I took a break from daily recaps last week, but trust me when I tell you I didn’t take a break from watching ball or reading about it. There’s no way I can let a week of action go by without sharing my thoughts, so here’s a mammoth recap. I’ve done this before, using Twitter updates and YouTube videos to guide me. This time, I went through my Delicious bookmarks and picked out a bunch of my favourite links from the week. Took forever, but it’s fun to share the work of some of my favourite writers.

Monday, Dec. 14

“Bucks Fans Respond to Bogut’s Incentive” – Fred Birman takes a look at Squad 6 for the NYT’s Off the Dribble blog.

I’ve linked to an article on Squad 6 before, but you may have missed that and this is a great piece. If you didn’t know, Squad 6 is “a wild cluster of standing, chanting and screaming fans decked out in wigs, sombreros and even a man brandishing a wrestling-style championship belt.” Bucks center Andrew Bogut held auditions for people to be a part of it, and all members go to the games for free. The important thing: you have to stand up the whole game and make noise, or you’re not allowed back. This kicks so much ass.

“Sometimes the truth hurts…” – Matt McHale of By The Horns takes an honest look at his team.

This is a bit of a depressing read, but it shows exactly how Bulls fans had to feel after their team’s performance against the Boston Celtics. It’s hard to follow a team that doesn’t play up to its potential on defense and runs one of the ugliest offenses in the league. These Bulls are not fun to watch, leading to fan frustration that is intensified by the fact that it’s hard to trust the team’s management. One reason that fans don’t trust the management is because of the whole Ben Gordon situation. After messing with their highest-scoring, hardest-working player’s role and minutes for years, they screwed him around in contract negotiations and eventually let him walk for nothing at the end of his rookie deal. Anyway, as McHale covers here, the Bulls really miss Ben Gordon. They had hoped that John Salmons would make up for his absence, but he’s apparently forgotten how to shoot the basketball (38.5 FG%, 32.7 3PT). So has Kirk Hinrich (35.5% FG, 29.6% 3PT). Without Gordon, the Bulls can’t spread the floor properly. The result, so far, has been a team that takes and misses a lot of long, two-point jumpers. Not fun.

“Rose and Vinny on Rose’s role” – Matt of Blog-a-Bull comments on a couple of pieces about Chicago’s young PG.

In addition to fretting over the generally ugly basketball their team has been playing, Bulls fans have been worried about their potential franchise player, Derrick Rose. There’s no sense skirting around the issue: he’s been disappointing this season. At first, his unspectacular play could be blamed on the fact he was coming back from an injury, but it has persisted. The problem is that the flaws we saw last season – poor man and team defense, poor outside shooting, and an only decent ability to create for his teammates – are still there, and his breathtaking drives to the basket are less frequent. Not many Bulls fans are jumping off the bandwagon completely, but few are as excited as they were last season. If you ask me, he’s still got a chance to be one of the very best players in the league. He’s got elite quickness and scoring ability and he’s only 21 years old. I think he’ll get better the year goes on, and, even if he doesn’t, we will see improvements next season. It’s important that he works on his weaknesses in the summer, though. And part of that responsibility is on the franchise that’s paying him – the Bulls have to make sure he is working on the right things so he can develop into the player they want him to be. A coaching change might be a start, here.

“NBA ‘Watchability’ Scale: Ranking Every Team Based On Entertainment, Not Talent” – Mike Prada of Bullets Forever tells us which teams he’s watching on League Pass.

If you somehow missed this last week, you’ll notice immediately that those Bulls I’ve been talking about are right at the bottom, heh. Anyway, as a League Pass addict I loved reading this and agree with the vast majority of what is said here. The Bucks are WAY TOO LOW at #11, though – I’d have Jennings and Co. in a three-way tie with the Rockets and Thunder, right at the top of the list.

“The Day T-Mac Lost The City Of Houston” – Clutch goes over a couple of clips from a Rockets/Raptors game last year that non-Rockets fans might have never seen.

Okay, this is a bit random… but I remember this game well. Not for McGrady’s loafing, although I do remember talking about that. I remember this because I watched this one at Raptors Fan Friday and, surprisingly, it was a blowout in the Raptors’ favour. Once the game was out of hand, Von Wafer had his coming out party, starting a streak of 12-straight double-digit scoring games after a string of DNP-CD’s. I ran into the great J.E. Skeets on the street later that night and we conversed about all things NBA. I drunkenly harassed him about why he hates Mike Bibby so much, but didn’t get a concrete answer. I’m pretty sure I made some absurd claims about how awesome I was at basketball as a 9-year-old living in Australia, too. Good night.

“Who is the MVP at the Quarter Pole?” – Zach Lowe at Celtics Hub says, based on numbers, you could make the case that Rajon Rondo is Boston’s MVP.

“Rondo giving it his best shot” – Gary Washburn takes a look at Rondo and his improving jump shot.

This is just the start of the Rondo love from last week. It’s great, isn’t it? Fine, I know, I know. Most people don’t like Rajon as much as I do. Just let me have this: Rondo is improving on his weaknesses and is possibly, POSSIBLY the key to the Celtics’ hot start.

“Mavericks Coach Rick Carlisle Can Probably Beat You At Table Tennis” – Zac Crain shares a video from Dynamic Table Tennis TV.

Maybe it’s just me, but I found this incredibly amusing. I love finding out that NBA people have strange hobbies. This almost beats finding out that Todd MacCulloch has become a professional pinball player. I also love that this isn’t the last weird Carlisle link I have for you this week. Just wait.

“Haslem Accepts New Role, Still Wants To Stay With Heat” – Tim Povtak of NBA FanHouse takes a look at the classy, consistent power forward.

A few telling quotes from and about Udonis in this piece. It’s actually from December 13, so I’m cheating a bit. I think it flew a bit under the radar, though, and you should read it. People don’t talk much about Haslem because his game lacks the, um, flash of some of his teammates, but he is a solid, dependable pro that all 29 other teams would love to have.

“With Blazers Struggling At The Point, Bayless Wants More Minutes” – The Baseline shares a quote from a frustrated second-year player.

There’s really not much to analyze here. Jerryd Bayless wanted more playing time when this was published. Just know that I’m smiling while I type this. If you don’t know why, you absolutely must keep on reading.

“Post-game thoughts: Raptors 101, Rockets 88” – Scott Carefoot of RaptorBlog takes a look at the Raptors’ point guard situation after this Sunday afternoon win.

Carefoot starts this piece by saying there should be no debate about whether or not Jarrett Jack should start at PG for the Raptors. In his view, Jack should start and the Raptors should be looking to trade Jose Calderon. Well, um, I think there is still a debate and I have to disagree with him. I love Jarrett Jack, but he can’t do what Jose Calderon does. Even against good defense, Jose does a tremendous job of running the offense and finding guys shots where they are comfortable. Two years ago, the man should have been an All-Star with the way he was shooting from all areas of the court, distributing the ball, and playing decent defense. Last season? Different story. Jose was hurt all year and couldn’t play D. This season? Well, that’s where things get complicated. His defense has remained pretty awful, although in my opinion he is still easily a net positive because of his offensive play. But it’s led some people, like Carefoot, to reasonably argue that Jack is better for the squad. He’s playing pretty damn well right now as Jose is sitting out with a hip problem. Calderon’s current status is making me question whether or not he was ever healthy this season. The key question here is whether or not we’ll ever again see the guy who should have been an All-Star two years ago. That guy wasn’t close to being the worst defensive PG in the NBA. Jarrett Jack is not nearly as good as that guy. I hope we get him back and this debate ends.

“Wizards’ Arenas missing the mark mentally” – Mike Jones of the Washington Times examines the strange clutch mistakes Gilbert Arenas has been making.

Reading quotes from frustrated players always bums me out. It’s especially upsetting when it comes to Gil, though. The guy was/is known for his immense swagger. Agent Zero isn’t meant to be missing free throws at inopportune times. He isn’t meant to doubt himself. But he’s human, so this stuff is happening. It’s all a part of the comeback process, I guess. More on him later. For now, a few videos before we move on to Tuesday’s stuff:

Rob Mahoney of The Two Man Game breaks down Josh Howard’s performance in his return to the court. This is a part of his fantastic Moving Pictures series – watch the others if you haven’t already.

Rockets players meet the Aaron Brooks bobblehead.

Happy Holidays from the Phoenix Suns

Tuesday, Dec. 15

“Carlisle On Mavs: ‘We Make Hard Work Out Of Sex’” – Um, the story is in the title.

Remember I said I had another weird Carlisle link for you? Well, yeah, this is it. If there’s a better (or funnier) way for a coach to express that his team is making things unnecessarily difficult, I haven’t heard it. Just brilliant.

“Chris Paul’s role: Superstar” – Henry Abbott examines what’s going on with Chris Paul and his Hornets, referencing some work done by Niall Doherty of Hornets247.

I feel a bit stupid linking to TrueHoop. Everyone reads TrueHoop. I’m not linking to the Simmons/Gladwell piece from this week, even though I enjoyed it. But then again, I think this Henry Abbott piece might have slipped by some people. It’s an interesting question – could Chris Paul possibly be hurting his team? Could the guy who dragged a team seriously lacking in talent to 49 wins last season be preventing his club from getting more wins now? The answer: um, maybe. Abbott’s intention is obviously not to diminish Paul’s brilliance, but rather to ask if his talents are currently being used properly. Here’s my take: Paul isn’t 100% and he is playing far too many minutes. You’ve no right to be mad at CP3, but if you’re mad at coach Jeff Bower for having him out there for so long, trying to do everything, that’s fine with me.

“The Knicks On Defense: Quarter Season Report” – Bandwagon Knick looks at the Knicks’ D using data from Synergy Sports.

I absolutely love reading pieces like this one. I’m definitely a stat geek and I think this kind of highly specific data helps us understand the game better. If you haven’t caught many Knicks games this season (and I wouldn’t blame you if that was the case), you’ll learn a lot. I’m especially appreciative that this post is focusing on DEFENSE, as that side of the game is so damn hard to quantify. I wish this info was available for every team in the league… well, actually it is, but it’s not cheap.

“So many deck chairs, so little time- 2009-2010 Golden State Warriors season through 24 games” – Jae from Golden State of Mind provides a harsh but fair critique of the Warriors’ start to the season.

I can’t say I actually enjoyed reading this, even though it’s excellent. Nellie’s Warriors have long been one of my favourite teams to watch, but this season they mostly frustrate me. I love Curry, Ellis, Randolph, and Morrow, but I don’t love the sloppy basketball they’re playing. Jae tells fans to let go of their playoff hopes if they still have them and can’t find a single bright spot in the season aside from Stephen Curry, kinda. Damn.

“GM 24 Recap – Snapped” – Philadunkia examines how the Sixers finally ended their losing with with a win over Golden State.

“Game Notes: Warriors at Sixers” – Tzvi Twersky of SLAM gives an account of his experience at the game.

Oh, this was a fun game for me. I’d been waiting for Philly to get a damn W. The best part was how A.I. played; here are a couple of quotes:

“What really impressed us is that he looked like he is finally getting his legs under him. He was quick, active and used his legs to go into his jumper instead of fading away. Getting his left knee drained twice may have helped and we’re sure having a couple days off did not hurt either.” – Philadunkia

“AI doesn’t seem upset that he’s not getting the ball too much (he’s playing off the ball, and goes plays at a time without touching it). He seems happy just to be playing meaningful minutes. Got to love that.” – Tzvi Twersky

There are a couple of things I don’t like, going back and reading these. Elton Brand only played 16 minutes off the bench in this one, even though he was effective. Oh, and Ivey’s knee problem has meant he’s only played one game since. Blah.

“The difference between admiration and awe” – The Roy Halladay trade inspired Scott Carefoot to think about Chris Bosh’s place in the hearts of Toronto fans.

The basic argument here is that, while Chris Bosh is certainly popular in Toronto, the fans don’t love him the same way they loved Roy Halladay or Vince Carter. If Bosh leaves town, they will be disappointed but not utterly devastated. Living in Toronto, this rings true to me. It’s unfortunate because you can make a very good case that Bosh is playing better basketball this year than VC ever has. The love we had for Vince here can hardly be overstated, though. We loved him like Philly loves Allen Iverson and Cleveland loves LeBron James. There was a time when he was the most exciting player in the world and we all took great pride in having him play in our city. With Bosh, it’s not quite the same and Carefoot captures that perfectly. As for Halladay? Wrong sport for me, sorry. But Wagman threw up on the street after finding out he was gone.

“Blair still a great unknown” – Jeff McDonald shares a couple of great quotes about rookie DeJuan Blair from Coach Popovich.

Rookie love, people. I dig it. The key Pop quote is here: “He’s a strange dude. Those things he does out there, I don’t know how he gets them done. I don’t know what his game is. I don’t know what to do with him.” This is hilarious to me. One of the best coaches in our game is saying even he doesn’t understand how Blair gets it done. The point is that Blair doesn’t really have any post moves, lacks height, lacks elite athleticism, but somehow manages to grab rebounds better than almost anyone in the league and score well around the basket. Pop doesn’t run any plays for Blair; he just throws the guy out there and hopes he delivers. The vast majority of the time, he does.

“Is Al Horford playing out of position or just creating a new one?” – Peachtree Hoops’s must-read on Al Horford’s improvement and where he fits with the future of the center position.

So good. The idea is that, even though Horford is a non-traditional center, he matches up favourably with almost every 5 in the league. With the way he’s producing and the wins the Hawks are piling up, it’s hard to argue this point. And all of this makes me happy. I was a bit worried about him when he didn’t make the second-year leap I expected him to. Turns out we just needed to wait a year.

“Sit down for this: NBA’s vital signs checking in just fine” – Ken Berger says that, despite attendance being down, there might be more NBA fans than you think.

Really interesting read. It sucks that so many arenas have so many empty seats, but at least people still seem to care about the league. It’s encouraging to know that TNT’s NBA ratings are up. The question becomes, then, how is the NBA going to make money off its new, young fans? Surely, a huge portion of the NBA’s 1.7 million Twitter followers are not coming to games. How many of these fans are shelling out the cash for League Pass Broadband? Can the NBA make up for the lost ticket revenue in other ways? I don’t know, I’m just asking questions here.

Wednesday, Dec. 16

“Recap: Cavs 99, Nets 89 (Or, That Was Just As Good As Any Other Regular Season Win! Technically Speaking!)” – John Krolik of Cavs: The Blog gives some insight into the Cavs/Nets game from the night before.

First, I have to say you should always Krolik’s stuff. Really, you should read all of the people I’m linking to here, but I’m mentioning Krolik in particular because I always feel like I’ve learned a lot when I read his stuff. I’ll admit that, despite LeBron’s awesomeness, the Cavs would not crack the top 10 in my watchability rankings. This means I miss more of their games than, say, Thunder games. I basically feel like I’ve watched the games after I read his detailed recaps, though. Anyway, the key thing that stands out here to me: Krolik appreciates Jamario Moon’s rebounding and believes that this skill would be key in small-ball lineups that feature LeBron James at the 4. He also implies that Mike Brown should, you know, actually play LeBron at the 4. I’m 100% with him on this. I loved the Jamario signing at the time (and the Parker one, too) mainly because it would allow James to get more minutes as a PF, where he is even more of a matchup nightmare than at the 3. I’m really hoping coach Brown experiments with this more as the season goes along. Even if he doesn’t, I still say the Cavs had a pretty damn good off-season. Moon and Anthony Parker may not have been loved much in some sectors of Raptors Nation when they were starters last season, but they’re more than capable role players in Cleveland. And as for Shaq, well… It hasn’t worked out that great so far, but methinks the move will pay dividends in the playoffs if/when they match up with Orlando. And you can’t forget that all they gave up for him was Ben Wallace and Sasha Pavlovic.

“Phoenix Suns Remain Undefeated at Home with Win over Spurs” – Phoenix Stan happily reflects on a big Suns win at Bright Side Of The Sun.

This was one of the most memorable games of the week, if only for Goran Dragic’s performance. His 18 points were a career-high and he played great D, too. This man has made such great strides this season. It’s been said elsewhere, but I’ve gotta say that he’s impressed the hell out of me all year long. Watching him last season, I just couldn’t see him becoming a real rotation player. I love it when I have to eat my words about things like that.

“Thoughts on Pistons – Rockets: McGrady’s Debut” – Rahat Huq puts Tracy McGrady under the microscope.

Gotta show some love for the newest member of the TrueHoop Network, Red94. I hadn’t read any of Rahat’s work until the TrueHoop debut, but have devoured everything he’s written since then. Great stuff. Anyway, if you missed it, this is really all you need to know about T-Mac’s first game back. Love the little note on rookie Chase Budinger at the end, too.

“Media Row Report: Blazers 95 Kings 88” – Ben Golliver at Blazers Edge

“Blazers Mount Comeback, Edge Kings 95-88” – Tom Ziller at Sactown Royalty

“Game 23 Recap: Blazers 95, Kings 88” – Zach Harper at Cowbell Kingdom

All three of these writers are fantastic. The fact that I just happily re-read three different recaps of a game I watched should speak to that. Anyway, check these posts out and see the love for Jerryd Bayless and Tyreke Evans. Also, I’d be lying if I said I didn’t enjoy the negative comments about Spencer Hawes just a little bit. I don’t hate much on here, but I have to say Hawes is one of my least favourite players to watch. He’s got nice touch on his shot, but he doesn’t play like a big man. He doesn’t have much athleticism, doesn’t grab many rebounds, and doesn’t play good defense inside. These are some of the same criticisms that have been fairly levied on Raptors big man Andrea Bargnani, but there’s a difference: Bargs has, albeit slowly, improved on his weaknesses each season. Plus, he occasionally does phenomenal things offensively that make me momentarily forget he has any weaknesses at all. Can’t say the same about Spencer.

“Post Up: Return of T-Mac” – Holly MacKenzie.

“Behind the Box Score, where the Spurs can’t guard anyone” – Kelly Dwyer.

“Lion Face/Lemon Face 12.16.09: Shaqzunas O’Nealkaus Edition” – Zach Harper.

Honestly, if you’re not reading the Post Up, Behind the Box Score, and Lion Face/Lemon Face every morning, I don’t particularly want you reading me. I look forward to these every day and could link them all over this post, but that would be a bit redundant so I’m just doing to do ‘em all here. You’ll notice some props given to Michael Beasley for his performance against Toronto in all three, and his quote featured in both Holly and Kelly’s pieces is my second-favourite from last week. It would seem that Dwyer is with me on Chase Budinger and Harper is with me on Spencer Hawes. Finally, um, I have to quote this bit of Lion Face/Lemon Face:

Seriously Toronto defense, go kill yourself. You’re putting all of these nice, fine Canadians into some jigsaw, Saw type of torture machine every time you hike up the shorts, sit down in a defensive stance and then allow a ton of points on a lot of easy shot attempts. Please check yourself and quick wrecking this Canadian pride.

“Back-to-Back Preview: Bulls and Bucks” – Dexter Fishmore of Silver Screen and Roll looks ahead to two games that (spoiler alert) the Lakers end up winning.

Including this because Fishmore totally eviscerates the Bulls in a way that not even Bulls bloggers have done thus far this season. Also, if you don’t love Andrew Bogut already (and you should because you know about Squad 6), you will after you watch the video of him high-fiving the air after a made free throw.

“Appreciating Charlie Villanueva: Perfect in the Post?” – Mike Payne of Detroit Bad Boys takes a close look at Charlie Villanueva’s success in the post.

I knew Charlie V. was scoring pretty well this year, but damn. He’s this unstoppable down low? I had no idea. This is an awesome use of specialized stats and it’s very encouraging for those who are worried about Detroit spending all their cap space on “two bench players” this past summer.

“Rondo’s Latest Trick: Consistency” – Jeff Clark of CelticsBlog argues that Rajon Rondo’s consistency this season means he should make the All-Star Team.

That’s right, another Rondo piece. You don’t have to read it if you don’t want to, but I loved it. I’m telling you (and so is Jeff), this guy has been a monster. The hate is irrelevant. He’s playing out of his mind and there’s no doubt in my mind that he deserves an All-Star nod.

“Nowitzki relishes role in crunch time” – Tim McMahon of ESPN Dallas uses statistical and anecdotal evidence to prove Dirk is as clutch as they come.

I fear Dirk in the clutch. He’s come up big at the end of games numerous times this season and the play where he beat my Bucks with his shot over Luc Richard Mbah a Moute is permanently etched into my brain. We were talking about consistency with Rondo, and, man, I’m not sure “consistent” is a strong enough term to talk about Dirk’s excellence in his twelfth NBA season. He has been so reliable all year that it’s hard to even know what to say about him. I expect a dominant performance every time he steps onto the court and that’s pretty much what I get.

“Warriors’ new slogan: Buy tickets or else Randolph gets it!” – Tim Kawakami remains very critical of the Golden State organization as he discusses the fact that Anthony Randolph is on the trading block.

It’s obvious Kawakami gets some joy out of slamming the front office. But, really, with the way they’ve treated their fans, I don’t blame him. The guy writes with anger but the anger is fucking real and I love it. I don’t, however, love what the Warriors are doing. At all. Randolph is a 20-year-old second-year player and the team has been screwing around with his playing time since he got to the Bay Area, regardless of how he’s performed on the court. Actually, you know what, I DO love that he’s on the trading block. Anything to get him out of there. Anything to avoid a Tyrus Thomas scenario. This kid has SO MUCH potential, I can’t bear to see him fail to realize it.

“Someone Over The Rainbow” – Rob Mahoney delves deep into Russell Westbrook’s game.

Man, what great writing. Seriously, I hope no one stopped after Monday or Tuesday. Look at the people in this section – Krolik, Ziller, Harper, MacKenzie, Dwyer, Mahoney, and the list goes on. These are pros. I’m just trying to learn from them. Anyway, Westbrook: the guy has such obvious potential to be an elite player. He is exciting as hell right now and his defensive abilities are off the charts for a second-year point guard. However, he doesn’t play like a “pure” PG and his decision-making can drive you a bit crazy. If you’re like me, reading this will keep you optimistic and patient when it comes to the possibility of him becoming who we want him to be.

“Livingston Keeps Moving Forward Without Looking Back” – Chris Tomasson of NBA FanHouse talks to Livingston and other players about his journey back to the NBA.

I’m just going to assume you know about the injury. Just reading the first couple of paragraphs made me feel sick, but I was smiling by the end of the article. Shaun has long been one of my favourite players and I can’t describe how happy it makes me to see him playing and contributing at the NBA level. It’s just a bonus that he’s on one of my favourite teams. He had unlimited potential when he was drafted and that’s curbed a bit now, but, really, fuck it. That’s not the point. I guess it kind of sucks if he never makes an All-Star team, but the fact that he’s playing at all is incredible. What a story. Root for this man and respect the hell out of him. Thank you.

“Ron Artest returns to Chicago and talks about environment” – Mike Bresnahan writes about Ron Artest as he returns to Chicago.

Remember I said the Beasley quote was my second favourite? Here’s, by far, my favourite quote of the week:

“It’s great. I take it on dates and everything. Fine wine. A lot of romance. A lot of kissing up. Trying to get used to her and hopefully she’ll give me her number. I love the triangle.” – Ron Artest, when asked about his relationship with the Lakers’ offense.

“Bynum hopes shoe swap will keep him healthy” – Vince Ellis.

“Suns forward Jared Dudley adds 3s to defense” – Paul Coro

If there’s a news story about an All-OTN Team guy, I’ve gotta share it. Not a whole lot here, though. Apparently, Will Bynum’s damn sprained ankles may have been related to the fact he was wearing shoes unsuitable for how he plays. And Jared Dudley has improved his NBA game the same way he improved his college game, by working extremely hard. That’s how he became one of the league’s best three-point shooters. But you already knew that.

Thursday, Dec. 17

“Just because you’re moving…” – Holly MacKenzie takes an honest look at what’s been ailing the Raptors.

Man, that Wooden quote. I LOVE that quote. I think the first time I heard it was when commentator Jack Armstrong said it during a Raptors broadcast years ago. Not 100% on that, but I do know it’s been with me for years. So, yeah, I was sold after the first line. But I kept reading and kept nodding my head as I agreed with everything and I kept grimacing as the mutual dissatisfaction with this Raps team sunk in. What’s bothered me most in the Raptors’ losses is that sometimes they just don’t play like a team I’d watch if I didn’t feel like I had to. I like every single player on this roster and feel like I’ve got to know them through reading and watching interviews and hearing stories about them during their time in this city, but, as a group, it’s just not working a lot of the time. If you look at the teams I love watching (ex. Rockets, Thunder, Bucks, Suns…), they seem to play better than they are. I love the little things they do. It’s ball movement, togetherness, hustle, and defensive intensity that get me. These Raptors have rarely had these things for a full 48 minutes. Even though they were projected to be a bad defensive team and that’s been their downfall, you get the feeling they are underperforming when you consider the talent on the roster. In short stretches, or, rarely, in one entire game, you see how dangerous this team could be if they got it right. This team gives defenses fits with its outside shooting and offensive execution. At times, these guys play solid team defense, especially when the more athletic bench players are in the game. But there have been so many little, stupid mistakes that add up throughout games. These mistakes lead to a sense of frustration on the part of both the players and the fans. Here’s hoping these decrease as the season rolls on and watching and writing about Toronto’s team becomes more fun.

“Despite setbacks, Oden optimistic on his future” – David Aldridge’s fantastic piece on Greg Oden and his rehab.

I’m sure you know how great of a writer David Aldridge is and I’m pretty sure you’ve already seen the videos and read the quotes from when Oden talked to the media at practice last week. I’ve got to link to this anyway, just in case you missed it… plus, I really want to be able to share a fantastic fact that I learned reading it: Oden’s dog is named Charles Barkley McLovin. You have to love that.

“Boris Diaw’s Fade Out” – Brett Hainline of Queen City Hoops searches for an answer to the Boris Diaw conundrum.

Diaw hasn’t been fitting in with this Bobcats team since Stephen Jackson arrived. It was great when he started producing for them after he came from Phoenix, but it was somewhat of a surprise as well. His star had certainly faded in Phoenix ever since his role was minimized with the return of their other key players. It seems like the same thing is happening in Charlotte now and it’s a problem. This Charlotte team is going to make another run at the playoffs and if they’re going to finally make it they will need his help.

“Game 24 Recap: Kings 112, Wizards 109” – Zach Harper of Cowbell Kingdom

“Tyreke Evans, You Are A Maniac” – Tom Ziller of Sactown Royalty

I wanted to limit the amount of times I linked to the same people, but I’ve done it again. If you missed the Wizards/Kings game on Wednesday night, I’m a bit mad at you. But you can kind of make up for it by reading these great recaps and watching the videos. It sort of broke my heart to see Gilbert lose the ball at the end, but Tyreke Evans is just so unbelievably good. How is this man a rookie? It’s ridiculous. Fellow rookie Omri Casspi gets some much-deserved love in those writeups, too.

“Arenas overshadowed by $111 million deal?” – Michael Lee of the Washington Post talks to Gilbert about the big contract hanging over his head.

If I was Gilbert, I wouldn’t want to hear about the contract all the time either. But, unfortunately, that’s what comes with signing those deals. It’s going to come up, especially when you’re not producing like other people who are making that kind of money. To me, though, the root of the issue is expectations – both what we expect from a near-max-money guy and what we expect from a guy working his way back from a serious injury. I have to emphasize that making all that money doesn’t make you perfect. Making that money doesn’t make you completely responsible for the team’s fortunes. And, in this case, making that money doesn’t make you immune to rust and doesn’t make you recover from injuries at a superhuman rate. I’m sure different Wizards fans had different expectations for Arenas going into this season, but if you’re upset with his individual play I think you have to re-evaluate yours. Obviously, his late-game anti-heroics have been a bit of a shock, but is it a catastrophe that his efficiency is down from where it was before he missed two full seasons of action? Is it unexpected that he has trouble elevating at the basket now? It shouldn’t be. We’ve seen flashes of Gilbert’s former self this season but we’ve also seen a man who is mortal like the rest of us. He’ll get back to being Agent Zero, but it’ll take time.

“Phil designs Kobe’s heroics” – Kevin Ding of The Orange County Register gives some great insights about Kobe’s game-winner against Milwaukee.

You’ve probably already read this and know about Kobe’s flashback to the 1991 finals. It just felt wrong not to mention it in a weekly recap. Gotta say, I was rooting for the Bucks hard in this game. Like always. But when that shot went in, I wasn’t upset. That’s just greatness and I can’t be mad at that. The blocking call a couple of possessions earlier, though? I can be mad at that. Utter bullshit.

“New York Knicks coach Mike D’Antoni says sitting Nate Robinson was nothing personal” – Frank Isola of the New York Daily News shares some quotes from Mike D’Antoni about Nate Robinson’s benching.

Bah, this confuses me. I want to believe D’Antoni, but I find it difficult. Is Nate that destructive on the floor? Does he really make the team that much worse? What’s different from last season, when he was effective? It’s hard for me to argue against the benching with the way they’ve played better without him, but I think Robinson’s skills make him worthy of playing time. Mike is saying that Nate is “a good guy” and he’d “play Satan himself” if he thought it’d help the team, and I’m left wondering how honest he’s being about the whole situation.

“Q&A With Daryl Morey” – Jason Friedman interviews the Rockets’ GM at the quarter-mark of the season.

Before I talk about the content, I have to give huge credit to Jason Friedman and Rockets.com. I read more articles on the Rockets’ official site than all of the other teams’ sites combined and that’s pretty much just because of Friedman’s stuff. Now, onto Morey: I love his genuine and thoughtful answers to all the questions here and, when asked about team-building and what he’s learned since he’s been on the job, he gives the best anti-tanking argument I’ve ever heard. It’s simple as hell, but I’ve never thought of it this way. When you’re winning games, your players become more valuable. They’re seen as “winning players” and the demand for them goes up throughout the league. Houston’s positioned themselves to be a major player in the trade market if they want to because they have a bunch of guys on short, inexpensive contracts and they’re winning. This is the other side of the coin when you’re talking about accepting losses in order to get good draft position.

“Cavaliers’ West dealing with issues ‘one day at a time’” – Dick Jerardi of the Philadelphia Daily News gets some great quotes from Phil Martelli, Delonte’s college coach.

This is another “big” article from last week, so I’ll leave the content alone and assume you’ve read it. I just want to add that West is a HUGE part of this Cavaliers team. I know he’s coming off the bench right now, but he might be the team’s second-most important player. He doesn’t look like he should be, but he’s well above-average on both ends of the court and, if the Cavs are going to do more playoff damage than they did last year, they need him. I don’t know the extent or the details of the mental health issues he’s facing, but I hope for his own sake and for the sake of NBA fans that he gets everything straightened out as much as it can be. I’ve said Cleveland isn’t one of my favourite teams to watch, but that has nothing to do with Delonte.

Friday, Dec. 18

Jerryd Bayless was the star on Thursday night, so all of the internet’s all-stars were talking about him on Friday morning. Some evidence:

“Behind the Box Score, where the Blazers have a new stud” – Kelly Dwyer.

“The Post Up: J. Bayless!” – Holly MacKenzie.

“Lion Face/Lemon Face 12.17.09: JERRYD BAYLESS JUST HAPPENED EDITION” – Matt Moore.

“Jerryd Bayless and the Liberation of Combo Guards” – Tom Ziller.

“Media Row Report: Blazers 105 Suns 102” – Ben Golliver.

“If You Don’t Know, Now You Know (Part 2)” – Rey Moralde.

“Jerryd Bayless!! Woooo!!” – Mark Schiralli aka mookie.

Yes, I know I said I would only link to those daily recaps once. Whatever. I don’t have a whole lot to add here on top of all those great pieces, but I’ll say this: I was fucking overjoyed watching Bayless do his thing that night. I thought he’d be a fantastic player when he came out of college and the one thing that pissed me off about that great Portland squad last year was the fact that they didn’t give him a chance. It’s true that his per-minute numbers were shit last year, but I’m telling you there was a reason Blazer fans wanted to see him play more. His talent was obvious, but he was being used incorrectly and sparingly. It’s so great that he’s a big part of their offense these days, even though I hate that it had to come at the cost of half their roster being injured.

“Links: My Decade” – Lang Whitaker doles out some nostalgia.

Seems appropriate that right after I talk about Bayless, the new thing, I go to something that’s been in my life for years: The Links. I’ve already told you the inspiration for my All-OTN Team came from Lang. Him talking about Robert Horry’s incredible performance in the 2005 finals along with a collection of animated .gifs definitely had me going down memory lane. It wasn’t that long ago where I didn’t read any of the people I’m linking to now except for Mr. Whitaker. Every day, I checked Hoopshype and SLAMonline for my NBA news. That was it. Then came TrueHoop and Ball Don’t Lie and the bazillion blogs that I read now. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t miss the simpler times – the wealth of information and analysis out there today is amazing. Just fun to take a look back for a moment.

“Arenas hoping Agent Zero can save Wizards” – Marc Spears gets some amazing quotes from Gilbert Arenas and touches on some rookie big men, Anthony Randolph, and more.

I think I’ve said enough about Gilbert and Anthony Randolph. Just read Spears’s piece if you haven’t. He and Woj turn out consistently excellent stuff for Yahoo!, but you know that already.

“In praise of the Big Piranha” – Nate Arch of Canis Hoopus gives props to Kevin Love after a Wolves win.

With Al Jefferson around, I’m not sure I agree that Kevin Love will definitely become the Wolves’ MVP, but I’m ready to be convinced. I’ve been a Love fan from the start – he does a ton of good stuff on the court. Some of it shows up in the boxscore; some of it does not. As Arch rightly points out, Kevin’s ability to contribute in multiple areas makes him potentially the team’s best player. I don’t want to steal too much from the post, so just read it. I’ll say this, though: if he didn’t already have such a big role and put up such good numbers, his intangibles alone would make him a lock for my All-OTN Team

“Game 24 Recap: Dallas 100, Oklahoma City 86” – Zorgon of Welcome To Loud City recaps the entertaining Thunder/Mavericks game.

I’m going to forgive Zorgon for writing this recap a day late because of the recognition he gives to my man Serge Ibaka. The All-OTN Team’s center was named the “Thunder Down Under” in this excellent recap. Key sentence: “Many props go out to Ibaka for significantly improving his game throughout the course of the season.” Wow. He’s significantly improved his game in a month and a half. That’s big. This guy was supposed to be a project. I’ve been telling you, keep your eyes on this him…

“Changing course: Kevin Durant, Oklahoma City’s offensive star, is turning heads with his defense” – Darnell Mayberry talks about the part of KD’s game that others are not talking about.

If you haven’t been watching the Thunder play, I can tell you it’s all true. The most impressive thing I’ve seen from Durant in the NBA is not his ridiculous scoring ability – I knew he had that. It’s the fact that he’s worked on his game and turned weaknesses into strengths. There’s nowhere that’s more apparent than on the defensive end – no one has made more defensive strides than him in the last two years.

“KG: Klutch Guy” – Bent from CelticsBlog shows that Kevin Garnett has come up big at the end of games this season.

It’s impossible to make that “Garnett disappears in the clutch” argument now. So don’t do it. Thanks.

“One Pounding Dribblers Anonymous” – Scott Souza tells us how far Kendrick Perkins has come with his game.

Heh, another Celtics piece. My Toronto friends are going to hate me if they read this. Anyway, with all my Rondo love I’ve kinda neglected the Celts’ man in the middle. Kendrick has been a great defender for a couple of years now, but what’s really worth noting about his current campaign is the improvement he’s had on the offensive end. He’s making quick moves and getting easy baskets. The rest of the league can’t be happy that he’s becoming a legitimate offensive threat.

“Then and Now: Tony Parker” – Jeff Garcia of Project Spurs tracks Tony Parker’s maturation as the Spurs’ point man.

It seems so long ago that TP was a rookie and we didn’t know how good he was going to be. Remember when we were worried that he couldn’t shoot? How about when the Spurs almost signed Jason Kidd? This is a good look at how he’s become one of the game’s best PG’s.

“Pistons’ Will Bynum made himself into NBA player” – Jo-Ann Barnas.

“Pistons find a Swede surprise in Jonas Jerebko” – Vincent Goodwill.

“Rookie Austin Daye has been good for the Pistons” – Ted Kulfan.

Obviously, my favourite piece is the one on All-OTN Team member Will Bynum. You should read all three, though – they are fantastic reads. Plus, you need to learn about ‘em. These unheralded Pistons are all playing very good basketball right now.

“Brandon Jennings, Social Media Misfit” – Bethlehem Shoals gives his take on the $7,500 fine the league doled out to the rookie.

Obviously, Shoals gets this completely right. All day Friday, people were discussing the absurdity of this fine. He sent a message to his fans from his phone after a win, at a time where he’s allowed to talk and text on it. And now he’s $7,500 poorer. This is just stupid. At least Brandon hasn’t followed through with deleting his Twitter account.

“Raptors pile it on Nets, who continue to search for answers” – Holly Mackenzie’s gamer for the Raps/Nets game on Friday night.

A late Friday link, but had to include it because it’s the exact right angle. I was at the game and intended to root for my Raptors, but took absolutely no pleasure in how they got the win. I said it felt like a Globetrotters game, with all the fast break dunks the Raps were getting. Chris Douglas-Roberts was working his ass off all night, but some of his teammates were not. Holly points out that, somehow, the Nets had as many turnovers as field goals in the first half. Ugh. What an ugly game. Try not to feel bad for CDR while reading that, I dare you.

Saturday, Dec. 19

“Video: Rockets’ Landry embeds teeth in Nowitzki’s arm” – J.E. Skeets comments on the unbelievable collision from Friday night.

I have to lead with this for Saturday. I’m sure you’ve heard about it. Nothing more to add; I still can’t believe it.

“You Know the Drill: Cavs 85- Bucks 82” – Jeremy Schmidt of Bucksketball recaps Bucks/Cavs.

“Recap: Cavaliers 85, Bucks 83 (With Special Bonuses!)” – Mitchell of BrewHoop recaps Bucks/Cavs.

This was an enjoyable game, even though my Bucks lost. Quickly going to say that Milwaukee fans are spoiled by these two great blogs, and I’m going to quote each of them about Brandon Jennings:

“Maybe it’s because I’m a fellow skinny PG, but when I see Brandon bust his hump getting a hand in the shooter’s face, it makes me happy. He won’t be able to outmuscle anybody, but he can make shooters miss through sheer annoyance. I chalk it up to good coaching (thanks, Kelvin Sampson!).

_

This point is less about Jennings’ use of the lost art of “hand-in-face” and more about his exceptional effort. He plays like a guy who flat-out loves the sport, and if he works in practice as hard as he does in games (which I hear he does), he’s going to be huge.” – Mitchell of BrewHoop, on Jennings’s shot defense.

“Jennings finished 5-21 and wasn’t able to create anything for the Bucks on the last play. Not that creating against Cleveland is very easy, they’re among the league’s best defensively and this is the second time in Jennings’ life he’s played them. So had he created a good look or hit a three there, it would have been beyond exceptional. That’s how things typically are in the league for rookies and it’s something we’ll likely be seeing more often than not the rest of this year despite Jennings’ talents.

_

But it’s not too difficult to envision the end of games two years from now when Jennings IS able to create something and the Bucks DO have the talent to win these kinds of games. And then Bucks fans will be talking about their superstar and how he’s the reason they’re winning. I hope.” – Jeremy Schmidt of Bucksketball, on Jennings at the end of games.

“Mr. $111 Million Drops A Determined 45 Points Against Former Team” – Kyle Deidie of Truth About It joyfully discusses Gilbert’s breakout game and shares other reactions to it.

YES! This game was so fun to watch for me, just to see Gilbert light it up. I know the Warriors team defense was pathetic, but still. He dropped 45. Finally. After all the depressing crap I linked to earlier with him, you know this is my favourite piece. Let me have this: Woooooo!

“How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Jonathan Bender” – Seth Rosenthal of Posting and Toasting is impressed with the newest Knick.

Man, it was awesome seeing Jonathan Bender on my TV playing basketball again. And, whoa, I didn’t expect him to have a debut this good. Did you watch that video? He does NOT look like a guy who hasn’t played pro ball in years. I know it’s just one game, but still. This is encouraging. Be happy.

“The Recap: December 19th, 2009” – Holly MacKenzie.goes over Friday’s games for The Score.

Wow, this feels like the millionth Holly Mack piece I’ve linked to. I originally wanted not to have more than one link by the same person. Oh well. You should be reading The Recap on The Score every day, whether it’s Holly or Scott Carefoot doing the work. Anyway, the reason I’m linking this? Check the quote of the game for the Memphis/Indy:

“There are too many words to describe what he’s meant to this team so far. He’s been an energy guy, a guy who’s been a leader for this team and a veteran. Going out and putting in the work he’s been doing on and off the court has been amazing.” – Mike Conley on Randolph’s presence.

Holy shit. I’m guessing you didn’t expect to be hearing that kind of thing about Zach Randolph. I certainly didn’t, but I’m excited about it. You know I’ve been loving how the Grizz have been playing.

“GM 26 Recap: POW…How you like us now?” – Jeff McMenamin recaps the Sixers’ victory over the Celtics.

A good recap as always, but I have to single out the Elton Brand bit because it’s what I’ve been trying to say since the damn season started.

At center it should be a no-brainer to have Elton Brand start, but you never know with Eddie Jordan. For some reason Brand has been the odd man out of the rotation for most of the season and since Brand is such a class-act guy there’s been really no complaints out of the big man. Well for all the complaints which he left unsaid I’m going to make sure that you know them now. Brand should start, Brand should play over 35 minutes every game, Brand is still capable of putting up 20/10 every night, Brand is a leader on and off court, and Brand will shock the NBA in the second half of the year. Give the man his due. He cares more about dominating at the game of basketball than he does about the contract which he signed a little more then a year ago. I’m tired of the media saying it’s his fault for underperforming when Jordan has played him less then 30 minutes in 12 games this season. This [Holiday/Iverson/Iguodala/Speights/Brand] is the starting five which will lead the Sixers to wins like the one against Boston last night.

“Rajon Rondo’s Assists Demand Our Attention” – Greg Payne of CelticsBlog.

“Rondo’s frustration, and why can he do whatever he wants” – Red’s Army.

I’m saying no more about Rondo. Just letting other people do the talking for me.

“Robinson wants trade from Knicks” – Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports shares a trade demand from Nate’s agent, Aaron Goodwin.

“Agent Says It Is Time for Robinson to Leave” – Howard Beck of the New York Times reports the same thing. I think his was first, but you have to be a member of NYTimes.com to read it.

I think my feelings on this should be obvious. If a trade means Nate will actually get to play basketball, I’m all for it.

“Kirk Snyder: A life unraveled” – Ross Siler of the Salt Lake Tribune tells Kirk Snyder’s sad story.

Man… I don’t know what to say. This is just really, really fucking sad. At least we’ll always have this.

“Dennis Rodman’s fame benefits rich and poor” – Dan LeBatard with a fascinating (to say the least) look at where Dennis Rodman is at right now.

Um, wow. With this and the Snyder story… Just wow. So much crazy stuff in this article. I do, however, know that the answer to the question on the side of the page regarding Rodman and the Hall Of Fame is a definite “yes”.

“Free Amir” – Tom Liston’s ode to Amir Johnson.

I needed the Saturday section to end on a happy note. A song about an All-OTN Team member, set to The First Noel? That’ll do just fine.

Sunday, Dec. 20

“Bailed Out By a Star: Kings 96, Bucks 95” – Tom Ziller recaps Evans/Jennings. I mean… Kings/Bucks.

What a game this was. I LOVED watching the league’s two top rookies go at it. Both played very well. I can’t wait to see them do it again for the next, oh, fifteen years or so. I was rooting for the Bucks, as usual, so I didn’t appreciate Tyreke’s amazing game-winner as much as, say, Ziller. But, still – great game. And Tyreke Evans is indeed a star.

“Clippers 112 – Philadelphia 107 – Overtime – Improbable” – Steve Perrin of Clips Nation recaps Clips/Sixers.

“Clippers 112, Philadelphia 107 (OT)” – Kevin Arnovitz of ClipperBlog recaps Clips/Sixers.

The end of the fourth quarter was insane. Check Arnovitz’s piece for the video. I still can’t get over it. These are two L.A. Clippers blogs, and neither of these writers are saying Iggy’s shot was definitely no-good. That was the closest buzzer-beater I have EVER seen.

“Magic get defensive against Blazers” – Philip Rossman-Reich goes over the Magic/Blazers game.

This wasn’t the prettiest game, but the Magic got the win. What’s notable for me this bit about Vince Carter:

This was the kind of game where Orlando needed him to do other things. And Carter did that. Vince finished with seven rebounds and three assists and did a decent enough job defensively to try and make up for some of his offensive failings tonight.

So, even though he hurt my fantasy team, Vince was able to be a positive for Orlando in a winning effort. This, despite having a miserable (1-14) shooting night.

“Rockets 95, Thunder 90” – Darnell Mayberry’s notes on a Thunder loss.

“The Rockets do it again on the glass to take down the Thunder” – Royce Young of Daily Thunder gives his take.

Ahh, two of my favourite teams facing off. I was rooting for Oklahoma City, but knew this would be a tough matchup for them. The Rockets seem to just have their number. Anyway, serious love for Ibaka here. Mayberry points out that he played all but 1:40 of the final period and that his block on Chase Budinger was so big that they replayed it on the jumbotron despite the fact this was a ROAD GAME. Young, well, he said this:

Serge Ibaka ladies and gentleman. The line for the fan club starts right behind me. He had 10 points on 5-5 shooting, grabbed eight rebounds and blocked two shots in just 23 minutes. He’s going to be getting 30 a night soon and potentially sending Nenad Krstic into extreme role player mode. You watch.

Erm… fan club… I have to line up behind someone? But I named him to my team! Argh, fine… I’m with you, Royce. Gotta love the “Chewblocka” nickname too, ha.

“Sunday Discussion – Offensive… to say the least” – J.G. of Daily Thunder ponders whether OKC’s offense needs re-tooling.

Another solid Daily Thunder post. This is a really intriguing question to me. I commented on it, actually, but there are 82 freaking comments there now so it’s lost somewhere in there. I think a big part of the issue is what you think of the previously discussed Russell Westbrook. I believe in him and think he’ll get it, so I’m more inclined to stick with Brooks’s system.

“Team Resiliency Strikes Again” – Jason Friedman of Rockets.com gives Houston’s perspective on the Rockets/Thunder game.

Hey, check it out, Friedman again! I told you there’s quality stuff on the Rockets website all the time. Read this piece if you want to know why I fell in love with this Rockets team. It’s all there.

“Read Between The Lines” – Graydon Gordian of 48 Minutes Of Hell examines the last ten seconds of Saturday’s Spurs/Pacers game.

This is a really interesting look at how 10 seconds can be a pretty good microcosm of a season. Tim Duncan has been the saving grace of the Spurs’ year; everyone else is surrounded by question marks. I should elaborate about Saturday night – it was a bit crazy. This Spurs game was decided by one point and a dunk from Timmy D. ended up being the game-winner. You already know about the Iggy and Evans shots. In addition to all of this, the Chicago/Atlanta game went into overtime and the Bulls pulled out a victory. With all that, plus wanting to watch the rookie battle, plus catching bits and pieces of the Suns/Wizards game (which turned out to be a Phoenix blowout), I was flipping channels like a motherfucker. Yay for League Pass.

“Interview: Jazz Rookie Wes Matthews Making Most of Opportunity in Utah” – Chris Littmann’s video interview with the Jazz’s undrafted rookie.

Just watch the damn thing. If you can’t appreciate that an undrafted rookie who thought he was going to play this year in Europe is now starting for Jerry Sloan’s team, you have no soul.

“Raptors use late run to put away Hornets” – Eric Koreen’s game story for Sunday’s Toronto/New Orleans matinee.

I love hearing that DeMar DeRozan and Sonny Weems are being called Batman and Robin these days. It’s been obvious since the start of the season that they have great chemistry off the court and, now that Weems is seeing consistent time, they’re showing it on court as well. I went to this game, mostly because I wanted to see Chris Paul, and I didn’t get exactly what I was expecting. Paul was held in check by Marcus Banks and Jarrett Jack and an ankle injury. Not that he would admit the injury was bothering him. It was nowhere near a perfect game for Toronto, but I loved watching the bench guys get after it and I am currently not as discouraged with the team as I was earlier in the week. When I got home, I took in some more games and have a few things to say. First, Zach Randolph! Remember that Conley quote? Yeah. Dude had 32 pts and 24 rebs (9 offensive) yesterday against Denver. This came in a winning effort. Several of those points and boards came at timely moments, keeping Denver from getting too close. To quickly wrap up (because, Jesus, this is long): The Celtics/Wolves and Lakers/Pistons games went pretty much as you’d expect, Brandon Roy was a beast against Miami in a Portland win, Dallas impressively took care of Cleveland without the services of Dirk Nowitzki, and the Knicks managed to beat Charlotte on the strength of a huge Danilo Gallinari block in the final seconds. Now, a couple more links and this is over…

“As Weird as Finger Panes” – Bethlehem Shoals is inspired by the fact that the New York Times said Darko Milicic’s lasting impression will be the fact that he was immortalized in the name of the FreeDarko blog.

Instantly, this is a classic FD piece. It prominently features Amir Johnson, which pleases me, but I must say I definitely do NOT associate anything resembling a sinking feeling with him now that he’s on my Raptors.

“Jumping head-first into the Bucks’ ‘Squad 6’” – Andrew Wagner of OnMilwaukee.com joins Squad 6 for a game.

And we finish how we started. Just a fun piece about what it’s like to go crazy in Bogut’s section for the night. Check the video at the bottom, too.

Christian Petersen/Getty Images

A later, but longer BfB today. It was a busy night in the NBA last night and a busy morning/afternoon for me as I watched the games I recorded. To be clear, I saw most of Raptors/Hawks, most of Thunder/Grizzlies, all of Sixers/Rockets, all of Suns/Magic, all of Lakers/Wolves, and the last quarter and a half of Blazers/Cavs. For the other five games, I’m working with box scores and recaps. You can expect similar posts every Saturday, although I’ll try to get them up earlier than this. Anyway, let’s get to it – I’ve got John Wall and Ricky Rubio games to watch before NBA games tip at 7:00 PM EST.

The All-OTN Team

Shannon Brown: 7 Pts (3-9 FG, 1-4 3PT), 2 Reb (1 Off), 0 TO, 0 PF in 17 mins.

A rough shooting night for Shannon in this 104-92 victory, but he did have this amazing play:

I appreciate Kobe’s pass just as much as Shannon’s thunderous finish. How many shooting guards in the league throw that lob with their off-hand? Hell, forget shooting guards, is there another player at any position who does that? Maybe Nash, maybe. (Sidenote: I can’t get enough of left-handed passes from right-handed players. Saw a ton of them last night, with Kobe, Nash, and Johnny Flynn in action. Makes me smile every time.)

Jared Dudley: 19 Pts (6-13 FG, 4-8 3PT, 3-4 FT), 5 Reb (3 Off), 2 Stl, 0 TO, 3 PF in 33 mins.

Heyyyy! Check that out, an undeniably impressive stat-line from an All-OTN Team guy. I’ve been waiting for this. Those 19 points matched the career-high he set near the end of his rookie season and he got them very efficiently. What’s not in the stat sheet: he played excellent defense on Vince Carter in the 2nd quarter (who, I must say, helped Jared out a bit by playing the least aggressive ball I’ve seen from him in years, before leaving the game with a sore right knee) and he was on the floor in crunch time, making plays and taking big shots in this 106-103 victory. A few more things before we move on:

“He’s just beating ‘em up right now with his effort and energy” – Jeff Van Gundy, in the 2nd quarter, after Dudley grabbed one of his three offensive boards.

JMZ Part 1:

JMZ Part 2:

Amir Johnson: 7 Pts (2-4 FG, 3-4 FT), 4 Reb (3 Off), 1 Blk, 1 Stl, 1 TO, 3 PF in 22 mins.

A blah stat-line in a blah game. As always, I enjoyed Amir’s effort, but it wasn’t nearly enough against this excellent Hawks team, as my Raptors fell 111-89. Normally, his hustle and athleticism stands out, but when up against Josh Smith, Al Horford, and Zaza Pachulia, he isn’t as noticeable.

Serge Ibaka: 0 Pts (0-0 FG, 0-0 FT), 1 Reb, 1 Blk, 1 Stl, 1 PF in 9 mins.

No points on no shots in this 102-94 victory, but there’s a lot to say here. As is always the case, because the man is just full of activity when he’s on the court. I saw him flub a couple of defensive assignments that led to Marc Gasol baskets, but I also saw him do some impressive things, like successfully getting a stop on Rudy Gay on the perimeter. With this Thunder team, he is mainly out there for defensive purposes and, on that end, he is really working. When he does mess up, it’s because he is channelling his energy in the wrong way. Sometimes he over-helps and sometimes he is too aggressive, but he’s never lazy. Once he relaxes out there, he is going to be a consistently great defender. The potential just oozes from him. Still, I’ll admit that it wasn’t his best game.

Rookie Watch

Tyler Hansbrough: 21 Pts (8-18 FG, 0-1 3PT, 5-6 FT), 7 Reb (4 Off), 1 Ast, 3 Stl, 0 TO, 3 PF in 24 mins.

I didn’t see the game, but by all accounts Psycho T (or Buckaroo Banzai) was huge. I have to wonder just how he managed to get 18 shots up in 21 minutes, but remain impressed. Methinks some of those offensive boards must have come off of his own misses. Anyway, he killed the Nets last night with his jumper and, more specifically, killed their run in the third quarter by hitting back-to-back midrange jumpers when New Jersey was trying to make a game of it. Fantastic effort and a career-high in scoring for this rookie, in a much-needed 107-91 win for the Pacers. Here are a couple of quotes from people who actually saw this:

“He was playing as well as anybody on the team. His intensity on the court was something we needed.” – Jim O’Brien

“Hansbrough held up well defensively with three steals while guarding everyone from Brook Lopez to Chris Douglas-Roberts.” – Tom Lewis of Indy Cornrows

Chase Budinger: 15 Pts (6-8 FG, 2-4 3PT, 1-1 FT), 2 Reb, 1 Ast, 1 Blk, 0 TO, 2 PF in 18 mins.

I am so very impressed with this kid. With DeMar DeRozan getting more aggressive and thus making a few more mistakes, and with Omri Casspi’s continued inexplicable free-throw woes, Chase Budinger stands alone as the rookie who plays least like a rookie. He’s got a gorgeous jump shot, good defensive instincts, fantastic passing ability for a wing, and has a knack for using screens correctly and drawing contact. He was pretty much perfect in this game and, along with Carl Landry and Kyle Lowry, was a part of the Houston bench unit that turned this game around. When he checked in with a couple of minutes left in the first quarter, his team was down 17. By the end of the quarter, the deficit was only 10. In the end, the Rockets won 96-91. He did pick up a couple of blocking fouls on quick Sixer players, but, honestly who cares? Great, great night for Chase.

Jeff Teague: 11 Pts (5-6 FG, 1-1 FT), 3 Reb, 7 Ast, 3 Stl, 1 Blk, 1 TO, 2 PF in 20 mins.

Another rookie doing damage off the bench. Serious damage, I mean – the Hawks’ main bench guys (this rook plus Mo Evans, Jamal Crawford, and Zaza Pachulia) rocked the Raptors last night, outscoring them 45-34. I was not pleased. Anyway, you can’t expect 11 points on just 6 shots from Teague every night, but you have to appreciate last night’s work if you’re a Hawks fan. That scoring, plus 7 assists in just 20 minutes of action? Brilliant, even if it came against soft Toronto defense. What might go unnoticed in all of this is that Teague is a far superior perimeter defender to Mike Bibby and Crawford. I like his offensive game, but if he sees increased minutes as the season goes on, I think it’ll be a result of his D.

Jonny Flynn: 10 Pts (3-8 FG, 0-1 3PT, 4-6 FT), 2 Reb, 4 Ast, 3 Stl, 4 TO, 1 PF in 25 mins.

I must say I was expecting much better numbers from Flynn last night. Quick point guards tend to have great nights against the Lakers. It didn’t happen this time, though – Flynn did make the Lakers look silly a few times with his ball-handling, penetration, and passing, but for the most part he deferred to his teammates rather than acting as the primary playmaker. A solid, if unspectacular game for the Syracuse product, with a couple of very frustrating turnovers unfortunately sticking out. This 104-92 loss was Jonny’s first time against the Lakers, though, and I anticipate that he’ll put up bigger numbers the next time they meet.

Fun With Stats

A lot of individual performances stand out when looking at the boxscores from last night, so let’s check ‘em out.

J.J. Barea: 12 Pts (4-8 FG, 3-5 3PT, 1-2 FT), 4 Reb (1 Off), 10 Ast, 2 Stl, 1 TO, 4 PF in 34 mins.

Wow, check out those three-pointers and those assists and that lone turnover. Phenomenal work for the lovable little guard in his second straight start, a 106-93 victory against the Heat. Let me say this: Dallas’s 2-guard rotation is ridiculous. Quinton Ross started for a while, Jason Terry is a fake bench player who gets starters’ minutes, Josh Howard is now back from injury and likely will take over that 2-spot eventually, and my favourite Maverick, Rodrigue Beaubois, is currently glued to the bench because of Barea’s strong play. It’s quite a logjam, but that’s a very good problem for coach Rick Carlisle to have.

Udonis Haslem: 22 Pts (9-10 FG, 4-6 FT), 10 Reb (1 Off), 0 TO, 3 PF in 35 mins.

Unfortunate that this came in a losing effort, but wow. Haslem made the first 8 shots he took. That’s nice, especially when you consider how much the team NEEDED him to shoot like that – Miami started this game 0 for 10 from the floor. A simply fantastic game, but his Heat stood no chance because everyone not named Udonis Haslem combined to shoot 24-72 from the floor against Dallas. Ugly.

Zach Randolph: 19 Pts (8-21 FG, 0-1 3PT, 3-5 FT), 20 Reb (11 Off), 1 Ast, 2 TO, 1 PF in 40 mins.

19 and 20? 11 offensive boards?! This doesn’t look like a real stat line, but it is. Randolph had a 12-point/13-rebound double-double in the third quarter alone, where his Grizzlies outscored the Thunder 28-10. They couldn’t sustain it in the fourth, though, and they fell 102-94.

John Salmons: 11 Pts (4-16 FG, 1-7 3PT, 2-2 FT), 7 Reb, 3 Ast, 3 Stl, 3 TO, 2 PF in 44 mins.

Salmons is continuing to rely on his jumper, even when it isn’t falling. Kevin Arnovitz said that John told him he would make more of an effort to get to the basket and draw fouls, but he only managed to do that once last night. I want Salmons to turn his season around; seeing these 1-7 shooting nights from beyond the arc is getting very, very old.

Andre Miller: 20 Pts (8-13 FG, 2-3 3PT, 2-2 FT), 6 Reb (1 Off), 3 Ast, 1 Stl, 2 TO, 3 PF in 32 mins.

Bam! Great night for Miller off the bench. I’ve been saying all along that Portland is overthinking this whole backcourt situation and they just need to put the ball in Andre’s trusty hands. Brandon Roy is dangerous as a primary ballhandler, but he’s a shooting guard and he’s also fantastic off the ball. Steve Blake is a backup who can play next to Miller when they need to spread the floor. Andre Miller can score and he can create easy baskets for his teammates like no one the Blazers have had in years. He really should be the starter, but if he’s getting 32 minutes of playing time, it doesn’t really matter. I was rooting for him more than anyone down the stretch of this one, but the Blazers eventually fell to Cleveland, 104-99.

Anderson Varejao: 22 Pts (10-17 FG, 2-3 FT), 10 Reb (4 Off), 1 Ast, 1 Blk, 2 Stl, 1 TO, 2 PF in 36 mins.

I was pretty critical of the Cavs when they gave him his big contract extension in the summer, but I’ve got my mouth shut now. I should really put him in the “impressive” section because he impressed the hell out of me last night, but let’s stick with the numbers. Those points were unexpected and they were enormous for his team in the second half of this kinda-close game. You expect the great on-ball and help defense from him, and you expect the rebounding, but if he’s converting around the basket at that rate it makes the Cavs a way more dangerous team.

Chris Duhon: 22 Pts (7-11 FG, 6-8 3PT, 2-2 FT), 2 Reb, 9 Ast, 1 Stl, 0 TO, 4 PF in 34 mins.

Ugh. Who is this guy? This isn’t the guy I dropped from my fantasy team. That guy was shooting something like 3% from the floor earlier on this year. I was shocked when I saw that efficiency, those threes, those assist. And… no turnovers?! Unbelievable. I didn’t catch any of New York’s 113-96 victory over the Hornets, but it sure looks like Duhon played a perfect game. Apparently it was 96-95 for New Orleans with under five minutes left in the game when he sank back-to-back threes and Al Harrington followed with a pair of his own. What a crazy way to end a game.

Manu Ginobili: 22 Pts (7-12 FG, 4-5 3PT, 4-4 FT), 4 Reb (1 Off), 2 Ast, 2 Stl, 1 Blk, 3 TO, 3 PF in 26 mins.

I remember these stat lines. You see 22 and 4, with some steals and blocks and think “hey, Manu had a decent game.” Then, you notice he only played 26 minutes. The Poo God came up big in this 104-85 blowout against Charlotte. I should add that this was kind of a weird game – the Spurs were up 65-43 only minutes into the 2nd half (thanks to Ginobili’s 20 first half points), but the Bobcats ended up winning the third quarter 29-13. Down by 1 entering the fourth, Charlotte would get no closer, as the Spurs turned it back on and cruised to their 10th victory in 11 tries against the ‘Cats.

Mickael Pietrus: 23 Pts (8-15 FG, 4-8 3PT, 3-3 FT), 8 Reb (2 Off), 1 Stl, 1 Blk, 2 TO, 2 PF in 32 mins.

Pietrus made up for Vince Carter’s absence in the third quarter by scoring 15 points in that period alone. Phoenix continually lost him behind the arc and he made them pay. If Orlando had ended up pulling out a victory, Suns fans would be having nightmares of this guy shooting three-pointers. This was the second game this season he’s scored more than 20 points and I hope he reaches that total many more times before the season’s end. Love those 8 rebounds, too.

Dwight Howard: 10 Pts (1-1 FG, 8-17 FT), 18 Reb (5 Off), 2 Ast, 2 Stl, 5 TO, 3 PF in 41 mins.

Can you remember the last time you saw Dwight Howard only attempt one field goal? Me neither. I’m telling you, this was a weird game. Whenever he caught the ball under the basket, Phoenix hacked him. And it worked out alright this time – Howard shot below 50% from the line for the first time since November 22 in Toronto. The rebounding is impressive, but if you’re a Magic fan you want less turnovers, more field goal attempts, and at least one block from your superstar.

Impressive

Carl Landry: 20 Pts (4-9 FG, 12-14 FT), 7 Reb (3 Off), 2 Ast, 2 Blk, 3 TO, 2 PF in 33 mins.

Is it possible to say a gritty big man “makes it look easy?” Normally, when you hear someone say that about a player, it’s about a wing guy or a point guard who has just made some beautiful spin move or gliding lay-up or something, not a tough 4-man who has scored in the post. But, seriously, Carl Landry makes it look easy. “It” being scoring inside and drawing fouls. You watch him and you wonder why every power forward can’t get those shots off and draw that contact. Well, I’ll tell you why. Landry is a natural around the basket. He has great footwork, perfect timing, and a very soft touch. He knows how to score against bigger and smaller defenders and he knows how to get to the line. When he gets to the line, he converts them, and that’s how he ends up scoring 20 points on just 9 shots. Coach Rick Adelman made a conscious effort to feed him the ball down the stretch, as nobody Philadelphia threw out there could deal with him. I’ve been pumping up this guy for a long time so it makes me happy to see him develop into Houston’s go-to-guy. He was easily the best big man on the floor in this one, and Elton Brand actually had himself a pretty damn good game.

Allen Iverson: 20 Pts (7-18 FG, 6-9 FT), 5 Reb, 3 Ast, 1 TO, 2 PF in 35 mins.

The numbers are pretty good, especially considering the whole “34-year-old who has barely played in months” thing. But what impressed me more is what doesn’t show up there. He’s doing good things, but he’s also NOT doing the things that some people were worried about. He’s not dominating the ball, he’s not taking a lot of contested shots, and he’s not embarrassing himself on D. I’ll admit it’s a bit weird that he’s not always the fastest guy on the court now (this night, it was Aaron Brooks) and he did make me scream when he fouled the fastest man on the court when he was shooting a 3-pointer, but I liked what I saw. I like it even more when I consider the fact that he should be twice as comfortable and in rhythm in just a couple more weeks.

Jamal Crawford: 15 Pts (6-12 FG, 1-3 3PT, 2-2 FT), 3 Reb (2 Off), 3 Ast, 1 Stl, 4 TO, 1 PF in 29 mins.

Obviously, I’m not impressed with the assist-to-turnover ratio here, but I am in general impressed with Crawford. He was going to get some numbers last night, as he could get his shot off and get in the key whenever he wanted against Toronto’s defense (God, I hate mentioning this), but what I like is just how well he’s fit in with that team. He’s playing 8 fewer minutes than he did last season and he seems 100% happy with it. This is the first time in his career he’s played for a good team and he has embraced his 6th-man role. There have been more than a handful of nights this season where his team has needed him to step up and pour in a ton of points, but, with all the other options available, he doesn’t need to do it all the time. So, he’s become a willing passer and has run the offense for significant stretches. For a guy who was born to score, this is something to respect.

Kevin Durant: 32 Pts (10-22 FG, 1-7 3PT, 11-12 FT), 10 Reb (3 Off), 4 Ast, 2 Blk, 2 TO, 2 PF in 41 mins

Speaking of guys who were born to score, wow. It’s hard to describe Durant here. I’ve already used the “he makes it look easy” thing, haven’t I? Bah. Last night, whenever Durant wanted to score, he did. Or he got fouled, where he converted all but one of his free throws. This team wins games because it goes the extra mile on defense, and, when it needs a basket, KD can get one. The thing with Durant, though, is that we’ve seen this scoring ability before. Hell, we saw it at Texas. But we didn’t see those 10 rebounds all that often. Or those 2 blocks, or those 4 assists. He has made a leap this year – where he was once merely one of the league’s foremost assassins, now he is an all-around player who can hurt you in many ways on both ends. His man D has improved, his help D has improved, and his passing has improved. I feel privileged just watching this happen. You should be tuning in, too.

Nick Collison: 8 Pts (4-8 FG), 7 Reb (4 Off), 1 Ast, 1 Blk, 1 Stl, 1 TO, 4 PF in 17 mins.

All heart, this guy. I should hate him for taking minutes from my man Ibaka, but I don’t. He takes charges, he contests shots, he crashes the glass, and he helps his team win. Nothing flashy here, but it works.

Steve Nash: 20 Pts (6-13 FG, 2-4 3PT, 6-7 FT), 7 Reb (1 Off), 18 Ast, 3 TO, 1 PF in 40 mins.

Am I allowed to say that he played better than this? I mean, that’s an incredible line. I’m not sure it does Nash justice, though. He had 18 assists, but that could have easily been 24 or 25 if his teammates had hit a few more open shots. He put on a clinic, as he often does, and Orlando had no answer for him. This was a hell of a victory for the Suns and there was no one more responsible than their point guard.

Amar’e Stoudemire: 28 Pts (12-21 FG, 4-7 FT), 10 Reb (1 Off), 2 Ast, 3 Stl, 3 TO, 4 PF in 41 mins.

This guy was close, though. See that one offensive rebound? It was critical. When Jared Dudley missed a three-pointer, contested by Dwight Howard, Amar’e ripped the rebound away from Orlando and slammed home a dunk with 6.9 seconds left in the game. This ended up being the winning play in this strange, strange game that featured a number of late turnovers and one of the most dumbfounding referee decisions I’ve ever seen on a jump-ball with just seconds left in the game. Anyway, yeah, terrific work from the big man with the goggles.

Kevin Love: 7 Pts (3-14 FG, 1-2 3PT,), 19 Reb (8 Off), 1 Ast, 1 Blk, 1 TO, 2 PF in 33 mins.

It’s as if he was honouring his coach, Kurt Rambis, who received his championship ring last night for his work as an assistant to Phil Jackson last year. Yes, those 8 offensive rebounds and those 11 missed field goals are related, but you still have to appreciate Kevin’s effort. I really dig it when hustle guys are also skill guys, and this is certainly the case with Kevin Love. He is not only an elite rebounder and energy guy, but he is one of the best passing big men in the league and boasts legitimate 3-point range. The Wolves might not win many games, but they’re worth watching to see him and Jefferson down low. Oh, and that Jonny Flynn guy too.

Ramon Sessions: 15 Pts (7-9 FG, 1-2 3PT), 5 Ast, 1 Stl, 4 TO, 4 PF in 22 mins.

You know the story. He should play more. He was remarkable yesterday. One of his two misses was a heave at the end of the third quarter. Yet, still, 22 minutes. Finally, Damien Wilkins was limited to just 9 minutes on the court, but Rambis handed out 22, 25, and 17 minutes to Aleksander Pavlovic, Corey Brewer, and Wayne Ellington respectively. Nothing against those guys, really, but Sessions is far superior. And yes, he can play with Flynn. Kinda. He can play better with Flynn than those guys can, and that’s the point. I’m going to keep tracking his minutes and his production in this space, with the hope that soon I’ll be talking about 20-point, 12 assist, 34 minute efforts from this talented young guard.

Kobe Bryant: 20 Pts (8-18 FG, 1-3 3PT, 3-4 FT), 5 Reb, 5 Ast, 1 Blk, 1 Stl, 4 TO, 2 PF in 24 mins.

The numbers aren’t special for Bryant, but he got them with a fractured index finger on his right hand. He hurt himself in the first quarter, played through it for a bit, got X-rayed, and returned in the second half with a splint on his finger. Since he is the most skilled player on the planet, it didn’t slow him down much. He just used his left hand, because he’s basically ambidextrous. You remember that pass to Shannon Brown? Yeah, the majority of his passes were left-handed. As were his shots around the basket. There is only one Kobe.

Pau Gasol: 17 Pts (8-14 FG, 1-1 FT), 20 Reb (8 Off), 7 Ast, 1 Blk, 1 Stl, 5 TO, 2 PF in 38 mins.

With Kobe limited (sorta), Pau dominated. 17/20/7? Those are Hakeem numbers. And you shouldn’t be surprised. He may act like a second-banana alongside Kobe, but Gasol is a truly elite big man. With him operating at full strength, the Lakers seem unstoppable. I’m really hoping that Orlando gets their D sorted out, the Celtics find a way to stay healthy, and the Spurs and Nuggets get consistent, because I fear that the Lakers will just roll through the competition all year, including the playoffs.

Quoted

“It’s not disheartening, they beat us. You’re going to get beat. Sometimes teams are better than you. They’re better than us. They smoked us once and they beat us again today.” – Chris Bosh

“Is Robin Lopez a twin brother of Brook Lopez or Anderson Varejao?” – Jeff Van Gundy, in the 2nd quarter of the Suns/Magic game.

Tweeted

@stackmack: Hawks bench is 12-for-13 from the floor.

Moments later…

@stackmack: Make that 13-for-14..

@ShamSports: Bulls and Warriors at an 87-87 tie with 31 seconds left. Warriors about 45 points below their season average. Bulls right at theirs.

@HowardBeckNYT: Knicks have won 4 straight — longest winning streak since Jan. 2006 (six straight under Larry Brown)

To Watch

Dunk of the year candidate – Corey Brewer on Derek Fisher:

To Listen

Episode 35 of The Chronicles Of Crotty

Podcast Paroxysm featuring Matt From Blog-A-Bull.

David Sherman/Getty Images

Everyone expected this to be a crappy draft class, but everyone was wrong. Plenty of rookies have impressed in the early part of the season. Here are some of my favourites, along with some advanced stats that I hope you’re already familiar with, but might be completely meaningless given the small sample size we’re dealing with here. Apologies to Terrence Williams, Austin Daye, Taj Gibson, and a few others who may be deserving – it’s early, I’ll get to you guys eventually.

Brandon Jennings

5 games: 21.0 PTS/36, 50.2 TS%, 7.5 TRB%, 27.7 AST%, 16.3 PER.

Admit it, you didn’t think it’d happen so fast. You probably thought “yeah, the kid is talented, but he’s a year or two away from being an impact guy.” Hell, you might have even thought he was a punk after he came under a bit of fire in the media this summer. Well, now you know. Jennings has been arguably the league’s best rookie so far and deserves a ton of credit for Milwaukee’s strong start. The mainstream media has done a complete 180 on him, praising Brandon for his work ethic, the way he handled himself in Rome last season, and the maturity he’s shown on the court this season. He deserves all of this, and I think he deserves a re-evaluation of the “controversial” stuff he said to Joe Budden in the summer. Here’s what he said:

-Ramon Sessions isn’t coming back to Milwaukee, as the team has to pay Charlie V.
-Luke Ridnour will become the Bucks’ backup point guard.
-Ricky Rubio doesn’t scare him.
-Scott Skiles is tough, but there must be a reason the coach liked him.
-The Knicks should have taken him, as Duhon isn’t going to get it done.

Not so crazy now, is it? Brandon’s only error was saying that the Bucks were going to spend money on Charlie Villanueva this summer. Instead, they have Hakim Warrick, Ersan Ilyasova, and Kurt Thomas playing his minutes. Can’t really argue with this, as none of them make close to what Charlie is making and, even though he is a skilled scorer, I doubt Jennings’s team would be leading the league in defensive efficiency if he was still starting at the 4. Perhaps this rookie is able to see plays develop before they happen because he can actually see the future.

DeJuan Blair

6 games: 14.5 PTS/36, 60.3 TS%, 18.0 ORB%, 30.9 DRB%, 24.3 TRB%, 15.8 TOV%, 19.3 PER.

Everyone saw this coming, except almost every GM in the NBA. Blair is a rare breed of rebounder, especially on the offensive end, who would have surely been a lottery pick if not for the ACL surgeries (yes, plural). He’s attacking the glass in San Antonio and this, along with his ability to score efficiently around the basket, will continue to make him a stat-geek darling even if his PER ends up dropping a bit. I was screaming at the TV as team after team passed on him on draft day, and when the Spurs scooped him up it seemed almost scripted. San Antonio’s been making the rest of the league look dumb consistently for a decade. Speaking of stat-geeks, it’s long been known in their circles that rebounding is a skill that can be projected fairly accurately from college to the NBA. It’s also long been known that rebounding is a big part of winning basketball games. Still, he fell to #37. Ugh.

Tyreke Evans/Omri Casspi

Evans: 7 games: 17.6 PTS/36, 49.4 TS%, 6.6 TRB%, 19.6 AST%, 11.1 TOV%, 15.7 PER.
Casspi: 7 games: 15.5 PTS/36, 60.1 TS%, 8.9 TRB%, 2.2 BLK%, 14.2 TOV%, 17.1 PER.

Evans’s stats seem a bit crap because he struggled in his first few games, but no one sensible jumped off the bandwagon. It’s been clear from the start that he would be able to create his own shot and get to the hole in the NBA. Kings fans have to be distraught that Kevin Martin is hurt, but there’s a silver lining: Tyreke will get to play pretty much exclusively at his natural position and he’ll become the #1 scoring option (where he’s already had a 32-point effort). It’s always good to see your young guys get an opportunity to show what they can do, especially on a rebuilding team. Luckily for Kings fans, who will not see their club get a ton of wins this year (I’m trying to be nice here), they have more than one exciting young rook who should see major floor time. Casspi has proven to be an efficient scorer, a capable defender, and a major nuisance for opposing teams. He hustles, he’s physical, and he seems like a keeper (despite what Stephen Jackson says). I tried to make a trade to get him on my fantasy team yesterday, but couldn’t get it done. The reason his owner gave me? You can’t let go of a guy who’s that much fun to root for. Yep.

DeMar DeRozan

7 games: 9.2 PTS/36. 50.7 TS%. 9.2 RB%. 9.1 AST%. 3.6 BLK%. 11.0 TOV%, 11.9 PER.

Yeah, yeah, yeah. The stats aren’t impressive. But we knew he was a project, right? He’s 20 years old. Here’s the impressive thing, though: he doesn’t seem like a 20 year old out there. When I think of “projects”, especially the athletic types, I think of guys who drive coaches crazy. I think of ill-advised jumpers, stupid fouls, and botched rotations, interspersed with occasional “wow” plays. That’s not DeMar. This kid is starting at the two because he doesn’t force anything, rarely makes costly mistakes, isn’t afraid of contact, and picks his spots. He’s not yet close to being the shut-down defender the Raptors hope he will become, but he hasn’t embarrassed himself on that end thus far (although he was a small part of a shameful defensive performance against the Spurs last night). Raptors fans, myself included, are comfortable with him on the court right now and excited about his potential.

Jonny Flynn

8 games: 19.0 PTS/36, 58.1 TS%, 5.9 TRB%, 21.1 AST%, 21.3 TOV%, 16.9 PER.

Those numbers are nothing to sneeze at, although obviously you want the turnovers to go way down. Give the kid time, though, and that’ll take care of itself. Full disclosure: I haven’t seen enough of the Wolves yet to get a proper handle on Flynn at this level. I know from watching him in college that he’s tenacious, quick as hell, can break people down, and has elite athleticism, but I’ve only seen him in NBA action in a 40-point blowout. It’s hard for me to compare him to a guy like Brandon Jennings at this point – Flynn is playing in a modified triangle, with a rebuilding team that has no quality wings and been dealing with injuries to its two quality bigs, while Jennings has been afforded the opportunity to be a playmaker in a more traditional offense on a team that has its sights set on a playoff berth. Still, I felt Flynn was a sure thing before this draft and haven’t heard/seen anything that suggests otherwise. The fact he’s relegated Ramon Sessions to backup duty has to be a good sign.

Stephen Curry

6 games: 10.6 PTS/36, 44.5 (!) 3P%, 4.6 TRB%, 24.4 AST%, 19.9 TOV%, 10.5 PER.

Chris Paul was right. Steph can play the point. His father was one of the best pure shooters the game has ever seen and, watching Steph at Davidson, we knew he’d inherited this skill. What we didn’t know for sure, though, with the way he was forced to carry the team’s offense and deal with triple teams most nights, was that he could create for others so well. On a team full of scorers, he stands out as a guy who cares about drawing defenders and finding the open man, a guy who’s willing to distribute the ball. The Warriors are fucked right now, but everybody loves him. Even Monta Ellis has praised him, despite the fact he was spot-on when he said they couldn’t share the backcourt without getting abused on the defensive end. I’m beyond sick of Don Nelson, but I can’t stop tuning in to watch this team now that they have approximately 1000 players I love to watch.

Marcus Thornton/Darren Collison

Stats omitted because they’ve been stapled to the bench.

They’re the two best players in the NBA! Okay, perhaps that’s going a little far, but Lil Buckets and Lil Dimes can play. They don’t deserve to be buried on the bench behind Bobby and Devin Brown (despite what Devin did last night). New Orleans actually made fine picks in the draft this year and it’s frustrating as hell to watch them sit on the bench while 1s and 2s not named Chris Paul brick jumper after jumper. I thought Collison could be a huge sleeper, with his intelligence and his ability to play both ends of the floor, and was thrilled on draft night when the Hornets had found a proper backup for Paul. He can still be that guy, if Byron Scott lets it happen. Thornton, on the other hand, was a surprise to me. He put his sweet stroke on display in pre-season and deserves more opportunities now that the regular season has started. He’ll sometimes have bad shooting nights (like last night), but should we really be deprived of getting to see what he can do because the 2009-2010 versions of D. Brown, Posey, and Mo Pete want to be out there? Only if you don’t want Hornets fans to smile.

Ty Lawson

7 games: 18.3 PTS/36, 64.8 TS%, 5.9 TRB%, 21.8 AST%, 11.5 TOV%, 21.2 PER.

Another fucking point guard? Yes! And I’m not apologizing for this. We’ve got a solid group of point guards in this draft class and I’m not even mentioning Jrue Holiday, Jeff Teague, or Rodrigue Beaubois in this thing. Anyway, the Nugs knew that advanced stats revealed Lawson to be an absolute stud in college. Plus, we knew just by watching him that this NCAA champion is more than capable of running an offense as well as getting his own shot. His ability to get in the lane translates perfectly to today’s NBA. He’s immediately become one of the best backup point guards in the league, picking up the pace as soon as he enters games and becoming a real problem for opposing teams that have a ton of other problems to deal with when facing Denver. He’s even been used in tandem with Chauncey Billups, which makes me incredibly happy for reasons I shouldn’t have to explain. The rich got richer, here.

Chase Budinger

5 games: 22.4 PTS/36, 62.1 TS%, 8.9 TRB%, 12.9 AST%, 10.5 TOV%, 21 PER.

I didn’t think Budinger would be much of an NBA player, but when the Rockets drafted him, I kept my mouth shut until I saw him play at this level. When I did, I realized for the 947241328th time that Daryl Morey is a lot smarter than me. The 44th pick in this year’s draft is doing what Joe Alexander was supposed to do after the Bucks selected him 8th last year. Already, he’s demonstrated his ability to hit shots, make great passes, play more-than-competent defense, and, um, not at all seem like a rookie. He fits perfectly on this Rockets team that is devoid of All-Stars but full of guys who do the little things correctly. Methinks the fact that his stock dropped so dramatically over the course of his college career was actually good for him, keeping him focused on improving his fundamentals and NBA skills rather than relying on his leaping ability. This isn’t the white Gerald Green, people. I just wish the guys who do the ratings for NBA 2K10 would figure that out soon.

James Harden

6 games: 11.9 PTS/36, 43.3 TS%, 33.5 (!) AST%, 8.6 TRB%, 5.3 TOV%, 14.7 PER.

Possessing the best rookie beard I can remember and a sweet shooting stroke, Harden has fit right in with the young Thunder squad. Anyone who knows me is aware of my affinity for his team, despite the indefensible bullshit that led to its existence. He’s coming off the bench behind defensive stopper Thabo Sefolosha and, admittedly, he hasn’t put up fantastic numbers (besides those assists) at this point. I see greatness (or at least very goodness) in him, though, and he’s an absolutely perfect fit with this team. I know I wasn’t the only one who dreamed of Ricky Rubio playing alongside Kevin Durant, but with Westbrook averaging over 8 assists a game and Harden seeming like an ideal guy to knock down shots against defenses focused on his explosive teammates, it’s hard to argue against Sam Presti on this one.