A sports blog by and for Midwest Sports Fans
I don’t know what our obsession is as sports fans with always wanting to rank players, teams, and plays. So often, we end up arguing for hours and we never stop and appreciate the player/team/play that we are defending.
However, after last night’s Blake Griffin dunk, I think some people are getting a LITTLE bit carried away. Was it the best dunk of the year? Of course. But how quickly we forget dandies like these.
When I woke up this morning and popped on the TV, the first thing I heard was, “Twitter it exploded last night! Find out why next.”
My first thought was that Rob Lowe had said something provocative. Then I had an awful thought that maybe someone had gotten injured, sick, or worse…but I immediately was reassured by the tone of voice of the speaker.
No, this wasn’t a negative Twitter explosion. It was a jubilant.
And then I found out why.
And oh me, oh my.
It is officially Pau Gasol Week here at Midwest Sports Fans.
Yesterday, after re-setting my lineup for this weekend’s DraftStreet freeroll tournament (click here to join here for free), I counted down the 22 most unintentionally hilarious pictures of the famously photogenic Gasol.
I had no intention of posting again about Gasol today, because I was Gasol-ed out after yesterday and because a Spaniard playing in Los Angeles doesn’t exactly scream “Midwest,” but after stumbling upon the animated GIF below what choice did I have?
As I write this, I know every single one of my in-laws is grimacing. They are all diehard Laker fans while I have always rooted for the underdog Clippers.
I know the preseason doesn’t mean anything as far as records go, but the Clippers impressed me and I think they surprised the Lakers.
After weeks of reports and rumors swirled, suggesting that Chris Paul, Dwight Howard, and others had a reasonable chance of being traded, the first blockbuster trade has been finalized:
Chris Paul has been sent to the LA Clippers, while the New Orleans Hornets will receive Chris Kaman, Eric Gordon, Al-Farouq Aminu, Minnesota’s 2012 unprotected first-round draft pick, and two 2015 second-round picks from the Clips.
So now what?
For Part One of this two-part series, which is inspired by ESPN’s attempt to rank all NBA players from 1-500, click here.
Remember, our goal here is to rank the top 25 players in the NBA right now.
Editor’s note: We are currently preparing an article in which a number of MSF writers submitted their top 20 NBA players of all-time. The goal is to see where Dirk falls in the top 20, or if he even makes it at all. Evan decided to narrow his scope a bit and go with the top 20 players of his lifetime. So we are posting his article first, with the mega top 20 article to come. Stay tuned…
Also note that Evan is 22 and says that he really started watching the NBA during the 1997-98 season.
It’s top-20 NBA Players mania around here right now, all thanks to Dirk Nowitzki’s superstar performance in earning his first ring this month. Everyone from announcers to journalists to bloggers are saying Dirk has hit legendary status, maybe even top 20 of all time. I think that sounds a tad high for Dirk, but he now has some serious hardware to reasonably back up the claim to a top-20 spot.
For my own part, I have always thought that the NBA MVP award was the most meaningful of any of the four major sports. Scan the list and you’ll notice every single winner is a Hall of Famer or well on his way to being enshrined. Dirk has his MVP award, he has his Finals MVP award, and most importantly he has his ring.
But is he on par with Larry Bird? Or is that just the most racially convenient historical comparison bandied by most experts?
Honestly, I don’t really know because I never actually saw Larry Bird play. But I have seen plenty of other great players, so for my Top-20 NBA Players list, I decided to restrict myself to those guys I’ve actually seen play. Here is my list with some highly subjective choices, some no doubters, and perhaps one begrudgingly included sharpshooter who burned my New York Knicks many years ago.
First off, credit where it is due: I just read this post by Barry Petchesky of Deadspin, and I thank him for alerting me to the videos below.
I don’t know about you, but I sat riveted during the Slam Dunk contest. I was turned off by the obvious Kia product placement at the end, and the slimy feeling that the final result was predetermined, but that should take nothing away from the spectacular feats of athleticism achieved by DeMar DeRozan, Serge Ibaka, JaVale McGee, and of course Blake Griffin.
In fact, the dunks turned in by these high flying artists were so good, so jaw-dropping, and so majestic, that there is really only one possible way to make them better: put ‘em in super slow motion. And that’s just what the NBA did.
Last year I made seven bold predictions for Super Bowl XLIV. I went one for seven. [Editor's note: so I'm letting this be published...why?] This year I plan to do better mostly because I may or may not have actual real life money on the game that should probably be used to pay my bills…but that’s not important.
What IS important are these next seven things.
Earlier today, I was intrigued by this SI.com headline: ‘Euro Blake Griffin’ to enter NBA draft. The link takes you to a T&R post that excerpts the following from this SLAM Online article:
Jan Vesely says he’s in the Draft. The 6-11, 20-year-old told SLAM Magazine that he will “enter the 2011 NBA Draft” and that he’s “ready for the NBA after this season.” Vesely is spending time between the small and power forward spots for Partizan, though he says that he envisions himself as a “power forward” in the NBA. Donned “the European Blake Griffin” by many, he’s had no problem putting guys on posters and has more bounce than any true European in recent memory.
With the way Blake Griffin is dominating the NBA with his freakish athleticism, the unbridled power of his dunks, and his consistent onslaught of 20-10s, any player being compared to Griffin should pique the interest of basketball fans. And when it’s a skinny white dude from Europe – a continent not exactly known for producing Blake Griffin clones – the intrigue is even more acute.
So I went to YouTube to see Jan Vesely for myself and determine if there is any validity to the “Euro Blake Griffin” moniker. Before I tell you what I think, check him out for yourself.
Last night, Denver’s JR Smith delivered what will undoubtedly be one of the top 5 dunks of the 2010 NBA season.
Dribbling the ball up the court, he exploded into the lane, took off from the dotted circle, and literally flew into and through San Antonio’s Gary Neal on his way to a marvelous two-hand jam. Smith’s spectacular jam caused Kevin Harlan to exclaim, “We just saw a man fly!”
And he was right.
However, as amazing as JR Smith’s aerial display was, and I’ve already watched it at least 10 times this morning, was it better than the back-to-back power slams that Blake Griffin delivered against the Knicks earlier this year?
Watch both videos and cast your vote.
For once, Staples Center isn’t just the Lakers home court. There is another team that, even though it has a losing record, is actually gaining its own momentum.
Yes, the Los Angeles Clippers are making a name for themselves, and they are doing it with pure youth. They have the offensive machine Eric Gordon, who helped Team USA win gold this summer, and then they have the kid I like to call “The Monster”.
“The Monster” came straight from Oklahoma, missed his first NBA season due to injury, and was somewhat forgotten this past summer due to John Wall, LeBron, and the many summer storylines for the NBA. Yes, if you haven’t figured it out, the kid’s name is Blake Griffin, and not only is he making a nice run for the Slam Dunk Contest, but he is neck-and-neck with Reebok poster-child, John Wall, for Rookie Of The Year.
Blake Griffin is making waves in LA, and has already begun making waves all over the NBA world.
Presenting your Thursday afternoon links, with a bonus video!
This is Mark Titus, aka Club Trillion, who is a walk-on for the Ohio State basketball team. As you will see in the video, not only does he have impeccably cheesy taste in music, but he can make shots too!
And now your links.
The following excerpt appeared in Bill Simmons’ most recent NBA preview column, which was posted on October 23rd:
Griffin is the luckiest blue-chipper since them: not only does he play for a potential playoff team, but he doesn’t have to fight with someone for minutes or carry the scoring load. He just has to worry about running the floor, rebounding and finishing. A cushy situation, to say the least. For once, it appears as if becoming a Clipper was the BEST thing that could have happened to someone.
(Note: Please don’t e-mail this paragraph to me in three weeks if Blake is rolling around on the floor holding his right ankle. Thank you.)
Unfortunately for Blake Griffin, Clippers fans, and basketball fans in general, the following headline appeared on ESPN.com this morning: “Clippers’ Griffin has broken kneecap, out weeks.”
Well that sucks.
If you’re a Clippers fan, looks like it’s time to start emailing or tweeting Simmons.
Note: This post is from 2009. To view our 2010 March Madness coverage, use the following links:
- March Madness 2010 Schedule, Sites, and Tickets
- MSF Bracket Challenge
- Mens NCAA Tournament Bracket, TV Schedule, Announcers, Spreads
- Midwest Region Bracket Picks, Predictions, TV Schedule, Sites, Announcers
- East Region Bracket Picks, Predictions, TV Schedule, Sites, Announcers
- South Region Bracket Picks, Predictions, TV Schedule, Sites, Announcers
- West Region Bracket Picks, Predictions, TV Schedule, Sites, Announcers
- History of Final Four in Indianapolis
- Women’s NCAA Tournament Schedule, Sites, Tickets
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This post will analyze the North Carolina-Oklahoma Elite 8 game using a statistical analysis provided by the Game Predictor at ESPN.com, which is powered by TeamRankings.com. For an analysis of how this program works, hop over to the first individual game Sweet 16 preview I put out for UConn-Purdue. The methodology is all explained there.
(You have my apologies in advance for the relative shortness of this Elite 8 preview. I’ve spent a good 2 to 3 hours on each of the others, but I’m under the gun after an oil change for my car took a little longer than expected and a huge birthday bash for my girlfriend’s grandfather is quickly impending. But I’ll try to go as in-depth as I can on this one.)
Both North Carolina and Oklahoma head into Sunday’s South Regional Final riding incredible waves of momentum.
North Carolina has their leader back in Ty Lawson, looking healthier by the minute, and he led them to victory over an overmatched Gonzaga team last night. Lawson scored 19 points and had 9 assists in the 98-77 North Carolina victory, while Tyler Hansbrough poured in 24 points on efficient 8-10 shooting and had 10 rebounds.
Likewise, Blake Griffin is showing no ill-effects from the injury that sidelined him towards the end of the regular season and Oklahoma is beginning to look like the team that many thought was going to be a #1 seed before slumping down the stretch. OU completely took apart Syracuse last night, winning 84-71, and earning the only victory I did not predict from the eight Sweet 16 games.
Tomorrow’s game should be a good one, and certainly more competitive than the Sweet 16 games for each. Here are the particulars:
Now let’s hop over to Game Predictor for a quick look at this one, using the same statistical categories we’ve used for each Sweet 16 game and each Elite 8 game:
And the prediction from Game Predictor:
I am not surprised by the Game Predictor analysis, nor do I disagree.
Oklahoma is a very good team, and Blake Griffin is obviously monster. The battle between he and Tyler Hansbrough is going to be a great one, and features 2 of perhaps the 5 five best college basketball players over the last half decade. Griffin most likely will not be a four-year player like Hansbrough has been, and 
has much more upside at the next level because of his athleticism, but Hansbrough is a wily old veteran who will come as close as anyone can to battling Griffin to a draw.
That leaves the rest of the two teams’ respective rosters to decide this game. And unless Griffin just dominates Hansbrough, I don’t see the rest of the Oklahoma team being able to do enough to keep pace with North Carolina.
Willie Warren is a fine player, especially for a freshman, and has a bright future, but Ty Lawson is 3-year veteran with tournament experience whose vast improvement from downtown has provided another weapon for a North Carolina offense that already had plenty. The Tar Heels average an astounding 90.5 points per game, utilizing the same attacking style of offense that was on display last night against Gonzaga. Oklahoma has shown that they can play in the 90s this season, but against the likes of Baylor and Texas Tech, neither of which, obviously, is the caliber of North Carolina.
For Oklahoma to compete, Warren will obviously need to be on his game from a scoring standpoint, and guys like Taylor Griffin, Tony Crocker, and Austin Johnson will need to defy their season averages and two or three of them will need to get into double figures. North Carolina has five guys who average in double figures on the season, and while Oklahoma displayed solid defense last night against Syracuse, they will have to step it up another notch or two to contain this potent Tar Heels offense.
Honestly, it looks to me like this Tar Heels team is on a mission that was going to be derailed by one thing: Ty Lawson’s injury. Considering his second half performance against LSU, and his efficiently explosive 27 minutes against Gonzaga, I think we can remove his injury from the list of concerns for the Tar Heels. Said Gonzaga’s Josh Heytvelt after last night’s loss to Carolina:
“If they play like that, they’re going to win the national championship,” Gonzaga’s Josh Heytvelt said. “They’d hit every shot, it seemed like. You can’t do anything on teams like that.”
I’m not ready to go quite that far yet, but it’s hard to argue with Hytvelt’s sentiment.
I predicted North Carolina to reach the title game, but to lose to UConn. And whether or not UConn ends up winning, I have a hard time believing this year’s national champion won’t come from one of the four Big East teams remaining. But North Carolina is the one team I think can compete with the Big East badasses that are still standing.
And I certainly think they can, and will, beat Oklahoma.
Blake Griffin will no doubt have a great game and give his all in trying to keep Oklahoma in it, but I think North Carolina pulls away in the second half and wins this one by 10 or 11 to cover the spread and move on to Detroit.
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