Marc Davis vs. Celtics

I have always said that refs have hated Celtics, especially Paul Pierce who gets beat up on every drive without a whistle. Anyone not from Boston has always dismissed it as usual homer talk. While I might be too easily convinced of this by the ref loving announcer Tommy Heinsohn, there seems to be no question that Marc Davis does not like the Celtics. Above is a game against Atlanta at the end of the regular season that went to overtime that was reffed by Marc Davis.  Celtics were able to hold on and get the win with no help from the officials.  This does not give an excuse to Rondo though, for the dumb move of bumping into a official and putting his team in a very bad spot.  The only thing that could possibly of been dumber then Rondo's bump would of been punching a fire extinguisher..

Celtics are now down 1 in Atlanta tonight without Rondo or Allen.  The one good side for the Celtics is now Avery Bradley can harass Teague instead of getting abused by the much bigger Joe Johnson and McGrady.  This game is huge.  Teams in the NBA that have started a series 2-0 own a .942 winning percentage (226-14).

Flop of The Year

I am happy Van Gundy was announcing when this happened. Something has to be done about flopping.

2012 NBA First Round Playoff Predictions

I am not going to go too in depth with these predictions, but here they are.

EAST
1) Chicago vs. 8) Philadelphia
Chicago in 6.  Philadelphia has looked horrible lately but I think they can take 2 games in the series.  Could easily be Chicago in 5.

4) Boston vs. 5) Atlanta (ATL has home court)
Boston in 6.  Great news that Horford is out for the series and Pachulia out for a couple of games.  Atlanta is a team that does not bang down low and is a jump shooting team.  I don't think they can beat Boston at their own game.  Josh Smith also has not shown up vs. Boston most of his career.  Could also easily be 5, Atlanta is not really a threat.

3) Indiana vs. 6) Orlando
Indiana in 4.  Orlando without Howard is the worst team in the playoffs.  It is too bad Indiana is on Miami's side of the bracket, cause they match up great with Chicago.

2) Miami vs. 7) New York
Miami in 5.  Miami can handle New York easily.  The Knicks MVP, Tyson Chandler, can only do so much.  Miami is much better at every position from 1-4.

WEST
1) San Antonio vs. 8) Utah
San Antonio in 5.  Utah is playing their best basketball of the season, but I just don't think they can keep up with San Antonio.  Especially when Millsap is not %100.

4) Memphis vs. 5) Los Angelos Clippers
Memphis in 6.  I have Memphis or San Antonio coming out the West.  They are by far the most complete team in NBA right now.  CP3 in playoffs is always scary though, he can almost win a series by himself.  Being the only playmaker on the team is just to much to weight on one shoulders vs. a team like Memphis though.

3) Los Angelos Lakers vs. 6) Denver Nuggets
Lakers in 5.  Bynum has been crazier then ever, but also playing the best basketball of his career.  Looks like Kobe finally does trust him, which matters much more then if Mike Brown does or doesn't.  Him and Gasol should be able to take care of Nuggets.

2) Oklahoma City vs. 7) Dallas
Oklahoma City in 7.  Although Chandler leaving was huge for Dallas, they still create some of the same match up problems from last year.  Oklahoma City has no one to cover Dirk and Marion has great defense for Durant.  Westbrook going to be asked to do a lot this series.  I think Oklahoma youth and energy will win it for them, but could easily go either way.

I have Memphis vs. Miami in the finals.  If Memphis not coming out West I think it will be Spurs.  Oklahoma City is too much 1-1 and long jumpers in half court sets, which there is much more of in playoffs.  Most of the blame is on Scott Brooks shoulders.  If not Miami in finals it should be Boston.  That is not just a homer pick either.  In 2nd round Chicago should beat Boston, but they do not have a shot vs. Miami in ECF while Boston actually have a good one.

Bill Simmons Draft Diary Blunders

 As much as Bill Simmons loves to point to his Durant over Oden pick, he has had some horrible blunders over the time.  If anyone shared their thoughts about every draft I am sure you would find mistakes too, but Simmons being so sure of himself, having horrible predictions year after year, and his reasons sounding like something you would read at tmz get to me.  Please ignore the random order.  Here are some of his highlights.

7:37 --The Magic are on the clock with the first pick. If they're smart, they take Emeka Okafor. If they're dumb, they take Howard. It's that simple.

7:39 -- They go with Howard. Of course they do. He's the third high schooler taken overall in the past four years, as well as the first top pick with braces since Pervis Ellison. Not a good sign. "Praise the Lord!" screams Dwight Howard Sr., who didn't realize that the Lord had Okafor going first in his mock draft.

Braces are always the first thing a scout should look at when deciding who to pick. 

5:31: I present two athletic perimeter guys for you, both freshmen:
• Xavier Henry (born March 1991), 2-guard: a top-3 college recruit in 2009, started on the No. 1 college team (regular season), averaged 13.4 ppg (27.5 mpg), shot 45.5 percent and 41.8 percent on 3s, didn't get a ton of touches on a veteran team, did everything he could to fit in.
• Paul George (born May 1990), small forward: not a top-100 college recruit, best player on a 15-18 team in the WAC, averaged 16.8 ppg (33.2 mpg), shot 42 percent and 35 percent on 3s, played inferior competition.
Whom did the Pacers take? Naturally, George. Did I mention that their best player (Danny Granger) is a small forward? I love the NBA.

Great research again.  Pacers must really regret getting George.  Henry now averages 16 minutes per a game with the Hornets.  When you struggle to get playing time for the Hornets, there is a problem.

5:44: Memphis happily takes Henry at No. 12. That was like last year's Hasheem Thabeet pick, only the complete opposite.

Memphis lucked out that Pacers let Xaver Henry slip...

7:49 -- Charlotte takes Adam Morrison. Love that pick.

So did we all. So did we all.

8:00 -- Atlanta keeps its promise and drafts Shelden Williams fifth. Another solid pick, even if his nickname is "The Landlord" (sounds like a bad WWE gimmick). 

The landlord nickname was definitely the thing Atlanta should of been worried about.

5:39: Our long national nightmare is over: The Hawks finally drafted a quality point guard (Acie Law IV). It's like Billy Knight just pooped in our fridge and ate a whole wheel of cheese, isn't it? Mark Jackson celebrates the occasion by making a midget joke.

Am I happy Acie Law ended that nightmare.  I forget, why didn't the Hawks build around Shelden Williams and Acie Law again?

8:29 -- The Warriors take Patrick O'Bryant, a mortal lock for the Reggie Cleveland All-Stars who has the most Irish-sounding name of any black athlete since Troy O'Leary. Not a bad pick. Let's cancel the scheduled Chris Mullin intervention for tomorrow.

After being trip to D league O'Bryant now plays pro in Puerto Rico.  Solid 9th pick.

5:59: Our last two blue-chippers get taken: Julian Wright (Hornets) and Al Thornton (Clippers). Love both of those picks -- not just the players, but the fits with the teams.

Where do they both play now?  You guessed it, one in D league the other in Puerto Rico.

9:40 -- Just when this draft couldn't get any crazier, my beloved Celtics just bought the 21st pick from Phoenix to take Rajon Rondo, the Kentucky guard who Chad Ford touted all summer because he mistakenly thought Rondo was foreign. Unfortunately, Rondo can't shoot. This is an understatement. As Bilas says, "Teams in the SEC didn't even guard him." Put it this way: The list of NBA teams that won an NBA title with a point guard who couldn't shoot looks like this:
1. (empty)
2. (empty)
3. (empty)

What a horrible pick by Celtics.

6:16: Bledsoe's off the board. Damn. OKC just took him. Typically smart move by them. I'm starting to hate Sam Presti. Make a mistake already, Sam. If there were 30 GMs like you, I'd have nothing to write about.

6:30: Buch reports on another trade: OKC traded the rights to Bledsoe to the Clippers for a future No. 1 because of the "any time you can trade for a future No. 1 from the Clips, you have to do it" rule. It's just the rule. Perfect third guard for the Clips. I'm a fan.

 Great move by Clippers.  Bledose for his career has averaged 2.9 assists per a game and 2 TOs a game.

7:39 -- Our no. 1 pick? Yup … Kyrie Irving. You know, because any time you can grab a freshman point guard who missed two-thirds of the season when you have $20 million of point guards on your roster, you have to do it. We'll see how this goes: I see him settling somewhere between an extremely poor man's Chris Paul and a rich man's Mike Conley. Will he ever make an All-Star team? It's possible … maybe one or two.

Irving has only put together one of the better rookie PG seasons ever.

8:29 -- Ladies and gentleman, it's Jimmer Time! Sacramento just grabbed him with the 10th pick. I see him becoming a more consistently explosive version of JJ Barea, only with deeper range. That's a guy you'd want on your team, right? 

No.

9:12 -- The Knicks take 2-guard Iman Shumpert at no. 17 (huh?), followed by lusty boos from the Knicks fans in Newark, the obligatory shot of a confused Spike Lee, and David Stern blessing the pick by saying, "Iman is not with us tonight." Ooooof. 

Shumpert and Faried ended up being steals of the draft.

8:30 – Apparently the Lakers are trading Kobe this summer – they just took 17-year-old, 290-pound center Andrew Bynum with the 10th pick. I'm speechless. The best high schooler in the draft (Green) and the best perimeter player (Granger) just inexplicably dropped out of the top 10. You figure it out.

I can't figure it out either.  Bynum?  Imagine Lakers with Gerald Green!

4:54: Andy Katz tells us Seattle is keeping the No. 4 pick. Unfortunately, Seattle isn't keeping its team. Anyway, the Sonics pull a minor shocker by taking Russell Westbrook. Loved his potential, loved him all season ... but even I can't defend that one. "Who would have thought last year at this time that Russell Westbrook would have been the fourth pick in this draft?" Bilas asks. Last year? What about last week? What about five minutes ago? 

No one can defend picking Westbrook.  Unforgivable.

5:10: So much for Minnesota doing the right thing. The Wolves just took Syracuse's Jonny Flynn … whom I really like … but … well … he's a point guard.

I agree drafting two PG was dumb, but he did say he really liked Flynn..

7:42 -- Heather Cox interviews Kyrie's dad, Drederick, under the NBA's little-known rule, "Any time a lottery pick's father is in the audience, you have to interview him." Uh-oh, guess who's on the clock ….
KAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHN!!!!!!!!!!!!
A quick recap of Kahn's 24 months in charge: his Timberwolves lost 132 of 164 games; he used the fifth and sixth picks in the 2009 draft to take a Spanish guard who couldn't come over for two years and a point guard who bombed so badly that he's probably getting traded tonight;

What happened Simmons?  I thought you really liked the guy?

Celtics Revival

I can not get enough of Avery Bradley.  He is already one of the best defensive guards in the league and in a year or two could be the top one.  He is currently better then the overrated 1st team defender Rondo.  His D on Wade and Rose in the playoff will be crucial if they want to make a run.  He is the smaller Tony Allen, but smarter on the offensive side.  Like Tony Allen, he still has some trouble with his handle and his shot is very inconsistent, but he is extremely smart without the ball and gets almost all of his points doing backdoor cuts while his man is paying attention to Rondo or whoever else has the ball.  The other way he scores is off of TOs he forces or just out hustling his man on fast breaks.  Rondo finally has a someone who wants to run at every chance.

At this point I actually think he is the better starting SG for the Celtics then Ray Allen.  Allen defense has fallen off tremendously, and although Allen does spread the floor, so does all the other starters (with KG as C).  Bradley brings something that Celtics desperately need, someone who actually cuts towards the basket.  Most of the time when scoring gets stagnate in Celtics first unit it is due to everyone 'spreading the floor' and just waiting for something to happen.  Bradley makes the defense move and gives other options besides just resetting or shooting long jumper.

Another change for the Celtics is KG at center.  He is now forced to play in the low post and is matched up with bigger slower Cs who can't chase him or contest his perimeter jumper.  And, like usual, his defense has been great.  Watching Love struggle to do anything against KG last week was one of my favorite games of the season.  As starting PF this year Garnett averaged 14.3 points, 7.5 rebounds, 2.5 assist, .8 blocks, .7 steals, and was shooting .496%.  As starting C he averages 16.8 points, 8.8 rebounds, 3.3 assists, 1.4 blocks, 1.2 steals, and has shot .526%.  His averages have gone up drastically in every single category since moving over.

The last big change for the Celtics has been Pierce finally shaking off the rust.  He was named Eastern Conference Player of the Month for March.  You can always tell when he is feeling good by just looking at his rebounding numbers, where he has averaged 7.6 in his last 10 games.  He also had 6 games with 25+ points and dropped his season high of 36 on the Bobcats.  I do not think the Celtics will be much better then they are right now for the rest of the season.  While the chances are still very slim, I have some hope for first time all season they can really make a run.

On second thought..

John Shannon of Sportsnet in Canada said on Friday that Glen Grunwald, former general manager of the Raptors, said 'no' to a trade that would have sent Dirk Nowitzki and Steve Nash to Toronto for Vince Carter and Antonio Davis.

Nowitzki and Nash were members of the Mavericks at the time.

History would of been rewritten if Raptors had accepted this.  Grunwald was hired by then, executive vice president Isaiah Thomas, so we can put the blame on him for this one too.

Finding New Ways to Fail

Wow..

Wild Wild West

The West is wide open for anybody to take; every team has its flaws from Oklahoma City all the way down. Here is how I see the contenders.

28-7

The Thunder are one of the most talented teams and have one of the best home court advantages in the league. They are 15-1 at home, and it is not by coincidence. The problem for them is it may come down to coaching. Two years ago, when the young Thunder took the Lakers to 6 games in the playoffs before losing, you chalked it up to being young, inexperienced, and not knowing better. But now, Scott Brooks has no excuse for a lack of execution late in close games. Westbrook is still taking too many shots away from Durant, and being a scorer much more then distributor. They still look horrible at creating good shots when they need them. It seems like Durant and Westbrook go back and forth every possession with who will go 1-1 and usually end up with long jumpers. They hit more then you would expect since they are both elite players, but it is not what you want them to be doing and won't cut it in a 7 game series. Their half court offense is not good and they would probably be better off letting Harden run their offense in late-game, half-court sets.

24-11

Popovich continues to impress. His team gets older but they still remain near the top of the pack. This is especially impressive in this condensed season. The little youth they do have does look good, Splitter and very versatile Kawhi Leonard, but this is still a team that lives and dies with their big three. They are too prone to injuries and also to just tiring out by the end of the season, like what happened last year in the playoffs.

20-12

Billups' injury hurt this team much more then people think. He was playing 30 minutes a game and was able to give Paul much needed rest from running the point. They now have a huge hole and desperately need another point guard. Mo Williams is simply not good--it is not a coincidence that he has the lowest adjusted +/- on the team, Bledsoe is not ready to be in NBA, and Foye is not a PG. The Clippers' starting lineup looks great (minus Foye), and Griffin has started making some needed adjustments on the defensive side, but once the 2nd unit comes in it just gets very ugly.

21-14

Talk about having no depth. The Lakers have the worst depth of any team over .500...maybe even of any team in the league. Once you get past Kobe, Bynum, and Gasol, they literally do not have one single mediocre player. Without a trade they are one of the few playoff contending teams that I think has no chance of getting to the Finals in the West.

21-15

I don't think anyone expected Houston to be good after Adelman left. They seemed like they were overachieving last year and that Chuck Hayes and Adelman were some of the bigger reasons why. Lowry has turned in a great performance so far this year and is in the running for the most improved player of the year award. He is also one of the best defensive point guards in the league. They have gone 19-9 since January 10th with some impressive wins @Denver, @Portland, San Antonio, and Philly. Kevin McHale has done a great job at holding people responsible and has had no problem yanking anyone out at a moment's notice for lack of effort (ask Kevin Martin and Dalembert). This is still a overachieving team that I think has no shot of coming out of the West due to lack of talent, but what they have done so far is still impressive. Credit goes mainly to Lowry and McHale.

21-15

The Mavericks came into the season looking like they thought the regular season was not worth fighting for. Most of the team looked very out of shape and like they had not shot a basketball since game 6 of the finals. But since a 3-5 start they have gone 18-10. For most of the season they have been very streaky and have lost 3 in a row already 3 times this season, while also going on an impressive 6 game winning streak against teams all with a .500 record or better. They clearly still have the skill players to win, just mentally are not where they need to be yet. The surprising part is they have been winning with defense and the best defensive efficiency of any team in the West. This is especially surprising considering that the man considered to be their main defensive stopper, Chandler, left in the off season for the Knicks. Marion has stepped up in a big way on the defensive end in his absence, routinely covering the best offensive player on the opposing team. Nowitzki has been playing much worse then usual and admitted to having a hard time getting excited after finally winning a ring. He is shooting his worst fg% (and true shooting%) since his rookie year, is shooting under .300 from deep for the first time since his rookie year, has his lowest rebound per game average since his 2nd year in the league, and has his lowest PER since his 2nd year in the league. The one good surprise coming from the Mavs this year is the play of Vince Carter. He has been playing good defense for maybe the first time in his whole career. If they go into the playoffs healthy and with the right mentality theycould easily be in the finals again.

20-15

After last year surprise win over San Antonio in the first round and taking Oklahoma City to 7 games a lot of people thought coming into the season Memphis was going to be a real competitor. Injuries have killed them. Zach Randolph has played 4 games this season and Darrel Arthur did not play one. This has left a huge whole in their frontcourt and forced them to trade for Marreese Speights. Speights can shoot, but is terrible at pretty much everything else, including putting effort into the game and being in shape. The one good thing to come of all this is Gasol, who is turning in his best season of his career. When Randolph does return, which should be in a week or so, the starting front court should be great. They still have one of the best defensive wing players in the league in Tony Allen, the very underrated Conley, and Rudy Gay (who was missing in last year playoffs). With Arthur not coming back, the Grizzlies will always be thin up front, but it is not like there are a lot of teams that are deep there anyway. Although it is a small chance, they can make a run again if Randolph plays at the same level he did last year and Gasol keeps up his play.

19-17

The Nuggets are one of the deepest teams in the NBA. Them and the 76ers seem like they were custom built for this shortened season. Both teams are extremely deep and do not rely on one player. The problem for the Nuggets is injuries. Nene has missed a good amount of games and even when he does get on the court he has not been close to 100%. He probably wont be 100% all season. Gallinari has also missed 11 games and Lawson has missed 5. They started out 14-5 before the injury bug really hit. They have gone 5-12 since. When they are healthy it looks like Ty Lawson and Gallinari have taken huge strides. Andre Miller continues to be one of my favorite players, and one who will never get the credit he deserves. People forget he dropped 50 last year. He is one of the more savy veterans in the league. Although Denver is made perfectly for the regular season, it is very hard to win in the postseason without an elite player. The only team to successfully do that is the Pistons, and that team was full of people who were near elite. Denver, when healthy, would be one of the few teams recently who does have a chance. Especially in the West where almost all the teams besides OKC who do have elite players are extremely thin.

18-17

The Trail Blazers are out of the playoffs right now, but of all the teams who are close to being in (Minnesota is 18-18 and Utah is 16-18), the Blazers have the best chance of making a serious playoff run. They are continuing their trend from last year of doing absolutely horrible on the road (24th road record in NBA), but have the best power forward in the league (sorry Love) and can create some scary line ups. Batum can be a superstar in the upcoming years and is built the same way as Paul George--extremely long, athletic, can shoot the 3 or go down low, and can play defense against opposing teams' 1, 2 or 3. When he realizes his potential, and he is on his way, he could be scary. Gerald Wallace seems like the forgotten man, but still contributes and is basically an older Josh Smith (without the atrocious shot selection). He's good at everything, but not great at anything. Add a healthy Camby, big if, and their 2-5 are great. Portlands' problem though is their point guard situation. Raymond Felton, who is notorious for being overweight and not in shape, showed up in worse shape then ever after the lock out. He has played embarrassingly bad and has shot a career low .376 with a true shooting % of .455, and also has the highest turnover rate of his career. The other option they have is Jamal "no shot I don't like" Crawford. He may have the quickest dribble in NBA and one of the more fun highlight reels to watch, but he is not a player I want on my team, particularly at the point. He is averaging 12 shots a game and 14 points. Not good. They also don't have a perimeter player who can create late in close games, so they often rely on Crawford, which usually ends up being a bad contested long jumper. There are rumors that the Blazers are going after Steve Nash. While it's unlikely the Suns give him up, if they do and Portland is able to keep most of the core, watch out.

NBA Mid-Season Awards

MVP

LeBron James, and it isn't close. Chris Broussard thinks that Kevin Durant has LeBron beat out. Broussard should stick to getting breaking news from his bevy of sources, because his analysis is clearly sub-par. LeBron has a better true shooting percentage than Durant; he has a (much) better assist rate; he has a better turnover rate; he has a higher usage rate; he has a better rebound rate; and he's a far superior defender. So yeah, I don't really see room for an argument for Durant, despite his very good year. In fact, Chris Paul's incredible fourth quarter numbers (his PER in the fourth quarter is over 35 and is best in the league) and transformation of the Clippers into a contender in the Western Conference leads me to put him ahead of Durant as well, though only by a hair.
Top five: James, Paul, Durant, Dwayne Wade, Dwight Howard

Rookie of the Year

Kyrie Irving, and this race is also landslide. Irving is a 19 year old with a PER over 20. He (along with a healthy Anderson Varajao) has led the Cavaliers from a complete joke into a competitive team. Rubio is a blast to watch, but desperately needs to improve his shooting. Leonard is the only player on the list playing productive minutes for a contender. Ayon has a PER of nearly 20 and easily leads the Hornets--who, unlike the Bobcats, at least look they are trying--in adjusted plus minus.
Top five: Irving, Rubio, Kawhi Leonard, Gustavo Ayon, Isaiah Thomas

6th Man

When are we going to get a close race? As long as Scott Brooks keeps James Harden coming off the bench, he should have this one nailed down. Harden has a true shooting percentage of almost 65% and a higher assist rate than Russell Westbrook. He's also third in the league in adjusted plus minus.
Top five: Harden, Lou Williams, Andre Miller, Al Harrington, Mo Williams

Coach of the Year

Tom Thibodeau by a smidge over Gregg Popovich, with Doug Collins not far behind. People forget that the Bulls were not a defensive juggernaut before Thubodeau came along. And this year, they are even third in the league in offensive efficiency, behind only Miami and Oklahoma City. Meanwhile Popovich, despite injuries, has San Antonio playing like a championship contender. And Collins is getting everything possible out of his Sixers team.
Top five: Thibodeau, Popovich, Collins, Frank Vogel, Rick Carlisle

Defensive Player of the Year

No one stands out here. Dwight Howard is still the league's most feared defender, but with Orlando having only the league's 12th best defensive efficiency, he is not playing up to his usual standard (though it should be noted that he's surrounded by horrid defenders). Andre Iguodala is the most important defender on the team with the NBA's best defensive efficiency. Tyson Chandler has greatly helped turn the Knicks into a top-10 defense. And LeBron is doing his usual work on the wings. My ballot right can be seen below, but this race is close enough that it will likely change over the rest of the season.
Top five: Iguodala, Chandler, Howard, James, Tony Allen

Most Improved

Linsanity! Yes, Jeremy Lin played terribly against the Miami Heat last night, but let's not discount what he's done since being placed in the starting lineup. He has a PER over 22 and has obviously been a key cog in many of the Knicks' wins. And talk about "improved"...this from a guy who got pretty much no run last year. Lin has been overhyped, but he's also a lot better than he showed yesterday. The Heat didn't show the league some new "blueprint" for stopping Lin (his penchant for turning the ball over when faced with ball pressure and long arms was already out there), they just executed well and are a terrible matchup for him.
Top five: Lin, Ryan Anderson, Greg Monroe, James Harden, Kyle Lowry

Just How Well is LeBron Playing Right Now?

LeBron James is absolutely torching the league so far this season. Most people (with at least some justification) have little interest in his regular season performances anymore, and simply want to see if he can win a ring while having some sterling games in the Finals. But it's worth marveling at what we are currently witnessing.

James' PER is currently 32.49. best in the league. His teammate Dwayne Wade has the second highest PER at 26.59, just above Chris Paul, who comes in at 26.52. Kevin Durant and others closely follow.

The difference between James' and Wade's PERs is about 6 (5.90 to be exact). If you drop 5.90 "points" off Wade's PER you get...Spencer Hawes, who has the league's 31st highest PER. That's right, the difference between the #1 and #2 PER is the same as the difference between the #2 and the #31 PER.

How rare is this kind of statistical dominance? John Hollinger's website includes all PERs since the 2002-03 regular season. During that time frame, the difference between the player with the top PER and the second place finisher has been: 1.21, 3.09, 1.30, 0.76, 1.34, 0.03, 1.17, 2.36, and 1.58. Of that group of numbers, even 3.09 is somewhat of an outlier. And it's barely more than half the gap between LeBron and Wade as of now.

And unlike players like Kevin Love, Derrick Rose, and Greg Monroe, who benefit greatly from a purely box-score driven composite statistic like PER because it hides their defensive deficiencies, LeBron is also one of the best defenders in the league (as has been detailed on this blog on a number of previous occasions).

We are still a tad less than half-way into a shortened season, so who knows whether LeBron can sustain this level of dominance. And we'll all be holding our breath in the Playoffs and wondering whether he will settle for long distance jumpers in crunch time (or even allow the opposing team to simply erase him from the play). But for now, lets appreciate the historic performance that is being displayed.

Who are the Best "Clutch" Players in the NBA?

I'm expecting that we will be flooded over the next few days with stories of Jeremy Lin's "nerves of steel" and "iron will.". However, while metaphors involving metallic products are fun, such stories are almost always predictably silly. Players do not become good shooters over the last few minutes of a close game when they are usually bad shooters. And good shooters do not become bad shooters in the clutch. Nerves are steel are, by and large, a myth.

So what actually does make someone a good clutch player? In my mind, it boils down to two things. First, shot selection. And second, the ability to manufacture points out of slow developing half court sets. I will touch on each of these in turn.

Too many players stop running real plays at the end of the game, and instead dribble for 15 seconds around the top of the key and then hoist up long jumpers when they don't see a clear opening into the paint. Contested long jumpers are bad shots at any point of the game, including over the last few minutes. For example, consider LeBron James. LeBron shouldn't be shooting even semi-contested three pointers in the first quarter, and he shouldn't be shooting them in the clutch. But he (and others, he is not alone) have a very bad tendency of shooting more long jumpers in these situations than they would otherwise. LeBron got lucky with these shots last year in the playoffs against Boston and Chicago, hitting them at better than his usual rate. But he, predictably, regressed to the mean in the Finals. Another, far more flagrant, example of this phenomena is Kobe Bryant. Kobe forces up bad shot after bad shot at the end of close games, believing that he simply must will his team to victory. And because they are bad shots (and again, not because of nerves), he usually misses them. Don't believe me? Take a look at this chart, courtesy of Zach Lowe. The lesson is clear: teams need to work for high quality looks in the waning seconds in the same way that they would at any other time during the game.

Of course, this is easier said than done. Many teams thrive on quick shots and on player and ball that are difficult to replicate when you are trying to nurse the clock. So, who does have a game that is best suited for these situations? Numero uno: Chris Paul. Despite popular perception, Paul's teams have always gone at a plodding pace. He usually calls for the ball immediately and then walks up the floor. A play is then set up around the top of the key, and the team goes from there. This model translates perfectly to the end of the game because nothing needs to change. The same plays can be executed as the clock winds down. Making matters even better is the fact that Paul is "allowed" to pass without worrying about being criticized by the media. Whereas other top dogs like LeBron are described as "unwilling to step up" when they pass to open shooters for a last shot, Chris Paul and other point guards are considered exceptions to this rule because their position dictates that they are supposed to pass.

Shockingly, a contrasting example of the kind of player that thrives in the closing minutes is the most overrated player in basketball: Carmelo Anthony. Like Paul, Anthony does not need to change his game in the clutch. Carmelo can continue to be very good at shooting highly inefficient shots. These shots still are far from optimal at any point in the game--while Carmelo hits them far more often than most, he still does not make them at a high enough rate to make them "good shots." But if your team refuses to run a real play, and instead is going to rely on isolation and a star jacking up a shot no matter what, you may as well rely on a guy who plays that way no matter the situation and is better than pretty much anyone else at the strategy.

It Was a Bar Fight!

If you haven't seen this latest great KG interview, here it is.  Anyone else wonder if KG has ever been in a real bar fight?  He came to the league out of high school, has never had any off the court issues, and is known to not go out much (He asked Billups if he should go to Boston and was worried about lack of nightlife here.  Billups responded, "What do you care, you don't go out anyway.").  Barkley on the hand, should know very well about bar fights.

Magic's Secret Defensive Strategy

Watch Magic's bench.

Your 2011-2012 New Orleans Hornets!

Thanks to an inability to make any moves until Chris Paul gets dealt, and an inability to deal Chris Paul until David Stern decides he doesn't want to run the NBA as though he's Vladimir Putin, the New Orleans Hornets roster currently reads:

Guards: Chris Paul, Willie Green, Jarrett Jack, Justin Dentmon, Jerome Dyson, Carldell Johnson, Terrico White

Forwards: Trevor Ariza, Quincy Pondexter, Patrick Ewing Jr., DaJuan Summers, Moses Ehambe, Trey Johnson, Lance Thomas

Centers: Emeka Okafor, Brian Butch

This collection of "talent" is set to begin their season starts in thirteen days.

CPIII to the Lakers...Oops, never, mind, I take that back

First of all, let me say that as a Celtics fan and as a resident of New Orleans, I was not pleased when I read that Chris Paul was being traded to the Lakers. I wanted Paul to go to any team BUT the Lakers, and wasn't thrilled with the Hornets return.

That being said, the turn of events after this deal was agreed to is nothing other than embarrassing. The league let Dell Demps negotiate with the Celtics, Clippers, Lakers, Warriors, and who knows what other teams for the last week. They let offers come in, and counteroffers get sent back out. Not a single word was uttered about a deal being disallowed. When Demps realized that Stephen Curry and Eric Gordon were not going to be part of any trade due to Paul's unwillingness to sign long-term with the Warriors or Clippers, he pulled the trigger on a deal that would have netted the Hornets three bona fide starters: Lamar Odom, Luis Scola, and Kevin Martin. They also would have received Goran Dragic and a first round pick. And the Lakers were giving up Pau Gasol, one of the top 20 players in the league, and last season's 6th Man of the Year. I would have preferred a deal in which the Hornets got more pieces for the future, but considering that everyone knew that their feet were to the fire, Demps' haul was far from a swing and a miss. Should they have agreed to the Celtics offer--Rajon Rondo, Jeff Green, and 2 first rounders--instead? Perhaps, but it's debatable. Rondo easily has the most potential of anyone in either offer. But it's becoming clear that Rondo will continue to be a confounding player, whose shooting woes substantially detract from all his positives. And Jeff Green, well, he's the guy that Danny Ainge traded for last year in a deal that was pretty much universally derided. Noone really cares about Jeff Green.

So Dell Demps agreed to a deal that would have left the Hornets with a competitive team, though little youth. He agreed to it after tirelessly working the phones ever since the lockout ended. And then the league, and who knows whether the "league" here refers to David Stern, Dan Gilbert, Mark Cuban, or some combination of the three, decided to pull the plug on the deal. So why did they allow for any negotiations to occur over the last week? Why didn't they just say from the get-go that Paul couldn't be traded until a new owner came in? And what exactly are the Hornets supposed to do now?

Sarah Palin's Contribution to Basketball

You are probably wondering why a picture of Sarah Palin is on here and what she has to do with sports.  This one is too good not to post up.

New Biography Claims Sarah Palin Had A One-Night Stand With Glen Rice In 1987

The National Enquirer grabbed some details from the upcoming Joe McGinniss Sarah Palin book, and this chunk is too delightful not to share with you immediately. Apparently Palin had a fling with former Heat/Hornet/Laker Glen Rice while he was in college and while she was a sports reporter in Alaska, all the way back in 1987. Rice confirms it in the book.

Here's the Enquirer:

In the book, which will be published on September 20th, McGinniss claims Sarah had a steamy interracial hookup with basketball stud Glen Rice less than a year before she eloped with her husband Todd.

Sarah hooked up with the NBA great, then a 6-foot-8 junior at the University of Michigan when he was playing in a college basketball tournament in Alaska in 1987, the book says. At the time, Sarah, just out of college, was working as a sports reporter for the Anchorage TV station KTUU.

A publishing source told The ENQUIRER that McGinniss claims Sarah had a "fetish" for black men at the time and he quotes a friend as saying Sarah had "hauled (Rice's) ass down."
[...]
In the book, McGinniss quotes Rice as confirming the one-night stand.

 I guess Glen Rice was hitting more then just 3's back in his Michigan days.

Blake Griffin Is Pretty Funny

Z-Bo will be Z-Bo

Zach Randolph has changed from a stat machine and a team killer into a stat machine and team maker.  He went from using his money to supposedly finance huge drug rings to making very smart and practical financial decisions, he opted to take his 2010-11 salary out over 18-24 months in the event a lockout happens.  But, even with all the change and the all the positive, Z-Bo will always be Z-Bo.

Police say Zach Randolph met a man dealing marijuana aboard a charter cruise ship in Portland on Friday and invited him to his mansion later in order to sell weed to the 20 or so guests at Randolph's after-cruise party.  James Ruben Beasley told police he was encouraged to sell marijuana to anyone interested, until he was beaten with pool cues around 4 a.m. Saturday.

How the Mighty Have Fallen

And then

Earlier this week, West tweeted that he was applying for a job at Home Depot, and the seven-year vet says that’s not the only retail job he’s looking into.

“I actually might have work with Sam’s [Club], BJ’s, selling knives,” West said. “That’s pretty cool too. I get a microphone and everything.” 

I guess not the most mighty, but still funny (and sad) to see.  It is not like Delonte West was the lowest paid player in the game last year either, he did make over a million dollars.

Durant's Tattoos

Looks like Durant is aware of his clean cut image and is trying to protect/keep it.  You won't be able to see any of those tattoos when he is wearing his jersey.  It can also be pointed out it is definitely time Durant is introduced to the weight room.