Monday, August 30, 2010

NBA News 2010: Gilbert Arenas: Disgraced Star To Lead Washington Wizards to Playoffs?

Gilbert Arenas playing with the Washington WizardsImage via Wikipedia
The 2009-10 NBA season was a nightmare for Gilbert Arenas. 

During card games played on flights during road trips, Gil and teammate Javaris Crittenton became involved in a dispute regarding a gambling debt.

So if Gil is able to return to the level at which he performed in 2006-07 (he has only played in 37 games during the past three seasons due to injuries and suspension), the coupling of him and the All-American Wall should make for a dynamic duo.

Should their young guns grow to succeed sooner, rather than later, Arenas' return to an elite level could be the final piece to the playoff puzzle.

And who knows?  The Wizards could turn into this year's version of the 2009-10 Oklahoma City Thunder—a young, talented team which exceeded expectations, made the playoffs, and almost knocked off the eventual champion LA Lakers. 


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NBA News 2010: Kobe Bryant: 10 Reasons the Los Angeles Lakers Great is Hated

Captions read: U.S. Olympic Men's Basketball t...Image via Wikipedia
10. Kobe has no NBA Friends
9. Kobe's Cold Demeanor
8. Kobe is a Loner
7. Kobe Stands between Your Team and a Title
6. Phil Jackson Deems Bryant "Un-Coachable"
5. The Shaq Breakup
4. Kobe Bashes Andrew Bynum on Video
3. Kobe Bryant Demands a Trade
2. Kobe Shoots Poorly in Game 7
1. The Case from Colorado


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NBA News 2010: Kevin Durant's 27 points help U.S. squeak past Leandro Barbosa, Brazil

Leandro BarbosaImage via Wikipedia
ISTANBUL -- The shot bounced off the back rim, then the front, then finally fell out.
With that, the United States walked off the court with a victory, and another warning: A world championship won't come easily for this young team -- if it comes at all.
The Americans survived their first tough test in Turkey, edging Brazil 70-68 on Monday when Leandro Barbosa's shot rattled out at the buzzer.
"This game right here was an eye opener," U.S. guard Derrick Rose said.
Kevin Durant scored 27 points and Chauncey Billups added 15 for the Americans (3-0), who essentially clinched Group B with the victory. But they have bigger goals than a group championship, trying to end a 16-year U.S. drought in this event.
After the Americans trailed most of the first 2½ quarters, Lamar Odom's dunk with 7:14 left put them ahead 64-62. But they couldn't build on the lead during a tense final few minutes, and Brazil had two chances to send the game to overtime.
Barbosa finished with 14 points after a strong start for Brazil (2-1). Marcus Vinicius scored 16, and Tiago Splitter had 13 points and 10 rebounds while battling foul trouble in the second half.
With NBA big men Nene, Anderson Varejao and Splitter, Brazil was considered one of the teams with enough size to topple the undersized Americans. Nene had to pull out with an injury and Varejao sat out again while continuing to rest a sprained right ankle, so the Brazilians turned to a speed game to lead for much of the game.
They just couldn't finish the upset, leaving the Americans needing only a victory over Iran or Tunisia, the bottom two teams in Group B, or another Brazil loss to earn the top seed from the group and three full days off before meeting the No. 4 seed from Group A on Sept. 6.
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Sunday, August 29, 2010

NBA News 2010: Danilo Gallinari: the Most Important Man in New York Sports

The New York Knicks City Dancers, the dance sq...Image via Wikipedia
Never was this more evident than at the 2008 NBA Draft.

With the sixth pick in that season's draft—their first lottery pick since 2005 because of horrible trades—the Knicks selected Italian forward Danilo Gallinari.

Knick fans booed. They wanted Eric Gordon, they wanted Brook Lopez, they wanted anybody but "the Rooster."

They never gave the 6'10" sharpshooting Italian a chance. The Garden erupted with boos from the second he was drafted, even after he insisted in an interview right after being selected that he valued nothing but winning and hard work.

In his first season as a pro in 2008, Gallinari suffered from back injuries and only appeared in 28 games for limited time.

The next season, Gallinari was able to stay healthy as he averaged a very solid 15 points per game while shooting 38 percent from deep.

It was then that Knicks fans realized how talented this guy was.

They of course brought in their superstar in Amar'e Stoudemire, but they also added Raymond Felton, Roger Mason, Timofey Mozgov, Anthony Randolph, Kelenna Azubuike, and Ronny Turiaf.

So that raises the question, what makes Danilo Gallinari the most important man on the Knicks, let alone New York sports?

If Carmelo Anthony, Chris Paul, or Deron Williams are going to take their talents East, they're going to need to see something better than what the Knicks have right now.

Gallinari's development could be that something better.

If Danilo can turn into a go-to scorer (I'm talking 20 a game, and ability to score at will) and play halfway decent defense, a core of him and Amar'e should not only get the Knicks into the playoffs for the first time in half a decade, but it could also entice more stars to join forces with them on the suddenly cap friendly Knicks, in hopes of beating Miami Thrice.

How will Danilo Gallinari fare next season?

However, if Gallinari remains where he is now talent-wise, not only will the Knicks struggle to win 35 games, but the city that was once known as the "Mecca of Basketball" will continue to move closer towards being a basketball Siberia.

Yes, Gallinari is that important.


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NBA News 2010: 2010-11 NBA Season: Five Overlooked Rookies for the New Campaign

Dexter Pittman during a Texas Basketball GameImage via Wikipedia
The NBA Draft is very unpredictable.

The fact that it is only a two-round draft juxtaposed with the ridiculous amounts of rounds in the NFL and MLB Draft leads to this unpredictability.

Due to the small number of players drafted, fans and the media alike have a general misconception that if a player is not drafted in the top 15, there is something wrong with him. Or that he doesn't have the potential to be a truly valuable NBA prospect.

Avery Bradley was made the 19th selection in the 2010 NBA Draft by the Boston Celtics.

Coming out of high school, many recruits had Bradley rated higher than John Wall. Bradley, the top-rated shooting guard out of Findlay Prep, was noted for his impressive and refreshing defensive skill.

A smart player who is either unnoticed or slips in the draft and can fill a key void for the team.

Insert James Anderson.

A shooting guard out of Oklahoma State, James Anderson had the misfortune of playing three years of college ball, which seems to lead to the idea that a player doesn't have strong NBA potential.

Anderson is a flat-out scorer. Every year of his collegiate career he increased his scoring average by at least four points and Anderson left Oklahoma State averaging 22.3 poin
ts per game.  

Jordan Crawford, 21-year-old shooting guard out of Xavier, gained national attention for his infamous dunk on LeBron James that mysteriously disappeared.  

Jordan Crawford had a very impressive season for Xavier, leading the Atlantic 10 in scoring.  Crawford scored 28 and 27 points in the first two rounds of the NCAA Tournament to lead Xavier to the Sweet 16 and his impressive ability to shoot and score from anywhere on the court reminded many of Jamaal Crawford.

A 22-year-old out of the University of Texas, Dexter Pittman has a lot of upside.

Unfortunately, he has failed to put it together for more than a few 10-game stretches in college.

After two years at Louisville, Derrick Caracter was a disappointing player who went from being a No. 1 prospect out of high school playing under Rick Pitino to an unknown player at the University of Texas El Paso.

Caracter averaged 14.1 points per game and 8.1 rebounds in his only season for UTEP and led them to an NCAA berth.


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NBA News 2010: Pundits predict another title for Lakers, but team falls short in player rankings

Jordan Farmar shooting.Image via Wikipedia
ESPN recently asked 93 of them: Which team wins the NBA title next June?

The Lakers topped the list, with 52 votes, followed by the Heat with 34, and in the back of the bus were the Magic (five votes), plus the Celtics and Thunder (with one each).

The Heat “will break the single-season win record” of 72 wins, set by Michael Jordan’s Bulls in 1995-96, Van Gundy said. “And I think they have a legit shot at the Lakers’ 33-game [winning] streak [in 1971-72] as well. And only the Lakers have even a remote shot at beating them in a playoff series. They will never lose two games in a row this year…

“There is now no good way to defend them. They are unguardable. They are indefensible. They are just too good and have added so much shooting and are so versatile that they will score at will.”

Meanwhile, Yahoo’s Kelly Dwyer ranked, from 1 to 30, the top NBA players at each position, and the Lakers didn’t fare particularly well.

His rankings of point guards start with No. 1. Chris Paul and 2. Deron Williams. His list continues to the bottom dwellers: Mike Conley, Jrue Holiday, Rodney Stuckey and Kyle Lowry (No. 30). But there’s no Derek Fisher anywhere.

Shooting guards: 1. Dwyane Wade. 2. Kobe Bryant.

Small forwards: 1. LeBron James. 2. Kevin Durant. No 15. Ron Artest.

Power forwards: 1. Pau Gasol. 2. Tim Duncan. 19. Lamar Odom.

Centers: 1. Dwight Howard. 2. Andrew Bogut. 5. Andrew Bynum.


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NBA News 2010: Kevin Durant scores 22 to lead U.S. past Slovenia at worlds

Andre Iguodala of the Philadelphia 76ers shoot...Image via Wikipedia
ISTANBUL -- An arena that was nearly covered in Slovenian green grew louder with every U.S. miss.

Playing a rare early game, the United States had stalled after a quick start, and a double-digit lead was down to five as halftime approached.

Then, every time the Americans needed them, Kevin Durant seemed to get on the scoreboard and Kevin Love was on the backboard.

Kevin Durant got Team USA off to a fast start against Slovenia. So why did he take a seat halfway through the first quarter? Chris Sheridan asked Coach K that very question. Story

Durant scored 22 points, Love added 10 points and 11 rebounds in a gritty 13 minutes off the bench, and the Americans beat Slovenia 99-77 on Sunday in an opening-round game.

"They did a great job of fighting, getting stops and making plays, and we know that we can't go out here and blow every team out," Durant said. "We had to make this a grind game and we did that, and a good job of keeping our composure."

Rudy Gay finished with 16 points for the Americans (2-0), while Russell Westbrook and Andre Iguodala each had 11. Durant shot 8 of 13 before sitting out the fourth quarter and Love always seemed to be around the ball -- even when a Slovenian player tried holding his arm so he couldn't get it.

"We're used to that playing in Spain and Greece, so it was cool," Durant said. "I think we had to do a better job of holding onto the game and keeping them quiet by making plays, and I think we did that."

Durant ripped the ball away on Slovenia's opening possession and raced in for a dunk about 20 seconds into the game. Nachbar answered with a basket, but the Americans ran off 10 straight points, with Durant nailing a 3-pointer before throwing down another dunk for a 12-2 lead.

The Americans made eight of their first 11 shots from the field and led 23-11 after one quarter, then suddenly went cold in the second.


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