Erick Blasco

Okay, I'm technologically moronic and need to be taught like a six year old. How exactly does this work in terms of my TV, my recorder, and my notebook? Right now it looks promising, but I have no idea how it works. Also, can I pick it up at a best buy, PC Richards, etc?

Hey everybody, I'm thinking of doing a lot more video work on the NBA (sort of like what I did last year, but more), except I have a small problem. I'm not living at home anymore and I'm now living in a dorm where the cable is provided by the dorm through a coaxial (spelling?) cable. Since my DVD recorder doesn't have a tuner, I can't record the games from my dorm. My Recorder apparently needs a "set top box." I'm also not free until Tuesday night thanks to class/work, but I want to get this ready for the NBA season. My question is, how can I get to watch and burn games onto disks for future recording? Can I buy a TV-tuner? How would that work? Are their set-top boxes that are cheap and do nothing that I can install? Is there any online service that would allow me to stream AND record games online? Are there any DVD recorders that will work with a 2003 LCD Samsung TV? I can also buy a new DVD recorder, but I'd need to buy and install a cheap TV. What are my best options? Any info would be greatly appreciated!

Chase had a great rookie year and he's proving that he can score. I'm not sure if he can defend as well as they'd ideally want him to defend, and unlike K-Mart, I'm not sure if Budinger is a player who'll get to the line consistently. I think K-Mart is as soft as tissue paper but with all his pump fakes and ball tricks, he gets fouled a ton on the perimeter, which is efficient---the Morey way. Houston may be the most interesting team in the year in that they have the ghost of a defensive powerhouse, and are a year removed from basically, an all-offense, uptempo, no defense approach, and they have a good mix of talent and intelligence. Charley Rosen thinks they can give the Lakers a scare. I wouldn't go that far, but they can win another playoff series.

It also makes the Warriors a really bad team. Agreed, though I think there's a limit of how good Lee can be as a four. Plus on the flip side, Lee may be worse off offensively as a four when sluggish centers aren't checking him. Quick heads up, this isn't a writer writing this in a traditional sense. It's either a scout writing this directly, or a writer transcribing the thoughts of a scout. Either way, the important thing is that this is a professional NBA scout dissecting how he gameplans a certain team. Usually you focus on the best three players then the top eight in a rotation. The article spends a lot of time on Curry, Lee, and Ellis because ultimately, those three are the players who will probably shape Golden State's season. Few other players got more than a sentence treatment or two. Well I'd have a reason to believe he's an adequate point guard when he averaged 6 assists per game in his rookie year, was second in the league in ROY votes IIRC, and made it to the Olympic team. I don't expect him to be as ball dominant as he was last year, though. This year, the team has players in the other positions capable have handling the ball and running the offense, like Ellis, Wright, and Williams. They had all that stuff last year---what good is all that offense if they have no defense at all? They don't have a lowpost player, Lee does nearly all his work facing up. If he plays the four, he probably won't be doubled on the block. They won't defend well enough to run efficiently. Do they have any above-average individual defender? The west is full of powerhouse offenses. What are the Warriors going to do to slow down Utah, Portland, Oklahoma City, and these teams with big guards? Plus they have to unlearn years of bad habits from Nellie Ball. You can sig this, but I'd be stunned if the Warriors finished anywhere close to a playoff berth this season.

A lot of basketball people aren't high on Ellis. He plays with his head down, he turns the ball over, he's not a great passer, and he has limited basketball IQ. It's why he tops a lot of overrated lists, and why I, myself, feel he should be traded to form a more balanced team. Lee has become terrific. He won't play defense at all, but he can hit the mid-range jumper with regularity, he'll blow by centers off the dribble, he can pass, and everyone knows he can rebound. Wright and Williams are a bit unproven, especially compared to Lee. I don't know enough about Curry, honestly, to form much of an opinion on him. I hated watching Golden State last year because it's not real basketball---which makes it hard to analyze a player like Curry. If he's going to play the point, how well can he run an offense---how do you know that when your offense is bring the ball up and shoot?

Hey guys, SI.com has their annual "Behind Enemy Lines" where opposing scouts dissect every team in the league. You can check out every single team in the NBA. I'll link to Houston's. Discuss, Discuss, Discuss!!! Rockets

The Heat have a serious lack of three-point shooting now. They should look for a defensive-minded player who can stick a three, or a point guard who can shoot on the cheap.

They can't be elite with their piss-poor interior defenders. Good offenses carve them up inside.

I think he can be...wait for it...off the Wall good.

The Pacers only chance at respectability is if Danny Granger starts at the SG, SF, and PF spots at the same time...

Every team (except like...Detroit) has players who have real high ceilings. The Warriors have players with real high ceilings. The Nets have players with real high ceilings, the Sixers have players with real high ceilings...Let's watch some teams with players who don't need stepladders to meet their ceilings. You know what team doesn't have players with high ceilings? The Lakers, cause they already live on the roof. Let's watch those teams instead of getting too hyped about a defenseless two-guard with poor court awareness playing the point. Evans is a nice player, and the Kings have some nice pieces. I enjoy watching them play on offense, but I'm not running home from wherever to see Jason Thompson block a shot, miss a layup, fill a lane, and be in one place when he needs to be in another.

They probably are. Those are two baaaaaaaaaaad teams

Cousins is a rookie, who knows how much "talent" he has. Jason Thompson has done what in his NBA career to make anybody want to tune in to see him play. Does anybody on the Kings play defense? The one guy who did (Nocioni) got banished cause he didn't bow down to Evans. That's not a team I particularly want to see play.

Here's MY rankings from most and least exciting to watch... 1) Utah---Efficient team offense is exciting to me, okay! 2) Mia 3) Hou---Hard work is exciting to me, okay! 4) LAL 5) OKC 6) SA---Getting the job done professionally is exciting to me, okay! 7) Chi 8) Bos 9) Mil---Overachievers getting by on guts and smarts is exciting to me, okay! 10) Por 11) Mem 12) Den 13) Orl 14) NY 15) Pho 16) LAC 17) Cha 18) Wash---Gilbert Arenas is one of the most boring players in the game to watch. Dribble, dribble, dribble, dribble, dribble, chuck is not exciting. 19) Phi 20) Dal---Iso ball is boring 21) NO---one man offense is boring 22) Atl---Iso ball is boring 23) Sac---Awful defense and limited talent is boring 24) Min---Moderately interesting just for the sheer curiosity. Darko at starting center?!?!? 25) GS---Run amok, no defense basketball is boring 26) NJ---Bad, lifeless teams from 26-30. 27) Ind 28) Cle 29) Tor 30) Det---They're bad, and they don't care...and neither do I...

There are lots of teams with one arbitrarily good player. Utah has Deron Williams for example...and unlike Sacramento, the rest of the Jazz don't suck.

Speak for yourself. Iso ball is boring, and the Spurs always put on a good showing. Why is Sac-town a top-10 team? They look like the most boring team to watch in the West.

Due to the events that transpired this offseason, to the average fan, the NBA has evolved into a dichotomy of the forces of evil (Miami) versus the forces of lesser evil (everyone else), with the Celtics and Lakers operating in the hazy limbo space between each region. However, despite all the big names changing zip codes, the composition of the Atlantic Division remains relatively unchanged. The Celtics are a potential title contender, and perhaps the East’s best bet to quash the title hopes of Miami’s unholy trio, while the rest of the division ranges from the mediocre to the downright deplorable—the same way it’s been in the Atlantic for three years. 1) Boston Celtics The Celtics beefed up their frontcourt as they make perhaps one final run for a ring, but this season’s edition appears to be the worst of the Boston Three Party era. Sure, word on the street is that Kevin Garnett is looking as fluid as he was before blowing out his knee in 2009, but an explosive Garnett isn’t Boston’s main priority. After all, a slightly limited Garnett still played belligerent and intelligent defense during last season’s playoff run, and Garnett’s passive nature and disinclination to attack with the game on the line won’t be metamorphosized due to a return to better health. If Kevin Garnett habitually failed in key stretches of playoff games when he was in his prime, then the revitalization of his knee won’t turn him into the prime-time endgame scorer the Celtics will need if they want to capture a ring. No, this Celtics edition is worse because Ray Allen are worse. Allen’s always primarily been best as a spot-up shooter, but he’s also been underrated at using the threat of the jumper to get to the rim and score. Watching him struggle to finish at the rim last season, particularly against the Lakers, indicates just how far Allen has dropped. His shooting will still come and go, but he’s increasingly one-dimensional. Pierce has also lost at least a step. He’s still strong enough and smart enough to dissect poor defensive opponents, but might-sized defenders can hang with Pierce and keep him from bulling his way to the paint. Without the threat of the drive, his step-back jumpers from the top of the key aren’t nearly as effective. Look at how much Pierce struggled last postseason against LeBron James and Ron Artest? Unfortunately for Boston, those two play for Boston’s toughest competition this season. Rajon Rondo is amazingly nimble, has terrific court vision, and is a falcon on loose balls, but he still can’t shoot which makes it easier for defenses to stymie Boston’s screen/roll game, and he still struggles with making metagame decisions (like constantly walking the ball up against the Lakers when Boston’s offense stagnated and transition opportunities presented themselves). On playmaking ability alone, Rondo is a top-five point guard, but these minute blemishes add up against opponents with the talent to match Boston’s, and the coaching to take advantage. With Kendrick Perkins injured to start the season, Boston will use Shaquille O’Neal and Jermaine O’Neal in the interim. Shaq is still a load to handle in the low post, and can still bang around post scorers near the basket, but his inability to defend in space or make adequate and alert defensive rotations goes against Boston’s defensive mantra. Jermaine O’Neal has much more range on defense, can knock down mid-range jumpers, and is still able to face and go, but he’s too frail, can’t rebound, and has been dreadful in the postseason over the course of his career. As separate entities, each O’Neal is worse than Rasheed Wallace. Over time, Kendrick Perkins should return and provide exceptional interior defense, but he’s only an average rebounder, and will certainly be hindered by the lingering effects of his torn ACL. Off the bench, Glen Davis can hit mid-range jumpers and finish using his wide body, and he’s surprisingly fleet on defense, but his lack of size, hops, and focus prevents him from being a consistent producer. Nate Robinson hasn’t been completely tamed, and as a wild card, can shoot the Celtics into wins, as often as his unchecked recklessness will drive the Celtics into losses. When Delonte West is right, he’s a gutsy defender, who can drive, shoot, post up, rebound, and make good decisions, but he hasn’t been right since his 2009 gun incident and admittance of Bipolar disorder. Von Wafer can sometimes score in a pinch, but he has no concept of team offense. Marquise Daniels hasn’t been the defender he was brought aboard to be. That, perhaps, is Boston’s biggest downgrade. With Tony Allen’s exceptional defensive skills now employed by the Memphis Grizzlies, the Celtics don’t have any defensive stopper, especially as Paul Pierce has to shoulder much of the endgame load as Boston’s most creative and dependable offensive scorer. The defensive drop off from Allen to Daniels is steep, and Daniels and Wafer aren’t good enough scorers to potentially compensate. Still, despite the criticisms, it isn’t all doom and gloom for the Celtics. Among Boston’s strengths: They have a disciplined, creative, and balanced offensive approach which plays to the collective talent of the roster.They play extremely physical, and well-coordinated defense.Overall, Boston’s collective basketball intelligence is off the charts.The Celtics play completely unselfish basketball, another testament to their basketball IQ.The Celtics are well-coached, with creative game planning that can neutralize an opponent over a long series.With the big four healthy, Boston has the offensive firepower to overwhelm most teams on sheer talent alone. But in the high-stakes world of the Conference Finals and NBA Finals, every minor weakness is a chance for an opponent to leave a team in tatters. Right now, like last season, the Celtics holes are a bit more glaring than the Lakers, plus the Celtics at their peak don’t project to having more talent than Miami at their peak. At least we know the Celtics are a proven playoff winner, while the Heat’s moxie will be a mystery until late May. 2) New York Knicks The New York Knicks won’t be any kind of championship contender, but their solid mediocrity might be cause for a tickertape parade for relevance-starved Knicks’ fans. Amare Stoudemire is a dynamic scorer and roll man in screen/roll situations, though he no longer has Steve Nash to feed him the cookies. Still, Stoudemire is a load to handle, especially with the sheer number of sad-sack defenses that inhabit the Eastern Conference. Defense and rebounding have never been Stoudemire’s forte. Danilo Gallinari is a solid two-way player, and an excellent shooter. Anthony Randolph is a sprightly athlete, with no strength, defensive skills, or basketball IQ. Wilson Chandler can do a little bit of everything, but isn’t an iso scorer. The most important player on the Knicks will be Raymond Felton though. The Knicks most crippling weakness last season was Chris Duhon’s three-point shooting. When he was going well, teams would have to respect his jump shot and defend him on ball screens. When he wasn’t going well, defenses would go under Knicks’ ball-screens and the offense would stagnate. If Felton can keep defenses honest with his shooting, it will only increase the rolling lanes and spacing for Amare Stoudemire to attack defenses. If Felton isn’t shooting well, defenses will sag off him, crippling New York’s screen/roll game and limiting the Knicks’ interior driving lanes. Off the bench, Ronny Turiaf is low on skill, but big on effort and foul trouble, Roger Mason Jr. is a shooter coming off a disastrous season with the Spurs, Bill Walker is a high flyer still learning the game, while Toney Douglas is an attacking point guard, and not a playmaking one. The Knicks have the pieces to play an effective full-throttle gameplan, and Stoudemire alone could give the Knicks a ticket to the playoffs. However, the Knicks are still short on defenders, rebounders, and wing talent to make an impact postseason run. 3) Philadelphia 76ers Another year without a top notch point guard will mean another fruitless season for the Sixers. Jrue Holliday can someday be that caliber point guard, but he’s still extremely young, and learning on the job. Lou Williams, is quick and athletic, but he’s more of a change-of-pace backup, than a reliable, decision-making starter. In the frontcourt, getting rid of Samuel Dalembert will open up a logjam in the frontcourt. Elton Brand can still score from the high post, but his days of being a dominant low post scorer and rebounder are over. Marreese Speights has the talent to dominate on the both sides of the court, but doesn’t put the work in. As such, his hints of stardom appear in glimpses and glances, while observers are still searching for his hints of defense. Thaddeus Young can run the floor with anybody, is an explosive finisher on the break or the baseline, and is an active, energetic defender. He’s too lean to play power forward without a sturdy low-post defender and rebounder at center, and he doesn’t shoot well enough to play the three without a pair of sharp-shooting guards. Because of Philadelphia’s roster limitations, he’s best off as the first forward off the bench. Spencer Hawes lacks the talent to be a game changer and is strictly a backup, while Darius Songaila is a hustling, working, scrapper who’d be better off on a more veteran team. At the wing, Andre Iguodala can do everything except create his own jump shot, which keeps him off the first tier of elite wings. Jason Kapono is a one-dimensional shooting backup, while Andres Noccioni will play with abandon and knock down an occasional three, but is on the wrong side of his career. Because of Philadelphia’s unbalanced roster, Evan Turner better be able to create for himself, shoot, and pass, but there have been concerns about his handle and athleticism. In a deeper Eastern Conference, the Sixers won’t be able to take the next step until/unless Holliday and Turner reach their potential, or Brand’s deadweight contract comes off the books. 4) New Jersey Nets The Nets made wholesale roster changes but in the grand scheme of things, none of their new additions will matter. Devin Harris flat out quit on last season, plus he still can’t shoot, play focused defense, or make good decisions with the ball. Jordan Farmar is a decent backup who can make plays in a broken field, but tends to be out of control and undisciplined. Terrence Williams is completely raw, but he oozes playmaking talent. Still, he’s several seasons away from completely harnessing his natural abilities. Travis Outlaw has perfected a step-back jumper going left, but he only wants to shoot. Anthony Morrow is a one-dimensional three-point shooter. None of the trio play much defense. Troy Murphy will help the Nets on the boards, a major weakness last season. He can also shoot the three, which will help provide spacing, particularly on Devin Harris screen/fades, or on weak-side combo screens. Kris Humphries is another solid rebounder with surprising athleticism. Brook Lopez’s big body and soft touch make him a legit weapon down in the low block, but he’s too slow to consistently overwhelm opponents or beat double teams. He and Murphy also form one of the slowest interior defense tandems in professional basketball. The Nets should get enough rebounding to fuel a decent fast break and early transition game, but their defense won’t get enough stops to consistently get out and go. The Nets also lack players who can create their own shot while making good decisions for others. As a result, the Nets won’t quite be as bad as last year, but should still be one of the league’s dregs. 5) Toronto Raptors Look out below! With Chris Bosh and Hedo Turkoglu no longer around, the Raptors look like one of the league’s two or three worst teams. Andrea Bargnani will find the going tough as the focal point of opposing defenses, and he has neither the strength, nor the smarts to adapt. Amir Johnson is a solid defensive forward with no offensive game. Also, neither player is an adequate defensive rebounder so teams will simply carve the Raptors up inside. Off the bench, Reggie Evans will be pressed into duty for his rebounding and ruggedness, but he’s always in foul trouble and can’t score in a video game. The other backup big, David Andersen, is strictly a long-range shooter. DeMarr Derozan is a mistake player at one wing, while Leandro Barbosa plays with zero court vision at the other wing, and can only succeed in a full-throttle system. Too bad the Raptors won’t get enough stops to fuel any kind of effective running game. Julian Wright is lost in space, while Sonny Weems is extremely unpolished. In fact, Linas Kleiza is the Raptors’ best wing. He’s athletic enough to score in an open field or on isolations, and he’s a good finisher because of his wide body. Plus he triples as an excellent range shooter. Jose Calderon makes good decisions and can hit mid-range jumpers, but lacks imagination, creativity, and defense. Jarrett Jack plays with smarts and heart, but there’s only one of him on the roster. The Raptors lack talent, toughness, and an identity. They won’t lack a early draft pick next June.

Popovich does this all the time in the preseason, giving players opportunities to coach in the preseason. He really trusts his players a ton, and they reward him by playing great team ball. You can't do this with every team, but teams with smart, veteran leaders without dominant personas you can give this kind of responsibility to.

http://nbaplaybook.com/2010/10/13/examining-coach-manus-playcall/

Overreact much? It's an interesting story that the best of the Euroleague beat the best of the NBA in a game, even though the stakes were extremely low for the Lakers and they certainly didn't bring (or need to bring) their A-game. The headline is little more than a question, asking should the Lakers be concerned considering they'd usually mop the floor with Barcelona. That's all. No doom and gloom, end of the world, attacks, or series of harsh criticisms. Nowhere is Miami mentioned or anything. The Lakers are kind of a big deal so when they lose to a Euroleague team it gets some attention. You can bet that had Miami lost to Barcelona, it would get some press too. Or are you that insecure that Miami has a pretty good team that may end up kind of, possibly, in someone's wildest dreams, better than the Lakers this year?

The source is Woj, one of the best NBA journalists going. http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/news?slug=aw-celticsheat093010

I'm going to venture a no...

This is all well and good, as the Bulls definitely have talent and depth. The Brewer signing isn't going to hurt the Bulls in terms of making the playoffs, but there will be a bunch of games they'll lose because defenses pack the paint and the Bulls either miss a bunch of forced layups or long jumpers. There will be games where the Bulls will overcome that because they have talent, but in situations like the playoffs where every single detail becomes critically important, they'll have a bunch of possessions where they'll have trouble scoring. That's a difference maker against Orlando, Boston, and Miami, three teams that will probably be excellent defensive teams. A more well-rounded two-guard might put the Bulls on the same level as Orlando and make them a threat to challenge the Celtics. But teams with major spacing issues have trouble scoring in the playoffs.

The more you start Korver, the worse you are on defense. Do you want Korver chasing Ray Allen through screens, or checking Dwyane Wade? Chicago's biggest rival this year might be Milwaukee as they look like the clear 4th and 5th team in the East. Korver on John Salmons is a bad matchup. Fixing one problem with a niche player, often opens up other problems.

I guess I'm assuming that Shaq will play nice in Boston. There are strong personalities in place to keep him from being a distraction, both with the players and with Doc Rivers, and there's strong leadership in place. Aside from uncorroborated rumors that seem to pop up suggesting Ray Allen and Rajon Rondo have problems with one another, there's never any long-term problems with Boston, despite some interesting personas. Miller will provide more size than Chuck Hayes, but where Hayes can't jump or be tall, Miller can't move. It looks like Miller's reaching that part of his career where he's going to steadily decline. He's already an awful defender. He might be okay on offense simply because of his court-IQ and knowledge of Adelman's system, but he's going to give back a lot on defense. Always good to hear from you man.