New Album & The Beginning of Basketball Season

[MylesBAstor]

D Will stays with the Nets if Howard goes there either this year through trade or as a free agent this summer.

If I was a betting person, which I'm not unless the stakes are tequila shots, D Will will be a Laker next year.

One thing is for sure. The only way the Nets are going to keep him is to make a concerted effort to improve the team. The Nets have to be one of the least talented teams in the league. Outside of the rookie Brooks, the 7 ft. Brook (who is more a power forward) and Humphries (a good role player), that team has NADA in term of talent.
They would have to do what the Knicks did and turn the whole roster over. Whether the allure of playing in Brooklyn (and Howard could also easily go to the Lakers) is anyone's guess. The only thing they have going for them is the Nets owner is willing to spend money and they're moving into a new arena.

 

[steve williams]

Just when I asked yesterday re mid season report, here it is for all teams

http://www.nba.com/reportcard/midseason/2012/lakers/?ls=iref:nbahpt1

 

[MylesBAstor]

Just when I asked yesterday re mid season report, here it is for all teams

http://www.nba.com/reportcard/midseason/2012/lakers/?ls=iref:nbahpt1

Cool....Knicks are most dangerous C team I also disagree with giving Avery Johnson a D. He's got a bunch of overachievers who play hard every night! At the joke was, the starting lineup is anyone who isn't injured!

 

[steve williams]

well the Nets owner is one of the world's richest men so he can throw good money after bad

 

[steve williams]

watching the Lakers get destroyed, outplayed and outhustled last night by OKC one can only marvel at how good the Thunder really is. KD silently gets his 28+ popints per game and Russell Westbrook constantly amazes me with his speed, agility and accuracy. James Harden proved himself yesterday and completely shut down Kobe in the 2nd half

The only flaw I can see apart from OKC being a very young team is that they are so fast that turnovers are the highest in the league. If they get that corrected there is no doubt in my mind they will win the West but not so sure about the whole enchilada

 

[Ron Party]

The only flaw I can see apart from OKC being a very young team is that they are so fast that turnovers are the highest in the league. If they get that corrected there is no doubt in my mind they will win the West but not so sure about the whole enchilada

They have one other flaw: no low post scoring threat. Playoff basketball is a much slower, deliberate game and the absence of a low post scoring threat might be their undoing.

I really want to see the Thunder play the Heat this season. That game will tell me a lot about both teams and their respective chances for winning the title.

 

[steve williams]

IMO that's who it will come down to. I don't believe there is a team in the league that can keep up with the speed of OKC

 

[MylesBAstor]

They have one other flaw: no low post scoring threat. Playoff basketball is a much slower, deliberate game and the absence of a low post scoring threat might be their undoing.

I really want to see the Thunder play the Heat this season. That game will tell me a lot about both teams and their respective chances for winning the title.

Mebee, mebee not. The league has changed and it's a guard oriented league now

 

[Ron Party]

It definitely is a guard first league. It also is an interesting evolutionary process. The days of the big center and dominant power forward have almost disappeared. The name of the game now is quickness at all positions.

 

[jadis]

It definitely is a guard first league. It also is an interesting evolutionary process. The days of the big center and dominant power forward have almost disappeared. The name of the game now is quickness at all positions.

And 'oldness' is the enemy of quickness. OKC, Miami, Chicago or Philly, among others have relatively young players. Once you hit the 30s in the NBA, 'oldness' begins. And slowness follows. The changing of the guard (not just the point guards) is due to the parity done for the lesser teams to draft high. The fruits are showing. Rose, Durant, James are ruling the game with there youthfull speed and strength, while Kobe, Garnett, Duncan, et al. are playing with 'valor'. OKC vs Heat in the Finals? I like that. And how bout the Heat beating the Knicks yesterday? Miami has a very tight D, and NY should learn from that. That would be a nice 7 game series too come playoffs.

 

[Ron Party]

I missed both games yesterday. I was at work when the first was played and in school last night when the second was played. It would have been fun to watch both, but the outcomes were very predictable.

The Heat vs. OKC in the finals? Definitely a strong possibility. But home court advantange plays such a huge role. In the East, which team gets home court advantage: Bulls or Heat? In the West, OKC gets it barring injury; the only question is whether they will face Dallas or San Antone.

 

[steve williams]

Heat and OKC have identical records

 

[Ron Party]

We had this dialogue before, but I'll raise it again: if it is those 2 teams in the Finals, wouldn't you like to see it decided at a neutral location?

 

[steve williams]

Sort of like a Super Bowl but this would be a best of 7 series so I still favor home court for best record

 

[FrantzM]

Hi

I hate the Heat, with a passion but darn they are a great team. If Lebro James find a way to shake the ghosts who haunt him when comes Hero time, and he might, he just might, I don't see how OKC or any team can stop them...

 

[steve williams]

IMO OKC is a sleeping giant. I agree about the Heat. Hate em with a passion however I believe OKC can beat them.

 

[jadis]

We had this dialogue before, but I'll raise it again: if it is those 2 teams in the Finals, wouldn't you like to see it decided at a neutral location?

It's an intriguing idea really but as Steve mentioned, it's a best of 7. An easier way would to have a neutral venue for a Game 7. But question is, WHERE? And in a pre-determined city, the fans of both teams would buy up the tickets anyway so it boils down to who has more fans in the front and near seats where it matters and not the bleachers.

I always believed that a great NBA champion is one who CAN win on the road. Like the '69 Celtics who won at the Forum on Game 7, and the '85 Lakers who won the title on the parquet floor in Boston. Nerves of steel and shows that the champion team can beat any team anywhere.

 

[jadis]

IMO OKC is a sleeping giant. I agree about the Heat. Hate em with a passion however I believe OKC can beat them.

I would root for OKC against Miami but my only reservation would be their coach. Last season, there were a few times when OKC were up big but allowed other teams to crawl in and ultimately beat them. OKC is a tremendously young and gifted team, and players can explode at any quarter. But there are times where their D loosen up and they don't know what to do when opponents mount a big run. This season, their test is just that, how do they handle prosperity. If they can play a Miami style defense, it would be a good thing for them and I believe they will beat the Heat if they meet in the Finals.

 

[jadis]

News for LAKERS fans before next months trading deadline:



Report: Rasheed Wallace to sign with Lakers
PUBLISHED 2 hours and 35 minutes ago
LAST UPDATED 1 hour and 39 minutes ago
Staff report Sporting News


Rasheed Wallace, who hasn't played since Game 7 of the 2010 NBA Finals, will come out of retirement to sign with the Los Angeles Lakers, according to CSN New England.

Reports surfaced last month that Wallace was serious about returning to the game.
Rasheed Wallace has reportedly been eyeing a comeback for some time. (AP Photo)

The big question with Wallace, 37, given his status as one of the most skilled big men of his era and ability to shoot and defend, is whether he's in shape to play. It's the same question that dogged him during his final season with the Boston Celtics, who, according to CSN, had no interest in bringing him back. That apparently is not an issue—Wallace has reportedly worked out hard and is in better shape than he was before his retirement.

If Wallace indeed signs with the Lakers, the next question becomes whether the team is bringing him in as a potential replacement for Pau Gasol, who has been the subject of trade rumors and drama for the entire season. Lakers GM Mitch Kupchak said Monday that the team would continue exploring trade proposals after Kobe Bryant stated that it was time for the team to either move Gasol or take him off the block.

Gasol, in his 11th season is averaging a career-low 16.6 points and has said the rumors have bothered him. One Western Conference executive told Hoopsworld that the Lakers are overvaluing him.

“I doubt Pau goes anywhere,” the executive said. “I love Pau, but the Lakers are asking for way too much.”

Additionally, one front-office executive source told CSN that Wallace's days as a starter are over—a fact that likely means that Gasol will be unaffected.

"His days as a starter in this league are gone," said the source. "I think he knows that, and so do the Lakers. But think about it. Of the big men that are available, is there one that's really better? And if he's gotten himself in shape, adding him becomes a huge get for them."

In 15 seasons with Washington, Portland, Atlanta, Detroit and Boston, Wallace averaged 14.6 points and 6.7 rebounds.

 

[Ron Party]

And, if true, the Lakers just got even older and slower.