‘Linsanity’

Last Saturday against the Nets, Lin had 25 points and 7 assists in 36 minutes off the bench. It was only the second NBA game all season that he had played more than 7 minutes. In his first two starts, Monday against Utah and Wednesday at Washington, he had 28 and 23 points and 8 and 10 assists, respectively.

As of this writing Lin is averaging 30.3 points and 11.8 assists per 48 minutes. Had he played enough games to qualify, he would be sixth in the league in both points and assists per 48 minutes. Lin is second in the league in PER (John Hollinger’s player efficiency rating that combines stats such as true shooting percentage, usage, and rebounding rate), trailing only LeBron James.

As of January 23rd, Lin was playing for the Erie BayHawks of the Developmental League. (On January 20 he had 28 points, 11 rebounds, and 12 assists in a win over Maine.) Less than three weeks later, he’s the topic du jour on Twitter, sports blogs, and all of ESPN’s talking-head shows.

So where did this kid come from, and what’s his story?

No Respect?

You may have heard that Lin had no scholarship offers coming out of high school. This, despite leading his team to a state title and being “the runaway choice for player of the year by virtually every California publication.”

But Lin was determined to go to UCLA, Cal, Stanford, or one of the Ivy League schools. None of the Pac-10 schools showed any interest (though Lin says Stanford was “fake interested”), and the Ivies don’t give out athletic scholarships. If Lin had set his sights on a mid- or low-major, things might have worked out differently.

Lin went to Harvard, where he was a two-time All-Ivy League First Team selection and, as a senior, a finalist for the Bob Cousy Award. But no one took a chance on Lin in the 2010 NBA Draft and only one team, the Mavericks, invited him to play in the Summer League.

After an impressive Summer League performance, Lin got free agent offers from four teams. He signed with the Warriors for the 2010–11 season. Three times during that season, the Warriors assigned Lin to their D-League affiliate, the Reno Bighorns. For the season, Lin played in only 29 games, averaging 2.6 points and 1.4 assists in 9.8 minutes.

The Warriors waived Lin as soon as training camp opened for the 2011-12 season. The Rockets claimed him off waivers then let him go less than two weeks later. The Knicks picked up Lin after rookie guard Iman Shumpert got injured on opening day. A few weeks later, New York assigned Lin to the D-League.

Since Lin’s breakout game against the Nets last week, the Knicks are 3-0. Lin led the team in assists in all three games and points in two of the three. (Tyson Chandler scored 25 points to Lin’s 23 Wednesday against the Wizards.)

Linsanity skeptics will point out that two of these three games were against the lowly Nets and Wizards, but Lin bested All Star point guard Deron Williams and 2011 rookie-of-the-year John Wall. He also went for 28 and 8 against the 13-10 Jazz.

Photo by Kathy Kmonicek, AP

Jeremy Lin: The NBA’s Only Taiwanese American

Jeremy Lin is the NBA’s first American-born player of Chinese or Taiwanese ancestry. All other Asian-American players (and there have only been four) have been of Japanese or Filipino descent.

Lin’s father, Gie-Ming Lin, grew up in Taiwan, where he become obsessed with basketball, despite having few opportunities to watch, much less play, the game. The elder Lin said that the chance to watch the NBA was one reason he decided to pursue his Ph.D in engineering in the United States.

Gie-Ming Lin went to Purdue (naturally). But even as an adult working on his doctorate, he had never picked up a basketball and didn’t feel comfortable playing against his peers. So he studied tapes of basketball games. Analyzing NBA games on his VCR became an obsession. And Gie-Ming passed down his extensive knowledge of the game to his children, among them Jeremy.

Lin’s ancestry made him a fan favorite when he played in the Bay Area, with its large Asian-American population. But Asian stereotypes might also have been responsible for Lin’s lack of opportunities coming out of high school and college.

His ethnicity also made him the target of racial slurs in college. Lin told Time that he received racially motivated taunts in most, if not all, Ivy League gyms.

Lin responded to those taunts with grace, and now he is doing more than perhaps any player before him to dispel old stereotypes about Asian Americans and basketball.

Do you want more Jeremy Lin?

Here’s Lin dominating an intramural flag football game:

Here, Lin breaks John Wall’s ankles then throws down on the Wizards:

And a couple of other Linsanity-related links:

• Mike Prada at SB Nation explains Lin’s success.
• You can buy the official Knicks “Linsanity” T-shirt here.

Ferrell, who is in the Big Easy shooting a movie with Zach Galifianakis about “political rivals who are seeking the same congressional seat” (must see), got especially clever with the visiting Bulls’ lineup, introducing Joakim Noah as “a Scorpio and a terrible dancer” and announcing that Luol Deng “collects rare birds and has a pet dolphin named Chachi.”

Watch the entire thing from CSN Chicago:

The Bulls ended up winning 90-67.

Will Ferrell doing the intros at last night's Hornets-Bulls game. (Photo by Chris Graythen/Getty Images)

The NBA does everything it wants with no input from FIBA publicly until now, apparently.
FIBA, the International Basketball Federation has determined that Kenyon Martin is a free agent, owing nothing to any team from China. He does not have any contract obligations at all.

The International Federation of Basketball took the decision on Martin’s playing prospects because it has the ultimate responsibility for basketball’s international affairs, similar to FIFA, the International Federation of Soccer or Football as it is known in most parts around the world.

Up till now, FIBA has had a limited role in negotiating player transfers from leagues around the world to the NBA, but their role is enhanced now with the emergence of so many other leagues paying top salaries and higher level skilled NBA players going to those markets.

Mostly, FIBA is recognized for supplying the rules for the Olympics and for other international tournaments between countries.

FIBA plays with a different set of rules and different markings on the court. The courts have a key (from the free throw line in towards the baseline) that is trapezoid in shape.

Unlike MLS, the NBA chooses to play by its own American rules. These rules have worked fine for the NBA as it has reached more popularity with each passing year.

But, would the NBA adopt its rules to the FIBA rules if FIBA asked them to?

For FIFA, a player is ineligible to play in international soccer tournaments if they play in a club league that does not follow FIFA rules.

FIBA doesn’t have the same power in basketball that FIFA has in soccer. But, the Martin case shows that FIBA is flexing its muscle and will make other power plays in the near future.

The organization wants to have more influence on the American game because its power internationally would grow substantially if the NBA was willing to follow more often what it dictates.

FIBA’s role is changing and it may not be anymore just about player transfers or tournaments between countries.

FIBA is probably itching to get the NBA on board for a big-time international team/club tournament in which team champions from the different countries play each other like what FIFA organizes for Soccer.

This kind of high-profile international team/club tournament would make the organization rich beyond its wildest dreams and bring it the power it so desperately craves.

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Howard Alperin is Managing Editor of AmericanizeSoccer.com

There is more back-to-back scheduling for teams than other years, meaning they play two nights in a row, and some back-to-back-to-back, meaning they play three nights in a row, at times throughout the season as well.

Frankly, this year is awesome.

It’s nice to be able to see a favorite team more often each week. It makes the week go by faster. It seems more enjoyable and more challenging for teams.

Every game counts in the West; there can be no nights off. The standings in the West are so close from top to bottom. With the exception of Oklahoma City, just about every team can be outside the playoff picture with one or two losses in a row.

Eleven of the 16 teams in the West look to battle for the eight playoff seeds all season.

The East is different because there’s less parity than the West. More teams are sure to make the playoffs and the real race could be for the last seed. Still, with the season going by at a faster pace, movement in the standings can happen quicker and the chance for redemption is right there either the next night or the night after.

Now, second team players matter more than ever. A solid bench is counted on all the way down to the 12th man. And, these players are able to develop and display their skills more often for fans.

Also, there seems to be a little more spontaneity in the degree of play this season.

Take for instance, the LeBron dunk from this past week, one of the best of his career. Some of this difference could be due to the play generated by the mix of combining starters and non-starters with the lack of an extended training camp.

Of course, the owners will never go for this kind of shortened season. They are missing revenue for eight home games.

So, maybe the NBA should shorten their season, but not the amount of games. Typically, the regular season starts late October-beginning November and it goes through the end of April. What if the season started on Christmas every year?

A more compact, dense 82-game schedule puts it all out there. If necessary, schedule like baseball, and bring a team in to visit for two nights in a row, when possible (in conference).

One other idea is to make the first round of playoffs go best-of-three, second round could be best-of-five and Conference Finals and NBA Finals can be best-of-seven games.

There are more than 125 days from Christmas to late April. If necessary, add some dates to late April and/or early May and start the playoffs a week or so later. It can be done.

Starting at Christmas time worked. It was a great holiday gift and rallied the fanbase from coast to coast.

Ending in late June for the finals is still a more than 6-month season.

Howard Alperin is Managing Editor of AmericanizeSoccer.com

Amidst the greatness of the MLB playoffs, the ending of the NBA lockout, the NFL season, college basketball and now the Super Bowl, the NHL has been wrongly overlooked this season, a season that is, arguably, one of the best since the lockout year in 2004.

While the NFL had what I thought was a very below-average season, the NHL has been the complete opposite. Of course teams like Detroit, Vancouver, Boston, Pittsburgh, and Philadelphia are all playing well, but teams, such as Nashville, St. Louis, Ottawa, New Jersey, and even Winnipeg, are becoming more and more competitive, creating a sense of insecurity among many of the top teams.

Chicago Blackhawks' Patrick Kane stole the All-Star skills contest with his "SuperKane" costume.

Take the Central Division in the Western Conference as an example. Four of the five teams in the division are in the top six places in the Western Conference, and all are within a game or two of each other. The Eastern Conference has a similar story in the Atlantic Division. Four of the five teams in that division are all currently in a playoff spot.

Inner-division games often have a lot more energy and are usually just better games than teams who don’t play as often, so I am predicting a very hard-fought NHL playoffs, which I am looking forward to.

Despite a 66% increase in sponsorship and advertising revenue in 2010, the 2010 Stanley Cup Final having its largest audience ever, NHL merchandise sales up 22%, and a deal with Comcast/NBC to air more games for the next 10 years, why does it still feel like the NHL is receiving the back-burner?

Hockey should be a lot more popular in the United States. It’s fast-paced, only lasts 2.5 hours(and would be shorter if the ice didn’t have to be re-surfaced between periods), has checking, has legal fighting, and features just as many “top plays” as any other sport. The majority of Americans like all of these things.

The answer to why the NHL isn’t as popular or gets as much as coverage is simple: $$$. The NHL just doesn’t bring in as much money as the NBA, MLB, or the NFL does, but I think this is about to change.

Ratings among popular events such as the All-Star Game, the Winter Classic, and the playoffs are all increasing year after year. These are all going up along with, like I stated before, merchandise and sponsorship revenues. If this trend continues(and there’s nothing to say it won’t), the media and other companies might start investing more in the NHL, increasing exposure and hopefully popularity.

So even though the mainstream media basically ignores the NHL, there’s reason to be optimistic. Sooner or later people will begin to realize what they’re missing.

The suggestion of her making it to the ‘Association’ has been asked before, but the topic deserves a refresh.

She’s 6 foot 8 inches tall with a wing span of 86 inches.  The most impressive aspect of her athletic sculpture is her leanness.  Though she currently does most of her work in the post, she looks like she has the potential to be a silky, smooth player with her rail figure and long arms.

In the women’s game, she has an imposing presence.  She needs to use her presence to take care of business this year.  She can quiet more critics by leading her Baylor Bears to a national championship.

Of course her length is intimidating in the women’s game, but it won’t hold too much weight in the men’s game.  She would be a ‘Project’ of sorts for an NBA team.

They’ll have to work her out and figure out how to play her.  She may not be tall enough for the power forward position.

Can she adapt her game for a swingwoman small forward position?  This looks to be the biggest challenge.  She may not have enough game for this position.

She gets up off the ground pretty good, but not like a guy can.  This is the difference in men and women athletes.  The muscle to fat ratio she does better than average in comparing a female athlete to a male athlete, but the dynamic muscle and fast-twitch muscles for her are slower and not as strong.

If the first woman is not Griner, than what will the first woman look like or will a woman never make an NBA roster?

Could a speedy woman point guard make it, or will the size of her hands always be an issue?  The women use a smaller diameter ball in college and in the pros.

Griner’s hands are plenty big enough.  She has dunked in a game before and it was the real kind, not the one in which the ball is rattled in.  Also, she is an aggressive player, not afraid of challenges.  She’s had her share of controversy, including punching an opposing player.

Griner may get the playing time.  She could get a bigger contract to play 12th man or wo-man for an NBA team than she could in the WNBA.  And, she can always get to the WNBA later on.

So, which team could take a chance on her?

Most likely, the only team owned by the NBA, the New Orleans Hornets.

She goes to Baylor University and is from Houston, both close enough to New Orleans to get added interest from basketball fans in the area.

Ultimately, she’d end up becoming a publicity stunt, but with good intentions.  Her game can improve and she can move forward to the WNBA more prepared to dominate.

The debate would continue, but in a different way.  Will any Woman ever start and/or play major minutes on a competing team?…or something to that effect.

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Howard Alperin is Managing Editor of AmericanizeSoccer.com

To sign up for free right now, click here.

* – If you really love them, and they love sports, you’ll pass this win-win opportunity along to them.

My team for tonight is set. Here is my roster:

• G – Kemba Walker, CHA
• G – James Harden, OKC
• F – Kevin Durant, OKC
• F – Chris Bosh, MIA
• C – Roy Hibbert, IND
• C – Tyson Chandler, NY
• U – Al Harrington, DEN
• U – Mario Chalmers

As you can see, I prioritized scoring forwards over all other positions. The salaries for Durant and Bosh are actually quite reasonable, so it made sense to build around them. And Walker, Harden, and Chalmers are all solid values at their price. You only have $100,000 to build your team, so you must be judicious in how you use it.

But you may not like my team. Fine. Prove that you can build on better. I you can, maybe you’ll win a greater piece of the $200 than I will. Regardless, you don’t have to pay to enter, so you might as well give it a shot while you’re procrastinating on this fine Friday afternoon (which we both know you’ll be doing at some point).

So sign up and post your roster below.

By the way, you now only have five hours, 49 minutes, and 1 second (as I type this) since rosters must be set by 7:00 ET. Don’t procrastinate.

Then let the trash talk and money-winning begin.

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And when you’re done, entertain yourself with Pau Gasol’s doggy-paddle defense and the 22 funniest pictures of the superstar Spaniard.

It features the best pure scorer in the NBA.

Image source: Reddit

I’d say he’s living up to the quote, wouldn’t you say?

“Don’t let the hype get to you, just stay humble and hungry, and do what you do best: HOOP!”

That pretty much sums up Kevin Durant doesn’t it?

In case you missed it last week, here is the latest and greatest example of Durant doing what he does best:

And in related athlete yearbook photo news, here is another picture from that same yearbook. This one features former Maryland star and current NBA player Greivis Vasquez.

Image source: Reddit

That must have been one hell of a high school basketball team.

The point is, athletes will do anything and everything to gain a competitive advantage.

Including flop.

In stark contrast to the four examples above, all of which show the risks athletes will accept for the potential reward of victory, there are flops.

Whether you love it or hate it (surely the latter), flopping will never go away because it is one more way athletes can gain a competitive advantage. And when you’re a professional athlete, your job is to win. Even if that means deceiving the referees, and perhaps even the spirit of the rules and fair competition, you do it…”professionally.”

I was reminded of this a few minutes ago when I came across this GIF on Reddit:

And then in the comment section, I found this gem:

(Side note: Click this link and just start scrolling down. It’s the web’s random, ridiculous sense of humor at its best.)

Frankly, this is why many Americans hate soccer…or at least why they criticize it. But that’s a pretty myopic viewpoint to take. Sure, some soccer flopping – especially the video above – is egregious, oftentimes hilariously so, but flopping is hardly exclusive to soccer.

Consider this moment from the NFL earlier this year – the sport that is supposed to be America’s new national pastime that pits gladiator against gladiator on the gridiron.

Umm…I don’t know about you, but I didn’t see any Giants’ opponents anywhere near Deon Grant or the other fella who went tumbling to the turf without provocation. Hey, at least the soccer guy above was clever about it. Deon Grant’s flop – an obvious attempt to slow down the offense – was frankly just silly, especially knowing that there are multitudes of cameras rolling to catch everything happens.

Grant’s flop actually caused an outrage when it happened because we aren’t so used to seeing football players flop so blatantly and unabashedly. We are, however, used to it in the NBA, where guys like Manu Ginobili and Reggie Miller turned it into an art form.

Depending on your perspective, Chris Bosh either took the art of basketball flopping to another level of genius and theater…or committed one of the most reprehensible acts in the reprehensible history of flopping.

He sure did sell it. But since Chris Bosh is kind of a tool (though a nice, well-meaning one) he doesn’t get a pass just because he induced the charge call. Reprehensible it is.

But it’s not just tools who flop.

In the history of sports, there is perhaps no man for whom the pejorative use of the word “tool” is a less appropriate descriptor than Derek Jeter. He is confident, smooth, consistent, regal, urbane, and he provides gift baskets with autographed baseballs to his coital conquests. It is absolutely impossible to at once be a tool and someone who provides gift baskets to the women you bed. Impossible. So say what you will about Derek Jeter, but you can never, ever, ever call him a tool.

You can, however, call him a flopper. Watch this video for proof.

If Jeter didn’t flop there (he did), then that sound which was ostensibly ball hitting bat was ball hitting bone, and that’s just nasty. But it’s clear from the vid that Jeter did flop, sold it Chris Bosh-style, and was then awarded first base. There is no word on if Jeter left a gift basket for the umpire.

So there you have it. Four of the most notoriously awful flops in the history of professional sport–what’s that you say? Why did I leave out hockey? Well, that’s pretty easy.

Because, as pointed out in the original Reddit thread that inspired this post, hockey is a sport played by men like Steve Stamkos – all of 21 years old – who take pucks to the face, bleed, lose chunks of their nose…and then return to action several minutes later.

No flopping there. In fact, if you just watched the reactions, you might think that Bosh and Jeter had been injured worse than Stamkos, who skates off rather calmly.

I’m sure flopping goes on in hockey at some level, though I don’t watch enough of it to know; but when men like Steve Stamkos are playing it, I can’t imagine it happens very often.

Now the question for you, dear reader, is which of the four flops above – each representative of the worst kind of flopping in its respective sport – do you consider to be the most egregious?

Note: There is a poll embedded within this post, please visit the site to participate in this post's poll.

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And once you’ve answered the poll question, hop down to the comment section and remind us of other classic sports flops. There are tons of them. Let’s compile the best of the best (or worst of the worst, as the case may be) here.

Image credit: MentalityMagazine.com

From the “Palace Brawl” to “Metta World Peace”

Earlier in his career, while playing for the Indiana Pacers as the visitor against the Detroit Pistons, then-Artest was the first of a group of players at the end of a game to physically challenge fans and go into the stands seeking them out. He threw heavy punches and connected as if he hadn’t forgotten his days growing up tough in New York City.

That episode has long passed and his role in the last Lakers’ championship is starting to fade too. He was an integral part in their ability to overcome the Boston Celtics in 2010 and reverse the previous year’s results.

Artest had taken the unusual steps of publicly seeking redemption in the years that followed the riotous behavior in Detroit. He went on sports talk-shows to offer his softer side. He would hip-hop rap and try to find the humor in things, too. He seemed uncomfortable in this couch role at first, but he kept at it and adapted to become very personable.

His basketball career continued successfully. He was a perennial defensive first-teamer and in the running for defensive player of the year, a-la Dennis Rodman. He had created a niche for himself in a game hard to find niches. His 6’7″ small forward buff-like frame would push others around on his way to the basket and create space for his 3-point shot.

Also, as the Dennis Rodman of his generation in the NBA, he impressed fans with wild haircuts and writing in his hair. He endeared himself by creating his own character.

He became more of an entertainer of sorts, trying stand-up comedy, stints on late-night shows instead of just sports shows, and an appearance as a contestant on Dancing With The Stars.

Through it all, he has created foundations to help the less fortunate and consistently given to charities, including giving his championship ring away to raise money. He has shown courage in announcing his donations to organizations focused on helping people with mental health, something he says he has struggled with.

His name change to Metta World Peace is all part of his evolution. He continues to try and find himself.

The dude who was once known as one of the Enforcers in the NBA, has now become a huggable teddy bear of a guy.

But, his latest move to Metta, might have played him out of the NBA.

Can “Metta World Peace” Still Enforce On the Court?

When you earned the money by becoming a defensive stopper and a hard-nosed gamer willing to take on the stiffest of challenges, and people have come to expect that of you, it’s hard to be anything else.

Metta means loving and kindness. World Peace means exactly that, world peace.

His shiny career is coming to an end.

With his name Metta World Peace, he may have found more of who he is, but he has lost his desire for what made him so great at roundball.

Like Rodman before him, Artest will be remembered for being different and coming to the realization that being different and searching for the meaning in life are okay things to do for pro athletes, who are constantly in the limelight and expected to know exactly who they are and what they want.

They were able to give more perspective on how to be yourself when everyone is telling you that you have to be one way.

Artest, the basketball player, has become Metta World Peace, the fledgling entertainer humanitarian.

He may have made a career path for himself after basketball. He won’t make the Hall of Fame, but he won’t be forgotten too quickly by the public, either.

Howard Alperin is Managing Editor of www.AmericanizeSoccer.com

Not only will we get to see the many stars the league has to feature, but it’s going to be the first time in a long while. You can bet that the players are just as excited as the fans, and it’s time to get back to the sport we all know and love.

Photo source: Bull City State of Mind

So while you’re enjoying the turkey, cranberry sauce, or even fruitcake (for those of you with horrible taste), don’t forget to have the tele on to witness ‘Bron throwing one down or to watch CP3 make his season debut in Lob City. And just to make sure you don’t miss a beat, below I have the complete TV schedule alongside my preview for each of the games!

Also be sure to follow me on twitter for the latest in all things NBA!

Without further ado, here is my official analysis & TV schedule for your NBA Christmas!

NBA Christmas Day TV Schedule:

Christmas Day Games: Previews & Analysis

Game 1: Boston Celtics @ New York Knicks

Once again the matchup of Boston v New York comes to life in the world of sports, and once again on an NBA Christmas!

What makes it so much different this time around? Two teams going in opposite directions.

The Boston Celtics come into this game with a lot of negatives in their path, one being the loss of one of their younger players in Jeff Green for the entire season and another being the clear fact that this is the last shot that Boston’s trio of Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce and Ray Allen have at a title. While Rajon Rondo will still be the same great point guard we know and love, and Boston will continue to display great team defense, does the ‘Big Three’ have enough in the tank to play 66 games in 123 days?

It’ll certainly show against the Knicks, who have three of their best players in the prime of their career: Carmelo Anthony, Amar’e Stoudemire, and Tyson Chandler.

The Knicks are coming into this game with something to prove to the world: we are ready to compete for an NBA Championship. Heck, even head coach Mike D’Antoni believes it. So who’s to say they can’t?

The scoring is always going to be there from Melo & Amar’e, and now with solid defenders like newly acquired Chandler and rookie Iman Shumpert, the Knicks’ chances are better than ever.

A defensive appetizer for your Christmas day!

Game 2: Miami Heat @ Dallas Mavericks

Every premier event has it’s main event. Well ladies and gentlemen, main events don’t get any bigger than this, especially on Christmas day!

A rematch of the 2011 NBA Finals on the first day of the 11-12 regular season, what more is there to say?

Image source: AP via SI.com

For the Heat, this game means everything. It’s a chance to prove to the world that they yet again have the will to fight against adversity; it’s a chance at redemption against a Dallas team that took them out in 6; and it’s a chance to begin a season many are calling historic with a victory.

The Heat are back at their title chasing, and this time they have a very strong season under their belt. The signing of Shane Battier gives LeBron & Wade some extra help on the wing and a great presence in the locker room. Chris Bosh is back with some added weight, and the rest of the Heat roster is ready to rally around the ‘Big Three’ once again. Is this the year we finally witness this Heat team win a ring?

They hope so.

For the Dallas Mavericks this is all about proving to the world that the Heat didn’t lose the NBA Championship, but rather that Dallas won it on the back of all-time great Dirk Nowitzki and the great supporting cast. The only difference now is Dallas has a new look. Losing Tyson Chandler, Caron Butler, and JJ Barea is going to hurt this team, but by adding Lamar Odom, Vince Carter, and Delonte West, Dallas now seems to have a much stronger hold out on the wing, especially defensively.

For both teams this will be a statement game, and the start at another run for a title. Let the festivities begin.

Game 3: Chicago Bulls @ Los Angeles Lakers

Two teams that have much to prove to the world, the Chicago Bulls and LA Lakers, both faced ugly playoff exits last year after very strong seasons. So can they begin their campaigns for title chases this year with a victory?

For the Bulls, it’s very evident that they still have the bad taste in their mouth from the Eastern Conference Finals loss against Miami. So now it’s up to D.Rose and company to come back hitting the ground running, and it should be much easier this time around as they finally got what they were looking for in Richard Hamilton: a seasoned 2-guard, capable of creating his own shot, spacing the floor, and helping Rose out on the wing. Not only did they acquire a solid addition, but they’re coming back with a healthier Carlos Boozer, an improved Joakim Noah and Luol Deng, and now have the hurt of a big ECF loss to drive them.

This might be enough to propel them into another Eastern Conference Finals.

But standing in their way on Christmas are the Los Angeles Lakers.

Now, much negativity can be said about this Lakers team; they’re all dazed from the way things went this past off-season, they won’t be able to adapt to Mike Brown’s new system, or Kobe Bryant isn’t healthy enough. While all of these can be factors throughout the season, let me remind you that this roster is still very good. Kobe Bryant will always bring 25-7-7. I don’t care what bone in his body is broken, this man can hoop. Pau Gasol is still one of the top power forwards in the league, and I expect Andrew Bynum to come out very strong. He’s gained weight, worked at the post-game this past off-season, and is straight up sick of hearing the ‘injury-gossip.’ What a treat for Kobe & co. to have the opportunity to shut the haters up on Christmas.

So expect a great matchup between two championship contenders.

Game 4: Orlando Magic @ Oklahoma City Thunder

Another great treat from the wonderful David Stern (cough). Two of the league’s most exciting, and talented stars go head to head. Dwight Howard and Kevin Durant are always must-watch-TV, especially at the start of a season. But unfortunately both stars don’t have teams playing at the same level.

For the Orlando Magic, this past off-season has been disrupted by numerous trade rumors for their big man, Dwight, and the rumors will continue until No.12 is eventually traded. While Dwight continues to say how much he loves the city and community of Orlando, it’s becoming quite evident that the players he is surrounded by won’t give him another chance at a championship anytime soon.

So enjoy Dwight in a Magic uni while you can, because it won’t last much longer.

As for the Thunder, expect them to come out surging against a morale-low Magic squad. Kevin Durant continues to get better, scary I know, and is accompanied with one of the more ‘together’ rosters in the league. Russell Westbrook has been working on his outside game this off-season, as has James Harden, while Kendrick Perkins and Serge Ibaka have worked on their post-game. Let’s not also forget that this is a Thunder team that fought all of the way to a Western Conference Final, and the fact that they are coming back even better?

Scary. NBA Finals scary if you ask me.

Game 5: Los Angeles Clippers @ Golden State Warriors

To end your NBA Christmas, Stern and his little Elves dished out a game that they thought would be a bit more low-key than the rest. Little did they know that after they had made this schedule, the league’s best point guard in the league would team up with Blake Griffin and the Clippers.

Image credit: Mel Blackmon/CBS via CBSLocal.com

The Clippers literally went from a potential lottery team to a possible NBA title contender. Now don’t have a heart attack, the key word here is possible.

The trade that shipped off Chris Kaman, Eric Gordon and numerous draft pick  landed the Clips CP3. In separate signings, LA was able to acquire swingman Caron Butler and ‘Mr.Big Shot’ Chauncey Billups to accompany Chris Paul at the 2-guard. On paper this Clippers team looks solid: the league’s best point guard, and I believe the the best power forward in Blake Griffin, and a solid supporting cast consisting of DeAndre Jordon, Chauncey, Caron, Eric Bledsode, etc.

But as we’ve seen in the past, on paper doesn’t always turn into rings.

On the other side of this game are the Golden State Warriors. While they now have newly appointed head coach Mark Jackson, they still have more work to do. Stephen Curry and Monta Ellis should put in some good work against CP3, but the main issue lies down on the block and on the bench. Golden State attempted to land Nene, Tyson Chandler, and even Marc Gasol. But to come up empty-handed, leaves the Warriors with nearly the same roster as last season.

Expect the Clippers to start the season having a field day in Golden State.

Thanks for reading, and happy holidays NBA nerds!

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.

Image source: BSO

Did anyone else have doubts about Chauncey playing the shooting guard? I had some reservations, but after watching them play, I think it could work.

My wife’s grandfather exclaimed that he had never seen Billups hit so many three-pointers. I thought about it and deduced that the reason is he has always been a point guard, and while he is “Mr Big Shot” he also shared the ball because that is what a true point guard does. Now that he is at the two guard spot, he can bomb threes, and that is dangerous. He is a smaller two guard, but he is strong and has a few tricks up his sleeve. He can help the Clippers.

I would, however, like to see the Clips trade Mo Williams for a solid shooting guard to come off the bench for Billups since some teams could expose the lack of size in Clipper two guards. They could possibly trade for someone like a John Salmons or a Mike Dunleavy and maybe send one of the Hornets second round picks they got in the trade or even a first rounder to upgrade. Yes, draft picks are valuable, but when you have young talented players who are under contract, they can become a valuable trade asset to win now.

The Clips frontcourt is stellar. While DeAndre Jordan and Blake Griffin have a lot of work to do in the realm of pure post moves on offense, they are explosive in the pick and roll as well as defensively and on the glass. Lob City, here we come.

The signing of small forward Caron Butler is something that was under the radar, but I think he is a key piece. I was never impressed with Al-Farouq Aminu. He didn’t have any impressive skills. He was good at everything, but great at nothing. Butler is an excellent defender and can knock down threes. He is just what the Clips need with everyone collapsing down on Jordan, Griffin and CP3.

Do I even need to talk about how Chris Paul makes them better? Didn’t think so.

The Clippers have some decent depth and I hope and don’t think they are done moving pieces. They will be a force in the West. Count on it.

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?

Image source: FBasketballBlog.com

The New New Orleans Hornets

After numerous rejections by the league, which included a trade between Houston, the LA Lakers, and New Orleans, and a previous deal between the Clippers and Hornets, the third try was a success. Some might not like the fact that David Stern has been playing GM for the Hornets, but at the end of the day he has every right; the NBA owns the team.

And I have to admit that Stern gets an A for the deal.

The Hornets get a veteran big man in Chris Kaman who should be a strong leader in a locker room that will be very fresh and new. They also get a future All Star, at least I believe so, in Eric Gordon. The 2-guard has one of the better 3-point shots in the league, is a solid defender, and can only get better. Then they also get a solid piece for the future in Aminu. Being the 8th overall pick in the 2010 draft, Aminu still has a lot of upside in his 6-9 frame and should have a lot of room to grow in a young Hornets roster. Then the unprotected 2012 first-round pick from Minny should speak for itself.

The Paul-Griffin Clippers

And then there are the LA Clippers, whom I believe also have struck gold in this deal. But who doesn’t?

While I do believe they downgraded their bench and their size, they secured a very important piece in building a championship contender: one of, if not the best PG in the league, a guy with unmatched court-vision, a great ability to create his own shot, and a very strong defensive presence on the wing.

Can you just imagine the oops we’re going to see from Chris Paul to Blake Griffin? Even DeAndre Jordan?

Speaking of the two, check out their reaction to the CP3 deal:

As for Chris Paul, it was 425 strong games with the Hornets, but not one season was New Orleans ever in strong contention to win an NBA title. While the Clippers might not have been Paul’s first choice, he can’t be upset with what he has alongside him now; do we have a possible Malone-Stockton in Griffin-Paul??

Perhaps.

Now don’t get me wrong, I still don’t believe the Clippers have the roster to be able to take down the Lakers or Mavs out West, but I do believe they jumped up quite a bit. They essentially went from a lower lottery team to a definite playoff contender with this trade. With acquisitions this offseason like Caron Butler, Chauncey Billups and now Chris Paul, the Clippers are now in a threatening position for the next two years.

Also, don’t expect this to be the last deal for the Clippers, as they are VERY deep with guards and need an extra big man or two.

As I mentioned, the Clippers are now in a threatening position and from what I see they are one more key player away from being a title contender.

Could we be witnessing a new ‘Big Three’ forming before our very eyes?

Maybe, maybe not.

What I do know is that now there is one more team to watch for out in Los Angeles.

Watch it now. If there’s any truth to this report, it could be moot by later this week.

Audio from Misery (1990).

Here is the trailer for Misery, starting Kathy Bates and James Caan. To put this in proper context.

And sure, for most of us, Bates will seem far more terrifying than Stern. But to Chris Paul? (And perhaps Dell Demps too…) I think it’s safe to say that David Stern is now his Kathy Bates.

Image credit: Patrick McDermott/Getty Images via National Post

At about 6:30 ET, Marc Stein announced the trade:

• LA would be getting Chris Paul.
• Houston would be getting Pau Gasol.
• New Orleans would be getting Lamar Odom, Kevin Martin, Luis Scola, Goran Dragic, AND draft picks.

Less than an hour later, the NBA stepped in…and stepped in it.

Image source: CelticsHub.com

3-Way Paul Trade Benefited All Involved

There aren’t many trades that actually benefit every team involved, but this was one of them.

Keep in mind the fact that New Orleans has absolutely no shot of keeping Chris Paul at the end of the season. He would have walked away and left them with nothing. Instead, they turned nothing into three starters, a quality backup, AND some draft picks.

LA would shed $21 million AND get the best point guard in the league to team up with Kobe Bryant while also keeping Andrew Bynum – the one piece that Orlando really wants in exchange for Dwight Howard (don’t ask me why, as I would never trade for Bynum…but that’s what the Magic want).

Houston would be starting their rebuilding project around the second most talented big man in the league (behind Dirk).

Then, the NBA got involved.

As a fan of a small-market team (Indiana Pacers), I want to be happy about this. After all, LeBron James murdered the city of Cleveland last summer, and that’s just not fair. We need to maintain “competitive balance” and fairness. We can’t let these players just dictate where they want to go and when.

I WANT to be happy about it.

But then, I have to look at the facts:

• Fact: Chris Paul is the best pure point guard in the NBA and one of the top five players in the league entirely.
• Fact: The NBA has placed incentives to keep stars in one place. If a star wants to leave, he will be purposefully leaving millions of dollars on the table.
• Fact: Chris Paul, for one reason or another, has chosen to leave all those dollars on the table if he has to and will not sign an extension with New Orleans next summer.
• Fact: Further than that, there aren’t many teams that Chris Paul will sign an extension with next summer…so trade partners for New Orleans are limited.
• Fact: This sucks for New Orleans, but this is America, and every human being (me, you, and yes, even NBA millionaires) should have the right to choose where he wants to work if he is talented enough to have that choice.
• Fact: Yesterday, New Orleans made the most out of a tough situation and executed a three-team trade that would have absolutely made their team better.
• Fact: David Stern’s ego and the bitterness of several owners got in the way.

No matter how you slice it, this is not good for anyone involved. In fact, as I look over the entire landscape, I can’t find a single “winner” in this deal being disallowed.

Chris Paul Trade Fiasco ‘Scales of Losing‘

Here is a list of yesterday’s losers, rated and ranked on a scale from 1-10 from those who lost the least to those who lost the most:

Los Angeles Lakers – 2.5 on the Losing Scale

The Lakers definitely lost A LOT in this situation.

They would have gotten one of the top five players in the league. The trade would have kept them in the running to also get Dwight Howard. Plus they were shedding lots of money from their cap.

This whole thing isn’t fair to them. Oh well.

They are still the Lakers…feeling bad for them would be like feeling bad for Donald Trump if one of his newest investments flopped.

Yeah, you lost some money. I’m sorry. You’re still Donald Trump.

Look! Donald Trump eats chocolate ice cream bars...JUST LIKE THE REST OF US! (And like the rest of us, he surely things the NBA flubbed this Paul trade decision...big time.

Image source: EgoTVOnline.com

Chris Paul – 5.0 on the Losing Scale

Somehow, I think Chris Paul will still be ok…at least in terms of how he is perceived by us.

Unlike Carmelo Anthony, he hasn’t lied to his city and pledged his false allegiance in any way. Unlike Carmelo Anthony and LeBron James, he gave his team plenty of time to work through the situation and make the best out of it. Ironically, CP3 might actually come out of this as a sort of sympathetic figure.

Unfortunately, from a basketball standpoint, Chris Paul couldn’t have lost much more. It appears incredibly unlikely that he will be able to go to the Lakers this year. There really wasn’t a better situation for him to go to when you combine the market, the team, and the owner he would have been playing for.

Paul will probably be forced to play the entire 2011-2012 season with New Orleans. If he wants to stay “above the fray,” he will have to play hard and play as many games as possible; he can’t look like he’s “dogging it” or throwing away the season.

This would be all well and good if he didn’t have a history of knee problems. Now, he will have to throw away one of his (who knows how many he has) good years playing on a team that he doesn’t want to play for.

The only possible way for CP3 to come out of this on top is for him to play hard all season, make an All-NBA Team to prove he’s worth the money, not get hurt at all, have the Lakers or Knicks or somebody trade away some expensive players without gutting their team completely, and THEN sign with them for LESS money than he would have gotten if the trade went through.

I don’t feel bad, per se, for Chris Paul, considering he’s making millions playing the game he loves…but still, I don’t necessarily feel good for him right now either.

Lamar Odom and Pau Gasol – 5.5 on the Losing Scale

The Lakers have decided to change things up and move their franchise in another direction. Odom and Gasol had been important pieces in the past, and even though they are both younger than Kobe, LA decided that THEY were the expendable players on the team.
Apparently, Odom never even received a phone call from the Lakers yesterday before the deal happened. Both players were truly blind-sided.

Of course, as with any hardship, both players must have started the healing process by looking at their new situations. They wouldn’t have to play with Kobe Bryant anymore, they would be “the guy” on their new teams, and neither situation was a terrible one.

With the deal is off, what are they supposed to do now?

This would be like breaking up with your girlfriend (one of those terrible breakups that happen in a public place and end with you dumping beef barley soup all over her car…no, I’m not speaking from experience here), then running into her less than a day later and being forced to start dating again.

This WILL end poorly.

The only reason Odom isn’t further down on the list is because this entire incident might become the 3rd or 4th most watched episode in The Kardashians history…he will benefit from it eventually.

Dan Gilbert – 6.0 on the Losing Scale

Source: The Basketball Jones

Dan Gilbert is that owner in your fantasy league that vetoes any trade that doesn’t involve him. At this point, he’s a complete joke.

Alright man, we get it. LeBron James screwed you and your entire city over. GET OVER IT.

YOU were the man that coddled him at every turn. YOU were the man that signed washed up players to huge contracts because you wanted to win immediately instead of build a complete team that LeBron could grow with. YOU were the enabler. YOU blew it just as much as LeBron.

Should LeBron have announced he was leaving on national television in such a narcissistic manner? Of course not. But when people like you, Dan Gilbert, have been telling him how perfect he is for the last fifteen years of his life, what do you expect the guy to do?

In the irony of ironies, your little letter yesterday failed to notice one thing: this trade was AWESOME for the Hornets, a fellow small-market team just like Cleveland.

You got mixed up in big names and dollar signs – the same flaw you made for seven years with LeBron James – in order to get some bitterness out.  In the process, you destroyed some competitive balance (which has never actually existed anyway…just look at a list of NBA Champions sometime) by screwing over the Hornets for no real reason.

You were a sympathetic figure as soon as The Decision happened. Your letter immediately afterwards backfired on you a little. This letter makes you look like a disgrace.

Good luck getting anyone to come to Cleveland ever again.

New Orleans Hornets – 8.9 on the Losing Scale

An absolute atrocity.

They would have gone from a team that barely made the playoffs last year to a team with the following lineup.

Starters:

• Jarrett Jack
• Kevin Martin
• Lamar Odom
• Luis Scola
• Emeka Okafor

Bench:

• Trevor Ariza
• Goran Dragic
• Quincy Pondexter

That’s a solid team. Plus, they would be getting draft picks AND a lot of (future) cap space to make a big signing in free agency. They made their team deeper, younger, AND more flexible in one trade.

Now, they are left with nothing.

You might say, “That’s not true. They are left with Chris Paul!”

But again, Chris Paul is NOT coming back next season. Good luck building around an aging Emeka Okafor and Trevor Ariza. Who would want to come to New Orleans to play with them?

I can’t say this clearly enough: the Hornets have been absolutely CRUSHED by the NBA reneging this deal…the organization that actually owns them!

Kobe Bryant – 9.0 on the Losing Scale

The stakes for Kobe at this point are clear: his peak will never be as good as Jordan’s peak, and that’s fine; his career could still be better than Jordan’s career, however.

What does he need for that to happen? Three more solid years and one or two more championships.

With Chris Paul on board, those prospects seemed good. With Chris Paul and Dwight Howard on board, those prospects were basically guaranteed.

Now? I just don’t know.

Maybe Kobe can get Pau and Lamar back on board and get them all to “stick it to the man” this year. Maybe the Lakers can get back to the Finals once or twice while Kobe is on his last legs.

Maybe.

But probably not.

And for Kobe, a guy who doesn’t want to merely finish in the top ten all time, but wants true greatness…he loses more than almost anyone else in this deal.

David Stern – 9.6 on the Losing Scale

Except for this man.

At this point, David Stern has completely lost touch with reality. He has no idea what is good for the league and what’s not.

Did “basketball reasons” exist when LeBron and Chris Bosh hijacked their teams last summer, illegally negotiated a deal under the table to play with each other, and stabbed their teams in the back?

Did “basketball reasons” exist when Chris Wallace gave away Pau Gasol to the Lakers for a pittance and swung two titles in L.A.’s favor?

Would “basketball reasons” have existed if Chris Paul was traded to Sacramento for DeMarcus Cousins, Tyreke Evans, and two draft picks?

In the past year, David Stern has gone from “unquestionably the best commissioner in all of sports” (in many people’s eyes) to “one of the sole reasons people are turning away from it in droves.”

There’s no way Stern survives this now.

If Chris Paul really does file a lawsuit against the league (and at this point, it’s looking like he will), the damage could be irreparable…not just for Stern, but for the NBA as a whole.

Not only has he disgraced himself, but he’s disgraced his entire league in the process.

I’m sure David Stern would say he’s trying his best, but as Sean Connery reminded us in The Rock, losers always whine about their best.

So long, Mr. Stern. It wasn’t nice knowing you.