Eric Wagman and Zombie Julian Guy-McCarvill

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“It’s become like a forum. We’re just a couple of guys talking about ball. And people join in on the conversation.” – Tas Melas, in a profile in The Globe and Mail from April 18, 2008.

Finally, I’ve recovered. #TBJ500 took a hell of a lot out of me. I was so ruined on Saturday that I didn’t edit the already-out-of-date podcast we recorded on Thursday, didn’t read the new SLAM in one sitting, and didn’t manage to stay awake for the 2nd half of the Clippers/Cavs game. FAIL, right? Yeah, massive fail.

The party? Anything but. I’ve never had a night quite like it. Definitely wasn’t in the proper state of mind to reflect on it as it was going on, but thinking about it now – wow. As I drunkenly tweeted, I got to speak to some serious all-stars at this thing. People who I have an endless amount of respect for. People whose work I’ve consumed daily for a while but only recently tried to engage with. And they were all more than cool to me. Sure, they’re not celebrities in their day-to-day lives, but at event like this… I mean, this is a party where I ended up chatting with a girl about the brilliance of the FreeDarko book. Skeets and Tas in must have felt like Daryl Morey at “Dorkapalooza” and it means a lot that they’d give me a minute or two of conversation.

And there’s that word again, conversation. That’s the point of all this. I can talk about ball forever and it’s been that way for as long as I can remember. Seems ridiculous that I’ve tweeted almost 3,000 times since the season started, but I guess that’s me. This blog is essentially an excuse to immerse myself in pro ball to an extent that 99% of the population can’t relate to and a way to connect with the 1% that can. I’m pretty much always watching or discussing basketball these days and it’s amazing – feels like I’m freaking 10 years old again. But before I get all sappy, back to the show:

It was, predictably for anyone who watches the podcast, absolutely hilarious. Dwyer has described Skeets as a “brilliant entertainer” and you know this applies to Melas equally. I was pleasantly surprised to see Matt and J.D. provide big laughs – if you were a newbie, you wouldn’t have guessed that these two worked almost exclusively behind the scenes. I don’t want to ruin any of the content before the guys put it online, so I’ll just say that Matt killed me with an impression and there was cause for me to be singing (horribly) from my seat.

The most impressive part of the show, besides of course the simple and amazing fact that these guys have reached the 500-episode milestone, is the fact that they did this on top of recording an episode each of the previous four mornings. I have no idea how they pulled it off and left me feeling like they overdelivered on the big night. Didn’t ask how much sleep they got last week but I imagine it’s a frighteningly small amount. I just hope the payoff – packing a bar full of enthusiastic fans and seeing them laugh their asses off – was worth it for them.

So before I go on and talk about Sunday’s games, I want to thank TBJ. Thanks for the unbelievable amount of time you guys have put in for years, thanks for the consistent quality of your work, and thanks for throwing pretty much the only kind of party that would make me feel okay about leaving my house on a 13-game night. ‘Twas fantastic, even if I bought entirely too many drinks… and even if I wussed out on going up on stage and doing trivia as my friends yelled at me to do so… and even if I embarrassed myself a bit in front of my biggest NBA writing hero by acting about as cool as I did when I met Hakeem Olajuwon. It was a night I won’t forget (ironic, since the last couple of hours are veryvery fuzzy) and it’s something I’ll tell people about when you have your own TV show and The BJ Army has grown exponentially.

Raptors 110, Mavericks 88

• I was there and it was easily the most impressive win of the season for the Raptors. The energy was there against this very good, if tired, Dallas team. LOVE the effort Toronto is putting in on the defensive end – they will never be the most talented defensive club, but they’re making up for it by playing smarter basketball. To put it kindly, this wasn’t happening earlier in the season. (96.7 points per 100 possessions for Dallas in this one.)

• All-OTN Team member Amir Johnson stood out and the crowd, as usual, appreciated his effort. There’s not a big man in the league who runs the floor harder. I want to avoid repeating myself about his hustle, so I’ll keep this short. There were crazier plays in this game, but none brought a bigger smile to my face than his dunk on the break or his coast-to-coast and-1. Oh, and he finished with 10 points and 8 rebounds (along with an assist, a steal, a block, and, ugh, 5 fouls) in less than 23 minutes.

• Jose Calderon had himself a fantastic game on both ends. He said post-game that he’s finally able to move like he wants to and I actually believe him this time. Even when matched up with the speedy J.J. Barea, he moved his feet quickly enough to limit penetration. That’s all I want from him on D – it’s almost impossible to be a true stopper at the 1 in this league, but it’s crucial to be able to stay in front of your man the majority of the time. Coming off the bench and splitting time with Jarrett Jack (who was also effective), he played like the Jose of old on offense as well, remaining in full command of the team and a threat to unleash his fantastic jumper at all times. The line: 15 points, 7 assists, 2 rebounds (both offensive), 2 steals, 1 turnover, 6-12 FG, 1-2 3PT, 2-2 FT.

• Andrea Bargnani continued his strong play, setting the tone with a strong baseline dunk in the first quarter. I love seeing him score from various spots on the floor and I love seeing his improvement on defense. He finished with 22 points, 6 rebounds, and 2 blocks in 34 minutes. Those numbers are all higher than Dirk’s, except for the minutes. Dirk was impressed.

• Chris Bosh’s 23 points and 13 rebounds gave him his 29th double-double of the year. That’s more than anyone else in the league. 11 of his points came in the 2nd quarter, where Toronto took control by outscoring Dallas 34-18. Bosh has been phenomenal this season, but as Tzvi Twersky expressed in his terrific feature in the latest SLAM, he still somehow remains a bit under the radar. As a Raptors fan, I don’t even want to think about losing him.

• The Mavericks were not impressive. It was the worst I’ve seen Dirk this season, the worst I’ve seen Josh Howard EVER shooting-wise, and Erick Dampier played 21 minutes without taking a shot or grabbing an offensive rebound. Shawn Marion had some nice offensive plays when matched up against Hedo Turkoglu, but I’d say it’s always a bad thing when he takes more shots than Dirk does. My favourite Dallas moment was when Roddy Beaubois hit a floater in the beginning of the 4th quarter. All I wanted when I came to the ACC was a Raptors win and some minutes for Beaubois. Success!

Nuggets 119, Jazz 112

• Game of runs: 12-2 for Utah at the end of the 2nd, 10-0 for Denver near the beginning of the 3rd, and 13-2 for Utah before the 4th quarter began.

• As you might expect, Carmelo and Chauncey led the Nuggets as they beat the Jazz for the 3rd time this season. 37 points on 22 shots for Melo and 29 points on 13 shots for Billups. The two combined to shoot 28-31 (!) from the free throw line.

• Don’t know if I can explain how happy I was to see Ty Lawson back on the court, after he had missed 4 games with one of those damn ankle injuries. The 18th pick in the 2009 draft is one of my favourite young PG’s and he’s made GM’s look stupid all year with his strong play. Tonight, he scored 11 points on 7 field goal attempts in 26:36 of playing time. He shared the backcourt with Billups in crunch time and, well, you have to check out George Karl’s post-game quote:

“Ty’s defense is better than any rookie I’ve ever coached. He still makes mistakes, but he’s a very sound defender as is Chauncey, and their ability to find the open man, I’ve said, what, 2,451 times, is the key to our team.”

• Deron Williams played great ball despite his sprained wrist: 23 points (8-18 FG, 1-4 3PT, 6-8 FT), 13 assists, 5 rebounds (2 offensive), 1 steal in 41 minutes. I can’t really be mad about the 5 turnovers.

• I was happy to see Sundiata Gaines enter the game in the 4th quarter, but disappointed to see him only stick around for 2 minutes and almost get himself a trillion.

• The most efficient player on the floor for Utah was Kyle Korver. Check this: 19 points on 7-10 shooting, including 4-5 from downtown in 23:37 of playing time. His +14 led the team, too. Crazy last few games for him. Against Cleveland, he had a chasedown block on LeBron James and hit a critical shot from behind the backboard. Against Milwaukee, he didn’t miss. And then this one. Nice.

Larry W. Smith/Getty Images

PURE JOY. Wednesday, January 13, 2010 was a phenomenal night in the NBA.

As I’m starting to write this, there are still games on. Generally, that’s not how you do a recap. I just wanted to begin while I still have this big, stupid grin on my face.

This isn’t the first time this season where the action on my television has turned me into, basically, a giddy child. Hell, this isn’t even the most hysterical I’ve been this season (check where I talk about Jennings’s 55 here). But damn, there were some great close games and I don’t know if there’s been a night where there have been so many positive things to talk about. So let’s talk about them, it’ll be fun.

Lakers 100, Mavericks 95

Andrew Bynum: Oh what fun it is to watch a real, honest-to-goodness post-up big man do his thing. Erick Dampier is (seriously) a very good defender, but Bynum ate him up right from the beginning of the game with his quick moves and his soft, soft touch. His line? 22 and 11. 8-11 from the field. You don’t know how happy it makes me to be able to talk about his GAME rather than a trade rumour. I hope he continues to play like this and the rumours cease. Are we remembering that this kid is only 22? Yeah.

Ron Artest: Since his concussion, he has had a few sub-par performances. He might be past all that now, though. 16 points on 5-5 FG, 1-1 3PT, and 5-6 FT. 11 rebounds, too. Can’t ask for more, and I haven’t even mentioned his most important contribution: defense. It’s so great to see it working out well in L.A. – I didn’t see it going down like this, but sometimes there’s nothing sweeter than being proven wrong.

Kobe Bryant: He played 11 minutes in the first half and didn’t do much of anything, with back spasms so obviously slowing him down. The one shot he attempted had about 10% of the lift his J normally has and his mortality startled me. In the second half, though, Kobe looked like a different player. Not his usual self, mind you, but there was some energy and he wanted the ball. And, with his team inbounding the ball with 42.5 seconds left, he received it and hit the biggest bucket of the game, a jumper over Josh Howard. He only scored 10 points on 11 shots in 35 minutes, but I’ll remember that shot. And the fact that he played when so many others wouldn’t have.

Dirk Nowitzki: The only reason Kobe needed to hit that shot was that Dirk had made a huge three-pointer on the previous possession, tying the game up and capping an 8-0 run. He was, typically, brilliant in the 4th Q., where he scored 15 of his 30 points. In that 4th Q., he hit a jumper to become the 34th player in NBA history to pass 20,000 career points. For this, the crowd gave him a terrific standing ovation. It’s a bit mind-bending for me every time I see a player pass a milestone like this – I remember when this guy was a rookie with silly hair and I hadn’t the foggiest idea he would ever be close to becoming an All-Star, let alone the sure-fire HoF’er he is today. Oh, and speaking of hair – he celebrated his achievement with a new look.

Spurs 109, Thunder 108 (OT)

DeJuan Blair: The man of the night, in my books. The first thing I noticed when I turned on this game was that Tim Duncan wasn’t playing. The second thing I noticed was that Blair was making life miserable for OKC. From the opening tip, this rookie was dominant inside and I loved it. He’s always a beast on the glass and he always finds a way to score after grabbing offensive rebounds, but last night he was a big threat on the pick-and-roll as well. Check out this unbelievable line: 28 points (11-17 FG, 6-8 FT), 21 Reb (10 Off), 2 Blk, 2 Stl, 2 TO, 6 PF in 31 minutes. I can’t say enough about this. 31 minutes! Yeah, this game went into overtime, but he didn’t even play big minutes for a regulation game. Yet, 28 and 21. Absolutely insane. Need I remind you that he has no ACL’s? No, you knew that already. Let’s appreciate this guy and enjoy it every time he gives a big Eff You to the teams who passed on him in the draft.

Tony Parker: So I guess this was bullshit, then? Haha, kidding. Jesse Blanchard of 48 Minutes Of Hell was on-point – Parker’s been hampered by plantar fasciitis for the past little while and his production has suffered for it. In this game, though, you would never have known. He, like Blair, came out on fire in the first quarter, where he scored 16 points on 7-9 shooting. He finished the game with 28 points and 8 assists and generally looked like the TP we’ve come to expect, getting where he wants on the floor and finishing way easier than logic would dictate.

Manu Ginobili: 0-10 from the field, 0 points. But he had 7 assists, 4 rebounds, 3 steals, 1 block, and one of the biggest plays of the season:

This breathtaking hero play allowed Richard Jefferson to hit what would turn out to be the game-winning jumper with 9.1 seconds remaining.

Russell Westbrook: Here’s the line: 25 points, 13 assists, 6 rebounds. Awesome, right? Well, the fact he needed 24 shots to score those points makes it a bit less awesome, but that’s okay for this 21-year-old. We know that he’s made significant strides in his all-around game and is continuing to improve with every game. Sure, he missed what would have been a game-winner at the end of OT, but this game doesn’t go to OT if he doesn’t hit that huge jump shot with 3.8 seconds left in regulation. Big game, in a great game.

Rockets 120, Timberwolves 114 (3OT!)

Corey Brewer: He sent this game into overtime with a shot from halfcourt. No analysis necessary.

Wayne Ellington: The rookie who started the season off shooting so, so poorly came up BIG. 7-12 from the floor, 3-4 from downtown. This includes the shot from distance that tied the game at 105, setting up the third and final overtime period.

Shane Battier: His three-pointer in the third overtime to give the Rockets a 6-point lead was a dagger of sorts. I also saw him get a huge block in one of the overtime periods. He actually finished with 5 (!) blocks in this game, a weird accomplishment for a guy who almost never tries to block shots on the man he is guarding. Funny thing is, he has a 6-block game to his name this year too. Check the boxscore and you’ll see he also registered 2 steals and 12 rebounds (7 offensive) in 49:34.

Aaron Brooks: A career-high 43 points in… 59 minutes and 25 seconds of action. What a night. What a looong night for the Wolves, trying to guard him. 14-30 FG, 6-9 3PT, 9-12 FT. Don’t tell me it’s not that impressive per-minute, don’t complain that he “only” got 5 assists. The man scored 43 points in an NBA game. Not easy. [Also, he only had one freaking turnover. One.]

Chuck Hayes: Love, love, love this line: 10 Pts (5-6 FG), 17 Reb (4 Off), 6 Ast, 4 Stl, 2 Blk, 4 TO, 6 PF in exactly 50 minutes. There are not a lot of players in this league capable of putting up this line. I mean, only taking 6 shots in 50 minutes, and making almost all of them? The 17 boards are a career-high, as are the 6 assists. I suppose this shouldn’t be surprising, given that he played 50 minutes, but it’s so very impressive to be able to play that many minutes with the intensity and focus that he possesses. He’s the Rockets’ second-shortest starter, but he’s battling as a center every single night. He’s loving it, too, and I’m loving watching him. Brilliant basketball player.

Al Jefferson: 26 points, 26 rebounds. Fine, 26 shot attempts too. It’s still a beautiful line and he made several key baskets in the overtime periods. It’s well worth noting that his rebounding total is a new franchise record. Setting a franchise record for rebounding on a team that had Kevin Garnett for the majority of his career? That’s gotta feel good.

Pacers 122, Suns 114

Danny Granger: Here’s the guy that was rated so highly in fantasy basketball as the season began: 33 points (11-22 FG, 5-9 3PT, 6-8 FT), 8 Reb (1 Off), 1 Ast, 1 Stl, 3 TO, 4 PF in 40 mins. He led his team back from a 24 point deficit, which is very hard to do in the NBA. You know what’s harder? Doing that in two consecutive games. The Pacers had rallied behind Granger against Toronto just two days prior, when they were down by 23 points. I kind of doubt this has happened before.

Dahntay Jones: After receiving a DNP-CD against Toronto, Jones played 25 minutes in this one and scored 11 points on 6 FGA’s, with 9 rebounds, 3 assists, and a block as well. I hated seeing him in the doghouse and hope that he will stay away from there from here on out.

Mike Dunleavy Jr.:30 points for Lil Dun and it’s the first time he’s done that as a Pacer. The last time he scored 30 was the final game of the 2007-2008 season. Dunleavy only needed 26 minutes and 14 field goal attempts to get that impressive total, which means he had a game that can only be described as “supereffingefficient.”

Steve Nash: He can’t be happy, with his team giving up such a huge lead. No one on the Suns seemed happy about letting Milwaukee come back against them the night before, and now to do the same thing but not even pull out the win? Awful. Still, I’ve gotta show him some respect. He managed his 20/9 in just 27 minutes because he had to get seven stitches to fix his busted lip after taking a first-quarter elbow from Earl Watson. Apparently, a tooth went through his upper lip. Tough guy.

Hawks 94, Wizards 82

Jamal Crawford: 14 of his 22 points came in the 4th quarter. This is his 2nd 14-point 4th Q. in less than a week. Antawn Jamison had made it a 66-64 game early in the period, but Crawford is making a habit out of taking over at the end of games and making sure his team comes away with a W. Perhaps we need a nickname for him that reflects this, but for the love of God don’t let it be “Big Shot Jamal.”

Antawn Jamison: It came in a losing effort, but it was impressive. 25/19/3 on the night. 17 of those points came in the 2nd half, as part of a push to come back from their 12-point halftime deficit. I hate that he’s stuck in Washington right now, but I love that he’s continuing to play hard and produce like the more-than-solid player and true professional that we know he is.

Celtics 111, Nets 87:

Ugh. I don’t want to look at numbers for this one. Check these videos out, though. One is Tony Allen almost hitting his head on the backboard whilst slamming home an alley-oop; one is Bill Walker being Bill Walker.

Knicks 93, Sixers 92

David Lee: You would have understood if he had skipped this game, as his grandfather passed away on Tuesday. Instead, he played and played well: 24/9/2 in a winning effort.

Sam Dalembert: You would have understood if he has skipped the game, as several of his relatives and friends in Haiti have yet to contact him since the horrific earthquake on Tuesday. Instead, he played and played well: 12/21/1 with a block and a steal.

Heat 115, Warriors 102

Dwyane Wade: He may not be averaging the MVP-level numbers he did last season, but he got ‘em this time. 35/7/9 on 10-15 shooting, with 3 steals as well. Oh, and he shot 15-15 from the line. So as to appear human, he turned the ball over 7 times as well.

Jermaine O’Neal: Also just took 15 field goal attempts and he scored 25 points. His +26 was the highest of anyone in the game and I’d be tempted to call it a “vintage” JO performance if he had just blocked a shot. In watching the final quarter, he looked great and looked like he was having fun.

Corey Maggette: He followed up his 32 points on 14 shots vs. Cleveland with 25 points on 11 shots here. This man has some obvious holes in his game, but he can definitely score and get to the line with the best of ‘em. 11-11 from the charity stripe tonight. He’s far from my favourite player to watch and you can hate him if you want, but know that this kind of efficiency is rare.

Anthony Morrow: I love watching this man shoot and I love seeing that he scored 24 points on 14 shots. I just love that he TOOK 14 shots – in his previous 3 games combined, he had just 13 attempts. 30 minutes tonight for Morrow and it should be that way every damn game. Come on, Nellie, realize what you have here. 4-5 from downtown.

Hornets 108, Clippers 94

Chris Paul: 15 points, 15 assists, 4 steals, +27. That’s what Chris Paul does. But most importantly, his team got a W. Happy to see that, even though I’m really, really feeling for the Clippers given yesterday’s AWFUL news about Blake Griffin.

Peja Stojakovic: 20 points on 8-14 shooting, 4-6 from downtown. He led the AP recap and I can’t think of the last recap I wrote where this was the case. Peja can be absolutely deadly when he spots up behind the arc and defenders are seduced into watching Chris Paul rather than getting out there on the three-point threat.

Nuggets 115, Magic 97

Carmelo Anthony: 27/7/5, shooting 8-15 FG, 2-5 3PT, and 9-9 from the line. It’s his second game back from injury and he did the things he didn’t do in the first game: rebound and get to the line. His team was down by three at halftime, but he scored 9 of his points in the crucial 3rd Q. where the Nugs outscored the Magic by 16.

Matt Barnes: He’s been starting lately for Orlando and he had a season-high in points in this game, finishing with 28. 9 boards, 3 steals, and a block show that he was doing his normal all-around thing during the 37 minutes he played. Unfortunate that his great performance couldn’t have come in a closer game.

Blazers 120, Bucks 108

Rudy Fernandez: He’s the only one I can feel happy for in this looks-much-closer-than-it-was game. The Blazers had a 33 point lead in the second half and the Bucks needed a 37-23 4th Q. to make the final look respectable. This was Rudy’s first game since Dec. 1 and I suppose there was a little rust – he went 1-5 in his 15 minutes, missing all four of his three-pint attempts. When he entered the game, the fantastic Portland fans gave him a standing ovation. Wish I had seen it live.

Fun With Stats

The Lakers won the 3,000th game in franchise history. They’re the first team to reach that mark.

Kobe Bryant needs 60 points to reach the 25,000-point plateau. If he wasn’t so far from 100%, I might make a crazy prediction that he’ll reach it next game.

Charlie Bell came into the game against Portland with 399 career three-pointers made. He hit 2 in the game. Over 400 threes? Not bad for a guy who a lot of people thought wouldn’t make it in the NBA. Not bad at all. MSU! MSU!

Quoted

“Yeah, I’m not retarded.” – Dirk Nowitzki, when asked if he knew the standing ovation was for him scoring 20,000 points.

“Crazy shit did happen.” – Gregg Popovich, on how the Spurs won.

I don’t even know if (Tim) Duncan could have done this tonight.” – Scott Brooks, on DaJuan Blair.

“He was 0-for-10 and he made the biggest play of the game. He basically won the game for them.” – Scott Brooks, on Manu Ginobili’s save.

“That’s one of those NBA games where you don’t want to see a winner. It’s two great teams battling.” – Jeff Green, on OKC/SAS.

“It was a great game. Thank you, thank you, thank you to the basketball gods for allowing us to win.” – Gregg Popovich, on OKC/SAS.

Tweeted:

@SI_ChrisBallard: Every time Serge Ibaka scores for Thunder – like now, after putback – the OKC PA plays the Chewbacca roar. Corny, but it does crack me up

@stackmack: J. Flynn and overtimes go together like cookies and milk. 3OT here we come!

@jeskeets: We might have to retire “Whoa Boy” after tonight’s ridiculous fantasy lines …

@bruce_arthur: This whole night in the NBA has been a #leaguepassalert

@Thirty2zero: I scored 43 in my new shoes. We won. And in 20 minutes it’s my birthday. I love this game!

@dmorey: Incredible effort by the guys on a back to back. Solid D. AB/Scola offense and Chuck/Shane defense were huge. Happy Birthday @thirty2zero .

Ned Dishman/Getty Images

Very, very quick recap today, as I don’t really have any time to be doing this but am trying anyway. The Basketball Gods didn’t help me out much last night, as the Celtics/Wizards game was unavailable in Canada, the Pistons/Nuggets game crapped out on me with 6 seconds left in the game, and my recording of Jazz/Magic stopped with about 7 minutes to play. Weird night.

The All-OTN Team

Will Bynum

Bynumite is hurt right now. He already had issues with his right ankle, but when he rolled his left ankle right at the end of the Philly game the other night, it ensured he’d sit a game out for the first time this year. Luckily, Rodney Stuckey stepped up in his absence and Detroit was able to top Denver, 101-99. More on Stuckey in abit.

Shannon Brown

The Lakers weren’t on this week’s Thursday sched, but I really should post his insane alley-oop from Wednesday night, shouldn’t I?

Jared Dudley

He didn’t play yesterday, but he did post this picture and this video.

Fun With Stats

Congrats are in order for Chauncey Billups and Ray Allen, who passed the 13,000 and 20,000-point plateaus last night, respectively. Crazy stuff to think about when you’ve been watching these guys play since they were rookies. I remember when the Raptors acquired Billups mid-way through his rookie season. HATED losing Damon Stoudamire, but at least we were getting another young, promising PG. You know the story after that. (Update: Apparently, Paul Pierce passed 19,000 points last night too. How’d that one get by me at first? Anyway, congrats to him as well.)

Dwight Howard shot 6-7 from the free throw line last night. In his last 4 games, he is shooting 29-39 from the stripe. That’s 74%. Gilbert Arenas shot 1-6 from the line last night, including two crucial misses in crunch time (sad face), and is now shooting 71% on the season.

Orlando’s awesome bench started out the game 12/15 from the field, with much of that damage being done by the sharp-shooting Ryan Anderson. I love watching this guy play – he is absolutely perfect for Stan Van’s system. He essentially only shoots when he’s open for three or he’s right under the basket. And he’s efficient as hell. You CANNOT leave this man open or he will burn you, as Utah found out last night to the tune of 14 first-half points. It seemed like he scored all of those points in about 3 minutes, but I could be wrong there. The Magic raced out to an 18-point lead early, but couldn’t match Utah’s energy in the second half, falling 120-111 at the end of their road trip.

Rajon Rondo eclipsed the 20-point mark for the first time this season last night in Boston’s 104-102 win in Washington. That surprise you like it did me? He’s been one of the best players in fantasy basketball all year, despite only averaging 11.5 points a game. His fantasy owners and Celtics fans have to extremely happy with his work last night. This is the second game in a row where he was the major difference-maker in a Boston win. In addition to the 21 points, he had 11 assists. But, of course, he’s garbage and we only think he’s good because he has quality teammates….

Almost forgot this… The Washington Wizards grabbed 0 rebounds in the 2nd quarter last night. I don’t know if that’s ever been done before in the post-shot clock era. Insane.

Update: Totally forgot to mention Melo. The man scored 40 points in 43 minutes last night, with 16 of ‘em coming in the final frame. Think maybe he should have taken the final shot rather than Billups? Can’t just be me.

Impressive

Rodney Stuckey: 25 Pts (7-14 FG, 0-1 3PT, 11-15 FT), 3 Ast, 2 Stl, 5 TO, 1 PF in 39 mins.

Shame about that assist-to-turnover ratio, but you have to live with it when you’re getting this kind of scoring. His former mentor, Chauncey Billups, had 21 points on 16 shots and only had 2 assists himself. In a game decided by 2 points (and one that ended with a missed shot from Billups), you have to give Stuckey huge credit for coming out on top in the individual matchup. This followed what might have been his most impressive performance as a Piston on Wednesday night, where he scored 27 points and added 8 assists in a victory over Philadelphia. Is Rodney turning the corner? I don’t know. He had a great stretch of games last December, too. With all the injuries the Pistons are dealing with right now, though, they really needed him last night and he came through. Hope he keeps this up.

Ben Wallace: 7 Pts (2-7 FG, 3-6 FT), 16 Reb (6 Off), 3 Ast, 1 Blk, 3 Stl, 3 PF in 35 mins.

Ignore the 2-7 and the fact that he airballed a free throw during this game. Ben Wallace is super fun to watch again. His return to Detroit (and good health?) has rejuvenated his career. Didn’t see this coming at all. I’m loving watching him battle for boards underneath the glass and get steals that he really has no business getting. Even though he still cheats too much on D, he remains a terror on that end and has forced John Kuester to start him and give him 31 minutes a game. He is 35 years old. Fantastic.

Deron Williams: 32 Pts (9-18 FG, 2-5 3PT, 12-15 FT), 8 Reb, 15 Ast, 1 Stl, 1 TO, 3 PF in 42 mins.

You can’t ask for a better line for that from your point guard. He ran the team perfectly, finding teammates for open threes and for layups under the basket. If your point guard is getting to the line like that and only committing one turnover in over 40 minutes, you’re in good shape. Adding those assists and rebounds, too? Phenomenal. Methinks he has a good shot of FINALLY making the All-Star team this year, assuming this McGrady foolishness gets turned around.

Carlos Boozer: 20 Pts (8-16 FG, 4-8 FT), 14 Reb (4 Off), 4 Ast, 1 Blk, 2 Stl, 1 TO, 2 PF in 44 mins.

Ho-hum, another 20 and 10 game for Boozer, who is the only player not named Chris Bosh averaging those numbers this season. He did need a few extra minutes to get his stats tonight, but it’s still impressive. During the broadcast, Doug Collins pointed out what I feel are the two most striking things about Boozer this season – he’s in shape and he’s smiling. It’s great to see him able to battle under the glass against likes of Dwight Howard and it’s great to see him having fun again. I missed this Carlos Boozer last year.

Quoted

“I’m really proud of Stuck and the way that he’s been able to develop into not only a great player but one of the leaders on the team now. I watch his games all the time… it’s like a big brother watching a little brother.” – Chauncey Billups.

Tweeted

@TheRealTWill: Boy I love my new work ethic I owe it to doug overton an sitting out made me a better ball player I believe, an get to work on my left hand

@Truth_About_It: Walked in media room bathroom just b/f the game, Gheorghe Muresan was squatting over a urinal trying 2 pee, turned around & walked back out.

@canishoopus: Revamped Pistons are infinitely more watchable than I expected this offseason and better without their stars. They’re like Rockets East.

@BulletsForever: Obsessive much? Gilbert Arenas said he went to the practice court right after the game to shoot 50 free throws.

@kpelton: Watch Deron Williams play tonight, realize *he’s never been an All-Star*, and try to tell me the NBA is not blessed with talent right now.

To Watch

Ray Ray’s big dunk:

No, this isn’t where he reached 20,000. That took place when he hit a three-pointer. Fitting.

Antawn Jamison’s crazy shot:

This had me going nuts. I love Jamison’s floaters. This one made me particularly happy though, because it’s the kind of ridiculous shot I like to take. When I was 12 or so, I did this in some meaningless game and the crowd went crazy. I don’t have a lot of moments like that I my totally-not-illustrious playing career, but I’ve got that.

Rondo’s huge dunk:

This happened right after the Jamison play. Man, I was happy the game ran late and I got to see the ending on the channel that had the Jazz/Magic game. I was freaking out. If it isn’t abundantly clear, I am a pretty big Rondo fan.

To read

…speaking of, here’s a fantastic piece on Rajon Rondo by Mark Murphy of the Boston Herald.

And here’s one from Jeffrey Martin of the Houston Chronicle on Kyle Lowry, who is leading the league in charges taken.

Then, there’s Darnell Mayberry of the Oklahoman giving us a very, very encouraging update on Shaun Livingston.

And… whoa I guess it’s all point guard linkage today. I dig that. Here’s Ben Golliver of BlazersEdge breaking down Jerryd Bayless’s promising play and Holly MacKenzie of The Score appreciating the greatness of Steve Nash.

I tried this weekly recap thing last week, using Twitter as a guide. This week, I’m at it again. Same idea, but I’m going to use video as a guide. These clips are mostly from a few fantastic YouTube uploaders, but there are a couple of NBA.com videos in here too. This won’t be quite as good as actually watching the games as they happen, but it should at least give you an idea of what you’re missing.

Monday, Nov. 16

Stephen Jackson finally got his wish on Monday morning, as he was traded to the Bobcats for Raja Bell and Vladimir Radmanovic. Mere hours after the swap was completed, he made his debut in Orlando. I only saw the first few minutes of the game, but it was enough to decide that the Bobcats are no longer my least-favourite team to watch. Captain Jack ends up being on the receiving end of a Vince dagger, though. Magic win 97-91.

This was a crazy shot, but somehow you could feel it coming. As soon as I saw Fernandez was the inbounder, I told my buddy Cory that he would end up getting the ball back. As soon as the shot went up, we both yelled that it was going in. It did, but then Portland was unable to stop Joe Johnson in overtime. Hawks win 99-95.

Again, this was predictable, even though it shouldn’t have been with the degree of difficulty. We were rooting pretty hard for Milwaukee at Casa Herbert; trust that there was a healthy level of fear as soon as Dirkus Circus (hat tip to J.E. Skeets for that one) received the ball. Luc Richard Mbah A Moute is one of the very best defenders in the world and he did all he could do, but Dirk just knocked down the shot to give his team the win. Mbah A Moute, on the deciding play where Nowitzki brought his overtime point total to 7 (hat tip to Scott Carefoot for this one): “(Dirk’s) a good player. I probably should’ve tried harder to deny him the ball, but they just throw it up and he’s 7-foot.” I can’t imagine how frustrating that must have been for him – I was heartbroken and the Bucks aren’t even technically my favourite team. Dirk simply makes unguardable shots.

Tuesday, Nov. 17

Heh, the announcer says it’s the second game in a row Melo has made a shot like this. I think he practices these ones. I used to.

I’ve seen LeBron get chasedown blocks so many times. It still gets me out of my seat, screaming. I can’t imagine this ever changing.

Unfortunately, this is a metaphor for Anthony Randolph’s season thus far. Here, LeBron James is playing the part of Don Nelson.

I was going to say that LeBron is now playing the part of the Charlotte Bobcats here, but that doesn’t work. I don’t know if Vlad Rad is happy to be in Golden State, but if you think about it he and the Warriors are a perfect match. He is essentially the opposite of Anthony Randolph. AR brings energy, athleticism, defense, and gets most of his points on the inside. Radmanovic isn’t athletic or defensively skilled, but he can stand at the 3-point line and hit open shots. Nellie will love him.

I love Kobe’s post game. There is nothing I’m happier about this year in the NBA, besides Brandon Jennings. Kelly Dwyer says it perfectly here (and at 14:55 here, heh). My take: it might have been a long time coming, but it’s here and we should appreciate it. Going down in the post is great for us because we get to see his great footwork that other 2-guards simply can’t stop, plus it’s great for his team because it attracts attention and opens up the whole floor. Perhaps he should have done this sooner, but you have to absolutely love that the man is still adding to and refining his game in the summertime, post-30. This is part of why former haters are changing their tune: even if you don’t want to hang out with Kob’, but you have no choice but to respect his work ethic and love for the game. None.

Had to show another video of Kobe in the post. Thing of beauty. Is there any other SG who would have done that? Serious question, this. If there is someone, let me know.

I will admit it. I was kind of falling asleep as this happened. My eyes weren’t completely open, but then I heard the announcers screaming. Caught the replay – my jaw dropped and I immediately thought “MJ!” The next day, I saw this post.

Kobe woke me up, then I saw this. Man. I love blocked dunks. This is easily one of my very favourite plays of the season – two of the best highlight guys in the league colliding. It was going to be a YouTube hit one way or another, but Maxiell got the best of Brown this time.

Kobe’s getting into that zone where his numbers are so ridiculous that you can’t even properly comprehend them. He’s scored 40 points 100 times? Alright, then. I just can’t believe it has been 14 seasons already. I remember him, a skinny teenager, shaking David Stern’s hand whilst wearing a Charlotte Hornets hat. I remember him scoring 31 points in the Rookie Challenge, trying to dominate the game. I remember him being interviewed on Inside Stuff with fellow rookies Derek Fisher and Travis Knight. Now, he’s the Lakers’ 2nd-leading scorer ever? Only behind Jerry West? Really? Okay. When this kind of thing happens, I realize that I’m going to be telling my kids one day “I got to see Kobe Bryant live”. Living legend, this guy, and he’s still one of the game’s very best. We have been lucky to see his development. Also, um, that was a pretty nice shot.

Wednesday, Nov. 18

Rajon Rondo is nice, but that’s not why I’m showing you this. Watch it again, and look at who the Warriors have on the court. Anthony Randolph at the 5, Corey Maggette at the 4, Anthony Morrow at the 3, Monta Ellis at the 1, and… Raja Bell at the 2? When he was traded to the disaster factory that is the Warriors organization, it was reported that he would go ahead with the wrist surgery he delayed in Charlotte. After all, he needed the surgery and he wasn’t part of Golden State’s long-term plans. But the Warriors only had seven healthy bodies this night and Bell decided to take one for the “team”. Instead of sitting on the bench like everyone expected him to, he decided to give it a go against the very physical Boston Celtics. Let it be known that the only guy playing his proper position really had no reason to chase Ray Allen and Paul Pierce around, as he had a torn ligament in his wrist and was leaving the team to have surgery the very next day. It would be easy to forget a 109-95 Boston victory in November, but I always want to remember that Raja played this past Wednesday. Hence, this paragraph and the picture at the beginning of this article. “Respect” isn’t a strong enough word here.

Sneaky little guy. I like this guy. (I’m going to tone down my Jennings love for a bit. It’s not that I have nothing to say, it’s that I don’t have to draw attention to him these days.)

This was a GREAT basketball game. I missed it live because of Nuggets/Raptors, but got to it on the weekend. Can’t ignore two of my favourite teams going up against one another. So much ball movement, so much effort in this one. Not even sure if this was the best dunk of the night, but I can’t find Budinger’s slam on YouTube. Anyway, my guy Carl Landry had 27 points on 18 shots and added 9 rebounds. Steve Nash took a while to get going, scoring-wise, but finished with 12 points along with his 16 assists. Suns win 111-105, but the final score didn’t seem important.

This is a nice dunk, but I’m posting it here mainly so I can link to this picture of the reaction on the Raptors bench.

I can’t say enough about this clip, or how Dirk is playing right now. Dirk is having an MVP-level season, and I’ve watched this video 4 times now and still get goosebumps.

Left handed? Okay, LeBron. You win. I’m now convinced you will kill it in the dunk contest this year. Had my doubts, as I thought your HS contest stuff was a bit lacking in the creativity department, but I know you’ll get it right this time. With your hops, strength, and coordination, I’m expecting to see some stuff I’ve never seen before.

Insane. New rule: if your shot attempt is from beyond 70 feet, it counts even if it’s up to 1 second after the buzzer sounds. Anyone have a problem with this?

Legendary Clippers announcer Ralph Lawler and partner Mike Smith were suspended for one game for their comments about Hamed Haddadi, the league’s fist Iranian-born player. I wanted to reserve judgment till I saw/heard what actually happened. Now that I’ve watched this? Well, it was a blowout, and they had little to say. They were joking around, but were proven to be very ignorant. Not hateful, but ignorant. The 1-game suspension was about right, methinks.

Thursday, Nov. 19

Peja had 25 points and 13 rebounds, shooting 7-11 from downtown. In 2009. He got WAY too many wide open looks, but this is still impressive. I thought he was done after what we saw last year; if he keeps up anything close to this, I’ll be so happy being wrong. The Hornets, sans Chris Paul, beat the team with the West’s best record on national TV. And they followed it up with a win against the team with the East’s best record two nights later (before losing a heartbreaker to Miami on Sunday). Remember what I said about their rookies? Well, they’re playing now and they’re playing very, very well.

You hear what Doug Collins said there? We are “waiting to see what his effect will be on the team.” Well, we saw it. He makes the Lakers much, much better. And they were already a great team. With his high-post passing and everything else, plus Kobe taking it down to the block, you could make the argument that Tex’s triangle has NEVER been in better hands. After watching for five minutes, I completely forgot that this was Pau’s first game back. You couldn’t tell. The Lakers toyed with the Bulls all night and won easily. They’re still the favourites, people.

Friday, Nov. 20

So, this rookie has some hops, eh? Get on the bandwagon now, while there’s still some room. Not sold? He also did this.

A couple of things: this was a very weird game in the first half. There were numerous crazy plays, but this one stood out. As Julian Guy-McCarvill said, you normally know exactly what you’re going to get with Amir Johnson. No one knew we were going to get this, though.

Welcome back to Toronto, Pops. Wish I could have found video of the ovation he received when he entered his first home game of the season for the Raps. With Amir in the lineup, Mensah-Bonsu is only going to see limited minutes, but he’s the type of guy fans really love. Plays like this show you what he brings – energy, athleticism, and tenacity.

I see how it is, Joel. You show up to play Canada’s team and dunk all over one of their fan favourites. Some patriot you are. Hmph.

Shocking when it happened. Thought this one was going into OT. How do you not box out Josh Smith on a play like this? Anyway, this seems an appropriate time to talk about how great Smith has been this year… You can start with Dave Berri’s statistical stuff if you want, or you can just listen to me. Josh Smith is a different player now. We’ve all seen flashes of this Josh Smith. In fact, two seasons ago, he looked like he was headed in this direction at a rapid pace. With the way he runs the floor; leaps for rebounds, alley-oops, and blocks; guards multiple positions; and scores easily on the inside, we always knew he had star potential. He just had to put it all together. Unfortunately, he regressed in 2008-2009. This year, though, he’s doing it right. Playing hard and smart at both ends of the floor, Smith has been by far the biggest reason for Atlanta’s 11-3 start. He’s ditched the 3-pointers and is occasionally even looking like a point-forward, with five 7+ assist games under his belt already. I can’t overstate how great this is to see, and that’s not because he’s been a beast for my fantasy team. Watching young players (he doesn’t turn 24 for another few weeks) develop, especially those who have been knocked for problems with focus/decision-making/maturity, is one of the most rewarding parts of following this game.

No need for analysis, here. What a play. I’m convinced he’s been watching Vince Carter highlights, even though Vince would have spun in the other direction.

Seeing Harden do this stuff doesn’t make sense to me yet. With his beard, his demeanor, and his sweet shot, he doesn’t seem like the guy who should be making highlight-reel plays. He’s the most sneaky-athletic player since Eric Gordon debuted last year. Haven’t watched enough Thunder so far this year, bad James.

Appreciate this man. He will be done in a couple of years and nobody talks about him anymore. He’s been on my fantasy team for years and his name sometimes comes up in trade conversations, but nobody wants to give up anyone decent for him. Fine with me; his assists, steals, rebounds, and threes can stay right where they are. I don’t know when J-Kidd stopped being cool, but it’s bullshit. He still does things like this, things that not even a handful of other NBA players do. Gotta love it.

That this was the best highlight I can find of Jason Thompson from the past week should tell you a couple of things: he’s not yet anywhere near to a household name and he doesn’t have a hell of a lot of flash in his game. You should start paying attention to him, though. The guy has really improved from last season, even relative to other 2nd year players. On this night against Dallas, he totalled 18 points (on 9-13 shooting), 8 rebounds, 1 steal, and 2 blocks in a 2-point loss. His defense is very good and he’s doing a much better job at drawing fouls. Good thing he has improved his free throw shooting to 80% from 69% last year. Late Saturday night, I heard extremely positive things bout him from two very different, but very trustworthy sources. Seems like he’s the real deal.

The in-game clips here are not actually from this week; they’re from an earlier matchup between Houston and Memphis. This video surfaced on Friday, though, and it’s great. I love how these Rockets seem to care more about the little things than every other team in the league. Even outlet passing. That is a skill. Just like post defense, showing on screens, recovering, closing out on shooters, boxing out, etc. Please don’t think Chuck Hayes’s worth to the Rockets is just having a good build and “effort”. He IS built perfectly to guard multiple positions, and he DOES exert a hell of a lot of focused energy out there, but he wouldn’t be so damn good if not for his brain. If he didn’t play smarter than everybody else, he wouldn’t be in the league. But right now he’s starting at the 5 for the Rockets, at 6’6. And he’s improved immeasurably on the offensive end. Smart guy.

Saturday, Nov. 21

Some would say this sums up the Knicks’ miserable season thus far. Can’t argue; it’s been a mess. My take, though: D’Antoni overreacts a bit here when he jumps on Nate. The shot was clearly after the buzzer sounded – there was only half a second on the clock when the ball was inbounded. Players do this type of thing all the time… except they usually wait a few seconds. Nate Robinson is just impatient, man… Right?

Welcome back, Devin! We’ve missed you. Your team has missed you more. It would have been great if your return had resulted in a win, but I’m sure you’ll get that monkey off your back soon. Oh what’s that, you’re going on a Western road trip now? Um, I gotta go. We’ll talk some other time? Say, two weeks from now? Cool.

All I saw of the game was the first quarter but it was phenomenal for the Cavs (36-23). Philly’s D was not stifling, but what the Cavs did was encouraging regardless. It wasn’t just high screens and isolations for LeBron. There was a lot of ball/player movement with plays like these, and LeBron even had a nice post-up move. I want more of this, but it would seem it didn’t last. After the electric first quarter, the Cavs only scored 18, 21, and 22 points in the next three. If not for stepping up their D to hold Philly to just 10 points in the final period, this would have been a loss. I’m still kinda worried about the Cavs.

I’m showing you this dunk because it’s awesome, but J.R. Smith is not just a dunker. He has come a long way since the Hornets and Bulls gave up on him, but some of his “knucklehead” reputation (unfairly) remains. The “problem” (I wouldn’t really call it that): he can still be inconsistent from quarter to quarter and game to game. On this night, J.R. impressed with ludicrous long-range threes and very nice passes. We’ve seen this before – remember the surprising defense and passing he exhibited in last year’s playoffs? Smith has a complete game and the potential to look like an All-Star on any given night, but, fine, you can’t quite count on him to do it all the time. Holly Mackenzie says, “J.R. Smith WILL put the pieces together one day. Just on his own watch, not on ours.” I couldn’t agree more. And even though it might sometimes be sorta frustrating waiting for everything to click, we should remember that the man just turned 24. He came straight out of high school in 2004. You know who else did that? Josh Smith. It’s come together for him seemingly out of nowhere this year, so don’t be surprised if J.R. makes that leap soon. Stay patient.

Sunday, Nov. 22

Vince was determined to get to the basket early against Toronto. You just know he gets up for these games, where almost everyone in the building is booing him every time he touches the ball. On this play, he succeeded, but for most of the first half his aggressive drives to the basket didn’t end well. Unable to draw fouls or convert around the basket, the Raptors were lucky to not be punished more for being unable to stop Vince getting where he wanted to on the court. In the second half, though, he played more controlled basketball and shifted his game to the perimeter. In an amusing sequence at the end of the third quarter, he ran down the clock for 20 seconds while Toronto fans attempted to defy their lungs and boo for all of eternity. At the end of the shot-clock, he hit a very difficult baseline jumper over good defense. Silenced the place. Finishing with 24 points on 24 shots, he didn’t have an efficient night, but it was enough to beat the Raptors 104-96 despite Amir Johnson’s best effort (rebounding, defense, scoring around the basket, seeming to be all over the court at all times). I was at the game and feel confident saying Amir and J.J. Redick were the two most impactful guys this afternoon – Redick scored 19 points on just 10 field goal attempts and added 5 assists for Orlando. This is two consecutive meetings where he’s murdered the Raptors – you have to think they’ll limit his wide open looks next time out. If not, my brain might fall out of my head.

It has to be a bit worrying for Boston fans that it came to this against this year’s Knicks, but an ugly win is still a win. Paul Pierce dominated the overtime period, setting the stage for KG to step in and hit the open straightaway jumper to win the game despite his and Ray Allen’s poor overall shooting performances on the day. Also, it’s worth noting that Eddy Curry scored 6 points and grabbed 4 rebounds in 15 minutes. The big man has appeared in three games for the Knicks this season, already playing more minutes than he did all of last year. It looks like he’s lost about 70 pounds and I’m not even close to being used to seeing him out there yet. Really hoping the comeback works out, as he does have serious offensive skill and he has been through some legitimately terrible things since he was last in the Knicks’ rotation.

Update, Monday 11 AM: Speaking of Curry, this cheap shot on Rondo is sure to lose him some goodwill. This is a dangerous play that came in a thoughtless moment. I just became aware of it now and have watched the clip a few times, repeatedly getting squeamish right before seeing Eddy knock down the Celts’ point man. To his credit, the big man apologized for it afterward, saying “I felt like he was holding me, but I can’t let frustration get to me. It was [the] heat of the moment. I can’t let emotions get the best of me. It was just stupid.” Agreed, man.

Alright, let’s talk about the last game of the week. Lakers vs. Thunder. I spoke earlier about how great the Lakers looked against the Bulls – this was the same. This group again looked like they didn’t belong in the same league as its opponent. The game was over after the first quarter, where Kobe Bryant put on a show that I can’t describe properly with words. I’m serious, I can’t describe it. I’m just going to show you the videos of what he did, in addition to the videos of Shannon Brown’s garbage time brilliance You will enjoy them, even if you’ve seen them twenty times already.

Gary Dineen / Getty Images

This past week, I’ve been tweeting and League Passing my face off and loving every minute of it. I’ve seen buzzer-beaters, incredible dunks, and one of the most captivating individual performances I’ve ever had the pleasure of watching. Here’s a recap of the week that was, using selections from the Outside Twitter account as a guide.

Monday, Nov. 9

6:55 PM: I guess as a Raptors fan I should be excited about Duncan and Parker not playing. I’m scared of the Raps letting up, though. Spurs are deep.

This is one of those times where I wish I was wrong. Manu Ginobili was brilliant, the Raptors’ defense was awful, and Toronto lost despite shooting 59% from the floor.

9:45 PM: I want that Matt Bonner dunk on a poster.

10:42 PM: This Raptors lineup is fucking FUN. I’d be rooting for them even if they weren’t “my” team.

I believe Sonny Weems, Marco Belinelli, and Amir Johnson were all on the floor at that point. The Raptors’ revamped bench has been a huge bright spot so far this season. While these new guys have flaws (i.e. Belinelli’s shot selection, Johnson’s propensity to foul), they are exciting and they bring stuff to the table that the Raptors needed. Every game, I look forward to the bench unit getting some run. It’s especially nice when Antoine Wright and Johnson are on the floor at the same time, doing their best to shed the “soft” label this club has had for years.

12:08 AM: Is Stephen Jackson reinventing himself as a distributor on this team loaded with scorers? For one game against the Wolves, the answer is yes.

There really wasn’t much defense being played here, but what Jackson did was still impressive. He didn’t look for his own shot AT ALL, choosing to create for his sweet-shooting teammates like Kelenna Azubuike and Anthony Morrow. “Coach” Don Nelson even joked about how Jackson’s agent ripped him earlier that day.

12:59 AM: Huge dunk from Jawai! Big smile on my face. Don’t care that it’s in this context.

The context: right at the end of the worst loss in T-Wolves history. It really couldn’t have been less meaningful. I’m really rooting for the Aussie to succeed, though. The Raptors had high hopes for him when they picked him up in the 2nd round of the 2008 draft, but he was soon dealt a crushing blow, mistakenly being diagnosed with a cardiac issue and barred from undergoing any physical activity. He missed training camp and never managed to get in game shape for his first NBA team. When he was traded to Dallas in the Turkoglu/Marion deal, it looked like he would unfortunately get lost in the shuffle again. But then the Timberwolves called, with their injury-riddled frontcourt requiring another big body. He still looks like he needs to drop a bit of weight in Minnesota, but he has finally been given a chance to play and has been a contributor.

1:46 AM: Working on article about the rooks. Started off writing full paragraphs, now typed “Beard! Shooting! Perfect fit! Thunder!” Ugh, bed time.

Tuesday, Nov. 10

1:28 PM: My ASG Voting: W: Nash, Kobe, KD, Melo, Amar’e. E: Gil, Wade, LeBron, Bosh, Dwight. Hardest part: No CP3. Unfair, want him instead of Gil.

Getting left off of my All-Star team was is just the start of a horrible, horrible weak for Chris Paul that saw his team lose 3 of 4 games, including being blown out by Phoenix and Atlanta. We’ll get to the rest of it soon. Also, I’d now put Brandon Jennings there instead of Gilbert. No contest.

8:34 PM: Carmelo just did the most impressive offensive thing (1:31 here) I’ve seen since that Wade “slashing through the whole D” thing.

I was watching the game with Julian and Wagman. It was one of those plays where we all went “holy shit!” when it happened and were even more impressed when we saw the replay. The degree of difficulty on that play is off the charts; Melo is unbelievable.

9:47 PM Gilbert Arenas is in danger of breaking Jason Kidd’s all-time record for turnovers in a game (14).

He finished with 12, tying the opposing team on the night and Dwyane Wade, Paul Pierce, Allen Iverson, Damon Stoudamire, and Scottie Pippen in the record book. Kelly Dwyer said he should have sat this one out and, even though I’m a massive Arenas fan, I’m not going to offer a counter argument.

10:29 PM: BRAD MILLER IS THE NEW DEREK FISHER. HOLY HELL
10:33 PM: I’ve seen this replay 20 times and still don’t know if it should count or not.

I flipped to the OKC game because it looked like it was over when Billups was at the foul line with 0.6 on the clock. Something told me to check back on this one more time, though, and we were lucky enough to get there literally a second before the inbound pass. When Brad Miller’s desperation shot (1:40 here) went in, we all went apeshit. I’m surprised nobody got hurt. Then, there was 10 minutes of watching replays and debating over whether or not it was good. Julian and Wagman were certain it was late. I wasn’t sure. In retrospect, they were right.

11:09 PM: Numerous buzzer-beaters tonight. James Harden just hit a RIDICULOUS one to end the half. Yes, it counted.

12:41 AM: Blah. Not happy about that ending for my 2nd-favourite team (1:55 here). Thought that last shot had a chance.

Kevin Durant had 37 points on 23 shots, shooting 18-18 from the line. Wasn’t enough, though, against this powerhouse Sacramento team.

12:48 AM: Nice timing. As soon as the OKC game ended, Bill Simmons appeared on Jimmy Kimmel Live. Still on right now.

4:37 AM: Stayed up all this time editing a podcast. Have never done that before. Crap, have to leave for work in 4 hours

Wednesday, Nov. 11

11:51 AM: B. Jennings on NBA TV yesterday

2:37 PM: Never thought I’d see Nash referred to as “the Iggy Pop of the NBA”. Can’t really argue, I guess.

7:19 PM: Every time DeRozan scores I’m… uhhh… proud? Is that what it is? Have no idea why. Anyway, I like him.

Holly MacKenzie re-tweeted this one and said “Thanks for saying it for me.” Thing is, as someone who covers the Raptors, she has talked to DeMar in a pre-draft workout, at the draft, at the Vegas summer league, and at practice all the time. It makes sense for her to feel that way; she’s been there and seen him working hard. I, on the other hand, have never met the guy. I didn’t even see much of him in college. I don’t really know how he became “my guy”, but he is. There’s something about him that makes me watch him in the same way I imagine people watch their kids. If he makes a mistake on the court, the first thing that comes to my mind is always something like “noooo, I hope he doesn’t lose any confidence” instead of something like “get that rookie out of the game”. I root for him harder than anyone else on my hometown team. This has definitely has added to my enjoyment of the Raptors this season, but it’s a bit weird. I even added him as a friend on Facebook.

10:00 PM: Feel bad for New Jersey (1:52 here). Oh man. “They end this one with a whimper” – that is correct, Ian Eagle.

That had to hurt. So much. Without Harris, this is a team full of young guys trying to scrape together wins even when they’re overmatched. To come this close, and then have a turnover like that one? Gutting.

10:14 PM: Huge 3 from Jennings. He has 23 and 9. Then he drew the 5th foul on Nene while trying to get a rebound.
10:15 PM: ANOTHER 3! Jennings! I have no words.
10:25 PM: Normally I like the Nuggets but against this Bucks team they are pure evil to me. Go Jennings.
10:27 PM: Clutch ft’s, Brandon. Nice.

I’m not apologizing one bit for all this Jennings love (and this is nothing, wait till we get to Saturday). This rookie is a wonder. We haven’t seen a small, left-handed rookie point guard who can score from anywhere on the court, keep his teammates happy, and come through in the clutch like this since Damon Stoudamire won the Rookie of the Year in 1995-1996. He is like Damon on steroids. His drives are captivating, his shot is pure, and his swagger is immense. Defenses fear him. Try asking me when the Bucks are coming to Toronto and I’ll tell you “January 22” before you finish your sentence. It’s as if God created Brandon Jennings to thank me for being a basketball fan.

10:30 PM: Switched over to HOU game for a second and saw Carl Landry get a fucking vicious block on Rudy Gay. Along with it, a nice scream.

I couldn’t find a video of that particular block, but I found this one. Insane. Landry really embarrassed Rudy that night, just like Travis Outlaw did the night before. Rough week. Sorry, Rudy. One more thing: I’m not the least bit surprised that Landry is having so much success this season. In fact, I thought he’d be scoring more than this. He was quietly a very efficient scorer for the Rockets for the past couple of seasons and he possesses passion, energy and all the other good stuff that can’t be seen in his stellar PER. Love this guy. He’s on both of my fantasy teams.

10:35 PM: Read Shoals’s piece about being either extremely pro- or anti-Jennings. Um, yep. 1st time in my life I’ve considered buying a Bucks jersey.

I looked into this. The NBA Store shamefully doesn’t have pre-made Jennings jerseys on the Bucks’ page – you have to select a customized jersey and then find his name on the list, just like you would if you wanted a Francisco Elson jersey. Also, the Bucks’ official store is on the Bradley Center’s website, which is down. (Update: Home, Road, Alternate.)

10:48 PM: I generally can’t turn down a Thunder game but we’ve got Steve Nash and Chris Paul on the floor at the same time here, so… sorry OKC.

Sadly, this was my final tweet of the night. I thought that seeing two of the best point guards ever go at it would keep me going, despite getting less than four hours of sleep the night before. Nope. At some point, I apparently woke up enough to turn off the TV and fall right back to sleep.

Thursday, Nov. 12

7:13 AM: 75 1st-half pts for PHO? Clutchness from KD? F me for falling asleep. Ok with missing Westbrook’s injury live tho, wouldn’t handle that well

I woke up on the couch with the lights still on, a bit confused. Immediately checked highlights to see that Durant had taken out the Clippers without much help from the Thunder’s backcourt terror, including a game-winning jumper with 39 seconds left in the game (1:45 here). Westbrook shot 1-11 in less than 22 minutes and probably shouldn’t have even tried to come back after Marcus Camby landed on his ankle. The Portland/Phoenix game probably would have just depressed me, in retrospect. 75 points in a half sounds like fun, but I’m sick of seeing Chris Paul’s team get killed. Turned out to be Byron Scott’s final game as their coach.

7:29 AM: If you’re not a Will Bynum fan, you have no soul.

7:38 AM: “It felt good, it made me feel young again.” – DeRozan, 20 years old, on his dunk last night.

Aw… What a great kid! Shit, I’m doing it again. I’ll stop.

1:29 PM: Bryon Scott is gone. Not surprised in the least. Lil Buckets & Lil Dimes are free!

The first thing I thought about when I heard the news was that these two rooks would get to see more playing time. I was excited. No one knew who was replacing Byron at this point, though.

2:16 PM: Erm… Bower? I don’t know about this. I guess he’ll probably play the rookies he drafted, which is good. Worried about that team though.

I’m an idiot, I didn’t even notice the Tim Floyd thing initially.

2:30 PM: Sham nails it RT @ShamSports Byron Scott fired, Tim Floyd strangely hired.

I wasn’t going to include re-tweets in this thing, but he said it way better than I could.

2:47 PM: I actually get angry when I think about the Warriors. So much talent. Damn it.

Should I rant here? Do we need another rant about this organization? I’m so far beyond sick of reading about the clusterfuck that is the Golden State Warriors, and I bet you are too. I just want this to end.

8:39 PM: Came on here to see the reactions to Wade’s dunk. Love seeing there are so many people who just freaked out like I did. Thanks, Twitter.

I never thought I’d fully get into this Twitter thing like I have. I’m not just spending so much time there because it’s how you get news now; I legitimately enjoy seeing people’s commentary during games and their responses to crazy plays like this. When you’re staying in to spend quality time with League Pass and your laptop, there’s something pretty cool about seeing a ton of other people doing the same thing and loving it.

9:44 PM: Shortly, there will be a picture of 9-year-old me wearing the purple ‘dino’ uniform on the internet. I’m not sure how I feel about this.

I must say, one of the highlights of my week was when Tas Melas tweeted about the picture. The thing was sent around my office, too. One of my co-workers made it his background image. I’m not seeing any real downside to posting it… yet.

9:52 PM: Barkley, you are killing me.

11:52 PM: The Machine = The ENFORCER!

2:46 AM: Bloody hell. Didn’t quite register how FAR Shannon Brown took off from, live. Bynum, Iggy, Wade, Brown. Couple of amazing nights for dunks.

2:55 AM: “I’m in the NBA and without ACL’s and with the Spurs. Doing my dream. I’m blessed. It’s amazing.”

Friday, Nov. 13

12:02 PM: What the FUCK is this about? CB had a hell of a summer and is 2nd in the league in PER. What more do you want from him?

Um, yeah. This didn’t please me. I just don’t understand what prompted it. Chris Bosh is by no means flawless, but how does he deserve this sort of treatment? Blaming Bosh of all people for Toronto’s lack of post-season success is ridiculous. It’s a team game. And why write this now? There are games to talk about. Reading this article, you would have no idea that almost nobody has been better than Toronto’s franchise guy so far in this young season.

4:35 PM: I need to write about OKC so I have an excuse to use this pic.

Andrew D. Bernstein / Getty Images

5:49 PM: Rockets cut Pops, and the Raptors have a roster spot. I’m sure there are people thinking what I’m thinking.

10:09 PM: Just saw Chris Paul being carried off the floor. Heart fucking sank. Damn it.
10:18 PM: Someone say Chris Paul is okay.

This looked awful. I couldn’t concentrate properly on any basketball being played for the next little while after I saw this (was watching the fantastic first half of the Lakers/Nuggets game at the time). I don’t even know how to put into words how devastated Hornets fans would have been if it turned out to be a season-threatening injury. Then, imagine what Paul himself was going through. Gah. Anyway, it turns out he’s sidelined 3-4 weeks, which isn’t good but isn’t as bad as it could have been. (Update: Now, the Hornets announced Paul is out “indefinitely”. Damn it. I want him back soon. Selfishly, I want him back before December 20, when his team makes its annual visit to Toronto. I was going to take my mom to that game for her birthday! Not going to bother, if there’s no CP3.)

1:31 AM: Um, WHAT? Raptors, Lawson, I didn’t see any of it. Can’t get home fast enough! Ahhh
1:50 AM: I just watched that Lawson dunk 5 times in a row. And I’m not done.

When I went out to watch my friend’s band play, the Lakers/Nuggets game was very competitive and the Raptors had cut a 22-point Clipper lead to 11. This was one of the countless times I’ve been thwarted by not being able to be in two places at once. As soon as the set was over, I checked NBA Game Time Lite and Twitter on my phone. The Raptors had won by 15, the Nuggets by 26, and everyone was losing their shit over one of my favourite rookies dunking over a 7-footer. You should have seen my face. I booked it home, reveled in Lawson’s awesomeness, and watched the Raptors Game In An Hour on Raptors NBA TV.

Saturday, Nov. 14

11:54 AM: Hot damn. I’ve watched a lot of basketball, and DeAndre Jordan’s wide-left attempt last night was one of the worst FT’s I’ve ever seen.

That wasn’t the only great video to come out of this game. Check out Kevin Arnovitz’s work for ClipperBlog. Along with Rob Mahoney at The Two Man Game, online basketball analysis is going to the next level with the use of video.

4:30 PM: About to post another book review. This time, no pics of me as a kid. Just fawning over what’s one of my favourite books ever.

7:12 PM: I’m totally ready for Will Bynum vs. Earl Boykins.

Wagman gets on my case sometimes, saying “you love any little guy who shoots a lot”. I maintain that, while I definitely do like me some small point guards with swagger, he’s simplifying things. For example, I am not a big fan of Bobby Brown or Jannero Pargo. So there.

7:34 PM: Okay, I know AI’s made some mistakes here, but… The Grizz would prefer TINSLEY? Argh. Sigh.

Nothing personal against Tinsley here. When he was in shape, the guy was one of the best distributors in the game. The Grizzlies could definitely use a player like that. It’s just that this whole Iverson scenario pisses me off. It’s inconceivable to me that he signed there without even discussing what his role would be on the team. Bitching to the media won’t solve anything, obviously, but it should have never reached that point. Iverson wasn’t much good in Detroit, but it would be very sad if he went out like this. I still hope that another team gives him a chance to prove he can still play, and that, if given that chance, Iverson makes a concerted effort to fit in, share the ball, and pick his spots. Ron Artest has done this remarkably well in L.A. up to this point, so I guess what I’m saying is… A.I., be more like Artest! Good god.

7:51: Oooooh, Boykins almost converted a 3 while getting fouled. I’ve missed this guy.
7:53: Boykins has 11 points already.

This was crazy. After being out of the NBA since the end of the 2007-2008 season, Earl Boykins hit 5 of his first 6 field goals and energized his new team. Exciting stuff.

9:51: Q-RICH!!!!!! WHAT?!!?!?!?
9:55: Yes Brook!!!
9:56: Noooooooo NJ! Ahhhhhh

At this point, my buddy Justin had come over. He wanted to watch Spurs/Thunder, but I insisted that he had to see Brandon Jennings play (but I hadn’t the slightest fucking clue what we were in for), so we had it mostly on Bucks/Warriors despite him saying they were “bad teams”. Thanks to Twitter, I saw that the Utah/Cleveland and Miami/New Jersey games were going down to the wire. Managed to flip to MIA/NJ in time to see Quentin Richardson bank in a ridiculous three to tie it, Brook Lopez hit a layup to take back the lead, and Dwyane Wade hit an incredible three to crush the Nets’ hopes of finally winning a game. Exciting as hell, but I felt terrible for Jersey – this was probably even tougher than the loss to Philadelphia.

10:06 PM: There is literally no one I like watching more than Brandon Jennings these days
10:09 PM: They’re chanting “Bran-don Jen-nings” in Milwaukee.
10:10 PM: I am freaking out. This is unreal. Brandon Jennings.
10:17 PM: This kid is not human. I don’t even understand this.
10:17 PM: THIS IS WHY I WATCH BASKETBALL
10:19 PM: I feel like I’m high right now.
10:20 PM: This is too much. This is like an advertisement for the sport.
10:34 PM: I am barely paying attention when the Warriors have the ball. Just waiting for Jennings to get it back.
10:50 PM: I keep getting chills.
10:50 PM: When Jennings scores, I feel like I am scoring.
10:53 PM: HAPPY HAPPY HAPPY HAPPY HAPPY HAPPY HAPPY HAPPY HAPPY HAPPY HAPPY HAPPY HAPPY HAPPY HAPPY HAPPY HAPPY HAPPY HAPPY HAPPY HAPPY HAPPY HAPPY!!!
10:59 PM: Jennings with the rebound. Fitting.
10:59 PM: BRANDON JENNINGS DID NOT SCORE IN THE 1ST QUARTER
11:05 PM: I am completely spent
11:07 PM: How the fuck did I gain followers tonight? All I’ve done is ramble like a crazy person.
11:14 PM: Fuck you Canada, we have Euroleague right now. Okay, I’m outta here. RT @johnschuhmann Brandon Jennings interview on NBA TV now.

To anyone who saw this live, you understand. If you didn’t, well… I’m not sure I can do it justice with words, but I’ll give it a shot. This was a special performance from an extraordinarily talented player. In the third quarter, everything Jennings did worked. Threes, pull-up jumpers, floaters, layups, they all went in. In the fourth, he wouldn’t let his team lose. The Warriors made a comeback, but every time they needed a basket, Brandon would get one. He even got a key rebound. As he was dominating the game, it never even felt like he was forcing things – he was just on another level. My mind was racing, thinking about what, if anything at all, was going through his head; thinking about what it must be like to be in that arena; and thinking about all the other die-hards lucky enough to have chosen to spend their Saturday night this way, hoping to see something even one-tenth this amazing. Justin and I were screaming, jumping, and high-fiving. I frantically called a few friends to tell them what was going on. I told the guy who has Jennings in our fantasy pool that I’d trade a kidney for him. All this, and I wouldn’t even say I got carried away. This display of excellence deserved extreme reactions. Some descriptors that come to mind: thrilling, awe-inspiring, and emotional. We went out to a bar afterward and it was showing a UFC event. I struggled to talk about anything besides the game and I kept wishing all of the TV’s would suddenly ditch the brawling dudes and play a replay of The Brandon Jennings Show. This game wasn’t only great; for someone like me who recently decided to give this NBA blogging thing a serious try, it was life-affirming.

Sunday, Nov. 15

6:01 PM: Beaubois! Bynum! Pistons vs. Mavericks, I’m up for this.
6:23 PM: Has there ever been a better point guard draft than this one? Jennings, Lawson, Flynn, Beaubois, Maynor, Collison have been very impressive.
6:23 PM: That’s not even mentioning Rubio. Or Evans/Curry/Douglas ’cause they’re combo guards. I think Teague can be a player, too. Damn.

In a liveblog on The Score the other night, we were talking about the rooks and I said this was pretty much a perfect class for me. Tons of really good point guards and pretty much everyone feeling like an underdog after it was declared a “weak” draft class – I can’t ask for more. Beaubois went off against the Pistons, by the way, finishing with 14 points and 4 assists without missing a single shot in 19 minutes of action. At one point, Jason Terry subbed in for him and the announcers talked about how the Pistons were catching a break.

8:43 PM: This is exactly Marco Belinelli’s type of game

You put Phoenix and Toronto on the court and you can expect to see a hell of a lot of fast breaks and ball movement. Belinelli thrives in these freewheeling games, as he can easily find open looks for himself and use his court vision to make plays for others. Now’s a good time to admit that I wasn’t too fond of his acquisition, initially – I thought his turnover rate and his penchant for taking, um, questionable shots made him basically an average offensive player. With his defense looking poor on a Golden State team that basically ignored that end of the floor, I questioned how well his game translated to the NBA. After watching his first 10 games as a Raptor, though, I have become a fan. He has provided a spark off the bench, scoring at a very efficient rate and keeping defenses on their toes with his aggressiveness. The “bad” shots are still there, but he’s actually making a lot of them. His turnovers have dropped a bit, too, and the defense? Not great, but not THAT bad. I can admit when I was wrong.

9:08 PM: Durant has 38. Lawler just said “he should never pass the ball.” Still over 8 minutes left.
9:25 PM: I feel like a bad Raptors fan. Can’t ignore the end of this OKC game.
9:33 PM: Durant is probably thinking about having another slap fight. Damn it, game over.

I don’t feel like that bad of a Raps fan at this point, since I watched the stuff I missed a few hours later. I love Raptors TV. You know what I’d love more, though? If the Canadian version of League Pass aired game replays. Anyway, onto that Thunder/Clippers game – there was 8:43 left and the score was tied when Durant hit for 38. He then missed a three-pointer on their next possession and didn’t shoot again until he made a jump shot with 4:25 left to bring his team within 1. Somehow, that was basically the end of Durant’s contribution. The remainder of the game saw Russell Westbrook and Jeff Green committing turnovers and missing shots, with Durant’s final shot being a meaningless missed 3 when down by 8 with 17 seconds left in the game. I know this team is young, but there’s no excuse for this. Durant is one of the best offensive players in the game and he was unstoppable to the tune of 40 points on this night. Scott Brooks (who drew up a great play to get Jeff Green an open corner 3 late in the game, only to see him miss it), Westbrook, and Durant himself all have to be held accountable for the fact that he vanished at the end of this one. Very frustrating.

10:01 PM: “Amir Johnson has been spectacular tonight.” – @RaptorsDevlin. Yup. Love it love it love it.
10:04 PM: Haha, I see there’s a stretch of 4 almost-consecutive Amir Johnson tweets on my feed. This makes me happy.

I’m a big Amir Johnson fan. In fact, I think I’m the second-biggest Amir Johnson fan in this city. He is a beast on the boards, a quality defensive player when he’s not fouling people, and an energy guy. Seeing him get a season high in minutes played and finish the game with only 3 fouls put a big smile on my face. There’s not much that’s sweeter than seeing young players starting to realize their potential.

10:16 PM: Ballsy shot by Turk. Ballsy.
10:18 PM: Swirsky would be screaming about onions right now. Oh man. TURK!
10:21 PM: I was 100% sure that Turk shot was going in. Then I was 100% sure that Nash one was going in. Ahhhhhhhhhh.
10:23 PM: Crushing. Great game, but crushing.

The end of this 1-point defeat was tough to swallow. Toronto’s big free-agent acquisition, playing despite a banged up hip, hit HUGE back-to-back jumpers in crunch time. The next sequence: Nash getting an and-1 on a layup (to put the Suns up 1), Turkoglu and Nash each just missing the kind of shots you expect these guys to make at the end of games, and then, with the game on the line, Turkoglu missing a step-back after a rare ball-handling hiccup while matched up with Channing Frye. The Raptors haven’t won against Phoenix since Nash signed with them in 2004. So close.

11:02 PM: OMG I just saw the Ariza/Artest shoe thing.

11:11 PM: Aaron Brooks loves playing the Lakers.

The speedy little point guard abused L.A. again, scoring 33 points on 23 shots while grabbing 6 rebounds (!) and dishing out 4 assists in a Rockets victory. We know Derek Fisher has lost a few steps defensively, but you still have to be impressed by Brooks. He raises his game when he plays the champs.

11:36 PM: Really appreciate how the Rockets have played this season.

The last game of the week, and it’s damn appropriate. Here’s a team that hasn’t seen a minute from its two stars making close to $40 million this season. Their record is 4-3 and they have beaten the Lakers once and lost to them by just 1 another time. Show their roster to a casual fan and they will not get excited – Brooks, Landry, Trevor Ariza (who the Lakers honoured with a very classy championship ring presentation and tribute), Shane Battier, Luis Scola, and Chuck Hayes won’t get a lot of votes for the All-Star Game this season. But all of them, along with Kyle Lowry, David Andersen, and Chase Budinger, have been a joy to watch this season. They play hard, they play together, and they don’t get blown out (with one exception). On paper, they don’t look like they have the personnel to be a good offensive team, but Rick Adelman has them playing above-average offensive basketball thus far. The defense? Even without Yao, they can play D. Chuck Hayes is nothing short of brilliant on that end of the floor and you don’t need me to tell you about Shane Battier. When you watch League Pass all the time, you inevitably have some teams that draw you in more than others. For me, if the Rockets are playing, I’m probably watching. Unless Brandon Jennings is on another channel, that is.

The Denver Nuggets were my guilty pleasure last year. My fling. Even in the game which cost Sam Mitchell his job as coach of the Raptors, I couldn’t be mad at them. Why? Well, there are a few reasons.

1: They call him Melo

Back in the old days, you know, 2003, there was a draft in the NBA that was kind of a big deal. I dunno if any of you remember it but it was quite good. Anyway, I was the idiot who said that if the Raptors got the first pick, we should take Carmelo. Okay, so I overrated him juuust a bit. But honestly, if it had shaken out that way, it wouldn’t have been too bad. I mean, he’s averaged 24.2 points per game so far in his career. What’s that, you’re saying it’s because he was jacking shots, taking bad looks, being selfish? Au contraire mon ami. This isn’t an Antoine Walker story. Just look at his advanced stats: from 2006-2008, he had a TS% above 55% (yes, he slipped a bit last year, to 53%, but I’m sure he’ll rebound). He is capable of getting to the foul line, too, and he is an extremely underrated clutch performer. Essentially, when he’s on the court, your offense is way better. You put the ball in his hands, he’ll score. That’s his role, that’s what he does. And he’s VERY good at it. He can shoot from the perimeter, he can take his man one-on-one, he can post up – this man is a threat from everywhere on the court. Yes, LeBron James Is obviously better, as he is a unique beast that we have never seen before. Carmelo isn’t asked to facilitate his team’s offense, though – he’s a traditional scoring 3, the likes of which we’ve seen before from guys like Jamal Mashburn (who was never as efficient a scorer as Carmelo). If you ask me, there’s nothing wrong with being fantastic in a traditional way. In addition, Melo brings a good attitude; generally he’s a hard worker, he doesn’t complain (even when on some seriously dysfunctional teams), and he wants to win. That’s an underrated aspect of any star’s makeup. Some players would like to win and hope they do, but are more concerned with being able to continue to make max money and be able to get big endorsements. Winning is seen as a nice bonus. Carmelo wants to win. I see in Carmelo that same drive, that will to win that’s helped make Kobe great.

2: Mr Big Shot?

I love Chauncey Billups. There, I said it. I drafted him in the 3rd round of my Fantasy Draft last year and was obviously thrilled with his trade to the Nuggets. From a basketball standpoint, I was excited to see him play with some REALLY good ballers on a team that could be one of the best in the West. From a selfish standpoint, I was excited because I thought his fantasy value had doubled or tripled. That didn’t really happen, but I was happy with having another excuse to watch the Nuggets as often as I could. As much as I love Chauncey, though, I’m not a big fan of the name ‘Mr. Big Shot’. He isn’t Robert Horry and that’s not what he brings to the table or what makes him great. What Billups brings is leadership. He brings court vision and a sixth sense for ball-distribution. He is a true field general, a leader amongst men. Rather than spout poetic about him, I’ll simply direct you to an outstanding Outside The Lines piece on the man. Read that, then tell me you don’t want to watch him play with Carmelo Anthony and the rest of the team. Speaking of which….

3: The rest of the team

This is one of the most dangerous rosters in the NBA. Now, for the sake of this article, I’m going to take all my Man Crushes and put them in the next paragraph, so if I left someone out here, that’s why. In related news, if you don’t want to read why I love Joey Graham you may want to skip number 4. But I’m getting ahead of myself, one section at a time. Let me give you some names: Kenyon Martin. Nene. J.R. Smith. Ty Lawson. Renaldo Balkman. In fact, let’s do some math here. Add those names with Carmelo Anthony and Chauncey Billups. Multiply by the x (REALLY pushing the Lakers last year, adding to their already ever-present swagger). The result? Well, we don’t know that yet. But there aren’t a lot of If Statements for these Nuggets. Basically, the If Statement is Nene’s knee. If it holds up, the sky is the limit for these guys. They don’t have the same depth after losing Kleiza (a huge spark off the bench), but replacing Dahntay Jones with Arron Afflalo (and his much more reasonable contract) is one of the most underrated moves of the summer. Jones could defend, yes, but Afflalo isn’t bad on that end either and he is a superior offensive player. They got a steal in the draft, too, with Ty Lawson falling into their laps at #18. Other than that, this is basically the same team that came quite close to the NBA finals last year. Nothing to sneeze at. Now it’s time to put out the warning for graphic content.

4: The Man Crushes

(warning: may contain images not suitable for minors. If blatant man crushes bother you, please skip to the conclusion)

Outside of Melo and Billups? Where do I even start with this club? Well, there’s the Birdman. James and I told anyone who would listen that Bryan Colangelo needed to sign Chris Andersen when he came back from his drug suspension. Sure, Denver overpaid for him, but let’s look at this glass half-full: he took a few years off basketball mid-career, so he doesn’t have the same wear and tear on his body that most players his age do (although I guess most NBA players don’t have a few years of hard drug use under their belts). Anyway, since he has a new lease on life, my hunch is he won’t take much for granted in the future. It’s within the realm of possibility that he keeps his act up for the next few years. Anyway, fine, MAYBE he won’t be worth his contract for the last couple of years of it, but that’s beside the point. Like I mentioned in my Golden State article (link), you can like a player but not the contract. In this case, I don’t just LIKE the player – I LOVE the Birdman. This guy is an athletic freak, his work ethic is beyond reproach, and he loves doing the dirty work. He is a shot-blocking version of “Junk Yard Dog” Jerome Williams (to this day, the only Raptors jersey I wear). I just can’t say enough about this guy. If I could be any NBA player for a day (assuming LeBron and Dwight were on vacation), I’d be him. In fact, he’s so inspiring to me that I snorted an 8-ball while writing this.

Joey Graham: Most Raptors fans had a love/hate relationship with Joey. Not me. I will argue to the death that Sam Mitchell’s incessant hook did more damage to Joey’s career than any of us will ever know. It’s not easy to develop confidence when your boss threatens to fire you after every mistake. Once he was shown some faith, he played well. I challenge any Joey detractor to watch the game against the Lakers in February. The Raptors didn’t have Jose Calderon. Bosh left hurt midway through the game. Pau Gasol had a MONSTER game, and the Raptors almost won. How? Joey. He scored, rebounded, ran the floor, and did an UNREAL job defending Kobe. Sure, Kobe ended up with 36 points, but he needed 38 minutes to get it and he shot 13 of 28 in the process. He’s Kobe, he can do that against great defense. There’s a good reason the last minute of the game the entire Air Canada Centre was on its feet, chanting, “Joey, Joey, Joey”. The effort he gave guarding Kobe one-on-one was something to marvel at. And to have the energy to carry the load offensively was something Raptors fans haven’t seen often. You can claim that I’m cherry-picking Joey’s best game, which is true, but my gut opinion on Joey is that we would have seen many more of these games if the coaching staff had shown confidence in him earlier. Trust me when I tell you this: if Denver shows some faith in him, they will be VERY pleasantly surprised.

Arron Afflalo. I don’t have nearly as much to say about Afflalo. This one is simple: I watched him in college and was smitten. His vision, his shooting stroke, his motor, it’s all good. He was lost in the shuffle in Detroit, especially when they were trying to work out the Iverson/Hamilton thing, but he’s got the skills to play a much bigger role in the NBA. Nuggets fans will see what I mean this year if they didn’t get a chance to watch him at UCLA. As I said earlier, he is a more than capable replacement for Dahntay Jones – in fact, he is better. Massive coup for Denver, getting such a capable two-guard for basically nothing. Daryl Morey-esque.

Then there’s JR Smith. Just watch this.

/dick-sucking and man-whoring, back to basketball.

Is Denver the best team in the western conference? No. Until proven otherwise, the Lakers are the best. But this year I do think they took a step back (Ariza for Artest, plus a psychological thing involving Gasol and Bynum that I’ll get into another time, plus the extra year of age on Kobe and the potential mellowing after achieving his goals), meanwhile Denver has at worst stayed the same as they were last year. In fact, top to bottom I don’t see too many top-tier clubs from the West having improved, Portland notwithstanding. Am I saying they’ll win the Western Conference? Not yet, but it IS possible, and I’ll be cheering for it. My hunch is another loss to the Lakers in the Conference Finals. What I am saying, though, is that this is one of the most enjoyable teams to watch I’ve ever seen, with some of my favourite players on it as a bonus. They’re in a city that’s hard to be down on, plus they’re the underdog. Somehow, they’re underrated as hell, which is remarkable considering they finished 2nd in the West last year in both the regular and post-season. If you’re looking for a 2nd team to support after your own, consider this my pitch for the Nuggets. Portland’s got lots of talent, and I love Roy and Aldridge (both part of my fantasy team so suck on THAT, James), but they just don’t play the same brand of entertaining ball (fun fact: Portland was the slowest team in the L last season). In my G-State column I spoke about charisma – this Nuggets team has charisma. They also have a leader, confidence and more than just raw talent, they have REAL ballers. Don’t sleep on these guys. I will personally guarantee you’ll be satisfied. That’s right, the Nuggets perform or your money back! With that kind of offer, how can you NOT at least give them a chance?