2010-2011 NBA Season

All you needed to do was see them dunk to know they were not similiar players.

I just had no idea Griffin had so much more to his game.

 

And that's why Griffin is a budding NBA star, while Hansbrough is in danger of becoming the bust he was long predicted to be. Hansbrough still tries to muscle his way through three guys in the paint, and he's just not strong enough or mobile enough to do it at the NBA level.

Meanwhile, I predict that the Griffin-mouthpiece-half-in-the-mouth pose will be this generation's Jordan tongue.

 

As good as Griffin's been, and he's really really good, Eric Gordon is the one that's been a bit of a surprise to him. I did not anticipate him being a 24-points-a-game scorer. Great foundation with those two, inside-outside. So, in keeping with Clippers tradition, which one will suffer a devastating injury first?

 

Griffin has so much strength to combine with his hops and his quickness. His left to right tomahawk dunks with his right hand have been the signature play of this basketball year. He's been so fun to watch (and I'm not a Clips fan at all.) I loved the way he handled that run-in with Lamar Odom, his facial expression was wonderful, "what do you want small man?"

Watched Hansbrough last night from the second row courtside and he's got some game. Warriors are not the biggest but its not like Hansbrough was playing against a Don Nelson little team; he was doing it against David Lee, the former All-Star. He's not as short as you'd think and he's pretty strong with a good touch. Fell into the NBA hole I never can figure out, Hansbrough plays 8-10 mins and scores 12 in the first quarter then ends up with 16 because he sits down and never ever really gets into the game ever again (24 mins. total). Why does this happen?

 

I really don't see how anyone could have watched both Griffin and Hansbrough play in college and then come away thinking they'd be similar in the pros. Hansbrough had a very good college game, but there was no way it was going to translate that well to the pros. Griffin has always had that electrifying athleticism and he's ridiculously strong.

I'm with STG in that Gordon has been the surprise for me. I never thought he'd be this good in the NBA.

 

Fortunately, LeBron James' fingernail-gnawing never really caught on.

 

Is Ron Harper the leader in the clubhouse?

 

A big problem, and I say this as a hopeless Pacers fanboi, is that Jim O'Brien has no fucking clue what he's doing. One night, he's playing the young guys no matter what. One night, he's not playing the young guys, no matter what. One night, he starts the young guys, then takes them out for the rest of game... you get the idea. You don't get the sense everyone is playing loose. I think O'Brien's yo-yoing is making Roy Hibbert's slump worse, and a lack of cohesion certainly has to be one reason the Pacers keep gacking in the fourth quarter.

Maybe I was a bit harsh in labeling Hansbrough a bust, but I can understand some of why he ends up sitting a lot. Mostly, it's defense and positioning. Hansbrough was scoring on Lee, but Lee was scoring even more on him. Also, this is effectively Hansbrough's rookie year because he missed most of last year. Hansbrough is strong but not power-forward strong, so he's going to struggle a lot of nights defensively.

 

Jim O'Brien canned as Pacers head coach:

http://www.indystar.com/article/20110130/SPORTS04/110130005/Pacers-fire-head-coach-Jim-O-Brien?odyssey=mod|breaking|text|IndyStar.com

It wouldn't shock me if Larry Bird is out after this season. He had an interview with Fanhouse during which he didn't exactly seem like he had a fire in his belly for the job as team president. Although, maybe he does want to stay, because if Bird didn't fire O'Brien, I suspect there would have been serious talks about sending Bird out the door. Hopefully, the Pacers can get a coach who can work with what is actually a halfway-decent collection of young talent that has grown listless with O'Brien's lack of clear direction. Presser is at 4 p.m. local time today, and there is some speculation that Bird himself might return to the bench.

 

Mark Jackson becomes the latest media member to act like a dunce regarding the Shaq/Kobe feud.

No, Mark Jackson, they would NOT "have won . . .well, you can't even count how many more championships they would have won!" When the breakup happened, Shaq was 32, fat and unmotivated to do anything other than just show up every year after an offseason of eat and drink. The pairing was finished winning titles. You and Bill Plaschke need to stop.

 

Agreed. And I'll add that Gasol never would've landed in LA if Shaq had stayed (nor would they have drafted Bynum). No Gasol, no rings these last two years. It resulted in a couple lean years in between, but Shaq leaving ended up being the best thing for LA.

 

In a way, Shaq should thank Kobe for injecting some life into his fat butt. He never wins a fourth title if he stays in LA because he would have continued to eat White Castle and play at around 400 pounds. He also wouldn't have received that ridiculous $33-million extension. Altough half of that probably went to his ex-wife so maybe she's the one who should thank Kobe for refusing to play with Shaq anymore.