His Greatness

Needed a topic.

I assume that Artest will do all the heavy lifting on defense. LA's goal should be to preserve Kobe for the playoffs.

I don't think you've seen it. Wright tries to establish position, Smith doesn't like the contact and throws his elbow at Wright's face. I don't know whether the elbow connected, but the intent was obvious. You're right that scuffles always happen, but they're generally comprised of excessive talking in each other's faces and love-tapping. Blatant elbows to the face don't happen in almost every NBA game. And contrary to popular belief, I do not shoot myself from immaturity in every pick-up game, I'm usually the immature one; however, I do shoot myself when someone continues to deny something he is so obviously wrong about, and resorts to leading the topic astray to restrain from admitting it. Like you. I have nothing against celebrating or trash-talking. I have something against people denying that it's stupid and immature when the player constantly does it, and has been known as a stupid and immature player his whole career. I display large amounts of [expletive]ry, but I do not have [expletive]ty character. Character expands beyond that. Semantics. I'm sure all his coaches and teammates would love for him to "lose his uniqueness" if it means he's not giving the other team free throws, or even worse, risking a suspension for himself. Yeah, elbows are always thrown in sports, but not intentionally into people's faces... come on Jermaine. It's part of what contributes to the notion. He doesn't need to get in another dust-up to validate the opinion because it's palpable from everything else he does. EDIT: Youtube code [expletive]ed up.

Wade functions as the point guard, he's their primary playmaker.

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/more/specials/fortunate50/2009/index.html Marbury and Francis get paid more than Tom Brady.

His knee wasn't 100% to begin with, but he would have a slew of solid games, and then be disabled intermittently by the sore knee from all the exertion. Why, I never. I am a paragon of impartiality. I have always posted with a completely objective perspective. The Lakers are just another team.

Adelman's offense wasn't a freelance offense, Artest was/is the freelancer. That's the root of the problem. You assume he'll adhere to the triangle and the Kobe-offense, when he's probably more inclined to stagnate ball movement by 'probing' the defense for 20 seconds, and then uncorking an ugly fadeaway. Artest's deference to McGrady didn't improve his shot selection, he just took less shots because there were less shots. He still had the most shots per minute on the team.

He also took a "backseat" to McGrady and Yao, but that didn't work out as planned. As for his spot-up shooting: Artest, with his feet set, is a very accurate shooter. The thing is, he's not a spot-up shooter, and has never been utilized as one.

Artest has been an offensive freelancer his entire career. We all thought he would subdue those tendencies and take a more reserved role when he was on the floor with McGrady and Yao, but that didn't happen. Maybe he'll behave under Phil and Kobe, but I wouldn't hold my breath. His many vices include over-dribbling, taking ill-advised shots, trying to play playmaker when he isn't one, and in a nutshell, murdering offensive flow. That is the antithesis of the triangle.

LA got an upgrade with Artest, but again, he's not without his drawbacks. I said the same thing when Houston traded for him.

Also imagine having a guy who's an unstable player that routinely freelances on offense to the detriment of his team. Phil better be able to reign him in.

@$*%)@&^#$

I also think, for defense, one of the hardest things to gauge is the work ethic and desire to become a good defender and the willingness to play it. That's why you always see these prospects marked with "good defensive potential (or tools)" but none of them ever materializing. Good post.

Right now, for LeBron, any help is good help, especially if it's in the form of a post presence.

I don't know what NBA games you've been watching, but blatant elbows throw at someone's face don't happen "almost" every NBA game. It's not just that dirty elbow that earned him this stigma as a stupid and immature player — it's everything that he's done, and is still doing that made him deserve it. It's certainly not lifelong, though. Kobe outlived it. Oh, yeah, that makes it much better! Those three technicals only add on o his already [expletive]ty record (on-court, I mean) as a stupid and immature player. That's not including all the uncalled taunts and gestures he made to the other team during the playoffs. Yeah but it's so true, though. Yep, and his style is stupid and immature. I didn't say he was a bad person or that he has [expletive]ty character, that's you throwing out straw mans again. I said that those [expletive]ty displays of character are unsurprisingly recurring, which means exactly what it says and implies.

Kobe is a perimeter-oriented player now. Back in the three-peat years when he was at the peak of his athleticism, when his jumper wasn't flawless, he could and would get to the cup at will. Wade has never been a "perimeter-dominant" player, especially not in '06 when he didn't have that reliable mid-range J (he still doesn't have the three-point shot LeBron has). The bulk of his offense is generated from penetration, just as it is with LeBron. He also gives Cleveland the long-awaited post presence, someone else that can draw a second defender, an effective finisher, and another player with passing skills that can set up his teammates... which all, most importantly, means a hefty reduction in LeBron's workload. It's not that cut-and-dry, dude. Shaq won't clog the lane anymore than Varejao did, who had no offensive skills to speak of. Besides, LeBron is way too good to be getting contained by his own player... and Shaq, while old and increasingly immobile, is still a terrific dump-off option and is smart enough to find the openings when the defense collapses on LeBron. There are foreseeable drawbacks, but they're chiefly defensive concerns, mainly PNR coverage. It's still an upgrade from Ilgauskas because Shaq gives them a thick big that can body up Dwight more effectively.

Yes, we can call him stupid and immature for throwing a blatant elbow at someone's face, because it is stupid and immature. You call it having fun on the court. I, and probably everyone else in the world, call it taunting. You can have fun on the court without foolishly disrespecting your opponent and hurting your team. Dwight Howard is stupid and immature, Kenyon Martin is dirty, Kobe Bryant is a douche, Josh Smith is stupid and immature, and Carmelo Anthony is immature. Still pretty bad company. It's not just his tendency for incurring technicals that's pertinent, but also how he picks him up and how he carries himself on the court. This is a guy that has a reputation for pulling this type of [expletive], and these [expletive]ty displays of character are unsurprisingly recurring. It's really no secret — you're probably the only one denying it, even among your Nugget cohorts.

Posted Image Do you see that?

Matt Bonner is the best player on the Spurs.

His pesky defense and athleticism could be an asset to many teams as long as he isn't starting over J.R. Smith. ... Those cunning tripping skills could also come in handy.

My mistake, I meant to say Kevin Pritchard: http://ripcityproject.com/2009/07/01/andre-miller-to-portland-deal-looks-dead/

McGrady for his contract. Dalembert for tanking.

LMAO

Good song. "Gone for Good" - The Shins

I'd be satisfied with either. This trade would be an absolute home run for us, but there is no chance of it happening if Gortat signs with Houston, which he probably will.