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The NBA (Eddie Griffin killed by a train)
deadonthestreet
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king james+dwade = unstoppable
i wonder what kind of condition amare is gonna be in when he plays though, not many atheletes have come back from that injury 100%
Jesus -- taking both Amare and Atawn would seem pretty redundant. How many non-existent defensively, instant offense players do you need? Carmelo is the obvious choice over Jamison here, because he at least scores in the clutch, but otherwise these players basically fill the same needs and are pretty redundant.
Also, Bruce Bowen just doesn't fit in an international competition. I'd rather he not sully the WC with his dirty antics, and I don't know what else he would bring to the table.
And Brad Miller, I mean JESUS -- is that really the best we can do at center? Sure he can pass and shoot, but that's about it. I'd rather have someone that can run and finish, although thinking about it now, I'm not exactly sure who that is.
I also heard that Harrington is going to Indiana, or at least that the Warriors had quit pursuing him, which is pretty disappointing. My only real off-season goals for the Warriors are to dump either Murphy or Dunleavy and to fire Mike Montgomery, neither of which has happened, leaving me pretty damn disappointed with this summer so far. I really wanted Harrington for Murphy, but I can only assume that they wanted Pietrus as part of the package and Mullin wasn't willing to send away probably our most critical bench player after the departure of Derek Fisher.
Which reminds me -- Derek Fisher to Utah for a bunch of nobodies? What the fuck Mullin?
Jamison will likely also be cut. I don't know who the final cut will be though.
Looking for a Hardcore Fantasy Extraction Shooter? - Dark and Darker
No matter what the status of Amare's knee is, he still has incredible hands that can catch and finish anywhere inside 7 feet, and even at a jog he can probably outrun most of the guys he's going to be playing against. Him, Wade, and LeBron running down the court will be a goddamn sight, indeed.
whats big ben doing these days? how bout eddie curry or chris kaman (so long as he promises not to grab balls)?
I'd pick Hinrich over Arenas too since the US team needs shooters, not scorers. Plus, he's the better playmaker. Not sure about Amare either, he's coming off a serious injury and the international rules allow opposing teams to clog the middle and prevent him from doing what he does best. Good thing he developed a solid jumper from 15-17 feet.
Amare's 15-17 footer is actually streaky as all hell, last I remember of him. Once he got it going, you could bank on 30+, but some nights it wasn't there and he still had to work for his points. Either way, once you cut Jamison (which you really should do) there's no better big man at running the break. Dude is a human basket making machine. His hands and touch around the basket are just incredible, and if Coach K learned anything from the last Olympics or from just plain personnel choices, it's that this is a team of flyers that should be murdering the international competition on the fast-break.
But yeah, if Gilbert Arenas doesn't make this roster, I'm officially going to be rooting for them to lose. I'm not ashamed to say it.
That was just a terrible team all the way around. You had Tim Duncan and the better part of the '03 Draft, but you also had some overrated stiffs (Richard Jefferson, for starters) pulling more minutes than they deserved, a great guard in Allen Iverson who had just taken too much punishment over his NBA career to be effective on guts alone, and no one could make a jump shot. Some of the attitudes were lacking, some of the better domestic talent couldn't be bothered to participate, and LB grenaded any chance they had with his handling of the team.
You'd half-expect with a clusterfuck of that magnitude that Isaiah had to be involved somehow.
Putting Paul on the team was an excellent decision, but I think that another true point would benefit the team much more than another penetrating shooting guard who likes to dominate the ball. Just my humble opinion.
If you had to cut either Hinrich or Arenas, given the scoring you would expect to get from Wade, LeBron, and the bigs, I think you would take the better shooter, but get this - Arenas is actually the better shooter of the two, and he averages only 0.2 of an assist a game less than Hinrich. Links here. I know what you're saying, but I think with what Colangelo and K are trying to do with this team, there won't be any hurt egos this time around.
Having Chris Paul is essential. He's totally fearless, great on the drive, had 16 points and nearly eight assists a game as a rookie and can make an open jumper. His shot from three has suffered since leaving Wake Forest and the college line, but downtown is closer in international ball than in the NBA, so I think he'll be just fine there. I don't think he'll hog possessions with LeBron, DWade, and the fours on the floor with him, and he has to be considered a definite upgrade from a wearing-down AI in Athens.
Besides, we need someone who can be relied on to throw a good codshot when the situation arises. It keeps opponents honest when they know if they get out of line they'll be picking their foreign dick up off the parquet floor.
Arenas would be absolutely dynamite off the bench. I don't know if you noticed, but Arenas is one of the most cold-blooded, any-game-he-might-go-on-a-nasty-hot-streak-and-drop-ten-straight-buckets, amazing talents in the league. Team USA would be indefensible for 48 minutes (or do they play 40 in FIBA?) with him on the bench. Plus the only other players in the league who drive as aggressively as him are LeBron, Wade, and AI. NO ONE ELSE goes to the hole better than Gilbert, and frankly if it wasn't for LeBron's size I'd put Gilbert ahead of him, too.
And like the other poster said, HE'S JUST AS GOOD OF A SHOOTER AS HINRICH, except he's more liable to get on a hot streak and make 6 or 7 in a row, plus he provides SO MUCH MORE.
Basically I'm of the opinion that Gilbert Arenas should be mentioned in the exact same breath as LeBron and Wade. He's just a few ticks below them talent-wise, and if Kirk Hinrich gets selected over Gilbert, he'll need to bold the ZERO he wears or something, because it will be established and irrefutable fact that he doesn't get the respect he deserves.
So anyway, yeah -- Gilbert Arenas is my favorite non-Warrior (well, he's an ex-Warrior too (godDAMMIT)) in the league. He deserves that spot.
Recent rule changes in the NBA have been very favourable to the likes of Wade, James and Arenas - a third of their point production comes from the free throw line. Somehow I don't think international refs will be calling the kind of fouls we saw in the Finals this year. You have to realize that a Michael Redd or a Ray Allen is much more valuable in this competition than a Dwyane Wade or a Gilbert Arenas. Doesn't mean that the former are better than the latter, just that they are more suitable for the task at hand.
And tell me honestly, who would you rather see as the playmaker on the court when Paul needs a rest or gets into foul trouble: a streaky combo guard or a natural point? Haven't you learned this lesson when Marbury was running the show two years ago?
I swear, I still don't see Hinrich as a natural point, aside from the fact that he's not really good enough to do anything besides shoot and pass. I don't understand why people rate him so well. 13 ppg and 6 apg on .418 FG% (<--- !!! .418??!??!)? That's nothing too special. As a matter of fact, how a PG who shoots .418% even got friggin invited is stupid. That's atrocious for a PG. I'd rather have Speedy there, damn.
I know all the arguments about team this, team that, but when CP3 needs a rest, play Wade, LeBron, or Gilbert at point. Based on what I saw in the last Olympics, I think the best strategy is to run the other team off the floor, and based on who they invited to this camp, that's what I assumed they would be doing. Everyone loves to talk about spot-up jump-shooting, but if this is the personnel that they're bringing, they need fliers, not spot-up jump-shooters. Chauncey, Ray Allen, Michael Redd, Rip Hamilton -- all these dudes stayed home. Adam Morrison got cut (why he was every invited is beyond me). This is a team built to run and gun, and Hinrich just doesn't belong.
Oh, also -- .418 FG%?!??!??!?
HE'S NOT EVEN A GOOD SHOOTER!!
DAMN!!
Hinrich does not have that luxury.
Trust me, I watched Gil for every game in his first two years and he'd get the exact same contact he gets now, only no foul call. He started having a little problems with technicals because he was yelling at the refs for not calling them, and trust me, I saw some damn howlers. Still, every game, every night, he'd drive the damn ball and go inside. That's because he is good.
In today's NBA you have to have a reputation before you get those superstar calls, and trust me Gilbert was flying at the hole just as aggressively before the calls as after. Hinrich doesn't get them because he is a bum who can't penetrate, plain and simple.
You compared him to Marbury? Damn.
Look at the links again. Hinrich shot a miniscule 0.001% better from three than Arenas last season, but with 200 fewer attempts. Arenas shot 30 percentage points better than Hinrich overall. Arenas had one more turnover per game than Hinrich, but had one more steal per game, and played six more minutes per game. He averaged nearly twice as many points per game, and most importantly, improved his numbers across the board in the playoffs. He proved that he can play in high-pressure situations, and that seems to be a nice trait when going up against the world.
He's not a natural point guard. So what? Hinrich has no advantage over Arenas from distance, and while defenses pack it inside in international play, he can't drive and kick? Will an opposing defense have to respect Hinrich's ability to take them off the dribble? What can Hinrich do that Arenas can't? He's a good player, but I couldn't in good conscience call him a "playmaker." Versatility is going to be a key on this team to keep guys fresh and rested, and Arenas is definitely more versatile than Kirk is.
Proof? K.
Duel of the Fates
Range at Crunch Time
No way Kirk Henrich should be picked over him.
Also, I love basketball, and would be interested in some Fantasy action.
Currently playing: Infamous, Resident Evil 5
Need to play: Shadow Complex, Uncharted 2, Ratchet and Clank: ACIT, MW2, Alpha Protocol
I have no idea what they are trying to do there.
Or for that matter what the Bucks are doing.
(1) Magloire kinda sucks, despite his one All-Star season. He averaged about 9/9 last year in 30 minutes. That's okay, but not great, so Milwaukee wan'ts to get rid of him.
(2) Milwaukee needs another PG, and for some reason they think Steve Blake will fill this need.
(3) Steve Blake, Skinner, and Ha Seung-Jin is an absolute pittance to pay for a 30 mpg starting NBA C, why the hell wouldn't Portland do it?
I actually think Portland is poised to surprise some people this year. I wouldn't be shocked at all if they won 35+, which really is more than most people will probably give them. I'm really excited to go see some games at the Rose Garden.
I didn't really think much of Arenas either, until the playoffs. I saw him live a few times in DC when I lived there, and you could just see so many stupid fucking shot selections all the time. He stopped all that when the playoffs started, which was incredible. I mean, he came up HUGE, and there is no way he should have hit that 3 in Game 6.
Then again, I was pretty impressed with Hinrich. He kept Wade in check, in fact, I thought the Heat sucked after that series. Didn't realize Hinrich was the only person who could guard Wade (or that the refs let guard Wade).
Interesting side note, I was actually at Game 6 of the Finals. Man, there is no real way to describe the vibe of a stadium when it realizes their team's fucked with 14 seconds left to play. One of my favorite live sports moments ever.
Yeah, his defense sucks, but he has the best inside scoring touch in the entire NBA. Yeah, I said it. If the guy is anywhere within 5-7 feet of the basket, you can count on him making it. He has the completely unique pogo shot that I've never seen any other player reproduce which is basically unblockable because he gets the shot off before a defender is ready to block him. He's also one of the best offensive rebounders in the league. He's one of the best complementary scorers available, because he just cleans up other people's plays at a very high percentage (shot .535% in Dallas when he only put up 40 3FGA on the season).
In the end, I don't think he'll make the final cut because his defense is just that poor, but you're sleeping on dude's offensive talents. He deserved both the sixth man award and the All-Star appearance.
Pfffft. We'll see you in Japan, bitches.
This is just a dry run for Beijing. Our best young talent with a coach who doesn't actively hate young players (and with experience coaching young players), a two-year lead-in to season them and watch them mature, and a floating roster that will allow them to patch holes where necessary? Run, you commie bastard.
Seriously, after the kids take Tokyo, I'm sending Larry Brown a garbage bag full of shoelaces and razorblades. Maybe he'll get the hint.
Surgery? When did this happen?
He also doesn't work with what Coach K is trying to do with this team. He wants a 10 man rotation running the floor and being physical up front. That's not Jamison's handle. He rarely backs his man down, and he likes to play too far from the basket.
As for his knees, it was in the Post pretty much every week about missing a couple practices because of flareups. I'm almost positive he's had them both scoped out, but that's not really that major a surgery nowadays. And yeah, I completely forgot about his offensive rebounding, he's one of the best at that. So yeah ok he doesn't suck, but he sure is a nice big comfortable target to blame when my Wizards lose (seriously, thanks for giving James baseline in game 5).
http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/news?slug=ap-us-bryantout&prov=ap&type=lgns
It happened mid July. It was only minor surgery for his knee, but enough to keep him out of World Championships.
Looking for a Hardcore Fantasy Extraction Shooter? - Dark and Darker
But yeah, it's all moot because I expect his defense to get him cut, anyway; I'm just saying a lot of people overlook some of his real talents on the offensive end, because he's a deadly clean-up guy, if not necessarily a reliable first scoring option.
Any DeLante West love up in this house? I think he's a lot better than Al Jefferson, who seems to get all the attention.
And Delonte West is one of my favorite non-Warriors in the league. Read this interview for further explanation as to why that might be.
Basketball wise, though? Delonte is okay, but he's just going to be a top-notch 6th man / utility player at best. He's not really starter material. Al Jefferson has the potential to be a real star, but it's still uncertain if he'll be able to achieve that.
See, because I watch waaaaaaay more baseball and football and hockey, I have a hard time understanding how much stars mean in sports like soccer and basketball. Al Jefferson is not a hard worker - he gets sooooooo lazy under the rim. He's reminds me of Shaq, but without the anger. Delonte West, however, works his fucking tail of, and it shows. I love him.
In basketball, natural gifts just mean a lot. Size and athleticism can do a lot to cover up a lack of heart or talent (although not always, particularly in big games or the post-season). If a dude doesn't have a nasty first-step, there's not much they can really do to fix that. If a guy doesn't have the hops to be able to hang next to the rim, they're going to get abused by the athletic shot-blockers in the NBA. That's just the nature of the game.
Delonte is nice, but he doesn't drive that well, he's not that gifted of a leaper or anything, and his shot is still streaky (if I remember right). The shot he can fix, the driving and leaping, though ... that will be his achille's heel.