TEAM LEADERS
Points: Russell Thompson (16+ points per game)
Rebounds: Xavier Thompson (11+ rebounds per game)
Assists: James Deane (3+ assists per game)
Blocking Leaders:
Leighton Samuels
Xavier Thompson
Stealing Leaders:
Russell Thompson
Jason Blankson
Team MVP: James Deane
--------------------------------------------
AFTER THE SEASON
2008 - 2009 Season
This will begin the rebuilding period for Campion College Under-19 (Varsity) Team. The next two years should be rough but in a matter of time players such as Javier Gordon, Jonathan Mitchell & Leekem Brown, among others, should have the team back on track.
Season (League) Awards
James Deane was awarded a plaque for being the best 3-point shooter of the league.
In-house Awards
At their graduation, multiple members of the team were awarded plaques for their dedication and contribution to Campion College Basketball. These Players were as follows:
Jason Blankson
James Deane
Graham Reid
Leighton Samuels
Russell Thompson
Xavier Thompson
The Sports Chronicles would like to congratulate the 2007-2008 Campion College Under-19 (Varsity) Team for their achievements this year and for putting together a very exciting season and the best finish the school has seen in over seven years.
............
Showing posts with label sports. Show all posts
Showing posts with label sports. Show all posts
Sunday, January 18, 2009
Wednesday, June 4, 2008
Campion College Basketball: Campionites end season on high, trouncing Tarrant
Date: 31/01/08 [56-10] {Record: 3-5} Venue: Radley Reid Arena (Campion College)
[Home: 3-1][Away: 0-4]
Campion College finished their season in the same manner in which they started it - with a win - as action continued in the Southern Zone of the ISSA/KFC/Pepsi Basketball Competition. Campion soundly beat the lowly Tarrant High to complete and cap off a better than average (and expected) season. Though playing slopely, possibly due to their season having being over AND/OR the fact that they knew Tarrant was winless, the Campionites still managed to demolish their opponents 56-10.
Impressive Home Record
Though a sloppy match, the Campionites ended their season with an impressive home record of 3 wins and just one loss. The fans obviously playing a factor with this year being the only year in recent times that Campion fans came out in their numbers and actually outnumbered opponents. All-in-all, it was a great sending off for the Campionites with all but one of their members playing their last year of basketball with the school.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
STATS
Leading Scorers
James Deane 29 points
Russel Thompson 13 points
Jason Blankson 6 points
Leading Rebounders
Xavier Thompson 11 rebounds
Leighton Samuels 11 rebounds
Jason Blankson 9 rebounds
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Starting Lineup:
C Leighton Samuels [6'4, 170 lbs]
PF Xavier Thompson [6'3, 205 lbs]
SF Russell Thompson (Vice-Captain) [5'10, 195 lbs]
SG Jason Blankson [5'9, 185 lbs]
PG James Deane (Captain) [5'11, 145 lbs]
Bench:
Kim Sing Yung [5'10, 150 lbs]
Graham Reid [5'11, 155 lbs]
Darren Mitchell [5'10, 150 lbs]
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
GAME NOTES
The second game more than two players had 8+ rebounds (X. Thompson, Samuels, Blankson).
Blankson, Samuels and Xavier Thompson collectively tallied 31 rebounds [X. Thompson, 11, Samuels, 11 and Blankson, 9]
Russell Thompson, Xavier Thompson, Leighton Samuels, James Deane & Jason Blankson played the majority of the match.
Darren Mitchell, Graham Reid and Kim saw minority minutes.
Mikhail Mattis did not play due to injury (knee).
IN ATTENDANCE:
Racquel Dawkins, Shawntoll Buchanon, Damar Pessoa, Leikim Brown, Javier Gordon, Ashton Blankson.
[Home: 3-1][Away: 0-4]
Campion College finished their season in the same manner in which they started it - with a win - as action continued in the Southern Zone of the ISSA/KFC/Pepsi Basketball Competition. Campion soundly beat the lowly Tarrant High to complete and cap off a better than average (and expected) season. Though playing slopely, possibly due to their season having being over AND/OR the fact that they knew Tarrant was winless, the Campionites still managed to demolish their opponents 56-10.
Impressive Home Record
Though a sloppy match, the Campionites ended their season with an impressive home record of 3 wins and just one loss. The fans obviously playing a factor with this year being the only year in recent times that Campion fans came out in their numbers and actually outnumbered opponents. All-in-all, it was a great sending off for the Campionites with all but one of their members playing their last year of basketball with the school.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
STATS
Leading Scorers
James Deane 29 points
Russel Thompson 13 points
Jason Blankson 6 points
Leading Rebounders
Xavier Thompson 11 rebounds
Leighton Samuels 11 rebounds
Jason Blankson 9 rebounds
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Starting Lineup:
C Leighton Samuels [6'4, 170 lbs]
PF Xavier Thompson [6'3, 205 lbs]
SF Russell Thompson (Vice-Captain) [5'10, 195 lbs]
SG Jason Blankson [5'9, 185 lbs]
PG James Deane (Captain) [5'11, 145 lbs]
Bench:
Kim Sing Yung [5'10, 150 lbs]
Graham Reid [5'11, 155 lbs]
Darren Mitchell [5'10, 150 lbs]
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
GAME NOTES
The second game more than two players had 8+ rebounds (X. Thompson, Samuels, Blankson).
Blankson, Samuels and Xavier Thompson collectively tallied 31 rebounds [X. Thompson, 11, Samuels, 11 and Blankson, 9]
Russell Thompson, Xavier Thompson, Leighton Samuels, James Deane & Jason Blankson played the majority of the match.
Darren Mitchell, Graham Reid and Kim saw minority minutes.
Mikhail Mattis did not play due to injury (knee).
IN ATTENDANCE:
Racquel Dawkins, Shawntoll Buchanon, Damar Pessoa, Leikim Brown, Javier Gordon, Ashton Blankson.
Monday, February 4, 2008
Campion College Basketball: Campionites season comes to an end, with loss to St. Catherine
Date: 24/01/08 [44-58] {Record: 2-5} Venue: Radley Reid Arena (Campion College)
[Home: 2-1][Away: 0-4]
St. Catherine High officially put an end to Campion College's bid for a playoff/quarterfinal spot as action continued in the Southern Zone of the ISSA/KFC/Pepsi Basketball Competition. The Campionites, who came into this match needing to win, went down in a match that was for the most part closely contested. At halftime the score was 17-26 and the Campionites looked a bt shaky. However they made great efforts in their comeback and drew close to St. Catherine team before finally allowing the match and hence their season, to slip away. The match eventually ended 58 - 44.
SLIPPED AWAY
As the match came down to the final five minutes Campion had drawn withint two points of their opponents. However, offensive blunders turned into easy fast break points which allowed St. Catherine to balloon back the lead to double digits. As the match came to a close, they knew that their spirited season was over.
FIRST HOME LOSS
This match was the first home loss for the Campionites who had previously been undefeated (2 - 0). (Though the loss to Calabar came at their home, it was scheduled and is still regarded as an away encounter).
ONE MATCH TO GO
They still have one match to go against Tarrant and the team is hoping to end their season on a high, not only due to pride but also the fact that most of these players are also seniors meaning this is their last year of high school basketball.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
STATS
Scorers
Russel Thompson 23 points
James Deane 9 points
Xavier Thompson 8 points
Rebounders
Xavier Thompson 14 rebounds
Jason Blankson 13 rebounds
Leighton Samuels 8 rebounds
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Starting Lineup:
C Leighton Samuels [6'4, 170 lbs]
PF Kim Sing Yung [5'10, 150 lbs]
SF Graham Reid [5'11, 155 lbs]
SG Darren Mitchell [5'10, 150 lbs]
PG Jason Blankson [5'9, 185 lbs]
Bench:
James Deane (Captain) [5'11, 145 lbs]
Xavier Thompson [6'3, 205 lbs]
Russell Thompson (Vice-Captain) [5'10, 195 lbs]
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------GAME NOTES
Benching Russel Thompson, Xavier Thompson & James Deane was a coaching strategy.
This was the only match where Campion's top three scorers (Deane, R. Thompson & X. Thompson) all came off the bench.
The first game more than two players had 8+ rebounds (X. Thompson, Samuels, Blankson).
Blankson, Samuels and Xavier Thompson collectively tallied 35 rebounds [X. Thompson, 14, Blankson, 13 and Samuels, 8]
Russel Thompson, Xavier Thompson, Leighton Samuels, James Deane & Jason Blankson played the majority of the match.
Darren Mitchell, Graham Reid and Kim saw minority minutes.
Mikhail Mattis did not play due to injury (knee) and is doubtful for their match against Tarrant.
[Home: 2-1][Away: 0-4]
St. Catherine High officially put an end to Campion College's bid for a playoff/quarterfinal spot as action continued in the Southern Zone of the ISSA/KFC/Pepsi Basketball Competition. The Campionites, who came into this match needing to win, went down in a match that was for the most part closely contested. At halftime the score was 17-26 and the Campionites looked a bt shaky. However they made great efforts in their comeback and drew close to St. Catherine team before finally allowing the match and hence their season, to slip away. The match eventually ended 58 - 44.
SLIPPED AWAY
As the match came down to the final five minutes Campion had drawn withint two points of their opponents. However, offensive blunders turned into easy fast break points which allowed St. Catherine to balloon back the lead to double digits. As the match came to a close, they knew that their spirited season was over.
FIRST HOME LOSS
This match was the first home loss for the Campionites who had previously been undefeated (2 - 0). (Though the loss to Calabar came at their home, it was scheduled and is still regarded as an away encounter).
ONE MATCH TO GO
They still have one match to go against Tarrant and the team is hoping to end their season on a high, not only due to pride but also the fact that most of these players are also seniors meaning this is their last year of high school basketball.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
STATS
Scorers
Russel Thompson 23 points
James Deane 9 points
Xavier Thompson 8 points
Rebounders
Xavier Thompson 14 rebounds
Jason Blankson 13 rebounds
Leighton Samuels 8 rebounds
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Starting Lineup:
C Leighton Samuels [6'4, 170 lbs]
PF Kim Sing Yung [5'10, 150 lbs]
SF Graham Reid [5'11, 155 lbs]
SG Darren Mitchell [5'10, 150 lbs]
PG Jason Blankson [5'9, 185 lbs]
Bench:
James Deane (Captain) [5'11, 145 lbs]
Xavier Thompson [6'3, 205 lbs]
Russell Thompson (Vice-Captain) [5'10, 195 lbs]
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------GAME NOTES
Benching Russel Thompson, Xavier Thompson & James Deane was a coaching strategy.
This was the only match where Campion's top three scorers (Deane, R. Thompson & X. Thompson) all came off the bench.
The first game more than two players had 8+ rebounds (X. Thompson, Samuels, Blankson).
Blankson, Samuels and Xavier Thompson collectively tallied 35 rebounds [X. Thompson, 14, Blankson, 13 and Samuels, 8]
Russel Thompson, Xavier Thompson, Leighton Samuels, James Deane & Jason Blankson played the majority of the match.
Darren Mitchell, Graham Reid and Kim saw minority minutes.
Mikhail Mattis did not play due to injury (knee) and is doubtful for their match against Tarrant.
Friday, February 1, 2008
Campion College Basketball: Campionites get trampled on by Ardenne
Date: 23/01/08 [22-64] {Record: 2-4} Venue: Ardenne Arena (Ardenne High)
Ardenne High further dampened hopes of the unlikely Campion College of qualifying for the playoffs/quarterfinals as action continued in the Southern Zone of the ISSA/KFC/Pepsi Basketball Competition. Th Campionites, who came into this match needing to win at least 2 of their last 3 matches, went down to a handy 22-64 defeat at Ardenne. Th Campionites who managed to take an early lead and obviously caught Ardenne a bit by surprise did a good job defensively of containg the Ardenne offense. However, the Campionites faced their own problems as Ardenne too played great defense nullifying the Campion offense to only 10 points in the half (Season Low), to their 22. The second half seemed to be the breaking point as Ardenne began to exert more effort and caught out Campion College on many fast breaks. Further more, the defense of Ardenne kept the Campion offense locked up tight, resulting in their season-low in points scored in a game.
Dunking Phenomena & Triple Double
As with most blowouts that Campion College faces, there was one outstanding player who, though not scoring a lot of points,15, is the only player to come this close to a triple double againt the Campionites, missing it by only ONE block. Yes Ardenne's #15, Alex Lubsey, blocked anything and anyone in sight repeatedly, with quite a number of his 9 blocks done at the 3 point arc. He also had a 10+ rebound game to go with the fact that he dunked the ball at least 6 times throughtout the match, especially the second half.
Season in Jeopardy
Campion College's home record will be severely tested when they come up against their toughest competitor's at home, St. Catherine. They very well know that a loss tomorrow would ultimately mean the end of the season for the guys.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
STATS
Scorers
James Deane 11 points
Russell Thompson 9 points
Darren Mitchell 2 points
Rebounders
Xavier Thompson 7 rebounds
Leighton Samuels 6 rebounds
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Starting Lineup:
C Leighton Samuels [6'4, 170 lbs]
PF Xavier Thompson [6'3, 205 lbs]
SF Russell Thompson (Vice-Captain) [5'10, 195 lbs]
SG Jason Blankson [5'9, 185 lbs]
PG James Deane (Captain) [5'11, 145 lbs]
Bench:
Kim Sing Yung [5'10, 150 lbs]
Mikhail Mattis [5'11, 165 lbs]
Darren Mitchell [5'10, 150 lbs]
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------GAME NOTES
Russell Thompson, Xavier Thompson, Leighton Samuels, James Deane & Jason Blankson played the majority of the match.
Darren Mitchell, Mikhail Mattis and Kim saw minority minutes.
James Deane, Russel Thompson and Darren Mitchell were the only contributors offensively.
Xavier Thompson was the main contributor defensively.
Samuels and Xavier Thompson collectively tallied 13 rebounds [Thompson, 7 and Samuels, 6] - SEASON LOW
This was the only match where only two starters scored.
Ardenne High further dampened hopes of the unlikely Campion College of qualifying for the playoffs/quarterfinals as action continued in the Southern Zone of the ISSA/KFC/Pepsi Basketball Competition. Th Campionites, who came into this match needing to win at least 2 of their last 3 matches, went down to a handy 22-64 defeat at Ardenne. Th Campionites who managed to take an early lead and obviously caught Ardenne a bit by surprise did a good job defensively of containg the Ardenne offense. However, the Campionites faced their own problems as Ardenne too played great defense nullifying the Campion offense to only 10 points in the half (Season Low), to their 22. The second half seemed to be the breaking point as Ardenne began to exert more effort and caught out Campion College on many fast breaks. Further more, the defense of Ardenne kept the Campion offense locked up tight, resulting in their season-low in points scored in a game.
Dunking Phenomena & Triple Double
As with most blowouts that Campion College faces, there was one outstanding player who, though not scoring a lot of points,15, is the only player to come this close to a triple double againt the Campionites, missing it by only ONE block. Yes Ardenne's #15, Alex Lubsey, blocked anything and anyone in sight repeatedly, with quite a number of his 9 blocks done at the 3 point arc. He also had a 10+ rebound game to go with the fact that he dunked the ball at least 6 times throughtout the match, especially the second half.
Season in Jeopardy
Campion College's home record will be severely tested when they come up against their toughest competitor's at home, St. Catherine. They very well know that a loss tomorrow would ultimately mean the end of the season for the guys.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
STATS
Scorers
James Deane 11 points
Russell Thompson 9 points
Darren Mitchell 2 points
Rebounders
Xavier Thompson 7 rebounds
Leighton Samuels 6 rebounds
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Starting Lineup:
C Leighton Samuels [6'4, 170 lbs]
PF Xavier Thompson [6'3, 205 lbs]
SF Russell Thompson (Vice-Captain) [5'10, 195 lbs]
SG Jason Blankson [5'9, 185 lbs]
PG James Deane (Captain) [5'11, 145 lbs]
Bench:
Kim Sing Yung [5'10, 150 lbs]
Mikhail Mattis [5'11, 165 lbs]
Darren Mitchell [5'10, 150 lbs]
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------GAME NOTES
Russell Thompson, Xavier Thompson, Leighton Samuels, James Deane & Jason Blankson played the majority of the match.
Darren Mitchell, Mikhail Mattis and Kim saw minority minutes.
James Deane, Russel Thompson and Darren Mitchell were the only contributors offensively.
Xavier Thompson was the main contributor defensively.
Samuels and Xavier Thompson collectively tallied 13 rebounds [Thompson, 7 and Samuels, 6] - SEASON LOW
This was the only match where only two starters scored.
Thursday, January 31, 2008
All-Star Game Selections / Formula for "Perfect Team"/Shaun "Polly" Pollock retires - Saying Goodbye to a legend
2008 All-Star Game Starters
EAST
Dwight Howard, C
Orlando Magic
2,066,991
2nd appearance
Kevin Garnett, F
Boston Celtics
2,399,148
11th appearance
LeBron James, F
Cleveland Cavaliers
2,108,831
4th appearance
Dwyane Wade, G
Miami Heat
1,608,260
4th appearance
Jason Kidd, G
New Jersey Nets
1,246,386
9th appearance
WEST
Yao Ming, C
Houston Rockets
1,709,180
6th appearance
Carmelo Anthony, F
Denver Nuggets
1,723,701
2nd appearance
Tim Duncan, F
San Antonio Spurs
1,712,800
10th appearance
Kobe Bryant, G
L.A. Lakers
2,004,940
10th appearance
Allen Iverson, G
Denver Nuggets
1,203,152
9th appearance
2008 Reserves
EAST
Player Team Pos. Ht. Wt. Sel.
Chris Bosh Toronto F 6-10 230 3rd
Caron Butler Washington F 6-7 228 2nd
Paul Pierce Boston G 6-7 235 6th
Chauncey Billups Detroit G 6-3 202 3rd
Richard Hamilton Detroit G 6-7 193 3rd
Joe Johnson Atlanta G 6-7 235 2nd
Antawn Jamison Washington F 6-9 235 2nd
Coach: TBD
WEST
Player Team Pos. Ht. Wt. Sel.
Steve Nash Phoenix G 6-3 178 6th
Chris Paul New Orleans G 6-0 175 1st
Dirk Nowitzki Dallas F 7-0 245 7th
Carlos Boozer Utah F 6-9 266 2nd
Amaré Stoudemire Phoenix C 6-10 249 3rd
Brandon Roy Portland G 6-6 229 1st
David West New Orleans F 6-9 240 1st
Coach: TBD
No real surpsrise .. for the most part i was right on the money on who should/would be chosen. However, they are a couple of decisions I don't agree with, and leading this pack is the non-selection of Baron "B.Diddy" Davis. WHAT??? How did the selectors manage to leave him off...to me it seems nothing short of crazy and delirium taking ahold of them. The player which should have been left off is Brandon Roy. Yes, he is having a great year but guess what Davis noto nly has better stats, on a way more competitive team, his team also has/had a better record at the time of selection. So how did the selectors manage to leave him out??? DUMBFOUNDED is what I am. In my point of view, even Deron Willaims could have been chosen over B-Roy, as with the case with B.Diddy, has the better stats and team(record)The biggest 'boo-boo' made on the East came in the form of Joe Johnson. Excuses can be made for why he made it but to leave off Hedo Turkoglu is easily the biggest snub on the East. Turkoglu is a 18-7-6 player, which easily outduels Joe Johnson's 20-5 line. He has improved tremendously and has been an incredible and integral part of the Magic organization.
Close calls/SNUBS:
Baron Davis & Hedo Turkoglu - MAJOR MISTAKE TO LEAVE THeSe TWO OFF.
Vince Carter - really didn't deserve it this year; way too shaky.
Marcus Camby - DEFINATELY DESERVED IT but didnt stand a chance against Yao and Amare.
Shawn Marion - not good enough this year.
Josh Smith - also a MAJOR SNUB!
Gerald Wallace - great player who would have a GREAT chance off making it, IF he played for a playoff contending team.
Andre Iguadala - same as Gerald, but to a lesser extent,
Al Jefferson - WONDERFUL PLAYER but, as it seems to be an unwritten rule/regulation, his team is WAY TOO BAD for him to have had a chance.
Surprises:
Joe Johnson AND David West - These were the only two I never really thought would make it or had a reasonable chance.
OTHER VIEWS HERE:
http://cbs.sportsline.com/nba/allstar/rosters
http://community.foxsports.com/whoops.aspx?aspxerrorpath=/404.aspx
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Campion College's Xavier Thompson, gives us his formula for THE PERFECT TEAM:
STARTERS:
#C - DEFENSIVE, but with offensive capabilites and who is quick (can run the floor) - eg. Tyson Chandler, Marcus Camby, Andris Biedrins
*PF - VERSATILE,with an array of offensive ways to score - eg. Chris Bosh/Carlos Boozer
#*SF - DRIVER-SHOOTER WITH DEFENSE, someone who is mainly a driver but can knock down the outside shot and has GREAT defense - eg. Gerald Wallace, Tayshaun Prince, Manu Ginobli, Caron Butler, Ron Artest, Josh Smith
SG - OVERLOOKED THREAT, someone who is overlooked due to the stars at the PF, SF AND PG positions and who can easily and consistenly hit open jumpers - eg. Bonzi Wells, Deshawn Stevenson
#*PG - ASSISTING SCORER, a guard who has a pass-first mentality but who isn;t afraid to take over a game offensively (driving AND shooting) if needs be and who can also play defense - eg. Deron Williams, Chris Paul, Kirk Hinrich, T.J. Ford, Jose Calderon
BENCH - in order of their roles(places of the bench - eg. the first name would be the SIXTH MAN)
*SG - flat-out shooter with lots of range - eg. Kyle Korver, Cuttino Mobley
#C - very defensive, with different (bulkier) body type than the starting C - eg. Erick Dampier .... this ensures that if the oppsoing Centre is too big for the starter, you will have size on the bench.
#SF - defense-minded swingman who can hit open jumpers and 3-balls and who is POSSIBLY a better defender than the starting SF - eg. Bruce Bowen, James Posey...this ensures that if both the SF and SG of a team (eg. Boston Celtics with Ray Allen and Paul Pierce) need to be marked heavily, the back-up SF can fill in.
PG - experienced back up for the youthful starting PG to help guide and mold him, with decent defense - eg. Anthony Johnson, Sam Cassell, Brevin Knight, Derek Fisher
*PF - though a "TENTH MAN" when put on the court should be a main source of offense and also should be a player able to play SF if needs be - eg. Al Harrington
11th and 12th man should be a tall, oversized backup C and a SF/SG rookie.
* - Meant to be the main sources of offense
# - Meant to be great defenders
Additional talents that should be taught to players:
STARTERS:
C - should be taught/train to be able to guard all the way down to a tall SF (eg. Peja)
SF - should be able to guard all the way down to a PG
PG - should be able to guard SG's and SF's and VERY lacklustre offensive PF's/C's
BENCH:
SG - should be able to shoot from just below halfcourt WITH EASE
MINUTES ALLOCATION AND IDEAL HEIGHTS:
Starters:
C - 28-30 mins 6'11/7'0
PF - 35-40 mins 6'9/6'10
SF - 35-40 mins 6'5-6'7
SG - 20-25 mins 6'5
PG - 35-40 mins 6'3/6'4
Bench
SG - 20-25 mins 6'5
C - 15-20 mins 7'0
SF - 15-20 mins 6'8
PG - 10-15 mins 6'3/6'4
PF - 10-20 mins 6'8-6'10
With a line up like this you will have a VERY GOOD balance of offense and defense.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Shaun Pollock
What a great cricketer he is! The Sports Chronicles would just like to say farewell to such a fantastic player and contributor to the sport of Cricket.
Team: South Africa -
Greatest Bowler in SA history with 391 One Day wickets and 400+ wickets in Test matches.
Will be remembered not only for his wicket taking but his knack for having a great economy rate.
EAST
Dwight Howard, C
Orlando Magic
2,066,991
2nd appearance
Kevin Garnett, F
Boston Celtics
2,399,148
11th appearance
LeBron James, F
Cleveland Cavaliers
2,108,831
4th appearance
Dwyane Wade, G
Miami Heat
1,608,260
4th appearance
Jason Kidd, G
New Jersey Nets
1,246,386
9th appearance
WEST
Yao Ming, C
Houston Rockets
1,709,180
6th appearance
Carmelo Anthony, F
Denver Nuggets
1,723,701
2nd appearance
Tim Duncan, F
San Antonio Spurs
1,712,800
10th appearance
Kobe Bryant, G
L.A. Lakers
2,004,940
10th appearance
Allen Iverson, G
Denver Nuggets
1,203,152
9th appearance
2008 Reserves
EAST
Player Team Pos. Ht. Wt. Sel.
Chris Bosh Toronto F 6-10 230 3rd
Caron Butler Washington F 6-7 228 2nd
Paul Pierce Boston G 6-7 235 6th
Chauncey Billups Detroit G 6-3 202 3rd
Richard Hamilton Detroit G 6-7 193 3rd
Joe Johnson Atlanta G 6-7 235 2nd
Antawn Jamison Washington F 6-9 235 2nd
Coach: TBD
WEST
Player Team Pos. Ht. Wt. Sel.
Steve Nash Phoenix G 6-3 178 6th
Chris Paul New Orleans G 6-0 175 1st
Dirk Nowitzki Dallas F 7-0 245 7th
Carlos Boozer Utah F 6-9 266 2nd
Amaré Stoudemire Phoenix C 6-10 249 3rd
Brandon Roy Portland G 6-6 229 1st
David West New Orleans F 6-9 240 1st
Coach: TBD
No real surpsrise .. for the most part i was right on the money on who should/would be chosen. However, they are a couple of decisions I don't agree with, and leading this pack is the non-selection of Baron "B.Diddy" Davis. WHAT??? How did the selectors manage to leave him off...to me it seems nothing short of crazy and delirium taking ahold of them. The player which should have been left off is Brandon Roy. Yes, he is having a great year but guess what Davis noto nly has better stats, on a way more competitive team, his team also has/had a better record at the time of selection. So how did the selectors manage to leave him out??? DUMBFOUNDED is what I am. In my point of view, even Deron Willaims could have been chosen over B-Roy, as with the case with B.Diddy, has the better stats and team(record)The biggest 'boo-boo' made on the East came in the form of Joe Johnson. Excuses can be made for why he made it but to leave off Hedo Turkoglu is easily the biggest snub on the East. Turkoglu is a 18-7-6 player, which easily outduels Joe Johnson's 20-5 line. He has improved tremendously and has been an incredible and integral part of the Magic organization.
Close calls/SNUBS:
Baron Davis & Hedo Turkoglu - MAJOR MISTAKE TO LEAVE THeSe TWO OFF.
Vince Carter - really didn't deserve it this year; way too shaky.
Marcus Camby - DEFINATELY DESERVED IT but didnt stand a chance against Yao and Amare.
Shawn Marion - not good enough this year.
Josh Smith - also a MAJOR SNUB!
Gerald Wallace - great player who would have a GREAT chance off making it, IF he played for a playoff contending team.
Andre Iguadala - same as Gerald, but to a lesser extent,
Al Jefferson - WONDERFUL PLAYER but, as it seems to be an unwritten rule/regulation, his team is WAY TOO BAD for him to have had a chance.
Surprises:
Joe Johnson AND David West - These were the only two I never really thought would make it or had a reasonable chance.
OTHER VIEWS HERE:
http://cbs.sportsline.com/nba/allstar/rosters
http://community.foxsports.com/whoops.aspx?aspxerrorpath=/404.aspx
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Campion College's Xavier Thompson, gives us his formula for THE PERFECT TEAM:
STARTERS:
#C - DEFENSIVE, but with offensive capabilites and who is quick (can run the floor) - eg. Tyson Chandler, Marcus Camby, Andris Biedrins
*PF - VERSATILE,with an array of offensive ways to score - eg. Chris Bosh/Carlos Boozer
#*SF - DRIVER-SHOOTER WITH DEFENSE, someone who is mainly a driver but can knock down the outside shot and has GREAT defense - eg. Gerald Wallace, Tayshaun Prince, Manu Ginobli, Caron Butler, Ron Artest, Josh Smith
SG - OVERLOOKED THREAT, someone who is overlooked due to the stars at the PF, SF AND PG positions and who can easily and consistenly hit open jumpers - eg. Bonzi Wells, Deshawn Stevenson
#*PG - ASSISTING SCORER, a guard who has a pass-first mentality but who isn;t afraid to take over a game offensively (driving AND shooting) if needs be and who can also play defense - eg. Deron Williams, Chris Paul, Kirk Hinrich, T.J. Ford, Jose Calderon
BENCH - in order of their roles(places of the bench - eg. the first name would be the SIXTH MAN)
*SG - flat-out shooter with lots of range - eg. Kyle Korver, Cuttino Mobley
#C - very defensive, with different (bulkier) body type than the starting C - eg. Erick Dampier .... this ensures that if the oppsoing Centre is too big for the starter, you will have size on the bench.
#SF - defense-minded swingman who can hit open jumpers and 3-balls and who is POSSIBLY a better defender than the starting SF - eg. Bruce Bowen, James Posey...this ensures that if both the SF and SG of a team (eg. Boston Celtics with Ray Allen and Paul Pierce) need to be marked heavily, the back-up SF can fill in.
PG - experienced back up for the youthful starting PG to help guide and mold him, with decent defense - eg. Anthony Johnson, Sam Cassell, Brevin Knight, Derek Fisher
*PF - though a "TENTH MAN" when put on the court should be a main source of offense and also should be a player able to play SF if needs be - eg. Al Harrington
11th and 12th man should be a tall, oversized backup C and a SF/SG rookie.
* - Meant to be the main sources of offense
# - Meant to be great defenders
Additional talents that should be taught to players:
STARTERS:
C - should be taught/train to be able to guard all the way down to a tall SF (eg. Peja)
SF - should be able to guard all the way down to a PG
PG - should be able to guard SG's and SF's and VERY lacklustre offensive PF's/C's
BENCH:
SG - should be able to shoot from just below halfcourt WITH EASE
MINUTES ALLOCATION AND IDEAL HEIGHTS:
Starters:
C - 28-30 mins 6'11/7'0
PF - 35-40 mins 6'9/6'10
SF - 35-40 mins 6'5-6'7
SG - 20-25 mins 6'5
PG - 35-40 mins 6'3/6'4
Bench
SG - 20-25 mins 6'5
C - 15-20 mins 7'0
SF - 15-20 mins 6'8
PG - 10-15 mins 6'3/6'4
PF - 10-20 mins 6'8-6'10
With a line up like this you will have a VERY GOOD balance of offense and defense.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Shaun Pollock
What a great cricketer he is! The Sports Chronicles would just like to say farewell to such a fantastic player and contributor to the sport of Cricket.
Team: South Africa -
Greatest Bowler in SA history with 391 One Day wickets and 400+ wickets in Test matches.
Will be remembered not only for his wicket taking but his knack for having a great economy rate.
Thursday, January 17, 2008
Campion College Basketball: Campionites upset Meadowbrook to remain undefeated at home
Date: 16/01/08 [38-37] {Record: 2-3} Venue: Radley Reid Arena (Campion College)
Campion College upset Meadowbrook to record a narrow 38-37 win to remain unbeaten at home as action continued in the Southern Zone of the KFC ISSA Basketball Competition. The match was close from the get-go as their previous match, with Campion eventually pulling it out in a 'must win' match for the Campionites in order to keep their playoff hopes alive. The match went back and forth as both teams exchanged the lead. At the end of the first the score was tied at 9. At halftime the score remained close with Meadowbrook having a narrow 20-18 lead. The third quarter saw much of the same with both teams exchanging baskets and deseprately vieing for the win. In the end Campion got it together and kept their cool as they came away winners by one point.
LOST?
Campion was allowed to dribble away the last 18 seconds of the match witho Meadowbrook not seeming to have the presence of mind to foul in order to get back the ball.
CLOSING SECONDS OF THE MATCH
REBOUNDING MONSTERS
Xavier Thompson and Leighton Samuels were monsters on the glass as they combined for a SEASON-HIGH 36 rebounds. Both had 10 rebounds each at the half and 18 rebounds (each)at the end of the match.
'MEN OF THE MATCH'
All starters contributed tremendously and all deserve an award for their outstanidng play.
REFUSED TO CHOKE
Even though they are well known for choking, the Campionites stuck to their guns and came away with an impressive victory.
BIGGEST HOME CROWD
Campion saw their largest crowd at a home match in a number of years. Campion is notorious for having away team crowds outnumber their own.
DAY OF CAREER HIGHS:
Xavier Thompson and Leighton Samuels both had whopping 18 rebounds each which broke their previous career highs. Prior to this Xavier Thompson's carEer high was 13 rebounds and Samuels 11. This made it back-to-back career highs for Xavier Thompson who had only the match before recorded a new career high in rebounds. Jason Blankson also tied his career high in points with 8.
UNDEFEATED AT HOME
Campion remained undefeated at home with their second win from as many matches.
DOING WAY BETTER THAN EXPECTED
The Campionites who will lose all but one member of their Under-19 squad next year are doing way better than many pundits expected. Last year they were expected to show real improvement as many thought they had the 'dream team'. However, with injury to James Deane and obvious inexperience they slumped to yet another disappointing season winning only one match. This year many thought that with second-leading scorer Raymond Wilson gone, they would not have much of a season. As you can see however they have already won more matches than last year and 2 of their losses came in very close encounters away from home. It is obvious the players want to leave with a bang.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
FEATURE PLAYERS :
We continue our look at the individuals on the team Point Guard, James Deane:
James Deane is known as the 'tactitian' of the team with a very high basketball IQ. This is why he is the captain. He leads the team with vigor and obviously knows what he wants out of the members of the team. He always plays hard and with passion and is somewhat of a perfectionist on the court. An essential asset to this team and its success.
STRONG POINTS:
Great passer and vision of the court, great scorer/offense, stealing, great defender.
We continue our look at the individuals on the team Center, Leighton Samuels:
Leighton Samuels has become a very depedable center playing with much gusto and willing to challenge the big men inside. He is a great rebounder and blocker who gives his all and his best.
Xavier Thompson had this to say of Samuels
STRONG POINTS:
Great rebounding, blocking and defender.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Post Game Press Conference
Mikhail Mattis:
Russell Thompson
Xavier Thompson
Leighton Samuels
James Deane
Jason Blankson
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
STATS
Scorers
Russel Thompson 14 points
James Deane 11 points
Jason Blankson 8 points
Rebounders
Xavier Thompson 18 rebounds
Leighton Samuels 18 rebounds
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Starting Lineup:
C Leighton Samuels [6'4, 170 lbs]
PF Xavier Thompson [6'3, 205 lbs]
SF Russell Thompson (Vice-Captain) [5'10, 195 lbs]
SG Jason Blankson [5'9, 185 lbs]
PG James Deane (Captain) [5'11, 145 lbs]
Bench:
Graham Reid [5'11, 160 lbs]
Kim Sing Yung [5'10, 150 lbs]
Mikhail Mattis [5'11, 165 lbs]
Darren Mitchell [5'10, 150 lbs]
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
GAME NOTES
Russel Thompson, Xavier Thompson and Leighton Samuels played all 40 minutes of the match.
James Deane & Jason Blankson played the majority of the match.
Darren Mitchell, Mikhail Mattis and Kim saw minority minutes.
Graham Reid DID NOT PLAY (Coach's Decision)
James Deane, Russel Thompson and Jason Blankson were the main contributors offensively.
Samuels and Xavier Thompson collectively tallied 36 rebounds [Thompson, 18 and Samuels, 18] - SEASON HIGH
This was the only match where ALL starters scored.
REMAINING SCHEDULE:
@ Ardenne - Wed. 23/1/08
vs. St. Catherine - Thu 24/1/08
vs. Tarrant - Mon 28/1/08
IN ATTENDANCE:
Ryan Brown, Audley Gordon, Miya Gentles, Kimberly Shaw, Steven Hamilton, Joni-Kay Johnson, Chad Brown, Steven Moore, Shaun Dufus, Patrica Taylor, Monique Smith, Sheree Henry
Campion College upset Meadowbrook to record a narrow 38-37 win to remain unbeaten at home as action continued in the Southern Zone of the KFC ISSA Basketball Competition. The match was close from the get-go as their previous match, with Campion eventually pulling it out in a 'must win' match for the Campionites in order to keep their playoff hopes alive. The match went back and forth as both teams exchanged the lead. At the end of the first the score was tied at 9. At halftime the score remained close with Meadowbrook having a narrow 20-18 lead. The third quarter saw much of the same with both teams exchanging baskets and deseprately vieing for the win. In the end Campion got it together and kept their cool as they came away winners by one point.
LOST?
Campion was allowed to dribble away the last 18 seconds of the match witho Meadowbrook not seeming to have the presence of mind to foul in order to get back the ball.
CLOSING SECONDS OF THE MATCH
REBOUNDING MONSTERS
Xavier Thompson and Leighton Samuels were monsters on the glass as they combined for a SEASON-HIGH 36 rebounds. Both had 10 rebounds each at the half and 18 rebounds (each)at the end of the match.
'MEN OF THE MATCH'
All starters contributed tremendously and all deserve an award for their outstanidng play.
REFUSED TO CHOKE
Even though they are well known for choking, the Campionites stuck to their guns and came away with an impressive victory.
BIGGEST HOME CROWD
Campion saw their largest crowd at a home match in a number of years. Campion is notorious for having away team crowds outnumber their own.
DAY OF CAREER HIGHS:
Xavier Thompson and Leighton Samuels both had whopping 18 rebounds each which broke their previous career highs. Prior to this Xavier Thompson's carEer high was 13 rebounds and Samuels 11. This made it back-to-back career highs for Xavier Thompson who had only the match before recorded a new career high in rebounds. Jason Blankson also tied his career high in points with 8.
UNDEFEATED AT HOME
Campion remained undefeated at home with their second win from as many matches.
DOING WAY BETTER THAN EXPECTED
The Campionites who will lose all but one member of their Under-19 squad next year are doing way better than many pundits expected. Last year they were expected to show real improvement as many thought they had the 'dream team'. However, with injury to James Deane and obvious inexperience they slumped to yet another disappointing season winning only one match. This year many thought that with second-leading scorer Raymond Wilson gone, they would not have much of a season. As you can see however they have already won more matches than last year and 2 of their losses came in very close encounters away from home. It is obvious the players want to leave with a bang.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
FEATURE PLAYERS :
We continue our look at the individuals on the team Point Guard, James Deane:
James Deane is known as the 'tactitian' of the team with a very high basketball IQ. This is why he is the captain. He leads the team with vigor and obviously knows what he wants out of the members of the team. He always plays hard and with passion and is somewhat of a perfectionist on the court. An essential asset to this team and its success.
STRONG POINTS:
Great passer and vision of the court, great scorer/offense, stealing, great defender.
We continue our look at the individuals on the team Center, Leighton Samuels:
Leighton Samuels has become a very depedable center playing with much gusto and willing to challenge the big men inside. He is a great rebounder and blocker who gives his all and his best.
Xavier Thompson had this to say of Samuels
"I used to think of him as my protege a couple of years ago but he has really grown into his own. He is a great player to work alongside of."
STRONG POINTS:
Great rebounding, blocking and defender.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Post Game Press Conference
Mikhail Mattis:
"We played pretty hard, straight through the game. We were definitely active on the boards, which was a great advantage, and the main reason I believe we got the win. Our defence was good, but not great, as i saw that Meadowbrook was definitely not a good shooting team, so i think we should have pressured them to make more jump shots. I don't think we hustled how we ought to, but we still got the W, and at the end of the day thats all that counts. I would have liked some more minutes, but sometimes you, got make sacrifces and just work hard, and the minutes will follow. But that win was good, and now we look forward for our next opponent."
Russell Thompson
"It was a good team performance. I was impressed with how Deane created a lot of chances for us."
Xavier Thompson
"It was a match where everyone and i mean EVERYONE played well. We really put our heart into this and dug deep to pull off this deserving victory. It was also great to have some support at home for a change which I'm sure made a difference to our intensity. I'm just hopoing we can win at least two more matches, that would be incredible!"
Leighton Samuels
"I was hoping we could've beaten them by more. I think we depend too much on Russel and James. It was an overall good effort but we need to beat the zone offense for the Ardenne and St. Catherine."
James Deane
"It was a splendid match and everyone played very well."
Jason Blankson
"I think it was a very good, hard fought match."
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
STATS
Scorers
Russel Thompson 14 points
James Deane 11 points
Jason Blankson 8 points
Rebounders
Xavier Thompson 18 rebounds
Leighton Samuels 18 rebounds
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Starting Lineup:
C Leighton Samuels [6'4, 170 lbs]
PF Xavier Thompson [6'3, 205 lbs]
SF Russell Thompson (Vice-Captain) [5'10, 195 lbs]
SG Jason Blankson [5'9, 185 lbs]
PG James Deane (Captain) [5'11, 145 lbs]
Bench:
Graham Reid [5'11, 160 lbs]
Kim Sing Yung [5'10, 150 lbs]
Mikhail Mattis [5'11, 165 lbs]
Darren Mitchell [5'10, 150 lbs]
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
GAME NOTES
Russel Thompson, Xavier Thompson and Leighton Samuels played all 40 minutes of the match.
James Deane & Jason Blankson played the majority of the match.
Darren Mitchell, Mikhail Mattis and Kim saw minority minutes.
Graham Reid DID NOT PLAY (Coach's Decision)
James Deane, Russel Thompson and Jason Blankson were the main contributors offensively.
Samuels and Xavier Thompson collectively tallied 36 rebounds [Thompson, 18 and Samuels, 18] - SEASON HIGH
This was the only match where ALL starters scored.
REMAINING SCHEDULE:
@ Ardenne - Wed. 23/1/08
vs. St. Catherine - Thu 24/1/08
vs. Tarrant - Mon 28/1/08
IN ATTENDANCE:
Ryan Brown, Audley Gordon, Miya Gentles, Kimberly Shaw, Steven Hamilton, Joni-Kay Johnson, Chad Brown, Steven Moore, Shaun Dufus, Patrica Taylor, Monique Smith, Sheree Henry
Wednesday, January 16, 2008
Campion College Basketball: Campionites lose close encounter to St. Jago
Date: 14/01/08 [32-37] {Record: 1-3} Venue: De La Vega Arena (St. Jago)
Campion College came up unlucky yet again, away from home, as they lost a close encounter to St. Jago, as action continued in the Southern Zone of the KFC ISSA Basketball Competition. From the opening whistle the match was closley contested with both teams playing great defense. The teams were tied going into the half, at 16. The Jagonians extended their lead in the third quarter as the quarter finished 30-25. The game came down to the wire with Campion within a 3-point shot from the lead. However this did noot materialize and though coming close, Campion fell short going down 32-37.
Best Defense
This was the best defensive tactics used by Campion. It was very effective and St. Jago had a arduous time scoring.
3 pointers
Campion's offense was not as effective as it might have wanted to be due to St. Jago's disciplined defense but kept close with perfectly-timed three point shots. Russel Thompson went 4 of 7 behind the arc and scored a timely three in the closing seconds of the match.
Rebounding Tossle
The first half saw St. Jago outrebounding Campion. However, the second half saw Campion turning the tables and outrebounding the home side.
Career High
Xavier Thompson had a career high in rebounds as he recorded 13.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Highlights and Stats:
Scorers:
Russel Thompson 16 points
James Deane 13 points
Xavier Thompson 3 points
Rebounders:
Xavier Thompson 13 rebounds
Leighton Samuels 7 rebounds
Main highlights
James Deane driving and hitting critical free throws.
Russel Thompson's 3 point shooting.
Xavier Thompson's circus 'ballerina' shot.
Leighton Samuels opening block.
Graham Reid's surprising burst of energy of the bench.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Starting Lineup:
C Leighton Samuels [6'4, 170 lbs]
PF Xavier Thompson [6'3, 205 lbs]
SF Russell Thompson (Vice-Captain) [5'10, 195 lbs]
SG Jason Blankson [5'9, 185 lbs]
PG James Deane (Captain) [5'11, 145 lbs]
Bench:
Graham Reid [5'11, 160 lbs]
Kim Sing Yung [5'10, 150 lbs]
Mikhail Mattis [5'11, 165 lbs]
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
GAME NOTES
James Deane, Russel Thompson and Xavier Thompson played all 40 minutes of the match.
Leighton Samuels had played the majority of the match before fouling out.
Jason Blankson played majority of the match.
Graham Reid and Mikhail Mattis saw substantial minutes.
James Deane, Russel Thompson and Xavier Thompson were the only contributors offensively.
Samuels and Xavier Thompson collectively tallied 20 rebounds [Thompson, 13 and Samuels, 7]
Kim Sing Yung was sick and only able to play a few minutes of the match.
Campion's coach was not present at the match and they were coached by a stand-in coach.
Mikhail Mattis made his debut for Campion.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
RESCHEDULED MATCH - The match against was postponed due to rain and will be rescheduled.
Campion College came up unlucky yet again, away from home, as they lost a close encounter to St. Jago, as action continued in the Southern Zone of the KFC ISSA Basketball Competition. From the opening whistle the match was closley contested with both teams playing great defense. The teams were tied going into the half, at 16. The Jagonians extended their lead in the third quarter as the quarter finished 30-25. The game came down to the wire with Campion within a 3-point shot from the lead. However this did noot materialize and though coming close, Campion fell short going down 32-37.
Best Defense
This was the best defensive tactics used by Campion. It was very effective and St. Jago had a arduous time scoring.
3 pointers
Campion's offense was not as effective as it might have wanted to be due to St. Jago's disciplined defense but kept close with perfectly-timed three point shots. Russel Thompson went 4 of 7 behind the arc and scored a timely three in the closing seconds of the match.
Rebounding Tossle
The first half saw St. Jago outrebounding Campion. However, the second half saw Campion turning the tables and outrebounding the home side.
Career High
Xavier Thompson had a career high in rebounds as he recorded 13.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Highlights and Stats:
Scorers:
Russel Thompson 16 points
James Deane 13 points
Xavier Thompson 3 points
Rebounders:
Xavier Thompson 13 rebounds
Leighton Samuels 7 rebounds
Main highlights
James Deane driving and hitting critical free throws.
Russel Thompson's 3 point shooting.
Xavier Thompson's circus 'ballerina' shot.
Leighton Samuels opening block.
Graham Reid's surprising burst of energy of the bench.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Starting Lineup:
C Leighton Samuels [6'4, 170 lbs]
PF Xavier Thompson [6'3, 205 lbs]
SF Russell Thompson (Vice-Captain) [5'10, 195 lbs]
SG Jason Blankson [5'9, 185 lbs]
PG James Deane (Captain) [5'11, 145 lbs]
Bench:
Graham Reid [5'11, 160 lbs]
Kim Sing Yung [5'10, 150 lbs]
Mikhail Mattis [5'11, 165 lbs]
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
GAME NOTES
James Deane, Russel Thompson and Xavier Thompson played all 40 minutes of the match.
Leighton Samuels had played the majority of the match before fouling out.
Jason Blankson played majority of the match.
Graham Reid and Mikhail Mattis saw substantial minutes.
James Deane, Russel Thompson and Xavier Thompson were the only contributors offensively.
Samuels and Xavier Thompson collectively tallied 20 rebounds [Thompson, 13 and Samuels, 7]
Kim Sing Yung was sick and only able to play a few minutes of the match.
Campion's coach was not present at the match and they were coached by a stand-in coach.
Mikhail Mattis made his debut for Campion.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
RESCHEDULED MATCH - The match against was postponed due to rain and will be rescheduled.
Saturday, January 5, 2008
Trade deadline needs for each team (Adapted from Msn Foxsports)
Now that we've survived a disturbing throw-back fashion statement from the L.A. Lakers, it's time to zero in on the NBA's next crucial event.
We're going to pass on All-Star Weekend, which has fallen under the purview of law enforcement. So with gimmicky skills contests out of the equation, I suppose we're left with to build the hype crawling up to the NBA trading deadline.
Scheduled to expire Feb. 21, the trading deadline has cobbled a fine history of underwhelming basketball around across the globe. But despite its potential for letdown, the NBA trading deadline has provided enough juice to move hotshots of the caliber of Baron Davis and Gary Payton.
Anyway, while the countdown continues and creative sharpies find myriad landing spots for Jason Kidd and Ron Artest, I've taken the liberty of identifying the immediate needs of every stinking (and non-stinking) team in the league:
Eastern Conference
Atlantic Division
# Boston Celtics: Their wish list begins with a back-up point guard capable of handling the ball and running an offense better than Eddie House and ends with a reserve center with more offensive skill than Scot Pollard. Gee, that could be anyone.
# Toronto Raptors: Since nobody seems to be giving away starting-caliber centers, it might be nice if the Raps could acquire a wing shooter who is also capable of guarding someone (yeah, that's a shot Jason Kapono).
# New Jersey Nets: They need to find a team within range of contender status that's still willing to give up a good young player or two for Jason Kidd.
# Philadelphia 76ers: It might help if the Sixers had the resources to acquire a power forward who is good enough to nudge Reggie Evans over to his proper role — backup power forward.
# New York Knicks: Short of hiring Harvey Keitel's character (The Wolf) from Pulp Fiction to clean up this mess, it might be interesting to see how much some other high-minded team might cough up for center Eddy Curry. Sure, 7-footers with skill are rare, but 7-footers with skill and an interest in rebounding don't reside in New York. It also could be worth a shot to bestow most of the inside minutes to a couple of power forwards (Zach Randolph and David Lee) who actually hit the glass.
Central Division
# Detroit Pistons: Personnel man Joe Dumars has done a pretty nice job of setting up the Pistons bench, although it might be swell to add another big capable of giving them more than young Amir Johnson has provided.
# Indiana Pacers: This is another team screaming for a backup point guard with enough quickness to get into the lane and keep the guy he's defending from doing the same.
# Cleveland Cavaliers: Cavs fans have been grouchy about adding another shooter, but it might be a fine idea to employ a guard with the ability to create a few scoring opportunities if LeBron James has to sit down. Can they tempt anyone by offering Larry Hughes at two years and $13 million?
John Paxson would jump at a deal for a big that could score. ( Jonathan Daniel / Getty Images)
# Chicago Bulls: If any team was prepared to unload a low-post scorer, we no longer have faith that general manager John Paxson would have the chutzpah to pull off such a deal.
# Milwaukee Bucks: It would be tough to find any team with worse defenders at the forward positions, so the Bucks might be wise to sniff around the D-League for anyone hungry enough to guard somebody.
Southeast Division
# Orlando Magic: When your No. 2 rebounder is Hedo Turkoglu, the hole to be filled is big enough for you to be standing in.
# Atlanta Hawks: I've never been much for mathematics, but yet remain convinced that one rookie backup point guard plus two veteran backup point guards does not equal one starting point guard.
# Washington Wizards: Their challenge is to find someone willing to give them what Etan Thomas gave them or convince Andray Blatche that a commitment to the dirty work might be worth more than 18 minutes per game.
# Charlotte Bobcats: They could use help everywhere, but it wouldn't be a bad idea to remind their famous personnel guy that not every athletic 6-foot-6 player is worth trading tall prospects to acquire.
# Miami Heat: Man, what this team wouldn't give for a 7-2, 320-pound center who felt like dominating at both ends. That may be tricky to attain, so Pat Riley could consider upgrades for playmakers (ahem) Jason Williams and Smush Parker.
Western Conference
Northwest Division
'Melo would be happier with a pass-first PG. (Rocky Widner / Getty Images)
# Denver Nuggets: With plenty of double-team-demanding hotshots in their lineup, the Nuggets are advised to acquire a guard with the credentials to make their lives easier. Hey, we have a theme — pass-first point guards. We now advise moms and dads to pull their kids out of the tennis academies and have them study Steve Nash (on offense only).
# Portland Trail Blazers: They have plenty of guys to handle the point, so while the NBA's hottest team waits for Greg Oden, someone who bangs with more gusto than Channing Frye might be in order.
# Utah Jazz: The addition of Kyle Korver might persuade teams to think twice about zoning, so the next move would be a hypnotist to convince Mehmet Okur that he's a rebounding and defending beast.
# Seattle SuperSonics: Yeah, having a 6-foot-10 guard is really neat, but GM Sam Presti and coach P.J. Carlesimo should find a two-guard, then move Kevin Durant to small forward ... where he might stand a chance on defense.
# Minnesota Timberwolves: Here's another team with no center and a GM who (among other things) drafted Brandon Roy and traded him for Randy Foye. Maybe the rhyming confused Kevin McHale.
Pacific Division
# Phoenix Suns: The solid reserve play of veteran "big" Brian Skinner means the Suns' first priority should be a spot-up shooter with a reasonable chance to guard another team's back-up, spot-up shooter, right? Well, based on the recent scoring salvos against the Suns by Andrew Bynum, Chris Bosh and Al Jefferson (just for starters), it seems that Skinner either needs to play much more or Amare Stoudemire should look in the mirror. Oh, I would mention backup point guard, but only 24 or so other teams need one.
# Los Angeles Lakers: Well, they have a back-up point guard, so the pressing need is to resist the urge to deal Kwame Brown's valuable and expiring contract unless a real player is offered in return.
# Golden State Warriors: The Warriors have everything they need to thrive in coach Don Nelson's system. Unless defense is added to the system, I doubt there's any deadline deal that can get them where they want to be.
# Sacramento Kings: Trade chips Ron Artest (bone chips in his elbow) and Mike Bibby have been hurt, but they still should be more than enough to bring back a player or two who can REBOUND.
# Los Angeles Clippers: With high hopes for the returns of Elton Brand and Shaun Livingston, now is not the time to make any deal that might harpoon their lottery status.
Southwest Division
Manu Ginobili and the Spurs just need to stay healthy. ( Rocky Widner / Getty Images)
# San Antonio Spurs: The defending champs have plenty of depth; they just need to keep the graybeards healthy.
# Dallas Mavericks: When a team's leading dime-dropper averages less than six per game on a team like this, the Achilles' heel in Dallas is obvious.
# New Orleans Hornets: The Hornets have a decent starting lineup, but don't seem to have the resources to grab the kind of reserves they lack — a wing shooter and a serious rebounder.
# Houston Rockets: The league's most puzzling team didn't solve PG and PF issues by adding Mike James and Luis Scola, so the Rockets might as well take a stab another glaring weakness — perimeter shooting.
# Memphis Grizzlies: After trading down at the GM spot, should we even care what the guy who drafted Kedrick Brown at No. 11 (for Boston) might accomplish? We probably shouldn't, but Pau Gasol might.
by Randy Hill
Veteran columnist Randy Hill is a frequent contributor to FOXSports.com.
http://msn.foxsports.com/nba/story/7629258
We're going to pass on All-Star Weekend, which has fallen under the purview of law enforcement. So with gimmicky skills contests out of the equation, I suppose we're left with to build the hype crawling up to the NBA trading deadline.
Scheduled to expire Feb. 21, the trading deadline has cobbled a fine history of underwhelming basketball around across the globe. But despite its potential for letdown, the NBA trading deadline has provided enough juice to move hotshots of the caliber of Baron Davis and Gary Payton.
Anyway, while the countdown continues and creative sharpies find myriad landing spots for Jason Kidd and Ron Artest, I've taken the liberty of identifying the immediate needs of every stinking (and non-stinking) team in the league:
Eastern Conference
Atlantic Division
# Boston Celtics: Their wish list begins with a back-up point guard capable of handling the ball and running an offense better than Eddie House and ends with a reserve center with more offensive skill than Scot Pollard. Gee, that could be anyone.
# Toronto Raptors: Since nobody seems to be giving away starting-caliber centers, it might be nice if the Raps could acquire a wing shooter who is also capable of guarding someone (yeah, that's a shot Jason Kapono).
# New Jersey Nets: They need to find a team within range of contender status that's still willing to give up a good young player or two for Jason Kidd.
# Philadelphia 76ers: It might help if the Sixers had the resources to acquire a power forward who is good enough to nudge Reggie Evans over to his proper role — backup power forward.
# New York Knicks: Short of hiring Harvey Keitel's character (The Wolf) from Pulp Fiction to clean up this mess, it might be interesting to see how much some other high-minded team might cough up for center Eddy Curry. Sure, 7-footers with skill are rare, but 7-footers with skill and an interest in rebounding don't reside in New York. It also could be worth a shot to bestow most of the inside minutes to a couple of power forwards (Zach Randolph and David Lee) who actually hit the glass.
Central Division
# Detroit Pistons: Personnel man Joe Dumars has done a pretty nice job of setting up the Pistons bench, although it might be swell to add another big capable of giving them more than young Amir Johnson has provided.
# Indiana Pacers: This is another team screaming for a backup point guard with enough quickness to get into the lane and keep the guy he's defending from doing the same.
# Cleveland Cavaliers: Cavs fans have been grouchy about adding another shooter, but it might be a fine idea to employ a guard with the ability to create a few scoring opportunities if LeBron James has to sit down. Can they tempt anyone by offering Larry Hughes at two years and $13 million?
John Paxson would jump at a deal for a big that could score. ( Jonathan Daniel / Getty Images)
# Chicago Bulls: If any team was prepared to unload a low-post scorer, we no longer have faith that general manager John Paxson would have the chutzpah to pull off such a deal.
# Milwaukee Bucks: It would be tough to find any team with worse defenders at the forward positions, so the Bucks might be wise to sniff around the D-League for anyone hungry enough to guard somebody.
Southeast Division
# Orlando Magic: When your No. 2 rebounder is Hedo Turkoglu, the hole to be filled is big enough for you to be standing in.
# Atlanta Hawks: I've never been much for mathematics, but yet remain convinced that one rookie backup point guard plus two veteran backup point guards does not equal one starting point guard.
# Washington Wizards: Their challenge is to find someone willing to give them what Etan Thomas gave them or convince Andray Blatche that a commitment to the dirty work might be worth more than 18 minutes per game.
# Charlotte Bobcats: They could use help everywhere, but it wouldn't be a bad idea to remind their famous personnel guy that not every athletic 6-foot-6 player is worth trading tall prospects to acquire.
# Miami Heat: Man, what this team wouldn't give for a 7-2, 320-pound center who felt like dominating at both ends. That may be tricky to attain, so Pat Riley could consider upgrades for playmakers (ahem) Jason Williams and Smush Parker.
Western Conference
Northwest Division
'Melo would be happier with a pass-first PG. (Rocky Widner / Getty Images)
# Denver Nuggets: With plenty of double-team-demanding hotshots in their lineup, the Nuggets are advised to acquire a guard with the credentials to make their lives easier. Hey, we have a theme — pass-first point guards. We now advise moms and dads to pull their kids out of the tennis academies and have them study Steve Nash (on offense only).
# Portland Trail Blazers: They have plenty of guys to handle the point, so while the NBA's hottest team waits for Greg Oden, someone who bangs with more gusto than Channing Frye might be in order.
# Utah Jazz: The addition of Kyle Korver might persuade teams to think twice about zoning, so the next move would be a hypnotist to convince Mehmet Okur that he's a rebounding and defending beast.
# Seattle SuperSonics: Yeah, having a 6-foot-10 guard is really neat, but GM Sam Presti and coach P.J. Carlesimo should find a two-guard, then move Kevin Durant to small forward ... where he might stand a chance on defense.
# Minnesota Timberwolves: Here's another team with no center and a GM who (among other things) drafted Brandon Roy and traded him for Randy Foye. Maybe the rhyming confused Kevin McHale.
Pacific Division
# Phoenix Suns: The solid reserve play of veteran "big" Brian Skinner means the Suns' first priority should be a spot-up shooter with a reasonable chance to guard another team's back-up, spot-up shooter, right? Well, based on the recent scoring salvos against the Suns by Andrew Bynum, Chris Bosh and Al Jefferson (just for starters), it seems that Skinner either needs to play much more or Amare Stoudemire should look in the mirror. Oh, I would mention backup point guard, but only 24 or so other teams need one.
# Los Angeles Lakers: Well, they have a back-up point guard, so the pressing need is to resist the urge to deal Kwame Brown's valuable and expiring contract unless a real player is offered in return.
# Golden State Warriors: The Warriors have everything they need to thrive in coach Don Nelson's system. Unless defense is added to the system, I doubt there's any deadline deal that can get them where they want to be.
# Sacramento Kings: Trade chips Ron Artest (bone chips in his elbow) and Mike Bibby have been hurt, but they still should be more than enough to bring back a player or two who can REBOUND.
# Los Angeles Clippers: With high hopes for the returns of Elton Brand and Shaun Livingston, now is not the time to make any deal that might harpoon their lottery status.
Southwest Division
Manu Ginobili and the Spurs just need to stay healthy. ( Rocky Widner / Getty Images)
# San Antonio Spurs: The defending champs have plenty of depth; they just need to keep the graybeards healthy.
# Dallas Mavericks: When a team's leading dime-dropper averages less than six per game on a team like this, the Achilles' heel in Dallas is obvious.
# New Orleans Hornets: The Hornets have a decent starting lineup, but don't seem to have the resources to grab the kind of reserves they lack — a wing shooter and a serious rebounder.
# Houston Rockets: The league's most puzzling team didn't solve PG and PF issues by adding Mike James and Luis Scola, so the Rockets might as well take a stab another glaring weakness — perimeter shooting.
# Memphis Grizzlies: After trading down at the GM spot, should we even care what the guy who drafted Kedrick Brown at No. 11 (for Boston) might accomplish? We probably shouldn't, but Pau Gasol might.
by Randy Hill
Veteran columnist Randy Hill is a frequent contributor to FOXSports.com.
http://msn.foxsports.com/nba/story/7629258
Sunday, December 30, 2007
NBA: Back to the dark ages?
There is a question that has been boggling my mind as of late; has the NBA gone back to the dark ages? If anyone has watched the NBA as long as I have (approximately 11 seasons) you would have realized the changes and improvements in teams,players and their records. As of late even the worst teams in the NBA were winning over 20 games in a season in comparios to teams of the late 90's and early 2000's who would end seasons in the TEENS! However I am noticing a disturbing trend in the NBA, this season, and though we may not have gone back completely to those horrid days it seems that we may be heading there. Prime example and specimen are the Minnesota Timberwolves. The team, now 4-25, are simply ATROCIOUS! Kevin Mchale, in one of the worst managerial moves in recent times, automatically relegated his team to not only a losing season but an embarrassing one as well. In his attempt to 'rebuild' he sold his big star, Kevin Garnett. Now not saying this was a bad move as we will have to wait for the long-term effects. However, what seems to have me lost is the trading off of Ricky Davis and Corey Blount to the Heat for Antoine Walker, Michael Doleac and a draft pick. Now if you're attempting to rebuild why in the world would you trade two relatively young players (both in their late 20's) for two 30+ year olds, one of whom is completely irrelevant and worthless as a basketball player (Doleac)? If you're rebuilding you usually want to get/keep the young players right? What's worse is that they gave up two players who were budding stars and promising to have career-high seasons this year (especially Ricky) to get old, inconsistent and worthless players. Mind-boggling I tell you, Mind-boggling. Another team set to have a record under 25 wins are the Seattle Supersonics. Granted it is a team which although bad has its sparks in young star and future ROY (Rookie of the year) in Kevin Durant. However, they are almost no better than the T'Wolves with a weak offense and possibly even worse defense. It must be noted though that they blew the T'wolves out last night (109-90) basically without Durant which shows there obviously lies more talent here than in Minnesota and most of the players are young. Other teams looking very dismal thus far are the Miami Heat and New York Knicks. Now Miami is doing worse than expected and is probably suffering from a combination of aged and inexperienced players. Try as the superhuman, Dwyane Wade might, his team is struggling a lot and though we must give credit to his resilience, this team looks like a below 25 win team (Just to note they got blown out last night as well, only conjuring up 76 points). The now infamous New York Knicks organization is possibly the least fortuitous team in the league. How can you have such a plethora of 'big names' and yet play this badly. I am watching them play as we speak (aginst the Bulls) and I cannot figure why the fans of New York would bother themselves, spend their money and sit down and watch this team. In fact, I am of the notion that they are there to watch and cheer the other team (or just to boo the Knicks, take your pick). This team's play is nothing near enthralling and are woefully dismal in many areas, especially defense. Eddy Curry, as fat as he is, yes I said FAT, is worthless, so far missing at least 5 easy baskets (it is currently halftime) and it seems like coming off the bench has done nothing to lift his declining game. Then there is Marbury (who seems to be the 'boss' of the team) taking personal time for apparently NO DAMN REASON, and they actually are letting him sit courtside? I won't go into anymore details on this team as my blood is beginning to boil and my fellow writer M.T.M.M. has articles addressing their situation. Even at the top of the league some of the more prominent teams are not playing up to standard and I'm simply hoping that this is due to the 'middle' teams from last year stepping up a gear (eg. Hornets and Blazers). Thus , in concluding, I hope to see the league improve in terms of team records and I sincerely hope these teams mentioned above prove me wrong and elevate/upgrade their standards and their respective organizations.
LOOK AT THAT....Renaldo Balkman just missed a wide open dunk! Yes you know what followed that horrific display of basketball skill, a plethora of "booes". As I finish this article, the Bulls currently lead 73-57 at the end of the third.
Some of these teams are playing like...well to be frank, ASSES (DONKEYS)!
Tuesday, December 25, 2007
My First Basketball Post (The Knicks)
There is no team in the NBA worse than the New York Knicks,
I know the records of Minnesota and Miami may state otherwise, but Minnesota is rebuilding, and Miami has lost a lot of players to injury, and hence is a small way are also rebuilding.
New york on the other hand arent rebuilding and arent experiencing Injuries
The Knicks are suppose to be one of the best teamn in the NBA, why, because it is one of the original teams, it is in the main media city in the US, New York city, has the largest arena, MSG, The richest Owner, Jim Dolan, Is the most valuable team, (check the forbes list), it has the highest salary roll, (over 90mil), HAs the most first round picks, and the list goes on...................
ONCE THEY LOOKED LIKE THIS
THE GREAT
NOW THEY LOOK MORE LIKE THIS
"NEW YORK KNICKS SUCK"
SO
q: Why do the Knicks Suck?
a: Well if you were to ask there Head Coach and GM, he will give you all kind of excuses, like the The players arent playing with heart and urgency, or it is the fans harsh criticism. But the answer to the question is simple.
Isiah Thomas - he is the worst GM and coach in basketball. He is a manipulative person and it seems that no matter how much he messes up, Dolan (the owner) will still give him praise. He is actually the only GM that has being hired to a team so long, without making the playoffs. Mr. Thomas has fired three of the best coaches of all time such namely Lenny Wilkens (Most wins as a coach), Jeff VanGundy, and Larry Brown, because he believed that with the talent that they have on their roster, they should be making the playoffs, but after he fired Brown, he appointed himself Head Coach, but the results have been even worse.
Though as a GM, he has completely wasted Jim Dolan's(the richest owner) money, acquiring or giving Van Horn, Jerome James, Marbury, Allan Houston, Crawford, Larry Brown, Steve Francis, QRich, Jalen Rose, Curry, Penny Hardaway, ZBO (Zach Randolph), both Kurt and Tim Thomas , and more that i just cannot remember right now, huge contracts, and then either relegating them to the bench or after a year waiving them, or simply the person did not deserve the money. Now Dolan is over the luxury tax threshold, and has to pay a dollar, for every dollar over the tax limit(last year he was 100+Mil over the limit, hence he had to give the NBA 100+ Mil for nothing).
The Knicks and Thomas do try hard to win, and thats why they try to acquire these players, as the Knicks has the most first round picks on a team with 11 knicks being drafted in the first round. But what they do not realize is that for a team to be successful, there has to be chemistry, and chemistry usually begins at the point, Marbury is a selfish player and hence not the best player to lead a team, and he and Thomas have fallen out many times about his leadership, which led to Marbury being demoted to the bench, but quickly promoted back to the starting position, as they were worse off with Marbury on the bench. Later, however, Marbury has had to take a leave of absence due to "personal reasons", and since Marbury's leave, the Knicks (correct me if I'm wrong) haven't won more than two games. This is because it all goes back to the point guard, as Crawford and Robinson have played the minutes at the point and both are offensive players, they look for their shot first.
AT the Swing MAN (SG and SF)
SG - Crawford, Jones (Fred), and others
SF - QRich, Jeffries, Rose, and others
Crawford problem was already explained in the PG section.
Jones - not really that good of a player, got ups though, surprised he lasted this long in New York (2 months - was apart of the Zbo trade), quick and strong. He plays hard defense. He's a scrappy offensive player who can get to the rim and he can shoot from distance albeit with no consistency. He was dumped by Toronto and Portland because he wasn't a versatile enough offensive player who was a hindrance to ball movement and movement off the ball. His best season was with Indiana, after the brawl.
QRich - He is the Knicks best perimeter defender and a versatile scorer. He has a post game, is good attacking the hoop, can run the floor and hit the outside shot with consistency so he can space the floor. However he falls victim to wrong situation, wrong time. He moves off the ball very poorly in the half court (NY's biggest problem) and consistently struggles to use his abilities next to the Knicks established players. He has two ball dominating guards which limits his touchs and two ball dominating big men to man the post and are not versatile enough away from the hoop to free up opportunities in the post for Q. He simply is a horrid fit here.
Jeffries - He is a complete joke, was once regarded as the one of the best perimeter defenders in the NBA, now he is $#*t.
Rose - doesnt even play enough to comment on his game, truthfully i dont even remember how he even played for SA.
Weak Defense in the front court: Curry vs ZBo
Now a year ago the knicks problem was their backcourt, having heavy weights as Francis and Marbury sharing minutes, but the two just never got along, as they have similar styles of play, and would have to compete for minutes and ball possesion, How did they solve that problem, trading francis for ZBo, which to me puts them in the same Dilemma.
Curry and Randolph are great offensive players, capable of putting up big scoring numbers, but both play little to no D(defense). Zbo is a better all round player as unlike Curry can pass and rebound, but for any of them to be productive they need the ball, and as they are not great ball handlers, they expect to get the ball in the right position (Unlike Garnett, Duncan and Dirk, who no matter where they receive the ball can make magic happen). The problem with this is that with a point guard looking to score, none of them are getting the ball, and these players are not hustlers who work for the ball and when the points do decide to pass in the post the question is who to pass to. However, the beneficiary of most of the passes have been ZBo, making Curry redundant (BUT WITH HIS CONTRACT SIZE, THEY CANNOT AFFORD FOR HIM TO BE REDUNDANT, OR CAN THEY). This has led to the the same problem with Francis and Marbury, both are fighting for minutes and possession, and ultimately has benefited the team.
But the problem they now face is that THOMAS has benched Zbo(similar to how he benched francis), to start DLee. DLee isn't a bad player, and does deserve minutes, but not at the cost of ZBo (similarly with crawford and Francis). and once again this led to poor performances by the one being demoted to the bench (Francis and Zbo), while the one who starts (marbury and Curry), still are not performing how they are expected to perform.
Now what do you call this, the same thing is basically, with different players in different years, Hence it must me Admins Fault or better yet Thomas.
To me Thomas is only getting big names, but worrying about Chem, but look at the lakers now, they do not have the big names (apart from Kobe and Maybe ODOM), but are gelling well and winning, which did not take over night, it took hard work, which even led kobe to being frustrated, but now its paying off as Bynum is now the one making a name for himself.
Now trevor Ariza (LAL)is also playing well, as he once did in New York, but as a rookie, no matter how much promise he had, they wanted a bigger player and so traded him and others for francis. (the point im trying to make is that it is only recently with young players like Dlee, have they kept to try and develop, usually these players get traded, for a all star caliber player.
After Blaming the coach, for the players he has acquired, an stated how the player compete each each other, i think i should mention how the knicks play as a team. at different ends of the Court
It's clear and has been clear for a good time that the Knicks have a bad mix of players. But why are they a bad mix?
Let's begin with the starters. The game of basketball is all about combinations. How do the big men play together? How do the guards do? How do the swingmen do? Can the guards and big men play together? Do the players complement one other?
Dont get me wrong Thomas isn't all bad, he has had some great drafts picking D.Lee, R.Balkman, N.Robinson, and others, and i do believe he has the teams interest at heart, but just isnt the man to do it.
Q: What can they do to improve.
A: I cant answer that, but what i recommend they do is scrap this season and start over, NOW
First get rid of Thomas, get a new Board, new coaches, assistants, etc.
Trade Curry, Crawford, Qrcih, Marbury, Rose, Jones, James, Collins, Jeffries
Keep, Randolph, Dlee.
Other Dont care what happens to them, can be traded, or kept
Why Trade so many players, it is simple, the dont play well together, and have been here long enough.
Many of these players, are easily Traded, because they do have talent.
1.) Get a young capable point Guard, a pass first type player(no recommendations on who)
2.) Get a 2guard with the offensive ability of Crawford, but with Defensive talents, unlike crawford (Someone like Monta Ellis)
3.) Build around Zach
4.) Get players who are willing to play, (Mark Blount) - a matter a fact i think with SHaq, injured, and falling off, Zo out for the season, and no confidence in blount, Curry to Miami doest even seem to be a bad deal, the only problem is when Shaq returns, does curry go back to the bench.
5.)Get players willing to take a role position (there are many of them. preferbly veterans though, as they will provide better minutes.
6.)Continue to draft well.
Now i know trading those player will be hard, because of their salary, and it may seem to drastic to start over now, but their record reflect a rebuilding team.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
If a certain someone wasn't too busy 'pimpin' staff members and cheerleaders
and actually coaching, maybe he would be able to realize what's wrong with his team
____________________________________
M.T.M-M with assistance by DiPhoenix
Saturday, December 22, 2007
Sellouts: Karma will always get ya!
I'm going to make this short and sweet. Anyone notice how 'sellouts'(people who take deals solely for monetary purposes, not considering their own image and career) always end up being forgotten on their new teams. We've seen it everywhere prime examples being, Ballack and Shevchenko at Chelsea. These two have COMPLETELY FALLEN off the radar to football fans expecially Shevchenko, once the European player of the year and one of the most feared and revered strikers in the world. Both these strikers gave up PROMINENT places on their previous teams (Bayern Munich and A.C. Milan, respectively) - Ballack was actually the captain of his team. Where are they know? Noone knows - sure Chelsea will say their 'injured' or some other sad sob excuse but we all know what has happened. Even David Beckham saw a SHARP decrease in his popularity upon moving to Real Madrid, only gaining any resurgence within his last days at the club. Lesson to learn, DON'T sellout your team or career for a couple million. It is better to have played 15 years worth of fulfilling and prosperous sports career and go down in history, for a little less change, than to have 8-10 years of stardom just to see you FADE away quickly for a couple million.
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Tuesday, December 18, 2007
Iverson's 'sidekick'?
Well, Well, Well who saw this coming? Better yet who DIDN'T see this coming? When the Denver Nuggets acquired Allen Iverson last year immediately my thoughts were that sure now they would be real contenders but what's going to happen when you bring someone use to leading a team and put him in a situation where he becomes second fiddle. Unsuprisingly there were little to no problems last year as Iverson took the reduced role with humility; I mean after all it wasn't "his team"(not yet at least). Fast forward to this season and here we see what I thought would eventually happen; Iverson is now the leading scorer for the Denver Nuggets. Let me firstly say that I have tons upon tons of respect for "The Answer" as I think he is, second to Kobe Bryant, possibly the greatest scorer in the NBA since the Michael Jordon era. When Iverson is on fire he is almost unstoppable and he is the only player currently playing in the NBA that has averaged 20 points or more EVERY season since he was drafted and has the most points scored(by any player) since his entry into the NBA; and he does this with all 6'0 of himself. I'm no historian but I'm sure that noone this "short" has ever been such an offensive monster in the league before. With this said, why am I 'complaining'? Well in my eyes Carmelo was poised to be an offensive powerhouse in the league. Last year he almost won the scoring title and was very consistent in finding his offense and making opponents pay. This year...not so sure. With Iverson "taking over" as the leading scorer it leads me to this question, will Carmelo ever reach his full potential while playing with someone like Iverson? For me, no and his roll for the rest of the season(and possibly Iverson's tenure at the Nuggets) will be one of Iverson's 'sidekick'. When looked at holistically this isn't necessarily a bad thing and may prove to be beneficial in the long run for the chances of Denver doing something substantial in the playoffs. On an individual perspective though, 'Melo may become less of a threat to opponents and may morph back into the person he became in his second season, a great player who largely goes unnoticed by the public (eg. Joe Johnson, Gerald Wallace, Andre Iguodala etc.). What does this ultimately mean? Less endorsements, less recognition and possibly blowing any shot at breaking records or making Hall of Fame. With his draft year producing the greatest superstars of this era (post-Bulls) and with the other members of the 'big four' (LeBron 'King' James, Chris Bosh and Dwyane Wade) already accomplishing great feats (Wade's championship, LeBron's finals appearance) or experiencing a vast growth in recognition (Bosh), 'Melo may become 'the one that never quite made it/or did anything signifiant'. I mean 'Melo was actually on the same 'level' with James in his rookie season; now he is the ONLY member of that four that has less than 100 double-doubles and in with the lowest chance of making the all-star games( though that may be due to his being in the West). At the end of it all if 'Melo wants to go down in history then he needs back his starring role on that team, even if he has to take it back. But who knows, the season is early yet and 'Melo will probably heat up and maybe even surpass Iverson. Don't get me wrong, I wouldn't want them getting into ANY disagreementor squabble over scoring because as long as they're winning it shouldn't matter. All I'm saying is that 'Melo should probably step it up a bit more as I would love to see him back in the form he was last year (not that it's not IMPRESSIVE watching Iveron massacre teams such as his 51 point performance against the Mavs). They are both TREMENDOUS players and hopefully their 2-man combo will continue to perform well.
I personally rather this Carmelo
THAN THIS:
SO WHICH ONE IS 'MELO AMD WHICH IS 'THE ANSWER/A.I."?
I personally rather this Carmelo
THAN THIS:
SO WHICH ONE IS 'MELO AMD WHICH IS 'THE ANSWER/A.I."?
Remaining Schedule for Campion
January 10 - vs. Tarrant
January 14 - @ St. Jago
January 16 - vs. Meadowbrook
January 16-22 - @ Ardenne *
Janaury 24 - vs. St. Catherine
* The Ardenne match has not yet been officially rescheduled.
Features on James Deane, Leighton Samuels and Jason Blankson will be done in-toe with the three next matches. Features of members on the bench will be done within the last two matches.
Matches already played:
vs. Innswood [W] (64-24)
@ Jamaica College [L] (35-47)
@/vs. Calabar High [L] (27-81)
Record: 1-2
Starting Lineup:
C Leighton Samuels [6'4, 170 lbs]
PF Xavier Thompson [6'3, 205 lbs]
SF Russell Thompson (Vice-Captain) [5'10, 195 lbs]
SG Jason Blankson [5'9, 185 lbs]
PG James Deane (Captain) [5'11, 150 lbs]
Bench:
Graham Reid [5'11, 160 lbs]
Kim Sing Yung [5'10, 150 lbs]
Darren Mitchell [5'10, 150 lbs]
Mikhail Mattis [5'10, 165 lbs]
January 14 - @ St. Jago
January 16 - vs. Meadowbrook
January 16-22 - @ Ardenne *
Janaury 24 - vs. St. Catherine
* The Ardenne match has not yet been officially rescheduled.
Features on James Deane, Leighton Samuels and Jason Blankson will be done in-toe with the three next matches. Features of members on the bench will be done within the last two matches.
Matches already played:
vs. Innswood [W] (64-24)
@ Jamaica College [L] (35-47)
@/vs. Calabar High [L] (27-81)
Record: 1-2
Starting Lineup:
C Leighton Samuels [6'4, 170 lbs]
PF Xavier Thompson [6'3, 205 lbs]
SF Russell Thompson (Vice-Captain) [5'10, 195 lbs]
SG Jason Blankson [5'9, 185 lbs]
PG James Deane (Captain) [5'11, 150 lbs]
Bench:
Graham Reid [5'11, 160 lbs]
Kim Sing Yung [5'10, 150 lbs]
Darren Mitchell [5'10, 150 lbs]
Mikhail Mattis [5'10, 165 lbs]
Thursday, December 13, 2007
Campion College Basketball: Calabar demolishes Campionites
Date: 13/12/07 [27-81] {Record: 1-2}
A lot of lessons were taught and learnt with the end result seeing Calabar easily put aside Campion as action continued in the Southern Zone of the KFC ISSA Basketball Competition . Calabar put on a display which seemingly mesmorized the Campionites who found themselves down by a whopping 30 points at the end of only the first quarter! Campion was obviously not prepared for the up-tempo minded "Lions" and offensively were shut down by the seemingly mind boggling press Calabar employed throughtout the first quarter. Obviously a ploy to tire out Campion and to bury the game as early as possible, Calabar saw there defensive mechanism reward them generously as they burst out to 10-0 lead. Campion were not able to generate much offense in the first quarter because of this and the quarter ended 34-4. Signs of Calabar tiring were evident though at the end of their blistering first quarter blitz and saw them turn down the heat a bit. They didn't turn it down too much however and kept up their efficient play throughtout the match thus keeping Campion from recovering. The "Lions"/"Rabalac" , their goal being to score 100 points fell 19 short as the match ended in a 81-27 blowout.
A lot of lessons were taught and learnt with the end result seeing Calabar easily put aside Campion as action continued in the Southern Zone of the KFC ISSA Basketball Competition . Calabar put on a display which seemingly mesmorized the Campionites who found themselves down by a whopping 30 points at the end of only the first quarter! Campion was obviously not prepared for the up-tempo minded "Lions" and offensively were shut down by the seemingly mind boggling press Calabar employed throughtout the first quarter. Obviously a ploy to tire out Campion and to bury the game as early as possible, Calabar saw there defensive mechanism reward them generously as they burst out to 10-0 lead. Campion were not able to generate much offense in the first quarter because of this and the quarter ended 34-4. Signs of Calabar tiring were evident though at the end of their blistering first quarter blitz and saw them turn down the heat a bit. They didn't turn it down too much however and kept up their efficient play throughtout the match thus keeping Campion from recovering. The "Lions"/"Rabalac" , their goal being to score 100 points fell 19 short as the match ended in a 81-27 blowout.
One Man Show
Campion was also subjected to a one man offensive onslaught by Calabar's #8 who collected 30 points to go along with 19 rebounds. He was dominating in the post with noone being able to slow him down or stop him. This was similar to Campion's match last year against J.C. where then center, Eugene had 44 points and almost 20 rebounds.
Russel Thompson complained at the end of the match of back pains resulting from a fall in the second half as he drove the lane and was fouled by a Calabar player.
Both should be okay however and their injuries not seen as threatening.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
TSC: How did you feel about your perfomance today?
Russel Thompson:
Russel Thompson:
Great scorer/offense, stealing, great defender.
IDEAL PLAYER (inspiration): Dwyane Wade (yes that's how it's spelt)
FEATURE PLAYER (CONT'D):
Xavier Thompson:
STRONG POINTS:
Great overall defense/defender, rebounding, blocking.
IDEAL PLAYER (inspiration): Carlos Boozer
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Starting Lineup:
C Leighton Samuels [6'4, 170 lbs]
PF Xavier Thompson [6'3, 205 lbs]
SF Russell Thompson (Vice-Captain) [5'10, 195 lbs]
SG Jason Blankson [5'9, 185 lbs]
PG James Deane (Captain) [5'11, 150 lbs]
Bench:
Graham Reid [5'11, 160 lbs]
Kim Sing Yung [5'10, 150 lbs]
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Injury Scares
James Deane was clearly winded as he was knee'd in the stomach region in the first quarter. Though he finished the match strong, he seemed to still be suffering from the blow at the end of the match.
Russel Thompson complained at the end of the match of back pains resulting from a fall in the second half as he drove the lane and was fouled by a Calabar player.
Both should be okay however and their injuries not seen as threatening.
Is there a lesson to be learnt?
Even though they were blown out Campion could take some positives as well, from Calabar's play. They were very efficient and demanded only perfection (or something close to it) of their team. They were organized and though much teams may have come and 'relaxed' against Campion who is seen as a 'beating stick' by most opponents, they came with a plan and wanted to carry it through to the end.
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FEATURE PLAYER :
We continue our look at the individuals on the team by starting with the teams Shooting Guard/Small Forward Russel Thompson:
Known for being the joker of the team, Russel Thompson has always been a great offensive player with a variety of plays in his arsenal. Always energetic he puts his all out on the court on both ends as he is also a great defender. He leads the Campion team in scoring and on a good day is their most dangerous player.
Known for being the joker of the team, Russel Thompson has always been a great offensive player with a variety of plays in his arsenal. Always energetic he puts his all out on the court on both ends as he is also a great defender. He leads the Campion team in scoring and on a good day is their most dangerous player.
TSC: How did you feel about your perfomance today?
Russel Thompson:
"I was playing like a punk. That's about it. That's all i have to say right now. I had very little shot attempts and turned over the ball too much. It wasn't a pretty performance."TSC: How did you feel the team on a whole played?
Russel Thompson:
"The team tried. We just couldn't get it going offensively or defensively."STRONG POINTS:
Great scorer/offense, stealing, great defender.
IDEAL PLAYER (inspiration): Dwyane Wade (yes that's how it's spelt)
FEATURE PLAYER (CONT'D):
Xavier Thompson:
STRONG POINTS:
Great overall defense/defender, rebounding, blocking.
IDEAL PLAYER (inspiration): Carlos Boozer
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Starting Lineup:
C Leighton Samuels [6'4, 170 lbs]
PF Xavier Thompson [6'3, 205 lbs]
SF Russell Thompson (Vice-Captain) [5'10, 195 lbs]
SG Jason Blankson [5'9, 185 lbs]
PG James Deane (Captain) [5'11, 150 lbs]
Bench:
Graham Reid [5'11, 160 lbs]
Kim Sing Yung [5'10, 150 lbs]
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GAME NOTES
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------All starters played majority of the match.
James Deane, Russel Thompson and Xavier Thompson were the major contributors offensively.
Leighton Samuels was the major contributor defensively.
Samuels and Xavier Thompson collectively tallied 20 rebounds [Samuels, 11 and Thompson 9]
The match was played at the Radley Reid arena (Campion's home) due to Calabar not having home facilities.
Campion were once again subjected to a series of "No calls" as the referees allowed a lot of fouls on Campion to go by.
James Deane, Russel Thompson and Xavier Thompson were the major contributors offensively.
Leighton Samuels was the major contributor defensively.
Samuels and Xavier Thompson collectively tallied 20 rebounds [Samuels, 11 and Thompson 9]
The match was played at the Radley Reid arena (Campion's home) due to Calabar not having home facilities.
Campion were once again subjected to a series of "No calls" as the referees allowed a lot of fouls on Campion to go by.
Mikhail Mattis has been cleared to play in the remaining games according to team captain James Deane.
REMAINING SCHEDULE - This will be posted in the next blog.
Tuesday, December 11, 2007
Campion College Basketball: J.C. shut down the short-handed Campionites
Date: 3/12/07 [35-47] {Record: 1-1}
Jamaica College shut down the short-handed Campionites in the 4th and final quarter to come away with an umimpressive victory over Campion College as action continued in the KFC ISSA Basketball Competition (Southern Zone). The Campionites, playing with only 6 players gave J.C. a scare, a team with their full compliment of 12 players, all the way through to the last quarter. Heading into the 4th J.C. led by one,29-28, after allowing Campion back into the game. HoweverJ.C. ran away after James Deane and Leighton Samuels both fouled out before 4 mins into the last quarter, leaving Campion to play the rest of the match with only 4 players. Their problems were compunded as Xavier Thompson and Jason Blankson were on the verge of fouling out. This was too much for the Campionites, who allowed the most points in a quarter for the match. Campion is away to Calabar on Thursday the 13th of December.
Starting Lineup:
C Leighton Samuels [6'4, 170 lbs]
PF Xavier Thompson [6'3, 205 lbs]
SF Russell Thompson (Vice-Captain) [5'10, 195 lbs]
SG Jason Blankson [5'9, 185 lbs]
PG James Deane (Captain) [5'11, 150 lbs]
Bench:
Graham Reid [5'11, 160 lbs]
GAME NOTES:
Xavier Thompson played all 40 minutes of the match.
James Deane and Leighton Samuels fouled out.
All remaining starters played majority of the match.
Jason Blankson played very aggresively and was at points the most dangerous player for Campion.
Jamaica College shut down the short-handed Campionites in the 4th and final quarter to come away with an umimpressive victory over Campion College as action continued in the KFC ISSA Basketball Competition (Southern Zone). The Campionites, playing with only 6 players gave J.C. a scare, a team with their full compliment of 12 players, all the way through to the last quarter. Heading into the 4th J.C. led by one,29-28, after allowing Campion back into the game. HoweverJ.C. ran away after James Deane and Leighton Samuels both fouled out before 4 mins into the last quarter, leaving Campion to play the rest of the match with only 4 players. Their problems were compunded as Xavier Thompson and Jason Blankson were on the verge of fouling out. This was too much for the Campionites, who allowed the most points in a quarter for the match. Campion is away to Calabar on Thursday the 13th of December.
Starting Lineup:
C Leighton Samuels [6'4, 170 lbs]
PF Xavier Thompson [6'3, 205 lbs]
SF Russell Thompson (Vice-Captain) [5'10, 195 lbs]
SG Jason Blankson [5'9, 185 lbs]
PG James Deane (Captain) [5'11, 150 lbs]
Bench:
Graham Reid [5'11, 160 lbs]
GAME NOTES:
Xavier Thompson played all 40 minutes of the match.
James Deane and Leighton Samuels fouled out.
All remaining starters played majority of the match.
Jason Blankson played very aggresively and was at points the most dangerous player for Campion.
Campion College Basketball: Season begins with victory!
Date: 30/11/07 [64-24] {Record: 1-0} VENUE: Radley Reid Arena (Campion College)
For the first time in many years Campion Under-19(Senior/Varsity) AND Under-16(Junior) teams won their first match of the season in the KFC ISSA Basketball Competition (Southern Zone). The matches against their Innswood counterparts both ended in blowouts as Campion strolled to victory.
Under 19 game review:
Q uarter 1st 2nd 3rd 4th Final
Campion College 7 19 18 20 64
Innswood High 2 18 4 0 24
Points leader: Russel Thompson (28)
Rebound leader: Xavier Thompson (12)
Assists leader: James Deane (10)
Noticeable Stats:
Russell Monteith: 28 points 3 assists
James Deane: 15 points 10 assists
Xavier Thompson: 9 points 12 rebounds
Xavier Thompson had his biggest OFFICIAL game of his career:
As you would remember last year he had 8 pts (tieing a career high) and 14 boards (career high)...However that match was forfeited from the beginning so though the teams (Campion & Jose Marti) did play the stats were not registered/recorded officially. Today Thompson had 9 points - 7 of which came in the second half - (a new career high) and 12 rebounds (OFFICIAL career high) and also set a new career high in amount of shots taken as he had 14 shots.
Russel Thompson (no relation to Xavier) also had a career night racking up 28 points. He caught fire in the 2nd Half scoring on a variety of shots. He is expected to be the teams' leading scorer as he was last year.
James Deane though not starting was the only player with a double double as he came on a few minutes into the first quarter and controlled the game, scoring and assisting with ease. His leadership is crucial to the team and its progress and expect him to consistently play great baskeball.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
We begin our look at the individual's on the team by starting with the teams Forward/Center,
Xavier Thompson:
Points: 9
Rebounds: 12
Assists: 3
Blocks: 2
Steals: 2
Turnovers: 3
Fouls: 0
Shots scored: 4
Shots taken: 14
Free throws scored: 1
Free throws taken: 2
3 pointer scored: 0
3 pointers taken: 0
Minutes played: 40 minutes (the whole game)
Note (NB): The Rebounds were not accurately recorder and it is estimated that Thompson had about 16-18 rebounds in all.
He showed great tenacity and hustle play and his performance was only outshun by leading scorer Russel Thompson and James Deane.
After the game Xavier Thompson had this to say:
We will continue this feature with Russel Thompson on Decemeber 13, 2007.
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Starting Lineup:
C Leighton Smauels
PF Xavier Thompson
SF Kim Seou
SG Jason Blankson
PG Russell Thompson (Vice-Captain)
Bench:
James Deane (Captain)
Darren Mitchell
Graham Reid
GAME NOTES:
Xavier Thompson and Samuels played all 40 minutes of the match.
James Deane starting on the bench was a strategic move.
Russel Thompson and Deane played majority of the match.
Mitchell and Blankson played very substantial minutes.
Kim and Reid played minority of the match.
IN ATTENDANCE:
Lianne McNaughton, Kourtni Hines-Smith, Ryan Brown, Audley Gordon, Mikhail Mattis (player).
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Under-16
Jonathan Mitchell led them with scoring with a fine array of shot selection and driving. He scored 21 points.
For the first time in many years Campion Under-19(Senior/Varsity) AND Under-16(Junior) teams won their first match of the season in the KFC ISSA Basketball Competition (Southern Zone). The matches against their Innswood counterparts both ended in blowouts as Campion strolled to victory.
Under 19 game review:
Q uarter 1st 2nd 3rd 4th Final
Campion College 7 19 18 20 64
Innswood High 2 18 4 0 24
Points leader: Russel Thompson (28)
Rebound leader: Xavier Thompson (12)
Assists leader: James Deane (10)
Noticeable Stats:
Russell Monteith: 28 points 3 assists
James Deane: 15 points 10 assists
Xavier Thompson: 9 points 12 rebounds
Xavier Thompson had his biggest OFFICIAL game of his career:
As you would remember last year he had 8 pts (tieing a career high) and 14 boards (career high)...However that match was forfeited from the beginning so though the teams (Campion & Jose Marti) did play the stats were not registered/recorded officially. Today Thompson had 9 points - 7 of which came in the second half - (a new career high) and 12 rebounds (OFFICIAL career high) and also set a new career high in amount of shots taken as he had 14 shots.
Russel Thompson (no relation to Xavier) also had a career night racking up 28 points. He caught fire in the 2nd Half scoring on a variety of shots. He is expected to be the teams' leading scorer as he was last year.
James Deane though not starting was the only player with a double double as he came on a few minutes into the first quarter and controlled the game, scoring and assisting with ease. His leadership is crucial to the team and its progress and expect him to consistently play great baskeball.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
FEATURE PLAYER:
We begin our look at the individual's on the team by starting with the teams Forward/Center,
Xavier Thompson:
Points: 9
Rebounds: 12
Assists: 3
Blocks: 2
Steals: 2
Turnovers: 3
Fouls: 0
Shots scored: 4
Shots taken: 14
Free throws scored: 1
Free throws taken: 2
3 pointer scored: 0
3 pointers taken: 0
Minutes played: 40 minutes (the whole game)
Note (NB): The Rebounds were not accurately recorder and it is estimated that Thompson had about 16-18 rebounds in all.
He showed great tenacity and hustle play and his performance was only outshun by leading scorer Russel Thompson and James Deane.
After the game Xavier Thompson had this to say:
"It feels great to finally win an official match. It was just a rejuvenating and wonderful experience, one i probably won't ever forget. I just hope that we can continue to play good basketball. I realized that I missed some shots that I shouldn't have but overall I was pleased with my shot selection and I definately will be more mindful of techniques to ensure I score easy buckets. Right now we have to gather ourselves and play well on Monday as Innswood is the only team persons probably expected us to beat (and I'm sure some didn't think we could) so if we want to prove the masses wrong, we have to win more matches. So even though we played a pretty good game, we have to refocus and think about the rest of our opponents."
We will continue this feature with Russel Thompson on Decemeber 13, 2007.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Starting Lineup:
C Leighton Smauels
PF Xavier Thompson
SF Kim Seou
SG Jason Blankson
PG Russell Thompson (Vice-Captain)
Bench:
James Deane (Captain)
Darren Mitchell
Graham Reid
GAME NOTES:
Xavier Thompson and Samuels played all 40 minutes of the match.
James Deane starting on the bench was a strategic move.
Russel Thompson and Deane played majority of the match.
Mitchell and Blankson played very substantial minutes.
Kim and Reid played minority of the match.
IN ATTENDANCE:
Lianne McNaughton, Kourtni Hines-Smith, Ryan Brown, Audley Gordon, Mikhail Mattis (player).
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Under-16
Jonathan Mitchell led them with scoring with a fine array of shot selection and driving. He scored 21 points.
Monday, December 10, 2007
What's with the slump?
Any body notice lately how a certain MVP has seemingly taken a backseat? Well if you are an avid fan of basketball you would probably have a clue about who I am referring to. It's none other than Mr. Dirk "i can't handle pressure" Nowitzki. Being a fan of the Dallas Mavericks for the past six seasons , I have seen this player grow into a mega superstar in the NBA and I'm not using this word lightly. Last year seemed to be the year where everything was coming together and I as well as the millions of other Mavericks fans would finally be compensated for our loyalty. I mean, we were only TWO games out of tieing the nba record for most wins in a season (67-15), so what could go wrong? Lamentably, this dream was not realized as the Mavericks slumped to a 4-2 series loss to the upstarts from Golden State (coached by our former coach & GM, Don Nelson). This was of course riding behind the lacklustre play of Mr. Nowitzki himself, who of all times decided to go to sleep in that crucial series. Of course other factors were at fault as well, such as Avery Johnson's bad decision to not play a full squad in a near-end season match against the same Warriors who were battling for dear life to clinch a playoff berth. As everyone knows, we were disgraced and sent crashing out of the playoffs, my second time experiencing this in my 'tenure' as a fan. Now you're probably wondering where I'm going with this and why I won't just get over it? Well after that season of two tales I was expecting the Mavs to make trades and for the 'great one' to go back to Germany, use his anger to fuel his off-season training and come back this season better than ever before;come back with a vengence. However, what have I been subjected to? A Maverick squad FIFTH in the West, THIRD in the Southwest and 13-8. Now you're probably saying I'm just overreacting and that it's only the start of the season. But being a fan who likes and is used to seeing my team in the top 3 for the past 4 seasons, this start has me a bit shaken. Sure it's nothing like the 0-4 start we had last year, but most will remember that after that 0-4 start we went 40-4! Granted, maybe that's the reason we lost out in the first round, playing too hard in the season and being too tired to play an up-tempo team in a series. The concern I have really lies in how 'on & off' Nowitzki has been. Most would be shocked to know that he isn't even our leading scorer this season. In addition he has had only 2 30-point games in 21 matches. Yeah, sure, maybe I'm expecting too much but if we're not playing as well as last season you begin to look around for the reasons and to me a big reason is due to his play. Then again maybe he's just waiting for the right time. Maybe over the off-season and while playing for Germany he realized that he has to wait for the playoff run to get heated. Maybe he is wary of what happened last year and is conserving energy. Maybe he's distracted. Maybe he's been instructed by the mastermind Avery Johnson to 'cool' it for now and lull opponents into thinking he's lost his mojo or has passed it on to Josh. Maybe he just needs fans like myself to start bad-mouthing him for him to wake up. One can only speculate but in my mind it's very likely that this guy is in a major 'superstar' slump and we may just be witnessing the fall of a star! Who wants to bet on him being a contender for MVP this year? Certainly, not me.
Maybe someone really has 'stolen' his mojo right from under him :)
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