Real Deal

I'm reading Bledsoe and DeAndre now.

This doesn't make sense to me. Do they think they can get away with Blake Griffin at the three? Garnett isn't going to waive his no-trade clause to be a backup PF, and I doubt he wants to continue playing center...only doing it because he has to.

Feels too simple for me. Hard to really explain it...did the 90-day developer trial, and I just didn't like it. Gotta stick to Windows 7.

Wait...I never really paid attention, but this is the Alan Anderson from Michigan State?!?!? Wow, never crossed my mind. Where the hell did he go for so long, and why would Toronto even consider bringing him back into the league?

This is basically the next chapter of our season: blowing leads.

http://www.cbssports.com/nba/gametracker/recap/NBA_20130202_PHO@GS

http://www.cbssports.com/nba/gametracker/recap/NBA_20130202_ORL@MIL

http://www.cbssports.com/nba/gametracker/recap/NBA_20130202_NO@MIN

http://www.cbssports.com/nba/gametracker/recap/NBA_20130202_CHA@HOU

http://www.cbssports.com/nba/gametracker/recap/NBA_20130202_CHI@ATL

http://www.cbssports.com/nba/gametracker/recap/NBA_20130201_DAL@PHO

http://www.cbssports.com/nba/gametracker/recap/NBA_20130201_POR@UTA

http://www.cbssports.com/nba/gametracker/recap/NBA_20130201_NO@DEN

http://www.cbssports.com/nba/gametracker/recap/NBA_20130201_WAS@MEM

http://www.cbssports.com/nba/gametracker/recap/NBA_20130201_CLE@DET

http://www.cbssports.com/nba/gametracker/recap/NBA_20130201_SAC@PHI

http://www.cbssports.com/nba/gametracker/recap/NBA_20130201_CHI@BKN

http://www.cbssports.com/nba/gametracker/recap/NBA_20130201_ORL@BOS

Hell no. I don't want Bargnani. Feels like a downgrade, honestly. I'd rather have Gasol's passive play over Bargnani's shot attempts, and not to mention Gasol's contract is a massive $20 million expiring after next season.

Probably because of this:

Come on, man...a lot of that has to do with defense. Pace is lowered partially because of defense. Open shots, at the rim or mid-range, were easier to snag back then because zone defense was illegal, and when players doubled, there was always a man open, and they had to commit to that. Against bad defensive teams, today or in 1986, you're going to get more possessions because you're going to score quicker. They aren't going to hold you for 24 seconds of the shot clock. Are you telling me that the fastest teams in the NBA today (Houston and Denver, at 96 and 95) aren't playing fast enough to score 120 every game? The 2013 Rockets (96.3 Pace) average 105 PPG. The 1990 Lakers (96.3 Pace) averaged 111 PPG. That Lakers team shot 49% from the floor...which was SIXTH in the NBA. Houston is shooting 45.6%, which is TENTH. Defense is much tougher these days. I'm not even sure how that can be debated.

This had me cracking up, even though Dwight hurt his shoulder again. Watch Howard's mouthpiece: http://assets.sbnation.com/assets/2098391/dwighthurt.gif

Just to add on to that: There were 142 games where a team scored under 70 points, from the 1989-90 season until the 1998-99 season. Only around 23-24 of those instances came in the first half of that decade. You saw it more often in the second half of the 90's. Just for fun...it happened in 273 games from 1999-00 to 2008-09 (last decade). So far, in this current decade, we're at 50 games. That's on pace to hit the 150 mark. Defense is back down a bit, probably due to the lack of defensive anchors + the dominant scorers in the league today, but not even CLOSE to how low it was back in the 80's.

Time to purchase a Jose Calderon jersey, and then toss it in the trash when he leaves this summer.

I was doing a bit of research, and I found this interesting: From 1979-80 TO 1988-89 (10 seasons), games where a team scored under 70 points: 5 games In the 2012-13 season (half of ONE season), games where a team scored under 70 points: 6 games Now, I started watching ball in the late 80's...and I remember teams being able to hit 130 without fans thinking it was a big deal. But, I didn't realize that the impact of zone defense, and increased athleticism, was THAT big today. Crazy to see the difference. Last season, alone, there were 20 games where a team scored under 70 points.