Welcome to the LOCKER ROOM…….This is a place in which visitors can freely express their thoughts on anything and everything related to the game on the hardcourt or the concrete, NBA, FIBA, NCAA, CIS, CCAA, BC HIGH SCHOOL or anything in between. Remember to keep it clean!
With the NBA season off and running like the fine tuned machine that Mr. Stern likes it to be, my attention has turned to the non-pay to play (depending on what school you go to and your level of talent in the topsy-turvy world of NCAA allegations) scene. While I won’t dissect every squad in the top 25, I will touch on my favs and rant on my not so fav (Duke Bluedevils), and throw in my thoughts on the Maple Leaf raised players running the game down south. Anyone else notice that there is only one Pac 10 team in the top 25 early this season? Just think 4 1/2 months from now, it will be March Madness, the greatest three weeks of hoops bar none! My early picks for the FINAL FOUR: Kansas, Michigan State, Kentucky, UDub (bracket fans know you have to have an underdog!).
1 Kansas
2 Michigan State
3 Texas
4 Villanova
5 Kentucky- Coach Cal jumped ship from Memphis and took his crew of recruits with him to Lexington, helping push the ‘Cats to the top five. Led by all world point god John Wall, the Wildcats feature a nasty triangle with Pat Paterson running the wing and DeMarcus Cousins holding down the paint.
6 Purdue
7 Duke – I HATE DUKE……..VIDEO NOT SAFE FOR THE LIL BLUEDEVIL FAN IN YOUR HOUSE
8 West Virginia
9 Tennessee
10 Syracuse
11 North Carolina
12 Butler
13 Connecticut
14 Washington- The backcourt of Isiah Thomas and Abdul Gaddy is bound to drive opponents crazy as these two take turns pushing the tempo for the Huskies. Quincy Pondexter has posted some nasty stats in his last three games, hitting three straight double doubles, including a 30 point, 15 board effort against San Jose State.
15 Michigan- Yes folks, the boys in yellow and blue are back in the top 25! With Manny Harris running the show, including hitting the second triple double in school history
16 Louisville
17 Ohio State
18 Georgetown – Super soph Greg Monroe leads the Hoyas after many thought he would have entered last years NBA draft. In my opinion the decision to stay will only help Monroe as in the games that I followed the Hoyas he did not give me the impression that he was ready to handle the NBA big men
19 Clemson
20 Illinois
21 Maryland
22 Minnesota
23 Notre Dame
24 Vanderbilt
25 Oklahoma
25B Gonzaga – The Bulldogs should find themselves in the top 25 pretty quickly. This past week they captured their first Maui Invitational title on their third attempt in an overtime affair against the much heralded Lance Stephenson and the Cincy Bearcats. With BC big man and starting pivot, Rob Sacre being a prominent figure for the ‘Zags early in the season averaging 14ppg, rookies Bol Kong and Kelly Olynyk have found successes despite struggling to find minutes early in their rookie seasons.
November 16th
For some reason I have never really enjoyed watching teams from the Eastern Conference. I don’t know if is because the Lakers rivals while I grew up where the Pistons and Celtics, or if it was mostly because the teams played a slow down style of ball that was just not appealing. However things have changed over the past couple of years, as the “Beasts from the East” are not longer playing smash mouth basketball, but rather matching up with their own brand up fast break basketball. This season, I made it a point to try and support and enjoy at least one Eastern Conference squad, and after a lot of debating I finally selected a team which may surprise some. I could have gone with the popular choice with the Magic (actually I do like them), and of course I had to ix nay Boston, Cleveland and Detroit…….so after all was said and done, my pick in the East is the Atlanta Hawks. Why you ask? Well it certainly has nothing to do with Bibby’s playschool tattoos, but rather a strong starting five at all spots, along with some nice play coming off the bench with the additions of Jamal Crawford, Mo Evans and a man named Zaza (pretty much just for the name alone, nothing to do with his game). Time to break down the top eight in the east
1st) Orlando – They got to the top of the mountain last year, only to get kicked off by Kobe and company. Yes they lost Hedo and Rafer and Courtney Lee but with the incoming crew including Vince and Brandon Bass, they haven’t fallen off that much once they get the chemistry right. Even though VC’s game has fallen off a bit over the last couple of years from were it was, just by name and history alone, opposing teams would probably fear him more than they did Turk.
2nd) Boston – Now that KG is finally healthy we don’t have to see him “mean muggin” on the bench night in and night out. Rondo has proven himself to be a legit starter and has improved his once broken jumper even if only slightly. Rashweed joins his draft class mate with hopes of capturing one title before heading to greener pastures. This team isn’t made with thoughts of the future, but rather a win now approach with KG and Sheed playing their in their 14th season, Ray is 13th and PP his 11th. It is unfortunate that I still cannot bring myself to support the successes of KG and Ray, two of my favorite players, as they continue to be employed in Boston.
3rd) Atlanta – I’m probably going to get laughed at and any credibility that I am trying to build up as a writer has probably gone out the window on this pick, but as said above, I think that they have a well rounded starting five and talent in varying degrees coming off the pine. Hopefully Bibby has a playoff bonus incentive in his contract so he can get that ink properly taken care of. It will finally be nice to see Jamal get an opportunity to play in June.
4th) Cleveland – I don’t want to get started on my theory that Mr. James will join Sir Charles, Reggie, Stockton/Malone and Pat as one of the greats to never win a ring just yet, I will save that for another rainy night. Adding Shaq is supposed to help battle DH12 and the feared Kendrick Perkins in the playoffs, but it didnt work last year for Phoenix, what makes Cleveland think it will work when Perkins, Horford, or Dwight outrun the MDE?
5th) Chicago – After a great battle with Boston in the first round last year, the hopes are high in Chi-town, however out of the gate, things do not look so good. Letting Ben Gordon sign with Detroit will come back to hurt the Bulls. Sure he may be one dimensional, but that one dimension (scoring!) is much needed on this squad. I don’t know if John Salmons is the answer and the loss of Ty Thomas for about two months will certainly have an impact.
6th) Miami – After an ugly offseason with B-easy heading to Houston to hang with John Lucas, the hopes for improvement of last years 43-39 record (5th in the east and not even top nine in the west) looked to shatter. However, the start of the season has brought a new level of maturity for the second year star. While I don’t see Udonis Haslem, JO or Joel Anthony striking fear into the hearts of the Eastern big men, one Mr. Dwyane Wade certainly has no problem showing them how it is done
7th) Toronto – The JO / Marion experiment failed, but hopefully Euroball will succeed. Adding Hedo to the mix should help the Raps more than Marion did, as Turk is able to create for himself. It took a couple of years, but it appears that they finally have found a solid pg in Jarrett Jack to back up Jose and also slide into the 2 spot should the team want to go small. Anyone else notice that since Bosh decided to let his hair go, so did the Raps level of success? Derozen is going to need a while to find success, but this one should be a keeper, and if Bosh decides to leave, I have a feeling that he will be the next in line to take over the “star” role.
8th) Philadelphia – The loss of Dr. Dre certainly hurts the Sixers, as it leaves Lou Williams and Jrue Holiday manning the point, something that I don’t think either are ready for quite yet. The Elton Brand experiment has failed horribly, but the improvement of Iggy and Thad Young on the wings and Speights in the post should be enough to get this team the unfortunate eight seed and a first round exit. Though if the Sixers somehow manage to meet up with the Cavs in the playoffs, I hope to see much more of this (assuming Bron doesn’t confiscate the tapes)
HONORABLE MENTION – Both the Wiz and Pistons have the ability to either stink it up or be players in the post season. Looking at their lineups and additions this season, there is no reason why they should not crack the top eight in the East, but just barely replacing the Raps or 76′ers. The one difference between adding BG to the Pistons roster where the Iverson experiment failed is that Gordon has accepted the role of coming off the bench, knowing that he will be playing in the crunch time.
November 6th
It is just over two weeks into the NBA and already the landscape has settled into what many have predicted. The Purple and Gold, C’s and Magic are sitting on top of their respective divisions and conferences despite slight alterations to last years rosters for good or bad. However Madame Cleo may not have foreseen the early struggles by the Cavs and Spurs who are treading around the .500 mark, including Bron Bron dropping his first two games. Now not to crash the party, as I know I’m dropping my predictions and thoughts a little late in the game, but like AI in Memphis, I will look to make an immediate impact and hope to get into the flow of things in the next week or two. For now I bring you my thoughts on the Western Division and the four who should, the four who could and the ones that just have no hope in hell of achieving anything of merit.
1) LA LAKERS – So much has been written about the primary tenants of the Staples Centre (proven by the fact that the Clippers had to play on the Lakers floor during a Clippers preseason home game double header), from their off season addition of Ron Artest to the fact that the “Stache” has a ring while many legends do not. I for one am still on the fence about the whole Ariza/Artest situation, as I just dont think that Ron Ron fits the team as well as Ariza did. While Artest has (or had) the physical talents, there is something to be said for chemistry and mental stability. The early season injury to Pau will give some of the bench mob a chance to prove their worth.
2 and 2B) DENVER / PORTLAND – The maturity of Melo and the growth of the young Blazers squad leaves me torn as to which squad will claim the second seed in the West. With the addition of Ty Lawson to the Nugs backcourt, the boys in the Mile High can slide Billups over to the 2 spot if needed. The loss of L. Kleiza and the suspension to JR Smith for the first 10 games was thought to hamper the early season record, but to date sitting at 5-1 has proven otherwise. The Blazers (sadly the closest team to Vancouver) made a truck load of offseason transactions that will take some time to mesh, but I can see things settling down around Christmas that will allow the boys in the Rose Garden to flurish towards the end of the season.
4th) SAN ANTONIO - Like most of the Western squads, the Spurs will need some time to mesh with their offseason additions, RJeff and McDyess. However if this squad remains healthy a crew of Duncan, Parker and Ginobliiiiiiiii (in my best Barkley impersonation) looks to be in good for one last run at a ring before hitting the rebuilding path. While watching the Spurs play has traditionally been as exciting as watching astroturf grow, you gotta give some love to Jefferson for this nasty bit against the Blazers this past week.
5th) PHOENIX – The loss of Shaq is actually a positive for the Nash led crew. As much as the M.D.E. tried to keep up with the tempo and posted some of his nicest numbers in recent years, he was not the right fit for this squad. One might not think that replacing a four time champ with multiple individual awards with journeyman Channing Frye would provide anything positive for the Suns, but Frye’s ability to step beyond the three has opened up the paint for STAT to operate, something he was unable to do with the Diesel. Defense is still somewhat of a foreign language for this squad, but at least the run and fun will be back, and so will a middle of the pack return to the playoff rankings.
6th) DALLAS – Hopefully the Matrix will once again find the form that he had three seasons ago in Phoenix, once again running with an uptempo point guard. While the loss of Josh Howard hurts the depth, one has to think that JKidd and the Diggler, like the Spurs will make one final push for the playoffs before heading into retirement.
7th) HOUSTON – Sure they lost Yao and TMac, but the Rockets are still part of the Texas triangle and will be the blue collar team that will fight to get into the playoffs. Sadly even though McGrady changed his jersey to 3, his back woes are still the same as when he wore number 1. Ariza will continue to grow, regardless of the pressure placed upon him to produce, and Aaron Brooks will show that last year was not a fluke. Anyone else notice that I have the two Duke alum sitting at the bottom of the list?
8th) UTAH – Yes they have Deron, AK47, and Paul Millsap, but they also have Carlo Boozer, and for that reason I drop them to 8th…….and they are lucky not to be on the outside looking in. Boozer has done nothing but look out for himself and his own best interest (can someone say Derrick Coleman and Tim Thomas).
HONORABLE MENTION – The Seattle Sonics (read OKC THUNDER) are the best of the rest but here is hoping that the Emerald City curse continues to haunt them at least for another year……kind of like the Vancity curse that is slowly wearing off the crew in Memphis.
October 22nd
With the NBA regular schedule just days away, the Suns and Blazers graced GM Place with their presence in their final pre-season tilt. Before the LOCKER ROOM gets into the season preview for the entire league, check out the season preview from these two squads as the Blazers dropped the Suns and BC boy Steve Nash.
September 9th
Where has the summer gone? It seemed like only a short while ago that the sunny hoops season tipped off with the Dolphin Basketball Classic, followed by the first annual Kitsfest tournament and the 5th Anniversary of HOOPFEST. While the pleasurable aches and pains healed, one might think that this gym rat had more than enough of the game to fill his plate, however I was pleased to announce my foray into the media side of the sport, by accepting a position as the official correspondent for the Vancouver hoops scene for BOUNCE Magazines website. Please feel welcome to check out my articles along with the other great writers at BOUNCE.
With the fall months coming up quickly, the WCBL will tip off its twelfth season on Oct 18th. For more information head to the league page on the Centrecourt site. Just about two weeks after the WCBL action hits the court, the NBA gets underway with a lot of changes and anticipation. After weeks of waiting, AI finally inked the papers to suit up as a member of the Grizzlies! Will he and ZBo help Conley, Mayo and Rudy join the top eight in the west, or will they cramp their stats and growth by selfishly looking to get their own?
In the next few weeks check back as I drop a full overview of the upcoming NBA and NCAA seasons along with a piece on the West Coast Classic Tournament on Bouncemag.com!
July 20th, 2009
The middle of July only means one thing in the West Coast hoop circles……..The Annual Dolphin Classic Tournament! Growing up in Richmond there were two things that you did as a young basketball hopeful. One, you went to a Mel Davis basketball camp, and the other was spending any free moment at Dolphin Park working on your skills. While days of seeing the park filled with youthful ballers and slurpees or screamers from Danny’s Market on a consistent basis are few and far between, not to mention the overhanging tree on the west end of the court and the water hose at the May’s house that kept players refreshed for years on end, the tournament has found a new home at Thompson CC, the love for the event itself has not been affected. No matter who you are or what you have going on, the one thing that needs to be marked on your calendar each year if you have any dedication to the game is the Dolphin Classic!
With familiar faces on and off the court, the 24th Annual Tournament featured what might be the final appearance from the “Home Team”, a crew of players from the Emerald City, lead by Coach Ed Haskins. Going out as only an athelte(team) should, the Home Team held hopes off a X-Falcon “three-peat”, while capturing their fourth championship in six years. With X-Falcon Casey Archibald and Home Team Al Snow both dropping an offensive display that kept the crowd hot, the championship game continued to hold the buzz that was created from the dunk contest held prior to tip off. After a great tribute to Aaron Chan, the battle between Henry Bekkering and Kevin Kemp proved to be one for the ages. While Bekkering threw down over a quartet of kids, it was Kemp who blew away the crowd with an unbelivable title clenching dunk that shut down the competition.
The great thing about the Dolphin Classic is that there is no special recipe for it, other than dedication and hard work by the members of the Dolphin Committee and the countless volunteers that offered their assistance leading up to the tournament and over the course of the weekend. There is no prize money to entice players, no big corporate sponsor ads, tv spots or street agents to bankroll a team. There are those out there who say they play for the love of the game and are ready to play 24/7, but are rarely around when it comes time to step up, and then there are those who are willing to do anything and everything in order to be part of a true classic event. A big shout out to Bira, Bruce, TJ, Tony, Gurj and everyone at Thompson CC for putting on an outstanding event. Time to hit the ice bags and get ready to roll for the 25th Anniversary!
July 10th, 2009
WOW! The NBA offseason has seen more changes than a Posh Spice shopping spree! With so many new faces in new places, the 2009-10 season is setting up to be one of the most exciting story filled seasons in recent history. The big question though……..is change always better?
Will Hedo actually help Toronto get back into the playoff hunt and will young rookie Demar Derozan be able to get through the season without being refferred to as the next Vince? Will the M.D.E (or BIG whatever he is gonna be in Cleveland) be able to “Win a ring for the King” as he claims? Looking back over the course of Shaq’s career, dude has had some pretty sweet teammates (Penny…oh what could have been, Kobe, Wade, Nash and now Bron). Sitting back and looking at it, the EAST top three is going to be NUTZ next season. While I dont agree with moving Lee, Rafer and Battie for Vince, the newest addtion of Brandon Bass helps the Magic in the front court, along with a young potential in Ryan Anderson. The Celtics on paper got better with the addition of Rashweed Wallace to back up KG or play in the post beside him, but one has to think that Beantown has a two year window to claim another title. Can you believe that KG is a 14 year vet……DAMM. Maybe it’s just me, but I still have hopes of seeing one more year of Showbiz and KG before Steph catches the boat to the Euroleague or appears at the Langley Events Centre to battle the IBL Vancouver Titans! Speaking of fallen superstars, does Gilbert still have any shine in Washington after sitting out for almost two seasons? Two time Dolphin Classic Alum Jamal Crawford finally got outta Nelliworld and has landed in what should be a good situation with the ATL Hawks. Always had love for JC since his days at Michigan.
Touching on the WEST for a minute, I’m actually a bit torn on the addition of Ron Ron to the purple and gold….I liked Ariza, dude was coming into his own on both ends of the court and was basically a young Artest without the complex behaviour. As much as I like Fish, I hope that Uncle Phil will give Farmar and Brown some more burn, it was killing me watching Fish get eatten up in the playoffs, while JF and SB found success. The Spurs look to be on a mission to get the Timbot one more ring, but it is an even calendar year, so the Spurs shouldnt win. The loss of the mighty Yao makes the Rockets a lottery bound club, while their Texas neighbours addition of the Matrix pushes them back into the upper levels of the Western Conference. Will Marion return to his All-Star form now that he is playing with another elite PG in Kidd? As much as I bleed purple and gold….and white on Sunday….I like where the Nuggets and Blazers are going with their respective squads, both will be nasty this year.
Some food for thought……isn’t it unfortunate to see Iverson now in the same situation that Marbury faced the last two years? Dont get me wrong, AI needs to take a look at himself and realize that he had a great thirteen year run as a game changing pg, but there is nothing wrong with coming off the pine as a sixth man to help get the one thing that has eluded him through his career. HOW THE HELL DOES SIDESHOW BOB GET 50 MIL for averaging 6pts and 6rebs, HOLY CRAP! Seriously, how many out there think they could get three baskets and six boards a game in about twenty five minutes of playing time alongside Bron and Mo Williams.
