Basketball is a game that is most enjoyed when it's in transition. Perpetual motion and fast breaking styles were the norm back in the 80's. Teams were reaching the hundred point mark by the end of the third quarter and most centers in the game back then could run the floor like small forwards and shooting guards. The game went through a change during the mid nineties when team execs felt the need to slow down the game and thought that big centers that clogged the lane was the ticket to success.
I have been following basketball for a long time and I have often heard many experts state that in order to win a championship, a team needs a dominating big man. A good center that can go to work in the low post and draw double teams in order to open up the perimeter game for the wing players. I couldn't disagree more with this notion. Maybe this could have been a requirement back in the 70's and 80's but the game of basketball has evolved since then. These days, the game is dominated by ultra-athletic wing men and forwards with the skill set of some wing players. The majority of young centers coming into the league today have a paucity of skill sets. In other words, they are extremely raw and require a few years before they become.......ripe!!! Even after maturation, these new centers will not be able to dominate and take over a game as the centers of old used to. After Shaquile O'Neal retires, the game of basketball will be rid of the very last player to clog the middle and slow down the game. I should note that I am not writing this to bash O'Neal and other great centers. I am just noticing a trend that can not be ignored. In order for most teams to be successful, they will need to have good wing players and role playing or moderately talented post player.
Shaquile O'Neal, the last true big man will retire in the next couple of years and thus will end the string of dominant big men to play in the league. Shaq's pending retirement will officially close the chapter on a long line of great centers. Centers like Moses Malone, Patrick Ewing, Wilt Chamberlain, David Robinson, Willis Reed, Kareem Abdul Jabbar and my favorite player of all time; Hakeem Olajuwon. These big men were the cornerstone of their respective teams and even though they did not all win a championship ring in their careers, it was a certainty that their teams would have been worse off without them.
A few years ago the Phoenix Suns brought back a trend that was last used by the New Jersey Nets with Jason Kidd running the point; and before the Nets, it was the Golden State Warriors with their RUN TMC brand of basketball. None of these teams had a traditional big man guarding the post. Instead, they ran an offence that required fast and athletic wing players that could improvise and create something out of erratic play. More and more teams are realizing that in order to stay competitive, they will need to find a way to incorporate various elements of the run and gun style that is predicated on being athletic on the wing. With this style of basketball, traditional big men will become seldom used and often will be relegated to being the grab-a-rebound and the block-a-shot role. In order for teams today to be successful, they must invest in their perimeter play instead of their post play. I am not suggesting that the post player will become obsolete in the new NBA but rather, the center position will become more of a complimentary one to the wing position. Teams will still want and need big men but the focus will be on a big man that can run the floor, grab rebounds and get garbage points though put backs.
Here is further breakdown of my analysis. In the closing moments of a very tight game, a wing player can provide more offensive options for his teammates. A dribble drive offense requires perpetual motion from all members of the team by creating mismatches and confusion because it draws positional players away from their guarding assignments and comfort zone. It requires that the point guard bring the ball up the middle and passing to the wing players. The wing player now has a plethora of options based on how the defense reacts. He can choose to shoot; if his man leaves enough room to get a shot off. Drive to either his left or right; if his man rushes at him in anticipation of a shot. This dribble-drive will draw the opposing post players to collapse on him. He can now elevate to get his shot off in the middle of the key, pass to his very open big man, kick the ball out to the baseline or top of key for an open shot, or......another dribble drive possibility. Many teams in the league will soon be adjusting and installing a variation of the dribble drive offense that sometimes looks like a team is fast breaking at all times. It will be a revelation one day when the catalyst wing man in this scenario is actually a big man a la "Disco" Dirk Nowitzki.
Did I say revelation. As in, it will one day happen? Pardon me because "it" already happens. Albeit, only a few teams have players that combine the physical stature with this skill set.
The new breed of centers will player more like Dirk Nowitzki. They will be able to shoot the long ball, put the ball on the floor and dribble to the hoop from twenty feet out. They will be versatile like kevin Garnett and play defense on a point guard from half court. Block shots and grab the rebound in one move and then lead the fast break. The new big man will play more like a 6'6 wing man.
The game has changed a few times in the last twenty years. The influx of young players coming into the league that knew how to dunk before they made their first three point shot is forcing teams to play a game that is transition in style. This makes for a very exiting brand of basketball for the fans that want to see more running and gunning. Teams will evolve and almost every positional player will be interchangeable with almost all the positions; it is my opinion that some day in the near future, teams will look to think further outside of the box (Pun intended...Get it??.....C'mon!!!The box. As in the low post being known as "the box") when it comes to the type of players that will best fit their style on offense.
Ten years from now, you and I might go to a basketball game and hear the announcer introduce the starting lineup for our team.......
....starting at small forward, 7 foot 2 from Timbuktuuuuu...........
You look at me and I look and you. We simultaneously chime "our starting wing man is 7'2. That's amazing!"
That's when the NBA would truly be "were amazing happens!!!"
...ahem. Not saying it isn't amazing as it is right now.
Sportacularly yours,
The Vicarious Athlete
Sunday, December 21, 2008
Tuesday, December 16, 2008
Expectations on high. Way too high!!!
I have a question for all Raptor fans out there. I need an honest answer that requires an unbiased mind frame during this process.
Here's my question. Aside from Jose Calderon, Chris Bosh and Jermaine O'Neal, whom else on the Raps current starting line-up would be a starter on any other NBA squad?
I'll give you sometime to go over the entire roster. I bet you are thinking of bad teams like the Bobcats, Timberwolves and Clippers - comparing them with the Raps, thinking that these teams roster are just as bad. If you can't come up with any player that deserves to be starting alongside the three mentioned above; then how come there is such a high expectation for the team to do so well and make the playoffs this season.
I will confess that I was blinded by love at the beginning of the season when I said this in an earlier post: "My prediction: 49-33 record, finish 4th or 5th in the east and lose in the second round to...........????." Well, since then my eyes have been opened. Here's a small analysis of three Raptor players that should not be starting for the squad or almost any other team.
Jamario Moon would only be getting spot minutes on most NBA teams. Somewhere around 10 - 15 minutes max, coming off the bench. Moon is arguably the most athletically gifted player on the team but he has serious problems with his lateral movements. He settles too often on defence by allowing his man to blow by him and then he attempts to block the player from behind. This usually results in him either getting called for a foul, his man scoring or drawing the Raps big men (Bosh and O'Neal) away from the basket to the baseline or top of the key. This opens up numerous back door passes for dunks and easy layups. Moon does not have the necessary ball handling skills to create his own shots and thus he often takes two or three dribbles and settles for a pass or a tough fadeaway shot. On some teams in this league, Moon would only be playing during blowout games or close to the end of the season when bench players sometimes start the last few games.
Anthony Parker is a hustler. This description of him is two-fold. A hustler in the way that he plays hard and never lets his offensive game affect his effort on the d-side. You can always count on him to guard the toughest and best wing players from opposing teams. He is also a hustler in the sense that his hard work and ethics on defence has been fooling us for a while that he is actually a better defender than he truly is. He is not playing any tricks on us with his personality. In actuality, it's his physical capabilities that has had us bamboozled for the last few years now. Put him on a good team and he is the first or second guy coming of the bench. He is the guy that comes in for mismatch purposes. The offense for defense substitute in the final moments of a close game. Parker is a valuable player but should not be starting. He should be key role player on most teams in this league.
Jason Kapono is a tough one to analyze. His ability to shoot really well makes him good enough to start on most teams but his unwillingness to shoot at will and his liability on the defensive end makes me think otherwise. I should note that Kapono has had a resurgence recently since Sam Mitchell got fired and Jay Triano (the interim bench boss) inserted him in the starting lineup. He is shooting more and is playing a smarter brand of basketball. I guess Triano has figured out a way to use Kapono without giving too much away on the defensive end. I have noticed that most of the time, the plan is to funnel Kapono's man to the centre of the court which results in a pass out without drawing the bigs too far from the basket. This strategy works at times but still allows the opposing team to swing the ball to the top of the key and subsequently to the corner for a wide open three. Kapono would be more effective as a starter if Moon was not the incumbent wing player beside him.
I am not going to over-analyze Andrea Bargnani. I am simply convinced that his up, and mostly down performance is rooted in his personality and mentality rather than his skill set. It's obvious that he still has room for improvement but I think he needs to see a sports psychologist (preferably an Italian speaking one) that will figure out a way to bring out the fiery Italian in him. Yes, I am stereotyping here but Bargnani needs to play with the same passion that Italians are known for.
How in the world does Bryan Colangelo keep telling himself that these guys named above, along with the rest of the Raps mostly inept bench squad are good enough to make the playoffs? Reality bites and it sometimes bites really hard and often leaves a nasty mark. Unless Colangelo makes a trade or two, the bite marks on the squad this season will have them missing the playoffs. This will be nasty and upsetting because most fans have bought into the high expectations that was created by Colangelo and partially, the media. On that note, I feel it's up to me to temper the high expectation. Thus, I have changed my prediction for our beloved Raptors.
My new prediction: 33-49 (yah, I simply flipped it. What?!?!?)
Sportacularly yours,
The Vicarious Athlete
Thursday, December 4, 2008
Sam No More!!!/MVP-DS Part 3 of 14
I would like to start by conjuring the spirit of Boyz II Men past and sing an oldie but a goodie. This is dedicated to you, Sam Mitchell.
How do I say goodbye to what we had?
The good times that made us laugh
Outweigh the bad.
I thought we'd get to see forever
But forever's gone away
It's so hard to say goodbye to yesterday.
I don't know where this road
Is going to lead
All I know is where we've been
And what we've been through.
If we get to see tomorrow
I hope it's worth all the wait
It's so hard to say goodbye to yesterday.
....Okay, that's about enough of that song. I find it interesting
that the words of the song fits perfectly to how most Raptor fans are feeling today after the "semi-shocker" that was when Bryan Colangelo decided that it was necessary to relieve Sam Mitchell of his duties as the coach of our beloved basketball team.
It's hard
to say goodbye because we have all fallen in love with Mitchell's character and his coaching style. Now we are left to wonder what the future holds with the new bench boss; Jay Triano. I must be honest with you all. I saw this coming and I am pretty sure that a good number of people also knew his days were numbered. If I may tap into the feelings of fans in this great city of ours, I would say that the sadness is not because we thought it's a bad move that Mitchell got fired but rather because we liked his honesty and sound bites. I always look forward to watching Raptors T.V the morning after a game to see him surrounded by media scrums, picking on them, making fun of them and their sometimes ridiculous questions. Sam Mitchell was not a bad coach but he was not good enough for this team. He needed to be fired for his own personal growth as an NBA coach.
When I heard the news yesterday, I was in my class and my initial reaction was....YES!
!!. Yes because I love my Raptors more than the person coaching them. Like the Cliche goes, "nothing personal, it's just business." A couple of good friends kept texting me while my class was going on and I replied every time simply because this was an important issue that needed to be bantered about. My friend Zu really liked Sam and he felt that it was basically a knee-jerk reaction to the loss in Denver that resulted in his firing. I responded that even though Sam was a good coach, he was not an X and O's type of coach. Aside from high and low pick and rolls that consisted of the majority of his play calling, it was evident that he was being out-smarted by most other coaches on both the offensive and defensive end. Sam had no set defensive schemes and after five years it just seemed as though he wasn't going to be able to make the right defensive adjustments; from a game to game basis.
I got home from my class around 10:30 pm and the first thing I did was make a call to another good friend. Howell (or as I'll refer to him in future postings: A-Ho) was the other one that had been texting me and actually called a couple of times when I was in class. Now, it's important that I mention that A-Ho is a crazed Raptor fan just like I am. We were on the phone until almost midnight. Naturally we started with the Mitchell firing and then we talked about Stephon Marbury and how it would be a good thing if Colangelo made a move to get him. If and when he gets his buyout from the Knicks.
There is one topic that A-Ho and I talked about but not in great length. It was the fact that Colangelo probably had in mind to fire Mitchell when he came over from the Pheonix Suns. Colangelo couldn't fire Sam after he was honored with the Coach of the Year award for the 2006-2007 season and thus he rewarded Sam with a 4 year contract. This eased the media pressure on Colangelo that kept questioning if he planned on bringing in another coach that he personally selected. The new contract for Mitchell made it seem that his job was safe but the truth is that coaches get fired all the time. It does not matter if a coach signed a lucrative mutli-year contract because as soon as the team starts to struggle and in the Raptors case; underachieve. The first person that gets made as the scape goat is the coach. I think it's a PR move by most GM's. It's an attempt to put out a small fire before it becomes a forrest fire. GM's make moves like this to make it seem that they are not sitting on their hands while the team is potentially tanking the season. I think Colangelo partially did this but also thought it was the perfect opportunity to make the change he wanted to make from the day he got the gig in Toronto. The unfortunate thing is that we won't know if this is a great move until we find out whom Colangelo will replace Jay Triano with. Triano will be the interim coach for the rest of this season.
IMPORTANT NOTE: CONGRATULATIONS TO JAY TRIANO FOR BECOMING THE FIRST CANADIAN BORN NBA HEAD COACH. I HOPE THIS WILL OPEN MANY OTHER COACHING OPPORTUNITIES IN THE NBA. KUDOS AND WELL DESERVED!!!
My parting statement on this is that even though Sam Mitchell was not the right coach, he was the "right-now" coach. The team is currently 8-9 and have seen their best post rebounder and defender miss five of the last seven games because of an injury. Even though Mitchell had his coaching shortcomings, he was not an incompetent bench boss and by all accounts he still had the ears and trust of the players. Colangelo is one of the best GM's in the game and I am sure that this is not the last of the moves he will be making this season.
NBA tidbit for ya'll: With all the economic down turn that is going on right now, it is amazing that NBAstore.com has just reported a 70 percent increase in sales from last year at this point of the season. I guess this is a nice transition into my MVP-DS voting......
..........according to reports, the main reason behind the seventy percent increase in overall sales is the actual sales of Chris Paul jerseys. Wow!!!
My MVP-DS is shorter because of the Mitchell firing. Here are my votes for the last six games that were played in the association:
Chris Paul gets a vote. He deserves one just for carrying the NBA in merchandising sales but the real reason is because he has been playing a phenomenal brand of basketball in the past six games. He is five games away from breaking the league record of consecutive games with a steal.
Lebron James gets back into the votes here. His team went 6-0 during the voting stretch and his numbers were simply out of this world. It's almost as if LBJ read my last blog entry because he has averaged a blocked shot in 5 of the last 6 games. Keep it up King James!!!
Dwayne Wade stays on course here by carrying a team that does not deserve to be 10-9. His stats are still outstanding and his team went 3-3 in the last six games. Including victories in Pheonix, Golden State and Utah.
Kobe Bryant finally gets on here. He deserves it because he is finally trusting his team mates and he is sacrificing his stats in order to get more wins and hopefully a championship. His stats aren't bad either. His 25ppg places him in the fourth spot in league scoring.
Vote totals:
Chris Paul - 3 votes
Dwayne Wade - 3 votes
Chris Bosh - 2 votes
Lebron James - 2 vote
Dwight Howard - 1 vote
Kobe Bryant - 1 votes
Sportacularly yours,
The Vicarious Athlete
How do I say goodbye to what we had?
The good times that made us laugh
Outweigh the bad.
I thought we'd get to see forever
But forever's gone away
It's so hard to say goodbye to yesterday.
I don't know where this road
Is going to lead
All I know is where we've been
And what we've been through.
If we get to see tomorrow
I hope it's worth all the wait
It's so hard to say goodbye to yesterday.
....Okay, that's about enough of that song. I find it interesting
that the words of the song fits perfectly to how most Raptor fans are feeling today after the "semi-shocker" that was when Bryan Colangelo decided that it was necessary to relieve Sam Mitchell of his duties as the coach of our beloved basketball team.It's hard
to say goodbye because we have all fallen in love with Mitchell's character and his coaching style. Now we are left to wonder what the future holds with the new bench boss; Jay Triano. I must be honest with you all. I saw this coming and I am pretty sure that a good number of people also knew his days were numbered. If I may tap into the feelings of fans in this great city of ours, I would say that the sadness is not because we thought it's a bad move that Mitchell got fired but rather because we liked his honesty and sound bites. I always look forward to watching Raptors T.V the morning after a game to see him surrounded by media scrums, picking on them, making fun of them and their sometimes ridiculous questions. Sam Mitchell was not a bad coach but he was not good enough for this team. He needed to be fired for his own personal growth as an NBA coach.When I heard the news yesterday, I was in my class and my initial reaction was....YES!
!!. Yes because I love my Raptors more than the person coaching them. Like the Cliche goes, "nothing personal, it's just business." A couple of good friends kept texting me while my class was going on and I replied every time simply because this was an important issue that needed to be bantered about. My friend Zu really liked Sam and he felt that it was basically a knee-jerk reaction to the loss in Denver that resulted in his firing. I responded that even though Sam was a good coach, he was not an X and O's type of coach. Aside from high and low pick and rolls that consisted of the majority of his play calling, it was evident that he was being out-smarted by most other coaches on both the offensive and defensive end. Sam had no set defensive schemes and after five years it just seemed as though he wasn't going to be able to make the right defensive adjustments; from a game to game basis.I got home from my class around 10:30 pm and the first thing I did was make a call to another good friend. Howell (or as I'll refer to him in future postings: A-Ho) was the other one that had been texting me and actually called a couple of times when I was in class. Now, it's important that I mention that A-Ho is a crazed Raptor fan just like I am. We were on the phone until almost midnight. Naturally we started with the Mitchell firing and then we talked about Stephon Marbury and how it would be a good thing if Colangelo made a move to get him. If and when he gets his buyout from the Knicks.
There is one topic that A-Ho and I talked about but not in great length. It was the fact that Colangelo probably had in mind to fire Mitchell when he came over from the Pheonix Suns. Colangelo couldn't fire Sam after he was honored with the Coach of the Year award for the 2006-2007 season and thus he rewarded Sam with a 4 year contract. This eased the media pressure on Colangelo that kept questioning if he planned on bringing in another coach that he personally selected. The new contract for Mitchell made it seem that his job was safe but the truth is that coaches get fired all the time. It does not matter if a coach signed a lucrative mutli-year contract because as soon as the team starts to struggle and in the Raptors case; underachieve. The first person that gets made as the scape goat is the coach. I think it's a PR move by most GM's. It's an attempt to put out a small fire before it becomes a forrest fire. GM's make moves like this to make it seem that they are not sitting on their hands while the team is potentially tanking the season. I think Colangelo partially did this but also thought it was the perfect opportunity to make the change he wanted to make from the day he got the gig in Toronto. The unfortunate thing is that we won't know if this is a great move until we find out whom Colangelo will replace Jay Triano with. Triano will be the interim coach for the rest of this season.
IMPORTANT NOTE: CONGRATULATIONS TO JAY TRIANO FOR BECOMING THE FIRST CANADIAN BORN NBA HEAD COACH. I HOPE THIS WILL OPEN MANY OTHER COACHING OPPORTUNITIES IN THE NBA. KUDOS AND WELL DESERVED!!!
My parting statement on this is that even though Sam Mitchell was not the right coach, he was the "right-now" coach. The team is currently 8-9 and have seen their best post rebounder and defender miss five of the last seven games because of an injury. Even though Mitchell had his coaching shortcomings, he was not an incompetent bench boss and by all accounts he still had the ears and trust of the players. Colangelo is one of the best GM's in the game and I am sure that this is not the last of the moves he will be making this season.
NBA tidbit for ya'll: With all the economic down turn that is going on right now, it is amazing that NBAstore.com has just reported a 70 percent increase in sales from last year at this point of the season. I guess this is a nice transition into my MVP-DS voting......
..........according to reports, the main reason behind the seventy percent increase in overall sales is the actual sales of Chris Paul jerseys. Wow!!!
My MVP-DS is shorter because of the Mitchell firing. Here are my votes for the last six games that were played in the association:
Chris Paul gets a vote. He deserves one just for carrying the NBA in merchandising sales but the real reason is because he has been playing a phenomenal brand of basketball in the past six games. He is five games away from breaking the league record of consecutive games with a steal.
Lebron James gets back into the votes here. His team went 6-0 during the voting stretch and his numbers were simply out of this world. It's almost as if LBJ read my last blog entry because he has averaged a blocked shot in 5 of the last 6 games. Keep it up King James!!!
Dwayne Wade stays on course here by carrying a team that does not deserve to be 10-9. His stats are still outstanding and his team went 3-3 in the last six games. Including victories in Pheonix, Golden State and Utah.
Kobe Bryant finally gets on here. He deserves it because he is finally trusting his team mates and he is sacrificing his stats in order to get more wins and hopefully a championship. His stats aren't bad either. His 25ppg places him in the fourth spot in league scoring.
Vote totals:
Chris Paul - 3 votes
Dwayne Wade - 3 votes
Chris Bosh - 2 votes
Lebron James - 2 vote
Dwight Howard - 1 vote
Kobe Bryant - 1 votes
Sportacularly yours,
The Vicarious Athlete
Sunday, November 23, 2008
MVP-DS Part 2 of 14
First things first, I refuse to comment or blog on the dismal performance of my Raptors against the New Jersey Nets a couple of days ago. Hurts too much! Way too much!!!
Lebron James is not getting a vote in this installment of my Most Valuable Player-Decider System. I know his numbers are great. His numbers will always be great and his team has a 10-3 record but as I stated in the first installment of the MVP-DS, team record will not be a factor until the end of the season.
I'll briefly revisit it for you. If a players team does not make the playoffs or has an horrendous team record close to the end of the season, then he loses his votes. Obviously if a player has astronomical numbers but his team goes 0-6 during a voting stretch, then the result is no votes. What I am using as a main criteria for getting votes is the players stats and also the amount of supporting cast that the player has. LBJ is averaging 29ppg, 8rpg, 7asg and 1spg. Yeah, I know those are great numbers but the reason he gets no votes is that fact that his team can survive a bad game from him. Also important to getting left off this list is the fact that he is not filling the stats sheet in the blocks department. At 6'8, I guess I expect more from him in that department. You will see as you read this blog that a close friend of LBJ whom is way shorter is filling up the stats in the blocks department.
I think I have spent enough time on someone that's not getting a vote. On to the candidates.........
Is there
anyone at this junction into the 08/09 NBA season that's more valuable to his team that Dwayne Wade. The simple answer is no!!! The Miami Heat should not be 7-6 and sitting in third place in the southeast standings. After seeing D-Wades performance in the Olympics, I was convinced that he would be unstoppable this season. I figured he would score a ton of points but the fact that he is currently averaging a career high in three categories is the main reason why he is the first on the list of candidates. Twenty-nine points per game seats him in the second spot for the league lead but the shocking stat is the 2bpg. At 6 foot 4 and being a shooting guard, the blocks are a revelation that his resurgence as an elite player, after an injury filled 07/08 season, is complete. Wade has also upped his steals(2.4) and assist(8). He goes to the charity stripe at a clip of eight times per game. I admit that he could improve on his ft percentage from seventy seven to around eighty percent but there is no other player in the league that is doing more for his team at this juncture in the season.
The second player to get a vote is Chris Paul. Lets talk about efficiency for a second here. CP3 is averaging three less shots per game this season but has managed to maintain his 21 point average from last season. He is currently shooting 53 percent from the field and is leading the league with averages 12 assist and 3 steals per game. CP3 has averaged in double digits in the assist department in every game except for two and has had a steal for the 96th consecutive game, this is only nine short of the NBA record of 105 set by Alvin Robertson. Paul had a triple-double for the first time this season in yesterdays win over the woeful Oklahoma Thunder.
The best power forward in the game right now is Chris Bosh! I'm not going to make the mistake of leaving him off the list this time. How could I anyway. The proof is in the pudding......and CB4's game is nice like chocolate pudding. Ahem, I know that was lame but I don't care. Tell me of any forward in the game right now that has the arsenal of offensive weapons that Bosh possesses. I say he edges even Kevin Garnett by a small margin. A career high of 27 points and 11 rebounds per game makes him one of the best players in the game right now.
I am going to go off the MVP rant a little here. A couple of days ago, while watching the half-time show on NBA TV, former Raptor Jalen Rose made a bold statement that he claims was provided by "some very credible sources." He stated that Lebron James and Chris Bosh are going to sign with the New York Knicks in 2010. He repeated it several times and got even more confident each time he said it. I am left with this conclusion that Rose is either trying to establish himself as an NBA insider a la Peter Vescey, so he is throwing out bold but baseless statements or he actually has managed to get an inside scope on this matter. Ever if it's fact or fabrication, it's not something that I am pleased to hear. After the Knicks traded Jamal Crawford, Zack Randolph and Mardy Colins a couple of days ago, New York has now cleared around US$27 million in salary-cap space for 2010. Folks, that is enough to sign both LBJ and CB4. Now consider how much they will have when they finally trade or buy-out the problematic Stephon Marbury. As a Bosh/Raptor fan, this worries me, BIG TIME!!!
Back to the votes. The second installment votes go to Dwayne Wade, Chris Paul and Chris Bosh.
Here's the tally:
Chris Paul - 2 votes
Chris Bosh - 2 votes
Dwayne Wade - 2 votes
Lebron James - 1 vote
Dwight Howard - 1 vote
Kobe Bryant - 0 votes
Sportacularly yours,
The Vicarious Athlete
Lebron James is not getting a vote in this installment of my Most Valuable Player-Decider System. I know his numbers are great. His numbers will always be great and his team has a 10-3 record but as I stated in the first installment of the MVP-DS, team record will not be a factor until the end of the season.
I'll briefly revisit it for you. If a players team does not make the playoffs or has an horrendous team record close to the end of the season, then he loses his votes. Obviously if a player has astronomical numbers but his team goes 0-6 during a voting stretch, then the result is no votes. What I am using as a main criteria for getting votes is the players stats and also the amount of supporting cast that the player has. LBJ is averaging 29ppg, 8rpg, 7asg and 1spg. Yeah, I know those are great numbers but the reason he gets no votes is that fact that his team can survive a bad game from him. Also important to getting left off this list is the fact that he is not filling the stats sheet in the blocks department. At 6'8, I guess I expect more from him in that department. You will see as you read this blog that a close friend of LBJ whom is way shorter is filling up the stats in the blocks department.
I think I have spent enough time on someone that's not getting a vote. On to the candidates.........
Is there
anyone at this junction into the 08/09 NBA season that's more valuable to his team that Dwayne Wade. The simple answer is no!!! The Miami Heat should not be 7-6 and sitting in third place in the southeast standings. After seeing D-Wades performance in the Olympics, I was convinced that he would be unstoppable this season. I figured he would score a ton of points but the fact that he is currently averaging a career high in three categories is the main reason why he is the first on the list of candidates. Twenty-nine points per game seats him in the second spot for the league lead but the shocking stat is the 2bpg. At 6 foot 4 and being a shooting guard, the blocks are a revelation that his resurgence as an elite player, after an injury filled 07/08 season, is complete. Wade has also upped his steals(2.4) and assist(8). He goes to the charity stripe at a clip of eight times per game. I admit that he could improve on his ft percentage from seventy seven to around eighty percent but there is no other player in the league that is doing more for his team at this juncture in the season.
The second player to get a vote is Chris Paul. Lets talk about efficiency for a second here. CP3 is averaging three less shots per game this season but has managed to maintain his 21 point average from last season. He is currently shooting 53 percent from the field and is leading the league with averages 12 assist and 3 steals per game. CP3 has averaged in double digits in the assist department in every game except for two and has had a steal for the 96th consecutive game, this is only nine short of the NBA record of 105 set by Alvin Robertson. Paul had a triple-double for the first time this season in yesterdays win over the woeful Oklahoma Thunder.
The best power forward in the game right now is Chris Bosh! I'm not going to make the mistake of leaving him off the list this time. How could I anyway. The proof is in the pudding......and CB4's game is nice like chocolate pudding. Ahem, I know that was lame but I don't care. Tell me of any forward in the game right now that has the arsenal of offensive weapons that Bosh possesses. I say he edges even Kevin Garnett by a small margin. A career high of 27 points and 11 rebounds per game makes him one of the best players in the game right now.
I am going to go off the MVP rant a little here. A couple of days ago, while watching the half-time show on NBA TV, former Raptor Jalen Rose made a bold statement that he claims was provided by "some very credible sources." He stated that Lebron James and Chris Bosh are going to sign with the New York Knicks in 2010. He repeated it several times and got even more confident each time he said it. I am left with this conclusion that Rose is either trying to establish himself as an NBA insider a la Peter Vescey, so he is throwing out bold but baseless statements or he actually has managed to get an inside scope on this matter. Ever if it's fact or fabrication, it's not something that I am pleased to hear. After the Knicks traded Jamal Crawford, Zack Randolph and Mardy Colins a couple of days ago, New York has now cleared around US$27 million in salary-cap space for 2010. Folks, that is enough to sign both LBJ and CB4. Now consider how much they will have when they finally trade or buy-out the problematic Stephon Marbury. As a Bosh/Raptor fan, this worries me, BIG TIME!!!
Back to the votes. The second installment votes go to Dwayne Wade, Chris Paul and Chris Bosh.
Here's the tally:
Chris Paul - 2 votes
Chris Bosh - 2 votes
Dwayne Wade - 2 votes
Lebron James - 1 vote
Dwight Howard - 1 vote
Kobe Bryant - 0 votes
Sportacularly yours,
The Vicarious Athlete
Monday, November 17, 2008
My anthology of NFL observations: Week 11
It was great weekend for the football fan in me!!!
Sportacularly yours,
The Vicarious Athlete
- It was an early start with Thursdays game between Brett Favre's Jets and.........umm, don't know if I should say Matt Cassel's Patriots. I can't stand the Pats but Matt "the replacement" Cassel is playing his tail off. If he keeps it up, he'll be in line to earn some serious coin for his next contract.
- My Packers won in a convincing way! So glad the running game finally made a statement. Ryan Grant ran for his second hundred yard game of the season and I hope he can continue the trend. This is a biased statement that I am about to make but I think my boys are the sleeper team to win the Lombardi trophy this year.
- Another team to watch out for is the Pittsburgh Steelers. They always play well enough to get the "W." They have one of the NFL's toughest schedules and are currently sitting atop the AFC North with a 7-3 record. Trivia tidbit here: the Steelers/Chargers 11-10 score was the first time in NFL history that the score of a game has ended as such. Wow!!! I find that fascinating.
- Can anyone figure out why the Cowboys aren't winning convincingly. Blame the defence all you want but the offence is not running on all cylinders and the reason why befuddles me. Hopefully the return of Tony Romo and their bye week coming up will give them time to work out all the kinks and allow Romo to put in some time with Roy Williams. Williams playing across from the most narcissistic player in all of sports should make the offence as potent as we all expected.
- Who's the NFL's most valuable player at this point? Kurt Warner gets my vote. That old dawg can still toss 'em with the best of 'em. Doesn't hurt to have arguably the best weapons on offence in the league. Boldin, Fitzgerald and Hightower are a quarterbacks wet dream. Kerry Collins gets my vote as runners up. 10-0 ain't no joke people. Someone on that team needs to get some props. Without Collins, their record wouldn't be what it is.
- I didn't forget about the defending champs. Great defence and a very good offence simply means all signs are pointing towards a return to the Superbowl. Every team in the league should copy the Giants running formula. Get a bruising back that's light on his feet and loves punishing defensive backs. Brandon Jacobs is like a wheelbarrow with a motor; filled with cement, going downhill. Also get two tough, lightening quick backs that can juke a safety out of his cleats. Good luck stopping them. Derrick Ward and Ahmad Bradshaw can start for almost any team in the league.
- On a final note. I can't wait to see what the Browns will be like with Brady Quinn against the Buffalo Bills tonight. The Bills need this win after dropping four of their last five games. I look for them to keep the pressure on Quinn to see if he can withstand the pressure blitz. I say the former Notre Dame stand out will have a good game. Maybe he'll throw pick or two but nonetheless a good outing and a win.
Sportacularly yours,
The Vicarious Athlete
Monday, November 10, 2008
I should be ashamed of myself!!! MVP-DS Revisited.
Please allow me to graciously pull my over-sized head out of the sand for omitting a player who definitely should be added to the list of ballers in my first installment of my MVP-DS.
No one can be as stupid as I was when I decided that his 1 block per game and almost no assist per game was enough reason to leave him off this list. Well, I got a shot of "profanely-filled" reality check from a good friend that called me after reading the blog.
THANK YOU Albs! Your carefully structured verbal lecture made me see my mistake. For that, I say thanks bud!!!
The player I left off is CHRIS BOSH. I did mention him at the beginning of the entry but left him off the final run of MVP candidates. How could I have left him off because of a low number of blocks per game and then include Dwight Howard and his horrendous below .500 ft percentage. Even the original Superman (Shaq) is shooting at a better clip that Howard.
Forgive me CB4. Please forgive the omission of a misguided soul such as myself. You are currently shooting 54 percent from the field, even though most of your shots are jump shots. Your 82 percent from the charity strip should not have been ignored since Howard would give you his NASA designed physique just to be able to shoot at that clip for a game.
I should be even more ashamed for ignoring the fact that you are currently in the top five for MVP talks at this point by many league experts. I saw you single-handedly carry us to victory against the Charlotte Bobcats last night; and yet I acted "ignant" by leaving you off the list.
Chris Bosh numbers thus far: 27ppg, 11rpg, 3apg and 1bpg
Those numbers are definitely MVP worthy. Here is my revised list of the candidates after the six games; in no particular order:
Chris Paul
Chris Bosh
Dwayne Wade
Lebron James
Dwight Howard
Looking forward to one of these guys and a few others to separate themselves from the pack.
Sportacularly yours,
The Vicarious Athlete
No one can be as stupid as I was when I decided that his 1 block per game and almost no assist per game was enough reason to leave him off this list. Well, I got a shot of "profanely-filled" reality check from a good friend that called me after reading the blog.
THANK YOU Albs! Your carefully structured verbal lecture made me see my mistake. For that, I say thanks bud!!!
The player I left off is CHRIS BOSH. I did mention him at the beginning of the entry but left him off the final run of MVP candidates. How could I have left him off because of a low number of blocks per game and then include Dwight Howard and his horrendous below .500 ft percentage. Even the original Superman (Shaq) is shooting at a better clip that Howard.
Forgive me CB4. Please forgive the omission of a misguided soul such as myself. You are currently shooting 54 percent from the field, even though most of your shots are jump shots. Your 82 percent from the charity strip should not have been ignored since Howard would give you his NASA designed physique just to be able to shoot at that clip for a game.
I should be even more ashamed for ignoring the fact that you are currently in the top five for MVP talks at this point by many league experts. I saw you single-handedly carry us to victory against the Charlotte Bobcats last night; and yet I acted "ignant" by leaving you off the list.
Chris Bosh numbers thus far: 27ppg, 11rpg, 3apg and 1bpg
Those numbers are definitely MVP worthy. Here is my revised list of the candidates after the six games; in no particular order:
Chris Paul
Chris Bosh
Dwayne Wade
Lebron James
Dwight Howard
Looking forward to one of these guys and a few others to separate themselves from the pack.
Sportacularly yours,
The Vicarious Athlete
My NBA: MVP-Decider System (MVP-DS). Part 1 of 14.
Is it too early to start the race for the league MVP?
Nope!!!
CP3 is one of the players leading the way for MVP considerations; at least in my opinion. After six games into the 08/09 NBA season, his averages are:
21.3ppg, 5.2rpg, 11.7apg and 3.3stg
A strong case can be made for Joe Johnson and Carlos Boozer. Heck, I would even toss my man Chris Bosh in there. After all, a winning team record is one of the main criteria in deciding whom the MVP designation belongs.
In order to make it more fun for myself, I have come up with my own way of determining the leagues most valuable player.
Every six games, I will evaluate players and their performance during that small period of time. Team record during the six game period will play a role but performance will be considered high and above all. Team record will only come into heavy play at the end of the season. In this case, if a player gets more votes in my system but his team does not make the playoffs, then he will get stripped of the award. The player with the second most votes and also has a playoff bound team will be declared the winner. In case of a tie...........I'LL JUST FLIP A COIN!!!
Nah, I'm just kidding. Overall team record will come into play and if there is another tie, then I'll really flip a coin!!!
All in all, the player that gets the most votes after 82 games, with my evaluation system, should be the league MVP. This means that each player has a potential of getting 14 MVP votes.
(82 divided by 6 equals 13.6. Round that up and you get the magical number 14)
It will be an almost impossible task for any one player to garner all 14 votes. This is because of the caliber all the players that are in contention for the award this year. The only time I can say a player would have earned all 14 votes in my system would be in 1961-62 when Oscar Robertson average a triple double for the entire season. Wilt Chamberlain obviously gets a node also but his average or 50 points and 25 rebounds per game were rivaled by Bill Russel's 19ppg and 24rpg. This debate can go on forever because of Wilt's scoring average but I make this argument that outside of Russel, there were no other "good-enough" centers that could contend with the Stilt on a nightly basis. Robertson on the other hand had to face great players almost on a game by game basis.
Getting carried away here! Back to my "MVP-Decider System." Right now, I would say that it's a four way tie. I have already made a case for Chris Paul. Here are the other three guys that are in the running at this point:
Lebron James: 28ppg, 9rpg, 7apg, 1bpg and 1spg
Dwayne Wade: 26ppg, 7rpg, 8apg, 3bpg and 2spg
Dwight Howard: 22ppg, 14rpg, 4bpg and 1spg
So after 6 games; according to my "MVP-DS": CP3, LBJ, DWade, and Superman2 all have 1(one) vote each. I hope that after another 6 game set, there will be a little bit of distinction between these players. Heck, another player might just outplay them. I hope so!!!
Be on the look out for thirteen more of these to determine whom the 08/09 NBA's Most Valuable Player will be.
Sportacularly yours,
The Vicarious Athlete
NOTE: The "MVP-Decider System" or" MVP-DS"; in relation to the NBA most valuable player award is a trademarked creation of The Vicarious Athlete and thus the name and the ideology behind it cannot be used without permission and written consent.
Sunday, October 26, 2008
Shorty Got Game!!!
There is something that's been on my mind lately. The stellar play of Drew Brees!!!
The notion that certain athletes in the NFL are judge based on there physical stature rather than there skill set is beyond me. These so called "little guys" are faster, stronger and way tougher today than in years past. I say if a guy is good and he gets the job done, then there's nothing else to it. If he got game, then plain and simply put, HE GOT GAME!
This stereotype is often used when evaluating Quarterbacks, Halfbacks and Wide outs. General managers and scouts alike prefer the 6'2 and taller quarterback and the 6'5 wide receivers but more and more often, lately, shorter guys have been making their mark on the gridiron. Guys like Darren Sproles, Donnie Avery, Maurice Jones-Drew, just to name a few. They are making it harder for the decisions makers to pass up on them. Doug Flutie is probably the most famous of the "too short to perform at this position" athletes. It's safe to say that he paved the way for guys like Drew Brees. The San Diego Chargers drafted Philip Rivers to eventually replace Brees, partly because they were concerned with his height and how it would affect his effectiveness as a signal caller. He became a free agent and was courted by the Dolphins and Saints. Miami backed out and signed Daunte Culpepper (Hilarious!!!). Brees eventually signed with the Saints.
I guess the argument could be made that he's the unofficial spokesperson for quarterbacks that are judged based on their height and not on ability. Well, he used to be judged on that basis until he started proving year after year that he is definitely one of the best signal callers in the game. Today, he passed 3oo+ yards and threw for 3 touchdowns. He currently leads all QB's in total yards passed and is in the top ten in both total TD's thrown and quarterback rating.
So how come Brees almost never comes up in the debate for best QB's in the game right now? His stats prove that he definitely belongs at the top of the list. Could it be his short comings (ahem.....I couldn't help myself) in the height department that makes people to overlook his place amongst the best? I do know that some experts are catching on and finally are talking about him in that light. If I had to start a team from scratch; Drew Brees would be my starting quarterback. I'd even pick him over Tom Brady and Peyton Manning. And believe me when I say that I'm not making this statement just for shock value.
Here's my one-sentence closer on this. BREES DOES MORE WITH LESS!!!
Sportacularly yours,
The Vicarious Athlete
The notion that certain athletes in the NFL are judge based on there physical stature rather than there skill set is beyond me. These so called "little guys" are faster, stronger and way tougher today than in years past. I say if a guy is good and he gets the job done, then there's nothing else to it. If he got game, then plain and simply put, HE GOT GAME!
This stereotype is often used when evaluating Quarterbacks, Halfbacks and Wide outs. General managers and scouts alike prefer the 6'2 and taller quarterback and the 6'5 wide receivers but more and more often, lately, shorter guys have been making their mark on the gridiron. Guys like Darren Sproles, Donnie Avery, Maurice Jones-Drew, just to name a few. They are making it harder for the decisions makers to pass up on them. Doug Flutie is probably the most famous of the "too short to perform at this position" athletes. It's safe to say that he paved the way for guys like Drew Brees. The San Diego Chargers drafted Philip Rivers to eventually replace Brees, partly because they were concerned with his height and how it would affect his effectiveness as a signal caller. He became a free agent and was courted by the Dolphins and Saints. Miami backed out and signed Daunte Culpepper (Hilarious!!!). Brees eventually signed with the Saints.
I guess the argument could be made that he's the unofficial spokesperson for quarterbacks that are judged based on their height and not on ability. Well, he used to be judged on that basis until he started proving year after year that he is definitely one of the best signal callers in the game. Today, he passed 3oo+ yards and threw for 3 touchdowns. He currently leads all QB's in total yards passed and is in the top ten in both total TD's thrown and quarterback rating.
So how come Brees almost never comes up in the debate for best QB's in the game right now? His stats prove that he definitely belongs at the top of the list. Could it be his short comings (ahem.....I couldn't help myself) in the height department that makes people to overlook his place amongst the best? I do know that some experts are catching on and finally are talking about him in that light. If I had to start a team from scratch; Drew Brees would be my starting quarterback. I'd even pick him over Tom Brady and Peyton Manning. And believe me when I say that I'm not making this statement just for shock value.
Here's my one-sentence closer on this. BREES DOES MORE WITH LESS!!!
Sportacularly yours,
The Vicarious Athlete
Thursday, October 23, 2008
The Vicarious Athlete returns!!!
Alright peoples!!! It's been quite a while since I poured out my "vicariously athletic" soul on this blog. I kinda lost the passion after the "real world" insisted on taking up a lot of my time. I've been somewhat busy with my job hunting and part-time student status at Ryerson University but I recently came back to my senses and realized that there is way too much going on in the sporting world without me adding my benevolent 2cents to it.
Without further adieu.....allow me to re-introduce this blog!!! (thanks Jay-Z).....Lol
I am CRAZY! about Basketball, totally in love with Football, building a promising relationship with Baseball, going on occasional dates with Soccer and...........I only hang out with Hockey when it's convenient.
That's an honest breakdown of how I pay attention to sports. I am certain everyone's point of view would be different, so if you are expecting me to blog a lot about the "only when it's convenient" sport, then you will be disappointed. It will happen but not a whole lot of it.
So, what's been happening in Raptor-ville lately?
Jermaine O'Neal will start a new chapter in his basketball career as a Raptor on October 29th. Just like all the Raptor fans out there, I am very optimistic about this season and it all has to do with trading for J.O. After eight pre-season games, he is gradually rounding out into his expected talented form. My prediction of his stats goes something like this:
12-15ppg, 9-11rpg and 2-2.8bpg
The big question is if trading T.J Ford will end up hurting my beloved Raps? I THINK IT WILL!!!
Why? Because the diminutive Ford gave the Raps an uncanny advantage in ball control. We were the envy of the league in that category but it was took good to last (like all good things I guess) because Ford decided to summon the twisted spirit of Vince Carter Past....well in a reversed sought of way. Unlike the shameless Carter (whom, by the way I am still a fan of......yes, I can like someone and still be objective in seeing and telling the truth about them) deciding not to play hard or care about the success of the team in order to get want he wanted. Ford decided, after coming back from that freakish and unfortunate injury, to play very hard and try to score every time he touched the ball. In his mind, he must have been thinking that outscoring Jose Calderon would re-establish him as the the true starting point guard for the team. In the process, he destroyed the on and off court chemistry that the team had. I still like his game a lot and sometimes go back and forth that maybe we should have traded Calderon instead.
Before you start yelling......OFF WITH HIS HEAD!! Let me explain why. Calderon's stock was very very high and he would have gotten the Raps a lot more in a trade. Maybe a young big man and a draft pick or two. Ford was seen as a semi-headache and injury prone guard. The trade that sent him and Rasho Nesterovic to Indiana for O'Neal definitely addressed a lot of our needs but, I think it inadvertently left us vulnerable in the back court. So, we got rid of one weakness just to inherit another.
What ever happens this season is going to be exciting and positive. I truly believe that. Calderon is the better floor leader between he and Ford. O'Neal will help us TREMENDOUSLY! Bosh will be Bosh. Reliable.
My prediction: 49-33 record, finish 4th or 5th in the east and lose in the second round to...........????
Sportacularly yours,
TheVicariousAthlete
Without further adieu.....allow me to re-introduce this blog!!! (thanks Jay-Z).....Lol
I am CRAZY! about Basketball, totally in love with Football, building a promising relationship with Baseball, going on occasional dates with Soccer and...........I only hang out with Hockey when it's convenient.
That's an honest breakdown of how I pay attention to sports. I am certain everyone's point of view would be different, so if you are expecting me to blog a lot about the "only when it's convenient" sport, then you will be disappointed. It will happen but not a whole lot of it.
So, what's been happening in Raptor-ville lately?
Jermaine O'Neal will start a new chapter in his basketball career as a Raptor on October 29th. Just like all the Raptor fans out there, I am very optimistic about this season and it all has to do with trading for J.O. After eight pre-season games, he is gradually rounding out into his expected talented form. My prediction of his stats goes something like this:12-15ppg, 9-11rpg and 2-2.8bpg
The big question is if trading T.J Ford will end up hurting my beloved Raps? I THINK IT WILL!!!
Why? Because the diminutive Ford gave the Raps an uncanny advantage in ball control. We were the envy of the league in that category but it was took good to last (like all good things I guess) because Ford decided to summon the twisted spirit of Vince Carter Past....well in a reversed sought of way. Unlike the shameless Carter (whom, by the way I am still a fan of......yes, I can like someone and still be objective in seeing and telling the truth about them) deciding not to play hard or care about the success of the team in order to get want he wanted. Ford decided, after coming back from that freakish and unfortunate injury, to play very hard and try to score every time he touched the ball. In his mind, he must have been thinking that outscoring Jose Calderon would re-establish him as the the true starting point guard for the team. In the process, he destroyed the on and off court chemistry that the team had. I still like his game a lot and sometimes go back and forth that maybe we should have traded Calderon instead.
Before you start yelling......OFF WITH HIS HEAD!! Let me explain why. Calderon's stock was very very high and he would have gotten the Raps a lot more in a trade. Maybe a young big man and a draft pick or two. Ford was seen as a semi-headache and injury prone guard. The trade that sent him and Rasho Nesterovic to Indiana for O'Neal definitely addressed a lot of our needs but, I think it inadvertently left us vulnerable in the back court. So, we got rid of one weakness just to inherit another.
What ever happens this season is going to be exciting and positive. I truly believe that. Calderon is the better floor leader between he and Ford. O'Neal will help us TREMENDOUSLY! Bosh will be Bosh. Reliable.
My prediction: 49-33 record, finish 4th or 5th in the east and lose in the second round to...........????
Sportacularly yours,
TheVicariousAthlete
Friday, March 14, 2008
March Madness Will Showcase Hidden Gems
Fourteen days into the month of March and the buzz is definitely in the air as we get closer to the most exciting tournament in the world. It's so exciting that even this weekends selection show that will determine the "at large" teams that will be part of the field of 64 is a must watch for me
On Thursday, March 20th the madness itself will officially begin. Most of these college players will be playing for the their respective teams; with a single goal of winning their games and advancing to the Final Four. A small fraction of these college players will be playing for an opportunity to be noticed by NBA scouts. This is the part of this tournament that I am very excited about (just as much as I get excited about the almost daily buzzer beaters and "sportacular" plays).
Tyler Hansbrough. Michael Beasley. Kevin Love. OJ Mayo. Chris Douglas-Roberts. These five guys are practically household names in basketball circles. (You'd have to be living on an undiscovered planet if you said you've never heard of them). They are just a few of the players that scouts and fans already have on their radar.
Then there are the not-so-well-known players. NBA scouts are paid to know about them but most fans (including myself) will be finding out who they are as the tournament rolls on. They are the players that will play on a much higher level than what their natural skill set presents. They are the players that will increase their NBA draft stock into the first round or just to be drafted. It's these kinds of players that truly makes the tournament that much more exciting.
Here's a list of five guys that I will be paying special attention to during the tournament.
Sportaculary yours,
The Vicarious Athlete
On Thursday, March 20th the madness itself will officially begin. Most of these college players will be playing for the their respective teams; with a single goal of winning their games and advancing to the Final Four. A small fraction of these college players will be playing for an opportunity to be noticed by NBA scouts. This is the part of this tournament that I am very excited about (just as much as I get excited about the almost daily buzzer beaters and "sportacular" plays).
Tyler Hansbrough. Michael Beasley. Kevin Love. OJ Mayo. Chris Douglas-Roberts. These five guys are practically household names in basketball circles. (You'd have to be living on an undiscovered planet if you said you've never heard of them). They are just a few of the players that scouts and fans already have on their radar.
Then there are the not-so-well-known players. NBA scouts are paid to know about them but most fans (including myself) will be finding out who they are as the tournament rolls on. They are the players that will play on a much higher level than what their natural skill set presents. They are the players that will increase their NBA draft stock into the first round or just to be drafted. It's these kinds of players that truly makes the tournament that much more exciting.
Here's a list of five guys that I will be paying special attention to during the tournament.
- Stephen Curry - Guard, Davidson (25ppg & 5rpg)
- Jerryd Bayless - Guard, Arizona (20ppg & 4apg)
- Shan Foster - Guard/Forward, Vanderbilt (21ppg & 5rpg)
- Luke Harangody - Forward, Notre Dame (21ppg & 10rpg)
- Gary Forbes - Guard/Forward, Massachusetts (20ppg & 8rpg)
Sportaculary yours,
The Vicarious Athlete
Thursday, March 6, 2008
Boring Fundamentals and No Flashy Substance?
They hardly blow other teams out.
They are currently on a 10 game winning streak in which their average margin of victory is by 10 points.
They are constantly called a boring team. People say there is nothing flashy about their style of play because they don't have guys that can jump out of the gym and give poster worthy facials. They don't have a fancy dribbler that pounds the ball on the hardwood for 15 out of the 24 seconds on the shot clock, trying to set up a cross over or show off his one on one skills.
C'mon people. You should know what team I am talking about here. In case you are still wondering. Here's another clue for you:
They have won four out of the last 9 NBA championships.
Yeah! That's right. It's the San Antonio Spurs.
Ever since I could remember, I have been hearing guys complain that it would be boring to watch the Spurs in the playoffs and especially in the NBA Finals. I always wondered what was boring about playing the game the right way.
Setting solid screens. Pick and rolls/pops that resulted in easy buckets. Feeding the post and spreading the floor. Dribble drives and kick-outs that resulted in wide open shoots. Playing fundamentally sound man to man or zone defence. Realizing that in the last 3 minutes of every close game, teams should be focused on driving to the basket with the goal of drawing fouls and getting to the line. These are things that a lot of teams do in the league but no team does it as well as the Spurs.
The Spurs have a very good chance to repeat as champions this year but I won't go out on a limb and predict that they will definitely do this. Especially with the way the west is stacked this year, any team could get hot and go far. Look at the surprise job the Golden State Warriors did on the Dallas Mavericks last year. The warriors had the players and the right kind of system to upset the Mavs. If the playoffs were to start today, the Spurs will be playing against those same Warriors. Quite frankly, they just might be able to pull off another upset.
I don't think that will be the case this time though. The Spurs play good enough defence that will disrupt the "chaotic-style" offence that the Warriors like to run. Tim Duncan definitely will not have the bewildered look that Dirk Nowitztki had when he was surrounded by smaller and very feisty guards on defence. Then there is Manu Ginobili, Tony Parker and the rest of the fundamentally sound Spurs squad. They will be in the right place and make the right plays to get the job done.
Here's my punctuation point for this blog. I like watching the Spurs play and love it when they win. This is contrary to the thinking of guys in my generation. Guys that grew up during the Jordan era and prefer to watch teams with ultra athletic guards play up to their superstar roles. I myself love to watch these types of teams and players with the run and gun styles. I love the highlight dunks, the killer cross-overs and the fast breaks. I truly do. But I also really find it amusing and very entertaining when the game is slowed down and the right plays are called and executed to near perfection.
Who says that there is no flash in substance and fundamentals. The San Antonio Spurs have proven that there is. They have four "flashy" championship rings and could very well add another this year. Nothing boring about that.
Sportacularly yours,
The Vicarious Athlete
They are currently on a 10 game winning streak in which their average margin of victory is by 10 points.
They are constantly called a boring team. People say there is nothing flashy about their style of play because they don't have guys that can jump out of the gym and give poster worthy facials. They don't have a fancy dribbler that pounds the ball on the hardwood for 15 out of the 24 seconds on the shot clock, trying to set up a cross over or show off his one on one skills.
C'mon people. You should know what team I am talking about here. In case you are still wondering. Here's another clue for you:
They have won four out of the last 9 NBA championships.
Yeah! That's right. It's the San Antonio Spurs.
Ever since I could remember, I have been hearing guys complain that it would be boring to watch the Spurs in the playoffs and especially in the NBA Finals. I always wondered what was boring about playing the game the right way.
Setting solid screens. Pick and rolls/pops that resulted in easy buckets. Feeding the post and spreading the floor. Dribble drives and kick-outs that resulted in wide open shoots. Playing fundamentally sound man to man or zone defence. Realizing that in the last 3 minutes of every close game, teams should be focused on driving to the basket with the goal of drawing fouls and getting to the line. These are things that a lot of teams do in the league but no team does it as well as the Spurs.
The Spurs have a very good chance to repeat as champions this year but I won't go out on a limb and predict that they will definitely do this. Especially with the way the west is stacked this year, any team could get hot and go far. Look at the surprise job the Golden State Warriors did on the Dallas Mavericks last year. The warriors had the players and the right kind of system to upset the Mavs. If the playoffs were to start today, the Spurs will be playing against those same Warriors. Quite frankly, they just might be able to pull off another upset.
I don't think that will be the case this time though. The Spurs play good enough defence that will disrupt the "chaotic-style" offence that the Warriors like to run. Tim Duncan definitely will not have the bewildered look that Dirk Nowitztki had when he was surrounded by smaller and very feisty guards on defence. Then there is Manu Ginobili, Tony Parker and the rest of the fundamentally sound Spurs squad. They will be in the right place and make the right plays to get the job done.
Here's my punctuation point for this blog. I like watching the Spurs play and love it when they win. This is contrary to the thinking of guys in my generation. Guys that grew up during the Jordan era and prefer to watch teams with ultra athletic guards play up to their superstar roles. I myself love to watch these types of teams and players with the run and gun styles. I love the highlight dunks, the killer cross-overs and the fast breaks. I truly do. But I also really find it amusing and very entertaining when the game is slowed down and the right plays are called and executed to near perfection.
Who says that there is no flash in substance and fundamentals. The San Antonio Spurs have proven that there is. They have four "flashy" championship rings and could very well add another this year. Nothing boring about that.
Sportacularly yours,
The Vicarious Athlete
Sunday, March 2, 2008
The Toronto Raptors have a condition called MTDS: Mental Toughness Deficiency Syndrome
On Friday, February 29th the Toronto Raptors hosted the Indiana Pacers at the Air Canada Centre. The outcome of the game was a 122 -111 victory for the visiting Pacers.
I could have blogged about this game the very next day (March 1st) but I was too hurt by the way the Raptors played. I guess you can figure that they are my favorite team based on the fact that I was really bothered by this loss. I live in the city and I am crazy about this team. Crazy enough to get bummed out for a couple of days before I could even blog on it.
It would be unreasonable and naive of me to expect nothing but victories from the Raps. But it is not out of the question to expect them to beat or at least look competent on defense against a team like the Pacers. I sat in the comfort of my living room and watched in horror as............wait for it......TRAVIS DIENER. Yes! Travis Diener the former Marquette player with the tiny frame but extremely big heart, break down the Raps defense over and over again to assist Mike Dunleavy on his way to 36 points on 11 of 16 shooting. Diener ended up with 10 points and 10 assist (his assist totals would have been higher if he only passed to Dunleavy). Dunleavy was not the only recipient of Dieners penetration and kick outs. Kareem Rush was also able to shoot freely from beyond the arc. He connected on 4 out of 10 from long range. Dunleavy himself was 6 out of 9 from beyond the arc.
Alright, enough about the Pacers. I am not writing this to praise them. I am doing this to point out some obvious things about the Raptors.
I wonder how the Raps can beat the San Antonio Spurs and the Boston Celtics in their respective homes and then play awful against teams like the Knicks, Clippers and Sonics. My only logical conclusion is lack of mental toughness or at least not enough of it. It's this kind of toughness that allows a team like the Spurs to beat the Charlotte Bobcats and the Dallas Mavericks in a five games in ten days span. Not having enough of this mental toughness that makes the Raptors to "not show up to play" against teams they should be destroying.
As I watched the game the Raps played against the Pacers. I couldn't help but to notice the facial expressions on head Coach Sam Mitchell's face. Each expression showing anguish and sometimes confusion as to why Jose Calderon nor TJ Ford could stay in front of Diener. Why Andrea Bargnani hoisted up ten 3's but could have exploited a pacers team with no good big men on the block. The opportunity was definitely there for Bargnani to park his 7 foot frame in the post after Chris Bosh, the teams all-star forward/center, left the game for good in the first quarter due to a knee injury.
This type of play concerns me moving forward as the playoffs get closer. Teams respect the Raptors shooting but that's where it stops. In the playoffs, the focus for other teams will be to physically punish them on the inside and also out on the wings. The thing is that you don't have to be very athletic to be successful in the playoffs but you sure need heavy doses of mental toughness. A perfect example of a player that had this kind of toughness is the retired Jeff Hornacek. Hornacek played 15 seasons in the league and he definitely exemplifies what having mental toughness is all about. Any true basketball fan will remember that he wasn't all that athletic but he was one tough son of a gun. The entire Raptors team combined does not have as much mental toughness that Hornacek had.
Although it might come across to anyone reading this is blog, that I am saying the Raptors have absolutely no mental toughness. That's not my point at all. On the contrary, I know they have displayed it on occasion. What I am saying is that they need more of it. To me, its more accurate to say they have a Mental Toughness Deficiency Syndrome (MTDS).
If the playoffs were to start today, the first round match up would be the Cleveland Cavaliers. The addition of Wally "World" Szczerbiak and and "Big" Ben Wallace makes them a dangerous team to face. The Toronto Raptors will need to get daily doses of enhanced mental toughness in order to win the series.
Where can they get it from? Now, that's a good question!!!
Sportacularly yours,
The Vicarious Athlete
I could have blogged about this game the very next day (March 1st) but I was too hurt by the way the Raptors played. I guess you can figure that they are my favorite team based on the fact that I was really bothered by this loss. I live in the city and I am crazy about this team. Crazy enough to get bummed out for a couple of days before I could even blog on it.
It would be unreasonable and naive of me to expect nothing but victories from the Raps. But it is not out of the question to expect them to beat or at least look competent on defense against a team like the Pacers. I sat in the comfort of my living room and watched in horror as............wait for it......TRAVIS DIENER. Yes! Travis Diener the former Marquette player with the tiny frame but extremely big heart, break down the Raps defense over and over again to assist Mike Dunleavy on his way to 36 points on 11 of 16 shooting. Diener ended up with 10 points and 10 assist (his assist totals would have been higher if he only passed to Dunleavy). Dunleavy was not the only recipient of Dieners penetration and kick outs. Kareem Rush was also able to shoot freely from beyond the arc. He connected on 4 out of 10 from long range. Dunleavy himself was 6 out of 9 from beyond the arc.
Alright, enough about the Pacers. I am not writing this to praise them. I am doing this to point out some obvious things about the Raptors.
I wonder how the Raps can beat the San Antonio Spurs and the Boston Celtics in their respective homes and then play awful against teams like the Knicks, Clippers and Sonics. My only logical conclusion is lack of mental toughness or at least not enough of it. It's this kind of toughness that allows a team like the Spurs to beat the Charlotte Bobcats and the Dallas Mavericks in a five games in ten days span. Not having enough of this mental toughness that makes the Raptors to "not show up to play" against teams they should be destroying.
As I watched the game the Raps played against the Pacers. I couldn't help but to notice the facial expressions on head Coach Sam Mitchell's face. Each expression showing anguish and sometimes confusion as to why Jose Calderon nor TJ Ford could stay in front of Diener. Why Andrea Bargnani hoisted up ten 3's but could have exploited a pacers team with no good big men on the block. The opportunity was definitely there for Bargnani to park his 7 foot frame in the post after Chris Bosh, the teams all-star forward/center, left the game for good in the first quarter due to a knee injury.
This type of play concerns me moving forward as the playoffs get closer. Teams respect the Raptors shooting but that's where it stops. In the playoffs, the focus for other teams will be to physically punish them on the inside and also out on the wings. The thing is that you don't have to be very athletic to be successful in the playoffs but you sure need heavy doses of mental toughness. A perfect example of a player that had this kind of toughness is the retired Jeff Hornacek. Hornacek played 15 seasons in the league and he definitely exemplifies what having mental toughness is all about. Any true basketball fan will remember that he wasn't all that athletic but he was one tough son of a gun. The entire Raptors team combined does not have as much mental toughness that Hornacek had.
Although it might come across to anyone reading this is blog, that I am saying the Raptors have absolutely no mental toughness. That's not my point at all. On the contrary, I know they have displayed it on occasion. What I am saying is that they need more of it. To me, its more accurate to say they have a Mental Toughness Deficiency Syndrome (MTDS).
If the playoffs were to start today, the first round match up would be the Cleveland Cavaliers. The addition of Wally "World" Szczerbiak and and "Big" Ben Wallace makes them a dangerous team to face. The Toronto Raptors will need to get daily doses of enhanced mental toughness in order to win the series.
Where can they get it from? Now, that's a good question!!!
Sportacularly yours,
The Vicarious Athlete
Thursday, February 28, 2008
The Shaquile O'Neal Trade: A truck in a playpen with sport cars
The Big Cactus!!!
I must admit that just like most Shaquille O'Neal fans out there, I too get entertained and genuinely love it when "The Big Aristotle" creates a new moniker for himself. I wonder how many monikers he has given himself after 17 years (and counting) in the Association. Quite a few! In all honesty, I don't really care about the exact total. I am more concerned about the new one that he will be labeled with if the Phoenix Suns don't win the championship this year and if he keeps looking and playing like a shell of his former self.
The Suns have played five games with the future hall of famer, and have a record of 2 wins and 3 losses to show for it. I wouldn't say that it's time to press the panic button just yet because they(Suns) still have another 24 games to play before the playoffs start. There is enough time to get it together and go on a 8-10 game winning streak just to show the the NBA world that they actually knew what they were doing when they traded the Matrix for Superman 1 (say it ain't so Dwight "Superman 2" Howard). Could this just be an adjustment period that will last a little longer than expected?
If you ask for my non-expertise opinion. The answer will be a resounding NO!
Last night, the New Orleans Hornets showed the league (ahem...by the league I actually mean all the western conference teams that will be making the playoffs) that the kryptonite recipe for beating Phoenix is speed. Isn't that ironic though. The team that once pride itself on out-shooting and out-running their opponents should find themselves victims of their own ideology.
The day the trade was finalized, my first thought was that it was a stupid trade. Reason? I figured that Shaq and his hip would not be able to fit with the team. He would simply slow them down and alter the way they run their offence.
A couple of hours after that initial thought, I re-thought. A complete 180. I analyzed and came to a conclusion that Tim Duncan was the reason why the Suns traded for "the Diesel". After all, teams slow down their offence in the playoffs and coaches tend to call more plays. It would definitely make it hard for Timmy-D to exploit and abuse the Suns big men (Yeah that includes you to Amare). I figured they would play him about 15 to 20 minutes per game until he got in "Phoenix Suns" shape. Ease him into it and gradually increase his minutes to around 25 to 30ish by game seventy five of the regular season.
Well, after loosing by an average of 18 points in their 3 losses(out of their last 5 games), I re-re-thought!
This time I am sticking with it. It's not going to work. Not for the reason he was brought there for, which is to win more games than whomever their opponent is in the NBA finals. I don't even think they will make it that far. I predict a second round loss. I also predict that "Shaq-Fu" will make a cocky prediction (much like the gesture of pointing to his championship ring when he attended his first game as a Phoenix Sun). He will belittle and make fun of someone he's playing against. He will give himself a brand new moniker. He will then guarantee victory in their next game because they just lost a game to make the series 3-2 for their opponent. They will lose game six. The series will be very entertaining. The league and its fans will love and enjoy every minute of it.
The only sad ones will be the Suns and the city of Phoenix.
They will be disappointed because the "Big Mouth" did not deliver on his word.
Sportacularly yours,
The Vicarious Athlete
Tuesday, February 26, 2008
The NBA Supertar Pedigree: Born, Made or Nurtured
There's no league like the NBA........and it's love of promoting it's stars.
Don't get me wrong, I know and understand that it's all part of what is simply "sports marketing 101". It's a very simple concept people. You choose a select but small group of individuals to champion, wear, carry or represent a product. As opposed to promoting the product on it's own; as a whole. It's the type of marketing that you can find being used by various companies. I am pretty sure that the Cologne/Perfume industry would have suffered if it didn't rely heavily on a small group of celebrities in their ads.
I am not bashing or condemning the idea of marketing the few to sell to many. The truth is that it works. It just point blank works! The reason I am writing this blog is that I wonder if this will eventually come back to bite the league in it's lucrative backside. What if a team like the Sacramento Kings play inspired team ball and come out of the west to play a team like the Indiana Pacers. Wait, wait. Hold your mental tongue there for a second. I know the west is stacked and it would be a definite miracle if the Kings............correct that, way more than a miracle if the Kings were to make the finals. But humor me for half a second here. Whom would the league use in their finals marketing spree. Lets just forget about using Ron Artest. Way too much chemical imbalance in his brain to be chosen. Translation: He's too unpredictable!
Further translation: He's crazy!
I guess a good marketer can market anything, so lets say the league uses Brad Miller and Kevin Martin. Two clean cut and marketable players. I know, I know. Brad Miller is no Tim Duncan or Amare Stoudamire and Kevin Martin is no Manu Ginobili or Steve Nash. In my opinion, Miller is a hands down a better shooter and arguably a better passer than the the other two forward/centers in comparison. The question here is if Miller would play at a level worthy of being called a star.
The leagues marketing eye was on Duncan and Stoudamire from the moment their names were called by David Stern on their respective draft nights. In my opinion, I think that this type of attention added to the confidence and maybe the work ethic of both Duncan and Stoudamire. I know most athletes want to be great and work towards the goal of getting both personal and team success. What if the lack of attention made a certain athlete like........lets say Brad Miller, do 10 wind sprints but "might" have pushed himself to do 5 more if he was getting some marketing love from the league.
I know there is no way to actually measure such an effect. I liken it to a raising children. Lets say you pay more attention to one child and tell him or her that the future is bright and stardom awaits. The other child? You tell him or her that the reason he or she did not get "the call from the referee is because: you are not a star in this league. That's a call that stars like Lebron James and Dwayne Wade get". Get the point!!! Complacency sets in. In this case, Brad Miller is that child that the league did not promote. He is a stand in for all the good that could have been better, or maybe even great players in the league. Past and present.
Lebron James. Dwayne Wade. Carmelo Anthony! Add Dwight Howard to that list. He solidified his place amongst the leagues brightest stars at the All star festivities this past weekend. Only thing I ask of him is to never talk about the Superman song by Soulja Boy. I know he likes the damn song but it's just not a good match to his image or the one the league marketers would like to promote since the name of the song is "Crank that Ho". Wait till David Stern listens to the lyrics.
I better get back on track here before I over-rant on another topic.
My "Sportacular" friends. I did not write this to complain or condemn the league and it's ways. Nor am I saying that Duncan and Stoudamire are not worthy of all the attention they get. I love the game and the players. I truly do love watching the "stars" rise up to the occasion and do "Sportacular" things, but I also love watching the good and so called average players do their thing. The up and coming but neglected players. I won't give you a run down of all the ones that are not getting their just recognition but I will give you five that are improving and should be looked at as part of the leagues future superstars.
Chris Kaman - Quiet and weird (less weird after cutting his shaggy hair) . A source of double doubles and 2+ blocks for many years to come. You don't have to be photogenic to be a superstar do you?
Kevin Martin - Also quiet. Very quick in the open floor. Unorthodox shooting form but it works. He goes to the charity line 8 times a game and it's not because he's a star. I can only imagine the free throw attempt totals if he ever gets tagged as one.
David Lee - Either he leaves the New York Knicks or they build around him and Jamal Crawford. Get rid of everybody else and their mama. Yes! That includes Isaiah. Lee is surprisingly a very athletic power forward/center. Should be a starter and is a good source of double doubles for many years to come.
Deron Williams - It's almost impossible to mention his name without talking about Chris Paul. Bottom line is that they are both scary good. So how come Paul is the one being labeled as an up and coming superstar. DWill's overall package mirrors that of Paul's. Both can shoot, pass and lead a team.
Josh Smith - In my opinion he has the brightest statistical future out of the bunch. Also in my opinion, the best player on the Atlanta Hawks. Especially now that he is improving on his outside touch (all the way to the 3 point line). He is rounding out to be a very complete basketball player. I predict that he will one day average 25ppg, 11rpg, 6apg and 3bpg. He'll also have percentages of 46% on field goals and 83% on free throws. Now, those are superstar numbers to me. I have not even mentioned his athleticism and jaw dropping dunks.
My point is that the league has a bright future and should include more players like the ones I mentioned above in their superstar labeling agenda. If you won't market them as superstars, at least pay more marketing attention to them. You never know how many more wind sprints you might make them do.
Don't stop marketing the superstars you have now. Just broaden the list a little.
Sportacularly yours,
The Vicarious Athlete
Don't get me wrong, I know and understand that it's all part of what is simply "sports marketing 101". It's a very simple concept people. You choose a select but small group of individuals to champion, wear, carry or represent a product. As opposed to promoting the product on it's own; as a whole. It's the type of marketing that you can find being used by various companies. I am pretty sure that the Cologne/Perfume industry would have suffered if it didn't rely heavily on a small group of celebrities in their ads.
I am not bashing or condemning the idea of marketing the few to sell to many. The truth is that it works. It just point blank works! The reason I am writing this blog is that I wonder if this will eventually come back to bite the league in it's lucrative backside. What if a team like the Sacramento Kings play inspired team ball and come out of the west to play a team like the Indiana Pacers. Wait, wait. Hold your mental tongue there for a second. I know the west is stacked and it would be a definite miracle if the Kings............correct that, way more than a miracle if the Kings were to make the finals. But humor me for half a second here. Whom would the league use in their finals marketing spree. Lets just forget about using Ron Artest. Way too much chemical imbalance in his brain to be chosen. Translation: He's too unpredictable!
Further translation: He's crazy!
I guess a good marketer can market anything, so lets say the league uses Brad Miller and Kevin Martin. Two clean cut and marketable players. I know, I know. Brad Miller is no Tim Duncan or Amare Stoudamire and Kevin Martin is no Manu Ginobili or Steve Nash. In my opinion, Miller is a hands down a better shooter and arguably a better passer than the the other two forward/centers in comparison. The question here is if Miller would play at a level worthy of being called a star.
The leagues marketing eye was on Duncan and Stoudamire from the moment their names were called by David Stern on their respective draft nights. In my opinion, I think that this type of attention added to the confidence and maybe the work ethic of both Duncan and Stoudamire. I know most athletes want to be great and work towards the goal of getting both personal and team success. What if the lack of attention made a certain athlete like........lets say Brad Miller, do 10 wind sprints but "might" have pushed himself to do 5 more if he was getting some marketing love from the league.
I know there is no way to actually measure such an effect. I liken it to a raising children. Lets say you pay more attention to one child and tell him or her that the future is bright and stardom awaits. The other child? You tell him or her that the reason he or she did not get "the call from the referee is because: you are not a star in this league. That's a call that stars like Lebron James and Dwayne Wade get". Get the point!!! Complacency sets in. In this case, Brad Miller is that child that the league did not promote. He is a stand in for all the good that could have been better, or maybe even great players in the league. Past and present.
Lebron James. Dwayne Wade. Carmelo Anthony! Add Dwight Howard to that list. He solidified his place amongst the leagues brightest stars at the All star festivities this past weekend. Only thing I ask of him is to never talk about the Superman song by Soulja Boy. I know he likes the damn song but it's just not a good match to his image or the one the league marketers would like to promote since the name of the song is "Crank that Ho". Wait till David Stern listens to the lyrics.
I better get back on track here before I over-rant on another topic.
My "Sportacular" friends. I did not write this to complain or condemn the league and it's ways. Nor am I saying that Duncan and Stoudamire are not worthy of all the attention they get. I love the game and the players. I truly do love watching the "stars" rise up to the occasion and do "Sportacular" things, but I also love watching the good and so called average players do their thing. The up and coming but neglected players. I won't give you a run down of all the ones that are not getting their just recognition but I will give you five that are improving and should be looked at as part of the leagues future superstars.
Chris Kaman - Quiet and weird (less weird after cutting his shaggy hair) . A source of double doubles and 2+ blocks for many years to come. You don't have to be photogenic to be a superstar do you?
Kevin Martin - Also quiet. Very quick in the open floor. Unorthodox shooting form but it works. He goes to the charity line 8 times a game and it's not because he's a star. I can only imagine the free throw attempt totals if he ever gets tagged as one.
David Lee - Either he leaves the New York Knicks or they build around him and Jamal Crawford. Get rid of everybody else and their mama. Yes! That includes Isaiah. Lee is surprisingly a very athletic power forward/center. Should be a starter and is a good source of double doubles for many years to come.
Deron Williams - It's almost impossible to mention his name without talking about Chris Paul. Bottom line is that they are both scary good. So how come Paul is the one being labeled as an up and coming superstar. DWill's overall package mirrors that of Paul's. Both can shoot, pass and lead a team.
Josh Smith - In my opinion he has the brightest statistical future out of the bunch. Also in my opinion, the best player on the Atlanta Hawks. Especially now that he is improving on his outside touch (all the way to the 3 point line). He is rounding out to be a very complete basketball player. I predict that he will one day average 25ppg, 11rpg, 6apg and 3bpg. He'll also have percentages of 46% on field goals and 83% on free throws. Now, those are superstar numbers to me. I have not even mentioned his athleticism and jaw dropping dunks.
My point is that the league has a bright future and should include more players like the ones I mentioned above in their superstar labeling agenda. If you won't market them as superstars, at least pay more marketing attention to them. You never know how many more wind sprints you might make them do.
Don't stop marketing the superstars you have now. Just broaden the list a little.
Sportacularly yours,
The Vicarious Athlete
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