ducks
11-28-2005, 09:51 AM
Beasts of East in short supply
Pistons only team not showing cracks
Maybe the Eastern Conference isn't as good as most believed it would be this season.
After all, the Bulls are coming off their dreaded November circus trip with the fourth-best record in the conference at 6-5.
And Eastern teams are just 36-48 vs. the West. That record is skewed by the combined 0-17 mark of Toronto, Atlanta and Charlotte.
The supposed East powers are showing cracks that suggest the Little Bulls That Could might climb higher than skeptics imagined in this Year of Our Bulls 1 A.E. (After Eddy Curry).
Let's take a look:
The Pistons aren't one of those showing cracks. The best team in the NBA plays the Bulls in Chicago on Saturday after Knicks coach Larry Brown's return to Detroit for a game on Friday. Not a bad time to catch them.
Then it gets uncertain.
The Pacers were supposed to challenge the Pistons, but mostly they're challenging each other—to fights. After Austin Croshere complained about a lack of leadership without naming names—hello, Jermaine O'Neal—O'Neal and Stephen Jackson had to be separated during a home loss to Atlanta.
Even Hawks players said the Pacers seemed uninterested, and Jackson was booed by the home crowd.
Even with a road victory Sunday over the first-two-weeks-of-November champion Clippers, the Pacers seem headed toward a breakup.
Miami, still without Shaquille O'Neal, is just 7-6 despite Dwyane Wade being among the scoring leaders and Alonzo Mourning ranking among the league leaders in rebounding. Because O'Neal sprained his ankle, no one is sure how effective he'll be when he returns. O'Neal came to camp overweight and may not be able to get into shape because of the ankle.
The Cavaliers broke from the gate fast but have lost two straight. With a chance to make a statement at Indiana on Thanksgiving, Cleveland surrendered meekly. The Cavs were blown out and quit with about five minutes left as LeBron James went to the bench.
The Nets were supposed to be a dynamic lock for the Atlantic Division title and a contender, but coach Lawrence Frank is using a seven-player rotation amid griping about playing time. There also is the question of whether Vince Carter, Richard Jefferson and Jason Kidd are a good fit. The Nets' scorers don't run much with the slowing Kidd and like to create on their own. "We're a better team than we're showing," Frank said.
The Bucks are having trouble adjusting to one another—and scoring. The 76ers are giving up 105 points per game. The defensively challenged Wizards have faded after a fast start.
The dream teen
Some teenagers are special, such as James, Kobe Bryant, Kevin Garnett and Dwight Howard.
Orlando's Howard doesn't have a slick nickname or anything, but he's quietly becoming an attraction on his way to all-league status.
Howard, 19, got his ninth double-double in 10 games with 15 points and 16 rebounds in Saturday's victory over the Heat.
The Bulls face the Magic on Tuesday night at the United Center in the second game of a road back-to-back for Orlando, but Howard has shown little sign of fatigue.
He's averaging 15.2 points and 12.9 rebounds per game. Magic coach Brian Hill has likened Howard to another big producer he coached, Shaquille O'Neal. Meanwhile, Orlando has its own point-guard issue with Steve Francis supposedly destined for shooting guard. Said point-guard-in-waiting Jameer Nelson of Howard and himself: "We might be the next [John] Stockton and [Karl] Malone."
Patience a virtue?
You wonder if Phil Jackson and the Lakers can continue to be patient. There was some leakage last week with the first non-sellout of the season and Lamar Odom saying he needed to shoot and score more.
Said Jackson, "What we love about Lamar is he'll give the ball up."
The Lakers' plan has been to restrain themselves for two years and then have salary-cap room. Los Angeles doesn't seem as enticing anymore, and the potential free agents the Lakers targeted—Amare Stoudemire and Yao Ming—already have signed extensions.
One hot rumor more than a year ago was that Utah power forward Carlos Boozer was going to the Lakers. Boozer was criticized last season by team owner Larry Miller, who had signed him to a $68 million deal. He hasn't played this season because of a hamstring injury. Last week there was a note in the Los Angeles Times that Boozer had purchased a 5,600-square-foot home with 10 bedrooms and 13 bathrooms, a guest house, elevator, racquetball court and tennis court in L.A. for $8.6 million. Could something be up?
Rocket fuel
Houston is suffering with Tracy McGrady and Rafer Alston sidelined and Bobby Sura probably out for the season after back surgery. But coach Jeff Van Gundy continues to dirty the game with his stuck-in-the-mud offense. If that isn't bad enough, last week Van Gundy had the Rockets start purposely fouling Dallas center DeSagana Diop with five minutes left in the third quarter.
Dallas coach Avery Johnson took out Diop, making it the first time anyone developed a strategy to get the former Cavs draft bust out of a game. The tactic is not illegal and was prized by former Mavericks coach Don Nelson, who had poor free-throw shooters in O'Neal and Dennis Rodman. But no one could accuse Nelson of slowing the offense.
Van Gundy remains the only coach who continues to use such delaying tactics, which are hardly in the spirit of the game. It makes one wonder why fans in Houston would pay so much to watch such dull basketball. (Why highly paid professional athletes cannot make half their free throws will be a topic for another lecture.)
Meanwhile, with McGrady out, Yao's lack of mobility has been exposed. Three Pistons dunked on Yao last week, and the Suns negated him with 6-foot-8-inch Boris Diaw.
Double dribbles
Toronto general manager Rob Babcock, harassed by the home fans recently, revealed he wears earplugs at games. He might add blindfolds, given that media reports already are speculating that Denver's lame-duck Kiki Vandeweghe or former Orlando general manager John Gabriel could replace him. Rumors, all denied, also have former Cavs coach Paul Silas replacing Sam Mitchell. ... The Mavericks have beaten all four conference finalists from last season and coach Avery Johnson is 25-5 in the regular season since replacing Don Nelson. After the Mavs yielded 55 percent shooting to Memphis at home Saturday, it remains to be seen if the defense will ever improve in Dallas. ... The Mavs are looking at former Bull Adrian Griffin because Josh Howard is hurt and Doug Christie has been bought out, according to the Ft. Worth Star Telegram. ... The Heat's Gary Payton has put one of his "four or five" Bentleys up for sale on eBay and is hoping to get about $100,000. Yes, they do live in a parallel universe. ... Celtics principal owner Wyc Grousbeck retrieved free throws for the players at practice last week. ... The question for teams with salary-cap money is whether they can be patient. They never are, but perhaps patience would serve the Bulls. Seattle's Rashard Lewis said he'll become a free agent after next season.
Bulls on roll
Bulls coach Scott Skiles doesn't have Stockton and Malone, but the pick-and-roll beat the Spurs and Rockets the last two games. They ran the play at least two dozen times against the Spurs without the big men jumping out. ... The Nuggets and Raptors said they might take a look at Shawn Kemp. Kemp said he has lost 55 pounds and wants to make a comeback. Now if he just loses 55 more ... With Channing Frye producing big-time, could it be time for the Knicks to go young and buy out Antonio Davis? Would the Bulls still be interested? They have been holding that last roster spot. ... Hey, what about former Bull (well, not quite yet) Tim Thomas for Ruben Patterson? The goofball Trail Blazer was suspended last week for an expletive-laced rant against coach Nate McMillan. Patterson can be a problem, but he plays hard and defends well. There's really not a good salary fit to equal Thomas' bloated $13,975,000 contract unless the Bulls want to take on Theo Ratliff in a bigger deal. ... Marquette's Travis Diener is hanging on with the Magic but probably is headed for the developmental league.
No Bull here
It seems less likely the Bulls will be interested in Peja Stojakovic. According to Sacramento media reports, later denied curtly by the players, Kings teammate Bonzi Wells upbraided Stojakovic for not playing against the Spurs last week because of stiffness in his hand. "Peja's different," Wells said. "Peja, if he feels like he can't play, and he don't want to hurt himself or hurt his career anymore, he's going to sit out. But I just met him, so I don't know exactly his pain tolerance. I'm going to go out there and lay it on the line and worry about it tomorrow." Stojakovic, whose supposed soft play led to disputes with Chris Webber and a trade request since rescinded, sat out again with what was listed as a sprained pinky.
Pistons only team not showing cracks
Maybe the Eastern Conference isn't as good as most believed it would be this season.
After all, the Bulls are coming off their dreaded November circus trip with the fourth-best record in the conference at 6-5.
And Eastern teams are just 36-48 vs. the West. That record is skewed by the combined 0-17 mark of Toronto, Atlanta and Charlotte.
The supposed East powers are showing cracks that suggest the Little Bulls That Could might climb higher than skeptics imagined in this Year of Our Bulls 1 A.E. (After Eddy Curry).
Let's take a look:
The Pistons aren't one of those showing cracks. The best team in the NBA plays the Bulls in Chicago on Saturday after Knicks coach Larry Brown's return to Detroit for a game on Friday. Not a bad time to catch them.
Then it gets uncertain.
The Pacers were supposed to challenge the Pistons, but mostly they're challenging each other—to fights. After Austin Croshere complained about a lack of leadership without naming names—hello, Jermaine O'Neal—O'Neal and Stephen Jackson had to be separated during a home loss to Atlanta.
Even Hawks players said the Pacers seemed uninterested, and Jackson was booed by the home crowd.
Even with a road victory Sunday over the first-two-weeks-of-November champion Clippers, the Pacers seem headed toward a breakup.
Miami, still without Shaquille O'Neal, is just 7-6 despite Dwyane Wade being among the scoring leaders and Alonzo Mourning ranking among the league leaders in rebounding. Because O'Neal sprained his ankle, no one is sure how effective he'll be when he returns. O'Neal came to camp overweight and may not be able to get into shape because of the ankle.
The Cavaliers broke from the gate fast but have lost two straight. With a chance to make a statement at Indiana on Thanksgiving, Cleveland surrendered meekly. The Cavs were blown out and quit with about five minutes left as LeBron James went to the bench.
The Nets were supposed to be a dynamic lock for the Atlantic Division title and a contender, but coach Lawrence Frank is using a seven-player rotation amid griping about playing time. There also is the question of whether Vince Carter, Richard Jefferson and Jason Kidd are a good fit. The Nets' scorers don't run much with the slowing Kidd and like to create on their own. "We're a better team than we're showing," Frank said.
The Bucks are having trouble adjusting to one another—and scoring. The 76ers are giving up 105 points per game. The defensively challenged Wizards have faded after a fast start.
The dream teen
Some teenagers are special, such as James, Kobe Bryant, Kevin Garnett and Dwight Howard.
Orlando's Howard doesn't have a slick nickname or anything, but he's quietly becoming an attraction on his way to all-league status.
Howard, 19, got his ninth double-double in 10 games with 15 points and 16 rebounds in Saturday's victory over the Heat.
The Bulls face the Magic on Tuesday night at the United Center in the second game of a road back-to-back for Orlando, but Howard has shown little sign of fatigue.
He's averaging 15.2 points and 12.9 rebounds per game. Magic coach Brian Hill has likened Howard to another big producer he coached, Shaquille O'Neal. Meanwhile, Orlando has its own point-guard issue with Steve Francis supposedly destined for shooting guard. Said point-guard-in-waiting Jameer Nelson of Howard and himself: "We might be the next [John] Stockton and [Karl] Malone."
Patience a virtue?
You wonder if Phil Jackson and the Lakers can continue to be patient. There was some leakage last week with the first non-sellout of the season and Lamar Odom saying he needed to shoot and score more.
Said Jackson, "What we love about Lamar is he'll give the ball up."
The Lakers' plan has been to restrain themselves for two years and then have salary-cap room. Los Angeles doesn't seem as enticing anymore, and the potential free agents the Lakers targeted—Amare Stoudemire and Yao Ming—already have signed extensions.
One hot rumor more than a year ago was that Utah power forward Carlos Boozer was going to the Lakers. Boozer was criticized last season by team owner Larry Miller, who had signed him to a $68 million deal. He hasn't played this season because of a hamstring injury. Last week there was a note in the Los Angeles Times that Boozer had purchased a 5,600-square-foot home with 10 bedrooms and 13 bathrooms, a guest house, elevator, racquetball court and tennis court in L.A. for $8.6 million. Could something be up?
Rocket fuel
Houston is suffering with Tracy McGrady and Rafer Alston sidelined and Bobby Sura probably out for the season after back surgery. But coach Jeff Van Gundy continues to dirty the game with his stuck-in-the-mud offense. If that isn't bad enough, last week Van Gundy had the Rockets start purposely fouling Dallas center DeSagana Diop with five minutes left in the third quarter.
Dallas coach Avery Johnson took out Diop, making it the first time anyone developed a strategy to get the former Cavs draft bust out of a game. The tactic is not illegal and was prized by former Mavericks coach Don Nelson, who had poor free-throw shooters in O'Neal and Dennis Rodman. But no one could accuse Nelson of slowing the offense.
Van Gundy remains the only coach who continues to use such delaying tactics, which are hardly in the spirit of the game. It makes one wonder why fans in Houston would pay so much to watch such dull basketball. (Why highly paid professional athletes cannot make half their free throws will be a topic for another lecture.)
Meanwhile, with McGrady out, Yao's lack of mobility has been exposed. Three Pistons dunked on Yao last week, and the Suns negated him with 6-foot-8-inch Boris Diaw.
Double dribbles
Toronto general manager Rob Babcock, harassed by the home fans recently, revealed he wears earplugs at games. He might add blindfolds, given that media reports already are speculating that Denver's lame-duck Kiki Vandeweghe or former Orlando general manager John Gabriel could replace him. Rumors, all denied, also have former Cavs coach Paul Silas replacing Sam Mitchell. ... The Mavericks have beaten all four conference finalists from last season and coach Avery Johnson is 25-5 in the regular season since replacing Don Nelson. After the Mavs yielded 55 percent shooting to Memphis at home Saturday, it remains to be seen if the defense will ever improve in Dallas. ... The Mavs are looking at former Bull Adrian Griffin because Josh Howard is hurt and Doug Christie has been bought out, according to the Ft. Worth Star Telegram. ... The Heat's Gary Payton has put one of his "four or five" Bentleys up for sale on eBay and is hoping to get about $100,000. Yes, they do live in a parallel universe. ... Celtics principal owner Wyc Grousbeck retrieved free throws for the players at practice last week. ... The question for teams with salary-cap money is whether they can be patient. They never are, but perhaps patience would serve the Bulls. Seattle's Rashard Lewis said he'll become a free agent after next season.
Bulls on roll
Bulls coach Scott Skiles doesn't have Stockton and Malone, but the pick-and-roll beat the Spurs and Rockets the last two games. They ran the play at least two dozen times against the Spurs without the big men jumping out. ... The Nuggets and Raptors said they might take a look at Shawn Kemp. Kemp said he has lost 55 pounds and wants to make a comeback. Now if he just loses 55 more ... With Channing Frye producing big-time, could it be time for the Knicks to go young and buy out Antonio Davis? Would the Bulls still be interested? They have been holding that last roster spot. ... Hey, what about former Bull (well, not quite yet) Tim Thomas for Ruben Patterson? The goofball Trail Blazer was suspended last week for an expletive-laced rant against coach Nate McMillan. Patterson can be a problem, but he plays hard and defends well. There's really not a good salary fit to equal Thomas' bloated $13,975,000 contract unless the Bulls want to take on Theo Ratliff in a bigger deal. ... Marquette's Travis Diener is hanging on with the Magic but probably is headed for the developmental league.
No Bull here
It seems less likely the Bulls will be interested in Peja Stojakovic. According to Sacramento media reports, later denied curtly by the players, Kings teammate Bonzi Wells upbraided Stojakovic for not playing against the Spurs last week because of stiffness in his hand. "Peja's different," Wells said. "Peja, if he feels like he can't play, and he don't want to hurt himself or hurt his career anymore, he's going to sit out. But I just met him, so I don't know exactly his pain tolerance. I'm going to go out there and lay it on the line and worry about it tomorrow." Stojakovic, whose supposed soft play led to disputes with Chris Webber and a trade request since rescinded, sat out again with what was listed as a sprained pinky.