Monthly Archives: December 2011

watching the heat play beat the c’s about the head and neck for a couple of hours tonight, i was taken with the play of miami rookie norris cole…he missed a couple of shots, but he handled the ball deftly at high speed, changed directions and speed sharply, got to the rim and finished well, and most importantly delivered the ball to the right places at the right times…good decision-making and understood floor spacing,  a stark contrast to the clumsy work of mario chalmers…wouldn’t be at all surprised to see cole starting at the point by the end of the year, with chalmers coming in off the bench…seems to me chalmers is a better 2 than a 1 anyway.

a number of stories have suggested that the knicks might contend this year as a result of the addition of tyson chandler, giving a previously weak d some much needed spine (and basket protection).  how many times will we have to hear how the knicks have the best frontline in basketball?  so what?  while getting chandler is a big step forward, it seemed to me that they didn’t have a prayer against top teams because of the lack of speed and skill at the guard positions.  ask the lakers, who had one of the best players in the league at the 2, along with a great frontline but regularly got torched by the top point guards in the league, how that works out.  ask miami how much they think mike bibby will be a difference-maker for the knicks (not).

but it turns out, the knicks are going to be better than i thought.  you always have to be careful about judging too much from a single performance, but watching the knicks play the nets in their first preseason game, iman shumpert looks like he’s going to be a stud, the difference maker at the guard that the knicks need.  the kid has moxie.  he’s a tough, quick, aggressive defender, confident shooter, and good decision-maker.  check back at the end of the season, but it says here that shumpert could very well be a key to a better-than-expected knicks season.

big ups to henry abbot and david thorpe at espn for one of the most interesting and informative discussions i’ve heard about basketball i’ve heard

enjoy!

david thorpe and henry abbot talk about the mechanics of the pick and roll

while thinking about the deal that sends the kitchen sink from the clips to the hornets in exchange for chris paul, the following line from j.a. adande’s piece on espn  today  leapt out at me: “ Paul has meniscus damage in his left knee similar to the injury that led Brandon Roy to retire.”

oh man.  the curse of the clips rears its ugly head again.  so many commentators are saying that if you have the chance to do something special and pair two superstars you have to do it.  but it says here the clips are giving up too much to roll the dice, namely *both* eric gordon and minny’s 2012 unprotected first-round pick.  paul is said to be willing to extend his current contract an extra year to give the clips at least until 2013 to make this work.  the reasoning from the l.a. side is that having paul  will entice griffin to re-up, and that if griffin re-ups that will entice paul to stay.

but let’s think about this for a second.

you are facing a double injury risk.  if either paul, who already has knee problems, or griffin, who throws his body around with frightening – if exhilarating – abandon, gets hurt, what then?  what are the odds that they both end up re-upping?  and remember, given the compressed schedule this year, with sometimes three games in three nights, depth is going to be at a premium, and we *are going* to see a lot more injuries this year, particularly among 1) older players, 2) players who rely on explosiveness (griffin, paul), and 3) players who are already working with damaged parts (paul).  then consider that the  clips do what people think the revised roster can do, and they end up in the playoffs despite one of the two big guns getting hurt (i’m assuming that happens late in the year, not early).  then their own first-round pick is past the lottery, and unlikely to be anything like the kind of player they could get for minny’s pick.  eric gordon would be gone, along with that pick.  if things play out as it looks like they might, no eric bledsoe around to help spell paul and protect his knees.  no backup plan  (i’m not counting on randy foye or on mo williams), and no more assets/depth.  no kaman expiring contract.  nada, unless you count an overpriced ball-stopping caron butler or an overpriced deandre jordan…neither one is getting you the kind of reinforcements you need to contend.  now, given a scenario that includes an injury to one of the two, does griffin re-up?  paul?  you sure?  i’m not.

so to me, it’s looking like a huge gamble.  it’s a gamble i take in a second if the package includes gordon **or** the minny first-rounder.  it’s the kind of gamble you can take if you are the lakers, and can still attract marquee free-agents if it goes south on you…but if you are the clips, and knowing the injury curse of the clips, no way you should be including both…and shame on david stern for forcing the poor clips to empty the entire closet (word is the “league” wants bledsoe included).

****update****  - this just in…espn reporting that the paul-to-clips deal dies because the clips feel the price is too high….GOOD ON YA CLIPS…finally…a smart move…hold out…