In order, why the C's lost to Cleveland:
5. Kevin Garnett is different. I am really worried about KG, and I mentioned this before in an email or a blog post I wrote about Doc, but I am willing to bet he is concerned as well. KG is a great player, and still great. He probably isn't All-Star great, and he certainly is a shadow of his former self defensively, but he, I think, is a little too wrapped up in his self. This may sound weird, but I think that Garnett used to be able to use his craziness and zaniness as a way to reign in his abundance of energy. His focus, in the '07-08 run was the thing that made him so unstoppable defensively. Now, I feel like his wacky streak is getting the better of him. There hasn't been an opening 6 minutes of a game in which he didn't acquire at least 1 PUTRID foul, that is usual a result of his personal insanity clashing up against his diminishing agility. In other words, I think KG is getting clumsy. A clumsy KG scares the crap out of me. We have to find his role, not just for this year but for the future, and I am not sure it is as big of a role as he may think it should be.
4. Verajao is phenomenal. I've said some hateful things about this guy, and I really don't want to like him, because he is forever going to make the teams I like lose. I certainly was critical of his contract (6 years, 50 million ish), but now I realize that was me being petty - and wrong. How many possessions did he keep alive with flat out hustle? He also is gifted offensively, in a very specific way. Sometimes you don't need to be good at everything, and being good at cutting, slashing, annoying, fouling, defending...those are enough checkmarks to impress me, and annoy the crap out of the C's.
3. Shaq got hurt and JJ Hickson got minutes. Its not really all about Hickson, but more about the fact that Mike Brown somewhat settled into a rotation in the 2nd half. I swear, if Shaq is healthy, we have a better shot at beating this time. Plus, is anyone else praying that they sign Big Z. back again? Every minute they have Big Z. is another minute Hickson doesn't play, and is anyone else concerned about the next 60 days as a warmup for Leon Powe? We all do remember that he was a crucial and integral piece of our '08 Championship, right? Again, I don't trust Mike Brown to get over himself enough to adjust his blue goggles and think for 5 minutes about his rotation, but if the team essentially forces itself into a rotation that includes big minutes for Hickson, solid contribution for Powe, and correct usage of Shaq, things may get dirty.
2. No Paul Pierce makes for a very easy game for Lebron. I am not sure if Paul alone would have won the game for the C's, but how much can we really take this loss to heart? If we went into a 7 game series against Cleveland and don't have Pierce (or KG, or Rondo or Perk or even Nate Robinson), don't we already know it's a lost cause? The only way to beat the Cavs is to be at full strength, and then play well. Lebron didn't break a sweat last night.
1. Mo Williams got hot. If he clanged those 2nd half 3's like he did in the first half, the C's keep running and moving, and spacing things out and passing, and potentially win. Mo Williams scoring at will is how I envisioned him when he joined the Cavs, and honestly it is what he should be able to do all the time. This guy is honestly a game-changer, and I don't think he has shown it yet.
Things I didn't mention, but should be on the list:
> Antawn Jamison is a top 5 offensive post player in the NBA right now. Give him the ball, 1 on 1, and he scores. We haven't even seen the start of this, yet.
> Players are, for no reason at all, terrified of taking a charge on Lebron. There are so many instances in which players can step in front of him. As much as Marv Albert wants to tell us it is because he is strong and fast, that's dumb. These guys aren't afraid of Lebron, its something else. I don't know what it is.
> The Cavs, with or without Pierce, are a better team
> The Celtics don't stay "up" for 48 minutes. This is well documented, and it's a mystery.
Friday, February 26, 2010
Wednesday, February 24, 2010
...NBA MVP...
I am going to do a post on who I think, thus far, is the NBA MVP. I also want to define NBA MVP.
There are years in which I think the official NBA MVP ballot probably reads like an NBA All-Star ballot. "Pick your favorite player!!", etc...
It is really hard to have the "who is the MVP argument" when nobody really ever defines what the MVP is. There are a few different definitions, from what I can tell:
1. Flat out the best player of the year in the league
2. The player who means the most to his team in the league that year
3. The "this feels like the year to give it to a guy who hasn't ever won it before" standard
Quite often, they blend. Lebron won the MVP last year because of reasons 1 and 2. When you start to look at #2 as the only criteria, you have to ask yourself subquestions, and it gets messy. Does a 50 win team allow you to look for #2 as the leading criteria? If the Magic reach 50 wins, can't you argue they'd have less than 1/2 of those wins if Dwight wasn't around? But then where you do stop? It's impossible.
#3 is a horrid standard, and it happens every so often. Karl Malone should have never won an NBA MVP - and in reality, Jordan should have won 6 in his 6 straight active years, there is no question on that.
Its an impossible thing to decipher, who really is the NBA MVP, but this year I feel like a player is bubbling to the top in a way that writers across this country, and those who vote, may have trouble really understanding. I recognize there is a lot of season left, and I recognize that my opinions are not based in the reality of what may actually happen, but here are my top 5 NBA MVP candidates, if the season ended today:
5. Rajon Rondo
I know I am clearly a victim of looking at my hometown PG and thinking that he deserves NBA MVP nomination. Listen, I am not saying he is the MVP, I am saying he deserves 5th place for MVP. I am saying he leads the NBA in steals and is second in the NBA in assists. He made his first All-Star team, and if voters or the system were reasonable, he'd be the starter in the east. Every single night, the success of the team depends on how well he plays. He has continued to get better and better, and essentially the only thing that really is damaging in his game is Free Throw %. Let me say this, though, every other aspect of his game has improved over the offseason - expec him to go from low 50's to low 70's in FT shooting this offseason, and I do see an NBA MVP in his future.
Yes, I recognize that guys like Deron Williams, Chauncey Billups & Jason Kidd are fantastic players and vital to their team's success, but Rondo just means more to his team than those guys do, I believe that.
4. Dirk Nowitzki
This guy has a legit beef for being higher, if not #1 overall. He has already won one of them, which I think plays to his disadvantage, becuase he won't get the Karl Malone guilt vote...But this guy is establshing himself as the single most unique 7 footer in the history of the game. Every other 7 footer had his equal. Manute has Bradley...Wilt has Russell...Shaq may be the example of "nobody like him", which could have been different if Yao's career wasn't essentially over, with zero rings, and a lot of frustration.
Dirk has convinced an entire generation of oversized Shooting Guards in Europe that success can lie in using in their big bodies to shoot jumpers, which is a false premise. Dirk is so incredible, this season especially, because he has combined all aspects of his game into one mega-game, a guy who will back you down and shoot a jumper over you, on consecutive plays.
The Mavericks aren't the most talented team in the West, but give them 7 games against LA and I am not conviced they don't steal one in LA, and win them all in Dallas. This guy is better than advertised.
2 (tie). Lebron James
2 (tie). Kobe Bryant
Now I know this is where criticism is much deserved. How can the 2 best talents in the game be tied for #2, in seasons in which their teams are leading the Conference? Well, maybe that's just it. How do you distinguish them from one another? You can say the last second shots, which gives the edge to Kobe, who has become an assassin in the last few moments of a game. But you can also say that Lebron carries his team for all 48 minutes, rather than the last 5.
In the case of the Lakers, without Kobe they'd be a .500 team, at worst. They have enough talent to edge out most Eastern Conference teams in terms of pure position v. position talent, and they have a coach who, despite his 10 rings, nobody believes is a great coach, but he is. You see his answer to the question, "why is Kobe so good at last minute shots?"? He replied, "luck." How great is that?
Lebron, on the other hand, clearly makes his team everything that it is - he wins games despite his coach, usually despite his teammates, and usually despite the opposing team doing everything possible to stop him. I can be convinced, easily, that Lebron should be MVP this season, but not Kobe. Call me crazy, call me a Kobe hater, which I'm not, but call me creative. Lebron is fantastic, but my MVP goes to...
1. Kevin Durant
Durant's sreak of 25 point games ended last night at 21. I was in bed trying to sleep b/c of a 7am flight and didn't watch it, but I was tossing and turning, pissed I wasn't watching. When was the last time this happened to me outside of a Celtics team? It was Lebron in the 2006-2007 playoffs, that's when.
Durant is everything to his team, from the leader on the court to the leader of it's spirit. His team had something like 25 wins last year, a relocation team full of names that 80% of NBA fans haven't even heard of. Durant has that team believing in everything - believing they have a right to play with every single big boy in the business, and they will undoubtedly get spanked in one of those "win one early" types of series in the playoffs, then lose 4 straight, but the point is, Durant is doing multiple things:
1. Breaking scoring records
2. Establishing a legitimacy for Oklahoma City Basketball
3. Appointing a Pippen-like counterpart in Jeff Green
4. Entertaining me on twitter daily
5. Solidfying himself as an All-Star starter at Forward from now until he quits.
The Thunder are the #4 team in the West, and climbing. They lost to San Antonio, who everyone loves to dismiss and will probably be in the Conference Finals if they can avoid LA in rds 1 or 2, or maybe even if they can't...
Again, I can be convinced that Lebron is the MVP, I can be convinced that Kobe is 2nd, but I cannot be convinced that Durant isn't in the top 3, and doesn't deserve every accolade he gets.
There are years in which I think the official NBA MVP ballot probably reads like an NBA All-Star ballot. "Pick your favorite player!!", etc...
It is really hard to have the "who is the MVP argument" when nobody really ever defines what the MVP is. There are a few different definitions, from what I can tell:
1. Flat out the best player of the year in the league
2. The player who means the most to his team in the league that year
3. The "this feels like the year to give it to a guy who hasn't ever won it before" standard
Quite often, they blend. Lebron won the MVP last year because of reasons 1 and 2. When you start to look at #2 as the only criteria, you have to ask yourself subquestions, and it gets messy. Does a 50 win team allow you to look for #2 as the leading criteria? If the Magic reach 50 wins, can't you argue they'd have less than 1/2 of those wins if Dwight wasn't around? But then where you do stop? It's impossible.
#3 is a horrid standard, and it happens every so often. Karl Malone should have never won an NBA MVP - and in reality, Jordan should have won 6 in his 6 straight active years, there is no question on that.
Its an impossible thing to decipher, who really is the NBA MVP, but this year I feel like a player is bubbling to the top in a way that writers across this country, and those who vote, may have trouble really understanding. I recognize there is a lot of season left, and I recognize that my opinions are not based in the reality of what may actually happen, but here are my top 5 NBA MVP candidates, if the season ended today:
5. Rajon Rondo
I know I am clearly a victim of looking at my hometown PG and thinking that he deserves NBA MVP nomination. Listen, I am not saying he is the MVP, I am saying he deserves 5th place for MVP. I am saying he leads the NBA in steals and is second in the NBA in assists. He made his first All-Star team, and if voters or the system were reasonable, he'd be the starter in the east. Every single night, the success of the team depends on how well he plays. He has continued to get better and better, and essentially the only thing that really is damaging in his game is Free Throw %. Let me say this, though, every other aspect of his game has improved over the offseason - expec him to go from low 50's to low 70's in FT shooting this offseason, and I do see an NBA MVP in his future.
Yes, I recognize that guys like Deron Williams, Chauncey Billups & Jason Kidd are fantastic players and vital to their team's success, but Rondo just means more to his team than those guys do, I believe that.
4. Dirk Nowitzki
This guy has a legit beef for being higher, if not #1 overall. He has already won one of them, which I think plays to his disadvantage, becuase he won't get the Karl Malone guilt vote...But this guy is establshing himself as the single most unique 7 footer in the history of the game. Every other 7 footer had his equal. Manute has Bradley...Wilt has Russell...Shaq may be the example of "nobody like him", which could have been different if Yao's career wasn't essentially over, with zero rings, and a lot of frustration.
Dirk has convinced an entire generation of oversized Shooting Guards in Europe that success can lie in using in their big bodies to shoot jumpers, which is a false premise. Dirk is so incredible, this season especially, because he has combined all aspects of his game into one mega-game, a guy who will back you down and shoot a jumper over you, on consecutive plays.
The Mavericks aren't the most talented team in the West, but give them 7 games against LA and I am not conviced they don't steal one in LA, and win them all in Dallas. This guy is better than advertised.
2 (tie). Lebron James
2 (tie). Kobe Bryant
Now I know this is where criticism is much deserved. How can the 2 best talents in the game be tied for #2, in seasons in which their teams are leading the Conference? Well, maybe that's just it. How do you distinguish them from one another? You can say the last second shots, which gives the edge to Kobe, who has become an assassin in the last few moments of a game. But you can also say that Lebron carries his team for all 48 minutes, rather than the last 5.
In the case of the Lakers, without Kobe they'd be a .500 team, at worst. They have enough talent to edge out most Eastern Conference teams in terms of pure position v. position talent, and they have a coach who, despite his 10 rings, nobody believes is a great coach, but he is. You see his answer to the question, "why is Kobe so good at last minute shots?"? He replied, "luck." How great is that?
Lebron, on the other hand, clearly makes his team everything that it is - he wins games despite his coach, usually despite his teammates, and usually despite the opposing team doing everything possible to stop him. I can be convinced, easily, that Lebron should be MVP this season, but not Kobe. Call me crazy, call me a Kobe hater, which I'm not, but call me creative. Lebron is fantastic, but my MVP goes to...
1. Kevin Durant
Durant's sreak of 25 point games ended last night at 21. I was in bed trying to sleep b/c of a 7am flight and didn't watch it, but I was tossing and turning, pissed I wasn't watching. When was the last time this happened to me outside of a Celtics team? It was Lebron in the 2006-2007 playoffs, that's when.
Durant is everything to his team, from the leader on the court to the leader of it's spirit. His team had something like 25 wins last year, a relocation team full of names that 80% of NBA fans haven't even heard of. Durant has that team believing in everything - believing they have a right to play with every single big boy in the business, and they will undoubtedly get spanked in one of those "win one early" types of series in the playoffs, then lose 4 straight, but the point is, Durant is doing multiple things:
1. Breaking scoring records
2. Establishing a legitimacy for Oklahoma City Basketball
3. Appointing a Pippen-like counterpart in Jeff Green
4. Entertaining me on twitter daily
5. Solidfying himself as an All-Star starter at Forward from now until he quits.
The Thunder are the #4 team in the West, and climbing. They lost to San Antonio, who everyone loves to dismiss and will probably be in the Conference Finals if they can avoid LA in rds 1 or 2, or maybe even if they can't...
Again, I can be convinced that Lebron is the MVP, I can be convinced that Kobe is 2nd, but I cannot be convinced that Durant isn't in the top 3, and doesn't deserve every accolade he gets.
Friday, February 19, 2010
...Pierce & Stoudemire...
I am really still confused why the media lumps in Stoudemire with the Free Agent class, as he has a $17 million player option, but never mentoin Pierce in teh same breathe.
Pierce has about a $20 million option, and I can only assume he'll take it. First, because he wants to be a Celtic forever, and I believe that. It means something to him. But why doesn't that same logic work for Amare? He has been a Sun for 9 seasons, he has Nash, its an amazing place to live.
I am not sure why those 2 stories aren't more similar than they are being treated.
Imagine if this is how it shakes out:
Lebron & Wade to New York
Joe Johnson & Bosh (and John Wall) to New Jersey
Pierce & Stoudemire to Miami
Can't say that a part of me doesn't want that to happen!
Pierce has about a $20 million option, and I can only assume he'll take it. First, because he wants to be a Celtic forever, and I believe that. It means something to him. But why doesn't that same logic work for Amare? He has been a Sun for 9 seasons, he has Nash, its an amazing place to live.
I am not sure why those 2 stories aren't more similar than they are being treated.
Imagine if this is how it shakes out:
Lebron & Wade to New York
Joe Johnson & Bosh (and John Wall) to New Jersey
Pierce & Stoudemire to Miami
Can't say that a part of me doesn't want that to happen!
...tiger's apology...
Tiger is hilarious. He hand picks 5 reporters who can be in the room, live, to listen to him speak about his insane life. He won't take questions, and he doesn't really address much besides the fact that he is trying to save a marriage and a life that clearly isn't worth saving.
Yet, he stands up there and apologizes for feeling entitled. Am I crazy, or is the fact that you are standing up, in a room of handpicked audience members, on a day that fits into YOUR schedule at the inconvenience of the PGA, an act of an entitled man?
Tiger will never able to get over himself b/c of how we have elevated him, and the fact that he is in rehab b/c he doesn't like his wife and wants to have sex with multiple women is a joke. Go golf Tiger, I think at this point it is literally the only thing that makes you worthwhile.
Wednesday, February 17, 2010
...what do you do with Perkins?
Perkins is a really interesting case study in NBA Salary management.
Here are the top NBA Centers, in terms of production, Perkins excluded, and their salary. The first number is this year, and the following numbers are each other year, as far as their contract goes, in no real order. I know some of these guys are arguably not centers, but bear with me.
Ming (when healthy) 16.4, 17.7
Kaman 10.4, 11.3, 12.2
Horford 4.3, 5.4
Duncan 22.2, 18.7, 21.3
Camby 7.7
Howard 15.1, 16.5, 17.9, 19.2
Lee 7
Stoudemire 16.4, 17.7
Bynum 12.5, 13.8, 15.2, 16.3 (team option)
So, my question to you is this:
How do you price Perkins.
He wasn't an All-Star, but his agent would argue that he is, and he was overlooked by voters. His agent would argue that he is going to make 2nd team All NBA defense this year, and his agent would argue that he shuts down Dwight Howard.
His agent would say, "you've given Rondo 55 or 5 years, and Rondo and Perkins are the only 2 palyers on your team who will be here in 4 years, so you better sign him."
I think the Celtics are going to have to pay Kaman money for Perkins - I think after this offseason ends they offer hiim 4 years, 44 million, much like they did Rondo's contract. Our books for the 2011/2012 season will look like this, and you can expect a hard cap at around 55 million after we miss the entire 2010-2011 season
Garnett - Last year of his contract, 21.2 million. Fuc& me.
Wallace - 6.8 million, last year of his deal, thats DEF a trade-able contract
Rondo - 10 million
So where does that leave Pierce? It leaves him not on the Celtics, thats where it leaves him. He's going to want at least 15/year for 5 years, he is playing very good basketball, it'd be hard to give him less. But thats reality, and players don't want to see the reality.
If the hard is at 60 milion, lets say its at 60, there is 21.2 + 6.8 + 10, which is 38 of the 60 million, on 3 players, 2 of which are completely over the hill. You'll need to give Perk his 10(ish), which brings you to 48 million of your 60 - and thats a high number.
How does this league adjust to this? How do you tell all this to Perkins this offseason as a reason why he needs to be paid Horford money, not Kaman money.
How do you tell David Lee this season, thanks for your work, but you're not getting a raise (actually, you tell him he can't play defense, that's how...)
Maybe im looking at things the wrong way.
Here are the top NBA Centers, in terms of production, Perkins excluded, and their salary. The first number is this year, and the following numbers are each other year, as far as their contract goes, in no real order. I know some of these guys are arguably not centers, but bear with me.
Ming (when healthy) 16.4, 17.7
Kaman 10.4, 11.3, 12.2
Horford 4.3, 5.4
Duncan 22.2, 18.7, 21.3
Camby 7.7
Howard 15.1, 16.5, 17.9, 19.2
Lee 7
Stoudemire 16.4, 17.7
Bynum 12.5, 13.8, 15.2, 16.3 (team option)
So, my question to you is this:
How do you price Perkins.
He wasn't an All-Star, but his agent would argue that he is, and he was overlooked by voters. His agent would argue that he is going to make 2nd team All NBA defense this year, and his agent would argue that he shuts down Dwight Howard.
His agent would say, "you've given Rondo 55 or 5 years, and Rondo and Perkins are the only 2 palyers on your team who will be here in 4 years, so you better sign him."
I think the Celtics are going to have to pay Kaman money for Perkins - I think after this offseason ends they offer hiim 4 years, 44 million, much like they did Rondo's contract. Our books for the 2011/2012 season will look like this, and you can expect a hard cap at around 55 million after we miss the entire 2010-2011 season
Garnett - Last year of his contract, 21.2 million. Fuc& me.
Wallace - 6.8 million, last year of his deal, thats DEF a trade-able contract
Rondo - 10 million
So where does that leave Pierce? It leaves him not on the Celtics, thats where it leaves him. He's going to want at least 15/year for 5 years, he is playing very good basketball, it'd be hard to give him less. But thats reality, and players don't want to see the reality.
If the hard is at 60 milion, lets say its at 60, there is 21.2 + 6.8 + 10, which is 38 of the 60 million, on 3 players, 2 of which are completely over the hill. You'll need to give Perk his 10(ish), which brings you to 48 million of your 60 - and thats a high number.
How does this league adjust to this? How do you tell all this to Perkins this offseason as a reason why he needs to be paid Horford money, not Kaman money.
How do you tell David Lee this season, thanks for your work, but you're not getting a raise (actually, you tell him he can't play defense, that's how...)
Maybe im looking at things the wrong way.
...my mini Book of Basketball...
(I don’t want this to start negative, but I just want to say all my NBA thoughts are clouded by the fact that there may be a lockout next year. I can’t escape the idea of a lockout. That is the only time I’ll mention it this article).
I was trying to fall asleep last night and I was making, in my head, a list of my top 5 favorite basketball players of all time, trying to find the reasonable mix of hometown favorite, outstanding player and teammate, ambassador for the game, love of the game, skill set, work ethic, etc.
But to name my top 5 players first required me to think about the era’s in which I cared about basketball. I know this reads almost exactly like Bill Simmons’ Book of Basketball, but while he may be able to claim the style of writing, I’ll be damned if he were to claim the way I think about sports as his own – this is how I have been thinking about teams, players, lists, history and hoops for a long time.
MY ERAS:
Hilltop Basketball (1983) to Len Bias (1987):
I had a fairly hands off approach to basketball during this time, which, ironically, is when the Celtics were completely dominant, and a Golden Age of basketball (Jordan, Bird, Johnson, Thomas, McHale, tail end of Kareem, etc…) existed. I had a fairly hands off approach to both playing basketball and caring about it. I remember caring about basketball cards, and I remember details here and there, but I didn’t attend a single regular season NBA game during this era.
I do, however, remember the death of Len Bias as a National story, and feeling like it was a big deal. I don’t know, something about it made me think about basketball.
Dunk Contests (1987 & 1988) to Jordan Part 1 (1993):
I had very strong memories of watching, live, during daylight hours, the Slam Dunk contest in Chicago with Jordan dueling Wilkins for the crown – this was during the era in which I resented Jordan for his stature – I’d like to say it was b/c I was sophisticated and not impressed by a 37 points per game scoring average, but instead valued team winning over individual achievement – but that wasn’t the case. I think I just saw him as someone who got whatever he wanted, and that feeling continued through his first 3 championships, but I do know I watched basketball during these years, and I started playing as well. Playing a lot, and getting better. I was inspired to go to the courts b/c of the 3 point and dunk contests, and I continued to get interested in, and play, basketball.
It should also be noted that it was during the 1991 season where I went to my first game at the Boston Garden – a game in which Bird played sparingly and Sherman Douglas led the team to a victory. I remember him executing a behind the back fake, and the crowd going absolutely bonkers. My memory of that game is something I have stuck deep in my brain, and it comes out only on special occasions.
Hakeem (1994) to Jordan Part 2 (1998):
My love for the game exploded during this time. The spring of 1995 is when I became the best basketball player I had ever become. I scored 30 in a church league game (I went 10-10 from the line that game, which was remarkable for me). I remember spending time on the basketball court after Spring track practices Senior Year. Myself and Mike Duclos beat Jeff Wright and one other person, it may have been Tom Rudick, 36-0, by ones. I remember these details.
Hakeem destroyed the Knicks and Magic in consecutive seasons, and I think the Jordan absence only gave me the ability to pause and realize how remarkable and special he was. The death of Reggie Lewis in 1993 – I remember where I was when I found out he was dead. I was actually just cruising with Marc and Jeff, on our way to or from McDonalds no doubt, on a Saturday night in July. It surprised me how much I was moved by his death – I felt like I was cheating on baseball, like there was only enough room for 1 sport.
My Freshman year at Coker College was a time when I went to the gym at night and played basketball with the Basketball team – a group of guys taller, stronger, faster, but I started to get a feeling inside of me that recognized Hustle. I started to watch sports differently and see that not all pros were created equally – that some of these guys on the Coker College hoops team were physically gifted enough to be on a D1 team, but mentally they were lazy and I’d steal the ball from them. Or they’d check out in their brain when going for a loose ball and I’d pounce.
Basketball started to evolve into a metaphor instead of a sport – I was losing my ability to play baseball b/c of vision, and I was losing my faith in it because of lockouts and boredom, but basketball started to happily creep in its place.
Sandbox (1998) to adidas (2006):
Sandbox sports was an online fantasy league site – predating ESPN and yahoo and all the other fantasy league sites you know about. I started playing sandbox before I had daily access to a computer, and this fantasy league changed my life. No longer was it a hobby to read box scores, it was a necessity. No longer was it unique to talk about free agents and trades, it was a part of my every day life. I needed to know, on a daily basis, how many rebounds Webber got or how many assists Tim Hardaway had. There was no part of me that wanted to be apart from basketball starting in 1998.
It is completely overwhelming and amazing that I went from that, to where I was in 2006 when I started working for adidas.
I have a perfect night in my head, a night that I honestly consider to be the perfect combination of everything. I don’t know how many times It happened, but it included the following. Sawtelles Hamburger Pizza, Doritos, The Celtics on TV v. Anyone, A 2 liter of Pepsi, and Ben & Jerry’s Cherry Garcia. The 1998 to 2006 Celtics were incredible, they were everything I cared about. They were on an island, and I felt like I was one of the few people there with them. Every single victory felt monumental – every single loss felt like a building block.
Eric Williams and Bryant Stith have no right taking up such a huge place in my heart – they were amazing teammates, and amazing people. They also happened to serve as a reflection on my own life, surrounding myself on the ultimate field in college at this time with friends who embodied the same things that these players embodied. The Celtics drafted Walker and Pierce during this timeframe, and became their team. They advanced, miraculously, to an Eastern Conference Final in the spring of 2002, and they did it despite everyone. Except me and my friends.
Antoine Walker was a player whose personality and style of play offended many, and I don’t have the energy or the heart to defend him anymore, but everything can be summed up about Antoine in 1 game – the 2001 Eastern Conference Final in which they overcame the largest 4th quarter deficit in NBA history to beat the Nets and go up 2-1 in the series – which they ultimately lost. It was his shining moment as a leader, as a captain. I swear Paul Pierce is a different player b/c of that game, I am certainly a different person b/c of that game, and I am not lying. It meant so much to me to see them win it.
In 2004 I attended my first All Star weekend in Los Angeles. I worked the floor of Jam Session for Reebok, selling gear and getting a whiff, but only a whiff, of what was out there to experience. I was so angry that I didn’t get a ticket to anything – I did pass up a ticket to the Dunk contest to visit Disneyland, I just remembered that.
In 2005, however, I was given the ability to attend the All Star Game in Denver, while still working with Reebok. It was a last second invite, and I was able to watch the first half in a great seat, and the 2nd half in the Reebok suite. It was an incredible night, and I made a promise to myself, as corny as it sounds, that I would absolutely 100% never forget how I felt at that moment, and how lucky I was to be where I was. I told myself to think, “remember when you were at Kevin Carrigan’s house watching Kenny Walker win the 1989 Dunk Contest, or where you were when Magic came out of retirement to hit an off balance 3 pointer in the 1992 All-Star game, making you smile at something Magic did for the first time?
I absolutely recall thinking how lucky those people were to be there, and now I was there. There are a million ways to be a better person in life, and if I only hit one 1 of them, it is that I will never take those kinds of moments for granted. I think about it almost every time I go to a regular season game, never mind some of my other experiences. Little did I know how much things would change starting in September of 2006.
Vegas All Star (2007) to Unemployed (2008):
It is amazing what one can do, and see, in a matter of a few short years. From September of ’06, to January of ’09, these are the things I did/witnessed in regards to NBA basketball:
• 2007 All-Star weekend events in Vegas, including Celebrity game, Dunk Contest/3 Pt Contest, All Star Game)
• 2007 NBA Finals Game 1, San Antonio TX
• 2007 NBA Draft Lottery – Celtics get ruined, earn the #5 pick while hoping/planning to be in the top 2
• 2007 NBA Draft – Celtics make an odd deal for Ray Allen. Little did we know?
• 2008 All-Star weekend events in New Orleans, LA
• 2008 Regular season games in: Boston, Seattle, Los Angeles, New York, Orlando, Cleveland, Indiana, Phoenix, Houston (my personal favorite – the Celtics in town to snap Houston’s 22 game win streak…so nice)
• 2008 NBA Playoffs – Game 1 of the Atlanta Series, Game 1 of the Detroit series, Games 1 & 7 of the Cleveland Series, games 1, 2 and 6 of the Finals
And I swear to you, I didn’t go to one of those events without the same level of appreciation I had the night I went to the All-Star game in Denver. I’d think about how absolutely furious I was that night in my hotel room in Los Angeles that I was working at the All-star events but didn’t get a chance to go, and I thought about how excited the 1995 Senior in High School Nick would be to talk to the 30 year old Nick and what he was up to.
It wasn’t just about the games and events, either…I had the chance to work on a daily basis with the League, talk about the League, talk to players on some occasions, but more importantly, talk to the people who help make the league come to life at retail, on TV, in the papers, public relations, etc. It was an incredible experience.
Just a Fan (2009-Present):
In a way, I’m back where I started. I had a lull for a bit. I’ve been less excited to go to Celtics games. I’ve been less excited to watch NBA on TV. But that is changing, big time. Starting in about December, I came to realize how amazing this sport is, and how much I love its professional ranks. I started to lose all the baggage I had carried around from work, from being laid off, from thinking of the league from a dollars and cents perspective, and started thinking about it as a fan. I’m now seeing the league in a whole new light – and what I’m recognizing is the amazing development of players that is coming about.
There are more than this list, but in reality, I can think of 5 players drafted in the last 3 seasons who have the chance to be future completely amazing players, and I can’t wait to see them develop.
5. Jeff Green, Oklahoma City Thunder. I saw him make a defensive play earlier this year that reminded me of Tayshawn’s unbelievable, incredibly incredible, 100% amazing block in the playoffs a few years back, when I think he was a rookie. Jeff Green is a phenom, and when this Thunder team starts making the playoffs (this year?), next year?
4. Al Horford, Atlanta Hawks. Made his All-star game debut this year. It isn’t common where you see picks #2 and #3 both being the right picks, but it looks like they were in the 2007 Draft.
3. Tyreke Evans, Sacramento Kings. The only rookie on the list. He can score so easily, and is so fast and so strong. Why isn’t he a household name? Oh yah, I know why. Arco Arena, that’s why.
2. Derrick Rose, Chicago Bulls. Have you seen his dunks this year? His dunks!? He is a point guard, who is actually a fantastic point guard, but he can DUNK!
1. Kevin Durant, Oklahoma City Thunder. At the time of writing this, Durant has 25 consecutive games of over 25 points. This is approaching some serious rare air (and yes, that is the name of a book I cherished by Michael Jordan). Jordan reached 40, Wilt has the record at something stupid like 125 (See Simmons’ Book of Basketball to be completely convinced that Wilt’s records are 100% dumb. I mean Ricky Davis rebounding his own intentional miss for a Triple Double kind of dumb).
So this actually brings me all back to the point of this post in the first place, who were my top 5 favorite players, and now that you have some context, here is where I ended up:
5. Allen Iverson – I would say his dominance fell on the heels of my personal rebirth in my interest in basketball, specifically NBA Basketball. I was starting to feel like I was sophisticated enough to separate players into groups, and even individuals into leadership categories. I always said that Iverson was the fastest guy with the ball I had ever seen, while Latrell Sprewell was the fastest without the ball I had ever seen. People were always amazed by Reggie Miller and his coming off of screens – if he, or Allan Houston, had Latrell’s physical gifts, they’d have scored 40/night.
4. Clyde Drexler – No player captured the ingenuity and creativity of the early dunk contests for me like Clyde. He had a rhythm and a fluidity I could only be in awe of. Jordan elevated it to another level, and Dominique just flat out hammered the ball through, like he was going to dunk whether or not you were there to see it…but Drexler was making it an art form – he was a dunk virtuoso, and I loved his soft demeanor as well…what a combination of heart and athleticism. Man, Jordan wrecked those Blazers.
3. Antoine Walker – Everyone hates him, and I wish I could say I don’t care. I know his life has become a joke and a complete mess, and I am sure his on the court demeanor was horrible, and he was a pain in the ass to all coaches. But I know this. He led an unskilled team to an Eastern Conf. Final with a legit shot to make the finals, and the worst team in the Division ended up winning the Division after they reacquired him, including a run which included 14 wins in 15 games, to win the Division. The team ended up 45-37 that season. When they acquired Walker, they were 27-28, toiling under .500. With Walker, they went 18-9, won the Atlantic Division, and lost a 7 game heartbreaker of a Series to Indiana. When he was on this team, and the team was his team, they won.
2. Paul Pierce – My wheelhouse player. He was drafted in 1998. Had an incredible rookie season. He was everything to this team, and eventually won an NBA Finals game. He has put his number in the rafters upon his retirement. He has remained loyal. He has evolved. He has matured and never strayed. He has been fair to the people of Boston and the Celtics and he cares. He cares about winning, and he cares about contributing. I want the ball in his hands.
1. Michael Jordan – No question. His DVD Box set of career highlights and important games is something I absolutely cannot believe I don’t own. His “sick game” v Utah, and his last shot are things of legend. I saw him beat the Celtics on a buzzer beater when he was with the Wizards. I saw him go from a 37/ppg player to a 6 time champion who could have won 8 straight, without any question whatsoever. I am actually still stunned they didn’t win the 2005 championship in his “45” ¼ season he played. How did they lose to the Knicks?!
And I think it is always fun and fitting to add a list to the end of things, so I am going to list my top 5 Most Memorable NBA related moments of all time – hopefully something will top these someday soon.
5. 2005 NBA All-Star Game, Denver Colorado.
4. Magic Johnson’s HIV announcement, November 7th, 1991 (I remember that date exactly off the top of my head, I promise).
3. Michael Jordan v. Utah, the last shot, Game 6 of the NBA Finals, 1998.
2. Celtics v. Nets, the comeback, Game 3 of the NBA Eastern Conference Finals, 1992.
1. Celtics v. Lakers, NBA Finals Game 6, 2008.
I was trying to fall asleep last night and I was making, in my head, a list of my top 5 favorite basketball players of all time, trying to find the reasonable mix of hometown favorite, outstanding player and teammate, ambassador for the game, love of the game, skill set, work ethic, etc.
But to name my top 5 players first required me to think about the era’s in which I cared about basketball. I know this reads almost exactly like Bill Simmons’ Book of Basketball, but while he may be able to claim the style of writing, I’ll be damned if he were to claim the way I think about sports as his own – this is how I have been thinking about teams, players, lists, history and hoops for a long time.
MY ERAS:
Hilltop Basketball (1983) to Len Bias (1987):
I had a fairly hands off approach to basketball during this time, which, ironically, is when the Celtics were completely dominant, and a Golden Age of basketball (Jordan, Bird, Johnson, Thomas, McHale, tail end of Kareem, etc…) existed. I had a fairly hands off approach to both playing basketball and caring about it. I remember caring about basketball cards, and I remember details here and there, but I didn’t attend a single regular season NBA game during this era.
I do, however, remember the death of Len Bias as a National story, and feeling like it was a big deal. I don’t know, something about it made me think about basketball.
Dunk Contests (1987 & 1988) to Jordan Part 1 (1993):
I had very strong memories of watching, live, during daylight hours, the Slam Dunk contest in Chicago with Jordan dueling Wilkins for the crown – this was during the era in which I resented Jordan for his stature – I’d like to say it was b/c I was sophisticated and not impressed by a 37 points per game scoring average, but instead valued team winning over individual achievement – but that wasn’t the case. I think I just saw him as someone who got whatever he wanted, and that feeling continued through his first 3 championships, but I do know I watched basketball during these years, and I started playing as well. Playing a lot, and getting better. I was inspired to go to the courts b/c of the 3 point and dunk contests, and I continued to get interested in, and play, basketball.
It should also be noted that it was during the 1991 season where I went to my first game at the Boston Garden – a game in which Bird played sparingly and Sherman Douglas led the team to a victory. I remember him executing a behind the back fake, and the crowd going absolutely bonkers. My memory of that game is something I have stuck deep in my brain, and it comes out only on special occasions.
Hakeem (1994) to Jordan Part 2 (1998):
My love for the game exploded during this time. The spring of 1995 is when I became the best basketball player I had ever become. I scored 30 in a church league game (I went 10-10 from the line that game, which was remarkable for me). I remember spending time on the basketball court after Spring track practices Senior Year. Myself and Mike Duclos beat Jeff Wright and one other person, it may have been Tom Rudick, 36-0, by ones. I remember these details.
Hakeem destroyed the Knicks and Magic in consecutive seasons, and I think the Jordan absence only gave me the ability to pause and realize how remarkable and special he was. The death of Reggie Lewis in 1993 – I remember where I was when I found out he was dead. I was actually just cruising with Marc and Jeff, on our way to or from McDonalds no doubt, on a Saturday night in July. It surprised me how much I was moved by his death – I felt like I was cheating on baseball, like there was only enough room for 1 sport.
My Freshman year at Coker College was a time when I went to the gym at night and played basketball with the Basketball team – a group of guys taller, stronger, faster, but I started to get a feeling inside of me that recognized Hustle. I started to watch sports differently and see that not all pros were created equally – that some of these guys on the Coker College hoops team were physically gifted enough to be on a D1 team, but mentally they were lazy and I’d steal the ball from them. Or they’d check out in their brain when going for a loose ball and I’d pounce.
Basketball started to evolve into a metaphor instead of a sport – I was losing my ability to play baseball b/c of vision, and I was losing my faith in it because of lockouts and boredom, but basketball started to happily creep in its place.
Sandbox (1998) to adidas (2006):
Sandbox sports was an online fantasy league site – predating ESPN and yahoo and all the other fantasy league sites you know about. I started playing sandbox before I had daily access to a computer, and this fantasy league changed my life. No longer was it a hobby to read box scores, it was a necessity. No longer was it unique to talk about free agents and trades, it was a part of my every day life. I needed to know, on a daily basis, how many rebounds Webber got or how many assists Tim Hardaway had. There was no part of me that wanted to be apart from basketball starting in 1998.
It is completely overwhelming and amazing that I went from that, to where I was in 2006 when I started working for adidas.
I have a perfect night in my head, a night that I honestly consider to be the perfect combination of everything. I don’t know how many times It happened, but it included the following. Sawtelles Hamburger Pizza, Doritos, The Celtics on TV v. Anyone, A 2 liter of Pepsi, and Ben & Jerry’s Cherry Garcia. The 1998 to 2006 Celtics were incredible, they were everything I cared about. They were on an island, and I felt like I was one of the few people there with them. Every single victory felt monumental – every single loss felt like a building block.
Eric Williams and Bryant Stith have no right taking up such a huge place in my heart – they were amazing teammates, and amazing people. They also happened to serve as a reflection on my own life, surrounding myself on the ultimate field in college at this time with friends who embodied the same things that these players embodied. The Celtics drafted Walker and Pierce during this timeframe, and became their team. They advanced, miraculously, to an Eastern Conference Final in the spring of 2002, and they did it despite everyone. Except me and my friends.
Antoine Walker was a player whose personality and style of play offended many, and I don’t have the energy or the heart to defend him anymore, but everything can be summed up about Antoine in 1 game – the 2001 Eastern Conference Final in which they overcame the largest 4th quarter deficit in NBA history to beat the Nets and go up 2-1 in the series – which they ultimately lost. It was his shining moment as a leader, as a captain. I swear Paul Pierce is a different player b/c of that game, I am certainly a different person b/c of that game, and I am not lying. It meant so much to me to see them win it.
In 2004 I attended my first All Star weekend in Los Angeles. I worked the floor of Jam Session for Reebok, selling gear and getting a whiff, but only a whiff, of what was out there to experience. I was so angry that I didn’t get a ticket to anything – I did pass up a ticket to the Dunk contest to visit Disneyland, I just remembered that.
In 2005, however, I was given the ability to attend the All Star Game in Denver, while still working with Reebok. It was a last second invite, and I was able to watch the first half in a great seat, and the 2nd half in the Reebok suite. It was an incredible night, and I made a promise to myself, as corny as it sounds, that I would absolutely 100% never forget how I felt at that moment, and how lucky I was to be where I was. I told myself to think, “remember when you were at Kevin Carrigan’s house watching Kenny Walker win the 1989 Dunk Contest, or where you were when Magic came out of retirement to hit an off balance 3 pointer in the 1992 All-Star game, making you smile at something Magic did for the first time?
I absolutely recall thinking how lucky those people were to be there, and now I was there. There are a million ways to be a better person in life, and if I only hit one 1 of them, it is that I will never take those kinds of moments for granted. I think about it almost every time I go to a regular season game, never mind some of my other experiences. Little did I know how much things would change starting in September of 2006.
Vegas All Star (2007) to Unemployed (2008):
It is amazing what one can do, and see, in a matter of a few short years. From September of ’06, to January of ’09, these are the things I did/witnessed in regards to NBA basketball:
• 2007 All-Star weekend events in Vegas, including Celebrity game, Dunk Contest/3 Pt Contest, All Star Game)
• 2007 NBA Finals Game 1, San Antonio TX
• 2007 NBA Draft Lottery – Celtics get ruined, earn the #5 pick while hoping/planning to be in the top 2
• 2007 NBA Draft – Celtics make an odd deal for Ray Allen. Little did we know?
• 2008 All-Star weekend events in New Orleans, LA
• 2008 Regular season games in: Boston, Seattle, Los Angeles, New York, Orlando, Cleveland, Indiana, Phoenix, Houston (my personal favorite – the Celtics in town to snap Houston’s 22 game win streak…so nice)
• 2008 NBA Playoffs – Game 1 of the Atlanta Series, Game 1 of the Detroit series, Games 1 & 7 of the Cleveland Series, games 1, 2 and 6 of the Finals
And I swear to you, I didn’t go to one of those events without the same level of appreciation I had the night I went to the All-Star game in Denver. I’d think about how absolutely furious I was that night in my hotel room in Los Angeles that I was working at the All-star events but didn’t get a chance to go, and I thought about how excited the 1995 Senior in High School Nick would be to talk to the 30 year old Nick and what he was up to.
It wasn’t just about the games and events, either…I had the chance to work on a daily basis with the League, talk about the League, talk to players on some occasions, but more importantly, talk to the people who help make the league come to life at retail, on TV, in the papers, public relations, etc. It was an incredible experience.
Just a Fan (2009-Present):
In a way, I’m back where I started. I had a lull for a bit. I’ve been less excited to go to Celtics games. I’ve been less excited to watch NBA on TV. But that is changing, big time. Starting in about December, I came to realize how amazing this sport is, and how much I love its professional ranks. I started to lose all the baggage I had carried around from work, from being laid off, from thinking of the league from a dollars and cents perspective, and started thinking about it as a fan. I’m now seeing the league in a whole new light – and what I’m recognizing is the amazing development of players that is coming about.
There are more than this list, but in reality, I can think of 5 players drafted in the last 3 seasons who have the chance to be future completely amazing players, and I can’t wait to see them develop.
5. Jeff Green, Oklahoma City Thunder. I saw him make a defensive play earlier this year that reminded me of Tayshawn’s unbelievable, incredibly incredible, 100% amazing block in the playoffs a few years back, when I think he was a rookie. Jeff Green is a phenom, and when this Thunder team starts making the playoffs (this year?), next year?
4. Al Horford, Atlanta Hawks. Made his All-star game debut this year. It isn’t common where you see picks #2 and #3 both being the right picks, but it looks like they were in the 2007 Draft.
3. Tyreke Evans, Sacramento Kings. The only rookie on the list. He can score so easily, and is so fast and so strong. Why isn’t he a household name? Oh yah, I know why. Arco Arena, that’s why.
2. Derrick Rose, Chicago Bulls. Have you seen his dunks this year? His dunks!? He is a point guard, who is actually a fantastic point guard, but he can DUNK!
1. Kevin Durant, Oklahoma City Thunder. At the time of writing this, Durant has 25 consecutive games of over 25 points. This is approaching some serious rare air (and yes, that is the name of a book I cherished by Michael Jordan). Jordan reached 40, Wilt has the record at something stupid like 125 (See Simmons’ Book of Basketball to be completely convinced that Wilt’s records are 100% dumb. I mean Ricky Davis rebounding his own intentional miss for a Triple Double kind of dumb).
So this actually brings me all back to the point of this post in the first place, who were my top 5 favorite players, and now that you have some context, here is where I ended up:
5. Allen Iverson – I would say his dominance fell on the heels of my personal rebirth in my interest in basketball, specifically NBA Basketball. I was starting to feel like I was sophisticated enough to separate players into groups, and even individuals into leadership categories. I always said that Iverson was the fastest guy with the ball I had ever seen, while Latrell Sprewell was the fastest without the ball I had ever seen. People were always amazed by Reggie Miller and his coming off of screens – if he, or Allan Houston, had Latrell’s physical gifts, they’d have scored 40/night.
4. Clyde Drexler – No player captured the ingenuity and creativity of the early dunk contests for me like Clyde. He had a rhythm and a fluidity I could only be in awe of. Jordan elevated it to another level, and Dominique just flat out hammered the ball through, like he was going to dunk whether or not you were there to see it…but Drexler was making it an art form – he was a dunk virtuoso, and I loved his soft demeanor as well…what a combination of heart and athleticism. Man, Jordan wrecked those Blazers.
3. Antoine Walker – Everyone hates him, and I wish I could say I don’t care. I know his life has become a joke and a complete mess, and I am sure his on the court demeanor was horrible, and he was a pain in the ass to all coaches. But I know this. He led an unskilled team to an Eastern Conf. Final with a legit shot to make the finals, and the worst team in the Division ended up winning the Division after they reacquired him, including a run which included 14 wins in 15 games, to win the Division. The team ended up 45-37 that season. When they acquired Walker, they were 27-28, toiling under .500. With Walker, they went 18-9, won the Atlantic Division, and lost a 7 game heartbreaker of a Series to Indiana. When he was on this team, and the team was his team, they won.
2. Paul Pierce – My wheelhouse player. He was drafted in 1998. Had an incredible rookie season. He was everything to this team, and eventually won an NBA Finals game. He has put his number in the rafters upon his retirement. He has remained loyal. He has evolved. He has matured and never strayed. He has been fair to the people of Boston and the Celtics and he cares. He cares about winning, and he cares about contributing. I want the ball in his hands.
1. Michael Jordan – No question. His DVD Box set of career highlights and important games is something I absolutely cannot believe I don’t own. His “sick game” v Utah, and his last shot are things of legend. I saw him beat the Celtics on a buzzer beater when he was with the Wizards. I saw him go from a 37/ppg player to a 6 time champion who could have won 8 straight, without any question whatsoever. I am actually still stunned they didn’t win the 2005 championship in his “45” ¼ season he played. How did they lose to the Knicks?!
And I think it is always fun and fitting to add a list to the end of things, so I am going to list my top 5 Most Memorable NBA related moments of all time – hopefully something will top these someday soon.
5. 2005 NBA All-Star Game, Denver Colorado.
4. Magic Johnson’s HIV announcement, November 7th, 1991 (I remember that date exactly off the top of my head, I promise).
3. Michael Jordan v. Utah, the last shot, Game 6 of the NBA Finals, 1998.
2. Celtics v. Nets, the comeback, Game 3 of the NBA Eastern Conference Finals, 1992.
1. Celtics v. Lakers, NBA Finals Game 6, 2008.
Monday, February 08, 2010
...Leadership on the C's...
Leadership is clearly an issue right now for the Celtics.
Doc Rivers had a really interesting point of view on things back in 2003 - this was something that has been seared into my memory - and I found the article.
In '03, Doc decided not to re-sign his "captain" and team leader, Darrell Armstrong, in favor of giving Tracy McGrady a bigger leadership role in Orlando. This is from a Peter Vescey's article in '04.
That article really stuck with me. I didn't understand it's logic - and while I give Doc the ability to change his mind, and certainly change his outlook given it is 7 years later and he is dealing with a team of Veterans, rather than a team of rookies with a superstud on it...
But by his logic, is it time for Garnett to go? 2 seasons ago, Garnett won Defensive Player of the Year, and while he may not have been the team's best scorer, he was without question the leader on the Defensive end as well as the overall leader. This year, however, it can be argued he is hurting the team, at times, defensively. I know he isn't labelled captain, but the veterans certainly rally around him. He is the first to speak at press conferences, he is the mouthpiece for the squad, the centerpiece of its identity.
Doc has to think long and hard about this. In the above article he even reference "history" himself, and now he has to look back into his memory bank and does owe this at least a little bit of thought.
I am not entirely sure what the course of action needs to be, but to me it is obvious that something is wrong with this team, and it isn't unfixable, and maybe its time to give the young kid the keys to the car - maybe its time to start thinking about the Perkins/Rondo nucleus as more than a peripheral concept, but as a point of actuality that you build your team around.
Doc Rivers had a really interesting point of view on things back in 2003 - this was something that has been seared into my memory - and I found the article.
In '03, Doc decided not to re-sign his "captain" and team leader, Darrell Armstrong, in favor of giving Tracy McGrady a bigger leadership role in Orlando. This is from a Peter Vescey's article in '04.
NEW YORK -- Four defeats A.D. (After Doc), hints and allegations continue to dribble-drive-and-dish throughout the league; the misinformed majority would like you to believe Magic GM John Gabriel undermined his undeviatingly adored coach by refusing to re-sign force field Darrell Armstrong. Not.But, what the heck, don't take my "authorized" word for it."I didn't want Darrell back," Doc Rivers openly admitted shortly after being dumped at the curb. "He's my all-time favorite player, but the only way to take a step forward was to have Tracy McGrady leading the team. "Darrell was a strong leader -- and a good leader -- for nine seasons. But the only way to advance to the next level was to have your best player as captain."Historically, that has always been true. Look at all the great teams? Celtics, Lakers, Bulls, Pistons -- their leaders were their best players -- Russell, Bird, Magic, Michael, Isiah."What team has won a title with its best player not being the leader?"(Hmm, let me think: The 1983 76ers; Dr. J was team leader, Moses Malone was the man. The 1999 Spurs; David Robinson/Tim Duncan. The 1970 Bucks; Oscar/Kareem)"Obviously, we would have been better with Darrell. I could see we needed his direction and energy," Rivers allowed."But all summer he said he felt he should start and would not come back as a backup. You can go someplace else (New Orleans) and accept less money than you would from your parent team, as well as a diminished role, like Patrick (Ewing) did when he went to Seattle. That couldn't happen in New York, because Patrick made his name with the Knicks; he was their best player and their voice."Until Rivers created a "C" and ordered it engraved on McGrady's uniform, he had never appointed anyone captain.So, for four straight seasons during Baby Doc's regime, Armstrong sashayed over to the referees and relayed any relevant conversation to the Magic. And, for the last three, McGrady unreservedly deferred to his leadership while dominating the stats sheet.According to Rivers, when notified a change in the chain of command was necessary, McGrady agreed."It almost had to end that way," Rivers lamented. "By far, Darrell is the hardest working player with the biggest heart I've ever seen. But this was the right thing to do and the right time to do it. It was very difficult for me and very taxing on him."Darrell and me had a falling out because we didn't re-sign him, no question. But also there's no doubt, at least in my mind, we'll become good friends again some day."
That article really stuck with me. I didn't understand it's logic - and while I give Doc the ability to change his mind, and certainly change his outlook given it is 7 years later and he is dealing with a team of Veterans, rather than a team of rookies with a superstud on it...
But by his logic, is it time for Garnett to go? 2 seasons ago, Garnett won Defensive Player of the Year, and while he may not have been the team's best scorer, he was without question the leader on the Defensive end as well as the overall leader. This year, however, it can be argued he is hurting the team, at times, defensively. I know he isn't labelled captain, but the veterans certainly rally around him. He is the first to speak at press conferences, he is the mouthpiece for the squad, the centerpiece of its identity.
But is he the best player? no.
Rajon Rondo is the team's best player at this point. He is being tasked to do it all, and he is doing it all. Every offensive possession goes through him not only as the team's Point Guard, but also as the team's unofficial leader on the floor. He was brave enough to point out, to the press, that perhaps its chemistry that is the issue, not skill, talent, or injury.
Doc has to think long and hard about this. In the above article he even reference "history" himself, and now he has to look back into his memory bank and does owe this at least a little bit of thought.
I am not entirely sure what the course of action needs to be, but to me it is obvious that something is wrong with this team, and it isn't unfixable, and maybe its time to give the young kid the keys to the car - maybe its time to start thinking about the Perkins/Rondo nucleus as more than a peripheral concept, but as a point of actuality that you build your team around.
What form will this take? I'm not sure, but its really interesting.
Tuesday, February 02, 2010
...Things Are Heating Up...
New Hampshire Senator Judd Gregg said, of Obama's intention to use some of the repaid bank bailout money, "TARP is not a piggy bank. TARP worked as intended during the financial crisis, but the crisis has passed, and the program is no longer needed."
That is cute, but it clearly is rhetoric of a Governor whose state is at a "low" 7% unemployment, and didn't have a catastrophic 2009 like most of the rest of the country did. The idea that a politician can play only to his local constituency and ignore the plight of every other American, in big and small groups, is really the 2nd worst thing about this country, preceded only by our propensity to allow money to wage our campaign battles for us.
But I am getting off track.
Obama has been nothing short of totally kick ass since his state of the Union. People are mistaking finger pointing, and "negative politics" for mindless politics, which isn't true. Obama challenged the Republicans and the Republican leadership, almost as directly and overtly as fictional President Jackson Evans in one of my all-time favorite movies, The Contender.
If you feel like ruining the end of the movie for yourself, watch this clip.
"Your leadership has raised the stakes of hate to a level where we can no longer separate the demagogue from the truly inspired," is a quote from the clip that rings SO true today. The whole clip is summing up the way the "dome" of Congress is working nowadays, and how Obama is attacking the new reality.
The Health Care bill is an ugly thing right now - it has been stripped down from its real and original version, and the Massachusetts vote may turn out to be the greatest thing that could have happened to Obama. The focus on fixing this country, which would have been partially accomplished by giving citizens Health Care, will now more fully be accomplished by giving Americans a real sense hope.
Obama has been on the offensive, been in front of the public, and is listening to the critics which speculate that the Massachusetts loss was a result of the citizens of this country feeling unattached from Obama's real motives, unattached from the process, and unattached from the inner workings of Washington.
Well, you asked for it, America. You are actively a part of the process now. The things he was always afraid to say, he is saying. The fingers he never wanted to point, he is pointing. You asked him to defend himself, and he is doing that.
Today in New Hampshire he unrolled a plan to use TARP funds to give money to small/local banks to fund small business loans. Small business loans. Is there a clip from a Republican leader who didn't want to talk about protecting small businesses? Is there a Republican in Congress who, at this time, can turn their back on the small businesses?
Yes, and his name is Judd Gregg. And he isn't alone. Small businesses are being asked, by Obama and his inspiration, to look at Senator Gregg's philosophy and really think it through. The basis of not wanting to continue with the lending principals to small banks is really, honestly, 100% the same as GW Bush's "Mission: Accomplished" moment.
But I go back to the bigger point again, that Obama really is taking this Massachusetts loss, and the realization that a full on assault of the pitiful Health Care status quo, is going to have to just fade away. It is something that has been beaten to a pulp, the American public isn't ready to have a conversation, because the conversation was led by the wrong side.
Obama's offensive maneuvering has put him on the front lines of nearly everything since the State of the Union, and it is incredible. Today's unbelievably momentous moment in the history of Gay Rights. Directly quoting and supporting Obama, Secretary Gates unbelievably challenged congress on the Don't Ask, Don't Tell policy. The video here is really awesome, fantastic, even. Watch Gates speak about this policy, which not only is a dismissal of Don't Ask, Don't Tell, but more of a dismissal of the overall idea behind it.
The time has come for serious politics and serious leadership, and no question Obama is seperating himself from the competition. Gates summed it all up in his statement, something that should lead policy, politics, and decision-making across the board, and I cannot believe that this won't govern Obama's policy for the long-term:
"I am determined to carry out this process in a way that establishes objective and reliable information on this question, with minimal influence by the policy or political debate. It is essential that we accomplish this in order to have the best possible analysis and info to guide the policy choices before the Dept. and the Congress."
There is real optimism there, there is real progress there, and the time to continue to hide under a rock and be afraid of progress is the idea that Obama needs to continue to attack, and I am actually confident he will.
That is cute, but it clearly is rhetoric of a Governor whose state is at a "low" 7% unemployment, and didn't have a catastrophic 2009 like most of the rest of the country did. The idea that a politician can play only to his local constituency and ignore the plight of every other American, in big and small groups, is really the 2nd worst thing about this country, preceded only by our propensity to allow money to wage our campaign battles for us.
But I am getting off track.
Obama has been nothing short of totally kick ass since his state of the Union. People are mistaking finger pointing, and "negative politics" for mindless politics, which isn't true. Obama challenged the Republicans and the Republican leadership, almost as directly and overtly as fictional President Jackson Evans in one of my all-time favorite movies, The Contender.
If you feel like ruining the end of the movie for yourself, watch this clip.
"Your leadership has raised the stakes of hate to a level where we can no longer separate the demagogue from the truly inspired," is a quote from the clip that rings SO true today. The whole clip is summing up the way the "dome" of Congress is working nowadays, and how Obama is attacking the new reality.
The Health Care bill is an ugly thing right now - it has been stripped down from its real and original version, and the Massachusetts vote may turn out to be the greatest thing that could have happened to Obama. The focus on fixing this country, which would have been partially accomplished by giving citizens Health Care, will now more fully be accomplished by giving Americans a real sense hope.
Obama has been on the offensive, been in front of the public, and is listening to the critics which speculate that the Massachusetts loss was a result of the citizens of this country feeling unattached from Obama's real motives, unattached from the process, and unattached from the inner workings of Washington.
Well, you asked for it, America. You are actively a part of the process now. The things he was always afraid to say, he is saying. The fingers he never wanted to point, he is pointing. You asked him to defend himself, and he is doing that.
Today in New Hampshire he unrolled a plan to use TARP funds to give money to small/local banks to fund small business loans. Small business loans. Is there a clip from a Republican leader who didn't want to talk about protecting small businesses? Is there a Republican in Congress who, at this time, can turn their back on the small businesses?
Yes, and his name is Judd Gregg. And he isn't alone. Small businesses are being asked, by Obama and his inspiration, to look at Senator Gregg's philosophy and really think it through. The basis of not wanting to continue with the lending principals to small banks is really, honestly, 100% the same as GW Bush's "Mission: Accomplished" moment.
But I go back to the bigger point again, that Obama really is taking this Massachusetts loss, and the realization that a full on assault of the pitiful Health Care status quo, is going to have to just fade away. It is something that has been beaten to a pulp, the American public isn't ready to have a conversation, because the conversation was led by the wrong side.
Obama's offensive maneuvering has put him on the front lines of nearly everything since the State of the Union, and it is incredible. Today's unbelievably momentous moment in the history of Gay Rights. Directly quoting and supporting Obama, Secretary Gates unbelievably challenged congress on the Don't Ask, Don't Tell policy. The video here is really awesome, fantastic, even. Watch Gates speak about this policy, which not only is a dismissal of Don't Ask, Don't Tell, but more of a dismissal of the overall idea behind it.
The time has come for serious politics and serious leadership, and no question Obama is seperating himself from the competition. Gates summed it all up in his statement, something that should lead policy, politics, and decision-making across the board, and I cannot believe that this won't govern Obama's policy for the long-term:
"I am determined to carry out this process in a way that establishes objective and reliable information on this question, with minimal influence by the policy or political debate. It is essential that we accomplish this in order to have the best possible analysis and info to guide the policy choices before the Dept. and the Congress."
There is real optimism there, there is real progress there, and the time to continue to hide under a rock and be afraid of progress is the idea that Obama needs to continue to attack, and I am actually confident he will.
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