Sheed looking to join the Bulls ..

[Grizz]

[Only admins are allowed to see this link]

[FlyDog]

He's just getting his legs back after sitting all of last year. The 9 boards and 2 blocks is what is encouraging to me. If we ever get a Center and Monroe and JJ slide to their true positions, we will have a young and talented front court.

As bad as the team is, after a week of boycotting, I miss the sorry loser little bastards.

[Murph]

Yes...it's not that Knight is playing so much better than Walker right now. It's just that Knight seems to have a great deal more upside than Walker, in terms of becoming a more complete player. As other's have pointed out, he does more on the court. He shoots better, his defense is better and his rebounding is much better than Walker's. It looks as if Joe made the right pick when he took Knight over Walker.

That said, Knight really must cut down on his turns, and look for his teammates more. A very telling stat for Knight is that he's last in the League in AST/TO ratio, among 47 PGs. Ranking 47th out of 47 PGs in the NBA in AST/TO ratio is NOT where you want to be.


JJ had a great game last night. He ended up 1 rbd shy of a double-double. It's good to see him playing well again. I'd like to see JJ start in the rookie/sophomore game.


I still want Stuckey back in the starting line-up.


If this keeps up, the Pistons are going to drop out of contention for the 1st two lottery picks in the draft.

[Murph]

So among EC centers, Monroe is 3rd in scoring behind Bagrnani and Howard. He's tied for 4th in the East in rebounding behind Howard, Hibbert and McGee. He's 3rd in the East in FG%, behind Hawes and Howard. And he's 1st in the East among centers in asts.

Get vote this kid on the All Star team!

(Unfortunately, Monroe is tied for 17th in the East among centers in blocked shots.)

[Fennis Dembo]

The Real Notes and Quotes from the Charlotte game not the stuff we get from the beat writers - by Biff Burns

Biff Burns: After their best game of the year everyone was in an upbeat mood.

Lawrence Frank: I am king of the world!

Joe Dumars: As Kwame Kilpatrick once said, “The drinks are on me. Go Wed Wings!”

Tom Gores: I’m going to Disney World! On second thought I’m going to buy Disney World!

Coach Frank: So help me Charlie if you don’t start playing soon I’ll have your green card revoked.
Charlie V: What are you talking about? I was born in New York City.
Coach Frank: I thought you were from Haiti, Cuba, Uzbekistan, or at least Canada.
Charlie V: No way!
Coach Frank: You’re from Norway? Just as I suspected.
Charlie V: No, I’m an American citizen.
Coach Frank: Well there goes my negative reinforcement mind game down the drain.

[Sparma]

Haven't posted much, because I didn't sign up for NBATV this year. In fact, had great difficulty getting rid of it. We contacted DirecTV three times in advance to cancel and were told each time nothing was showing. Then on Christmas, I called again because I had a suspicion the subscription had lain dormant and had become active. Sure enough, that's what had happened and it took some doing to cancel. Clever folks at DirecTV/NBATV, keeping customers on the hook during the lockout unbeknowst to them. Time is fleeting and there's a big project I'd like to finish; also, could see watching several times a week on the hectic post-lockout schedule. Still enjoy reading the insights you all provide.

That said, my interpretation from the outside is that we're close to being back as a good team. Can't believe how good Monroe's become, having watched his pretty feeble beginning efforts at the start of last year when it seemed he would always have a problem getting his shot off. Also, it sounds like Knight's on course, with erratic but promising play. Beyond that, Jerebko should be an NBAplus energy guy (maybe never nailing down one spot), Gordon's a lethal shooter, and Stuckey can contribute in a modest combo guard role. The Prince contract looks like an albatross, but I suspect we'll amnesty the other real bad, Charlie V., contract.

And our crummy record puts us on track for a high lottery pick in an exciting draft. Naturally, I hope we can acquire a super center, but if we can't, we'd benefit a lot from the type of star who's traditionally most readily available, a high scoring wing player. With the draft as good as it is, maybe we can pick up an additional good player in it. Partly by using the space creating by amnestying Charlie, I think we'll also be able to trade for a pretty good player later, maybe a scoring wing guy, if we do land our center in the draft (I still Monroe as ideally a PF, maybe a poor man's Tim Duncan).

Beyond the luck of the draft draw, the two big questions for me concern Joe Dumars and Tom Gores. Will Dumars carry on or will he be a Moses fading away with the promised land in sight? Also, is Gores just using good sense in not spending $ on a fourteenth man on the roster, knowing that we need a bad record, or is he going to prove to be cheap in a problematic way?

Interesting times. DirecTV gives me dozens of channels but not the ones I most want. I've recorded the Bobcats game which got through for some reason and look forward to watching that once home to check out the growing Monroe phenomenon.

[merc]

Murph, Thanks for the stats on Knight... b4 anointing BK the next Zeke we need to see him actively seeking out his teammates instead of acting like Stuckey Jr.
The only thing I've seen so far is he's a decent finisher and can hit a 3.
Responsible PG with solid court vision?... no sir not yet.

[frankied]

Murph, Thanks for the stats on Knight... b4 anointing BK the next Zeke we need to see him actively seeking out his teammates instead of acting like Stuckey Jr.
The only thing I've seen so far is he's a decent finisher and can hit a 3.
Responsible PG with solid court vision?... no sir not yet.

there is nothing at all wrong with comparing newer players to players who have come before them. in fact, it is the most natural thing imaginable.
the old guys aren't gods. they aren't demi-gods. they are flesh and bone athletes.
and it is very probable that the players we see on the court today have been heavily influenced by older generations of players. you can't look at john wall without realizing that somewhere, somehow, he got a heavy dose of zeke. maybe a former coach showed him tapes or he saw tapes on his own or a coach simply used zeke as a model. but somehow, someway that zeke influence got into his game.
same thing with monroe and bob lanier. i see lots of lanier's game in monroe. a lefty, from the slick ballhandling to the little set shot from 15 feet. there are similarities.
it doesn't do the old guys a disservice. in fact, the old saying, imitation is the sincerest form of flattery holds to this day.
i can't see a little guard pound the boards like knight does without thinking of zeke sneaking in among the trees to steal important boards. it was one of those things that made him such a great ball player. in fact, that ability, and willingness, is one of the main reasons i have faith that knight is going to turn into a quality guard. the fact that he has that kind of courage and willingness says a lot for his competitiveness.
and that is always a good thing to have. it will take a player a long way.

[frankied]

in fact, the player knight reminds me of most is fat lever.
very similar build, both had a real nose for the ball. you just never thought lever was as tough or as strong as he was because he was so slight, and knight seems to be the same way. lever was a great rebounding guard who was a great defender. led the league in steals, made an all star game and made the all defensive team. knight has that same rebounding ability.
i think knight has more upside than lever because of his 3 point shooting. lever was not a good/excellent 3 point shooter. knight looks like he is.
if he ends up being a fat lever-type player, he'll have had an excellent career. imho, i think he can be better, because of his superior shooting.

[merc]

Daye = Kobe
Stuckey = Wade


It's silly til they actually prove themselves to be worthy of the greats.

I can see a little Dobber in Monroe... minus brute force, mean streak and defense.

[Grizz]

Daye = Kobe
Stuckey = Wade


It's silly til they actually prove themselves to be worthy of the greats.

I can see a little Dobber in Monroe... minus brute force, mean streak and defense.

[frankied]

Daye = Kobe
Stuckey = Wade


It's silly til they actually prove themselves to be worthy of the greats.

I can see a little Dobber in Monroe... minus brute force, mean streak and defense.

sorry...i don get into hero worshiping. kobe...wade...zeke...they all do certain things on a BB court that other players do. what makes those players unique is how they combine certain skills with a certain physical adroitness. in fact, those players are replicas of players gone by.
kobe is a smaller, smarter version of jellybean bryant, a gifted player who just did not know how to harness his immense skills. imho, it is danerous to assign otherwordly talents to guys who are, after all, just BB players.

[deusXango]

I honestly can't think of one outstanding to great player that Austin Daye or Rodney Stuckey reminds me of. Seriously. I remember Stuckey saying that he idolized D Wade, but D Wade he ain't! There is something to be said for being yourself and being an original.

[deusXango]

in fact, the player knight reminds me of most is fat lever.
very similar build, both had a real nose for the ball. you just never thought lever was as tough or as strong as he was because he was so slight, and knight seems to be the same way. lever was a great rebounding guard who was a great defender. led the league in steals, made an all star game and made the all defensive team. knight has that same rebounding ability.
i think knight has more upside than lever because of his 3 point shooting. lever was not a good/excellent 3 point shooter. knight looks like he is.
if he ends up being a fat lever-type player, he'll have had an excellent career. imho, i think he can be better, because of his superior shooting.

Wow Frankie D, you took me back! Fat Lever, for his size, was the greatest rebounding guard of his time and he played during an era of great rebounding big men. He was often the leading rebounder on his team along with playing solid basketball. If Brandon Knight plays to the legacy of Fat Lever (hard working and solid) we've got ourselves a gem. "It ain't the dog in the fight, it's the fight in the dog," to paraphrase what we've been missing on our team but now seem to have in Knight, Monroe, and Jerebko; that's what Joe need to build on....gutty players!

[Grizz]

Daye = Kobe
Stuckey = Wade


It's silly til they actually prove themselves to be worthy of the greats.

I can see a little Dobber in Monroe... minus brute force, mean streak and defense.

sorry...i don get into hero worshiping. kobe...wade...zeke...they all do certain things on a BB court that other players do. what makes those players unique is how they combine certain skills with a certain physical adroitness. in fact, those players are replicas of players gone by.
kobe is a smaller, smarter version of jellybean bryant, a gifted player who just did not know how to harness his immense skills. imho, it is danerous to assign otherwordly talents to guys who are, after all, just BB players.

Kobe is godlike compared to the careers of many nba players .. I dont like him as a person .. but .. at least he is more than a smaller smarter version of his dad .. whom I liked watching play too .. but ..

[Oracle]

After a full day of Football, I'm noticing some interesting trends in the league so far(recognizing that good teams are nowhere near peak yet).

1. The wheels are really coming off the Celtics. i know it's early, but I think they miss Big Baby more than they thought they would. no, he's not superstar material, but he did fit their system perfectly, and it will take time for them to adjust.

2. Chicago is becoming a defensive team, and if Sheed does indeed come back and plays in Chicago, defensively, they'll be even tougher. This is actually shocking for any team that employs Boozer.

3. New York is missing chauncey BADLY! Their biggest problem is that nobody is driving that car! They're also trying to integrate Chandler, but with little success right now.

4. The Heat are almost too athletically gifted! It's to the point that they depend on it so much, they can't seem to adhere to the fundamentals. They're in need of a strong PG or a passing bigman, or anybody that can mentally stabilize that team.

[frankied]

if jellybean bryant was half as smart as his son, he would have been magic johnson, before magic johnson.
great, great athlete with lots of skill, but he just didn't really know how to use his talents.
he was fun to watch, but always a bit more frustrating, because he never used all of his talents to the best of his ability.
kobe has the same type of athletic talent, but he is so much smarter. plus he has a competitive streak his father never had.

[frankied]

...1. The wheels are really coming off the Celtics. i know it's early, but I think they miss Big Baby more than they thought they would. no, he's not superstar material, but he did fit their system perfectly, and it will take time for them to adjust....
4. The Heat are almost too athletically gifted! It's to the point that they depend on it so much, they can't seem to adhere to the fundamentals. They're in need of a strong PG or a passing bigman, or anybody that can mentally stabilize that team.

the celts don't miss big baby. bass has more than replaced him. he is a huge improvement on defense and rebounding. he scores more points, shoots a much higher percentage and rebounds more. he is definitely an upgrade. they miss perkins. he was the guy who put the spine in their defense. without him, garnett has to be that defensive anchor and he just doesn't have the ability to do that anymore. and he never was anywhere near as physical as perkins.
i couldn't believe when they traded perkins and exactly what i thought would happen has happened. they are a good defensive team, but they cannot just shut people down the way they used to.
the heat will win the title this year because the refs will give it to them. the favoritism the refs show is outrageous, and obvious the league has given the refs the memo: the heat are supposed to win it all.
a team with a good point guard will shred them. and a team with a coach who is willing to play zone for most of the game will shut that non-shooting offense down completely.
they are an extremely flawed team, but the league wants them to win it all.

[Oracle]

the celts don't miss big baby. bass has more than replaced him. he is a huge improvement on defense and rebounding. he scores more points, shoots a much higher percentage and rebounds more. he is definitely an upgrade. they miss perkins. he was the guy who put the spine in their defense. without him, garnett has to be that defensive anchor and he just doesn't have the ability to do that anymore. and he never was anywhere near as physical as perkins.
i couldn't believe when they traded perkins and exactly what i thought would happen has happened. they are a good defensive team, but they cannot just shut people down the way they used to.
the heat will win the title this year because the refs will give it to them. the favoritism the refs show is outrageous, and obvious the league has given the refs the memo: the heat are supposed to win it all.
a team with a good point guard will shred them. and a team with a coach who is willing to play zone for most of the game will shut that non-shooting offense down completely.
they are an extremely flawed team, but the league wants them to win it all.

I have to stand corrected, you're right about Boston, it's really Perkins that they miss. As for Bass, he is looking like a smart acquisition, but there still seems to be something missing to me, but not like Perkins.

On the Heat, you may be right after what I saw in the Clippers game. I'm shocked the Clips won! There were several key calls that Miami got where you simply shake your head at the phantom fouls the refs find.

I still think the Bulls may eventually have the formula to knock them off. Let's see who they pick up before the playoffs start.

[frankied]

saw the clippers game also.
it was ridiculous.
like i said, the refs have their orders from the league: miami is supposed to win it this year.

[WTF]

You can't find another MJ if you tried although Kobe does a great imitation of His Airness. Rose does a fairly great imitation of Zeke. I have yet to see a player come close to Magic and you can forget about any today post players resembling any post play of the past they simply don't have those fundamental to be next Akeem although he spends his summer teaching dummies.

Watch the 49er's do to the Saints what we should have done to the last week. I'm not sure if the 49er's secondary is any better than ours but their front four did a better job than ours, they hit Drew Bree hard and often. Tebow must have been amazed by the way Brady parted the sea of orange jersey "Its Brady Time" I never seen NE play defense like that all season.

[frankied]

They were better coached also. Har baug h coached his ass off.

[Grizz]

the celts don't miss big baby. bass has more than replaced him. he is a huge improvement on defense and rebounding. he scores more points, shoots a much higher percentage and rebounds more. he is definitely an upgrade. they miss perkins. he was the guy who put the spine in their defense. without him, garnett has to be that defensive anchor and he just doesn't have the ability to do that anymore. and he never was anywhere near as physical as perkins.
i couldn't believe when they traded perkins and exactly what i thought would happen has happened. they are a good defensive team, but they cannot just shut people down the way they used to.
the heat will win the title this year because the refs will give it to them. the favoritism the refs show is outrageous, and obvious the league has given the refs the memo: the heat are supposed to win it all.
a team with a good point guard will shred them. and a team with a coach who is willing to play zone for most of the game will shut that non-shooting offense down completely.
they are an extremely flawed team, but the league wants them to win it all.

I have to stand corrected, you're right about Boston, it's really Perkins that they miss. As for Bass, he is looking like a smart acquisition, but there still seems to be something missing to me, but not like Perkins.

On the Heat, you may be right after what I saw in the Clippers game. I'm shocked the Clips won! There were several key calls that Miami got where you simply shake your head at the phantom fouls the refs find.

I still think the Bulls may eventually have the formula to knock them off. Let's see who they pick up before the playoffs start.

Frankie .. Couldnt agree more with you about Cs missing Perkins . TALK ABOUT A DUMB ASS Trade .. You just dont replace tough defensive minded centers, especially young ones with some soft small forward, who is already hurt . ..just because you think you cannot sign him ..I think Danny Aige screwed up the last chance the Cs had to compete for the title just as Joe D did .. by doing something that hurt the team by taking away a player they could not afford to lose... Perkins didnt play that well in the play offs last year (being somewhat in injury recovery mode) but he is making up for that now .. The Cs are history!

You're probably right about the league favoing the Heat in calls .. but .. I see plenty of weakness in the heat .. from physical breakdowns to over-relying on pure talent to get the job done instead of teamwork .. no center .. no point guard .. I think they dont win it this year either ..

[Sissy1946]

[Only admins are allowed to see this link] No Im not saying I could have helped this team but just sayin' that Joe Dumars drafted me too, I think someone ought to check his credentials on drafting players. Maybe take away his drafting card.

[Flip]

That 49ers-Packers NFC Championship game is going to be awesome.

Best offense vs best defense.

I'm pretty much expecting NYG to lose.

It's looking like a Rodgers-Brady SB, imo. I don't expect the Packers to turn it over 5 times against SF. Amazingly, The Saints STILL scored 32 pts despite 5 TO's! Tells you how great that offense is.

If SF needs to get 5 TO's to beat the elite offenses at home, no way they duplicate that on the road in Lambeau.

Even more intriguing is if Baltimore wins, then you have the 2 best offenses in each conference against the 2 best defenses, each coached by a Harbaugh. Then a potential SB between a 3 time champ in Brady, and the defending champ and MVP, Rodgers.

[Sponsored content]