Tag: LeBron James (Page 71 of 85)

      Predicting the 2009 NBA year-end awards

      April 14, 2009 /

      The end of the NBA season is almost upon us, so it’s time to hand out a few year-end awards.

      Rookie of the Year
      Early on, this was a battle between Derrick Rose and O.J. Mayo, but a few other players – namely, Russell Westbrook, Brook Lopez, Kevin Love and Marc Gasol – played their way into the conversation over the course of the season. Still, this award should go to Rose, who was immediately asked to run the Bulls and handled the job admirably. He averaged almost 17 points per game to go with six assists and shot almost 48% from the field. More importantly, he never hit the rookie wall, and his fine play in April (19.0 ppg, 6.8 apg, 55% shooting) helped Chicago sneak into the playoffs. The rest of these guys are heading home for the summer.
      My choice: Rose
      My prediction: Rose

      Most Improved
      This is always a tough one. Usually, it goes to a player that entered the league without a lot of pomp and circumstance (i.e. they were non-lottery picks) that makes the jump from role player or starter to star or superstar. The last eight winners are: Hedo Turkoglu (16th pick), Monta Ellis (40th), Boris Diaw (21st), Bobby Simmons (42nd), Zach Randolph (19th), Gilbert Arenas (31st), Jermaine O’Neal (17th) and Tracy McGrady (9th). A few of the names being bandied about are Devin Harris (5th), Danny Granger (17th), Kevin Durant (2nd), Nene (7th), Thaddeus Young (12th), Brandon Roy (6th) and Roger Mason (31st). Durant, Harris, Roy, Young and Nene all came into the league as lottery picks, a fact that works against them in this case. They’ve all made leaps this season, though I think everyone was expecting Durant, Harris, Roy and Young to make those jumps. Nene is more of a comeback player than an MIP. He’s been battling injuries his entire career, so the fact that he’s playing well while healthy is no surprise. The last few winners indicate that the MIP usually goes to a player who makes an unexpected leap, so I think it will go to Danny Granger, though his late season run in 2007-08 works against him. He averaged 22.4 points in March of ’08, and 24.8 ppg in April of ’08, so if you dig into the numbers a little, his play this season isn’t as big of a surprise. Still, I don’t think that he had the same expectations as Durant, Harris and Roy, so I think he’s our guy. Mason might be the darkhorse.
      My choice: Granger
      My prediction: Granger

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      NBA

      Cavs blow out C’s for 39th home win

      April 13, 2009 /

      LeBron posted 29 points (including 5 of 8 from long range — take that, Bill Simmons), seven assists and four rebounds as the Cavs rolled over the Celtics, 107-76. They’re one win away from matching the 1985-86 Celtics for the best regular season home record in league history.

      Chris Sheridan comments on the state of the Celtics…

      The defending champs will be there when it counts, once they have Kevin Garnett back at 100 percent, right?

      Problem is, Boston coach Doc Rivers is keeping No. 5 under wraps until Wednesday night, meaning he’ll have seen Garnett play about 80 minutes of total floor time over the final 26 games to get himself prepared for the postseason.

      Or: The Orlando Magic are going to be a heckuva matchup for someone, especially the Cavs, with their deadly inside-outside game anchored by Dwight Howard and all those shooters. The problem with that one (aside from Jameer Nelson’s absence) is that the school of thought that produced those kinds of pronouncements underwent a curriculum change when Hedo Turkoglu’s ankle crumpled Saturday in East Rutherford, N.J. on the same night that Brook Lopez was outplaying Howard. This came one night after David Lee of the Knicks outplayed Howard, and the Magic’s dreams of the No. 2 seed began to die a quick death.

      Anyone want to buy into the premise that the Cavs might have their hands full if they meet up with the Chicago Bulls in the first round? That’s about the only pre-weekend thought that endures even a little.

      “The teams at the bottom, that’s where you have to look who’s surging,” Boston coach Doc Rivers said. “Chicago is playing really well, and if that’s who you have to face, so be it.”

      As good as the Cavs have played this season, it would have been nice to see LeBron and Co. seize the bragging rights in the Eastern Conference instead of having it handed to them on a platter. Sure, they still have to go out and win games, but what was shaping up as a really interesting Eastern Conference playoffs is looking more and more like the Cavs’ tuneup for the Lakers in the Finals. Kevin Garnett’s knee is bad, Jameer Nelson is out for the rest of the season with a shoulder injury and Hedo Turkoglu just sprained his ankle. Barring a semi-miraculous return for KG, I just don’t think there’s anyone in the East that can upend the Cavs right now.

      NBA, NBA Finals

      Correcting Bill Simmons, Part 4: Bill’s not-so-unique idea and more three-point talk

      March 31, 2009 /

      In Bill Simmons’ latest mailbag, he responds to a number of different reader questions. Most of his answers are fine, but a few are puzzling…

      There should be a section on eBay that allows the auctioning of enticing future bets. For instance, a few weeks before the NBA season, I placed $300 on 15-to-1 odds that Cleveland would win the 2009 NBA title. Those odds have dropped to 2-to-1. Not that I would (after all, Cleveland is going to win the 2009 NBA title), but shouldn’t I have the option to sell that $300 ticket on eBay? What if someone bid $1,200 on it (which would be a smart move because, again, Cleveland is going to win the NBA title) and I was guaranteed a $900 return on my investment? Should I take the money? This would be a fun Web site, you have to admit. And if eBay can’t do it, then why couldn’t the casinos themselves build a Web site that allows people to sell future tickets and get a second cut on the action? It all makes too much sense.

      Yeah…okay…this already exists — it’s called a “long-term market” and my favorite online sportsbook WSEX.com, has had them for at least five years now. Go to the site, hit “Pro Basketball” on the left, hit “Pro Championship” under “Long-Term Markets” on the main screen — there’s a long-term market where gamblers can buy and sell wagers on who will win the NBA championship. They have 1-pays (where only a share in the winner is worth something) and 4-pays (where shares in the winner, runner-up, and third and fourth place teams are worth something). You can buy and sell these shares throughout the year.

      How does a guy that calls himself “The Sports Guy” not know about this? Didn’t he hit up any of his colleagues/friends at ESPN in all the time that he has pondered this eBay idea of his?

      As of right…..now…..I’m not going to refer to Bill Simmons as “The Sports Guy” any longer. As far as I’m concerned, he has lost the right to have that nickname.

      And then there’s this doozy…

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      Humor, NBA

      Correcting Bill Simmons, Part 3: Bill is at it again

      March 23, 2009 /

      “The Sports Guy” is killing me. He’s at it again, harping on players that take too many three pointers even though they aren’t accurate from behind the stripe. I’ve already gone through this once, about a year ago, after Simmons slammed Tracy McGrady from shooting too many threes. Now, in his otherwise fine “Dumbleavy” diary/column, Bill’s targets are Baron Davis, Zach Randolph and…gulp…LeBron James.

      7:35: LeBron bricks a 3-pointer that leads to Thornton’s fast-break dunk. Clips by 17, timeout Cavs. Let the record show that (A) LeBron is a 32.5 percent career 3-point shooter, (B) he went 0-for-6 in this particular game and (C) he should be fined every time he takes one.

      6:54: Speaking of guys who should never shoot a 3, it’s Baron Davis! He just bricked one. If he told you that he’s a 32.3 percent career 3-point shooter and averaging 29.5 percent this season, then I told you that he takes five per game, would you believe me? You probably wouldn’t, right?

      4:35: Randolph (aka Z-Bo) sinks an open 3 that he never should have taken because he’s a career 28.9 long-distance shooter. Maybe we should make it like a driver’s license — if you dip under 35 percent through 250 career attempts, you’re suspended from shooting 3s for a year?

      Coaches live with guys shooting in the low 30’s from long range because…well…the shots are worth an extra point. It’s (almost) that simple.

      LeBron is shooting 33.1% from long range on the season. He’s shooting 53.6% from two-point range. For argument’s sake, let’s say that for 100 straight possessions, LeBron launches a three every time down the court. If his numbers bear out, he’s going to make 33 of them, scoring 99 points. That’s 0.99 points per possession. Now, let’s say he shoots a two-pointer for 100 straight possessions. He’s going to make 54 of them, so he’ll score 108 points on 100 possessions, or 1.08 points per possession.

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      NBA

      Will the Cavs revisit Shaq trade this offseason?

      March 10, 2009 /

      Obviously, it depends on how they fare in the playoffs, but if the Cavs fail to win a championship this year, and Shaq is still healthy and producing, they may revisit the trade that almost was.

      Phoenix looked ready to do it for the low, low, bargain price of Wally Szczerbiak and Sasha Pavlovic.

      However, instead of Szczerbiak, whose $13.5-million-a-year deal is expiring, the Cavaliers insisted the Suns take Ben Wallace, who has one more season at $14 million left.

      Oh, and Shaq, who’s still broadcasting his love for Phoenix, is saying privately he wants out, upset to the highest level of upsetivity, as he once said, at almost being traded, or the team’s return to running, or both.

      If Shaq were to end up in Cleveland next season, motivation wouldn’t be a problem. The main issues are his age (37) and his knees. Phoenix owner Rod Sarver is in a tough financial position, but a summer trade would require him to take on equal salary for the 2009-10 season (in the form of Ben Wallace and Sasha Pavlovic?), so he might as well hold onto Shaq if the big fella isn’t causing a ruckus. Cleveland’s best and cheapest shot at Shaq was the Szczerbiak-and-Pavlovic deal that apparently wasn’t good enough for the Cavs.

      Cleveland could revisit this trade in the summer, but since Shaq’s deal will be expiring next season, the Suns won’t be nearly as motivated to move him. They may ask for a young prospect and/or draft picks to make a deal work, and that’s a more expensive package than the one the Cavs just passed on.

      NBA, NBA Finals, Rumors & Gossip

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