Category Archives: National Basketball Association

The Miami Heat are World Champions. LeBron James is a World Champion, Most Valuable Player, Finals Most Valuable Player, and the undisputed best player on the face of the earth. For one night, no one can (with any shred of intelligence) say that LeBron James isn’t great. Game five of the NBA Finals saw one of the most amazing playoff runs in history capped off by one of the most impressive performances in a series clinching game in history.

Two things stood out during the game and post-game celebration for the Heat. First, LeBron was happy. Legitimately happy without a care in the world about who was watching him smile. Nothing else in the world mattered. This is probably the only time he’s been able to show any real emotion (because we are so damn annoying) in the last seven years. Second, the Miami Heat of 2012 are a completely different team that walked off the floor at the end of the 2011 Finals. The team in 2011 took turn on every possession. The 2012 team shared possessions and was extremely fun to watch. LeBron showed that he was a true class act after the game. The embrace with Kevin Durant was an honest hug, a sign of respect and empathy for the position that KD was in.

The Miami Heat will only get better. Their perimeter players will get younger and more athletic, and they will upgrade at center (PLEASE!). They aren’t going anywhere.

Speaking of KD…He was crushed after the game. He nearly collapsed into his family’s arms and you could tell he wasn’t ready to go home. This isn’t the way he thought the Finals would play out. The Oklahoma City Thunder have built something special and, if they can keep things together, they’ll be back for more.

LeBron wasn’t the only class act on the floor tonight. KD was too. He returned LeBron’s hug and you could tell he meant it. Most importantly, he said that he was blessed to be with OKC and that he didn’t plan on changing that anytime soon. This could be the next great rivalry in sports. I can’t wait to see what happens next.

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ESPN recently went nuts and ranked the top five point guards in the National Basketball Association because of the crazy weekend that point guards had. Ric Bucher ranked them like this:

5. Chris Paul

4. Tony Parker

3. Deron Williams

2. Russell Westbrook

1. Derrick Rose

Bucher admitted that he wasn’t ranking point guards on a tradition scale, but one that ranked the guards by the way they change the game. I’ll admit that he’s got four of those five right. He sure as hell doesn’t have them in the right order.

Let’s rank them the right way.

5. Russell Westbrook

I know that Westbrook is a game-changing point guard. He’s a dynamic scorer and he can do a lot of things that a lot of guy can’t do. He’s shooting a career-high 47% from the floor. He’s doing some things that aren’t good enough to move him up this list. Things that, hopefully, he’ll fix as he gets older.

He’s only making 81.7% of his free throws. That’s not good enough for a guy who gets to the lane as much as Westbrook does. He’s gotta be better at the line, especially since he’s been there 224 times this season.

The most important part of point guard play, traditional or not, is the way they control the floor. With such a dynamic playmakers in Kevin Durant, Kendrick Perkins, and Serge Ibaka, Westbrook should have a lot more assists. As it is, he’s only got 205 assists to 153 turnovers. Those numbers are too high and the sign of a player who still has some maturing to do.

4. Deron Williams

Williams just put up a ton of points this past weekend and helped set off the point guard frenzy that led us here. I’ll admit that Deron Williams is one of the most dominant players in the league right now, but I don’t know if I’d call him a point guard because he’s built more like a two-guard.

Either way, he’s been impressive all season and you can’t fault him for the Nets lack of success. Williams is shooting a career-low 41.4% from the field. He’s also on pace to take the most shots of his career. He’s also just 80 three-pointers from breaking his career high from behind the arc in attempts. He’ll probably break that number with ease. The most impressive change in Williams’ play is his improved free throw percentage – up 20 points from last season.

Technically, he’s a point guard. Still – he only has 305 assists to 155 turnovers (the most in the East). In reality, Williams is probably a shooting guard who needs to work on his three. Oh…and he’s not as good as the next three guys.

3. Rajon Rondo

Don’t hold Rondo’s numbers this season against him. He’s played in 11 fewer games than anyone else on this list. Still, he’s shooting 46.7% form the floor, and he’s got 264 assists to only 96 turnovers.

That’s not the most impressive part, though. Let’s dissect the Celtics. They’re old. They haven’t made a meaningful personnel move in three years. Rondo is being shopped around like a classic muscle car, and he’s still playing out of his mind. If it weren’t for Rose and Paul having incredible seasons, Rondo would be at the top of this list.

Yes, Rondo needs to work on his long-range shot because it’s awful. Yes, he is a terrible free throw shooter. Yes, he’s the third best floor general in the game. That’s what we’re ranking here – the best point guards. If you need one of those, Rondo is on your top-3 list.

2. Chris Paul

Paul is having a fantastic season. He transformed Blake Griffin into the best power forward in the game right now. We’ve been talking a lot about turnovers, assists, shooting percentage, etc. Let’s talk about it some more.

Paul is shooting 49.1% from the field, a career-high 42.7% from behind the arc, and 253 assists to only 66 turnovers.

Blake Griffin has emerged as the best power forward in the game right now. Before the botched Lakers trade, the Clippers were missing one piece. Something to bring the team together.

Guess what they got? The best point guard in the game. Why is he at number two, you ask? It’s because Rose is doing it without a second option. If the rest of the Bulls start to show up, Paul would take Rose’s spot at the top. He’s the most talented point guard in the league. Don’t argue with me.

1. Derrick Rose

He’s the reigning MVP. There’s no doubt about how good this kid is. If the Bulls didn’t have such a great record, he’d be number two on this list. He’s shooting 46% from the field, 32.8% from beyond the arc, and he’s got 235 assists to just 84 turnovers. He’s only averaging 22.4 points per game. I know what you’re thinking – Andy, you just made the argument that he was the best point guard because he’s carrying this Bulls team.

That’s because he is. Joakim Noah, Carlos Boozer, and Luol Deng haven’t exactly impressed this year – maybe they’re tanking because they don’t want to get shipped to Orlando.

Either way, Derrick Rose is having a great season and he’s carrying a Bulls team that’s not as talented as it should be. I keep hearing that the MVP Race is between Kevin Durant and LeBron James. There’s a third horse in the race. He might be a distant third, but don’t sleep on him.

Three weeks ago, he didn’t know if he’d be in the league. Now he’s the hottest name in basketball. Jeremy Lin, or as you may know him, Linsanity. I have a few opinions. You’re about to hear them all.

Let’s start with that awful nickname. Linsanity? Who is he – Vince Carter? Come on, he deserves better than that, New York! He’s given a hapless fan base (and the greatest fan base in sports) something to cheer about. He’s reinvigorated Madison Square Garden more than anyone else ever could have, with the exception on LeBron – more on that in a minute. Jeremy. That’s what we should call him. I think he’s earned the “first name” title. Let’s stop trying to be cute. This kid can play some serious basketball; he doesn’t need a cute nickname to make people remember him.

I get it. Believe me, I do. He reinvigorated that best basketball arena in the world and took a potential lottery team back to .500 and what looks like a playoff berth. He makes the Knicks a scary opponent in the playoffs for a lot of teams. He’s showing that he can co-exist with Carmelo Anthony and Amare Stoudemire. He said it a few times, and I agree – he’s just doing his job because someone finally gave him a shot. Can we all agree to just enjoy his talent and stop obsessing about it? I’d love to see a half hour of Sports Center without an 11-minute Jeremy update.

As crazy as you might think it is, that’s really all I have to say about him.

I do have one more thing though. Do you think LeBron cringes every time he sees Jeremy light up MSG? Do you think he wishes that he had gone to New York to play with Amare? I think we can all agree that he’s better than Lin. I’ve seen the footage – MSG is like game seven of a playoff series every night. LeBron could have had that every night for the rest of his career! A bad decision? I think so.

Earlier today, I posted my NBA Eastern Conference preview. Here is the preview for the West. Enjoy!

Dallas Mavericks: (45-21) – The Dallas Mavericks, somehow, have a “no one believes” in us. They did lose Tyson Chandler, which will hurt them defensively. They added Lamar Odom for nearly nothing. I don’t know if I like the addition of Odom. It takes away their defensive toughness and makes them a finesse kind of team. I think they’ll win a decent amount of games (obviously), but this isn’t a championship team again.

Denver Nuggets: (36-30) – I like Denver. Wilson Chandler should be back from China quicker than a lot of people think. They got Nene back when no one thought they would (okay…when I didn’t think they would). This team is young and can play ten or eleven-deep.

Golden State Warriors: (28-38) – A new coach and no training camp doesn’t make me feel good about Golden State’s season. I just don’t expect good things from these guys. Although, I do think they have a good backcourt that might get them a few more wins than I’m predicting.

Houston Rockets: (32-34) – Unfortunately for the Rockets, they’ll be playing the West a lot more than the East. They tried to trade two of their best players in the “Paul trade that wasn’t.” They’ve got no true center and I think that hurts them in a shortened, West-heavy season.

L.A. Clippers: (40-26) – I think the addition of Paul makes this team better than a lot of people think they’ll win. I think that Blake Griffin will have the same type of season that Derrick Rose had last year and he’ll really break out. Paul knows how to get the ball to the right people in the right situation. They’re going to be really good.

L.A. Lakers: (38-28) – Mike Brown is their coach. Kobe’s hand is “hurt.” I trust Andrew Bynum’s knees about as far as they can carry him. Which isn’t very far. They have absolutely no depth and when Bynum’s knees give out in February, they’ll hit a huge slide. Kobe has about a million miles on his legs and he’s going to have to play a ton of minutes to keep this team above water. He might not have the legs to do that.

Memphis Grizzlies: (43-23) – I really like this team. Marc Gasol, Zach Randolph, O.J. Mayo, and Zach Randolph make for one hell of a core of players. The only concern I have is at point guard. They’ll be a tough team under the rim and should be able to win close games and make them a legitimate title contender.

Minnesota Timberwolves: (25-41) – This is a pretty bad team. I know I’ve mentioned these two things already…They have some depth that could get them a few more wins than I’m predicting. That depth might not matter when they’re playing the West-heavy schedule.

New Orleans Hornets: (28-38) – The addition of Trevor Ariza and Eric Gordon might help them make up for some of the juice they lost when Paul was traded. They’ve got some holes though, and I think it will obviously hurt them. Don’t sleep on the “no one believes in us” factor from the guys who got traded away for Chris Paul.

Oklahoma City Thunder: (49-17) – I think Russell Westbrook could destroy the OKC season. He wants to be the go-to guy on the team, which is crazy when you’re playing with Kevin Durant. Serge Ibaka gives them a good under-the-rim presence and they have some serious depth and young legs to get through a shortened season. James Harden is a legitimate threat to be an All-Star and great down-the-stretch player if Durant and Westbrook have off games.

Phoenix Suns: (33-33) – This is a terrible team. The only reason I can see them being near .500 is Steve Nash. They have no depth, but they do have experience, which may help them a little bit.

Portland Blazers: (37-29) – Had Greg Oden been able to come back this season like they thought he was going to, I’d have probably given them a few more wins. Besides that, this is pretty much the same basketball team it was last season in talent. They should win a decent amount of games.

Sacramento Kings: (22-44) – Much like the Bobcats – I won’t waste your time here. I do have a side note though: I really like the way that Sacramento fans fought to keep the Kings in town.

San Antonio Spurs: (37-29) – Much like Boston the Spurs will be losers in the shortened season. The legs of Tim Duncan will be the biggest story in San Antonio. I think that the Spurs will do things like the Celtics and rest their veterans enough to get a six or seven-seed.

Utah Jazz: (29-37) – Bill Simmons and Joe House called this a “team of trade pieces”. I couldn’t agree more. Outside of Derrick Favors, there isn’t anyone on the team who can be guaranteed to be there next season.

If this shakes out how I see, this is what your Western Playoff picture looks like:

1. Oklahoma City Thunder

2. Dallas Mavericks

3. Memphis Grizzlies

4. L.A. Clippers

5. L.A. Lakers

6. San Antonio Spurs

7. Portland Blazers

8. Denver Nuggets

There you have it folks! Enjoy and have a Merry Christmas!

Here is an NBA Eastern Conference preview. A little later today we’ll have the Western conference preview up! It’ll be just in time for Christmas/Opening Day! I have always been a big fan of Bill Simmons over/under podcast for the NBA with Joe House. I was hoping to do something like that this year. I can’t because Vegas isn’t doing over/under numbers. Instead, I’ll give you a projected record and the “why I think this.” Here we go…

Atlanta Hawks: (35-31) – Tracy McGrady replaces Jamaal Crawford. Last season, the Hawks finished with a .537 win percentage. They don’t get any better with the McGrady/Crawford switch. A .530 win percentage seems about right for this team.

Boston Celtics: (38-28) – The Celtics just keep getting older. A compressed schedule full of back-back-backs and back-backs is only going to hurt them. They’ll have to rest Kevin Garnett and his old knees. They have some serious issues with their depth. Their goal will be to make it to the playoffs as a five or six-seed in order to avoid Miami and Chicago in the first round. I think they’ll do just enough to get that done.

Charlotte Bobcats: (21-45) – This is an awful team. I won’t waste your time with any more words.

Chicago Bulls: (48-18) – I think Carlos Boozer will have a legitimate comeback year and help the Bulls win some more games than they should. Derrick Rose is great. The addition of Rip Hamilton is going to be really good for the Bulls if he has anything left in the tank. They have slightly more depth than Miami, which is why I see them ending with the best record in the East.

Cleveland Cavaliers: (15-51) – Is Kyle Irving good? Eh. He might be. He benefited from a weak draft to go number one. There isn’t very much talent around him outside of Anderson Varejao and Antawn Jamison. I can’t believe I just wrote those words. Has Varejao had a meaningful moment in two years?

Detroit Pistons: (23-43) – Detroit is a mess. Even when they had Rip Hamilton, they were building a team that didn’t make any sense. They didn’t stop when he left. They must still be bottoming out, because I can’t figure out what they’re doing. If it weren’t for their depth of mediocre players, I’d say they’d win closer to 20 games. That depth could be responsible for a few wins against a weak East.

Indiana Pacers: (39-27) – I like this Pacers team much more than I probably should. I just think they’re built for this compressed season. They have a ton of young high-energy guys who play fundamental basketball. I also think they could get one of the guys stuck in China or another good role-player during the season.

Miami Heat: (47-17) – I really wanted to have them tie with Chicago for the win total. That would have been an easy way out. I think that they’re the best team in the league. Their depth is still something I question and the lack of a true PG may hurt them. I also don’t know if they’ll make it through a second season in a row without serious injuring to at least one of their superstars.

Milwaukee Bucks: (33-33) – I think this is a .500 team up and down. As you’ll see when you reach the bottom of this – it isn’t actually good enough to get them the eight seed. But I’m not sold on my 76ers pick and they could sneak in.

New Jersey (Brooklyn) Nets: (20-46) – If the Brooklyn Nets can get Dwight Howard away from Orlando before the trade deadline, this will be completely wrong. Howard would infuse this team with some excitement and they’d probably rip off a ton of wins down the stretch to get into the playoffs. As of right now, Orlando has Howard off the trade block and it doesn’t look like he’s going anywhere this season.

New York Knicks: (42-24) – I really like the Knicks. I think Carmelo Anthony and Amare Stoudemire are a lethal 1-2 punch. I also love the addition of Baron Davis. If they can survive the first few weeks of Mike Bibby playing a lot of minutes, this is probably the third best team in the East.

Orlando Magic: (37-29) – Who the hell knows? They should win more than 37 games, but the black cloud of Dwight Howard’s possible trade could really hurt their team, much like Denver last season. I’m not sure about the rest of the roster and how good they can be.

Philadelphia 76ers: (34-32) – They didn’t do a whole lot in the shortened offseason. I guess they didn’t have to in order to stay around .500 for the opportunity to lose to the Heat/Bulls/Knicks in the first round. They have a decent 8-man-deep roster that should help them win some games that they wouldn’t during a normal season.

Toronto Raptors: (17-49) – Their first pick from last year is playing in Lithuania for this season and they have made it no secret that they plan on “rebuilding” (read: tanking) this season. I’m pretty sure no one is going to want to watch this team.

Washington Wizards: (14-52) – Worst team in the league. I won’t waste your time. I could…since John Wall will be wasting his time playing for the Wizards.

That would make the playoff picture shake out a little like this:

1. Chicago Bulls

2. Miami Heat

3. New York Knicks

4. Indiana Pacers

5. Boston Celtics

6. Orlando Magic

7. Atlanta Hawks

8. Philadelphia 76ers

There’s the East. Coming up in a little while is the West! Stay tuned!

First, a sidenote… I realize that my articles have been on the short side recently without a whole lot of meat and potatoes. As soon as my work schedule lets up (Sunday), I plan on diving a little deeper into the things I’m writing about. For now…a short piece on the Clippers apparent Chris Paul trade.

Barring any ridiculous vetoes from the NBA Commissioners office, Chris Paul will be a Clipper by Wednesday night. According to sources, the deal will send Clippers’ guard Eric Gordon, center Chris Kaman, forward Al-Farouq Aminu, and Minnesota’s unprotected first-round pick to the New Orleans Hornets for Chris Paul and two future second-round picks.

If you’re any sort of NBA fan, you are well aware that the Clippers have been one  of the most irrelevant franchises in the league since…well, a long time. They have a horrible owner (Donald Sterling) who usually makes it a point to keep his franchise in the basement. It certainly doesn’t help that they live in the shadow of Kobe Bryant and the always dominant Lakers, either.

If this trade is approved Wednesday night, as expected, it could be the first time the L.A. Clippers have been relevant since Donald Sterling took over the team. Chris Paul is a top 10 player (when he’s healthy) and Blake Griffin is on the verge of breaking through to the “next level” (much like Derrick Rose did last season before winning the MVP).

I don’t like that the Clippers gave up Eric Gordon in this trade. He was a piece that sources claimed the Clips weren’t willing to move and the piece that the Hornets had to have in order to sign off on the trade. I get it from both sides, and the Clippers get something back with the two future second round picks.

As a fan of basketball, I couldn’t be more excited about this trade. Paul’s shaky knees aside, this could be a great 1-2 punch in L.A. Griffin is already one of the most dominant young big men in the game and now he’s got a guy handling the ball who knows how to distribute it all over the court to the right people at the right time. I can already see the YouTube clips of Paul-Griffin alley-oops.

If Chris Paul signs an extension with the Clippers and Griffin follows, this team could have the centerpiece together for a meaningful run in the Western Conference for years to come. The Clippers might finally matter again.

I’ll be the first to admit that I don’t know the new ins and outs of the NBA Labor Agreement. I’ll also be the first to admit that I don’t need to know the first thing about it to know that the veto of the Chris Paul trade was stupid and unfounded. I can’t imagine that the NBA is in the right with this veto.

As Bill Simmons so eloquently put it here, the strange thing about loving sports are the random moments when you hear about a story – a legitimate bombshell – and you just sit there with your jaw hanging slack. The veto by David Stern of this trade because it wasn’t “in the best interest of the league” was absolutely ridiculous.

The worst part about this veto is that Stern and the league said that New Orleans Hornet’s GM Dell Demps would have full ability to execute trades and personnel moves. Now he goes back on his word? Demps is all but a lame duck in New Orleans now. No team will want to work with him after this. If the lockout didn’t prove that Stern has stuck around too long, this surely has.

For those of you who are unfamiliar with the pieces involved in the trade, let’s break down who was supposed to go where:

L.A. Lakers get: Chris Paul

Houston Rockets get: Pau Gasol

Hornets get: Kevin Martin, Lamar Odom, Luis Scola, Goran Dragic, and 2012 first round pick.

Someone, please, explain to me how this trade was not fair. Houston has spent the last several years rebuilding with young pieces and draft picks in order to get this sort of trade. They get a legitimate F/C to go with their remaining young talent. New Orleans got back three starters, and the Lakers are able to retool. On what planet is this not in the best interest of the league? Oh…that’s right. Dan Gilbert started whining because he wasn’t smart enough to make sure he saw some return before LeBron ran off to Miami. Well, Dan (and fellow small-market owners), I’ve got new for all of you – you bought this team knowing what sort of market it was in. Stop your whining. If you want to build a winner, give a superstar a reason to come to your team.

After Gilbert started the fire, we saw other small-market owners band together to tell Stern that they didn’t think the trade was fair because it showed that superstars could push their way off a small market team and into a basketball dream city of New York, L.A., Boston, or Miami. Well, owners, you know what? That’s because they can.

One of the most invalid arguments that I heard today, in an attempt to defend the decision, was that the move is bad for basketball because it makes everything a two team race between L.A. and Miami. I have several rebuttals for that absolutely nuts claim.

That claim is based on the idea that L.A. would somehow be able to acquire Dwight Howard from the Orlando Magic. If the above three-team trade went through, the Lakers would probably be left grasping for straws in order to put a trade together for Howard. They’re left with Bynum as their only option to package together with probably one other piece and some cash or picks. That other piece would almost certainly have to be Ron Artest or maybe even Derek Fisher.  If you’re Orlando, why do you make that trade? Bynum is injury prone and Artest and Fisher are on the back nine.

Why does this trade make the NBA a two-team race? Is anyone going to honestly tell me the Bulls won’t challenge the Heat this season? The reigning MVP, a better Noah, and Boozer – they will compete. How about the Celtics? They should be good too, right? At least they’ll be competitive. In the West you still the Thunder and the reigning World Champion Mavericks. I’m not sure what everyone is so worried about. Don’t forget – Howard isn’t going to L.A. right now. You think that Paul and Bryant in the front court with an injury-prone Bynum playing the boards is going to be a good team.

Lastly – are we even thinking about what we’re saying?! The Heat were the best thing that could have happened to the NBA last season. It was the best season I remember in my lifetime. The NBA should not only welcome the Paul to L.A. trade, they should encourage a Howard trade.

David Stern was wrong in vetoing this deal. If it doesn’t get overturned when the Players Association gets involved on Monday, I’ll be astonished. Paul to the Lakers is good for everyone. Hell, Howard and Paul to the Lakers is good for sports fans everywhere. Even if you’re a Boston Celtics fan.