it wasn’t on TV, or a massive playoff game? But Soccer? That’s a different story entirely. Even peasants in the most remote Siberian villages know who won the world cup last year, and won the Euros, we all talk about great soccer players, about who’s better( Messi, or Ronaldo, Barca or Real. Was George Best better than Maradonna? Was Pele that good? And so on). Soccer is the world’s game, its life, every child in Europe/Africa/Asia has played it at one point in time. My point is, we succeed in the things that ultimately don’t matter, yet the one thing we should have been pushing we have crumbled and fallen on, too me soccer is the ultimate reflection of a country’s status. I guess I was duped into thinking that we could have done much more, and in the usual fashion, I was let down…yet again. With the Euro’s just around the corner, I pray that Mihajlovic brings out something out of this team, but I will probably be let down again. Maybe in a few years these players will become studs, and take over the game, or maybe they will just wither and fade away (Like Duke basketball stars, am I right?). Either way only time will tell.
Although, Croatia had a stronger team, they provided a very weak performance especially for their level of play, Serbia hadn’t countered with much either, but in typical Balkan fashion we shot ourselves in the foot. All it took was one screw up from Kolarov (Who’s entire career will be defined by this, just ask Mijatovic who I previously mentioned up there) too open up the flood gates, and like MOB Deep rapped, “They scared to death, they shook, ain’t no such things as half way crooks.” And in a way that’s exactly what Serbia was a half way shook crook, not the real thing, no bravery, our defense collapsed, and Modric? Well even if you had a squad of police officers around him you couldn’t keep him down. And we did have enough chances on our own end. It took Kolarov to show the team that it could be done as he sprinted up field and fired a rocket at Pletikosa (that man looks like he smokes 3 packs before every game, even during games), but to no avail. Even after that there were a few more blown chances by the much younger and inexperienced Serbian squad. At the end, the Croats came out on top dominant, finally the conclusion to it all had happened. 2-0. Not bad you say? It could have been worse? Well, at least we have Tennis, Basketball, and Water-polo, and even Handball!- Really? In all my life as a basketball fan, never have I been more uptight about a basketball game like I am for a soccer one. I would trade all the other trophies in all of those sports for one great, hell, even a top 10 national soccer team. I know that I sound harsh, but who cares about all these other sports other than us? Much, like the Croats brag about Skiing: no one cares. I love Novak Djokovic, and I love Teodosic,(The best basketball player in Europe currently) of course I do, but other than a select few, who really brags about this stuff on worldwide level? When is the last time you stopped what you were doing to check the scores on the match between Patrick Rafter and Pete Sampras back in the day? Or too see the score between some basketball team in FIBA, or the NBA, unless it wasn’t on TV, or a massive playoff game? But Soccer? That’s a different story entirely. Even peasants in the most remote Siberian villages know who won the world cup last year, and won the Euros, we all talk about great soccer players, about who’s better( Messi, or Ronaldo, Barca or Real. Was George Best better than Maradonna? Was Pele that good? And so on). Soccer is the world’s game, its life, every child in Europe/Africa/Asia has played it at one point in time. My point is, we succeed in the things that ultimately don’t matter, yet the one thing we should have been pushing we have crumbled and fallen on, too me soccer is the ultimate reflection of a country’s status. I guess I was duped into thinking that we could have done much more, and in the usual fashion, I was let down…yet again. With the Euro’s just around the corner, I pray that Mihajlovic brings out something out of this team, but I will probably be let down again. Maybe in a few years these players will become studs, and take over the game, or maybe they will just wither and fade away (Like Duke basketball stars, am I right?). Either way only time will tell.
Post contributed By: Stefan Martinovic.
Sunday, February 24, 2013
The Oscars 2013: Discussion and Predictions
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Daki:
With the Oscars coming up in a month, and Jovan's love of
movies and my love of gambling still very much present, we decided to combine
the two topics and make some bets on the upcoming Oscars. Jovan is looking to
come back from a heartbreaking decision last year, which saw Meryl Streep take
an award and Jovan’s cash as well. Jovan you feeling luckier this year?
Jovan:
Not when it comes to the Best Actress category. Even
though the winner will most probably be either Jennifer Lawrence or Jessica
Chastain, there's no clear frontrunner. Jennifer Lawrence would be the
favourite because she picked up the SAG award for Best Actress, but I'm not
taking my chances again. The majority of analysts kept saying Viola Davis would
win at last year's Oscars, but clearly they didn't know anything. I'm not even
considering betting on this category. Best Supporting Actress is pretty much a
lock with Anne Hathaway, however I don't believe your payout is going to be
high enough to justify a bet in that category.
Daki:
So you like Anne Hathaway for best supporting actress. It
would be hard to disagree with you there, she has had a great year and
displayed some incredible range (her roles in 'The Dark Knight Rises' and 'Les
Miserables' could not have been more different). Is there a long shot in the
best lead actress category which would provide good value on a bet? So if you
could not choose Lawrence or Chastain, who would you pick?
Jovan:
I honestly wouldn't put any money on any of the other
three candidates. Emmanuelle Riva has the next best chance of winning, but even
her odds are extremely low. The Oscars are always the same - the acting
categories either have a clear frontrunner (such as Daniel Day-Lewis as Best
Lead Actor for Lincoln) or it's a battle between two of the nominees. Actually,
that's only mostly true. For Best Supporting Actor this year, Tommy Lee Jones
is currently the favourite, but Waltz won the Golden Globe, and some analysts
have predicted that Hoffman will win. However, Jones is the safest bet since he
won the SAG award. I wouldn't put any money on Arkin, while De Niro is probably
competing for 2nd or 3rd place.
Wednesday, January 30, 2013
On Rudy Gay and the Raptors
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It is seeming more and more likely that Rudy Gay will be a Toronto Raptor in the very near future. Multiple sources (including ESPN and Yahoo) have leaked details about the trade and if these details are correct, Raptors fans should be outraged. Before getting into it, here is the breakdown of the trade:
Toronto Gets
Rudy Gay (and his 18 million dollar per year contract which runs for two more seasons after this one)
Darelle Arthur (maybe, the details are dusty on this one)
Toronto Loses
Jose Calderon (for who Memphis is trying to find a third team, more on this later)
Ed Davis
1st Round pick
Another player likely to be a throw in to make the salaries match
So Memphis sheds Rudy Gay and his crazy contract, gets a draft pick, and a young player who has emerged as a solid contributor on the Raptors. For them this is a great trade as it gives them some flexibility, while allowing them to keep the Gasol-Randolph-Conley core for the next few seasons. For the third team that will likely be involved (and my money is on the Lakers, if any team can luck into Calderon and Pau Gasol off of the bench its them) they get a very good offensive player whose contract expires at the end of this season. The Raptors? They cement Colangelo's reputation as an overrated GM who only made Phoenix a contender because it was his dad calling the shots there. Here are some reasons why.
This trade is a panic trade, plain and simple
The Raptors have (over the past few seasons) managed to assemble some young exciting talent (Val, Ross, Derozan, Ed Davis) through the draft. Remember all those "fans" who were mad at the Terrence Ross selection? Where are you now? Anyways, the key point here is that the Raptors were on he right track going forward. This trade will cost them yet another first-round pick, a young player, and could hinder Derozan's development as he and Rudy Gay have similar games. By constricting their ability to draft, the Raptors would have to rely on trades and signings (cut to Kapono, O'Neal, Marion, Turkoglu, Aaron Gray, and Pietrus sharing a laugh) to improve, and Colangelo's track record there is certainly nothing to be hopeful of. The bottom line is that this season would have a completely different outlook if the Raptors would have had some (pick one of at least 12 games that was blown in the last 2 minutes) results go their way earlier in the season. This is a young team that will struggle to win close games, but they are very competitive and despite their poor start they sit about 5 games out of a playoff spot. That does not sound like a team that needs to make a panic trade, it sounds like one that has to be patient.
The Bargnani Conundrum
By making this trade, the Raptors PF spot will be shared between Bargnani and Amir Johnson. Is there any Raptor fan alive who is happy about this? How many more chances will Andrea get here? It is very clear that he needs a change of scenery and fast! The Raptors have played much better basketball without him and keeping him here will be counterproductive to all parties involved.
Expiring Contracts are a GOOD thing BC!
Jose Calderon's contract (around 10 million per year) is set to expire at the end of the season and with it the Raptors would have much more financial flexibility. Being under the salary cap is a really good thing in the NBA. It enables a team to take on unwanted but talented players, and it helps them stockpile draft picks when other teams (like the Raptors in this case) panic. Keeping Calderon and letting him sign elsewhere would have been a far more logical move than shipping him mid-season so one team can get the benefit of his expiring contract.
Another note about this, why exactly are contenders not lining up for Jose? He is a more than capable offensive player and would be a fantastic back-up PG for a contending team. Also if he doesn't work out guess what? Just let him become a free agent. It is literally a no-lose situation. You're telling me that Western conference teams wouldn't be furious if he went to the Spurs? the Lakers? Thunder? Come on.
The Art of Negotiation
So Memphis is the team desperately trying to dump salary. Memphis is putting in the effort to make this trade happen, Memphis, Memphis, Memphis, it is all on them. So why then are the Raptors giving up a first round pick? How does BC let the Grizzlies management bully him like this? Thankfully he had the sense to make Ross "untouchable" but giving up that first-round pick just seems insane to me. What is even more troubling is that this trade would really not change much. Sure the Raptors could maybe sneak into the playoffs but what then? Are they beating Miami or New York? Answer: NO. It seems like BC feels that giving up the next two years of the draft is also an option because of the potential Val and Ross can exhibit. At this point, he is risking his career on that.
Toronto Gets
Rudy Gay (and his 18 million dollar per year contract which runs for two more seasons after this one)
Darelle Arthur (maybe, the details are dusty on this one)
Toronto Loses
Jose Calderon (for who Memphis is trying to find a third team, more on this later)
Ed Davis
1st Round pick
Another player likely to be a throw in to make the salaries match
So Memphis sheds Rudy Gay and his crazy contract, gets a draft pick, and a young player who has emerged as a solid contributor on the Raptors. For them this is a great trade as it gives them some flexibility, while allowing them to keep the Gasol-Randolph-Conley core for the next few seasons. For the third team that will likely be involved (and my money is on the Lakers, if any team can luck into Calderon and Pau Gasol off of the bench its them) they get a very good offensive player whose contract expires at the end of this season. The Raptors? They cement Colangelo's reputation as an overrated GM who only made Phoenix a contender because it was his dad calling the shots there. Here are some reasons why.
This trade is a panic trade, plain and simple
The Raptors have (over the past few seasons) managed to assemble some young exciting talent (Val, Ross, Derozan, Ed Davis) through the draft. Remember all those "fans" who were mad at the Terrence Ross selection? Where are you now? Anyways, the key point here is that the Raptors were on he right track going forward. This trade will cost them yet another first-round pick, a young player, and could hinder Derozan's development as he and Rudy Gay have similar games. By constricting their ability to draft, the Raptors would have to rely on trades and signings (cut to Kapono, O'Neal, Marion, Turkoglu, Aaron Gray, and Pietrus sharing a laugh) to improve, and Colangelo's track record there is certainly nothing to be hopeful of. The bottom line is that this season would have a completely different outlook if the Raptors would have had some (pick one of at least 12 games that was blown in the last 2 minutes) results go their way earlier in the season. This is a young team that will struggle to win close games, but they are very competitive and despite their poor start they sit about 5 games out of a playoff spot. That does not sound like a team that needs to make a panic trade, it sounds like one that has to be patient.
The Bargnani Conundrum
By making this trade, the Raptors PF spot will be shared between Bargnani and Amir Johnson. Is there any Raptor fan alive who is happy about this? How many more chances will Andrea get here? It is very clear that he needs a change of scenery and fast! The Raptors have played much better basketball without him and keeping him here will be counterproductive to all parties involved.
Expiring Contracts are a GOOD thing BC!
Jose Calderon's contract (around 10 million per year) is set to expire at the end of the season and with it the Raptors would have much more financial flexibility. Being under the salary cap is a really good thing in the NBA. It enables a team to take on unwanted but talented players, and it helps them stockpile draft picks when other teams (like the Raptors in this case) panic. Keeping Calderon and letting him sign elsewhere would have been a far more logical move than shipping him mid-season so one team can get the benefit of his expiring contract.
Another note about this, why exactly are contenders not lining up for Jose? He is a more than capable offensive player and would be a fantastic back-up PG for a contending team. Also if he doesn't work out guess what? Just let him become a free agent. It is literally a no-lose situation. You're telling me that Western conference teams wouldn't be furious if he went to the Spurs? the Lakers? Thunder? Come on.
The Art of Negotiation
So Memphis is the team desperately trying to dump salary. Memphis is putting in the effort to make this trade happen, Memphis, Memphis, Memphis, it is all on them. So why then are the Raptors giving up a first round pick? How does BC let the Grizzlies management bully him like this? Thankfully he had the sense to make Ross "untouchable" but giving up that first-round pick just seems insane to me. What is even more troubling is that this trade would really not change much. Sure the Raptors could maybe sneak into the playoffs but what then? Are they beating Miami or New York? Answer: NO. It seems like BC feels that giving up the next two years of the draft is also an option because of the potential Val and Ross can exhibit. At this point, he is risking his career on that.
Thursday, December 20, 2012
The Ghost of James Harden: Why OKC may ultimately regret trading an up-and coming star
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Thoughts and prayers with the families of the tragic shooting in Connecticut, it is sad that not even children are safe from gun violence. Hopefully a serious re-examination of gun control initiatives will occur as a result of this terrible tragedy.
I decided to leave some time between the writing of this post and the actual trade in order to have a fair evaluation of the trades' outcome. By now, all NBA fans are well aware that James Harden now plays (and stars) for the Houston Rockets while Kevin Martin is filling in Harden's old role at Oklahoma City. One could make the case that both teams benefited from the trade. Houston once again has a legitimate NBA star (and a lock-in to be in the all-star game) in Harden, who is averaging career bests in points (25.0), assists (5.4), and rebounds (4.4). Now that he is no longer confined to a 6th man role, and does not have to share the ball with two other stars, we are able to see exactly why Rockets GM Daryl Morey pulled the trigger on this trade. Oklahoma city meanwhile, sits on top of the West and as of this writing, is working on a 9-game winning streak. They do not have to play with the distraction of Harden's contract situation, they can secure Ibaka long term, and Kevin Martin has proven to be at least an adequate fill-in for Harden.
Questions remain about their ability to perform in the playoffs (no way to answer how they will do until we actually see them in action) and their potential to take the next step and win the NBA title, but for now things are looking good. So, the answer to the question posed in the title of this post appears to be easy: Oklahoma will not regret the trade. But is it that simple? In the short-term they appear to be playing just as well as last year and their main threat (the "reloaded" Lakers) could not be in more disarray at the moment. However, we need to consider how they will play against the top teams in the league without Harden. Can they beat the Spurs in a playoff series without him? Harden was a key part of the reason that OKC managed to beat the best team in the league last year, so how do you think San Antonio felt when they learned about the trade? What about Memphis? The Grizzlies could not cope with Oklahoma having all three of Harden, Durant, and Westbrook in the game, but Memphis handled the new-look OKC with relative ease in their game earlier this year. What about the Clippers? Can OKC keep up with them without Harden's play-making ability? No disrespect to Kevin Martin, he is a good scorer and a definite threat, but he is not able to create plays for his teammates as well as Harden is. Again, only time will answer these questions, but if you ask any team in the NBA who they would rather have: Martin? or Harden? I think that almost all of them would take Harden.
It is for that reason that I believe that the long-term answer to the question this post asks appears to be that Oklahoma will, in fact, regret trading Harden. It is as simple as: they gave up the better player in the deal. NBA history is littered with examples of teams having regret over trading more talent for less talent. The ones that immediately come to mind are: the Lakers and Heat Shaq trade, The Toronto Vince Carter trade (the franchise is still recovering from that one) and the Pau Gasol trade, just to name a few. All of those trades either made title contenders out of average teams, or doomed the team that gave up talent to mediocrity. Oklahoma will not be mediocre because they have immense talent on their roster already, but the ceiling of the team's potential went from "potential dynasty" to "lucky to win one title". I think that this drop-off will surface during the playoffs this year (I am not expecting this team to make the finals again) where Oklahoma city will look way less dominant (12-3 in the West playoffs last year) and lose to a team that they would have beaten with Harden on the roster.
Enjoy your holidays!
I decided to leave some time between the writing of this post and the actual trade in order to have a fair evaluation of the trades' outcome. By now, all NBA fans are well aware that James Harden now plays (and stars) for the Houston Rockets while Kevin Martin is filling in Harden's old role at Oklahoma City. One could make the case that both teams benefited from the trade. Houston once again has a legitimate NBA star (and a lock-in to be in the all-star game) in Harden, who is averaging career bests in points (25.0), assists (5.4), and rebounds (4.4). Now that he is no longer confined to a 6th man role, and does not have to share the ball with two other stars, we are able to see exactly why Rockets GM Daryl Morey pulled the trigger on this trade. Oklahoma city meanwhile, sits on top of the West and as of this writing, is working on a 9-game winning streak. They do not have to play with the distraction of Harden's contract situation, they can secure Ibaka long term, and Kevin Martin has proven to be at least an adequate fill-in for Harden.
Questions remain about their ability to perform in the playoffs (no way to answer how they will do until we actually see them in action) and their potential to take the next step and win the NBA title, but for now things are looking good. So, the answer to the question posed in the title of this post appears to be easy: Oklahoma will not regret the trade. But is it that simple? In the short-term they appear to be playing just as well as last year and their main threat (the "reloaded" Lakers) could not be in more disarray at the moment. However, we need to consider how they will play against the top teams in the league without Harden. Can they beat the Spurs in a playoff series without him? Harden was a key part of the reason that OKC managed to beat the best team in the league last year, so how do you think San Antonio felt when they learned about the trade? What about Memphis? The Grizzlies could not cope with Oklahoma having all three of Harden, Durant, and Westbrook in the game, but Memphis handled the new-look OKC with relative ease in their game earlier this year. What about the Clippers? Can OKC keep up with them without Harden's play-making ability? No disrespect to Kevin Martin, he is a good scorer and a definite threat, but he is not able to create plays for his teammates as well as Harden is. Again, only time will answer these questions, but if you ask any team in the NBA who they would rather have: Martin? or Harden? I think that almost all of them would take Harden.
It is for that reason that I believe that the long-term answer to the question this post asks appears to be that Oklahoma will, in fact, regret trading Harden. It is as simple as: they gave up the better player in the deal. NBA history is littered with examples of teams having regret over trading more talent for less talent. The ones that immediately come to mind are: the Lakers and Heat Shaq trade, The Toronto Vince Carter trade (the franchise is still recovering from that one) and the Pau Gasol trade, just to name a few. All of those trades either made title contenders out of average teams, or doomed the team that gave up talent to mediocrity. Oklahoma will not be mediocre because they have immense talent on their roster already, but the ceiling of the team's potential went from "potential dynasty" to "lucky to win one title". I think that this drop-off will surface during the playoffs this year (I am not expecting this team to make the finals again) where Oklahoma city will look way less dominant (12-3 in the West playoffs last year) and lose to a team that they would have beaten with Harden on the roster.
Enjoy your holidays!
Thursday, December 13, 2012
NBA: Discussing the Raptors
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Jovan: The scale is definitely at a 10. I’m willing to accept that we have lost our money because the way this team is playing right now, there is no chance they are winning another 29 games. They are 1-14 on the road right now and I don’t even see how they could win a second game. Lowry was a good offseason addition, but since his injury three games in, the Raps have been shitting the bed. Bargnani has reached a new low – he was never good on defense (and he is challenging Jose as the worst help defender in the NBA), and the only part of his game that was of any use (his offense) has completely disappeared. Ed Davis would be a much better option for this team, as his overall ability has vastly improved since last season, but the front office is still telling Casey to play Bargs. Other than Bargnani, we have Jose, who only knows how to rack up assists (when he starts) and do nothing else. Valanciunas has been average in his rookie season and the others haven’t done anything of any value. Thankfully, the Raps got rid of McGuire and brought in Pietrus, who is a decent defender, but lacks consistency on offense. Casey can’t coach in the fourth, and Colangelo hasn’t been able to do anything since Garbajosa’s injury. This team is spiralling downward and they need to start making some changes. They need a fresh start.
Daki: I
don't think that there could be a better way to reunite the founding members of
the Millennium blog than with a discussion about all things Toronto Raptors and
some NBA talk. So I hit up Jovan and Luka with this message after another
gritty effort by the Raps fell short (a 6-point loss to Brooklyn without 6
rotation players). Guys, we may or may not have placed a decent sum of money on
the "over" for the Raptors win total (which we thought was a
hilarious number of 'only' 32.5). My question to you is: On a scale of one to
ten; with ten being "we may as well have lit our money on fire" how
depressed are you right now? Furthermore what do you guys think is the matter
with this team? Things have gotten so bad that even Amir Johnson lost his cool
in a very bizarre manner and threw his mouth-guard at a ref. Reading the RealGM
forums is making me clinically depressed about this team, and the Leafs are
outselling the Raptors and they don't even have a season! Please share your
thoughts.
Luka: Hate
to answer your question with another question but what isn't wrong with these
guys? The defense that Dwane Casey managed to squeeze out of the rag-tag
line-up we had last year (shout out to Uzoh) is completely gone. I'm pretty
sure we hold the record for allowed wide open threes after several blown
rotations followed by a guy standing and watching instead of properly closing
out. Our rotations are an absolute disaster as well because Casey refuses to
play Davis (really improved this year, looks legit and plays well every
time he gets minutes) and Valanciunas (love everything I've seen from him
this year, will make mistakes as all rookies do) at the same time, instead
giving those minutes to Amir "Can you believe I am making almost 20 million
for the next 3 years" Johnson, Aaron "You couldn't move
slower if you tried" Gray and Bargs who quite frankly isn't worth
mentioning the way he's played this year. Jose continues to troll the
organization by looking fantastic as a starter and then like absolute garbage
(compliment) as a bench guy despite playing against weaker opposition in the
latter scenario. It's almost as if he wants another PG controversy so he can
win over the job and then become absolutely mediocre once he gets it. You could
say I should cut the Raps some slack, their top 2 small forwards have been out
for most of the year after all until you realize they're Landry Fields and Alan
fucking Anderson. The few bright spots this year have been Davis, Val and
DeRozan whose play has quieted the critics of his contract extension. I never
had a problem with the deal because that's the market price for a player of
Demar's caliber and to his credit he's been much improved this year.
The big reason that I've already typed this many words on a 4-19 team is Andrea
Bargnani. Remember when Bargs showed us the "player he could be" last
year in that magical 13-game stretch? I think Bargs drowned that guy in a big
bowl of Pasta Primo and sauce before the year. All in all I've never seen less
fucks given on the basketball court by a "marquee" guy. I mean if I
have to watch Andrea brick one more flat-footed contested long 2 followed by
that completely blank stare, I'm going to lose it. Just get him out. I don't
care for who at this point. The guy is everything that's wrong with this team.
Jovan: The scale is definitely at a 10. I’m willing to accept that we have lost our money because the way this team is playing right now, there is no chance they are winning another 29 games. They are 1-14 on the road right now and I don’t even see how they could win a second game. Lowry was a good offseason addition, but since his injury three games in, the Raps have been shitting the bed. Bargnani has reached a new low – he was never good on defense (and he is challenging Jose as the worst help defender in the NBA), and the only part of his game that was of any use (his offense) has completely disappeared. Ed Davis would be a much better option for this team, as his overall ability has vastly improved since last season, but the front office is still telling Casey to play Bargs. Other than Bargnani, we have Jose, who only knows how to rack up assists (when he starts) and do nothing else. Valanciunas has been average in his rookie season and the others haven’t done anything of any value. Thankfully, the Raps got rid of McGuire and brought in Pietrus, who is a decent defender, but lacks consistency on offense. Casey can’t coach in the fourth, and Colangelo hasn’t been able to do anything since Garbajosa’s injury. This team is spiralling downward and they need to start making some changes. They need a fresh start.
Daki: Man,
I am so glad you brought up Garbajosa, a player so vastly underrated by Raptors
fans that it saddens me that some people still think he was not an important
part of those competitive Raptors teams. That brings up the bigger picture, BC
and the front office need to stop this love affair with Bargs and Jose. Swallow
your pride and bring Bargnani off of the bench until he can prove that he
deserves to start. I am a Casey fan and I think he has been dealt a tough hand,
but the man needs to grow some balls and stand up to the front office. I feel
that once a coach does this, the organization could move forward after being
stuck in the same spot for almost a decade now. To comment on your thoughts,
Derozan's play has been a major positive and its nice to see that guys on this
team at least still care and try hard. I feel that the early losses, all of
which hinged on two or three plays and one or two missed calls (awarding the
ball to Indiana based on "inconclusive" evidence and the no call on
Gilchrist when he fouled Bargnani being the examples which stand out the most)
have really affected the psyche of this team. But do you know what the worst
part is? Oklahoma City has our pick if it is not in the top 3! When will people
realize that Colangelo is not a good GM and that his dad was calling all the
shots for the Suns when they were contenders? The key to a good organization
starts at the top, and right now, we should be clearing house.
Luka: It
should let you know how successful the Raptors have been over the last few
years when die-hard fans consistently remember a Spanish role player who may or
may not have known how to shower as a franchise high point. This year's edition
of the Raps and in general the team going forward is one that I believe can't
succeed with Bargs as a part of it. Casey's Raptors are striving to be this
tough, defensive-minded team that hustles for every loose ball and never gives
up. Does that sound anything like Andrea Bargnani to you guys? No and that's
why he has to go. If the rumored trade of Pau Gasol for Jose, Kleiza, and Bargs
somehow happens, we’ll be forced to realize a few things. One, that the Lakers
whose major weakpoint is D don't watch basketball because that could be the
only reason they'd want two pylons on the defensive end (hey but at least jose
does the fake hustle crap and claps every time someone shoots. Please LA, take
these clowns.) and two, that we'd be on Kobe homicide watch playing with
Bargnani. Can you imagine a worse pairing than that? One is the most
competitive guy in the league who is only second to Jordan in completely
belittling his teammates while the other guy is 7 ft tall, gets about 2 boards
a game and probably feels proud of his achievements. Either way I'm praying at
the altar of Gasol for this to happen.
Jovan: The trade for Gasol unfortunately won't happen
because Kobe isn't stupid enough to allow it. As you said, no one in their
right mind would want Bargnani right now. He still has another year left
on his ridiculous contract (for the way he's currently playing, he should
be getting D-League salary) and is of no use to any team in the NBA
because no one wants a hole on defense. I don't understand why they keep
pushing this guy to try and become the player everything thought he could
be. He had the potential, but lacks basic defensive intelligence and can’t
catch a rebound to save his life. Perhaps he isn't playing this badly on
purpose, but the lack of effort to become the player he could have been is
almost worse than what Carter did to us. At least he said he didn't want
to play for the Raps. Bargs is consistently playing like shit and isn't
making any efforts to help us get any wins. Either sit the fuck down on the
bench or start making a contribution to this team. Colangelo needs to
realize this as well. You gave him the contract (and you also gave Jose
his contract) - you know, when you
Daki: I am praying for that trade to happen for so
many reasons. Gasol is a legitimate star, the Kobe-Bargnani dynamic would be
amazing, especially because Kobe is fluent in Italian, and the Raptors would
finally have a foundation. But knowing the Raptors (and the Lakers) this is
more likely to happen: Bargnani would morph into Dirk 2.0, Jose and Nash will
be the first point guard tandem to have the much coveted 50-40-90 percentages,
and Kleiza would morph into a poor man's Robert Horry, and Sports Illustrated
will be publishing "the genius of D'antoni" articles. On the flip
side, Gasol would revitalize the franchise, we would make the playoffs next
season and then he would leave as a free agent. I realize that this scenario is
unlikely, but the fact that it would not shock anyone if it happened speaks
volumes. Can the Raptors even push for the heady heights of 11th in the East
this year? Just for fun: if you guys had any say, what three things would you
change right now to make this season more watchable? Bonus points for creative
answers.
My three:
The fans: Dust off those "VC sucks" chants and
just go a letter higher in the alphabet so we can get some nice "BC
sucks" chants going. Seriously, do this and not even Leo will be able to
sugar-coat it, and that guy sugar-coats the Raptors more than anyone. Want
proof? Here, taken directly off Raptorsrepublic (A great blog if you are a fan
of the Raptors by the way)
"Gotta love Leo Rautins ripping Andray Blatche and Joe
Johnson for lack of effort when we got Andrea Bargnani on the team. Who he
should be ripping is the coach who, for some reason, let one of our hottest
players in JV ride the bench way too long in the fourth."
-Arsenalist, Raptorsrepublic.com http://raptorsrepublic.com/2012/12/12/quick-reaction-nets-94-raptors-88/
If it’s one thing Toronto is good at, its letting people in
the sports world know when they suck at their job, let’s put some pressure on
the organization and run Colangelo out of town so that he can destroy another
team.
Secondly, pay Bargnani by the rebound. I for one would love
to see how much effort he would give if he could only earn money by rebounding.
Luka: Because this season has been so un-watchable,
I'm going to cheat and give more than 3.
Fire Leo Rautins. Watching games where Leo is doing the
color commentary have become painful, the guy doesn't really have anything
useful to say and it honestly feels like Matt Devlin hates him (who can blame
him?).
Take away the 100-point pizza offer. Our on-court product
is embarrassing enough as it is. We don't need to cringe every time we score
100 points in a blowout and the fans react like the Leafs just won the cup.
It's a slice of pizza. Just because you're getting it for free doesn't make it
any more important. Just chill when you get it.
Play Ed and Val way more. I'll take mistakes from these two
because they're trying their hearts out over laziness and lack of care any day.
Bring back the striped Raptors jerseys!! It seems like
every single team in the NBA has had a retro night with every single jersey in
that team's history except for the Raps who've only played in those Huskies
jerseys which are fine but they're not the ones we want.
Make Casey coach an entire game wearing a hat. Dwane Casey
doesn't know how to put on a hat. Seriously watch any of his interviews where
he's wearing one. It looks like he purposely laid it on top of his head just
enough so it wouldn't fall off. I'd definitely watch this game with way more
interest than any others.
Fire BC and trade Bargnani. With these two guys gone (and
hopefully Jose) we'll finally be able to move from the "Euro" era of
the Raptors into the future. Let's get this done.
Jovan: Bring back Chuck Swirsky. As good as Devlin is,
I really miss our players hitting shots from downtown Petersborough and making
other teams eat Spalding. The salami and cheese would never be taken out for
its intended use because of the way the Raps have been playing, but at least
you could get some laughs throughout the game even though you would probably
already be laughing at how bad the Raps are.
I’m going to repeat one of the points above. Fire BC and
get rid of Bargs. Both of them have done nothing of any use for this franchise.
I don’t understand why BC was rehired a few years back when the Raps were
already going downhill. Maybe the owners don’t want the Raps to ever be a good
team.
Rather than taking away the 100-point pizza offer, I would
cut it down to 75 points. Air Canada is currently offering fans the chance to
win a prize if they can correctly guess who will score the 75th point, but
twice this year (if not more) fans lost their chance to win because the Raps
couldn’t even manage 75 points. It’s kind of embarrassing. This wouldn’t make
the season more watchable, but at this point, I don’t really know if anything
could.
Lastly, for the love of God, start winning some more games.
Otherwise, forfeit the season so that we don’t lose our lottery pick.
This seems like a good spot to end
it, hopefully things will improve and the team will start to play better,
otherwise; fire everybody. Cheers!
Notes on the 70th Golden Globe Nominations - And Some Predictions
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Movies – Best Motion
Picture
There aren’t many surprises here. There are three films
currently competing for the Oscar for Best Motion Picture, and all three have
been nominated. The two dramas are Lincoln and Zero Dark Thirty and the other
is Les Miserables. For the dramas, it will come down to whether the voters have
a higher honor for their history or their politics. And Les Miserables seems to
be a lock at this moment in the Musical/Comedy category.
Movies – Best
Actor/Actress
Lead actor for a drama will most likely go to Daniel Day-Lewis,
as he delivered an excellent performance as the 16th US president
and voters are aware of his acting abilities (he may become the first actor to
win three Oscars for Best Actor in February). Joaquin Phoenix’s performance was
insane and he’s definitely the runner-up in my book, but I don’t see votes
picking him over DDL.
Lead actor for a musical or comedy is going to have no
effect on the Oscars because none of these guys will win, but Hugh Jackman is
currently the frontrunner and it’s good to see Bradley Cooper nominated for his
terrific portrayal of a man with bi-polar struggling to deal with himself and
his family.
Thursday, November 29, 2012
San Antonio: The Quiet Giant
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Wow! It feels like its been forever since I last posted something. One would think that after four years of University I would have learned to manage my time by now but this clearly is not the case. Better late than never I suppose.
Continuing my take on the NBA, I feel that tonight is a good night to talk about the Spurs, especially since Pop ruined TNT's potential ratings by sending Tony Parker, Danny Green, Manu Ginobili, and Tim Duncan home early, right before a marquee match-up with the Miami Heat. My first thought? "About time!" I have been waiting for a quirky Popovich story for quite some time now and am glad that he delivered in a big way. Obviously, not everyone was happy about this, but I actually think its both brilliant and hilarious. The reason I like this move by the Spurs is that they know championships are not won on a Thursday night in November. Popovich is thinking long term all the way here, he is absolutely entitled to give his best players a rest if he thinks that they need one. To him, it doesn't matter if they lose an extra regular season game, what matters is that he keeps his players fresh for the games that actually count. Am I a little bit upset that I wont get to watch the best match-up of the year so far? Absolutely. Am I mad at Popovich? Absolutely not, the man is a brilliant coach and people should not be questioning him at this point. As an added bonus, Popovich will get to see what he really has on his roster. He can see if guys like Gary Neal, Cory Joseph, and DeJuan Blair deserve spots in the rotation or not (what better way to evaluate your players than against the defending NBA champions?), and he ultimately may find an x-factor for the playoffs that he didn't know he had.
Now that the major talking point of tonight's game is out of the way I can talk a bit about the Spurs in general. First of all; how are these guys still so relevant? They are winning games and dismantling teams like its 2003 and Tim Duncan has not looked this good in almost five seasons! How good has Duncan been this year? Apart from his numbers being up across the board, he is also top-5 in the league in PER, the go-to formula for evaluating NBA players. Duncan is playing so well that I am beginning to think that he was injured over the past two seasons and was just playing through it. Whatever the case is, if he can maintain this level of performance throughout the season, the Spurs should be considered a serious contender for the title. The more I follow the NBA the more I realize that teams like the Spurs (particularly from 1999 and on) are very rare and it saddens me to know that they can't continue this forever, at least not with this group of players. When was the last time a team in the NBA was picked to 'finally fall off' for almost eight years running and never wavered? Will we ever see another team put together a decade's worth of fifty win seasons, multiple titles, and several great players while flying completely under-the-radar? A team so many people labeled as 'boring' and dismissed them just because ESPN told them to do it, yet even when they give people what they want (a high-scoring Juggernaut that plays beautiful basketball) the people still disrespect them? I realize that most of what I have said does not apply to die-hard NBA fans who take their time and actually watch the games before forming opinions, but these fans are few and far between. So I urge you: forget about your bias, watch this team, and appreciate the things they do, it might be a long time before you see something like them again.
Tuesday, October 30, 2012
The Millennium NBA Preview: Lakers
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With NBA previews and predictions up seemingly everywhere, it seems redundant to rehash the same old questions: Who will be the MVP, who will win the title, who will make the playoffs etc. There is a lot more to an NBA season's stories than just numbers, awards, and predictions. So in the coming weeks, as the NBA picture begins to unfold, we will examine some of the more interesting teams and story lines associated with them.In the first part of what will be many features about the 2012/2013 NBA season, we will examine the overhauled Los Angeles Lakers and a potential change in mentality of Kobe Bryant.
When the news that Kobe plans to retire at the end of the 2014 season came out, I was genuinely surprised. Like many, I thought that Kobe would attempt to break the all-time scoring record before he hung it up, but it seems that he wants to try and accomplish what so few in the NBA have done: go out both as the leader of your team and as a winner (Bill Russell is the only one I can think of that did this, Jordan did too until he ruined the perfect end to a career by playing with the Wizards). Think about it, Magic, Bird, Shaq, Isiah, Hakeem, Barkley, Miller, Stockton, Malone, Payton, Ewing, and many others, how did their careers end? Some said "F*ck it, I gave it my all, I am happy with what I've accomplished and wont resort to latching onto a contender to try and win a ring" - Stockton, Reggie, Barkley, Ewing. Some just realized that their run was over and that they would never be the main guy on a title team, so they too called it quits - Bird, Magic, Isiah, Hakeem, Shaq (who actually managed to try and latch on to every contender he could in a sad attempt to tie Kobe). While the rest shamelessly pursued a ring, regardless of their role on the team and in some cases succeeded (Gary Payton) or failed (Malone). If the Lakers manage to capture the title in Kobe's last season, it would be a truly unique accomplishment that very few NBA players can say they achieved. You can make the argument that Kobe wont be the best player on the team, but this is still very much 'his' team as far as anyone is concerned. You don't associate Dwight Howard with the Lakers, you do associate Kobe Bryant with them.
When the news that Kobe plans to retire at the end of the 2014 season came out, I was genuinely surprised. Like many, I thought that Kobe would attempt to break the all-time scoring record before he hung it up, but it seems that he wants to try and accomplish what so few in the NBA have done: go out both as the leader of your team and as a winner (Bill Russell is the only one I can think of that did this, Jordan did too until he ruined the perfect end to a career by playing with the Wizards). Think about it, Magic, Bird, Shaq, Isiah, Hakeem, Barkley, Miller, Stockton, Malone, Payton, Ewing, and many others, how did their careers end? Some said "F*ck it, I gave it my all, I am happy with what I've accomplished and wont resort to latching onto a contender to try and win a ring" - Stockton, Reggie, Barkley, Ewing. Some just realized that their run was over and that they would never be the main guy on a title team, so they too called it quits - Bird, Magic, Isiah, Hakeem, Shaq (who actually managed to try and latch on to every contender he could in a sad attempt to tie Kobe). While the rest shamelessly pursued a ring, regardless of their role on the team and in some cases succeeded (Gary Payton) or failed (Malone). If the Lakers manage to capture the title in Kobe's last season, it would be a truly unique accomplishment that very few NBA players can say they achieved. You can make the argument that Kobe wont be the best player on the team, but this is still very much 'his' team as far as anyone is concerned. You don't associate Dwight Howard with the Lakers, you do associate Kobe Bryant with them.
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