duncan228
12-15-2008, 08:36 PM
Quarterly Report: Big Three, mediocre middle and oh, the rest (http://www.sportsline.com/nba/story/11173743)
By Ken Berger
The NBA passed the unofficial quarter pole over the weekend, which means my quarterly report to the shareholders is due. I can report that the state of the league is ... interesting?
Through 25 percent of the schedule, there are a handful of great teams (Boston, Cleveland, Lakers), lots of awful ones (you know who you are) and the usual assortment of contenders and pretenders.
Given the state of the economy, it seems unfair for the league to subject its loyal, paying customers to so much bad basketball. There's a lot of it being perpetrated on the viewing public, especially if you live in Minneapolis, Philadelphia, Washington, D.C., Oklahoma City, Sacramento -- basically anywhere but Boston, Cleveland, L.A., and 80 percent of the Southwest Division.
How bad is it? So bad that six teams -- one fifth of the league! -- have already fired their coaches. Reggie Theus became victim No. 6 on Monday morning in Sacramento, and more pink slips could be stuffed into stockings before Christmas. General managers are running out of scapegoats, though. There aren't many left after the untouchables (Doc Rivers, Phil Jackson, Mike Brown, Gregg Popovich, Jerry Sloan) and 13 more coaches who were either hired last summer or in the past few weeks.
Incredibly, people continue to pass through turnstiles at a dizzying pace -- or at least pay for tickets. Despite a recession that could last longer than it is taking the Nets to move to Brooklyn, paid attendance for 350 total games (17,089 through Sunday) was up slightly from the same point last season (17,040). Ticket sales are down 1.8 percent from last season's year-end average (17,395). Discount programs in the hardest-hit markets have something to do with the steady numbers; David Stern recognized that in a world bereft of golden eggs, a goose laying loose change will do.
So before another coach gets fired, here are the NBA's first-quarter results:
Playoff Picture: East
Hopes: These teams are going to the playoffs. You can write it down.
1. Boston Celtics: Sure, the Celtics take a quarter off now and then, but they're still the class of the conference. All that's missing is someone to impersonate James Posey.
2. Cleveland Cavaliers: The addition of Mo Williams and some creative offensive sets have combined to give LeBron James more freedom -- without any drop-off on the defensive end.
3. Orlando Magic: Underwhelming guard play is their Achilles' heel.
4. Atlanta Hawks: I thought Mike Woodson was supposed to have been fired, like, a year ago?
5. Miami Heat: Miami has surprisingly stayed above water, which presents an interesting dilemma: Keep Shawn Marion or trade him?
6. Detroit Pistons: The great A.I. experiment is all about clearing cap space. The Pistons, dysfunctional as ever, are on a collision course with a first-round exit.
7. New York Knicks: Finally free of all negative energy from past regimes, the Knicks are actually starting to play decent, mildly entertaining basketball. And they don't even have LeBron yet.
8. Chicago Bulls: Somebody has to be the eighth playoff team in the East, right? I'll put my money on Derrick Rose.
Mopes: These teams will have a shot, if everything breaks right.
1. Milwaukee Bucks: Scott Skiles has a nice young roster to work with. As soon as the Bucks get good enough to contend, he'll alienate the players with his grating style.
2. Toronto Raptors: Interim coach Jay Triano has to coax more defense and rebounding out of a group that showed no taste for either under Sam Mitchell.
3. New Jersey Nets: I feel bad that Devin Harris has to play in a lifeless building 41 nights a year, I really do.
Dopes: These teams are hopeless. But you knew that already.
1. Washington Wizards: Gilbert Arenas will get his once that balky knee recovers. Somebody has to score the points on a bad team.
2. Philadelphia 76ers: Don't worry, Coach DiLeo. Elton Brand will be 100 percent by the All-Star break.
3. Indiana Pacers: Exciting young talent (Danny Granger)? Check. Dynamic, 3-point shooting offense? Check. Six-game losing streak and .304 winning percentage? Check.
4. Charlotte Bobcats: Larry Brown is teaching these young kids how to play the right way. He's also teaching them something else: Don't unpack your bags.
Playoff Picture: West
Hopes: See above. These teams are in.
1. Los Angeles Lakers: Kobe Bryant thinks the Lakers are tough enough to knock off the Celtics. They'll have to get past the Spurs and Rockets first.
2. San Antonio Spurs: Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili are healthy again. And last time I checked, the Spurs still have Tim Duncan, right? Don't sleep on them.
3. New Orleans Hornets: The Hornets are starting to heat up, winning eight of 10 after struggling out of the gate with the addition of James Posey.
4. Houston Rockets: When the Rockets are good, they are very, very good. And when they're bad -- or just injured, which is most of the time -- they're not there yet.
5. Utah Jazz: Jerry Sloan just celebrated his 20th anniversary coaching the Jazz. He has done one of his best coaching jobs yet, patching things together despite injuries to his two best players, Deron Williams and Carlos Boozer.
6. Portland Trail Blazers: Maybe the deepest team in the West. And if Greg Oden ever gets it, they could be scary.
7. Denver Nuggets: I know Denver has the second-best record in the West, but I can't help it. I just can't believe in them yet.
8. Dallas Mavericks: With Jason Kidd trying to keep up with Parker, Paul, Williams or Steve Nash in the playoffs, this will prove to be an exercise in futility. But Rick Carlisle deserves credit for tweaking on the run and making Dallas a nightmare to defend.
Mopes: Have a shot ... and Jason Richardson will take plenty.
1. Phoenix Suns: How could a team with Nash, Amare Stoudemire, Shaquille O'Neal (albeit in full decline), Grant Hill (ditto) and Leandro Barbosa coming off the bench miss the playoffs? When the owner decides the run is over and it's time to blow up the team, that's how. Stay tuned.
Dopes: Playoffs?!?!?!?!
1. Memphis Grizzlies: O.J. Mayo gives Memphis a puncher's chance. And if management sticks with Marc Iavaroni, for once not firing the coach will be the right move.
2. Golden State Warriors: Don Nelson already has admitted he doesn't have a playoff team. Next step for Nellie could be off the bench to the full-time GM's role.
3. Los Angeles Clippers: I don't understand how a team with Baron Davis, Marcus Camby, Zach Randolph and Al Thornton could miss the playoffs. Maybe Mr. Sterling could explain this to me, when he's finished counting his money.
4. Sacramento Kings: Sac-Town is 3-11 without Kevin Martin (ankle), although this statistic didn't do Theus any good.
5. Minnesota Timberwolves: Hey Coach McHale, how's the squad look from down here?
6. Oklahoma City Thunder: Seattle, you ain't missing much.
Award Watch
MVP
1. LeBron James, Cavaliers: Not only is LeBron second in the league in scoring, he also has vastly improved his defense. LBJ has been a nightly weak-side pest on the defensive end, and his knowledge of the system allows him to set the defense and communicate with his teammates better than ever before. In other words, he keeps getting better. Scary.
2. Dwight Howard, Magic: Barring bad news about a left knee injury that caused Howard to miss the first game of his career Saturday night, the Man Child will continue putting up freakish numbers. His presence gives Orlando the most realistic chance of challenging Boston and Cleveland in the East.
3. Dwyane Wade, Heat: D-Wade's dominance with Team USA has carried over to the regular season. But the league's leading scorer (28.6) knows his team has to play better for him to have a shot at the MVP.
Rookie of the Year
1. Derrick Rose, Bulls: As long as he lays off the apples, Rose is well on his way to the ROY award. Averaging 18.2 points and 6.3 assists in 39 minutes a game, Rose has transformed the Bulls from putrid to a borderline playoff team.
2. O.J. Mayo, Grizzlies: Leading all rookies in scoring average (20.8) makes Mayo a legit contender. So does his streak of reaching double figures in his first 20 games, the longest since Magic Johnson in 1979.
3. George Hill, Spurs: Hill's minutes won't support his first-quarter performance, now that Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili are healthy. But the little-known first-round pick from IUPUI -- Ooey Pooey, to our friends in the Hoosier state -- deserves props for what he has done so far. Adjusted on a 40-minute-per-game basis, Hill's averages jump to 17.9 points and 5.4 assists.
Coach of the Quarter
1. Doc Rivers, Celtics: Repeating isn't easy, but Rivers hasn't let his defending champs get complacent. Boston's single-minded focus is startling, and it all flows from the top.
2. Mike Brown, Cavaliers: A defensive guru from his days with Gregg Popovich in San Antonio, Brown was pedestrian at the offensive end in his first few years in Cleveland. The most important trait of a good coach is the ability to recognize your weaknesses and delegate. So Brown quietly elevated second-year assistant John Kuester to the role of de facto offensive coordinator, and the Cavs offense isn't so predictable anymore.
3. Gregg Popovich, Spurs: OK, not exactly going out on a limb here. But Pops deserves props for keeping the Spurs near the top despite injuries to Parker and Ginobili. He didn't play the excuse game, either.
By Ken Berger
The NBA passed the unofficial quarter pole over the weekend, which means my quarterly report to the shareholders is due. I can report that the state of the league is ... interesting?
Through 25 percent of the schedule, there are a handful of great teams (Boston, Cleveland, Lakers), lots of awful ones (you know who you are) and the usual assortment of contenders and pretenders.
Given the state of the economy, it seems unfair for the league to subject its loyal, paying customers to so much bad basketball. There's a lot of it being perpetrated on the viewing public, especially if you live in Minneapolis, Philadelphia, Washington, D.C., Oklahoma City, Sacramento -- basically anywhere but Boston, Cleveland, L.A., and 80 percent of the Southwest Division.
How bad is it? So bad that six teams -- one fifth of the league! -- have already fired their coaches. Reggie Theus became victim No. 6 on Monday morning in Sacramento, and more pink slips could be stuffed into stockings before Christmas. General managers are running out of scapegoats, though. There aren't many left after the untouchables (Doc Rivers, Phil Jackson, Mike Brown, Gregg Popovich, Jerry Sloan) and 13 more coaches who were either hired last summer or in the past few weeks.
Incredibly, people continue to pass through turnstiles at a dizzying pace -- or at least pay for tickets. Despite a recession that could last longer than it is taking the Nets to move to Brooklyn, paid attendance for 350 total games (17,089 through Sunday) was up slightly from the same point last season (17,040). Ticket sales are down 1.8 percent from last season's year-end average (17,395). Discount programs in the hardest-hit markets have something to do with the steady numbers; David Stern recognized that in a world bereft of golden eggs, a goose laying loose change will do.
So before another coach gets fired, here are the NBA's first-quarter results:
Playoff Picture: East
Hopes: These teams are going to the playoffs. You can write it down.
1. Boston Celtics: Sure, the Celtics take a quarter off now and then, but they're still the class of the conference. All that's missing is someone to impersonate James Posey.
2. Cleveland Cavaliers: The addition of Mo Williams and some creative offensive sets have combined to give LeBron James more freedom -- without any drop-off on the defensive end.
3. Orlando Magic: Underwhelming guard play is their Achilles' heel.
4. Atlanta Hawks: I thought Mike Woodson was supposed to have been fired, like, a year ago?
5. Miami Heat: Miami has surprisingly stayed above water, which presents an interesting dilemma: Keep Shawn Marion or trade him?
6. Detroit Pistons: The great A.I. experiment is all about clearing cap space. The Pistons, dysfunctional as ever, are on a collision course with a first-round exit.
7. New York Knicks: Finally free of all negative energy from past regimes, the Knicks are actually starting to play decent, mildly entertaining basketball. And they don't even have LeBron yet.
8. Chicago Bulls: Somebody has to be the eighth playoff team in the East, right? I'll put my money on Derrick Rose.
Mopes: These teams will have a shot, if everything breaks right.
1. Milwaukee Bucks: Scott Skiles has a nice young roster to work with. As soon as the Bucks get good enough to contend, he'll alienate the players with his grating style.
2. Toronto Raptors: Interim coach Jay Triano has to coax more defense and rebounding out of a group that showed no taste for either under Sam Mitchell.
3. New Jersey Nets: I feel bad that Devin Harris has to play in a lifeless building 41 nights a year, I really do.
Dopes: These teams are hopeless. But you knew that already.
1. Washington Wizards: Gilbert Arenas will get his once that balky knee recovers. Somebody has to score the points on a bad team.
2. Philadelphia 76ers: Don't worry, Coach DiLeo. Elton Brand will be 100 percent by the All-Star break.
3. Indiana Pacers: Exciting young talent (Danny Granger)? Check. Dynamic, 3-point shooting offense? Check. Six-game losing streak and .304 winning percentage? Check.
4. Charlotte Bobcats: Larry Brown is teaching these young kids how to play the right way. He's also teaching them something else: Don't unpack your bags.
Playoff Picture: West
Hopes: See above. These teams are in.
1. Los Angeles Lakers: Kobe Bryant thinks the Lakers are tough enough to knock off the Celtics. They'll have to get past the Spurs and Rockets first.
2. San Antonio Spurs: Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili are healthy again. And last time I checked, the Spurs still have Tim Duncan, right? Don't sleep on them.
3. New Orleans Hornets: The Hornets are starting to heat up, winning eight of 10 after struggling out of the gate with the addition of James Posey.
4. Houston Rockets: When the Rockets are good, they are very, very good. And when they're bad -- or just injured, which is most of the time -- they're not there yet.
5. Utah Jazz: Jerry Sloan just celebrated his 20th anniversary coaching the Jazz. He has done one of his best coaching jobs yet, patching things together despite injuries to his two best players, Deron Williams and Carlos Boozer.
6. Portland Trail Blazers: Maybe the deepest team in the West. And if Greg Oden ever gets it, they could be scary.
7. Denver Nuggets: I know Denver has the second-best record in the West, but I can't help it. I just can't believe in them yet.
8. Dallas Mavericks: With Jason Kidd trying to keep up with Parker, Paul, Williams or Steve Nash in the playoffs, this will prove to be an exercise in futility. But Rick Carlisle deserves credit for tweaking on the run and making Dallas a nightmare to defend.
Mopes: Have a shot ... and Jason Richardson will take plenty.
1. Phoenix Suns: How could a team with Nash, Amare Stoudemire, Shaquille O'Neal (albeit in full decline), Grant Hill (ditto) and Leandro Barbosa coming off the bench miss the playoffs? When the owner decides the run is over and it's time to blow up the team, that's how. Stay tuned.
Dopes: Playoffs?!?!?!?!
1. Memphis Grizzlies: O.J. Mayo gives Memphis a puncher's chance. And if management sticks with Marc Iavaroni, for once not firing the coach will be the right move.
2. Golden State Warriors: Don Nelson already has admitted he doesn't have a playoff team. Next step for Nellie could be off the bench to the full-time GM's role.
3. Los Angeles Clippers: I don't understand how a team with Baron Davis, Marcus Camby, Zach Randolph and Al Thornton could miss the playoffs. Maybe Mr. Sterling could explain this to me, when he's finished counting his money.
4. Sacramento Kings: Sac-Town is 3-11 without Kevin Martin (ankle), although this statistic didn't do Theus any good.
5. Minnesota Timberwolves: Hey Coach McHale, how's the squad look from down here?
6. Oklahoma City Thunder: Seattle, you ain't missing much.
Award Watch
MVP
1. LeBron James, Cavaliers: Not only is LeBron second in the league in scoring, he also has vastly improved his defense. LBJ has been a nightly weak-side pest on the defensive end, and his knowledge of the system allows him to set the defense and communicate with his teammates better than ever before. In other words, he keeps getting better. Scary.
2. Dwight Howard, Magic: Barring bad news about a left knee injury that caused Howard to miss the first game of his career Saturday night, the Man Child will continue putting up freakish numbers. His presence gives Orlando the most realistic chance of challenging Boston and Cleveland in the East.
3. Dwyane Wade, Heat: D-Wade's dominance with Team USA has carried over to the regular season. But the league's leading scorer (28.6) knows his team has to play better for him to have a shot at the MVP.
Rookie of the Year
1. Derrick Rose, Bulls: As long as he lays off the apples, Rose is well on his way to the ROY award. Averaging 18.2 points and 6.3 assists in 39 minutes a game, Rose has transformed the Bulls from putrid to a borderline playoff team.
2. O.J. Mayo, Grizzlies: Leading all rookies in scoring average (20.8) makes Mayo a legit contender. So does his streak of reaching double figures in his first 20 games, the longest since Magic Johnson in 1979.
3. George Hill, Spurs: Hill's minutes won't support his first-quarter performance, now that Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili are healthy. But the little-known first-round pick from IUPUI -- Ooey Pooey, to our friends in the Hoosier state -- deserves props for what he has done so far. Adjusted on a 40-minute-per-game basis, Hill's averages jump to 17.9 points and 5.4 assists.
Coach of the Quarter
1. Doc Rivers, Celtics: Repeating isn't easy, but Rivers hasn't let his defending champs get complacent. Boston's single-minded focus is startling, and it all flows from the top.
2. Mike Brown, Cavaliers: A defensive guru from his days with Gregg Popovich in San Antonio, Brown was pedestrian at the offensive end in his first few years in Cleveland. The most important trait of a good coach is the ability to recognize your weaknesses and delegate. So Brown quietly elevated second-year assistant John Kuester to the role of de facto offensive coordinator, and the Cavs offense isn't so predictable anymore.
3. Gregg Popovich, Spurs: OK, not exactly going out on a limb here. But Pops deserves props for keeping the Spurs near the top despite injuries to Parker and Ginobili. He didn't play the excuse game, either.