Alright, today I will mainly talk about team building, which is a pretty hard thing to do and will explain the problems Detroit and Miami are currently having. Obviously, I'm a Pistons fan and I take the losing pretty hard since I only started following them in the 2004 season and have stuck with that team ever since because I loved the unselfishness and I want to get back to that. On the other hand we have the Miami Heat with a spoiled superstar and Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh who seem to have found their liking to the sense of self-entitlement and poor work ethic the self-acclaimed King is putting every day.
Building a contender is not an easy thing to do. A casual observer would think one only needs to put together great talent and you automatically have a competitor. See, you can get a competitor that way, but not a championship caliber team. A competitor can get into the Playoffs and as far as the Finals on basically one players' amazing skill set (e.g. Cavs in '07 and Lakers '06).
Championships are won with a complete team that has fitting pieces throughout the roster. Duh, some people might say now. I've stumbled over a great metaphor a couple of days ago and it goes like this. Building a championship team is like building a house. You need bricks, you need steel, you need windows and you need the isolation, the energy cable, etc..
The Pistons are currently made up of bricks and windows and energy cables. We have no steel whatsoever. Stuckey and T-Mac have the potential to be steel, but I doubt Stuck will be the Man on the team and I don't think T-Mac will ever be it again. We need this building block (no pun intended). We have way too many bricks and windows and what have you. We don't have that frame though that makes our house withstand the storm that is coming.
To stay in this metaphor, the Heat currently have three frames for a championship house, but they don't have an energy cable or bricks. While all the three players have the skill set to morph into a brick or whatever is needed to win, they are struggling because they are not used to this roll, nor will they be any time soon. All three of them are used to being the frame and not the brick (except for LeBrick James, sorry for that joke).
So, you see, although the teams have very different expectations, Detroit and Miami are pretty similar when you've come to think about what they are missing. Actually, they are similar, because they are the complete opposite of one another. Detroit has way too many roll players, while Miami has three Superstars but no skilled roll players.
I don't want any of the three in Detroit, especially not James. I make no secret out of me hating him and everything he stands for. He takes his blessings for granted and for a, well, a blessing. He calls himself The Chosen One and he actually doesn't seem to feel chosen, he plays like it's a burden.
Detroit needs a star, either develop a star or trade for one. Joe D is having a rough patch. He's trading away players that excell in other places and takes on bad players that played well in other places. I really don't know why that is, I'd assume it is coaching to some degree, I wouldn't call Flip Saunders a bad coach though and John Kuester is doing a lot of things right and I really like how he's handled the tough situations thus far this season. He's gotten Stuckey and Tay back on board and my heart was filled with Christmassy love when Tayshaun had that great game against the Knicks. It felt like we had a good team again. Unfortunately, we always tend to lose close games against the Knicks.
That's it for now! Take care!
Showing posts with label Lebron. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Lebron. Show all posts
Tuesday, November 30, 2010
Sunday, November 14, 2010
Heat talking trades already??
Ok,
I know it's early in the season, the Heat are 6-4 (6-0 against bad teams, 0-4 against good teams) so naturally, people will be looking for the weakest link, which, at this point iiiiiis Chris Bosh!
I've never been a fan of Chris Bosh, I don't look at him as a Top 10 player in this league. Why? Well, he doesn't play defense, at all ... Look at Rondo's dunk I've honestly never seen an elite player looking at someone while standing like a statue. He was in no position to defend Rondo even if he was 3'11". You gotta be better than that CB!!!
So, to give this guy some pressure so he'll level Rajon to the floor during the playoffs (just kidding, I love Rondo,don't want him to get hurt). I'm crying out for trades usually because I love trades. The excitement to see new players work together and how they fit together, you know, it just amazes me.
So, when I was looking for trade scenarios I was looking at what the Heat need and what they could do. Obviously CB can't be traded now, so it's all hypothetical. I never saw Bosh as a fit anyway, Wade and James were Jordan and Pippen (I figured it would chance every other game) but who would Bosh be?? Rodman? Yeah, right! I'd like the Heat to get two guys in return, maybe one energy Big Man and one true PG, that's what you can get for Bosh!
1. Bosh for Josh Smith and a PG
Ok, the Hawks have been doing ok. After a 6-0 start they've lost three in a row. Trade rumors have surrounded Smith pretty much all year. He would be the perfect fit, HE IS A RODMAN!! He's a great one on one defender, great shot blocker, a hard worker, if I just look how he developed from a nutscase to coveted player. He would get a lot of open looks and has proven he can knock down open jumpers, he's being criticized for those pull-ups and contested jumpers he's shooting way too often. This is the last year on his contract and the Hawks would probably pull the trigger if they got offered Chris Bosh because of his offensive potential. If Riles can get a PG out of the deal as well, it'd be perfect.
2. Bosh for Tyrus Thomas and 2 Boris Diaws
Again, that's an energy guy who doesn't need a lot of shots. He can knock down OPEN jumpers and has the athletic ability to change games. Throw in Diaw's expiring contract and even though he's way too heavy, he is an intelligent player who can make things happen by hitting cutters and slashers out of the high post. What are the biggest strengths of Wade and James? That's right, cutting and slashing!It's easy to score that way than off the dribble. Bosh might learn how to defend under Larry Brown. We've seen with guys like Rip Hamilton and Ray Allen that when players are put in the right system they show potential in areas you'd never thought they'd be good in.
3. Bosh for Gilbert Arenas and McGee
Energetic big man and an All-Star caliber Point Guard when healthy. Honestly, I wouldn't know how to stop the team if they made the trade happen. The Wiz would probably be hard-pressed to give up one of the rising Big Men in the league but they would get one of the most accomplished PF in the game. The Wizards haven't played defense ever since I can remember so why should their front office start caring now?
So, that's it for now! You see, I see the Heat with an energetic young PF and a better PG! Defense is an effort stat and CB is not putting in the effort. We'll see what happens in the upcoming weeks, but Chris, you gotta realize that, as long as you are the weakest link, people are starting to talk about trading you!
I know it's early in the season, the Heat are 6-4 (6-0 against bad teams, 0-4 against good teams) so naturally, people will be looking for the weakest link, which, at this point iiiiiis Chris Bosh!
I've never been a fan of Chris Bosh, I don't look at him as a Top 10 player in this league. Why? Well, he doesn't play defense, at all ... Look at Rondo's dunk I've honestly never seen an elite player looking at someone while standing like a statue. He was in no position to defend Rondo even if he was 3'11". You gotta be better than that CB!!!
So, to give this guy some pressure so he'll level Rajon to the floor during the playoffs (just kidding, I love Rondo,don't want him to get hurt). I'm crying out for trades usually because I love trades. The excitement to see new players work together and how they fit together, you know, it just amazes me.
So, when I was looking for trade scenarios I was looking at what the Heat need and what they could do. Obviously CB can't be traded now, so it's all hypothetical. I never saw Bosh as a fit anyway, Wade and James were Jordan and Pippen (I figured it would chance every other game) but who would Bosh be?? Rodman? Yeah, right! I'd like the Heat to get two guys in return, maybe one energy Big Man and one true PG, that's what you can get for Bosh!
1. Bosh for Josh Smith and a PG
Ok, the Hawks have been doing ok. After a 6-0 start they've lost three in a row. Trade rumors have surrounded Smith pretty much all year. He would be the perfect fit, HE IS A RODMAN!! He's a great one on one defender, great shot blocker, a hard worker, if I just look how he developed from a nutscase to coveted player. He would get a lot of open looks and has proven he can knock down open jumpers, he's being criticized for those pull-ups and contested jumpers he's shooting way too often. This is the last year on his contract and the Hawks would probably pull the trigger if they got offered Chris Bosh because of his offensive potential. If Riles can get a PG out of the deal as well, it'd be perfect.
2. Bosh for Tyrus Thomas and 2 Boris Diaws
Again, that's an energy guy who doesn't need a lot of shots. He can knock down OPEN jumpers and has the athletic ability to change games. Throw in Diaw's expiring contract and even though he's way too heavy, he is an intelligent player who can make things happen by hitting cutters and slashers out of the high post. What are the biggest strengths of Wade and James? That's right, cutting and slashing!It's easy to score that way than off the dribble. Bosh might learn how to defend under Larry Brown. We've seen with guys like Rip Hamilton and Ray Allen that when players are put in the right system they show potential in areas you'd never thought they'd be good in.
3. Bosh for Gilbert Arenas and McGee
Energetic big man and an All-Star caliber Point Guard when healthy. Honestly, I wouldn't know how to stop the team if they made the trade happen. The Wiz would probably be hard-pressed to give up one of the rising Big Men in the league but they would get one of the most accomplished PF in the game. The Wizards haven't played defense ever since I can remember so why should their front office start caring now?
So, that's it for now! You see, I see the Heat with an energetic young PF and a better PG! Defense is an effort stat and CB is not putting in the effort. We'll see what happens in the upcoming weeks, but Chris, you gotta realize that, as long as you are the weakest link, people are starting to talk about trading you!
Friday, February 26, 2010
Steph Curry humiliates The Birdman
Man, this play is just as good as the most thunderous throwdown by Lebron or Dwight!
Sunday, February 7, 2010
Close look at Magic-Celtics
Second Halftime Magic-Celtics
Okay, I missed the first half of the game because I was travelling but I wanna try covering the second half. I caught the last 2 minutes and I can say Rajon Rondo continues to impress me a lot and with Chris Paul being injured right now, I feel comfortable calling him the best pure young Point Guard of the NBA. Even though I’m focused on the Pistons I am curious seeing those two teams and therefore decided to take a closer look at this game! It’s also at a convenient time for me, since its only 10pm! So the second half starts in a few minutes I’ll get right to it!
3rd Quarter:
Howard needs to stay out of foul trouble and the Magic need to take care of the ball then they should be fine to win this thing and turn it around.
This is a very winnable game for the Magic. They are still within reach although Howard has only played 7 minutes in the first half. It looked like Stan van Gundy told his team to go into Howard early and he delivered connecting on a righty-hook, a 15-foot jumper off-glass and several free throws he got because Kendrick Perkins decided to respect his new-found jumper.
Rajon Rondo had a nice assist for an alley-oop and a rare three-pointer, but Vince Carter answered right back with a three of his own when KG got lost defending a pick-and-roll play guarding Rashard Lewis. Howard just committed his 4th foul and I really think he should’ve let Rondo go and get the lay-in. What good does it do to have him sit on the bench in foul trouble. He has to learn to control his defense and just foul when it’s appropriate. He has the quickness but really needs to work on his decision-making. Stan van Gundy decides to still play him, deciding to get him a rhythm. Let’s see if it pays off.
Howard just blocked a dunk attempt by Kendrick Perkins, I’m sure SVGs hard just stopped looking at that, but it was a clean one and Rashard ties the game at 60 causing Doc Rivers to take a time-out. So the Magic barely needed a few minutes to erase a 10-point deficit. Nice work!
Ok, I wrote down the last 4 minutes and most of the possession and jotted them down after Rasheed Wallace entered the game because I had heard he makes the C’s worse defensively and since I’ve only known him as good defender from Pistons times I was curious. Here is what happened when he entered the game.
Open 3-pointer made, open 3-pointer made, wide open lay-up due to slow help by Sheed, 2 FTM by Lewis fouled by Sheed, Lewis misses wide-open 12-foot jump shot and Sheed misses a three badly on the other side, another wide open lay-up this time by Jason Williams and to close it a stupid foul by Eddie House with time winding down … So 60-60 turns into 76-62.
So the announcers said that the Cs starters were the reason for the deficit. Well, the starters surrendered the lead but when Wallace entered the game so he could provide a spark offensively and defensively, nothing really happened. He missed rotations and rotated slow in most of the other cases. I can’t help but to think that he’s not the player he used to be and that the effort he gave Detroit might not have been because he wasn’t motivated, he’s just not that good anymore and relying too much on long jumpers and three pointers.
4th Quarter:
So the Magic started the fourth period just like the had played in the third. They knocked down two threes continuing to push the lead. Rivers kept his starters out for an extended time, I think about until there were five minutes to go and the defense improved for Boston, but to be frank, it couldn’t get a lot worse. Pierce, KG and Rondo re-entered the game when the score was 89-76, and they almost crawled their way back into this one, only trailing by 5 at one point.
Howard picked up his 5th foul on a bonehead foul. It was a clear path for KG on a fast break and instead of letting him dunk it and just move on he decided to foul him and give him the bucket. If he fouls he can’t let him score, if he fouls him that hard, he’ll get a flagrant so not fouling would look like the best choice also because the Magic need him on the floor and he would’ve had one more foul to give before fouling out and that late in the game an extra foul is a very valuable asset, right?
Matt Barnes gave the perfect example for a good foul. With about 40 seconds to play, Garnett had a wide open dunk but Barnes recovered and fouled him hard sending him to the line. KG knocked down both but it could’ve been a game-changing play. If KG slams it home the crowd gets into it and the Magic didn’t want that happening. Also the Magic had time to calm down. Garnett knocked down both and Orlando could bring the ball up very slowly and take a last second shot which Lewis knocked down in the face of the D. I’m sure SVG didn’t design the play as it was executed but JJ Redick did a hell of a job passing the ball out of the double team and Orlando in general did a good job running the shot clock down. That play was the absolute dagger and the Magic went on to win it 96-89.
So, the watching both teams a little more up-close gave me a few hints. I focused on the Magic a little more but I can see were both teams will struggle and won’t struggle. The announce said they think in a seven-game series the Celtics will win over the Magic easily, I strongly disagree. The Celtics have an aging cast and, KG might come back to his old self but the Cs offense depends on Rondo running the show and Pierce chipping in at the end of games. Their bench is not as strong as one would’ve tought before the season and the wear and tear is only going to increase during the rest of the season and the playoffs and the Magic have a deeper and younger roster.
As for Orlando. I think they are the team to beat! Period. You can talk about Cleveland and Lebron all you want, but if Dwight Howard keeps on getting at hitting those 15-footers off-glass รก la Tim Duncan, there’s no way in hell Shaq or Big Z will be able to stop him down low. Lebron was bothered by Howard’s size down low during last years playoffs and although his jumper is really going right now, he won’t be knocking down those 40-foot three-pointers in the playoffs, I just don’t see it. The Cavs were really good around this time last year too and during the first round of the playoffs, they are going to have to prove themselves against a team like the Magic or the Hawks in a seven-game series. I’m sorry Cleveland, but I just don’t see it.
Alright, that’s it for me, thanks for reading!
Okay, I missed the first half of the game because I was travelling but I wanna try covering the second half. I caught the last 2 minutes and I can say Rajon Rondo continues to impress me a lot and with Chris Paul being injured right now, I feel comfortable calling him the best pure young Point Guard of the NBA. Even though I’m focused on the Pistons I am curious seeing those two teams and therefore decided to take a closer look at this game! It’s also at a convenient time for me, since its only 10pm! So the second half starts in a few minutes I’ll get right to it!
3rd Quarter:
Howard needs to stay out of foul trouble and the Magic need to take care of the ball then they should be fine to win this thing and turn it around.
This is a very winnable game for the Magic. They are still within reach although Howard has only played 7 minutes in the first half. It looked like Stan van Gundy told his team to go into Howard early and he delivered connecting on a righty-hook, a 15-foot jumper off-glass and several free throws he got because Kendrick Perkins decided to respect his new-found jumper.
Rajon Rondo had a nice assist for an alley-oop and a rare three-pointer, but Vince Carter answered right back with a three of his own when KG got lost defending a pick-and-roll play guarding Rashard Lewis. Howard just committed his 4th foul and I really think he should’ve let Rondo go and get the lay-in. What good does it do to have him sit on the bench in foul trouble. He has to learn to control his defense and just foul when it’s appropriate. He has the quickness but really needs to work on his decision-making. Stan van Gundy decides to still play him, deciding to get him a rhythm. Let’s see if it pays off.
Howard just blocked a dunk attempt by Kendrick Perkins, I’m sure SVGs hard just stopped looking at that, but it was a clean one and Rashard ties the game at 60 causing Doc Rivers to take a time-out. So the Magic barely needed a few minutes to erase a 10-point deficit. Nice work!
Ok, I wrote down the last 4 minutes and most of the possession and jotted them down after Rasheed Wallace entered the game because I had heard he makes the C’s worse defensively and since I’ve only known him as good defender from Pistons times I was curious. Here is what happened when he entered the game.
Open 3-pointer made, open 3-pointer made, wide open lay-up due to slow help by Sheed, 2 FTM by Lewis fouled by Sheed, Lewis misses wide-open 12-foot jump shot and Sheed misses a three badly on the other side, another wide open lay-up this time by Jason Williams and to close it a stupid foul by Eddie House with time winding down … So 60-60 turns into 76-62.
So the announcers said that the Cs starters were the reason for the deficit. Well, the starters surrendered the lead but when Wallace entered the game so he could provide a spark offensively and defensively, nothing really happened. He missed rotations and rotated slow in most of the other cases. I can’t help but to think that he’s not the player he used to be and that the effort he gave Detroit might not have been because he wasn’t motivated, he’s just not that good anymore and relying too much on long jumpers and three pointers.
4th Quarter:
So the Magic started the fourth period just like the had played in the third. They knocked down two threes continuing to push the lead. Rivers kept his starters out for an extended time, I think about until there were five minutes to go and the defense improved for Boston, but to be frank, it couldn’t get a lot worse. Pierce, KG and Rondo re-entered the game when the score was 89-76, and they almost crawled their way back into this one, only trailing by 5 at one point.
Howard picked up his 5th foul on a bonehead foul. It was a clear path for KG on a fast break and instead of letting him dunk it and just move on he decided to foul him and give him the bucket. If he fouls he can’t let him score, if he fouls him that hard, he’ll get a flagrant so not fouling would look like the best choice also because the Magic need him on the floor and he would’ve had one more foul to give before fouling out and that late in the game an extra foul is a very valuable asset, right?
Matt Barnes gave the perfect example for a good foul. With about 40 seconds to play, Garnett had a wide open dunk but Barnes recovered and fouled him hard sending him to the line. KG knocked down both but it could’ve been a game-changing play. If KG slams it home the crowd gets into it and the Magic didn’t want that happening. Also the Magic had time to calm down. Garnett knocked down both and Orlando could bring the ball up very slowly and take a last second shot which Lewis knocked down in the face of the D. I’m sure SVG didn’t design the play as it was executed but JJ Redick did a hell of a job passing the ball out of the double team and Orlando in general did a good job running the shot clock down. That play was the absolute dagger and the Magic went on to win it 96-89.
So, the watching both teams a little more up-close gave me a few hints. I focused on the Magic a little more but I can see were both teams will struggle and won’t struggle. The announce said they think in a seven-game series the Celtics will win over the Magic easily, I strongly disagree. The Celtics have an aging cast and, KG might come back to his old self but the Cs offense depends on Rondo running the show and Pierce chipping in at the end of games. Their bench is not as strong as one would’ve tought before the season and the wear and tear is only going to increase during the rest of the season and the playoffs and the Magic have a deeper and younger roster.
As for Orlando. I think they are the team to beat! Period. You can talk about Cleveland and Lebron all you want, but if Dwight Howard keeps on getting at hitting those 15-footers off-glass รก la Tim Duncan, there’s no way in hell Shaq or Big Z will be able to stop him down low. Lebron was bothered by Howard’s size down low during last years playoffs and although his jumper is really going right now, he won’t be knocking down those 40-foot three-pointers in the playoffs, I just don’t see it. The Cavs were really good around this time last year too and during the first round of the playoffs, they are going to have to prove themselves against a team like the Magic or the Hawks in a seven-game series. I’m sorry Cleveland, but I just don’t see it.
Alright, that’s it for me, thanks for reading!
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