Hard to really say what you can takeaway from two summer league games, but for the Chicago Bulls; progress comes to mind, as the Bulls beat the Denver Nuggets to improve to 2-0. Marquis Teague appears to be developing into the backup point role they need him to fulfill come this time next year when Kurt Hinrich becomes an unrestricted free agent.
Teague is attempting to become a rotation player for the Bulls.
Teague had another solid performance Monday night, scoring 15pts on 50% shooting from the floor, with 7asts. For the love of god, somebody get Andrew Goudelock a contract. Yes, it’s summer league but the guy is on a tare with a 2013 Summer League best 31pts Monday night. If I’m Gar Forman, I have to be thinking a minimum level contract, just for a year to test Goudelock in Thib’s system. He appears to play exceptionally well with Snell, Teague, and Murphy.
Tony Snell had a difficult night shooting (2-9), but showed a slashing mentality that is a carbon copy of what they’re expecting him to bring to the offense next year. Hopefully he can raise his point total per game and develop his shot while facing tough competition in Las Vegas. Erik Murphy didn’t look terrible! 18pts on 7-10 shooting is pretty ideal for the new big man, although the fact that he’s not capable of grabbing rebounds is a tad concerning. Murphy didn’t look interested in the rim at all tonight, something his two total rebounds clearly dictate.
Chicago plays again Tuesday night against the Portland Trail Blazers, I’ll be looking for some storylines:
He’s a sliver short of 7-foot, weighs in at 265lbs, wears his jersey like a bib, and is (with the announcement of Chris Paul re-signing with the Clippers) the biggest free agent this summer. Dwight Howard’s career numbers are pretty impressive:
…and yet he is continuously criticized and harped on for being a lazy teammate, uncommitted to the team(s) he has played for (according to his former coach at Orlando, Stan Van Gundy), and had his 17.1ppg 14.2rpg 2012-2013 season labeled as underachieving, by analysts across a variety of platforms. In fact, for most of his accolade-rich 9-year stint in the league, Howard has had a pretty rough go of thing, most notably last season (his first in Los Angeles) with the Lakers.
Over the course of the past week, Howard has reacted in an obvious and predictable manner, he has exploited his current situation in a “where should I take my talents next season” marketing spectacle (nostalgic for anyone who remembers the mockery of LeBron James’ “decision” in 2010) that involves a multitude of suitors for the man who melded the comic book/athlete barrier when he was dubbed “Superman” after the 2008 Slam Dunk Competition.
Currently, Howard appears interested in 5 teams: The Houston Rockets, Golden State Warriors, Atlanta Hawks, Dallas Mavericks, and the Los Angeles Lakers. Dwight Howard has repeatedly made it aware to the media that his first and foremost concern is winning, something Dwight knows very little of. In his 9-year NBA career Dwight has been to the finals once and hasn’t won a playoff game since 2009. Obviously, he craves whatever opportunity will get him closer to holding the Larry O’Brien trophy, which I believe lies in a sign-and-trade deal with the Golden State Warriors. It’ll be interesting to see how committed Howard is to finding the best contender with the money situation being a clearly issue of concern, as Howard will most likely be looking for a max-contract wherever he chooses.
If Howard truly cares about having the best opportunities to win, this is the order he should have these teams ranked:
1. Golden State Warriors
Easily the most successful team in the league in terms of youth, Golden State would potentially pair Howard with Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson, providing the Warriors with the inside game they desperately needed against the Spurs in the 2013 NBA Playoffs. However, this will be tricky to pull off as the Warriors lack the salary cap space that Howard will require. This means that GM Bob Myers will have to decide whether or not he wants to keep his promising young talent in Andrew Bogut and Harrison Barnes, or send one, if not both to the Lakers. Fret not Warrior fans; a Howard/Lee frontcourt would be amongst the most dominant in the league if they do decide to conduct a sign-and-trade, and if Golden State can keep Thompson out of the trade than they will really be in business come 2014. If you’re Howard, you have to understand that Golden State has a far more enticing market than LA, not in terms of scope but in lack of athletic propaganda. He’d be void of any overbearing pressure, be joining one of the youngest and most entertaining teams in basketball, and have the ability to maintain his role in a scheme that simply asks he overpower the lane offensively and block a few shots. To me, this is the clear fit for Howard, but one that appears more unlikely by the day.
If Dwight wants to win, this is what he needs to be wearing.
2. Houston Rockets
Houston has pulled everything short of James Harden’s contract to make room for Howard. The Rockets released swingman Carlos Delfino and point guard Aaron Brooks on Sunday, clearing $5.5 million in preparation for the max-deal that Howard will undoubtedly ask for. Houston is also looking to ship forward Thomas Robinson in hopes of not returning any salary, which would allow for the max-deal to take place. Houston would be a great fit for Howard, as the Rockets were severely lacking any sort of interior presence on both the offensive and defensive ends, posting up on only 4 percent of their plays, a league low. Paired with the impressive growth that newcomer Omer Asik made, starting all 82 games at center for the Rockets last year, would allow breaks for Howard and knowledge for Asik. Honestly, all that’s missing for the Rockets to be contenders is Howard, but I find the offensive scheme to be limiting for the big man if he’s looking to put up the All-Star numbers he was accustomed to in Orlando.
3. Dallas Mavericks
Personally, if I’m Dwight Howard, I immediately go to Dallas for the free Raising Cane’s chicken fingers for life deal. Mark Cuban would market Howard more than any other player on any other team, he’d immediately be embraced by a team that has a championship under it’s belt in the recent years, who craves another -and a Howard/Nowitzki pairing might be the recipe for success. Picking up Shane Larkin and Ricky Ledo will add depth but Dallas needs Howard to replace the scoring drought that Mayo’s departure will surely leave in the team’s wake. Howard appears interested but right now I’d rank the Mavericks third on Howard’s list.
4. Los Angeles Lakers
I feel like I’m taking crazy pills even writing this portion on LA. How can Howard, a man who was thrown through the muck that is the LA media by not only analysts but teammates alike, considering a return to a team that also finds themselves in shambles. These are just a few of the Lakers current problems:
A city that praised Superman and then tore the cape from his back should have no place in Howard’s mind. Yet, the Lakers appear to be the front-runner for Howard…yikes.
Howard has been disheartened by this whole process.
5. Atlanta Hawks
The Atlanta Hawks are in trouble. Losing Josh Smith (possibly) to free agency, and picking up two Brazilian players who are unproven are a recipe for disaster. However, the Hawks are determined to get back to the playoffs and have tapped Corey Brewer (yippee!!!) for a possible contract and are in the hunt for JJ Redick. IF you’re Howard and you want to win, you bluntly cannot accept a deal with the Hawks. A team that is falling apart, coming off an abysmal losing performance to the Pacers in the first round of the 2013 Playoffs, and undergoing the process of implementing a new head coach in Mike Budenholzer, the Hawks look destined for a sub .500 record. If Howard wants to win, Atlanta isn’t the place to go.
Dwight Howard will most likely have his name enshrined in Springfield, MA one day. He may find himself in the top 20 all-time in rebounds and blocks. Hell, maybe even points -but if Dwight Howard wants a title by the time his career comes to a close than he should really think this decision over in the coming month. We want Superman back, it’s time for Howard to take flight and jump ship.
The NBA Playoffs 66 year history is marked by a nominal plethora of thumbnails and snapshots, names and images, that resonate with basketball aficionados each and every post-season, collecting like dust that rises and rises each year. Sometimes these images haunt, sometimes they dazzle, but all of them stick, as if an adhesive placed upon the cerebral cortex of each and every fan who witnesses the magnitude of each moment, of each second, of each game. Go ahead and add Ray Allen to the list of images that will forever remain in Playoff infamy, a permanent blemish that’ll find itself on the hearts of each Spur, even if they win the deciding Game 7. A game that looked lopsided in the 4th, which might as well have had the Larry O’Brien packaged, engraved, and mailed to San Antonio, will now have to wait upon a final Game 7 to receive its destination-and the Spurs couldn’t be more disconsolate. Instead of rambling, I will just list off my notes from the game:
1) Poor Manu Ginobili. The 10-year veteran had the worst game of his career in terms of turnovers (8). This isn’t a throwaway statistic, it was THE WORST game of any that he’s played in either the regular-season or post, and he played to a plus-minus ration of -21. Arguably the most important turnover of the entire series was made by the Argentinean, although it looked to be a clear foul on Ray Allen, with under 5 seconds to go in OT with the Spurs trailing:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Us9uVuW2yQc
2) Tim Duncan didn’t show up for the 4th quarter or OT for the first time in the 2013 Playoffs. Duncan has been dominating OT, taking control in multiple games of both the Golden State and Memphis series,’ but was nowhere to be found Tuesday night. Duncan started hot but ended evanesce, and it hurt the Spurs immensely. To clarify, Duncan has had one of the worst shooting series in his playoff career in the 2013 NBA Finals, but he played like a man possessed Tuesday night. Duncan scored 13 straight points during one run in the 2nd quarter, ending with a huge 30pt 17reb performance, but was shut out after the 3rd quarter.
3) Ray Allen has never really been known to be a clutch performer. When the game’s on the line, Allen might be the fourth or fifth option for the Miami Heat when looking for a big time basket, but Tuesday night represented the crown jewel of Allen’s career, especially if the Heat can close out the series. With mere seconds to play, Allen received a pass from Chris Bosh and drilled a corner three to tie the game, even with Parker playing neighboring defense. I guess that’s what happens when the all-time 3-point leader in the history of professional basketball gets off a fairly clean look:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=26HANFrnozQ
4) LeBron James played with poise, an element that critics have harped the King on since his inception in the league. Starting 3-12 shooting in the first three quarters, King James scored 16 in the 4th, sans trademark headband, and put up yet another triple double, finishing with 32pts, 1orebs, and 11asts (the first 30-point, 10-rebound, 10-assist game in the Finals since Charles Barkley in 1993).
Lebron James: Sans Headband
5) Chris Bosh came to play. Although Bosh only finished with 10 points, he came up huge on the boards late and had two key blocks in the OT period, including a block on Danny Green to end regulation.
6) San Antonio needs to start hitting their free throws if they want to have a chance in Game 7. Kwahi Leonard missed a huge free throw down the stretch which would’ve extended the lead to 4, all but sealing the game for the Spurs. Keep in mind that this kid is 21 years old, he can barely buy himself a drink and each game he’s played in has been the biggest in his life. Time to step to the plate Kwahi, although he did put up some nice numbers aside from the missed free throw. The Spurs shot 75% from the free throw line in Game 6 (21-28) but missed huge opportunities to seal it with under 2 minutes to play.
6) Tony Parker is playing like a hero right now. Hard to fathom that Parker still put the Spurs in a position to win the game and the title through the tumultuous pain he’s currently enduring, stating in an interview earlier this week that his right hamstring could tear “at any time now, but it’s the NBA Finals. If it gets a tear, it’s life.” What!? Not only is Parkers biggest asset speed and maneuverability, but the pain he must be enduring has to be numbing. Parker still did everything he could to bring the title back in the 4th quarter, hitting a clutch three-pointer to tie and an acrobatic spin-jumper in the lane to give them the lead with under a minute to play, but it was not to be.
Parker was completely spent after Game 6
Well, it’s time for every basketball fan’s dream, Game 7 to decide the Championship. Here’s what I’ll be looking for Thursday night in what looks to be an amazing finale to an outstanding season:
1) How will the Spurs come out of the gate? The Championship was sealed, stamped, and sent to San Antonio and yet Miami still found a way to extend the game and eventually force Game 7. The Spurs looked as dejected as any team in recent memory following the loss, and that can often ware on the minds of the losing team’s players, especially those of Duncan, Parker, and Ginobili, who were utterly demoralized as the final seconds ticked away.
2) Will LBJ rock the headband? What a silly question that the media clung to like porcelain following the Miami win, but it’ll be interesting to see if King James shows off that receding hairline for a full 48-minutes on Thursday night, it looked like it worked for him in Game 6.
3) Will Danny Green find a way to get open shots. Bosh noted before Game 6 that Green would have trouble hitting the 3-pointers he’s grown accustomed to if Miami swarmed him with defense, and Green only had 3pts on 1-7 shooting (1-5 from deep). The Spurs not only need Green to be more active offensively, but to play better defense as well (aside from his swipe of LeBron, Green gave up countless baskets in the paint in Game 6).
4) What’ll Spoelstra do with his lineup? In the blowout loss that was Game 5, Spoelstra sat Chris Andersen, choosing to go with the more experienced yet crumbling Udonis Haslem, but switched entirely for Game 6 as Andersen played 14 minutes to Haslem’s 0. Norris Cole also didn’t play in Game 6, so it’ll be interesting to see if Spoelstra chooses the lineup that kept the Spurs away from a title for at least another game, or the lineup that has won him countless matchups this post-season.
Whether you’re for Miami or San Antonio, at this point we’re all fans of basketball. Come Thursday night we’ll again experience the magic that can only be found in Game 7 of the NBA Finals to decide the best team, literally, in the world. Don’t blink, you’re not going to want to miss this.
Arguably one of the most important and least discussed factors of basketball in the playoffs is the ability of a team to go on a run, to find a rhythm so potent and relentless that the opponent has no other choice than to just accept the thrashing and move on upon its release. There are only a handful of teams that can do it currently: you saw it with Jordan’s Bulls, Kobe and Shaq’s Lakers, Durant’s and Westbrook’s Thunder, and of course the reigning champions. Sunday night was yet another example of the Miami Heat’s ability to completely and entirely remove an opponent from their game plan, turn a closely contested game into an onslaught, and empty both team’s benches in the 4th. Except this time it happened in the NBA Finals, a series with the two best teams from the best basketball association in the entire world-and Miami turned this one into a laugher, with the Miami Heat coming out on top 103-84.
The Big 3 Looked Dismal Last Night
As an avid Chicago Bulls fan, I know full well what every San Antonio diehard is currently attempting to appear apathetic over. I’ve watched LeBron James oust the Bulls in debilitating fashion 3 of the past 4 seasons and let me tell you, it is the world’s worst feeling to watch the transcendent-being of the past decade tear your team apart, appearing completely indifferent about it to add salt to the wound. At times it can even be horrifying what this man and this team’s capable of. While LeBron can’t take entire credit for Sunday night’s Game 2, him and the Miami Heat looked poised to run San Antonio out of the city before Spoelstra called his wolves off early in the 4th. That being said, LeBron did have this block…which was absolutely insane:
Mario Chalmers bounced back from a horrific Game 1, leading the Heat in scoring with 19pts on 50% shooting. I will admit that beforehand, I felt that Norris Cole was the better option, based on how well he’s been playing in the postseason, but Chalmers showed up Sunday night and not only scored, but helped contain the streaking Tony Parker via a great team pick-and-roll defense which held the Spurs to 37.8 shooting inside the 3-point arc. Big contributions from Wade, Bosh, and Mike Miller provided supplemental support for a team that looked as relentless as any team in recent memory. This, combined with stifling defense over the last 4 minutes of the 3rd and throughout the 4th turned a game that at one-point in the 3rd had the Spurs with the lead.
Super Mario Returned On Sunday
The true stat of this game was turnovers. Only having four in game 1, San Antonio had 17 Sunday, which Miami turned into 19 points. Ball pressure crushed San Antonio, who displayed lackadaisical ball movement and unbalanced offense for possibly the first time all post-season. Tim Duncan described his performance as “awful,” which wasn’t far from the truth. The always dependable Duncan had just 9pts on 3-13 shooting, the worst shooting game of his 27 finals games all-time. Tony Parker took a night to maintain humanity, finishing with just 13pts on 5-14 shooting, a far cry from his 22.3ppg playoff average. Look for Popovich to draw up some new plays involving silver lining Danny Green, who had 17pts on a perfect 6-6 shooting, and the Spurs’ defense to not appear as malleable as it was in Game 2.
Game 3 shifts the momentum back to the Miami Heat as the Spurs will have a home game on Tuesday, hopefully they battle back to make this more of a series than was evident Sunday night.
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