NBA 2012: Running thread

Boozer ... defense ... ???

 

I said can... not does. He's OK if the guy isn't stronger than he is, but when he has to face up against, say, David West, forget it. Maybe Thibs' grand plan is to bring in Bargnani to force guys like West to play 20 feet out?

Boozer is just one of those eternally frustrating players. He's got talent, and he can put together some great numbers. But he disappears so often, especially in big moments, that it drives you nuts. At least he stopped spray-painting his head.

 

Oh, God. That's perfect. That being said I'd rather have him than Bargnani.

 

Boozer - $14M/yr for 2 more years;

Bargnani $9/yr for 3?? yrs.

 

Actually, both of them have contracts expiring in 2014-15, and Bargnani is making only a few million less.

 

Greg Oden gingerly steps back into the NBA.

http://www.1070thefan.com/news/story.aspx?ID=1883987

 

If, and it's a big if, he can stay away from injuries, he could be an OK big guy in the league. OK being defined as scoring a few points, grabbing a few boards and mostly taking up space.

 

Dwight Howard's dad puts in his two cents: "The problem is the coach. (D’Antoni) needs to step in and say, ‘You guys have got to be quiet. We’re trying to secure something here. Dwight is probably looking at the coach, thinking, ‘What are you going to do?’ I promise, if that had been Stan Van Gundy, that wouldn’t have happened. (Howard) wouldn’t have been admonished publicly. I think the coach has a lot to do with who controls Kobe’s mouth right now."

http://www.ajc.com/weblogs/jeff-schultz/2013/feb/08/dwight-howards-father-comes-his-defense-would-he-s/

Leaves out the whole 2012 Van Gundy-Howard feud (which was awesome).

Dwight's quickly taking on the "not worth the drama" tag.

 

I guess daddy doesn't understand: no one controls Kobe's mouth. It has always been this way.

When a guy regarded as one of the hardest workers in the league, and one of the greatest players in the history of one of sport's greatest franchises, says you need to accomplish a certain something . . . you should probably listen, especially if you're 27 and haven't won anything, ever.

Except some AAU tourneys. Those Atlanta Celtics, with Howard and Josh Smith, were fun to watch.

Dwight Howard is not worth the drama to any team. He would make an excellent third option on a contender.

 

I agree with you. I may not be the biggest fan of Bryant, but I do respect the work he's put in and his accomplishments - especially in comparison to Howard.

 

Inside this great story on Jay Williams and his struggle to overcome being a fucking dumbass with his motorcycle comes this gem:

He went from regimented Duke, with every day planned to the minute, into a looser environment, with millions of dollars in his bank account and more free time than hobbies with which to fill it.

“I didn’t know how to handle it at first,” Williams said. “I didn’t know how to be around it. Guys were on the bench, trying to kick it to girls in the stands, having ball boys run over. I mean, some guys were high.”

Asked to clarify, Williams said: “There were guys smoking weed before games. Guys asking in the middle of the game, ‘Do you smell popcorn?’ ”

He noticed the nervous laughter around the kitchen table. “You think I’m playing,” Williams said. “Can you imagine! Guys are gambling. They’re playing dice in the back of the plane for money. Like, we just lost by 30 tonight! And we’ve got a game tomorrow! It bugged me out.”

Still, Williams did not live like a monk back then. He attended the rookie symposium and listened to little of what was said. He fell into a lifestyle he described as “typical” of the N.B.A. He took private planes to Las Vegas with his friends, gambled, frequented nightclubs, fought with his parents. “I lost who I was,” Williams said.

Hey, Jalen "Jordan Was Hung Over" Rose was on that team. Would he care to explain?

 

http://www.basketball-reference.com/teams/CHI/2003.html

If I had to guess ...

Eddy Curry
Eddie Robinson
Jamal Crawford
Marcus Fizer

Probably not the appropriately named Corey Blount, though.