Real Deal

http://www.cbssports.com/nba/gametracker/recap/NBA_20120107_DEN@SA

http://www.cbssports.com/nba/gametracker/recap/NBA_20120107_TOR@PHI Tore them up.

http://www.cbssports.com/nba/gametracker/recap/NBA_20120107_OKC@HOU

http://www.cbssports.com/nba/gametracker/recap/NBA_20120107_MIA@NJ

http://www.cbssports.com/nba/gametracker/recap/NBA_20120107_NY@DET

http://www.cbssports.com/nba/gametracker/recap/NBA_20120107_CHA@IND

http://www.cbssports.com/nba/gametracker/recap/NBA_20120107_CHI@ATL

The best part about this is...I don't know how many times I've stated that Gasol does not have that scorer's mentality. He has passed up so many shots, especially when we have needed them. Countless times, I've had to sit and watch Pau get the ball in the post, hold it for 6-7 seconds, then make a soft move to the rim and dish the ball to Fisher or Ron, only to see it then go to Kobe with 2-3 seconds on the shot clock. People would just go to the boxscore after the game, see that Kobe took 20+ shots and Gasol at 12-13 shots, and say that the ball was not going to him enough. Yeah...it was going to him. He was just reluctant to do anything with it, much like he was in Memphis. The guy took less than 15 FGA/G even as a primary option with few scoring teammates, never hit that mark. Kobe has not had an aggressive second option scorer since Shaq. Drew is finally becoming that, and without problems, Gasol is stepping aside because it's exactly what he has wanted for years.

...and that they will take advantage of it. He's the second option, even if Kobe doesn't come out and say it directly. It's pretty evident when you watch them. I really don't feel bad for Pau, either...and I think Pau wants it to be that way.

Yeah, I'm not so sure we can afford to sit him, either, especially after watching that Golden State game.

Ron Paul will wreck this country. The dude believes we should not have any health care programs...at all. No insurance companies. That we should just save our money and use it on ourselves, when we need it. That may be the most ridiculous thing I've ever heard, from anyone, in my life. Perfect world? We're all friends? Yeah, let's go ahead and send Ron Paul overseas, before the election, and see how friendly he can be with everyone. WTF is this dude thinking? More than three-fourths of the people that want him elected like him because he's the guy that wants to legalize weed.

How bad are you wanting me to say something good about him, for once?

That's a VERY GENEROUS analysis of the Wizards. I thought they played terrible basketball. They act like they all hate each other, and they were picking apart a Knicks team that was one of the worst in the conference (in my opinion), up until Washington thought it would be cool to piss Melo off. Washington needs to pass the ball more, as a team. Getting a pass from Wall doesn't automatically mean the shot has to go up. Oh, and I'm still backing Shumpert, from day one. I think he's the guy in New York, no doubt about it. Start him.

No hesitation here, but it would be tough to send both of our bigs to Orlando. McRoberts is out, and Murphy is not that great. We really wouldn't have a starting PF, or backup PF's or C's. That would be terrible. But if Orlando would take the Howard/Bynum swap, if we sent picks and maybe Ebanks and whoever else...most definitely.

Wasn't a great game for the Lakers, honestly (as a team). With Curry out, and the Warriors needing to go small (we actually had to adjust by putting four guards on the floor at one point, rarely see that), we should have won this game comfortably. I won't talk too much about it...Kobe was awesome, Gasol did okay, Drew was a disappointment on everything other than the glass, and Matt Barnes played like an all-star. Golden State, though...they really did what I expected. Monta was getting what he wanted, and Klay and Wright had pretty good games.

The day Bynum was drafted, I made a post on OTR, talking about how he's going to have to learn how to operate out of the post. I was over at Clublakers at the time, and so many Lakers fans were saying how he would be the next Shaq, and I distinctly remember just avoiding those topics, they pissed me off so much. I know he has had limited time on the court, but in the nearly 400 games he has played (however many, I just posted about it early at TLN), he has had that many practices (and more than that). It doesn't take much for a seven-footer to look over a double and at least make an attempt to get the ball back out.

Haha...I can't believe people still have to post this.

Bynum needs to learn how to pass out of the post. This particular offense is exactly what Popovich ran in San Antonio, with Duncan and Robinson (and even a while after), before and while Mike Brown was there. Duncan was an able-bodied passer. Drew has no idea what he's doing down there, so he puts up a shot. In the first half, he was 7-7 shooting. Fantastic. Second half? The Blazers started to double him, and he went 2-9. He threw one assist...his second of the season. This dude is getting 15 FGA/G. That is more than any of Kobe's teammates since Shaq in the 2002-03 season (Shaq took 14 in 2003-04). If we are going to get him much more involved, he needs to be able to pass the ball back out of the post when facing a double. Kobe draws attention away from our two bigs. Our two bigs draw defensive attention away from the shooters. That's how the "four out, one in" offense is ran. Duncan racked up at least 3-4 assists a game doing it. If the idea is to give Kobe more support on the offensive end, Drew is going to have to do more than just take jump hooks all game long, even if he's putting up 20 points. We were 0-11 on threes last night, and we haven't missed all of our threes since 2003. No team contends playing this way.

...at 44% FG with four turnovers, which is horrible for a player his size. His previous game, against the Nuggets, was the best of the season...and Westphal was coaching, and brought him off the bench.

Do you get the same feeling I do about Young? I know he wasn't brought up in that block I posted (it was Blatche), but I have a gut feeling they were talking about him as well. The dude thought he was worth what...$10 million a year? I liked him last season, but I wonder if he's getting an attitude because he's shooting less, worse, and not scoring the ball as much.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/wizards-insider/post/wizards-doomed-in-orlando-by-terrible-start/2012/01/05/gIQAQHw6bP_blog.html?wprss=wizards-insider Uh oh. Who is the first man out of Washington by March? EDIT: And... http://espn.go.com/nba/story/_/id/7429438/winless-washington-wizards-hold-players-only-meeting

I would post in here, but I'm too busy explaining to Lakers fans why this team sucks right now. Ugh.

How the hell did the Bucks lose this game? It was a blowout. SMH. They shot 1-8 over the last 6:46 of the game. That's just horrible.

Reggie had me cracking up at the end, when he said Dwight doesn't want to go to Atlanta, and then he looked at the camera like, "Oh, what's up?"

Josh Smith: "Oh, the Heat have the ball?!?!"