March 23, 2008
Time to get Dirk Nowitzki out of your lineups for next week. Looks like Nowitzki injured his left leg in the third quarter of today’s game against the Spurs. According to the Dallas Morning News:
Nowitzki was playing defense against a driving Ime Udoka. The pair collided in midair and Nowitzki landed on his left leg, which buckled underneath him. He first grabbed his left ankle, then just below the knee. X-rays were negative, but he will have an MRI exam Monday.
As Cuban left the locker room toward his suite, he held up two fingers to indicate the weeks Nowitzki is expected to miss.
Ok. That note about Cuban seems kind of ridiculous, but if we go with it, what does that mean for the next couple weeks for Dallas? Malik Allen was the guy who replaced Dirk and he finished with a whopping 0 points and 4 fouls in 14 minutes. So, it seems safe to ignore Malik. Rather, it was Jason Terry and Jerry Stackhouse who got extra play in the game as the Mavs went small for much of the 4th quarter. Both should be better plays for the next couple weeks (assuming Cuban is correct), but unfortunately, the Mavs bench is so weak, I don’t see how anyone else will step up. But, kudos to those with Jason Terry.. he’s back.
March 19, 2008
I considered a question mark in the headline… but we’ll leave it as is. Dirk is #8 overall for the season according to NBA.com. But, I’ve never really hearted him, and I probably never will.
Line of the Night: Dirk Nowitzki came away with a 5.86 by scoring 35 points on 11/23 and 10/12 and 3 threes. He had 11 rebounds and 5 blocks (I’m still pretty sure NBA.com weights the defense categories more than other stuff, but I’m also pretty sure they’re right for doing so).
Honorable Mentions: Drew Gooden (5.12) helped Chicago bounce back from the loss to Chris Paul with 19 and 11 along with 3 steals and 4 blocks; Michael Redd (5.04) also made an argument for still mattering by scoring 27 points on 4 threes, and 11/12 from the FT line.
Waiver Wire Line of the Night: Vladimir Radmanovic (4.88) took advantage of Pau Gasol’s injured ankle by scoring 21 points off of 4 threes, and grabbing the 10 rebounds that Gasol probably would have had. After 5 points and 5 rebounds on the 16th, though, this game appears to be somewhat anomalous for Radmanovic. But, on the other hand, Gasol is supposed to be out for another week and a half or so.
The Biggest Loser: Monta Ellis (1.79) has established himself as a valuable fantasy player this season, but going 3/9 last night with only 2 rebounds and 1 assist while committing 2 turnovers tells you why he should only be a late 3rd rounder next season (yeah, some of us are looking to next season already).
February 15, 2008
Line of the Night: Shawn Marion (5.64) continues to produce. Phoenix played last night, and I’ll admit I have to keep reminding myself that Marion is no longer with them. Marion is definitely contributing more to his new team than the guy he got traded for, but as the Heat lost their 24th of 25 games, Marion is realizing that grass only looks greener on the Miami beaches. It’s really just lots of sand. Cause they’re beaches. Not much grass.
Anyway, Marion 23/7/3 with 4 and 1 (steals and blocks), and 3 threes. Classic Shawn Marion. Ain’t nothing changed but the rent.
Honorable Mentions: Steve Nash (reminder: no longer on Shawn Marion’s team) (5.48) had 24/6/13 with 4 threes and a block; Dwyane Wade (5.0) had 30/7/7.
Waiver Wire Line of the Night: Since there were only 2 games last night, this one is pretty easy. If Thabo Sefolosha (4.26) is still available in your league, seriously, you’re playing against people who aren’t paying attention. Sef had 17/12/1 with 4 steals.
Weird Statistical Error of the Night: Boris Diaw (5.06????) shot 3/9 but is listed as having 10 points in the FG% category. That’s more like Biggest Loser material, and certainly not enough or 3rd place overall on the night.
The Biggest Loser: Just when people start to get hot on Joakim Noah (1.40), he only gets to play 15 minutes, scoring 4 points and getting only 2 rebounds.
Okay, something really weird is going on… Dorell Wright (1.50????) had 19/8/4 with 2 steals and a block; not to mention the 2 threes. There’s no way that’s only a 1.50. I think some at NBA.com took off early for the All Star game.
Friday’s Tiny Dancer: Now, the Phoenix Suns Dance Team is consistently one of the best in the league, but remember, Shawn Marion is not on the Suns anymore. So, we have to settle for one of the Miami Heat dancers today. I know. Major Bummer.
February 14, 2008
Usually we start with the Line of the Night, but on this particular night, I feel like doing things a little different. No reason, really. Just feel like changing things up.
The Biggest Loser: Devean George (1.03) played 33 minutes for the Dallas Mavericks, and scored 0 points on 0-11 from the field and 0-2 from the line. He did get 4 rebounds, 2 assists, and a steal, which was all of good enough to get him LAST PLACE. Out of the 281 players who played in an NBA game last night, Devean George had the statistically worst fantasy performance of all of them. 0 for 11. He must have been nervous, or maybe his mind was elsewhere. Things like that happen sometimes to players. Not usually to SUPER AWESOME players like Devean George, but you know, everyone has an off night some time.
Okay, let’s get back to the normal stuff now…
Line of the Night: Manu Ginobli (6.43) threw up the middle finger to JR Smith’s 8 three pointers by not only making 8 threes, but scoring 46 points with 5 rebounds, 8 assists, 3 steals and a block. Slow down Manu, you’re killin’em!
Honorable Mentions: It’s a steep drop from 6.43 to second place with Carlos Boozer at 4.47, but Boozer did have a 22/11/10 triple-double with 5 steals to boot. Jose Calderon (4.35) had 22/1/12 with 3 threes on 9/12 shooting. The Mavericks’ Dirk Nowitzki (4.33) had to pick up the slack for Devean George, and did so admirably, leading his team to a win over Portland by scoring 37 points (13/26 and 9/10), grabbing 12 rebounds, and blocking 2 shots.
Waiver Wire Line of the Night: I’m tempted to go with Darrell Armstrong of the New Jersey Nets. But seriously folks. Antonio Daniels (3.45) played 46 minutes against the Clippers and got 9/8/7 with 4 steals. Daniels was available in the GMTR Readers League, so I’m assuming he’s probably available in shallower (and/or less competitive) leagues.
Others to consider: Earl Watson had 14 assists; Amir Johnson had 7 blocks; Brian Cook had 18 points including 4 threes.
February 13, 2008
The Exodus from The East continues… CBS Sportsline has a recap of the trade that is sending Kidd to the Mavs for Devin Harris. They also have some fantasy analysis, from which I plan to borrow liberally…
Don’t expect Kidd’s Fantasy value to change significantly in Dallas. He is still worth starting as a No. 1 guard, and his points and rebounds should remain the same. There is a chance his assist total could decline because of Dallas’ offense — Harris was the team’s leader in assists at 5.3 per game — but adding Kidd will likely alter what the Mavericks do, so have no fear.
You can also expect Nowitzki, Howard and Terry to improve playing alongside Kidd, and Erick Dampier will probably see more minutes with Diop gone.
Yes, Kidd will still be good as your PG. Passing to Dirk Nowitzki, Josh Howard, and Jason Terry is at least as good as passing to Vince Carter and Richard Jefferson. Probably better. The rebounds might be harder to come by though, since Erick Dampier, Dirk, and Howard actually like to rebound. The 11 points should stay the same since Devin Harris was averaging 14 before his injury. It’s possible that Kidd could pick up those extra 3 points, but I would rate it as not likely, since Dirk, Howard, and JET are all high volume scorers on the team, and Kidd will probably be focused on running the offense.
With Malik Allen coming over to replace Diop, I don’t really agree with CBS’ assessment that Dampier will get more minutes. Allen was averaging 15 in NJ, while Diop had 17 in Dallas. If Dampier does get those extra 2 minutes, it’s not going to dramatically change his fantasy value.
For Dallas, nothing is really going to change. Dirk and JET are down in FG% this season, so maybe Kidd will be able to help them get back those 3 percentage points. No reason to try to trade for them now, though, and I don’t see any potential Free Agent Mavericks (maverick Mavericks?) gaining enough value to be worth picking up.
In New Jersey, Harris will have a lot to live up to as the Nets start rebuilding. He isn’t going to start averaging a triple-double, but he is capable of being a quality point guard.
Harris, who has missed the past eight games with an ankle injury, is averaging a career-high 14.4 points. He should do well paired with Vince Carter and Richard Jefferson, and consider Harris a No. 3 Fantasy guard going forward.
Don’t worry about Carter or Jefferson losing Fantasy value. They will continue to score, and their assist total could also rise.
The rest of the players involved in the trade have minimal Fantasy value. Allen will be a bench player in Dallas, as will George and Ager in New Jersey. Diop also joins a crowded frontcourt with the Nets with Josh Boone, Sean Williams, Nenad Krstic and Stromile Swift.
Hopefully Harris will be back from his injury soon (he’s on my GMTR Readers League team), because I’m predicting an increase in value for him on the Nets. Again, though, I wouldn’t go trading for him because he is still injured, and it could be that Vince Carter and Richard Jefferson decide to hog the ball for the Nets. But Harris is a quality player, and Nenad Krstic and Josh Boone are not as good offensively as Dirk Nowitzki, which will allow Harris the opportunity to up his already-career-high scoring.
CBS is right that Diop is headed into a crowded frontcourt, and I’d say Boone, Williams, and Krstic are all better players, which means if you’ve got Diop, it’s probably time to drop. You can wait a couple games, but if he’s not getting the minutes, they’re not going to come.
A lot of Carter and Jefferson’s value will depend on how well Harris can run the backcourt. He’s more of a scoring PG with his career high in assists coming this year at only 5.3 per game. It will be interesting to see if he is a good enough passer to up that number; even if he does, there’s no way he’s going to reach Jason Kidd levels, though. With the 5 rebound drop going from Kidd to Harris, there is some room for Jefferson, Krstic, and Boone to up their totals a bit. Boone is ranked 182 by Yahoo over the past month, but jumps to 54 if you look at only the last week. He’s probably been picked up if your league is competitive, but in shallower leagues, he might still be available.
Krstic’s minutes are supposed to go up after the All-Star break (according to Nets coach Lawrence Frank via Stats.com), so if he’s available, now might be a good time to take a flier on him. He’s been playing only 15-17 minutes a game since returning from injury, and has been fairly productive in that time. He did only play 26 games last season, though, so the injury bug looks like it might be a recurring character in The Story of Nenad.
If New Jersey can hang on in the playoff race (they’re currently in 7th) all of the Nets should be good because they’ll be playing hard to stay in the fight. If the loss of Kidd sends them down as a team, then I can easily see Vince Carter getting “injured” later in the season.
And finally, since people always like to put players in their new uniforms via Photoshop, I did that for ya:
August 16, 2007
For most fans, the NBA experience consists of watching games on TV and in person, with the occasional special event or autograph signing thrown in. But this guide will help you maximize your enjoyment of the NBA. To use this guide, simply locate your skill or skills and then do what’s listed there. It’s really that simple.
IF YOU ENJOY WRITING FAN MAIL:
Email your favorite Dallas Maverick player.
IF YOU ENJOY WRITING FAN MAIL AND STALKING:
Write to your favorite Nuggets Dancer, c/o Pepsi Center, 1000 Chopper Circle, Denver, CO 80204
IF YOU LIKE JUMPING OFF TRAMPOLINES
Join the Detroit Pistons’ Flight Crew.
IF YOU’RE A CANADIAN STREET BALLER
Play in NBA 3ON3 (sponsored by the Raptors)
IF YOUR CHILD IS A FATTY AND SHAQ IS NOT AVAILABLE
Sign-up for Get Fit with the Golden State Warriors.
IF YOU CAN GOLF:
Play with Tyrus Thomas.
IF YOU CAN’T GOLF:
Play softball with Tracy McGrady.
IF YOU CAN SING:
Audition to sing the national anthem at a Cavaliers game.
IF YOU’RE BETWEEN THE AGE 7 AND 16 AND HAVE ACCESS TO $100.
Go to a summer camp hosted by Sean May, Dell Curry, Brevin Knight, or the Carroll Brothers.
IF YOU’RE BETWEEN THE AGE 7 AND 16 AND HAVE ACCESS TO $250.
Go to the Sonics Basketball Summer Camp.
IF YOU’RE OVER THE AGE OF 35 AND HAVE ACCESS TO $17,500.
Go to the Michael Jordan Flight School.
IF YOU’RE A PUPPETEER, VENTRILOQUIST, OR HAVE ANOTHER SKILL THAT PEOPLE PRETEND TO FIND ENTERTAINING:
Become an in-game entertainer for the Hawks or Bobcats.
IF YOU OWN A CAMCORDER AND ENJOY WATCHING THE CLIPPERS:
Make a fan video.
IF YOU OWN A CAMERA, A COPY OF PHOTOSHOP, AND A GRILL OR OTHER HIBACHI-LIKE DEVICE
Enter the “Are you Hibachi enough?†contest.
IF YOU’RE AN ATTRACTIVE FEMALE WITH DANCE SKILLS
Audition to become an NBA dancer, preferably for the Lakers, Mavs, Heat, Spurs, or Rockets
IF YOU’RE AN UNATTRACTIVE FEMALE WITH DANCE SKILLS
Get a lesson from the Knicks Dance Team.
IF YOU’RE A FORMER CHEERLEADER OR GYMNAST AND ARE ATTRACTIVE (FEMALE) OR ENJOY TOUCHING WOMEN IN INAPPROPRIATE PLACES WITHOUT THE THREAT OF GOING TO JAIL (MALE):
Try out for the Detroit Work Force or Utah Jazz Stunt Team.
IF YOU HAVE EXPERIENCE EVALUATING PROFESSIONAL BASKETBALL PLAYERS
Become the Director of Player Personnel for the Houston Rockets.
IF YOU HAVE BALL HANDLING SKILLS AND COURT VISION:
Try out for the Celtics. (Credit to Basketbawful)
May 5, 2007
or: Things to do in the off-season, when it’s not the off-season and you’re really just waiting for the Bulls to play in their first Eastern Conference Semifinal game since the Jordan Era
I’ve been meaning to post about this since I first went to Homecoming at my wife’s high school about 3 years, but never has it actually held me interest long enough to get home and post about it. But last night, I went to my wife’s high school’s Spring Fling.
Raise your hand if you now think my wife is in high school. Now slap yourself with that hand. She’s a teacher, stupid.
When we go to dances at said high school (with the exclusion of Prom, since the boys and girls usually tend to actually cover their bodies for that one), I take note of what jerseys the students are wearing. Yes, it’s a Chicago high school and students wear jerseys of professional athletes to school dances. If it helps, the dances are in the gym, so they could theoretically just be ready to get their game on at a moment’s notice.
Usually, the jerseys are plentiful and surprisingly varied. The predominant sport represented is basketball - which causes me no small amount of happYness. I’ve seen everything from McAdoo to Kobe to LeBron, and even some Bulls jerseys - would you believe?!?
Last night was an aberration in two respects:
- There were only four jerseys worn, and two of them were on female students. Now, there weren’t as many students there as there usually are at such dances, so that is a likely contributor to the small number. I hear that students were trying to scalp tickets to the dance so they could buy tickets from a scalper for Spiderman 3. Or you could just go see Spiderman 3 some other time. It’ll be there for a while. Anyway…
- The second aberration is the reason I’m writing this post in the first place. Read on.
Usually, when a student is wearing a jersey to a dance, I assume they at least know something about basketball and what is going on in the league in general. I also assume that if someone is - as they were last night, for example - wearing an Allen Iverson 76ers jersey, that either they couldn’t afford a new jersey (those things are pretty damn expensive), or that I’m just not cool enough to understand that as soon as a player gets traded, his old jersey becomes an official throwback, thus making it cool - possibly even cooler - to wear. [As in, “I’ve been down with Iverson since he was on the 76ers.” Which does in some way make sense to me in the same way that “I’ve been down with Jordan since he played for UNC” does. Of course, the “I’ve been down with Jordan since he played for UNC which was before I was even born” argument holds slightly less sway.]
But last night, oh last night, I’m sorry. One of the only four jerseys present at the Spring Fling dance was that of a one Mr. Jason “JET” Terry.
Yes indeed. I’d spent at least an hour yesterday reading and watching clips of the Gully State Warriors taking out the Mavericks in six games and then someone rolls in with a Jason Terry jersey. Just to make sure we’re all on the same page, this was not an Atlanta Hawks Jason Terry jersey (but those might still be available at Marshall’s and TJ Maxx). This was not an Aguirre, Blackman, Harper, Perkins, Tarpley era throwback with Jason Terry’s name and number on it. No, it was a Cuban, Nowitzki, Howard, Stackhouse, Terry era Jason Terry jersey.
My wife (who, bless her heart, recognized the significance of the Warriors toppling the Mavericks) asked the student what was up with that? His reply was something along the lines of “I gotta represent.”
No, boy. You gotta put that jersey in the back of your closet and keep it nice and clean and white for when the Mavericks season starts again in October.
Aight, I haven’t played video games in so long I think I might have forgotten my GamerTag. I’m out.
