The Thread of the 2009-2010 NBA Season

[Neon_Chaos]

Originally Posted by TroyF

He got game:

hxxp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OWkhvdCjUSs

Also good to see melo not go 8-25 again. No Anthony Carter helps. Also helps that JR has found his stroke. Lakers off a b2b, but the Nuggets have already had 4 back to backs this year. (overall record in them is 5-3, both games with at least a day of rest are wins thus far)

Important stretch for the Nuggets coming up. 7 of 9 games at home and they'll likely be favored in 9 straight games. (the road games are the Clipper and TWolves)

FWIW: I know Kobe was tired, but Afflalo defended him as well as any Denver Nugget I've ever seen. He didn't foul, contested every shot, didn't go for the pump fakes, kept him out of the lane. Thanks again to Dumars. I love this guy.

Dumars practically built the Nuggets.

[whomario]

btw : The Knicks and Nets are a combined 1-18 so far, yikes ...

And the Kings win their 4th straight without Kevin Martin. I´m sensing a trend. Allways thought the guy is to terrible as a passer/creator (maybe the worst of any 20+ scorer) to have the ball in his hands as much as he has, stalls the offense and makes it easy to defend the Kings.

Afflalo is a good defender definitely, has a knack for playing position defense. Good to see he found a place where that´s being valued

[whomario]

This is ridiculous ! Brandon Jennings scored 55 points against the Warriors, 3 short of Wilt Chamberlain´s rookie record. 21-34 from the field, 7-8 from 3, 6-8 FTs.
29 in the 3rd to lead the Bucks back into the game, then added 16 more in the 4th for good measure.

Yes, it´s the Warriors. But still, damn He´s scored 32 in a win against Denver before and averaged 20 a game before (now 26 on 50% FG, 54% from 3. )

Bucks are 5-2 to start.

Now, the guy averaged like 7 a game in Europe and shot <40% from the field and <25% from 3. If anyone still thinks Europe is easy and/or stats there are even remotely comparable to the NBA can´t be helped ... It´s 2 different games, not just 2 different leagues.

[miami_fan]

That kind of point guard play will kill Scott Skiles if those shots aren't falling.

[TroyF]

I said that Ty Lawson would be the best PG in this draft class. After looking at all of the rookie PG's thus far, I may have to back down. It looks like Brandon Jennings is the best. At least for scoring. He has a lot to learn about running an offense. . . but shooting 60% and scoring the way he does, he's an unbelievable talent.

[DeToxRox]

All I will say is this: Bench Rodney Stuckey. He's a perfect 6th man like Ben Gordon was in Chicago. Find a way to get rid of Tay and Rip, but I know that's very unlikely. At least deal one. Let Will Bynum run the point. The kid is electric as hell and can really distribute, at least compared to Stuck.

Plus, even though he is just at 6 feet tall, he is really active on both ends.

Anyway, it won't happen because Dumars is stubborn but whatever.

[Groundhog]

Originally Posted by DeToxRox

All I will say is this: Bench Rodney Stuckey. He's a perfect 6th man like Ben Gordon was in Chicago.

Problem is, the Pistons have like 3 6th men - Stuckey, Gordon, and Charlie V.

I thought Stuckey would be a better PG than he is, but definitely seems like he's a combo-guard leaning to the SG side of things.

[Groundhog]

Originally Posted by TroyF

I said that Ty Lawson would be the best PG in this draft class. After looking at all of the rookie PG's thus far, I may have to back down. It looks like Brandon Jennings is the best. At least for scoring. He has a lot to learn about running an offense. . . but shooting 60% and scoring the way he does, he's an unbelievable talent.

Agreed, though Lawson's dunk the other night... oh my...

[TroyF]

Originally Posted by Groundhog

Agreed, though Lawson's dunk the other night... oh my...

That was my youtube link above.

Words can't express how solid Ty Lawson has been for the Nuggets this year.

they are asked to do different things, so they are hard to compare. Just for fun, here are the Per48 numbers for Lawson and Jennings:

Lawson - 22.7 points (52.7% FG, 50% 3PT, 94.1% FT), 4.4 rebounds, 6.8 assists, 2.20 steals, 2.4 turnovers, 2.82 A/TO ratio.

Jennings - 36.3 points (49.6% FG, 56.7% 3PT, 82.8 FT), 6.3 rebounds, 7.3 assists, 1.62 steals, 4.9 turnovers, 1.50 A/TO ratio.

Those are good numbers for most players. The fact that you are talking about the 18th and 10th pick in the draft is amazing for their respective teams.

Flynn and Evans have also been good, though they both have lower shooting percentages.Curry, Teague and Maynor all look like solid NBA players. Jrue Holliday looks raw, but has talent as well.

I haven't even talked about other positions yet. I thought last years draft was supposed to suck?

[Chief Rum]

Originally Posted by TroyF

That was my youtube link above.

Words can't express how solid Ty Lawson has been for the Nuggets this year.

they are asked to do different things, so they are hard to compare. Just for fun, here are the Per48 numbers for Lawson and Jennings:

Lawson - 22.7 points (52.7% FG, 50% 3PT, 94.1% FT), 4.4 rebounds, 6.8 assists, 2.20 steals, 2.4 turnovers, 2.82 A/TO ratio.

Jennings - 36.3 points (49.6% FG, 56.7% 3PT, 82.8 FT), 6.3 rebounds, 7.3 assists, 1.62 steals, 4.9 turnovers, 1.50 A/TO ratio.

Those are good numbers for most players. The fact that you are talking about the 18th and 10th pick in the draft is amazing for their respective teams.

Flynn and Evans have also been good, though they both have lower shooting percentages.Curry, Teague and Maynor all look like solid NBA players. Jrue Holliday looks raw, but has talent as well.

I haven't even talked about other positions yet. I thought last years draft was supposed to suck?

And Griffin was the consensus top guy.

Man, I can't wait for him to heal up and get back on the court. Nice win for the Clips last night over the Thunder on the road, BTW.

I always thought it was ridiculous that Lawson fell as far as he did. I admit to being completely surprised at Jennings, though.

[Mr. Sparkle]

I cannot believe the Warriors were able to unload Stephen Jackson. They just shipped him to Charlotte along with Acie Law for Raja Bell and Vlad Radmanovic. They're saving $21 MILLION, with only Vlad's $6.9 million player option (which he will surely exercise) left after this season. That is ridiculous. And they got someone back who actually plays defense! With Azibuike out for a long, long while, I'm interested to see how the lineup shakes out. Now if Nelson steps down or is relieved of his head coaching duties (yeah, right), Christmas really will have come early for Warriors fans.

[TroyF]

Originally Posted by Chief Rum

And Griffin was the consensus top guy.

Man, I can't wait for him to heal up and get back on the court. Nice win for the Clips last night over the Thunder on the road, BTW.

I always thought it was ridiculous that Lawson fell as far as he did. I admit to being completely surprised at Jennings, though.

Yeah, I didn't mention other positions, but there are some great ones there too. Griffin will be there without a doubt, Blair is playing well, Harden looks pretty good. . . this could turn out to be a much better draft than people thought it was.

Nuggets play the Clippers this week. Be interesting to see if they bring it on the road or take the night off as they do sometimes.

[Chief Rum]

Originally Posted by TroyF

Yeah, I didn't mention other positions, but there are some great ones there too. Griffin will be there without a doubt, Blair is playing well, Harden looks pretty good. . . this could turn out to be a much better draft than people thought it was.

Nuggets play the Clippers this week. Be interesting to see if they bring it on the road or take the night off as they do sometimes.

Interesting theory proposed by the Clips' announcers in the post game last night. They said that, with the way the fans are down on the Clips' slow start and how much everyone can't stand that Dunleavy is still coaching the team, that the team gets really down at home, almost feeling like it is a hostile crowd, and it is contributing to their poor play. Case for this #1 being how the Clips blow late leads at home, and how they lost to the Thunder at home, but then they go on the read and beat the Thunder.

No players say this, mind you, just a theory of the announcers. I don't know that it doesn't have some weight. The only Clips fans are diehards, for obvious reasons (plenty of room on the bandwagon, lol), and for the most part, the diehards think Dunleavy makes dumb decisions on the bench and with his substitution patterns and that his coaching style limits the potential of most of the current roster (particularly Baron and Gordon and Thornton).

I personally have been for the Clips bumping Dunleavy up to GM and hiring a guy who wants to go a quicker pace myself, although not too fast--Kaman is still a key part of our game (although I have always felt he would still be better in quick pace offense than people give him credit for; he actually has some good athleticism for a big 7' white boy).

[whomario]

And the Grizzlies release Iverson (mutual agreement) Retirement in 3,2,1 ... ?

I´m sorry, but this utter lack of adaptability is laughable ... 3 games !!!

In a weird way i see Jackson playing well under Larry Brown and with the Bobcats. He sure gooing to get the green light with al those scoring-impaired guys on that roster. Still doesn´t make any sense for them... If they could have somehow gotten an effiecient shooter/scorer (Michael Redd maybe) they could have been a good playoff team for a few years, this way it´s 35-40 wins and maybe an 8th see once in the next 3 seasons ...

Charlotte is the worst offensive team in the NBA by far, and though coach Larry Brown abhors 3-pointers (Jackson has averaged about 5 1/2 per game over the last three years), he does understand that an idiotic, lazy and selfish flat-footed Jackson heave from 25 feet might be his team's most efficient shot most times down court. That's how absolutely awful the Bobcats are on that end of the floor.

Stephen Jackson is off to Charlotte - Ball Don't Lie - NBA - Yahoo! Sports


Suns beat the Rapors last night btw, Nash with another game winning left handed layup (albeit 40 seconds before the end ). Frye with 6-8 from 3, 3rd time this year he hits 6.

Now in 4 home games has 21-32 from downtown (so on the road a paltry 11-36).

Bosh is averaging 28/12 through 10 games btw.

Houston beats the Lakers, Bryant was apparently hurt. Hope it´s not too serious... Brooks with 33, Landry 15/10, Andersen 19 points off the bench. The Rockets outrebound the Lakers 60-38.
Budinger a huge factor even with his shot not falling (another good rookie).

speaking of Rookies : Beaubois starting for Dallas (albeit limited minutes still) and going 6-6 , the guy is really explosive and talented. No one expected him to even come over, now he´s contributing getting his chance due to injuries.
The guy has some serious upside with that ridiculous athleticism and a good jump shot. And he can defend.

[Groundhog]

Originally Posted by whomario

If they could have somehow gotten an effiecient shooter/scorer (Michael Redd maybe)

Man, it may be because he has played on a bad team most of his career, but Redd is anything but efficent. We get a load of Bucks games over here thanks to Bogut being in the lineup, but Redd is really a major chucker at this point. It's no fluke that the Bucks have been playing so well without him IMO.

[stevew]

Wally Z is gonna get a crazy contract in a sign and trade this season. He was supposedly in the mix for a Cavs trade for Stephen Jackson.

Happy that Brown decided to work in JJ into the starting lineup.

[Groundhog]

Originally Posted by stevew

Happy that Brown decided to work in JJ into the starting lineup.

Me too. I hope he transforms into a pre-injury Speights.

[JeeberD]

Originally Posted by TroyF

Yeah, I didn't mention other positions, but there are some great ones there too. Griffin will be there without a doubt, Blair is playing well, Harden looks pretty good. . . this could turn out to be a much better draft than people thought it was.

Nuggets play the Clippers this week. Be interesting to see if they bring it on the road or take the night off as they do sometimes.

whomario touched on it, but Chase Budinger is off to a very nice start as well, and he was later in the second round than Blair...

[whomario]

Nowitzki hits the gamewinner to beat the Bucks in OT, Mavs quietly off to a good start at 8-3 largely playing without Josh Howard.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6pphZxPiCfk

Shawn Marion injures his ankle though ...

Beaubois 12 points on 5-9 shooting and a +13. The guy is even throwing down alley oops
Jennings with some trouble finishing plays early but hit a few in the 2nd half, still 25/8/9 (8-22 shooting though)

Atlanta beats Portland , spoiling Rudy Fernandez´ best game of the season

[MikeVic]

What's with Atlanta!! Great start.

[Mr. Sparkle]

So apparently Raja Bell would rather go through with season ending wrist surgery than play for the Warriors. He'll be an emergency player tonight, then go under the knife in the coming days. Also, a Monta Ellis trade is apparently inevitable. Don Nelson, everybody!

[endemicFOF]

Fitting end to Iverson's career, great player, horrific team-mate/personality. Maybe the Knicks give him a shot to re-deem himself, but that guy will never do the things that an aging vet needs to do(like accept a bench role).

[Subby]

Very good article from FOFC's own TheDawgsAreOut: http://www.basketballprospectus.com/...?articleid=780

[stevew]

Originally Posted by Mr. Sparkle

So apparently Raja Bell would rather go through with season ending wrist surgery than play for the Warriors. He'll be an emergency player tonight, then go under the knife in the coming days. Also, a Monta Ellis trade is apparently inevitable. Don Nelson, everybody!

God, I'd love it if the Cavs could get Ellis. Although a Mo/Monta backcourt would suck defensively.

[Fidatelo]

Originally Posted by stevew

God, I'd love it if the Cavs could get Ellis. Although a Mo/Monta backcourt would suck defensively.

Moe Mantha was a great defenseman!

[Karlifornia]

I hate the Warriors. I'm just gonna quit watching. Trading Richardson for Brandan Wright was the beginning of the downfall. Ugh. I should have seen it coming.

[TroyF]

Originally Posted by whomario

Atlanta beats Portland , spoiling Rudy Fernandez´ best game of the season

Portland has beat the hell out of horrible opposition this year. They have one win against a +500 team. (the 6-4 Rockets)

They continue to feast in the next few weeks. 10 of their first 22 games will be against the Wolves (3), Grizz (2), Hornets, Bobcats, Warriors, Nets, and Knicks.

We really won't know how good the Blazers are until a rough stretch in late December. They'll play the Suns at home, @Magic, @Heat (b2b), @Dallas, @Spurs (4th in 5 nights), home against the Nuggets.

I'll see how they play in that 6 game stretch and then decide how good they are. (yeah, I know they don't give a damn what I think, but I want to judge them against real teams before I call em a championship contender)

[whomario]

Definitely agree about that.

Now Outlaw is going to have surgery, let´s see how they go about that in terms of the rotation. They´ll then have 2 players coming back at some point in Batum (who was slotted in at the starting SF again, albeit likely again in a 15-20 mpg role) and Outlaw.

Blazers owner Paul Allen just got diagnosed with cancer btw, 2nd time after he successfully beat it 20 years ago.

Azubuike out for the season for the warriors ...

Now there´s talk about Ellis getting traded. Apparently Nelson interrupted him when Ellis wanted to adress the team after a loss (against the clippers) and basically told him to shove it ...

Jameer Nelson out 4+ weeks.

[lungs]

Brandon Jennings is singlehandedly making me watch the Bucks (and the NBA) again.

[RainMaker]

I know it's early in the season but I'm really happy with the Bulls this year. Kind of considered this a waste year that would be used to develop Rose and see if Thomas and Noah can play while waiting for the big 2010 FA class.

But they're actually a good team. The defense is vastly improved thanks to the loss of Ben Gordon. Noah really worked hard in the offseason and is becoming one of the best rebounders in the game. Deng is starting to play up to his contract and is becoming a lockdown defender who plays within the game and hits his shots.

If we beat Sacramento tonight (up by 12 now), we'll be 6-4 against the 2nd toughest schedule so far. A win on the road against Cleveland and taking the Nuggets to the final shot on the resume. All this with Salmons shooting well below his career averages and Rose still getting into shape and recovering from his preseason injury. Tyrus Thomas has also been injured all season. Basically, the offense should only get better.

I have no dreams of them making the Finals or anything, but do think they can get to the 2nd Round and put up a good fight if Rose develops. Would put us in a great position to nab a big name free agent next season. Would have to be enticing to Lebron, Wade, or Bosh to step into a team like that which won't lose anyone.

[LloydLungs]

Originally Posted by lungs

Brandon Jennings is singlehandedly making me watch the Bucks (and the NBA) again.

I know, I'm actually really upset that I can't make the Bucks-Hornets game when the Bucks are in town next week. Schedule conflict I can't get out of, but I just have to repeat to myself that I'm really upset about missing the Bucks... it sounds so bizarre...

[stevew]

The warriors only dressed 7 tonight that could play. They go to Boston tomorrow. It should be fairly ugly I'd think.

[Arles]

Ladies and Gentlemen, the first team to 10 wins is the Phoenix Suns. Not sure I buy this Suns team as a legit threat, but it looks like a top 6 seed in the west isn't out of the question.

It's amazing how much better this team plays by simply swapping Shaq for Channing Frye.

[Groundhog]

Originally Posted by Groundhog

Me too. I hope he transforms into a pre-injury Speights.

So far, so good, even if Hickson was going up against Golden State's "bigs".

[stevew]

Shack is hurt.

I seriously can't believe someone thought it was a good idea to trade for him. And deal with paying him a quarter million/game. I doubt he dresses for more than 50 games.

They still need another scorer and someone who can guard Ray Allen/Rashard Lewis

[RainMaker]

Originally Posted by Arles

Ladies and Gentlemen, the first team to 10 wins is the Phoenix Suns. Not sure I buy this Suns team as a legit threat, but it looks like a top 6 seed in the west isn't out of the question.

It's amazing how much better this team plays by simply swapping Shaq for Channing Frye.

The funny thing is that the more they win, the worse they look for bringing in Shaq a couple years ago.

[Chief Rum]

Originally Posted by RainMaker

The funny thing is that the more they win, the worse they look for bringing in Shaq a couple years ago.

I disagree. I and everyone I know who knows a whit about basketball knew from the second that deal was made that it was just about the dumbest deal ever made.

To us, it doesn't make it look worse. It only makes us look more right.

[Karlifornia]

Originally Posted by Chief Rum

I disagree. I and everyone I know who knows a whit about basketball knew from the second that deal was made that it was just about the dumbest deal ever made.

To us, it doesn't make it look worse. It only makes us look more right.

Wanna suck me off after you finish doing yourself?

[Chief Rum]

Originally Posted by Karlifornia

Wanna suck me off after you finish doing yourself?

And here I just assumed you were one of the ones who knew he was right, too.

[Neon_Chaos]

Ariza loses shoe. Artest throws shoe into stands. Ariza wears shoe. Artest hits three.

[whomario]

Agree about the Suns/Shaq
Who cares, makes it all the more fun this season
Dudley plays great right now ! Barbosa not even at full capacity.

Don´t think they can challenge for the finals, but considering the expectations and the roster they have a 50 win season with maybe a first round win would be a huge success allready.
What´s encouraging for the rest of the year is that they are winning a bunch of close games.

New Jersey still winless at 0-11 now ... Brook Lopez and CDR combined to take 53 shots last night.

Some talked about Hibbert before the season, update : 13/9 with 2.5 Blocks in 27 minutes (still 4 fouls a game)

sth else : The Thunder are now above 50% at 6-5. Durant, despite shooting terrible from long (and also mid) range, is averaging 28.5 points a game.

[Samdari]

Originally Posted by Mr. Sparkle

So apparently Raja Bell would rather go through with season ending wrist surgery than play for the Warriors. He'll be an emergency player tonight, then go under the knife in the coming days. Also, a Monta Ellis trade is apparently inevitable. Don Nelson, everybody!

Hard to fault him for not buying into S Jackson's whiny look at me act.

That said, I've never seen a coach so obviously mail it in trying to get fired so he doesn't have to quit and forfeit the rest of his contract. It's unreal.

[Arles]

Originally Posted by RainMaker

The funny thing is that the more they win, the worse they look for bringing in Shaq a couple years ago.

I think Kerr made a big error in trying to make the Suns more like the Spurs when he came in. Trading for Shaq, hiring Terry Porter - they just weren't good fits. Now, I think he realizes that this team is what it is - and you may as well try to maximize the team's current concept with the role players you bring in.

The bringing in of Grant Hill, Frye, Dudley, Jason Richardson and drafting of Dragic have all been good moves with that in mind. The Shaq move was one made of desperation when the team's parts at the time (Marion, Bell, Diaw, injured Amare, injured Nash) were starting to scuffle.

[DaddyTorgo]

J-Duds is awesome!

GO BC!!!

[TroyF]

Originally Posted by Chief Rum

I disagree. I and everyone I know who knows a whit about basketball knew from the second that deal was made that it was just about the dumbest deal ever made.

To us, it doesn't make it look worse. It only makes us look more right.

+1,000,000

The trade was ridiculous from the start. I Think it is for Cleveland too. I don't think Cleveland is better than Orlando or Boston and I'm not so certain the Hawks are better than they are as well. (though with less star power, it'll be a pain in the ass for the Hawks to get a fair shake from the refs in the post season)

[endemicFOF]

I'm not sure what's gotten into Joakim Noah, but he is playing like an absolute beast nowadays(and he looks like one too, he must be pushing 260+ pounds, not bad for a seven footer who used to be a string bean, he and his trainer deserve a ton of credit). No need for Tyrus Thomas at this point in time.

[Coffee Warlord]

He actually bothered to hit the weight room in the offseason, and now has the body to match his intensity. He's massively improved.

edit: Nice to see a Bulls rook who actually bothered to put in the effort required to improve. Unlike Tyrus.

[Groundhog]

Originally Posted by Coffee Warlord

He actually bothered to hit the weight room in the offseason, and now has the body to match his intensity. He's massively improved.

edit: Nice to see a Bulls rook who actually bothered to put in the effort required to improve. Unlike Tyrus.

Problem with Tyrus is that if he hit the weights and bulked up he'd lose the only attribute that makes him any good at all - his explosiveness.

[Coffee Warlord]

Originally Posted by Groundhog

Problem with Tyrus is that if he hit the weights and bulked up he'd lose the only attribute that makes him any good at all - his explosiveness.

Agreed, but meant it in a more general fashion. Tyrus doesn't need the weight room - he needs to learn how to play basketball.

[Groundhog]

Originally Posted by Coffee Warlord

Agreed, but meant it in a more general fashion. Tyrus doesn't need the weight room - he needs to learn how to play basketball.

Ah yeah, sorry, missread your post. Definitely agree with you though, Tyrus hasn't really improved at all from a basketball IQ standpoint since college IMO.