Does it ever irk you when a team with sooooo much talent decides that they are bigger than the league, and then picks and chooses when to turn it off and on? When we see this question, are we immediately thinking the 2009 version of the Los Angeles Lakers, now known as the "Lakeshow"?
To you Laker fans, cool it with the Lakeshow nonsense. Yes I know that even my Chicago Bulls championship teams decided to turn it off and on once in a while, just like the great teams of the Celtics, Lakers, Pistons, and even the Spurs probably did every now and then. But lets make something very clear, this version of the Lakers goes above and beyond anything else we have ever seen. They are pretty much toying with teams that have no business even beating them once (let alone 3 times) in a seven game series. As Charles and Kenny put it, its gotten to a point where they are almost disrespecting the league. Oh, and none of those other aforementioned teams named their brand of basketball as a "show".
Let me give you Laker fans a little bit of education here. If you want to be called a "show", the results don't always have to be the same, but the consistancy of effort and passion throughout the duration of the game, each and every time out, does need to be there. Any Tom, Dick, and Harry (or Tammy, Dianna, and Hiliary for that matter) can see this is not the case with the 2009 version of the Lakers. Also, win a championship before you proclaim yourselves as being "The Show", like the St. Louis Rams did before they were deemed "The Greatest Show on Turf".
Even if the Lakers get passed the "Baby Blue Machine", either the "Magic Triks" or the "Cavrabatics" will be next, ready and waiting, to put the reeling "Lakeshow" out of business for at least the rest of the summer, and hopefully, if Kobe has anything to say about it, forever! Just a thought.
Thursday, May 28, 2009
Sunday, May 24, 2009
Waiting for THE man in the middle
After the NBA Draft Lottery last week, the buzz around the top basketball prospects has gotten louder. After Blake Griffin, there's a clear drop off with the next 2 picks a reported toss up between the highly skilled Spaniard Ricky Rubio and UConn's shot-blocking specialist Hasheem Thabeet.
While scouts are careful to point out that Thabeet's offensive skills are underdeveloped, his stock is entirely based on his length and his potential to be a dominant big man in this league. That fact is - you can't teach 7 foot 3 inches. Whether Thabeet ends up as a Grizzly, a Thunder, or a King, there are going to be some unfairly high expectations placed on the big man to hold it down in the middle. No matter how good Thabeet ends up being, I am pretty certain he is going to fall short.
Why are our expectations for new bigs in this league so high? Why have centers like Greg Oden been such a disappointment? What exactly are we waiting for?
For argument's sake, let consider the two centers who are considered to be at the forefront of the 5: Yao Ming and Dwight Howard. (I am not including Tim Duncan or Kevin Garnett in this discussion because they are listed as forwards. Sorry guys, but you wrote yourselves off by claiming that position.) Sure, Yao couples his skill with a grace that doesn't come naturally to others with his size, but his career has been ridden with injuries and his lack of killer-instinct has repeatedly been exploited. Howard's athleticism is unparalleled, but the majority of his offense is created off the boards and when the game is on the line, he's setting screens and clearing out of the paint for Hedo Turkoglu.
Yao and Howard are examples of how we are willing to overlook shortcomings and exaggerate effectiveness of a center just so we can have titans to marvel at. We give them the benefit of the doubt and consider them "dominant" without attaching any caveats. The truth - Yao Ming is a great center "for his time." Dwight Howard is dominant "for his time."
If you disagree with that, consider where they stand in the pantheon of NBA's big men? Shaquille O'Neal, Hakeem Olajuwan, David Robinson account for numerous scoring titles, defensive player of the year awards, All-NBA selections, and all 4 the non-Bulls championships in the 90's.
The Hoya triumvirate of Alonzo Mourning, Dikembe Mutumbo, Patrick Ewing represent the most resilient and durable group of centers the NBA has ever seen: Zo played 15 seasons, outlasted FSGS and a kidney transplant, and was perhaps the most intense and emotional player in NBA history; Deke played 18 seasons, won defensive player of the year 4 times, and intimidated the hell out of opponents with just a wave of his finger; and Chewing played 17 seasons, is considered the one of the best players in Knick's franchise history, and starred in his own Snickers commercial!
Looking back a few generations, and you'll find even more dominant big men. Wilt Chamberlain holds NBA all-time records for points (100) and rebounds (55) in a single game; Kareem Abdul Jabbar is the NBA's all-time leading scoring; and Bill Russell won 11 NBA championships in 13 years and is now the namesake for the NBA Final's MVP award.
I think we are desperately waiting to relive the glory days of the NBA when the best players in the league not named Micheal Jordan, Magic Johnson, or Larry Bird where larger than life, literally. It probably won't be Oden or Thabeet that brings those days back. I don't think Yao or Howard are cutting it today. But there will be someone, some newbie giant that someday will make the 5th position the most important position again.
Until then, we'll have to settle for the LeBron/Kobe/D-Wade show.
While scouts are careful to point out that Thabeet's offensive skills are underdeveloped, his stock is entirely based on his length and his potential to be a dominant big man in this league. That fact is - you can't teach 7 foot 3 inches. Whether Thabeet ends up as a Grizzly, a Thunder, or a King, there are going to be some unfairly high expectations placed on the big man to hold it down in the middle. No matter how good Thabeet ends up being, I am pretty certain he is going to fall short.
Why are our expectations for new bigs in this league so high? Why have centers like Greg Oden been such a disappointment? What exactly are we waiting for?
For argument's sake, let consider the two centers who are considered to be at the forefront of the 5: Yao Ming and Dwight Howard. (I am not including Tim Duncan or Kevin Garnett in this discussion because they are listed as forwards. Sorry guys, but you wrote yourselves off by claiming that position.) Sure, Yao couples his skill with a grace that doesn't come naturally to others with his size, but his career has been ridden with injuries and his lack of killer-instinct has repeatedly been exploited. Howard's athleticism is unparalleled, but the majority of his offense is created off the boards and when the game is on the line, he's setting screens and clearing out of the paint for Hedo Turkoglu.
Yao and Howard are examples of how we are willing to overlook shortcomings and exaggerate effectiveness of a center just so we can have titans to marvel at. We give them the benefit of the doubt and consider them "dominant" without attaching any caveats. The truth - Yao Ming is a great center "for his time." Dwight Howard is dominant "for his time."
If you disagree with that, consider where they stand in the pantheon of NBA's big men? Shaquille O'Neal, Hakeem Olajuwan, David Robinson account for numerous scoring titles, defensive player of the year awards, All-NBA selections, and all 4 the non-Bulls championships in the 90's.
The Hoya triumvirate of Alonzo Mourning, Dikembe Mutumbo, Patrick Ewing represent the most resilient and durable group of centers the NBA has ever seen: Zo played 15 seasons, outlasted FSGS and a kidney transplant, and was perhaps the most intense and emotional player in NBA history; Deke played 18 seasons, won defensive player of the year 4 times, and intimidated the hell out of opponents with just a wave of his finger; and Chewing played 17 seasons, is considered the one of the best players in Knick's franchise history, and starred in his own Snickers commercial!
Looking back a few generations, and you'll find even more dominant big men. Wilt Chamberlain holds NBA all-time records for points (100) and rebounds (55) in a single game; Kareem Abdul Jabbar is the NBA's all-time leading scoring; and Bill Russell won 11 NBA championships in 13 years and is now the namesake for the NBA Final's MVP award.
I think we are desperately waiting to relive the glory days of the NBA when the best players in the league not named Micheal Jordan, Magic Johnson, or Larry Bird where larger than life, literally. It probably won't be Oden or Thabeet that brings those days back. I don't think Yao or Howard are cutting it today. But there will be someone, some newbie giant that someday will make the 5th position the most important position again.
Until then, we'll have to settle for the LeBron/Kobe/D-Wade show.
Thursday, May 21, 2009
The Raven: 100,000 Miles and Counting
The NBA isn’t the only place where amazing happens. Just ask Miami Beach's Robert "the Raven” Craft, about his lifelong journey that started on January 1st 1975. A lifelong journey that has taken him through the Watergate scandal, 7 presidencies, 5 Hurricane football national championships, the rise and fall of Vanilla Ice, and most importantly, the birth of each of the 5 brown guys.So who is this "Raven" character and what about his lifelong journey has this brown guy in such awe?
What if I told you that in the span of 35 years, this man has run the circumference of the Earth (24,901.55 miles) four times? What if I told you that for the last 35 years or so, this man has run 8 miles every single day through physical ailments, pneumonia, inclement weather, and the distraction of beautiful women on Miami Beach? What if I told you that this man’s HDL (good cholesterol) is so high that it’s probably unmeasurable? (That last one was for all you super-nerds out there).
Let us take a collective moment of silence to awe at this ridiculous feat.
[Pause]
A plethora (yes I used a thesaurus) of words came to my mind after hearing this story: insane, psycho, loser, ridiculous, why, seriously, no way, get the hell out of here, and daaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaymnnnnnnnn. But the more I thought about it, the more I realized that the words discipline, determination, and motivation better represented Raven’s feat and attitude on life—an attitude that more of us should have.
So whether it be the residency that you will soon be starting, the triathlon that you will be partaking in, the love of your life that you just can’t seem to find, the interviews that you will soon be going on, or the fear of starting 3rd year medical school, just keep in mind those three words—discipline, determination, and motivation. And remember that the Raven’s journey to 100,000 miles began with a single step.
(Insert Joke Here): Clippers
The Los Angeles Clippers shocked the NBA by winning the Blake Griffin Sweepstakes by drawing the first pick in the NBA Lottery. The NBA Lottery is one of the more exciting draft processes we have today in sports. The worst team doesn't necessarily get the best pick.
As soon as the Clips won, their team president Andy Roeser said, "We’re going to do our due diligence," during a national conference call after the lottery. "Then, we’re going to pick the best player in the draft.” A wise move, but then he followed that up the next day by saying he thinks Griffin is the right fit. Even head coach Mike Dunleavy agreed that Griffin is the player they want. I do believe Griffin is the best player in the upcoming draft; however, a savior he is not. He will end up being just another lost piece with great potential in LA.
In the business world or on a poker table, it is wise never to show your entire hand. Yet, the Clips have already announced that Griffin will be a Clipper. Although the chances of this happening is 99%, what about the option of trading the pick? They completely eliminated many other options by openly proclaiming their love for Griffin. If Griffin is the best player, maybe they should wait for summer league play and let stock to skyrocket. Why not wait for another team to be so anxious that they end up trading for the number 1 pick? The team doesn't have a good history with draft picks. so one would think they would look at all possible routes before making a decision. Guess not! Last year, Pat Riley never said what he was going to do until the Heat were on the clock. He essentially exhausted all other options and chose a player based upon all the information provided.
It's pretty obvious to me obvious why this team has been in the draft lottery more times than any other NBA franchise.
As soon as the Clips won, their team president Andy Roeser said, "We’re going to do our due diligence," during a national conference call after the lottery. "Then, we’re going to pick the best player in the draft.” A wise move, but then he followed that up the next day by saying he thinks Griffin is the right fit. Even head coach Mike Dunleavy agreed that Griffin is the player they want. I do believe Griffin is the best player in the upcoming draft; however, a savior he is not. He will end up being just another lost piece with great potential in LA.
In the business world or on a poker table, it is wise never to show your entire hand. Yet, the Clips have already announced that Griffin will be a Clipper. Although the chances of this happening is 99%, what about the option of trading the pick? They completely eliminated many other options by openly proclaiming their love for Griffin. If Griffin is the best player, maybe they should wait for summer league play and let stock to skyrocket. Why not wait for another team to be so anxious that they end up trading for the number 1 pick? The team doesn't have a good history with draft picks. so one would think they would look at all possible routes before making a decision. Guess not! Last year, Pat Riley never said what he was going to do until the Heat were on the clock. He essentially exhausted all other options and chose a player based upon all the information provided.
It's pretty obvious to me obvious why this team has been in the draft lottery more times than any other NBA franchise.
Wednesday, May 20, 2009
My favorite Nike puppet
If you've been watching any playoff basketball this season, I'm sure you've noticed the Nike ads featuring the "Most Valuable Puppet" avatars of LeBron James and Kobe Bryant. If you haven't, here and here.What I like most about this ad campaign is how the puppets' personalities truly reflect their human counterparts. Lil' Kobe's projects a mellow arrogance, flaunting his extensive playoff and championship experience. Lil' Lebron cannot contain his enthusiasm for the post-season, Ohio, and Chinese food.
I'm assuming these commercials will run through the end of the post-season. Over the course of the next week, we'll see if the real LeBron and Kobe can outlast their marionette mini-me's by meeting in the Finals.
The focus of this article, however, is my favorite Nike puppet - puppeT, singular. It's not about Kobe and LeBron. Flash back about 13 years, and you may recall a loud-mouthed, smack-talkin' figurine by the name of Lil' Penny!
In my mind, the Lil' Penny ad campaign represent some of my greatest memories of the '90s: Anfernee Hardaway's potential, Chris Rock one-liners, Tyra Banks, Gheorghe Muresan, and the most comfortable pair of shoes I've ever owned, the Nike Air Penny 2 (photo below). If all that doesn't give you a warm fuzzy feeling, I feel sorry for you.Unfortunately for Penny, we remember little else from his career besides an eastern conference championship and the emotional scars from Shaquille O'Neal's departure for Hollywood and a series of less-than-mediocre comebacks after injury. At least we can still watch the commercials.
Hats off to Nike for creating a series of new (and likely more successful) puppets, but I'll never forget Lil' Penny and the puppet empire that could have been. "If the Academy don't recognize this, we got a problem."
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