New Album & The Beginning of Basketball Season

[steve williams]

Ain't going to happen. The Packs have one of the 3 best QBs in the game and a good defense which is getting healthy: Matthews seems to be fully healed and Woodson is back . The Vikes have AP and the whole world knows where the ball is going. During the regular season team may even experiment with defensive schemes. For the playoffs defense become more basic and tackling surer , do-or-die times, it will be more difficult for those 20 yards after contact runs... They'll try though ...

well they did last week Frantz so why is it impossible

 

[WLVCA]

Well truth be told, the Lakers just plain stink

Pau Gasol is playing like someone lacking total confidence in himself and his game and again did little if anything to contribute and again was benched by D'Antoni until he was forced to return in the 4th after Howard fouls out

To my eyes Pau just doesn't have the steam and last gasp to keep up with younger and much faster teams thus exposing his shortcomings. I just can't see Pau being a Laker after the trading deadline because unless they find some youth and speed they will be lucky to even make the playoffs let alone get through the first round.

The Clipps bench is second best in the league and left the Lakers in their dust.

The Lakers now IMO are nothing more than the Kobe Show as he scores more than 30 in every game

Howard to me also seems reticent and yes perhaps his back however, is he buying time for his contract renewal only to thumb his nose at the Lakers and sign elsewhere. So far he has not been allowed to carry the team by Kobe and perhaps D'Antoni although yesterday all of the early plays were going to Howard.

I have been a Lakers fan for over 40 years and as I stated I have officially burned my fan card. Try as I might WLVCA and as good as they are I just can't find myself cozying up to the Clipps for the balance of the season. For me the real excitement is the GSW and what Mark Jackson has done with that team

So for me the early contenders for MVP are

Chris Paul
Kevin Durant
Stephen Curry

Can't even consider Kobe because his scoring prowess has done nothing for a team effort

Final caveat...... I look for a blockbuster Lakers trade before deadline. Right now Pau Gasol has the cross hairs aimed at his head but to complete a trade it will involve multiple teams because he has such a large contract

Steve,

The Clippers and Warriors play tonight and that should be a good game.

The Warriors have beaten the Clippers twice already this season.

Mark Jackson has done a heck of a job with the Warriors. The new owners seem to be serious about building a solid team and they even have Jerry West working with them. Andrew Bogut, their big center, hasn't even played yet this year.

Golden State fans deserve a winner as they are some of the best fans in the league - knowledgeable and loyal to a long suffering franchise. I know the feeling.

So, I hope they do well this season - but finish second in the Pacific division.

 

[jadis]

So for me the early contenders for MVP are

Chris Paul
Kevin Durant
Stephen Curry

Having seen highlights of Chris Paul's performance against the Lakers the other night, boy, was it some show I haven't seen from a premier guard for a while. Reminds me of Allen Iverson in the Finals against LAL a few years back. If that game alone were the gauge, I would have wished CP3 was in Boston instead of Rondo, and mainly because he can produce the points even at most difficult moments. And boy was he super energized in that game.

 

[FrantzM]

Having seen highlights of Chris Paul's performance against the Lakers the other night, boy, was it some show I haven't seen from a premier guard for a while. Reminds me of Allen Iverson in the Finals against LAL a few years back. If that game alone were the gauge, I would have wished CP3 was in Boston instead of Rondo, and mainly because he can produce the points even at most difficult moments. And boy was he super energized in that game.

You Celtics fans will have your wishes, You will eventually lose one of the best Point Guard in the game and have him play for the Lakers or the Knicks. I like Chris Paul and all but people Rondo is the PG , I would most like on my team, still young, no he doesn't shoot well but that is why a team needs a shooting guard. Else he does everything including driving the players of the other team insane with some borderline legal tactics . Don't run him out of Boston, you will live to regret it, remember the Curse of the Bambino?

 

[jadis]

You Celtics fans will have your wishes, You will eventually lose one of the best Point Guard in the game and have him play for the Lakers or the Knicks. I like Chris Paul and all but people Rondo is the PG , I would most like on my team, still young, no he doesn't shoot well but that is why a team needs a shooting guard. Else he does everything including driving the players of the other team insane with some borderline legal tactics . Don't run him out of Boston, you will live to regret it, remember the Curse of the Bambino?

Yeah, Red Sox gave away Babe Ruth and it took forever for them to win a WS series again. Rondo is very good, no doubt, great basketball IQ and unselfish. His shooting has improved but it sure helps when the other shooters are slumping and the PG can shoot. I begin to think Tiny Archibald, Isaiah Thomas, Allen Iverson, small guys who are with deadly range. This thought came about in the present situation of the C's wherein Courtney Lee, Jason Terry and Jeff Green all are playing sub par games and not racking up the points. They rely heavily on Pierce (which they did again last night) for scoring, and that guy cannot carry the team all the time till the end.

 

[MylesBAstor]

Well truth be told, the Lakers just plain stink

Pau Gasol is playing like someone lacking total confidence in himself and his game and again did little if anything to contribute and again was benched by D'Antoni until he was forced to return in the 4th after Howard fouls out

To my eyes Pau just doesn't have the steam and last gasp to keep up with younger and much faster teams thus exposing his shortcomings. I just can't see Pau being a Laker after the trading deadline because unless they find some youth and speed they will be lucky to even make the playoffs let alone get through the first round.

The Clipps bench is second best in the league and left the Lakers in their dust.

The Lakers now IMO are nothing more than the Kobe Show as he scores more than 30 in every game

Howard to me also seems reticent and yes perhaps his back however, is he buying time for his contract renewal only to thumb his nose at the Lakers and sign elsewhere. So far he has not been allowed to carry the team by Kobe and perhaps D'Antoni although yesterday all of the early plays were going to Howard.

I have been a Lakers fan for over 40 years and as I stated I have officially burned my fan card. Try as I might WLVCA and as good as they are I just can't find myself cozying up to the Clipps for the balance of the season. For me the real excitement is the GSW and what Mark Jackson has done with that team

So for me the early contenders for MVP are

Chris Paul
Kevin Durant
Stephen Curry

Can't even consider Kobe because his scoring prowess has done nothing for a team effort

Final caveat...... I look for a blockbuster Lakers trade before deadline. Right now Pau Gasol has the cross hairs aimed at his head but to complete a trade it will involve multiple teams because he has such a large contract

Excuse me Steve but aren't you forgetting Carmelo Anthony. He "IS" the Knicks offense averaging 29.3 PPG. And Woodson actually has him paying some D. They wouldn't be 1/2 as good without Carmelo. Perhaps you're too West Coast biased

 

[steve williams]

Excuse me Steve but aren't you forgetting Carmelo Anthony. He "IS" the Knicks offense averaging 29.3 PPG. And Woodson actually has him paying some D. They wouldn't be 1/2 as good without Carmelo. Perhaps you're too West Coast biased

For reasons I myself don't understand I just don't consider Carmelo a contender for MVP. A great player yes but just not my idea of a "team" player. West coast bias yes but we all agreed last year that LBJ was indeed the MVP, an all around great player and a team player. I don't see that in Carmelo

 

[MylesBAstor]

For reasons I myself don't understand I just don't consider Carmelo a contender for MVP. A great player yes but just not my idea of a "team" player. West coast bias yes but we all agreed last year that LBJ was indeed the MVP, an all around great player and a team player. I don't see that in Carmelo

You need to watch a few Knicks games Without Carmelo, the Knicks would be at the bottom of their division. Outside of JR "Black Hole" Smith, they have no scorers (Amare excepted since he's just coming off his knee surgery). He has carried the whole team on his back since the beginning of the season.

 

[steve williams]

You need to watch a few Knicks game. Without Carmelo, they'd be at the bottom of the division. Outside of JR Smith, they have no scorers (Amare excepted since he's just coming off his knee surgery). He has carried the whole team on his back since the beginning of the season.

so has Kobe who BTW has the best scoring avg in the league. He too has carried the team on his back but he just won't be considered. I see Carmelo perhaps a candidate but not the winner

I really like Chris Paul as the winner to date

 

[MylesBAstor]

How much do you this will cost him?

http://espn.go.com/dallas/nba/story...s-owner-mark-cuban-complains-officiating-loss

 

[WLVCA]

Excuse me Steve but aren't you forgetting Carmelo Anthony. He "IS" the Knicks offense averaging 29.3 PPG. And Woodson actually has him paying some D. They wouldn't be 1/2 as good without Carmelo. Perhaps you're too West Coast biased

Carmelo playing defense? That is indeed headline news!

 

[jadis]

For reasons I myself don't understand I just don't consider Carmelo a contender for MVP. A great player yes but just not my idea of a "team" player. West coast bias yes but we all agreed last year that LBJ was indeed the MVP, an all around great player and a team player. I don't see that in Carmelo

I feel the same way as Steve here. I love watching Melo play basketball since his Denver days. If he went to Boston I would have been thrilled. If there are missing pieces in teams, then Melo has a missing piece - ASSISTS. His career average on assists is 3. This season he is doing 2. And for me, that is what is keeping him away from the MVP race. It's like opponents know that he's gonna shoot 99% when he has the ball, thereby, there is no need to defend others but to go for the rebound. On double team, he hardly seeks an open man to score which Lebron has perfected last season. If Melo ups his assists per game then he would be a very scary player in the mold of Lebron. James' career assists is 7.

 

[jadis]

Carmelo playing defense? That is indeed headline news!

Maybe a better headline than Amare not being taught defense in his basketball life.

 

[steve williams]

Carmelo is not this year's MVP.

 

[MylesBAstor]

He's shooting 48% (2 pct higher than career) from the floor and 44% from three pt. land (10 pct. higher than career). Do you want him passing the ball? He's their sole offensive option. And he's avg. 6 RPGs, 83% from the charity stripe and second in the league in scoring. As I said, the Knicks would be dreadful without him.

 

[steve williams]

He's shooting 48% (2 pct higher than career) from the floor and 44% from three pt. land (10 pct. higher than career). Do you want him passing the ball? He's their sole offensive option. And he's avg. 6 RPGs, 83% from the charity stripe and second in the league in scoring. As I said, the Knicks would be dreadful without him.

Say what you will Myles but honestly he isn't the MVP. He is a one man show, a great player but IMO not in the category of MVP. As Phil says, he has a life time assist average of 2-3. Have a look at the assist average of some of the MVP's of years' past and you'll get the drift

 

[MylesBAstor]

Say what you will Myles but honestly he isn't the MVP. He is a one man show, a great player but IMO not in the category of MVP. As Phil says, he has a life time assist average of 2-3. Have a look at the assist average of some of the MVP's of years' past and you'll get the drift

Guess we'll just see at the end of the season

 

[steve williams]

Yup

 

[jadis]

If this was true, deja vu time, like the Shaq/Kobe feud of 2004.

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/...howard-reportedly-involved-in-heated-exchange


Kobe Bryant and Dwight Howard Reportedly Involved in Heated Exchange
By
Alex Kay
(Featured Columnist) on January 7, 2013



Kobe Bryant and Dwight Howard are reportedly feuding, and there is a distinct possibility that the big man could be on his way out of Los Angeles.

According to Stefan Bondy of the New York Daily News, the Black Mamba and D12 have been verbally sparring since the Lakers lost on New Year’s Day to the Philadelphia 76ers.

Bryant—a master of trash talk and manipulation—apparently launched the first salvo against Howard’s fragile psyche. He informed the center that he agreed with Shaquille O’Neal’s offseason statements about how the big man isn’t tough enough.

Dwight tried to prove Kobe wrong physically, but wound up being restrained by his teammates.

Since that alleged incident, we’ve been hearing plenty of rumbling about chemistry coming out of the Lakers locker room.

On Saturday, Howard opined to Ramona Shelburne of ESPN Los Angeles:

We have to play like we like each other. Even if we don't want to be friends off the court, whatever that may be, when we step in between the lines or we step in the locker room or the gym, we have to respect each other and what we bring to the table.

He was speaking to an incident where Jordan Hill was left writhing in pain on the floor without teammate help during Friday’s 107-102 loss to the in-town rival Clippers, but it’s easy to see there are plenty more chemistry problems in L.A. than just failing to check in on a role player.

 

[FrantzM]

If this was true, deja vu time, like the Shaq/Kobe feud of 2004.

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/...howard-reportedly-involved-in-heated-exchange


Kobe Bryant and Dwight Howard Reportedly Involved in Heated Exchange
By
Alex Kay
(Featured Columnist) on January 7, 2013



Kobe Bryant and Dwight Howard are reportedly feuding, and there is a distinct possibility that the big man could be on his way out of Los Angeles.

According to Stefan Bondy of the New York Daily News, the Black Mamba and D12 have been verbally sparring since the Lakers lost on New Year’s Day to the Philadelphia 76ers.

Bryant—a master of trash talk and manipulation—apparently launched the first salvo against Howard’s fragile psyche. He informed the center that he agreed with Shaquille O’Neal’s offseason statements about how the big man isn’t tough enough.

Dwight tried to prove Kobe wrong physically, but wound up being restrained by his teammates.

Since that alleged incident, we’ve been hearing plenty of rumbling about chemistry coming out of the Lakers locker room.

On Saturday, Howard opined to Ramona Shelburne of ESPN Los Angeles:

We have to play like we like each other. Even if we don't want to be friends off the court, whatever that may be, when we step in between the lines or we step in the locker room or the gym, we have to respect each other and what we bring to the table.

He was speaking to an incident where Jordan Hill was left writhing in pain on the floor without teammate help during Friday’s 107-102 loss to the in-town rival Clippers, but it’s easy to see there are plenty more chemistry problems in L.A. than just failing to check in on a role player.

I like Kobe as a player and all. Iff that is true Kobe is jeopardizing his chances to win a championship for the rest of his career. He is not playing tennis double but basketball and that requires at least 5 players t and a bench.
To say that I am disappointed about My Lakers is understatement. I think one of the Lakers problem is Kobe not meshing with or deferring to d'Antoni system and personality. He needs an ego as big as his own to fully exploit his talent .. The few in the games that I think could: Phil Jackson, Greg Popovitch, Doc Rivers ..We'll see.

Looks another trophy for Miami, people.. Prepare yourselves