NBA Offseason Thread

[dh86 0]

BS....Rasheed was given free reign to shoot the ball under Larry Brown...he was in the post as much then as now....

 

So why do we have a gang of Pistons fans complaining about how he's stopped going into the post and become a 6-11 2 guard? He attempted 434 deep balls this past season. That's almost TWO HUNDRED MORE than the year before!!!

 

Rasheed Wallace isn't the problem though. I place the blame for that squarely on Flip Saunders. He's a 'players coach' which is NBA code word for 'guy who can't coach for shit but he's nice to the players so they resist the urge to mutiny'. He's never gotten a team to perform to it's full potential, and players fall into bad habits under him.

 

Larry Brown's problem in NY? Hoooooooboy.....we can start with the oil and water relationship with "the best PG in the nba" and end with the abortion of a front office.....but let's just say he was a better fit in Detroit and leave it at that.

 

Rasheed rarely goes in the post to start with....I cant honestly place the blame on Flip Saunders..could he have coached better? yes...but Ben Wallace refusing to go back in the game in Orlando was the single worst thing a player can do...Flip did what he could with a team that didnt like Larry Brown because he "took all of the credit"...the players were the ones taking the jump shots and its Dumars fault for making a flawed roster...people wanna fire Flip Saunders..but who do they wanna hire? Rick Adelman?.....bring back Larry??? even though the owner hates him?..who?

[Precious Roy 0]

A FLAWED ROSTER?!?! It was basically the same roster that won them a championship and got them to the Finals last year. Those teams never had great benches, just some capable veterans who knew their roles, and this year's edition was more of the same.

 

Ben Wallace refused to go back in that game because he was obviously FED UP with Saunders. Do you think it would have ever reached that point with Larry Brown coaching the team? Or Rick Carlisle? Flip got outcoached by MIKE BROWN of all people. A guy in his second year as a head coach. And Pat Riley absolutely handed him his ass. If you can't match wits with Pat Riley you ain't winning a championship.

 

Who should they hire? I don't know. But I do know they can do better than Flip.

[Guest]

With what is out there right now, they can't do better than Flip, unless they went to Stan Van Gundy. There's a big shortage of quality coaching, and it shows.

 

I agree with the rest.

[Precious Roy 0]

With what is out there right now, they can't do better than Flip.

 

I don't agree with that. Some of the best coaches come out of nowhere. Pat Riley was a commentator when he was given the Lakers job. Phil Jackson was coaching in the CBA. AVERY JOHNSON has turned out to be one of the best coaches in the league, and the sweat hasn't even dried off his playing career. Scottie Pippen and Mario Ellie are looking to become coaches....who's to say they won't be great at it? There's bound to be some guys coaching college ball who are ready to make the jump. Of the name guys who are known quantities....ok, it's kind of thin, but creativity in hiring a coach often pays off. Flip Saunders was a very conservative pick, but you can't say his failures in Minnesota are a fluke anymore, he took a playoff tested, veteran team, probably the best starting 5 in the league....and they underachieved. If I were a Pistons fan I'd find that unacceptable...hell, I just find it unacceptable as a basketball fan.

[Edwin MacPhisto 0]

I still can't believe that anyone seriously wants to get rid of Flip Saunders now. I mean, 64 wins and the conference finals. No, it's not losing in the NBA finals, but c'mon. Give the guy another year.

[Precious Roy 0]

I still can't believe that anyone seriously wants to get rid of Flip Saunders now. I mean, 64 wins and the conference finals. No, it's not losing in the NBA finals, but c'mon. Give the guy another year.

 

I wouldn't get rid of the guy if simply for the fact that if you're going to hire a guy you should give him AT LEAST 2 seasons to coach the team.

 

But I wouldn't have hired him in the first place, it had disaster written all over it. I don't care about the regular season record, or how many Pistons made the all-star team....all that matters in the NBA is MAKING the playoffs and PERFORMING in the playoffs....and the Pistons performed like a team on cruise control that had no respect for themselves, their opponents, or their coach. The Pistons have a fucking great team, there's no reason for them to not be in the Finals, there was no reason for them to get dominated by the Heat the way they did, and there was NO reason for the Cavs to take them to 7 games.

[Ripper 0]

All I got to say is this, the Heat pushed the "INCREDIBLY GREAT LARRY BROWN PISTONS" to the edge of being put out the playoffs 4-2 last year two. But what was the difference? Was it the coach? NO. It was Shaq and Dwayne Wade both being hurt thus losing in 7.

 

People pretending there is some huge change in the team are ignoring that fact. A healthy Wade and Shaq and the Pistons would have been gone in 6 last year just like this year.

 

Flip didn't make the Pistons a worse team. The players made it a worse team. What the fuck did Ben Wallace have to be fed up with? "I am tired of not being apart of the offense at crucial times in the game." THat was what he was bitching about. This fucker shoots 2% from the free throw line and is whining about Flip pulling him out on a offense/defense situation. Just because Larry Brown used to leave him in. I am sorry but you can't possibly take Ben's side on that one.

 

Yeah, Rasheed turned into Mr. 3 pointer this year and wouldn't go to the post. But look at his 3 point numbers for the last few years. He has been drifting back there more and more and more every year. Whats even worse, him standing back there stops RIp from getting as open as he could be.

 

Like I said, if the Pistons could knock down WIDE OPEN jump shots, they would be in the finals right now. Completely uncontested jump shots weren't falling. That isn't bad coaching, thats bad shooting. Plus being unmotivated in the NBA playoffs isn't your coachs fault. I don't see how 5 guys who know they aren't going to get pulled even if they play like crap can be unmotivated in the fucking playoffs. Grow up and fucking play.

[Guest NYankees]

Posted in the wrong thread.

[alfdogg 0]

Here's the latest mock draft, from Chad Ford at ESPN

 

1. Toronto - Andrea Bargnani (7-0, PF, Italy)

2. Chicago - Tyrus Thomas (6-9, PF, LSU)

3. Charlotte - Rudy Gay (6-9, SF, UConn)

4. Portland - Adam Morrison (6-8, SF, Gonzaga)

5. Atlanta - LaMarcus Aldridge (6-10, PF, Texas)

6. Minnesota - Marcus Williams (6-3, PG, UConn)

7. Boston - Brandon Roy (6-5, SG, Washington)

8. Houston - J.J. Redick (6-4, SG, Duke)

9. Golden State - Patrick O'Bryant (7-0, C, Bradley)

10. Seattle - Shelden Williams (6-9, PF, Duke)

11. Orlando - Ronnie Brewer (6-7, SG, Arkansas)

12. NO/OK - Cedric Simmons (6-9, PF, NC State)

13. Philadelphia - Randy Foye (6-4, SG, Villanova)

14. Utah - Mouhamed Saer Sene (7-0, C, Senegal)

15. NO/OK - Rodney Carney (6-7, SF, Memphis)

16. Chicago - Thabo Sefolosha (6-6, SF, Switzerland)

17. Indiana - Hilton Armstrong (6-11, C, UConn)

18. Washington - Rajon Rondo (6-2, PG, Kentucky)

19. Sacramento - Sergio Rodriguez (6-3, PG, Spain)

20. New York - Shawne Williams (6-9, SF, Memphis)

21. Phoenix - Olexsiy Pecherov (6-11, PF, Ukraine)

22. New Jersey - Kyle Lowry (6-0, PG, Villanova)

23. New Jersey - Alexander Johnson (6-10, PF, Florida St.)

24. Memphis - Shannon Brown (6-3, SG, Michigan St.)

25. Cleveland - Jordan Farmar (6-2, PG, UCLA)

26. LA Lakers - Guillermo Diaz (6-3, SG, Miami (FL))

27. Phoenix - Quincy Douby (6-3, SG, Rutgers)

28. Dallas - Marcus Vinicius (6-9, SF, Brazil)

29. New York - Josh Boone (6-10, C, UConn)

30. Portland - Aaron Gray (7-0, C, Pitt)

[Ripper 0]

I think this is going to a be a fun draft seeing as noone has any idea who the other is going to take. Every Mock Draft is ridiculously different.

[naiwf 0]

Here's the latest mock draft, from Chad Ford at ESPN

 

8. Houston - J.J. Redick (6-4, SG, Duke)

 

I'm not trying to be funny, but was this published before or after JJ's arrest?

[Ripper 0]

I don't care if he killed someone, if the Rockets don't get SOMEONE that can hit a outside shot, they need to just sell the team.

[Brett Favre 0]

I really hope the Knicks draft Shannon Brown. I know, we have like 20 guards, but you gotta send them away. The league is becoming a position less league, where its all about talent, and Brown has a shitload of talent.

[alfdogg 0]

Here's the latest mock draft, from Chad Ford at ESPN

 

8. Houston - J.J. Redick (6-4, SG, Duke)

 

I'm not trying to be funny, but was this published before or after JJ's arrest?

before

[Art Sandusky 0]

I really hope the Knicks draft Shannon Brown. I know, we have like 20 guards, but you gotta send them away. The league is becoming a position less league, where its all about talent, and Brown has a shitload of talent.

Not completely. I still think the Bulls would've been better this year with a good big man. Hinrich, Duhon, Gordon, Nocioni, et al are all talented, but without a bona fide center, their growth as a team is stunted, I feel.

[Adam 0]

Now, call me crazy, and I know you all will, but I wanted to propose a trade, and you can tell me what you think. I was listening to the fantastic sports journalism that is MySportsRadio.com (!) and they were discussing the prospect of Shawn Marion being traded. Now, I was playing fantasy GM myself, and wondering what deals the Suns could do in the offseason for Marion. With Amare coming back, Diaw could play at the 3, leaving Phoenix only needing a guy to start at the 2. So, I thought about this:

 

To Phoenix:

Gerald Wallace

Brevin Knight

Second Round Pick

 

To Charlotte:

Shawn Marion

James Jones

 

Now, the Bobcats want to deal Brevin, and I think he'd be a good fit in Phoenix. A very solid backup point guard, who was top 10 in the League in steals last year, providing a defensive influence on the back court. And Gerald Wallace became one of the most efficient defensive players in the East by averaging 2 steals and 2 blocks per game for the year (albeit on 55 games). The closest to matching that stat was none other than Marion himself, who had 2 steals and 1.7 blocks per game in the regular season.

 

The best part about this trade is that Charlotte gets a Franchise player without giving up its 3rd pick. Now I doubt Phoenix would do a deal for Marion that doesn't involve a draft pick, but I'd like your input. Would Marion even agree to go to Charlotte? Would Wallace and Knight fit in Phoenix? Would having Marion, along with a fit Okafor, a starting Felton, and another starter in the third pick (perhaps Aldridge who can start at the 4, with Okafor at Centre and Marion at SF), make the Bobcats a decent team in the East?

 

Just something I thought up then. Feel free to tell me I'm an idiot for even suggesting it.

[Ripper 0]

One, Raja Bell is the starter at the two. Second...trading Shawn Marion for Gerald Wallace is basically trading Shawn Marion for a slightly less effective offensive player and basically the same on defense...oh...and he Shawn plays 82 games a year and Gerald plays about 60 games.

 

Bad trade for the suns. James Jones and Kurt THomas and MAYBE Eddie House are all trade bait for the Suns to get a backup point guard. They can use their two first round picks for the future.

 

I actually was looking at Brevin Knight as a viable backup point and yeah...he is a good choice, but not for Marion.

[Failed Bridge 0]

So the rumor around here is

 

Bulls get Paul Pierce and the number 7 pick

 

Celtics get Luol Deng, the number 2 pick and the number 16 pick

 

with Pierce in his final year I'd consider that deal. I'd pull the trigger for sure if Ben Gordon replaced Luol Deng in it.

[Cheech Tremendous 0]

Other rumors that have been floating around various newspapers around the country:

 

- Jermaine O'Neal to the Bulls (for #2 pick) or Raptors (for #1 pick)

- Kevin Garnett to Kings for Brad Miller, Kenny Thomas and Bonzi Wells

[Art Sandusky 0]

So the rumor around here is

 

Bulls get Paul Pierce and the number 7 pick

 

Celtics get Luol Deng, the number 2 pick and the number 16 pick

 

with Pierce in his final year I'd consider that deal. I'd pull the trigger for sure if Ben Gordon replaced Luol Deng in it.

What does Danny Ainge do with all these draft picks? Stockpile them in a bomb shelter?

 

Psh. Deng for Pierce is a baaaad deal. Don't touch the nucleus of this Bulls team. And Gordon for Pierce? Are you crazy?

[Failed Bridge 0]

I'm hoping that one day Danny Ainge will make it so he has so many first round picks that they'll have to have cardboard cut-outs of him at numerous tables during the draft lottery.

 

and I'm not crazy...just wishful.

[Art Sandusky 0]

Danny Ainge is a Mormon, who generally already have a real cardboard cutout quality to them.

[Danville_Wrestling 0]

14. Utah - Mouhamed Saer Sene (7-0, C, Senegal)

 

Does anyone know who in the hell this guy is? It seems that day by day my Utah Jazz have morphed into an international basketball club. Do we have an aversion to signing domestic talent these days or what?

[Guest]

He has a humongous wingspan, big project player and a Samuel Dalembert type.

 

He's only played basketball for 2-4 years. I like his upside.

[alfdogg 0]

CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Michael Jordan is back in the NBA, resuming his basketball career in the state where it started.

 

Jordan became part-owner of the Charlotte Bobcats on Thursday in a deal that gives him a stake in most of majority partner Robert Johnson's ventures.

 

Jordan's investment makes him second only to Johnson as the largest individual owner of the Bobcats.

 

Johnson, who spent $300 million on the expansion Bobcats in 2002, said Jordan will be the managing member of basketball operations.

 

"Ever since I acquired the Bobcats franchise, one of my goals has been to get Michael Jordan to become my partner in operating the team," Johnson said. "I don't think I have to make the case for Michael's basketball expertise, his knowledge or his competitiveness as a player.

 

"I am very excited to have a native North Carolinian be a part of the Bobcats and excited to have a friend of mine -- who I have absolute confidence in -- oversee our basketball personnel decision making process."

 

Jordan, who led the Chicago Bulls to six NBA championships and won five MVP awards, bought into Johnson's existing portfolio. The founder of BET has financial interests in several media, entertainment and financial services, and became the first black owner in the NBA when he beat out a Larry Bird-backed group for Charlotte's new team.

 

He tried from the get-go to bring Jordan into the fold, offering him any position he wanted with the team -- except majority owner. Jordan eventually passed, citing his desire to pursue ownership in his own team.

 

Now, with Johnson in the midst of a major management shake-up on his fledgling team, he's bringing in the greatest NBA player ever to help.

 

"I'm excited to join Bob, and invest alongside one of the most astute businessmen I know," Jordan said. "I am also looking forward to providing my advice, where needed, to Bobcats management in order to put the best possible team on the court."

 

Jordan's involvement was largely welcomed across NBA.

 

Commissioner David Stern said he was "elated to have Michael back in the league," while Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban offered up some immediate advice.

 

"Welcome to my world, Michael," he said. "Get out the checkbook."

 

Charlotte guard Raymond Felton, like Jordan a North Carolina alum, was hopeful that Jordan's involvement will carry over onto the court.

 

"He's known as the best player to ever play this game -- he'll be a big asset to this team," Felton said. "He's going to be a guy who's probably going to come down and talk junk to us a lot and mess with us, but he's a great man.

 

"I think he'll be at a lot of practices with us, messing with us, he might even practice with us some time."

 

The move comes two weeks after Johnson began a house-cleaning project that ousted team president and CEO Ed Tapscott, followed by the firings of the top marketing and operations officers.

 

Johnson gave no reason for the removals, but was believed to be unhappy with the business-side of the franchise because he was losing money and had a very small season-ticket base.

 

With Jordan now in the mix, he'll have one of the most beloved sports figure in state history by his side. But in giving Jordan the final say in basketball decisions, he's risking a repeat of the same mistakes Jordan made with the Washington Wizards from 2000 to 2003.

 

Jordan became part owner and president of the Wizards' basketball operations in 2000, and was criticized for selecting high schooler Kwame Brown with Washington's first overall pick in the 2001 draft.

 

He also came out of retirement and played two seasons for the Wizards, failing to make the playoffs before retiring again.

 

He assumed he would return to his front office job, but owner Abe Pollin instead fired him -- Jordan's first basketball setback since he was cut from the varsity high school team as a sophomore in Wilmington.

 

Johnson, who met Jordan at a Bulls game almost 17 years ago and struck up a lasting friendship, offered Jordan any job he wanted with his basketball team that same day.

 

Jordan mulled it over for close to four months before passing on the offer. He also tried to purchase a majority interest in the Milwaukee Bucks, but Sen. Herb Kohl ultimately decided not to sell.

 

Jordan had been largely out of sight since then. But now that he's back, he'll have to rebuild a fan base still bitter over the Hornets' departure to New Orleans in 2002 and fix several of Johnson's early missteps.

 

The Bobcats ranked 28th in attendance after their first season in the outdated Charlotte Coliseum, then moved into a new $265 million arena last season that has yet to secure naming rights. Though the arena received rave reviews, the Bobcats sold out only seven of 41 games and averaged 16,366 fans, 22nd in the NBA.

 

Even worse was their season ticket sales, which is believed to be right around 5,000 and third worst in the NBA. In response, Johnson announced the team would lower season ticket prices for next year.

 

Charlotte's product on the floor is also poor. The Bobcats went 18-64 in their first season, but improved to 26-56 and closed last year with a four-game winning streak despite numerous injuries.

[Gert T 0]

Not that he Jazz are a game or two away from the O'Brien Trophy, but I seriously hope they do not select someone who won't be a contributor for 3-5 years.

[Cheech Tremendous 0]

Some more offseason RUMORS, stolen and abbreviated from Hoopshype for your pleasure:

 

-Anyone, save Carmelo Anthony, is available on the Nuggets. Kenyon Martin is available for nothing, provided the team takes on his entire contract (Isiah Thomas, I am looking your way)

 

-Lakers are ready to move Andew Bynum, but there isn't much interest in him because no one is sure what he can do

 

-Jermaine O'Neal can be had for a top player, or a secondary player and a top draft pick. None of the top 4 in the draft are interested

 

-The Hawks are a likely destination for Allen Iverson, and any trade would likely center around Josh Smith or Marvin Williams

 

-A Jamaal Magloire for Charlie Villanueva swap is a possibility, but the Raptors are looking to add TJ Ford into the mix (good luck)

[naiwf 0]

Something makes me think AI would not report to Atlanta.

 

JO not getting any interest is precisely why Isiah should be fired since the Knicks would have had the # 2 AND the guys to make a trade work, but no, we needed Eddy Fucking Curry instead.

[Brett Favre 0]

JO is nice, but he's always hurt. I'm not sure if I'd trade the number two for him, maybe.

 

And Isiah doesn't want Kenyon Martin. Larry does.

[naiwf 0]

50% of JO is better than 100% of Eddy Curry. A legit franchise player is better than the collection of spare parts the Knicks have. Isiah doesn't think big picture and the Knicks continue to suffer for it.