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Tuesday, February 22, 2011

"Carmelo Anthony, meet the New York Knicks"

*This photo was released the day before the trade
by Marvel Comics and ESPN
on Sunday February 20, 2011




Most would say we knew this day was coming, and the only question was when.  Through a 3 way deal, the Denver Nuggets and the Minnesota Timberwolves made the New York Knicks a much better team. Sending arguably one of the best NBA players, Carmelo Anthony, to the"Land and of the Super Teams" aka the Eastern Conference.

I once blogged that the world was panicking for no reason. History has shown that a "Big 3" scenario is common among successful NBA cities over the last few years.  Ginobili, Duncan and Parker for the San Antonio Spurs and Martin, Kidd and Jefferson for the New Jersey Nets are just 2 small examples.  Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen landing in Boston seemed logical at the time, but the way Bosh and James joined Dwayne Wade in Miami was not welcomed with the same open arms.  Everyone now says it is the era of players not willing to struggle and earn success as the sole leader of any given team. With age and injuries for veterans that makes sense, but the annoyance for many is in the youth and talent of these players, who are still capable of competing as leaders, choosing to take on the "can't beat 'em join 'em" attitude. I was initially upset when thinking about the possibility of super teams and naively believed draft picks would balance everything out.  That everyone should relax and not blow it out of proportion.  I have since changed my mind.

Carmelo going to the Knicks means that the super team scenario is very real and there is very little that can stop it. That "very little" thing is the CBA, which stands for Collective Bargaining Agreement. In short, the players union negotiate with owners about pay scales and many other things, an agreement of terms is made and both sides agree to honor the terms for a period of time.  I bring this up because right now, the players union and owners are not agreeing, and as the new CBA expires this summer, if there is no agreement made, we could see a lockout or a shorter 2011-12 season.  Among topics to be brought up is the possibility of a "franchise player tag" for each team. And here is my point.

Should the franchise tag system be applied to the new CBA, only one player could be paid max money and would have to stay with his current team for a certain period of time. This could prevent bandwagon jumping and make side kicks like Bosh and James think twice about being "Robin" instead of "Batman".

With endorsement deals and millions still on the table, the loss of a few dollars in exchange for a championship ring is something most players would take.  The hope is that it will make them think twice.

So now Chris Paul to the Knicks, Dwight Howard to the Lakers and Shane Batier to the Celtics are the latest rumors. As a fans of our own teams, we will always be biased.  If Lebron James joined Chris Bosh in Toronto last summer, me along with everyone in Canada, would be happy to say the least.

Going into the "lack of competition" rant has been done to death.

But as fans of any sport, we have to remember this.
The reason we love sports is the unpredictability of balanced competition.

Sport:
  • an active diversion requiring physical exertion and competition
  • the occupation of athletes who compete for pay

Friday, February 4, 2011

Blake Griffin vs Shawn Kemp

Blake Griffin's Top 10 Dunks of Nov.

2011 NBA ALL-STARS...What's wrong with this list?





LeBron James....Heat
Amar'e Stoudamire.....Knicks
Dwayne Wade.....Heat
Derrick Rose.....Bulls
Dwight Howard.....Magic
Ray Allen.....Celtics
Chris Bosh.....Heat
Kevin Garnett.....Celtics
Al Horford.....Hawks
Joe Johnson.....Hawks
Paul Pierce.....Celtics
Rajon Rondo.....Celtics
Coach: Doc Rivers.....Celtics


During the past few years it has been common practice to call the East "the weaker of the 2 conferences".  It is difficult to argue when there are fewer teams with winning records compared to the West, but the coaches choices for the East All-Star reserves were limited.  I hate favoritism in any aspect of life and would be quick to accuse the coaches of this, except the reality of it is that only the top 6 teams in the East have players that could be considered All-Stars. 

Had Joakim Noah and Carlos Boozer from the Chicago Bulls been healthy all year I would no doubt be up in arms demanding one of them replace Kevin Garnett.  That however was not the case.  As an Eastern Conference supporter it's a hard pill to swallow, but it's the truth, the talent pool of the East is concentrated on the top 6 teams.  Maybe what everyone feared may become a reality, too many "Super Teams" can cause a massive gap in the competitiveness in the NBA.

I for one even blogged about how the "Super Team" would have little affect on things, I'm ready to rethink that theory.  7 of the 12 East All-Stars come from only 2 teams, the Boston Celtics and the Miami Heat.






Kevin Durant.....Thunder
Carmelo Anthony.....Nuggets
Kobe Bryant.....Lakers
Chris Paul.....Hornets
Yao Ming.....Rockets
Tim Duncan.....Spurs
Manu Ginobili.....Spurs
Pau Gasol.....Lakers
Blake Griffin.....Clippers
Dirk Nowitzki.....Mavericks
Russell Westbrook.....Thunder
Deron Williams.....Jazz
Coach: Greg Popovich.....Spurs

I must say that I have very little to complain about this years Western Conference All-Stars.  Other than the fact that Rajon Rondo from the Celtics made the East roster and Steve Nash from the Phoenix Suns is no where to be found for the West, all else is difficult to debate. 

The Yao Ming situation has been an ongoing one since he entered the NBA.  Having not played a full season due to injury over the last few years it's confusing as to why he is always voted in.  It is almost a certainty he won't play, and has rarely played enough to earn the roster spot.  Yao Ming will be replaced by a player chosen by NBA commissioner David Stern before the All-Star weekend. 

It is clear that the West also has the majority of it's All-Stars from the top 6 teams, but it won't be long until we see players like Monta Ellis and Stephen Curry from the Golden State Warriors, Tyreke Evans from Sacramento, LaMarcus Aldridge from the Trail Blazers and Kevin Love from Minnesota make the team in years to come, all from lower ranked teams.  All of which should have been considered for spots, more than I can say for the East. 


Tuesday, February 1, 2011

NBA ALL-STAR ROOKIE CHALLENGE





Here are the starting rosters for the Rookie vs Sophomore game to be held on Feb. 18., 2011 in L.A.

ROOKIE TEAM ROSTER
Eric Bledsoe..... L.A. Clippers
DeMarcus Cousins..... Sacramento Kings
Derrick Favors..... New Jersey Nets
Landry Fields..... New York Knicks
Blake Griffin..... L.A. Clippers
Wesley Johnson..... Minnesota Timberwolves
Greg Monroe..... Detroit Pistons
Gary Neal..... San Antonio Spurs
John Wall..... Washington Wizards


SOPHOMORE TEAM ROSTER
DeJuan Blair..... San Antonio Spurs
DeMar DeRozan..... Toronto Raptors
Stephen Curry..... Golden State Warriors
Tyreke Evans..... Sacramento Kings
Taj Gibson..... Chicago Bulls
Jrue Holiday..... Philadelphia 76ers
Serge Ibaka..... Oklahoma City Thunder
Brandon Jennings..... Milwaukee Bucks
Wesley Matthews..... Portland Trailblazers