NBA Offseason!!!

[Latrinsorm]

Midnight tonight teams can make offers to free agents. Full list here (http://espn.go.com/nba/story/_/page/FreeAgents-12-13/nba-free-agents-2012-2013). Biggest names:

Deron Williams (Nets)
Roy Hibbert (R, Pacers)
Steve Nash (Suns)

Ray Allen, Brandon Bass, Kevin Garnett (Celtics)
Omer Asik (Bulls)
Jason Kidd, Jason Terry, Delonte West (Mavs)
Javale McGee (R), Rudy Fernandez (R), Andre Miller (Nuggets)
Goran Dragic (Rockets)
George Hill (R) (Pacers)
Jordan Hill (Lakers)
Michael Beasley (R) (Timberwolves)
Gerald Wallace (Nets)
Eric Gordon (Hornets)
Jeremy Lin (Knicks)
Spencer Hawes, Lou Williams (76ers)
Ray Felton (Trailblazers)
Tim Duncan, Daniel Green (Spurs)

Other situations of note:
The Celtics have 10, count 'em, 10 free agents that were on their roster last year. They currently have under contract Pierce, Rondo, Bradley, and JaJuan Johnson.
The Lakers and Heat are WAAAAY over the cap. One of those teams just won the title.
There are a lot of teams way under the cap. Some made the playoffs last year: Pacers, Celtics, Mavs and Magic (technically), Nuggets.

.

So far...
-the Clippers traded one of their 300 pseudo point guards (Mo Williams) for Lamar Odom. There are kind of a lot of head cases on that team now, but they really had too many little guys, so maybe it'll work? (There is no chance whatsoever it will work.)
-KG coming back to Boston.
-Deron Williams insists he'll only go Brooklyn or Dallas.
-Heat aiming at Ray Allen. I think that would be a terrible mistake, personally. He's not good at defense or rebounding at this point in his career, so he's basically James Jones, and we all know how much Spo hated playing James Jones. Again, the Heat are WAAAAAY over the cap, their space is too precious to waste on Allen.

.

Nash on the Heat would just be the best thing ever. Picture it! Nash leading the break with Terrel Harris on one wing and Wade on the other. The other team busts it and gets back (alleviating the Heat's rebounding weaknesses), Nash dumps it to James who trailed into the post, Nash's man leaves to double James, James gives it right back to Nash who drills the 3 (42.8% career shooter!). HOW WOULD ANYONE STOP THIS? Or Nash running the pick and roll with Bosh with Chalmers and Battier spotted up for 3. After Mike Miller's spinal transplant surgery we won't have any white guys. It's perfect I tell you!

[Drew]

Nash to the Heat, mark it down.

[thefarmer]

My poor Rockets :(

[Bobmuhthol]

Garnett isn't a free agent. He's already signed with the Celtics.

Edit: Saw you already noted that, my b.

I would be very sad to see a respectable player like Steve Nash on the Heat.

[Androidpk]

I would be very sad to see a respectable player like Steve Nash on the Heat.

:lol2:

[Latrinsorm]

Dwight Howard... oh... my... God...

Dwight Wants to be Traded!!! (http://espn.go.com/nba/story/_/id/8118159/sources-dwight-howard-tells-orlando-magic-gm-wants-trade-brooklyn-nets)

"[Howard] feels the Magic blackmailed him into signing the "opt-in" clause. ... He -- either himself or through his representatives -- approached the union wondering if he might have a legal complaint against the club. ... Sources said the union has no plans to pursue any such legal action against the Magic."

Say what you will about NBA Champion LeBron James, at least his debacle was over in an hour. This saga is un be lievable.

[Ardwen]

Clearly Dwight needs to change his name to Waffle

[Latrinsorm]

Nets looking to sign G. Wallace to a 4 year deal. What??

Eric Gordon wants a max contract. What????

Portland offers max deal to Roy Hibbert. That actually makes a lot of sense. LaMarcus Aldridge is better suited to PF, two all-star bigs to build around and plenty of cap space starting next year is a good spot to be. Indiana has to match though, so it's sort of a pipe dream.

Celtics offering Ray Allen a 2 year $12 million deal. Were the Heat rumors just a bluff to get the Celtics to waste their space?

Rockets seem to have Asik. They were shopping Scola, but why? It seems like KMart Scola Asik could be competitive: Asik isn't a scorer but he's super durable (two years in the NBA, played every game), very good defender, very good rebounder. Also, the Bulls seem to be floundering. One of their big strengths was their Gibson-Asik-Deng super defense lineup, who's their big after Noah now? The only ones left in the FA market are Hibbert (R), McGee (R), Hill, Hawes, Duncan. They're definitely not getting Hibbert or Duncan. I love McGee and generally wish him all the best but the comedy of him playing for Thibodeau is irresistible. Hill is unproven, once Asik is locked up it seems like the market for Hawes is going to be intense. Rose just can't carry them past the Heat... so what move are they going to make?

[Ardwen]

Heat have like a 1-2m slot for Allen no clue what they were going to offer him anyway, 6m a year for Allen off the bench doesnt seem too insane anyway, at least not based on what other teams pay players

[Latrinsorm]

Danny Ferry is an ax murderer.

Marvin Williams for Devin Harris (http://espn.go.com/nba/story/_/id/8124428/atlanta-hawks-trade-marvin-williams-utah-jazz-devin-harris-according-sources), apparently straight up.

Joe Johnson for a pile of poop (http://espn.go.com/new-york/nba/story/_/id/8124182/brooklyn-nets-agree-trade-atlanta-hawks-joe-johnson-sources-say), but only if Deron Williams stays in Brooklyn.

This frees up enough space next year to get Howard AND Paul, which would be pretty astonishing.

Speaking of Deron Williams, he needs to seriously consider accepting less than max, or different locations.
1. Dallas has a declining (but still good) Dirk Nowitzki, a decrepit Jason Kidd, and maybe(!) a declining Jason Terry. Their best case nucleus going forward is Brandan Wright and Ian Mahinmi. It could be worse, but not a whole hell of a lot worse.

2. If he takes the max, Brooklyn would have him, Joe Johnson, and Gerald Wallace for about $50 million a year, with the salary cap in the high 50s. None of them are that good!
-Joe Johnson has never cracked a 20 PER, plays about 36 minutes a game, and isn't getting any younger.
-The Nets didn't have a lot besides Williams, but 22-44, come on.
-Wallace had one very good year in Charlotte but has seen a pronounced decline since then. Consider that in 2010 he averaged 12.4 FGAs and got 7.2 FTAs and 18.2 pts out of them. Last year with the Nets (only 16 games, but still) he had 12.6 FGAs, but only 4.0 and 15.2 respectively. He went from 10 rebounds to a little under 7. 41 minutes to 36. Needless to say, these numbers are all going the wrong way.

He's supposed to announce his decision tomorrow, but I don't see how either situation is at all palatable.

[SHAFT]

I thought I wanted howard on the lakers, but I've realized of the past 2 seasons I do not. I can't decide who has more issues between he and Bynum. I just hope the lakers doing something, anything

[Latrinsorm]

Now the Nets are rumored to be trying squeeze Howard in on top of their $50 million big 3, getting rid of Humphries, Lopez, Brooks, and a million draft picks to do so. Didn't we learn from 2011 and 2012 Miami that you need to have at least a semblance of other guys on your team to win, and with a significantly stronger big 3 at that? How is Brooklyn going to make that work within the cap?

Pacers lock up Hill for 5 years. I thought their biggest weakness was the lack of a true point guard, and this doesn't help them there at all. If they have decided on Hill over Hibbert, they are k-razy.

It's pretty astonishing to me that so many teams are interested in Ray Allen. Reportedly: Boston, Miami, the Clippers, Minnesota, Atlanta, and Dallas. It seems like he'll be a good shooter until the day he dies, but what about defense, passing, rebounding? There were long stretches in the playoffs where he was just killing the Celtics.

The Heat reportedly talking to Rashard Lewis. NnnnnNNNOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!
I thought I wanted howard on the lakers, but I've realized of the past 2 seasons I do not. I can't decide who has more issues between he and Bynum. I just hope the lakers doing something, anythingAt this point, Bynum is 2 years younger on the calendar and an astonishing 10,000 minutes younger in the legs. If you think the early injury troubles were a fluke, you have to keep Bynum at this point and start rebuilding. (And Howard having back surgery takes a lot of steam out of his previous invincibility advantage.) Kobe had the least efficient scoring season of his career last year, the Lakers haven't been contenders the past two years, and they are WAY WAY over the cap with very little of trade value.

[DoctorUnne]

It's pretty astonishing to me that so many teams are interested in Ray Allen. Reportedly: Boston, Miami, the Clippers, Minnesota, Atlanta, and Dallas. It seems like he'll be a good shooter until the day he dies, but what about defense, passing, rebounding? There were long stretches in the playoffs where he was just killing the Celtics.

Dude he was injured. He shouldn't have even been playing except Avery Bradley was more injured. Allen's never been a rebounder or a passer but he is not a bad defender. He defended Kobe pretty well in the 2010 finals. Comparing him when healthy to James Jones is a joke. LeBron and Wade and I'm sure every other Heat fan would kill to have Shuttlesworth.

[DoctorUnne]

This frees up enough space next year to get Howard AND Paul, which would be pretty astonishing.

If this happens you can kiss Miami's hopes for another ring goodbye. Josh Smith AND Howard on the same team? The rebounding, defense and athleticism would cause a meltdown. Toss in Paul and you have a team that is pretty much tailor made to beat Miami.

[Latrinsorm]

Dude he was injured. He shouldn't have even been playing except Avery Bradley was more injured. Allen's never been a rebounder or a passer but he is not a bad defender. He defended Kobe pretty well in the 2010 finals. Comparing him when healthy to James Jones is a joke. LeBron and Wade and I'm sure every other Heat fan would kill to have Shuttlesworth.So those teams are clamoring for a guy going into his 17th season with uncertain health. I'm the only one who finds this crazy???

James Jones is an excellent 3 point shooter who doesn't do a heck of a lot else (besides taking a cheap shot here and there). Even when Battier was shooting on the interstate from 3, Coach Spoelstra didn't put Jones in. The idea of spacing the floor around James and Wade, while important, is just not as important to Miami as everyone thinks.
If this happens you can kiss Miami's hopes for another ring goodbye. Josh Smith AND Howard on the same team? The rebounding, defense and athleticism would cause a meltdown. Toss in Paul and you have a team that is pretty much tailor made to beat Miami.Then again... they'll have Josh Smith and Dwight Howard on the same team. You want to talk about potential meltdowns!

I'm not positive they would even have Josh Smith. Al Horford is under contract until 2016, has a lot less mileage, and a lot less proclivities to do crazy Josh Smith things. I would argue that if they're looking to beat Miami a true twin towers lineup makes a lot more sense.

I would argue that we don't know for sure how Miami would defend Howard or Howard types in the 2012-2013 season, let alone the 2013-2014 season when the Hawks could sign both guys as FAs. I've seen a lot of potential in Pittman, and you at least know he wouldn't be afraid of Howard because he is pretty much clueless out there. Atlanta would also be perilously weak on the wings. Josh Smith is actually smaller than LeBron, but he still plays most of his minutes at power forward. As we saw with OKC, this is exactly where you do not want to be against Wade and James. OKC had 1 good wing defender, Atlanta in this construction would have 0. Throw in Howard being drawn away from the basket by Bosh and Atlanta would hemorrhage points against the Heat.

[Latrinsorm]

I will say this for the Nets. Their moves might not be good, but at least they're busy.

Also, Jason Terry leaning towards the Celtics for 3 years, $5m each, Dallas won't match. Is there any way Deron goes to Dallas now? What is Terry going to do on the Celtics? You can't play him and Rondo at the same time against a real team, can you? Although looking it up his 2nd most common lineup last year was with Beaubois who is tiny, so maybe you can, although that lineup also featured Odom, Nowitzki, and Wright, so the overall size wasn't too low.

[Latrinsorm]

Eric Gordon max deal with Phoenix, can be matched by New Orleans. Just brutal. Not only is he not that good, undersized, unrequited love for the 3, brutally poor rebounder, but he can't stay healthy! Don't know what Phoenix is thinking.

Deron Williams does sign with the Nets for the max. Maybe it's just me, but I just don't see it working out.

[RichardCranium]

Eric Gordon max deal with Phoenix, can be matched by New Orleans. Just brutal. Not only is he not that good, undersized, unrequited love for the 3, brutally poor rebounder, but he can't stay healthy! Don't know what Phoenix is thinking.

Deron Williams does sign with the Nets for the max. Maybe it's just me, but I just don't see it working out.

Hornets will match, then trade him.

[Latrinsorm]

Oh. To whom, though? I don't know why anyone would want to pay him that much.

In more (http://espn.go.com/olympics/summer/2012/basketball/story/_/id/8129667/olympics-2012-injured-joakim-noah-french-hoops-team) depressing Bulls news, Deng is forgoing surgery on his gimpy wrist so he can play for Great Britain, Noah is missing the Olympics entirely. The Bulls have yet to land anyone, and who knows when Rose will be back. Are they going to be a top 4 team next year?

[Drew]

Having watched the Heat play Orlando a lot, I'm not too worried about Dwight on another team. The Heat did the same thing they did to Indiana with Hibbert. When he was on the floor he did slow down the Heat a lot, but only by virtue of playing in such a way that he picked up a lot of fouls. If he played safe, the Heat got the points they wanted. If he defended hard, he did make the Heat miss some but he would eventually get in foul trouble and the Heat would dominate with him out. I honestly don't think the formula to stop the Heat is big men, I think it's tall long defenders who can play outside or inside.

[Latrinsorm]

That's why I think a team with Howard and Horford could work out vs. the Heat. Having two legit basket defenders relieves the foul trouble angle and the problem with guarding Bosh away from the basket: just put the guy in foul trouble on Bosh. It would also be very unique in a league where plenty of teams don't even have one, although Spoelstra has demonstrated an ability to adjust over a 7 game series. They would also have a reasonable amount of cap space to get a wing defender, because a team with Chris Paul and Dwight Howard has offense to spare.

[thefarmer]

Houston falls prey to the Yao Ming syndrome+Linsanity.

http://espn.go.com/new-york/nba/story/_/id/8130598/report-houston-rockets-offer-jeremy-lin-backloaded-contract

I'm not sure how I feel about this costly contract offer.


Edit: Yellow fever.

[Kembal]

Houston falls prey to the Yao Ming syndrome+Linsanity.

http://espn.go.com/new-york/nba/story/_/id/8130598/report-houston-rockets-offer-jeremy-lin-backloaded-contract

I'm not sure how I feel about this costly contract offer.


Edit: Yellow fever.

Rockets gotta keep all those Chinese fans.

I actually want the Rockets to go young. Neither Scola or Martin are good enough to take the team to the next level, and we're better off trading them. The picks we got though? I feel pretty good about them, especially Royce White.

[thefarmer]

Rockets gotta keep all those Chinese fans.

I actually want the Rockets to go young. Neither Scola or Martin are good enough to take the team to the next level, and we're better off trading them. The picks we got though? I feel pretty good about them, especially Royce White.

I'm OK going with younger picks like some other successful teams have, it can't really hurt at this point. Most anything would be an improvement. Just as long as we don't implode the team and throw around future draft picks to keep going after fucking Dwight Dramaqueen Howard.

[RichardCranium]

Oh. To whom, though? I don't know why anyone would want to pay him that much.

You and me both, but there is interest. The rumors are that they will match any offer, then pull off a sign and trade for a starter plus a future first round pick.

[Latrinsorm]

Steve Nash, what the hell? You could have played with LeBron and Bosh and you would rather play with Kobe and Bynum? I get wanting to be near your kids, but they have houses in Miami.

And this seems like a huge gamble on the Lakers' part to me, and not a terribly well considered one at that. They couldn't defend OKC. How are they going to now, especially if they amnesty World Peace? What if Kobe and Nash can't play together, or what if Kobe is just done? They just gave up 4 picks, how are they going to build around Bynum? Consider these Kobe stats from last year!
-Shooting percentage 3rd lowest of his career.
-3P% 3rd lowest.
-Rebounds per 36 minutes 4th lowest.
-Turnovers per 36 minutes 3rd highest.
-PER 5th lowest, and lowest since 2000.
-TS% lowest, and by a wide margin.
-Effective FG% lowest.
-Usage rate 2nd highest.
-ORtg 2nd lowest, and lowest since rookie year.
-Points per possessions 2nd lowest, and lowest since rookie year.

It was also a bad year for Pau last year. They're both very good players and might turn it around... or they might be done.

Bynum is an unrestricted free agent next year. How much will they be able to offer him with all these contracts piling up?

Doesn't Kobe hate Nash? I thought that was a thing.

I think after about two weeks of standing in the corner while Kobe pounds the air out of the ball, Nash is going to really regret this move. I further think if the Hawks or whoever swoops in and grabs Bynum after next year, leaving the Lakers with a bunch of 36 year olds and no draft picks, it's going to be hard to watch.

[DoctorUnne]

The Lakers just became the title favorites. I can understand why you're upset.

[DoctorUnne]

Also this is pretty interesting from earlier this year on Nash and Kobe. The stats on his last three 48 point games is pretty amazing.

http://espn.go.com/blog/truehoop/post/_/id/35313/the-mamba-remembers

[Drew]

The Lakers just became the title favorites. I can understand why you're upset.


I don't really see how, they have a big slow team that doesn't like to run, Kobe is strictly about iso these days, you won't see him cutting to the rim. I understand if Nash went because he wants to get paid, but if that was the case why not go to the Raptors and make more money? Both teams have an equal shot at winning the title with Nash, hovering at around 0%.

[Keller]

The Lakers just became the title favorites. I can understand why you're upset.

LA fans are seriously the worst.

[g++]

Why would they take Nash as opposed to grooming sessions..seems a bit short sighted.

Although it will be interesting having Nash backed up by Blake. Will be like "Steve Nash has left the game, and his much less efficient clone has sub'd in"

[Latrinsorm]

I decided to look up seasons for guys 6'3" and shorter and 38 and older. (Nash is 6'3" and turns 38 this season.)

Total: 10 guys.
Only 8 of whom played more than 50 minutes.
Only 4 of whom played more than 1000 minutes:
Darrell Armstrong - 15.1 PER, 15.7 MP/G for the non-playoff 2007 Pacers.
Sam Cassell - 15.4 PER, 23.2 MP/G split between the 2008 Clippers and NBA Champion Celtics. (However, he posted a brutal 6.2 PER in the playoffs, leading Bill Simmons to refer to him as "the Mole".)
Terry Porter - 13.9 PER, 18.0 MP/G with the 2002 Spurs that made the 2nd round.
...and of course...
John Stockton - 22.3 & 29.2, 21.9 & 31.3, 21.0 & 27.7 with the 2001-2003 Jazz that never made it out of the first round.

It's worth noting that to that point in his career Stockton had played 40,526 regular season and 5,922 playoff minutes to Nash's 36,129 and 4,228.

But it's also worth repeating that exactly one point guard in NBA history has ever played well at 38+. I could definitely see Nash being the 2nd, but I could also definitely see him being the 10,456th to succumb to old age.

One last thing: Nash took 10.2 FGAs per 36 minutes last year and 2.6 FTAs for 11.3 true shot attempts. The Lakers triumvirate of Fisher, Blake, and Sessions took 8.5 and 2.1, or 9.4. You already have at least two guys on the Lakers who think they should be shooting more in Kobe and Bynum. Where are the shots going to come from, especially come playoff time? Kobe's problem has never been a lack of skill or intelligence. How is adding Steve Nash going to change his style of play? Kobe does what Kobe wants.

.

In other news...
Celtics retain Bass. Makes sense, good move.
Kidd to the Knicks, because it is apparently trendy for HOF point guards to make inexplicable choices at the end of their careers.

[Drew]

Am I the only one totally surprised by the Kidd move?

[Ardwen]

I think the Kidd signing is to give them someone to teach Lin when they match his Offer from Houston, of course it still doesnt make much sense, more then the whole Raptors making an offer to someone just to stop the knicks from making a sign and trade for Nash, which clearly backfired pretty badly

[g++]

One last thing: Nash took 10.2 FGAs per 36 minutes last year and 2.6 FTAs for 11.3 true shot attempts. The Lakers triumvirate of Fisher, Blake, and Sessions took 8.5 and 2.1, or 9.4. You already have at least two guys on the Lakers who think they should be shooting more in Kobe and Bynum. Where are the shots going to come from, especially come playoff time? Kobe's problem has never been a lack of skill or intelligence. How is adding Steve Nash going to change his style of play? Kobe does what Kobe wants.


I doubt Nash gives a shit about any stat line except assists and I also doubt the lakers give a shit about any stat line he puts out there except assists. They need a real point guard and Nash is one, thats it. So I think short term it was a good move if they are entirely devoted to win now. Not sure its the best long term plan. Also I think Kobe will respect Nash and let the offense roll through him. The one thing bigger then Kobes ego is his desire to win and I think he will recognize immediately that Nash will help them do that. Blake is a three point specialist at this point and Sessions may have been a year too young. I'm not sure it was the best long term decision but I can see why they did it.

[thefarmer]

I think the Kidd signing is to give them someone to teach Lin when they match his Offer from Houston, of course it still doesnt make much sense, more then the whole Raptors making an offer to someone just to stop the knicks from making a sign and trade for Nash, which clearly backfired pretty badly

Can the they afford to match Houston's offer? I dunno if he's worth that much.




The one thing bigger then Kobes ego is his desire to win and I think he will recognize immediately that Nash will help them do that. .

Kobe's bazillion shots per game might speak otherwise. I'm sure Latrin will throw up the exact stats whenever he posts next.

[Ardwen]

Lin made the Knicks more money then any other player this past season, I think the only reason the Rockets made him an offer at all was to keep the Yao fans they were losing , he clearly at this point isnt worth it but the Knicks have never done what made sense when signing or drafting players anyway

[DoctorUnne]

I doubt Nash gives a shit about any stat line except assists and I also doubt the lakers give a shit about any stat line he puts out there except assists. They need a real point guard and Nash is one, thats it. So I think short term it was a good move if they are entirely devoted to win now. Not sure its the best long term plan. Also I think Kobe will respect Nash and let the offense roll through him. The one thing bigger then Kobes ego is his desire to win and I think he will recognize immediately that Nash will help them do that. Blake is a three point specialist at this point and Sessions may have been a year too young. I'm not sure it was the best long term decision but I can see why they did it.

This

[DoctorUnne]

LA fans are seriously the worst.

Agreed

[Latrinsorm]

I doubt Nash gives a shit about any stat line except assists and I also doubt the lakers give a shit about any stat line he puts out there except assists. They need a real point guard and Nash is one, thats it. So I think short term it was a good move if they are entirely devoted to win now. Not sure its the best long term plan. Also I think Kobe will respect Nash and let the offense roll through him. The one thing bigger then Kobes ego is his desire to win and I think he will recognize immediately that Nash will help them do that. Blake is a three point specialist at this point and Sessions may have been a year too young. I'm not sure it was the best long term decision but I can see why they did it.Pau was a crucial factor in the Lakers winning two rings, and Kobe treats him like a leper. Like I said, Kobe is so frustrating because he's always had the skill and intelligence to be a team player, but he insists on KOBE BRYANT mode to the immediate and obvious detriment of his team. The Lakers had two legitimate offensive 7 footers and couldn't get out of the 2nd round. 129 FGAs for Bryant, 123 for Bynum and Gasol combined against the Thunder. If Kobe was really willing to let other people take over, what was he waiting for?

Also the point was less whether Nash cared about his attempts, but more to further illustrate how this fit is not as seamless as Nash's vaunted "he makes everyone better" abilities may suggest at first glance. Consider this from another perspective... Nash's AST% has been over 50% the last 3 years; this estimates how many of his teammates' FGs he assists on. Now one, that's incredible and Nash is awesome, but two, that means Nash passes the ball a lot, which means he has the ball a lot. The highest AST%s of Lakers who are not Kobe but played at most of the same time the last 5 years are 33.1 (Sessions, and which dropped to 18.3% in the playoffs), 15.5 (Odom), 15.6 (Odom), 14.9 (Fisher), 15.9 (Fisher). It's going to be a major change for Nash or Kobe (or both!), has Kobe demonstrated in any way that he can make major changes to accommodate teammates?

.

So who's left, FA-wise:

Roy Hibbert (sort of)
Ray Allen
Delonte West
Javale McGee
Jordan Hill
Jeremy Lin (sort of)
Lou Williams
Ray Felton
Tim Duncan (technically)
Danny Green

-I really wish the Heat could make a run at McGee, because I think it'd be a great fit, but as a RFA there's really no way to sign him and I can't think of any realistic trade scenarios.
-The Pacers still desperately need a true PG. Ray Felton is the only one really left (unless they want to max out Lin, I guess), but apparently the Knicks are gunning for him. I guess their philosophy is to have a surplus of PGs so Carmelo can't focus on one to berate for not giving him the ball every possession?
-The Nuggets could suddenly become very large if they hold onto McGee and pick up Hill. They also both run very well for bigs, which would fit the Nuggets' pace. I'm not sure it's enough to be real contenders, though, and it would put them pretty low on cap room, but what else are they going to do?

[g++]

I really just don't think you can do a statistical analysis that will predict how two NBA players will interact. Nash is a veteran all star point guard. Hes going to dribble the ball across the court and run plays and that's just how its going to go down, I mean I guess Brown could let Kobe continue to run the offense but it would be a waste of whatever their paying Nash, who Kobe apparently helped them recruit.. The idea that Kobe's going to run over push him to the floor and jack up a 3 is just not crossing my mind. I can see him taking the offense over from Blake or Sessions because.....their Steve Blake and Ramon Sessions. I mean lets face it their not the best players on earth in any aspect of the game. Ones a role player and ones a rookie.

I mean I just don't put a lot of stock in taking snap shots of statistics before a star shows up. Its as silly as saying, how are the heat going to adjust to Lebron...their going to adjust by winning a lot more games.

[Latrinsorm]

Well, think about that though. LeBron's Heat won less games than LeBron's Cavs (58 instead of 61), even though the Heat had about a million times more talent. They did go farther in the playoffs, but was that because they were a better team or because Boston got old and Rondo was hurt and/or not quite ready yet? Plus Wade and James were legitimate IRL friends prior (avoiding Mr. Black syndrome), plus they were both still in their prime (both in his 8th season instead of both in his 17th), plus the entire team was recreated rather than adding one guy to an established dynamic, plus they were both legitimately interested in setting up teammates rather than only doing so as a very last resort, plus they had a good coach.

I'm not saying the stats say Nash-Kobe won't work. I am saying that it's going to be a big change for one or both of them, you just can't get around the number of touches in a game. When one of them has a well-established history of resisting changes to his playing style, I'm deriving from that that there's a distinct possibility of implosion.

[g++]

Well, think about that though. LeBron's Heat won less games than LeBron's Cavs (58 instead of 61), even though the Heat had about a million times more talent. They did go farther in the playoffs, but was that because they were a better team or because Boston got old and Rondo was hurt and/or not quite ready yet? Plus Wade and James were legitimate IRL friends prior (avoiding Mr. Black syndrome), plus they were both still in their prime (both in his 8th season instead of both in his 17th), plus the entire team was recreated rather than adding one guy to an established dynamic, plus they were both legitimately interested in setting up teammates rather than only doing so as a very last resort, plus they had a good coach.

I wouldnt call the current Lakers offense an established dynamic, I would call it a good example of a complete lack of one. As far as all the Lebron/wade stuff..the only point I was making was both of those guys were the "take the shot" guy on their team then they got together and both took the shots. Same will happen in LA.

A lot of the stuff your saying is argumentative, I mean I don't think the celtics got old and I am pretty sure Lebron James has no real human friends as examples.



I'm not saying the stats say Nash-Kobe won't work. I am saying that it's going to be a big change for one or both of them, you just can't get around the number of touches in a game. When one of them has a well-established history of resisting changes to his playing style, I'm deriving from that that there's a distinct possibility of implosion.

Well I just disagree, I think Nash will play point and Kobe will go back to playing a shooting guard. The only way I see it imploding is if for some reason Nash sucks in which case Kobe will start ball hogging again. But I don't see that happening. We shall see.

[DoctorUnne]

Ray Allen to the Heat. Now they're the title favorites.

[Androidpk]

http://i49.tinypic.com/1qfuis.gif

[Latrinsorm]

Overrated, and potentially disastrous to chemistry if he is that fixated on a starting role. I saw a graphic on Sportscenter today calling the Heat a Big 4... give me a break. The Heat are really moving in the wrong direction by bringing in more old guys, they need to start or continue grooming their young players. I really like Marcus Camby but he was a teammate of Patrick Ewing, okay? We're not that desperate for size, are we? (Are we???)

Now, I would have argued the Heat were the title favorites anyway:
-they won the title convincingly (and 6 of the last 11 Finals games)
-LeBron is still in his prime
-Boston a(nother) year older
-Bulls took a step back
-Magic still a fiasco
-Pacers with no big additions (and if they lose Hibbert forget about it)
-Nets are just the Hawks without size
-nobody in the West addressed their fundamental issues
A lot of the stuff your saying is argumentative, I mean I don't think the celtics got old and I am pretty sure Lebron James has no real human friends as examples.Those both made me laugh.

[Latrinsorm]

I also wanted to cite a great stat from Grantland's Sebastian Pruiti (http://www.grantland.com/blog/the-triangle/post/_/id/31533/steve-nash-is-the-point-guard-the-lakers-have-is-he-the-point-guard-they-need) to back up what I was saying earlier. Last year Kobe was the primary ballhander 60.7% of the time, Nash 67.7%. (Also, the Suns were 8th in pace and the Lakers 20th.) If Kobe cut his touches by 2/3 there still wouldn't be enough for Steve to be Steve, and vice versa... and this is with literally 0 post-ups for Bynum or Gasol! Granted they're not always going to be on the court together at the same time, but still.

It could be like g++ suggests, that Kobe will go back to being shooting guard... but has Kobe ever been a traditional NBA shooting guard? In his Lakers career they have primarily run the triangle under Jackson, the let's miss the playoffs by 11 games under Tomjanovich, and the everybody get out of Kobe's way under Brown. Now, is Kobe smart and talented enough to play a traditional SG role? Absolutely. Is he going to? I see no reason to believe it. Also keep in mind that Kobe has been playing through injury for what seems like 9 years and therefore missing practices with regularity, AND he's playing in the Olympics this year, which has to have an impact on how much energy he can put into training camp.

[DoctorUnne]

Overrated, and potentially disastrous to chemistry if he is that fixated on a starting role. I saw a graphic on Sportscenter today calling the Heat a Big 4... give me a break. The Heat are really moving in the wrong direction by bringing in more old guys, they need to start or continue grooming their young players. I really like Marcus Camby but he was a teammate of Patrick Ewing, okay? We're not that desperate for size, are we? (Are we???)

Now, I would have argued the Heat were the title favorites anyway:
-they won the title convincingly (and 6 of the last 11 Finals games)
-LeBron is still in his prime
-Boston a(nother) year older
-Bulls took a step back
-Magic still a fiasco
-Pacers with no big additions (and if they lose Hibbert forget about it)
-Nets are just the Hawks without size
-nobody in the West addressed their fundamental issuesThose both made me laugh.

As I said before, you are the only Heat fan who isn't thrilled to have Allen.

[Latrinsorm]

While we wait for Wednesday and the second round of moves, what the heck is going on with the Mavericks?

2011 - win the title
offseason - lose Barea, Chandler, Stevenson
2012 - get swept out of the first round
offseason - lose Kidd, Terry

Of the 8 guys to play at least 1000 minutes for the championship team, they're down to three: Dirk, Marion, Haywood. They've added a washed up Vince Carter, Lamar Odom's evil clone (turned into cash and Tadija Dragicevic), and a respectable Delonte West (who is now a free agent). Do Cuban/Nelson think Beaubois, Mahinmi, and Wright are a young nucleus to build around? Are they planning for next year's free agents, a la the Hawks? It seems weird to let a championship team evaporate like that, especially in an NBA where everyone else is falling all over themselves gunning for aging players. They couldn't have seriously expected Deron to sign with them, right? There's nobody on the team!

[Rele]

Dallas in 201X = Chicago in 199X, but without Michael Jordan, and if Scottie Pippen grew a few inches and became a scraggly German guy.

[Atlanteax]

While we wait for Wednesday and the second round of moves, what the heck is going on with the Mavericks?

2011 - win the title
offseason - lose Barea, Chandler, Stevenson
2012 - get swept out of the first round
offseason - lose Kidd, Terry

Mark Cuban

Prior to 2011, he wanted to win at any cost

After 2011, he decided to be fiscally responsible

[Latrinsorm]

-Knicks pick up Camby and Smith.
-Pacers matching Hibbert.

And the big story, the latest proposed Howard deal, fasten your seatbelts:

NETS get
Dwight Howard
Jason Richardson
Chris Duhon
Earl Clark

MAGIC get
Brook Lopez
Luke Walton
Damion James
Shelden Williams
Armon Johnson
2 first round picks from the Nets
1 first round pick from the Clips

CAVS get
Kris Humphries
Quentin Richardson
Sundiata Gaines
1 first round pick from the Nets
straight cash

CLIPPERS get
Marshon Brooks

The deal would involve 6, count 'em, 6 sign and trades, which could be important because Kris Humphries is a free agent and wants more than a one year deal.

.

But assuming it goes through! Let's look at who the Nets would have under contract...

G
Deron Williams
Joe Johnson
Chris Duhon
Jason Richardson

F
Gerald Wallace
Earl Clark

C
Dwight Howard

...now what? They don't have any serious chance of getting the last free agent size on the market (McGee and Hill), right? Compare this to the 2011 Magic team with Nelson, Richardson, Turkoglu, Bass/Anderson, and Howard.
-Obviously Williams is head and shoulders above Nelson.
-Richardson gave the Magic 14/4/2 per 36 minutes, but with an 18.6% usage. Johnson gave the Hawks 19/4/4, but with a 24.9% usage. 19 * 18.6/24.9 =, you guessed it, 14.
-Wallace and Turkoglu are completely different players, obviously. I didn't know this, but Wallace isn't a terrible 3 shooter. Let's call it a toss-up.
-Earl Clark!!! A huge downgrade from Bass or Anderson, and whatever scrub they pick up to back him up will be a huge downgrade from Anderson or Bass.
-Dwight Howard could still be Dwight Howard, but back problems are pretty scary. They ended Larry's career and he actually had skills.

Looking at the potential roster I'd figure the Magic would go small, start Wallace at the 4. He has played significant minutes there over his career according to 82games.com, and hasn't played all that poorly either, but it's still not his natural position. Same with Richardson/Johnson at SF: they've done it and can do it, but they're both SGs. I see them rolling through the regular season to a 2 or 3 seed, then getting annihilated by Miami or Indiana in the playoffs.

It would be just awesome if the Nets picked up Rashard Lewis with some exception.

[SHAFT]

Can't wait for this Dwight Howard saga to end. Get him out of Orlando and shut up about it. I'm glad the Lakers didn't make a strong push for him.

[Ardwen]

I don't see that nets team being a 2 or 3 seed, that's more hole then team.

[Sean]

What was the point in giving Jamal Crawford all that money if you're then going to trade a 1st rounder for Brooks. I realize it will be a late 1st round pick but it still seems odd to me.

[Latrinsorm]

Heat sign Lewis. :C Potentially catastrophic, I tell you!! Miami's championship team was all about guys who can play bigger than themselves, Lewis is a guy who plays smaller, plus he hasn't had a good year since 09.

Grant Hill reportedly retiring. What could have been if not for injuries, it's a shame. Hopefully the $141 million he made in NBA salaries alone can console him.
Can't wait for this Dwight Howard saga to end. Get him out of Orlando and shut up about it. I'm glad the Lakers didn't make a strong push for him.But this makes me feel so much better, lol. Surprise! (http://espn.go.com/nba/story/_/id/8147719/orlando-magic-exploring-other-dwight-howard-trades-source-says) The Lakers are still open to Howard, and the Rockets came out of nowhere as a destination for Howard or Bynum, because...... what??? The quadruple-team Nets deal apparently dying or dead.

At this point, isn't it inevitable that Howard opts out from whatever team he's with this coming year? It just wouldn't be an NBA offseason without Dwight Howard screwing around.

[SHAFT]

I know. I read they were still angling for Howard and I squirmed. Howard has openly said he won't resign with the lakers, but who knows. He's a fucking pussy

[thefarmer]

The Lakers are still open to Howard, and the Rockets came out of nowhere as a destination for Howard or Bynum, because...... what???

Fuck both of those crybabies. I don't want either of them in a Rockets uniform.

[Latrinsorm]

The Nets are definitely out on Howard, definitely. They definitely are not trying to trade for Howard anymore.

Lopez reportedly being offered max deals by the Blazers and Bobcats. If the Nets match, they'll be over the cap with 4 guys' salaries. It doesn't seem like a great idea, Brooklyn! I'm just saying, Miami had 3 guys who were arguably better than your best guy, and they all took less than max for a reason.

[DoctorUnne]

http://ronartest.com/musings/article/-a-4th-of-july-to-remember

Time stood still and fireworks stopped midair. It’s 2012 Independence Day and the genius, the brilliant, the great Mitch Kupchak has signed Steve Nash to the Los Angeles Lakers. As Americans celebrated our countries independence from Great Britain last Wednesday on the 4th of July, Los Angeles celebrated what will soon be their independence from the past 2 year championship-less Lakers.

Mitch Kupchack has been the Lakers general manager since the 2000- 2001 season and has had 12 years of signing great players and shaping the team, which has won 5 championships under his management. He is simply one of the best general managers of all times in all major sports. He understands how to put a team together and makes sure his team always stays relevant. Kupchak has once again proved his smart moves by signing a point guard, which is what the Lakers desperately needed, who is playing at such an elite level has put the team in a great position to win the championship this year.

Metta World Peace applauds Mitch Kupchack and calls the Steve Nash signing one of the greatest signings of all time. He was in Vancouver the day he heard the news and had even visited Steve Nash’s sports club. Metta says that there are a lot of Laker fans in Vancouver and many of them come up to him praising the genius and importance of Mitch Kupchak. Metta compares the signing to the same magnitude as our forefathers signing the declaration of independence.

“Mitch Kupchack’s greatness relates to Independence Day. He means greatness in LA. This signing means Canada’s finest is in LA. There is nothing more important than the signing of Steve Nash on this Independence Day. It means an organization partnering up with a legend to reach one goal”.

MWP also says Nash has returned his text messages saying he is ready to work hard the Laker fans.

Every Laker fan is dreaming to obtain that goal this year as we hope for a championship win.

Welcome to LA Steve Nash!

[Latrinsorm]

I'm really scared to look any deeper into that site. I have a feeling I could easily spend hours there.

.

A study in contrasts: the Nets and the Mavs.

Nets have 5 guys under contract through 2016: Deron Williams, Joe Johnson, Gerald Wallace, Brook Lopez, Marshon Brooks (only through 2015). I don't have the exact details, but the averages per year in their contracts work out to $20m + $21m + $10m + $15m + $1.5m = $67.5m. The salary cap is $58.044m.

-Deron Williams has been to the Conference Finals once, a 4-1 loss to the Spurs in 2007 (the year the Warriors upset the Mavs). Outside of that year his teams have won 2 second round games.
-Joe Johnson has been to the Conference Finals once, in 2005 with the Suns. Outside of that year his teams have won 2 second round games.
-Gerald Wallace played 14 and 18 minutes in the playoffs for the 2002 and 2003 Kings, and otherwise has never made the second round.
-Brook Lopez and Marshon Brooks played for the Nets.

.

Mavericks have 3 guys under contract in 2014: Dirk Nowitzki, Shawn Marion, and Brendan Haywood: total of $41m. They have team options on Vince Carter and Dominique Jones. Rodrigue Beaubois will be a restricted free agent. Reports are that they will be amnestying Haywood to get them down to $32m. If they do so, they have literally no one under contract for 2015+.

[Keller]

Is Houston really going to trade their entire team and drafts for the next two years to Orlando to rent Howard?

[Latrinsorm]

They believe they can get him to re-sign, and I buy it. He says he won't, but Dwight says a lot of things. It's also part of the Rockets' larger philosophy: there's no point in being an 8 seed year after year. The way to get ahead in the NBA is to bottom out or get a superstar. No matter what Dwight decides after this year, one of those things will happen.

My favorite plays from the Dominican game were three crazy in-bounds passes: LeBron behind the back to Deron Williams for a layup, Kevin Love's two full court to I believe Westbrook and Harden. (The cynical side of me also wants to nominate Westbrook pulling up for a jumper on a 2 on 4 fast break.)

[Sean]

Well that and who are they really competing against next year with cap room to sign him

[Latrinsorm]

Dallas and Atlanta for sure. Probably Portland, Toronto, some other joker franchises. There are some other interesting free agents in 2013 though: Chris Paul, Andrew Bynum, James Harden and Serge Ibaka, Josh Smith, even guys like Andre Iguodala, Taj Gibson, Kenneth Faried. With the max contracts that got thrown around this offseason, I wouldn't be all that surprised if every one of those guys got a max offer from somewhere.

[Sean]

Not having to compete against the LA, NY, Miami, etc. of the world has to make it easier to convince someone to stay if you pick them up as a loaner. Not only that but if you get Howard this year as a trade piece can't they offer him more in the off season than anyone else?

[Latrinsorm]

Take this with a grain of salt but I'm pretty sure they can...
-Being traded doesn't void Bird rights, so the Rockets could offer him 7.5% raises instead of 4.5%.
-With 9 years of experience after next year, his first year max is 30% of the cap, ~18m.
-Hence, the first year would be the same, and over the next three years he would net .03 * 18m = 540k.
-And he could get a fifth year for 23.4 million instead of a max of 4 years.

Overall 103.5m versus 76.86m, and since the last CBA a full Bird contract can't be used for a sign and trade so it's Houston or nothing if he wants the 25ish million.

.

Now, another thing that could happen if he's feeling lucky is that he could sign a one year contract with the Rockets (or whichever team he's on), which would put him at 10 years of experience and 35% of the cap or $21m for the first year on his next deal (2014-2015 season and beyond). This could let him get $89.67m anywhere or $120.75m with whichever team he's on. I can't remember hearing of anyone doing or even considering this, but you never know, right?

[thefarmer]

Is Houston really going to trade their entire team and drafts for the next two years to Orlando to rent Howard?

Do not want.

I'd rather they blow up the team for just about anyone else than for Howard.

[Ardwen]

If you look at what they are actually paying only like 4 teams are at or below the cap, the highest paid teams are more then 40 million beyond the cap, the NBA cap is a complete joke. Hell th knicks are always 30+ over the cap and look where thats gotten them.

[Latrinsorm]

Felton coming back to the Knicks inspired me to look back at how they got rid of him in the first place...

OUT: Danilo Gallinari, Wilson Chandler, Ray Felton, Timofey Mozgov, Eddy Curry, Anthony Randolph, 1 1st round pick, 2 2nd round picks, cash, and more cash
IN: Carmelo Anthony, Chauncey Billups, Renaldo Balkman, Anthony Carter, Shelden Williams, and Corey Brewer

In order...
-still with team
-amnestied in 2011
-waived in 2012
-signed with the Raps as a free agent in 2011
-signed with the Nets as a free agent in 2011
-waived a week after the trade, signed with the Mavericks, now has 1 more ring and is therefore obviously better than Carmelo Anthony, he's just a winner that knows how to win by winning, count the rings

.

Who knows how the cap space would have played out without all these (and subsequent) moves, but you have to wonder... would the Knicks have been better off with Felton/Gallinari next to Stoudamire/Chandler, Chandler and Mozgov capable defenders at least? If they had kept Felton, how would Jeremy Lin's career have played out? How about Coa.. Mr. D'Antoni's?

[SHAFT]

Lakers are talking with Orlando again. If Howard agrees to sign an extension with LA this will probably be a done deal soon. No mention of a third team though. If Cleveland is that third team still, can you imagine how pissed Bynum will be going to Cleveland?

[Atlanteax]

Lakers are talking with Orlando again. If Howard agrees to sign an extension with LA this will probably be a done deal soon. No mention of a third team though. If Cleveland is that third team still, can you imagine how pissed Bynum will be going to Cleveland?

Bynum would deserve it. May not be too bad since he'll get to play alongside Irving.

[RSR]

Rumor was that he is willing to sign an extension in Cleveland.

[g++]

Lakers are talking with Orlando again. If Howard agrees to sign an extension with LA this will probably be a done deal soon. No mention of a third team though. If Cleveland is that third team still, can you imagine how pissed Bynum will be going to Cleveland?

If the league vetoed paul to LA how could they then let Howard go to LA?

I just realized they only killed that trade because they own the hornets nothing to see here. bleh

[SHAFT]

If the league vetoed paul to LA how could they then let Howard go to LA?

I just realized they only killed that trade because they own the hornets nothing to see here. bleh

Crazy huh? David Stern vetoed the Paul trade and then the Hornets get the #1 pick when they had the 4th amount of balls in the bin. I don't blame Jim Rome for asking Stern if the draft was rigged.

I was so excited when I heard the Lakers pulled off that trade. Then a few days later I hear it was cancelled...

[Sean]

Rumor was that he is willing to sign an extension in Cleveland.

Or any other team that can offer him max money.

[Latrinsorm]

I would have to imagine Cleveland is playing a facilitator role rather than a destination. Orlando has had multiple opportunities to trade Howard away for just junk, I don't see why they would suddenly change their mind now.

With that said, I honestly think Bynum would love it in Cleveland.
-He wouldn't have to put up with Kobe anymore.
-The Lakers are very old, very high salary, and very low (# and position) draft picks. 3 years from now it's looking to be Bynum and nobody.
-By comparison the Cavs are very young, very low salary, and very high (# at least) draft picks, AND they have a young star in Kyrie Irving, AND they have very complementary skill sets. In 2013 the Cavs have at least 2 first round picks, possibly 3 if Sacramento is middling or better. The Lakers have none. Through 2015 the Cavs have at least 5 first rounders, the Lakers have 1. Where would you want to be coming into your prime?
-He's from New Jersey, so he's used to living in shitty places.

JaVale McGee is reportedly getting a 5 year $50m deal AND reportedly working out with Hakeem. I think it's going to work out great. Denver has a solid coach, solid team, his rate production (15/10/3 blocks) has held even with increased minutes, Washington is really going to regret tossing him for Nene at 133% of the price and 5 years older.

[Latrinsorm]

Lin on joining the Rockets: Extremely excited and honored to be a Houston Rocket again!! #RedNation
RACIST. OUTRAGE OUTRAGE

Blatche amnestied. Is anyone even going to bid on him?

Mike Miller not retiring, not even having surgery. "The doctor says [his back] looks fantastic." Does Mike Miller have any body parts left to injure? Thumbs, ankles, back, wrist, shoulder... I guess he could blow out his knee? Pull a Kirby Puckett and go blind?

[SHAFT]

"Dwight Howard is "ready to join" the Lakers and sign a long-term extension with the team if traded to Los Angeles, sources tell Real GM's Jarrod Rudolph.

The report has since been confirmed by ESPN's Chris Broussard. If Howard is finally ready to commit to Los Angeles, talks between the Lakers and Magic will undoubtedly heat up as the two sides continue to discuss a potential deal. If Howard does wind up with the Lakers, L.A. will enter next season with a three-headed monster of Howard, Kobe Bryant and Steve Nash. Stay tuned on the Howard news front, as it sounds like we could finally be inching toward a conclusion of the Dwightmare."

I was a bit opposed to Howard coming to LA, but now that the dominoes are falling into place for it to happen I'm getting excited. I liked the Jamison pickup too for the Lakers bench. Nash, Kobe, Howard, Pau Gasol, Artest? Helluva line up.

[Latrinsorm]

Here's the thing... Kobe, Gasol, Bynum was a hell of a line up too, and they were an afterthought in the playoffs, barely getting out of the 1st round. It's one thing to look at Dwight Howard and say "gifted 7 footer in an NBA bereft of true centers, he'll be unstoppable on offense"... but you could have said the exact same thing about Bynum, plus Bynum can actually make free throws. You thought Bynum complained a lot, how do you think Howard is going to handle playing next to a Kobe type for the first time in his career? The highest teammate usage % for Howard is 25, Kobe's last year was 35.

I've just found a new toy (http://mysynergysports.com/) so I hope you were looking forward to being subjected to more potentially meaningless stats...
-Last year Bynum ended 701 possessions with post-ups and 43 as the roll man. The Lakers had 8245 possessions, and with 2112 minutes played we would expect Bynum to be on the court for about 65.7% of them. This in turn means that Bynum ended a possession with a post-up for 12.9% of the plays he was on the floor, and on the pick and roll 0.8%.
-Dwight had 661 and 102. Those numbers seem pretty close at first glance, but let's see what controlling for team does for us. The Magic only had 7194 possessions, and Dwight played 2070 minutes. This puts Dwight's %s at 14.2% and 2.2%, respectively... so definitely higher, but still pretty close, especially if Nash can (is allowed to) crank up the Lakers PNR attack.
Overall, Bynum ended 24.2% and assisted on another 7.4% for a total of 31.6%, and Dwight had 24.7% and 9.8% for a total of 34.5%.

And to re-reiterate a point made earlier, Kobe had 36.6% and 23.7% for 60.3%, Nash had 19.4% and 53.1% for 72.5%. Certainly some of those possessions could overlap (Nash passing to Kobe, Kobe passing to Nash, or just not being on the court at the same time), but 132.8% is still pretty high. What I would really love to do is look back at LeBron and Wade's stats pre and post Decision, but I'm afraid if I go any deeper into this site I'll still be there at 3 in the morning, so to be continued.

.

As for Jamison, don't you ever get tired of soft forwards who could never defend and can't shoot that well anymore either? You may as well have held onto Troy Murphy.

[SHAFT]

To hell with stats, this shit is a wrap if the lakers get Howard. They'll at least make it to the finals and they'll be the favorites to win it all.

[Latrinsorm]

A really interesting series (http://espn.go.com/nba/story/_/id/8180308/nba-jeremy-lin-six-degrees-separation-family) of articles on espn.com today on the Lin saga. There's a significant amount of re-hashing, but it's still interesting to get the whole story at once, and there are a lot of angles I hadn't even considered.

[Sean]

Doesn't Antawn Jamison help the lakers more than Howard? He's a big who steps away from the basket and shoots 3 which will do what the Heat did the the Thunder. Pull Serge or Perkins out of the paint?

[Latrinsorm]

That's a good point, but Jamison isn't the caliber shooter that Miller is or the caliber defender that Battier is. 55, 52, 48 TS% over the past years for Jamison; 62, 53, 56 for Miller. Or using Synergy stats: Jamison generated .93 PPP on spot-ups last year, Miller 1.11, even Battier managed 1.02 and he couldn't hit the basket with a shovel early in the year.

Also, I think the major problem the Lakers have against the Thunder isn't so much offense as defense. Their average offensive rating over the 5 games was a reasonable 104.3 (within 1/10th of 1 standard deviation of league average), the Thunder's was an astonishing 114.8 (over 3 SDs higher). San Antonio had the best ORtg in the regular season, a much more stable team dynamic, and a good coach, and they couldn't outscore the Thunder. There's just no way the Lakers can muster the firepower, especially if they further compromise their defense.

[Latrinsorm]

I added up the box scores from Team USA's recently concluded 5-game exhibition, and I thought a couple things were interesting.

1. Almost everyone is taking way, way, way too many 3s. Yes it's closer, but someone on espn.com made a great point... in the NBA a FIBA 3 is the worst possible shot, a lot of guys don't even practice it. Here's how the 6 main scorers shake out by % of FGAs that are 3s:
Deron Williams - 64.3%
Kobe Bryant - 51.4%
Kevin Durant - 49.2%
Carmelo Anthony - 43.5%
Russell Westbrook - 25.6%
(2012 NBA average - 22.6%)
LeBron James - 19.7%
(Harden and Love haven't gotten a lot of PT, Paul turned his pass-first mode up to 11, Chandler and Iguodala are there for defense, Davis is there for the lulz.)

-You could argue that Durant gets a pass because he is shooting an impossible 16 for 29 (55.2%!!!) from 3, but his absolutely miserable 11.9% free throw rate (FTA/FGA) is just unconscionable. Jumpers come and go, the foul line is forever.
-Even though Westbrook's ratio is good, his 2 for 10 performance from 3 deserves special mention.
-Deron Williams takes the cake, though. He is 8 for 10 from 2 and 6 for 18 from 3. Sorry, Brooklyn.
-And LeBron is awesome. :) Excellent ratio (and leading this group with a 39.3% FTR) and shooting 6 for 12 from 3.

2. Point play.
-In a weird coincidence, 3 players are tied for the team lead with 20 assists: LeBron, Deron, and Paul. Their turnovers are 12, 9, and 3(!!!) respectively.
-LeBron is leading the USA OLYMPICS team in POINTS AND ASSISTS. (He's also 2nd in rebounds by 1 and 2nd in steals by 4.) He's awesome. :)
-Pass-first vs. shoot-first: Paul has 18 FGAs and 20 Ast to 3 Tov, Westbrook has 39 and 14 to 12.
-It's been really fun watching Coach K's defensive strategy. Westbrook loves gambling anyway, and only having to defend the primary ballhandler for about 10 minutes instead of 30+ has really cranked all of these guys' energy levels, even Williams.

.

People have talked a lot about how the 2008 Olympics were a springboard for guys, I've always wondered whether the opposite can also be true: if a guy can fall in unrequited love with his long jumper, if he can get a big head, etc. I'm really glad to see LeBron sticking with what he deployed this past regular season. I've been surprised there hasn't been more of the post point role he dominated the Finals with, but maybe Coach K is holding that in reserve for when the games count.

[Latrinsorm]

From grantland, LeBron James' inbox (http://www.grantland.com/blog/the-triangle/post/_/id/32931/fauxlusive-lebrons-email-hacked). All killer, no filler.

[Drew]

https://sphotos-a.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash3/551061_10101384297458642_1610154984_n.jpg

[Keller]

Should be Thunder vs. the Bobcats, but still funny.

[DoctorUnne]

Looks like Howard to the Lakers is done. Just ship the trophy to LA now

[SHAFT]

Dwight to the Lakers is official! I hope he's ready to bring it and doesn't act like a bitch.

http://espn.go.com/nba/story/_/id/8252042/sources-dwight-howard-los-angeles-lakers-four-team-deal-complete

[SHAFT]

Looks like Howard to the Lakers is done. Just ship the trophy to LA now

They get to keep Gasol too! Hahahahahaha! I'm stoked.

[Atlanteax]

They get to keep Gasol too! Hahahahahaha! I'm stoked.

That is the most critical thing in my book, and they got to dump Byrum instead.

Presumably because Howard is not signing an extension, he will play hard and dedicated so he can get a max contract next year with team of his choosing.

[Latrinsorm]

Dwight to the Lakers is official! I hope he's ready to bring it and doesn't act like a bitch.Good luck with that. One of the most underrated things about Gasol is his twofold ability to complement Kobe: he's fine with touching the ball once in a blue moon, and in the Laker championship years especially he was brutally efficient when he did. He led the league in ORtg in 2009. Like Kobe, Dwight isn't that efficient on offense (although for very different reasons, obviously). This is fine if you're the centerpiece, but you can't have two centerpieces. People make the Heat comparison a lot, I wonder if the more apt comparison will turn out to be the Melo-AI Nuggets.
Presumably because Howard is not signing an extension, he will play hard and dedicated so he can get a max contract next year with team of his choosing.I don't think it'll be an effort problem initially. The problem will be the Lakers now have THREE guys who dominated the ball with their respective teams for years, plus Kobe might have grudges with both of them. Let's say Steve Nash can take the Chris Bosh route and be satisfied with dramatically less touches, which seems pretty reasonable. Is Kobe EVER IN A MILLION YEARS going to take the Dwyane Wade route and openly defer to Dwight? How many shots a game is Pau getting in all this, 5? The situation is incredibly combustible, and Dwight hasn't exactly shown the level of maturity it would take to deal with this when it starts going sideways.

I am happy for Bynum, though. There were a lot of crappy situations he could have ended up in, but that Philly team has a lot of complementary pieces and of course Grandpa Collins. I see a monster year from Bynum.

It's also pretty interesting for the Nuggets, but I want to see what else they're giving up first, the side pieces are (understandably) vaguely reported at this point.

[Keller]

To all the delusional Lakers fans - the best center in basketball is only half of what Kobe needs to be carried to a championship. He will also need a hall of fame coach.

[Keller]

Is Kobe EVER IN A MILLION YEARS going to take the Dwyane Wade route and openly defer to Dwight?

He did the last time a top 3 caliber player was on his team.

[Latrinsorm]

Ok so I really like the trade for Denver. Andre Iguodala isn't an elite guy, but he's a heck of a lot better than Al Harrington: great defender, soaks up minutes, good all-around on offense, great athleticism, 4 years younger on the calendar and 2 to 0 years in college. Denver very nearly beat the Lakers and arguably played better, they're bringing back all their major pieces, McGee's been working out with Hakeem. Not obvious contenders, but the West has a lot of question marks outside of OKC.
-Can SA keep it going?
-Can the Lakers mesh? (Do Kobe, Pau, and Nash have enough left?)
-Who else is there? Grizzlies? Clips? TWolves?

I also looked a little more into this back surgery thing Howard had, assuming that everything that anyone involved with it says is a lie. According to these (http://www.healio.com/orthopedics/journals/ORTHO/%7BB8E6AAE7-EB21-42EF-9164-9A515C00A229%7D/Effects-of-Lumbar-Disk-Herniation-on-the-Careers-of-Professional-Baseball-Players) science people recovery time for operative treatment on baseball players averaged 8.7 months. This puts him getting back about January for a mid-April surgery. Obviously the Lakers can win games without him, but the biggest problem they have is turning these parts into a team, especially when as a very old team they are presumably limited in terms of practice, and especially especially when Kobe has been playing through injuries for about 7 years now and therefore missing practices.

I also tried to look up NBA players who had similar operations, and here are the ones I found...
-Chris Taft, who never got back on any professional court after his surgery, let alone the NBA.
-Slava Medvedenko, had surgery in Jan 2006, didn't play again until December 29th of that year (1 day after signing), played a total of 81 more NBA minutes, out of the league at 27, doesn't appear to have played anywhere else (might be more a factor of the $10m dollars he made).
-Jeff Foster, who chose to retire after 13 years rather than come back from unspecified back surgery (...again).
My favorite google result, though, was "Shop for back surgery for herniated disc at Walmart.com and save." No thanks, Walmart.

[RichardCranium]

-Who else is there? Grizzlies? Clips? TWolves?


Hornets.

[Ardwen]

Howard isn't Shaq though, and Kobe isn't the younger guy in the equation this time.

[Latrinsorm]

Some fun Olympic stats, not counting exhibitions...

Leaders
Pts: Durant 156 (by 26)
Reb: Love 61 (by 15)
Ast: James 45 (by 4)
Blk: Durant 5 (by 1)
Stl: Paul 20 (by 7)

per 36 MP...
P: Anthony 33.0 (by 6.0)
R: Love 16.1 (by 3.2)
A: Williams 9.3 (by 1.2)
B: Davis 2.0 (by 0.4)
S: Paul 3.5 (by 1.2)

.

Six of the twelve players took 3s at least 50% of the time they attempted a field goal, full values follow:
64.36% - Kevin Durant
58.82% - James Harden
57.14% - Chris Paul
55.71% - Kobe Bryant
54.24% - Deron Williams
53.49% - Carmelo Anthony
45.00% - Andre Iguodala
40.74% - Kevin Love
27.40% - LeBron James
26.09% - Russell Westbrook
0.00% - Tyson Chandler
0.00% - Anthony Davis

Three players bizarrely shot worse from 2 than 3:
Kevin Durant, 42%(!) vs. 52%(!!!)
Deron Williams, 37% vs. 41%
Kobe Bryant, 42% vs. 44%

.

-Every player had a True Shooting % (roughly points per 2 true attempts) above 50% except for one player: Deron Williams at .484. 2 players were above .65: Kevin Love at .672 and Andre Iguodala at .657 (including an astonishing 82% from 2 and 56% from 3).
-Two interesting PF/36MP measurements: LeBron at 2.51 (second lowest on the team, perhaps evidence that it's not [just] star treatment that keeps his foul rate so low), Kobe at an astonishing 5.66 (second highest on the team after Chandler's whopping 6.80).
-The highest Ast/Tov ratio on the team belonged to LeBron with an eye-popping 5.6. He was also one of 4 players to record less than 2 FGAs per Assist (1.62), joining Williams (1.59), Iguodala (1.82), and Paul (1.20).

[Latrinsorm]

Ibaka reportedly 4 years 48 mil extension. Especially interesting because this puts Durant/Westbrook/Perkins/Ibaka alone at 54.2m in 2014. Someone is going to offer Harden a max deal, right? Can/will the Thunder match? If not, are we going to look back at their decision to invest long term in Westbrook over Harden as their first big mistake? Can they survive as a contender after a big mistake?

[SHAFT]

Howard and Nash to the lakers. What else is there to talk about? The thunder are gonna have to play Perkins all game against the lakers to compete. Serge ibaka better go hang with hakeem and learn some lessons.