Wednesday, July 30, 2008
Watch people hurt themselves/others
20 Ways to Die Trying to Dunk a Basketball
Seriously.
Tuesday, July 29, 2008
Telfair gets a new deal
Things are looking up. After what was really his first solid season in the NBA, he signed a new two year (player option for a third season) deal with the Timberwolves. While his deal is likely far from lucrative by NBA standards, he has a coach that encourages him and an opportunity for minutes. Still just 23, continued improvement over the course of this contract could make Telfair a legitimately coveted pointguard in the league. Heres to watching Bassy increase his gravity.
Monday, July 28, 2008
Headline of the day
Police: Chihuahuas provoke baton attack on nude beach
I know KGW is where the news comes first, but this is ridiculous! Hey-Oh!
Petteri Koponen virus spreads to THE WIZZNUTZZ
Kid Nokia played great in the Vegas Summer league, which they called in Finland MOOMINSUMMER MADNESS. Kid Nokia's first summerleague game had a TV rating in Finland of 98.7!!!!!! Thats almost the whole country watching including TVs in prisons and madhouses! Jaarko has been so busy doing the talk circuit - hes been on all the biggest shows, like "Cold Mämmi" and "Aito Sports w/ Topi Köstas" which caused a big stir on the internet when Jaarko was ambushed by Grööp Gropinggar, the bestselling author of "Tuesdays with Magnus"!!!! Grööp erupted and lost his mind!!!
The Wizz have a history of creating nicknames that stick, and they have some for Koponen that are worth looking at with your eyes. Yes, I'm a little threatened. No, this doesn't change my continued failing efforts towards popularizing The Finnagler.
Saturday, July 26, 2008
Team USA squashes Canda, Canadian currecy still worth more
Team
Not a whole lot, Canada didn't make the Olympics after all. The two best Canadian players (Nash and Dalembert), aren't even on the national team. It is safe to say the real tests for Team USA are still to come.
In such a lopsided match up I'm not sure you can glean much analysis of how good this Team USA is right now. Because of sheer talent, they are favored to win Olympic Gold. I'm fine with that, but there are some concerns.
Back when it became clear that we need a more thoughtful approach to international basketball, there were some pledges made. More shooters, more defenders, more role players. This disjointed collection of All-Stars just wasn't going to cut it anymore!
Which is why I did a double take when the roster came out. The only shooter on the team is Michael Redd. There are three pointguards that will play significant minutes, which means an all-pointguard backcourt will be a regularity. This can be great, but can also be exploited by the better teams in Beijing.
There are other signs of weakness. Against Canada, USA got disturbingly little production out of the post. Team USA will be undersized under the basket against teams like Spain. In proud Team USA tradition, this group will rely heavily on players shooting the outside jumper off the bounce. This is all good when things are falling, but when the jumpers start missing, look out. Seems like they should have figured out how to fix that.
I like that the United States is taking a more serious approach, like requiring a three year commitment out of players. But thinking about this team, some of those historical flaws seem to still be lurking. It has been a long time since the world cowered at the sight of USA Basketball. They know how to defeat this team, and can just look at the film in case they forgot.
Tuesday, July 22, 2008
Brian Wheeler: Koponen's Dream Will Soon Be Crushed
That beautiful man in the purple is none other than Brian Wheeler, radio voice and employee of the Blazers. In addition to play-by-play broadcasts of Blazer games, he happens to also have a radio show. His being employed by the team comes with the drawback of him basically being a mouthpiece for the organization. This is not all bad, if you sift through the wafts of PR rhetoric you can generally count on his information to be accurate.
I bring all that up because last night on his radio show he divulged that our man The Finnagler (aka Petteri Koponen) will probably not join the Blazers next season. If that happens Koponen will likely sign a deal with a Euro team for at least three seasons, maybe more. This decision could very well be the end of the relationship between Koponen and the Blazers.
Wheels went on to say that he believes Batum will get a roster spot. The team would still have one slot open, but would rather keep that option than fill it with Koponen. There is a lot to chew on here, including the logic of keeping Batum who is a small forward project that would be behind current SF projects Webster and Outlaw. DeceptivelyQuick will remain in a holding pattern until the official word is released.
UPDATE: The audio from Brian Wheeler speaking on the subject is available here.
ANOTHER UPDATE: From our cousin Jason Quick: Batum has officially been signed. This means one remaining roster spot, and Pritchard loves to keep a roster spot open for trade flexibility and possible free agent pickups. Not looking good for Koponen.
Monday, July 21, 2008
Blazers 2008 Summer League Recap
Why pay attention? For me, summer league is intriguing because it gives the potential to learn something new about a player. We can then take that glimpse of something and speculate whether or not it will translate to the NBA. Summer league never gives you all the answers, but this year we can say we have learned some things that can be important for the Blazers future.
Jarryd Bayless:
He has the absolutely valuable ability to attack the hoop from the perimeter (stats). When he (easily) gets by his man, he has shown an excellent knack for finishing at the rim or drawing the foul. Bayless can put points on the board. I mean, his play was worthy of this gushing.
I won’t join the chorus that is concerned with Bayless not being able to be a competent point guard. He came to summer league as the best player on the Blazers roster and was heavily relied on to provide scoring. He was excellent in this role. We don’t know enough to be concerned about his low assist numbers yet. I could just as easily see those drives ending with a dish to Oden or Aldridge when the defense leaves to protect the rim.
Petteri Koponen:
The Finnagler answered some questions this summer (stats). First off, he is big. It happens that size at the point guard position is highly valued by Nate McMillan. He was also very solid on defense, another thing Nate covets. No, he wasn’t guarding Chris Paul. Still, his ability to defend was largely unknown before the summer. In that respect, knowing that he can defend guards at the summer league level is something. Possessing qualities that are highly valued by the head coach will only help his chances of making the team this year
Koponen also performed most traditional point guard offensive duties well. Considering a summer league team is never going to run smoothly, it is hard to glean much insight from how he directed the offense. He did show an ability to put his teammates in a position to score. He was able to penetrate the defense. He was able to hit shots from outside.
Yet Koponen was shaky at times. He didn’t shoot well the last two games. He had occasional trouble bringing the ball up against pressure. At times he looked unsure as to how to attack the defense. There were spats of bad decisions and turnovers. Considering his age these things shouldn’t be all that surprising. None were consistently plaguing his game to the point of being insurmountable weaknesses.
My take away on Koponen from this summer was that he is well on the path to becoming a good NBA point guard. Obviously, gaining experience is now the priority. I’m not sure the Blazers have the minutes to spare at the moment to give Koponen that opportunity. However, losing Koponen for multiple years to a difficult to escape Euro contract may be worse than having him ride the bench for a season. If those are the options the Blazers have, I hope they bring him over this year.
Thursday, July 17, 2008
Darius Miles Comeback Update
I didn’t think I would be doing another Darius Miles post so soon. From SI.com (assist from this Blazers Edge thread), we get an update on Big Pun’s latest comeback attempt.
Perhaps we should kindly refer Miles to his Wikipedia page to ease any confusion. He has never seemed all that self-aware. He seems to think the problems that derailed him from stardom are attributable to forces far beyond his own personal control.
Total enlightenment waved bye-bye long ago, so the question is if he has improved his attitude enough to be a consistent positive team member. If a team figures he is worth the risk, his salary would go back on the Blazer’s books (although they might be able to get out of this too-- salary cap stuff makes my head hurt). Obviously this wouldn’t be a good thing, but
Monday, July 14, 2008
Blazers kick off summer league with a reminder of what summer league is
And still, I love summer league. I'm coming to believe this is a symptom of some sort of disease. It is fun to try to get some insight into how those players dubbed as "projects" are coming along, nice to see the new guys, and equally enjoyable to watch lesser known talents scrap their heart out to get a shot at the big dream. But yeah, still ugly.
Last summer I went a bit crazy with the summer league game recaps. No more, we're scaling back (it is a recession after all). This time around, Comcast is actually broadcasting the Blazer's games on TV, so I assume more are able to watch. This is how I rationalize my laziness. Onward!
Petteri Koponen:
At long last, The Finnagler. (Fuck you all for not helping popularize that nickname, by the way.) The man that can stir lust even in grown men named Mike Barrett. Petteri has been working and waiting for his time to show the Blazers his improvement. This is a big summer for him, being left off Portland's regular season roster would mean a return to Europe with a contract that would likely be difficult to get out of.
With so much riding on these games, it is understandable Koponen came out a little shaky. Some bad decisions, lots of jumpers landing short, and getting pick pocketed by Dee Brown amalgamated into a first half a little rougher than he would have liked. But once he got loose and settled, The Finnagler was able to finagle a good nights work.
He started hitting more consistently from deep. Getting by his man got easier. He hit some nice floaters in the lane and did a very good job setting up his teammates. The rumors are true, the man can play. Very noticeable along with his skills is his size. Granted, Washington does have smaller guards, but Koponen looked gigantic next to them all. Hopefully we'll get to see Petteri minus the shaky start the rest of the summer and will find him on the Blazers roster come fall.
Jarryd Bayless:
So what of the new lottery pick? Let me paraphrase my man Sartre: He felt the heat. And the heat was actual.
Bayless is ready to score at the NBA level. He will give the Blazers what they are in need of in terms of a perimeter player who can get to the hoop and convert, and he will give it to them by the truckload.
I was happy to see that most of the night Bayless was matched up with Washington guard Nick "The City" Young. Young will be a rotational player next year, he is an explosive guard who can score. And for the most part, he looked outclassed by Jarryd Bayless tonight. This is good news.
Undoubtedly, you will hear knocks that Bayless cannot or will not pass the ball. Don't worry, Nate said in an interview Bayless was told to be very aggressive and look to shoot. Be excited that we have a player that will put considerable pressure on defenses with his ability to get to the basket and either convert, draw fouls, or both. Plainly, Jarryd Bayless was the best player on the court tonight.
Sunday, July 13, 2008
Akeem Scott: Renaissance Man
Wednesday, July 9, 2008
Brandon Jennings bigger than Brandon Jennings
The requirement to be nineteen years of age to be eligible for the NBA always inspires a sense of ickyness deep within me. So you are going to tell a legal adult that they cannot play in the NBA? They can vote? They can go to war? But they can't play in the NBA? Seriously?
The logic used for justification of the age requirement never holds up during closer examination. The League will tell you it gives the players a chance to develop and mature. They won't give you a direct comparison of the careers of players straight from high school versus those who played in college. They won't because a whole lot of those unprepared, immature players seem to be doing pretty well. At the least, they do no worse than their collegiate counterparts.
They might tell you it gets the pro scouts away from high schools, helps these young super talents to just be "regular kids," if only for a little while longer. How noble, unfortunately that is a little detached as well. The elite levels of youth basketball are already saturated with a whole lot of seedy business that will exist as long as some of the players will eventually have NBA fame and money. Sneaker companies, wanna be financial advisers, leechers of various types, these elements are in that environment regardless of an age limit.
Additionally, you think NBA teams are content with only observing a very promising talent for their one year of college? Scouts honor? The NBA somehow knew a whole lot about Michael Beasley before he got to K-State, just like they know a whole lot about Tyreke Evans now.
Who really benefits from the age requirement? The NCAA gets a boost by having the brightest stars stop by college for a year. The NBA gets a boost as the players come into the league already known at at a national level and ready revenue generating cogs in the wheel.
The whole thing from the justification we are expected to believe to who really benefits from such a policy stinks. I am grateful for Brandon Jennings.
James Jones signs with Miami
Jones has to be pretty happy with this deal. More and more we get the sense he saw the writing on the wall and knew Portland would prefer to give his minutes to younger players, no matter how much he helped the team.
Team wise, Miami could use Jones. His shooting will punish a lot of opponents for leaving him to double Wade. With additional players like Beasley and Marion, Jones is sure to get his share of open looks. If he is anything close to what he was in Portland, the Heat made a very good move signing him.
Jones is also from Miami, even playing there in college. His return home is marked by long-term financial security and the ability to fill an important need for the home team. Good move Mr. Jones.
Monday, July 7, 2008
Sergio Rodriguez left off Team Spain?
UPDATE:
I threw the question out to BlazersEdge folks. Although no official release has surfaced, three other pointguards on the team sounds like strong evidence that Sergio was indeed left off.
Thursday, July 3, 2008
Darius Miles won't let you forget
I was hoping to retire from Darius Miles jokes, but I can see he will not make such actions easy (the Darius Miles tag is entertaining). Everyone please start praying he ends up on the same Euro team as Qyntel Woods. That would be awesome.
Local fans and media will likely use this as another opportunity to throw some acid in the man's general direction. I maintain that anyone who tolerates douchey teens to the degree seen in the below video and doesn't punch somebody in the face is a better person than many:
Tuesday, July 1, 2008
Happy July 1st
Boom Dizzle opting out.
Starbury getting waived?
Warriors offering a max contract to Arenas?
It is only day one my friends, this is going to be fun.
These fine places have linked here, even after they read it:
- Agree to Disagree
- Alana G
- And One
- Archivosnba
- Ball Don't Lie
- Ball In Europe
- ballerblogger.com
- Be The Three
- Blaze of Love
- Blog-a-Bull
- Bust a Bucket
- Deadspin
- El CAI a la ACB
- El Ilusorio Blog de Rudy
- Give Me The Rock
- HoopsHype
- KNEE JERK NBA
- Life on Dumars
- NBA FanHouse
- nextround.net
- OregonLive.com Blazers Blog
- Peninsula is Mightier
- Peter Robert Casey
- Rip City Forever
- Roundball Mining Company
- Rusty's Blog
- Sport Chit Chat
- SportsBusinessDaily.com
- SportSpyder.com
- Steven's Triathlon Station
- SunSpectrum: A Phoenix Suns Blog
- The AltRaps Blog
- THE WIZZNUTZZ
- Trailblazers Talk
- Tremendous Upside Potential
- TrueHoop
- WaitingForNextYear
- What Would Oakley Do?
A sampling of other places I steal from:
Blog Archive
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July
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- Watch people hurt themselves/others
- Telfair gets a new deal
- Headline of the day
- Petteri Koponen virus spreads to THE WIZZNUTZZ
- Team USA squashes Canda, Canadian currecy still wo...
- Brian Wheeler: Koponen's Dream Will Soon Be Crushed
- Blazers 2008 Summer League Recap
- Darius Miles Comeback Update
- Blazers kick off summer league with a reminder of ...
- Akeem Scott: Renaissance Man
- Brandon Jennings bigger than Brandon Jennings
- James Jones signs with Miami
- Sergio Rodriguez left off Team Spain?
- Darius Miles won't let you forget
- Happy July 1st
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