The Trade That Was

The Hornets and the Thunder made a trade earlier this week involving Tyson Chandler (NOH) where the Hornets were to receive Joe Smith, Chris Wilcox, and the rights to center Devin Harden. It seems as though Chandler's stubborn toe, the one that has kept him off of the court for extended periods of time, is the reason that this trade will be rescinded. Chandler was noticeably surprised and I think that a lot of people are. If the Knicks can make a trade for Cuttino Mobley, who has since retired from the NBA due to a heart issue, what's the big issue over a little toe? Is this a buyer's remorse kind of deal? Either way, it looks as though the Hornets are getting bigger up front with the re-addition of their starting center.

Detroit's Answer

Well, Joe Dumars promises a shakeup and he has done that. Only a few games into the 2008-2009 NBA Season, the Pistons have made a blockbuster. The Pistons have traded Chauncey Billups, Antonio McDyess, and little used Cheikh Samb to Denver for Allen Iverson. This trade raises a lot of eyebrows. Let's weigh out the good and bad for each team.


Pistons

Good: They get a bonafide scorer, albeit on his last legs. They have a better team around Iverson than Iverson had when he took the Sixers all the way to the Finals under Larry Brown. The Pistons get this jump started early enough in the year that by the end of the year this team should mesh together and be pretty formidable in the East. With a defense behind him, AI may creep up that leader board in steals. AI is always a draw and he will be loved by the fans of Detroit as he was by the Philly fans. Maybe just maybe Dumars is positioning himself to bring in LeBron in a few years. AI's contract is $22M and it comes off the books at the end of the year.

Bad: They get a bonafide scorer, albeit on his last legs. AI has already come into this season a little banged up, but he is playing well so far. AI has never enjoyed playing team defense and may hurt the Pistons from that standpoint. How is he going to mesh with Rasheed, Tayshaun, and Rip? AI is a volume shooter/scorer, so how does this play with the team concept that the Pistons have built over the years.


Nuggets

Good: Finally the Nuggets have a true point guard that can get Melo the ball when and where he needs it. Someone who won't be concentrating on getting 'theirs'. This true point guard will also allow the Nuggets bigs to finally show what they can do without having to depend on getting their points from the scraps that AI, Melo, JR Smith, and Kleiza were throwing up. The Nuggets also get someone who can do more than spell defense. Maybe Billups' calming play and leadership can turn this team around. The best part is the Nuggets have someone who can get someone else a shot or make a clutch shot in a big game.

Bad: The Nuggets get another personality to go along with the several that they have. McDyess will add to the already deep lineup of bigs, but will he show up (he only wants to play for a Championship and we know the Nuggets don't qualify)?

Conclusion:

This is a calculated move by both teams. The Nuggets , in my opinion, have scorers and need a good point guard to get them the ball. They also get an extra big with Antonio McDyess (and Cheikh Samb). Detroit, well Dumars, gets to say that he did what he said he would do with the shakeup and he gets to clear some salary cap space if/when they let AI walk. The winner in this deal would have to be the Nuggets, but not by a large amount. We'll see how this works.

Who got the better deal, the Nuggets or the Pistons? Are you happy that AI is out of Denver?

NBA Recap 10-31-08

Only 3 games on the schedule last night, and all three were good.

Cleveland @ Charlotte - Yes, I will even admit that this game was good, although it was a blow out. The Cavs dominated the Bobcats from the tip and ran out to an early 17 point lead. LeBron James led the Cavs with a 22 pts, 9 rebs, 9 asts performance and he was sitting on the bench in the 4th. Daniel Gibson, the mini Hibachi, was on FIRE last night. getting 25 points in 31 minutes and he missed 4 free throws. The Bobcats looked horriawful. Between Okafor and May they had 9 points and 15 rebs. You're just not going to win many games with those types of numbers. Adam Morrison made a somewhat good impression off the bench going 4-9 for 9 points.

Houston @ Dallas - Who knew that it would take two games before Ron Artest was in the middle of something? The game was close most of the night and when Josh Howard fouled Yao Ming a little to hard, Ron Ron took exception. I think America was waiting to see if he was going to knock Howard out, but Ron came over and tried to calm things down between Howard and Yao. He received a technical foul for his work. (The only thing he did wrong was grab Howard's arm first, before trying to move the two away from each other). This probably incensed Artest a little because we all know he's playing for a new contract and doesn't need any black eyes. So Artest did what we knew he could do, he played ball and ended the game with 29 pts and 7 rebs and hit timely shots down the stretch to guarantee a Rockets win. Yao chipped in with 30 pts and 13 rebs, while Tracy McGrady had a sub par game with 16 pts, 5 rebs, and 7 asts. For Dallas Nowitzki (36 pts, 7 rebs) and Howard (28 pts, 11 rebs, 4 asts) both had great games but it wasn't enough.

New Orleans @ Phoenix - This is why you pay money for James Posey. Posey came in to seal the deal (along with Rasual Butler) on the Phoenix Suns. Posey (13 pts) and Butler (6 pts) hit some very clutch shots to go along with Chris Paul's almost triple double (21 pts, 8 rebs, 10 asts). After playing well a night earlier, I think we learned that the Suns are going to have to limit the Big Sensei's minutes in back to back games. The Suns just seemed to run out of gas on the offensive side of the ball, although Steve Nash (24 pts, 9 asts, 4 rebs) looked like he could possibly play another quarter.

NBA Recap 10-29-08

Several games on tonight and again, it's great to finally see the NBA in full swing. Let's get right to the games.


Toronto @ Philadelphia - While the Phillies were on their way to winning the World Series, the Sixers were stinking the joint up at the Wachovia Center. The Sixers didn't seem to worry about this game and they came out flat. They needed to get out and practice shooting with Brand (5-14), Iguodala (5-17), and Miller (6-16) not able to hit the broadside of a barn. The Raptors came out with their big guys blazing. Both Jermaine O'Neal (17 pts, 8 rebs, 4 asts) and Chris Bosh (27 pts, 11 rebs, 4 asts) showed up big for the Raptors. At least the Phillies won.

Atlanta @ Orlando - One of these teams was supposed to step up and show the rest of the world that they are for real, that last season's success wasn't just a blip on the radar. The team that stepped up wasn't the one that many had picked as the Hawks came out screaming. Joe Johnson got it going in the first quarter and finished with 25 points. The Hawks also got a monster game from Josh Smith (17 pts, 10 rebs, 4 stls, 5 blks) and a very unexpected 14 pts from Ronald Murray. The Magic were led by Dwight Howard with his own monster game (22pts, 15 rebs, 5 stls, 5 blks) but the Magic bench played a dissapearing act with only 11 points. Atlanta starts the season at 1-0 and they look like they are for real. Hopefully Bibby didn't hurt his hip too badly.


New Jersey @ Washington - Jarvis Hayes got a chance to play against his former team and was able to drop 14 points on them off the bench. Vince Carter chipped in 21 and Yi Jianlian helped with 17 points. The Wizards didn't look too interested and they also experienced a rough shooting night with Butler (3-11), Jamison (6-18), and Stevenson (5-13).


Miami @ New York - Is this the statement that D'Antoni wanted to make? All I have to say is Starbury got a DNP. Not one minute. Other than that, this was a decent game for the Knicks. They were led by Crawford (29 pts) and Zach Randolph (20 pts, 9 rebs), while they got all around production from the rest of the team. The Heat got their first look at Michael Beasley and he didn't impress going 4-14 for 9 points and 4 rebs. Wade had 26 pts and 9 rebs, while Udonis Haslem had an impressive 23 pts and 10 rebs. If both of these teams were actually good, I'd have a lot of positives to say, but this game proved very few things: 1) Neither of these teams can play defense 2) Niether team has a lot of size (that will play in the Knicks case) 3. This is what the bottom of the East is going to look like.

Indiana @ Detroit - This is Dumar's first game after not fulfilling his promise to remake this Piston's team. So far so good. The Pistons roared out to a lead and got good production from Tayshaun Prince (19 pts, 5 rebs, 3 asts) but tough sledding for the rest of the team. Indiana was led by Danny Granger who had a good scoring night (33 pts, 5 rebs) but the rest of the team didn't give much. Also a note, no Jamal Tinsley.

Sacramento @ Minnesota - Very good game. Both teams came to play and they both left it on the floor. Kevin Love had 12 pts and 9 rebs (off the bench) in his first game as a pro. Al Jefferson showed that he may end up saving McHale's job after the Garnett trade by turning in 21 pts and 10 rebs. The Kings were led by John Salmons (24 pts, 5 rebs, 8 asts), rookie Jason Thompson (18 pts and 10 rebs), and a Spencer Hawes (12 pts, 14 rebs, 6 blks) sighting. The Timberwolves escaped with a 2 point win.

Phoenix @ San Antonio - It looks like the Big Sensei found the fountain of youth, or this just happened to be the first game of the season. Shaq gave a 15 pts, 12 rebs performance. He also proved to be a little comical as the Spurs decided to Hack-A-Shaq from the tip (that was funny) and then later in the half. I watched this game and didn't see Stoudemire get the 22 pts and 8 rebs, that's scary. He actually looks interested in defense this year also. The Spurs were without the injured Manu Ginoboli, but Tim Duncan and Tony Parker (32 pts a piece) picked up the slack. Unfortunately, no one else did. The Spurs lost a close game down the stretch and I will go on record now saying that they can't wait for Manu to get back because TP can't play like this forever.

Milwaukee @ Oklahoma City - Maybe I was wrong about Charlie Vilanueva. After a lackluster game against the Bulls, he showed up and dropped 20 pts (along with Michael Redd and Richard Jefferson) to lead the Bucks to a win. This was a terrible home opener for the Thunder as none of them impressed. The Thunder were led by Chris Wilcox (15pts and 7 rebs).

Memphis @ Houston - This was the first game of Houston's Big Three (Artest, T-Mac, Yao). Yao (21 pts, 10 rebs), T-Mac (16 pts, 2 rebs, 5 asts, 3 stls) and Artest (16 pts, 3 rebs, 2 asts, 3 stls, 1 blk) each had their moments. The Grizzlies played pretty well, and lost this one late. They were led by Rudy Gay (20 pts, 9-22) and OJ Mayo played well in his pro debut (10pts, 5 rebs, 2 asts, 2 stls) although he was only 5-20 and 0-7 from 3 point land.

Denver @ Utah - This was a very close game right down to the end. The Nuggets actually played pretty well in this one. AI and Kenyon Martin both led the Nuggets with 18 points while JR Smith added 17 points. Ronnie Price got the start for the injured Deron Williams and he played horribly (6 pts, 3 rebs, 5 asts, 3 tos, and shot 1-9) while Carlos Boozer put the Jazz on hs shoulders (25 pts, 14 rebs) and carried them to this win.

New Orleans @ Golden State - Chris Paul is still the man. He got the winning layup late in the game (with 19.4 seconds left). Paul led the Hornets into Golden State with 21 pts, 11 asts, and 5 rebs. David West chipped in 24 pts and 7 rebs, while Tyson Chandler had 13 pts, 16 rebs, and 3 blks. Corey Maggette showed the Warriors that he can score with the best of them with an efficient 27 point outing (8-11 fg, 2-4 3ptrs, 9-10 free throws). He was helped by the ever present Stephen Jackson (26 pts, 3 rebs, 5 asts) and surprising Kelenna Azibuike off the bench (17 pts). Al Harrington did nothing to help his wish of being traded by turning in a clunker with his 5-17 shooting. This Golden State team can't wait for Game 31, and the return of Monta Ellis.

Los Angeles Lakers @ Los Angeles Clippers - This was supposed to be a Clippers home game and the return of the Baron to La La Land, but this turned out to be a roasting. The Clippers showed up and played the Lakers close for about 1 1/2 quarters and then it got ugly. The Lakers showed that they were the better and deeper team as 7 players ended up with double digit scoring. The Lakers were led by Kobe Bryant (16 pts), Jordan Farmar (15 pts) and Derek Fisher (15 pts). The Clippers were without new addition, Marcus Camby, because of a heel injury but Baron Davis put on a valiant effort with 11pts, 7 asts, 2 rebs, and 3 stls. Al Thornton (16 pts, on 7-15 shooting) played well early but dissapeared down the stretch. The Clippers are in trouble, even with Camby back there. They don't have enough scoring on the wings.

NBA 2008-2009 Season Assessments - Western Conference

We're back with Part 2 of our earlier post of our season assessments for the NBA. We've covered the Eastern Conference, so let's now cover the Western Conference, where many feel the NBA Champs will reside this year.

This listing provides NYSTOM's take on the MVPM (most valuable player per minute), LVPM (least valuable player per minute), his sleepers on each team and starters. Let us know what you think.


Legend:
Most value per minute/least value per minute = only regular rotation guys; doesn’t include guys who rarely or never get off the bench
NYSTOM sleeper candidates = players who will have significantly better stats than last season
NYSTOM starters = *not* necessarily the best players at each position for each team, but instead a projection of who will start the most games over the course of the year and/or will be starting by the end of the year, for whatever reason (e.g., injuries and decisions by teams to get more firepower off of bench)


Dallas Mavericks:
MVPM---Gerald Green, Dirk Nowitzki, Brandon Bass
LVPM---Juan Jose Barea
NYSTOM sleeper candidate---Josh Howard
NYSTOM starters---Dirk Nowitzki, Josh Howard, Erick Dampier, Jason Kidd, Gerald Green


Denver Nuggets:
MVPM---Carmelo Anthony, Nene Hilario, Kenyon Martin
LVPM---Allen Iverson
NYSTOM sleeper candidate---Dahntay Jones
NYSTOM starters---Kenyon Martin, Carmelo Anthony, Nene Hilario, Anthony Carter, J. R. Smith


Golden State Warriors:
MVPM---DeMarcus Nelson, Al Harrington, Kelenna Azubuike
LVPM---Anthony Randolph
NYSTOM sleeper candidate---Stephen Jackson
NYSTOM starters---Al Harrington, Kelenna Azubuike, Ronny Turiaf, C. J. Watson, DeMarcus Nelson



Houston Rockets:
MVPM---Carl Landry, Yao Ming, Luther Head
LVPM---Rafer Alston
NYSTOM sleeper candidate---Luther Head
NYSTOM starters---Carl Landry, Ron Artest, Yao Ming, Aaron Brooks, Luther Head


Los Angeles Clippers:
MVPM---Mike Taylor, Paul Davis, Al Thornton
LVPM---DeAndre Jordan
NYSTOM sleeper candidate---Paul Davis
NYSTOM starters---Steve Novak, Al Thornton, Paul Davis, Mike Taylor, Eric Gordon


Los Angeles Lakers:
MVPM---Andrew Bynum, Jordan Farmar, Pau Gasol
LVPM---Coby Karl
NYSTOM sleeper candidate---Trevor Ariza
NYSTOM starters---Pau Gasol, Luke Walton, Andrew Bynum, Jordan Farmar, Kobe Bryant


Memphis Grizzlies:
MVPM---Darrell Arthur, Rudy Gay, Hakim Warrick
LVPM---Kyle Lowry
NYSTOM sleeper candidate---Rudy Gay
NYSTOM starters---Darrell Arthur, Rudy Gay, Darko Milicic, Mike Conley, O. J. Mayo


Minnesota Timberwolves:
MVPM---Al Jefferson, Kevin Love, Randy Foye
LVPM---Mark Madsen
NYSTOM sleeper candidate---Mike Miller
NYSTOM starters---Kevin Love, Corey Brewer, Al Jefferson, Randy Foye, Mike Miller


New Orleans Hornets:
MVPM---Chris Paul, David West, Melvin Ely
LVPM---Devin Brown
NYSTOM sleeper candidate---Melvin Ely
NYSTOM starters---David West, Peja Stojakovic, Melvin Ely, Chris Paul, Rasual Butler


Oklahoma City Thunder:
MVPM---Nick Collison, Kevin Durant, Johan Petro
LVPM---Desmond Mason
NYSTOM sleeper candidate---Kevin Durant
NYSTOM starters---Chris Wilcox, Jeff Green, Nick Collison, Russell Westbrook, Kevin Durant


Phoenix Suns:
MVPM---Amare Stoudemire, Alando Tucker, Steve Nash
LVPM---Robin Lopez
NYSTOM sleeper candidate---Grant Hill
NYSTOM starters---Amare Stoudemire, Alando Tucker, Shaquille O’Neal, Steve Nash,
Leandro Barbosa


Portland Trail Blazers:
MVPM---Brandon Roy, LaMarcus Aldridge, Greg Oden
LVPM---Ike Diogu
NYSTOM sleeper candidate---Channing Frye
NYSTOM starters---LaMarcus Aldridge, Travis Outlaw, Greg Oden, Steve Blake, Brandon Roy


Sacramento Kings:
MVPM---Kevin Martin, Brad Miller, Spencer Hawes
LVPM---Donte Greene
NYSTOM sleeper candidate---Spencer Hawes
NYSTOM starters---Jason Thompson, Francisco Garcia, Brad Miller, Beno Udrih, Kevin Martin


San Antonio Spurs:
MVPM---Tim Duncan, Tony Parker, Ime Udoka
LVPM---Bruce Bowen
NYSTOM sleeper candidate---Ime Udoka
NYSTOM starters---Tim Duncan, Ime Udoka, Fabricio Oberto, Tony Parker, Michael Finley



Utah Jazz:
MVPM---Deron Williams, Carlos Boozer, Ronnie Brewer
LVPM---Kyrylo Fesenko
NYSTOM sleeper candidate---Kyle Korver
NYSTOM starters---Carlos Boozer, Andrei Kirilenko, Mehmet Okur, Deron Williams, Ronnie Brewer

Do you agree or disagree with these rankings? Post your comments.

NBA 2008-2009 Season Assessments - Eastern Conference

With his newly minted Melting Pot Thoughts t-shirt in hand (specifically for all members who contribute to the livelihood of this blog) my boy NYSTOM is back in the house with some of his assessments for the season. I told you guys that he's the stat guy and with that in mind, he has put together a listing for all 30 teams. This listing provides his take on the MVPM (most valuable player per minute), LVPM (least valuable player per minute), his sleepers on each team and starters. It's all some mumbo jumbo to me (at times), but you take a look and digest. Let us know what you think.


Legend:
Most value per minute/least value per minute = only regular rotation guys; doesn’t include guys who rarely or never get off the bench
NYSTOM sleeper candidates = players who will have significantly better stats than last season
NYSTOM starters = *not* necessarily the best players at each position for each team, but instead a projection of who will start the most games over the course of the year and/or will be starting by the end of the year, for whatever reason (e.g., injuries and decisions by teams to get more firepower off of bench)

Atlanta Hawks:
MVPM---Zaza Pachulia, Joe Johnson, Ronald Murray
LVPM---Maurice Evans
NYSTOM sleeper candidate---Al Horford
NYSTOM starters---Josh Smith, Marvin Williams, Zaza Pachulia, Acie Law, Joe Johnson

Boston Celtics:
MVPM---Kevin Garnett, Eddie House, Paul Pierce
LVPM---Brian Scalabrine
NYSTOM sleeper candidate---Leon Powe
NYSTOM starters---Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce, Kendrick Perkins, Eddie House, Ray Allen

Charlotte Bobcats:
MVPM---Gerald Wallace, Adam Morrison, Jason Richardson
LVPM---Alexis Ajinca
NYSTOM sleeper candidate---Adam Morrison
NYSTOM starters---Emeka Okafor, Gerald Wallace, Nazr Mohammed, Raymond Felton, Jason Richardson

Chicago Bulls:
MVPM---Tyrus Thomas, Derrick Rose, Drew Gooden
LVPM---Demetris Nichols
NYSTOM sleeper candidate---Drew Gooden
NYSTOM starters---Tyrus Thomas, Luol Deng, Aaron Gray, Derrick Rose, Larry Hughes

Cleveland Cavaliers:
MVPM---LeBron James, Zydrunas Ilgauskas, Delonte West
LVPM---Sasha Pavlovic
NYSTOM sleeper candidate---Delonte West
NYSTOM starters---Ben Wallace, LeBron James, Zydrunas Ilgauskas, Daniel Gibson, Delonte West

Detroit Pistons:
MVPM---Arron Afflalo, Chauncey Billups, Rodney Stuckey
LVPM---Walter Sharpe
NYSTOM sleeper candidate---Richard Hamilton
NYSTOM starters---Jason Maxiell, Tayshaun Prince, Antonio McDyess, Chauncey Billups, Arron Afflalo

Indiana Pacers:
MVPM---T. J. Ford, Rasho Nesterovic, Roy Hibbert
LVPM---Josh McRoberts
NYSTOM sleeper candidate---Jeff Foster
NYSTOM starters---Troy Murphy, Danny Granger, Rasho Nesterovic, T. J. Ford, Marquis Daniels

Miami Heat:
MVPM---Dwyane Wade, Michael Beasley, Udonis Haslem
LVPM---Yakhouba Diawara
NYSTOM sleeper candidate---Udonis Haslem
NYSTOM starters---Michael Beasley, Shawn Marion, Mark Blount, Marcus Banks, Dwyane Wade

Milwaukee Bucks:
MVPM---Charlie Villanueva, Michael Redd, Luke Ridnour
LVPM---Joe Alexander
NYSTOM sleeper candidate---Charlie Villanueva
NYSTOM starters---Charlie Villanueva, Luc Richard, Andrew Bogut, Luke Ridnour, Michael Redd

New Jersey Nets:
MVPM---Vince Carter, Brook Lopez, Devin Harris
LVPM---Trenton Hassell
NYSTOM sleeper candidate---Devin Harris
NYSTOM starters---Ryan Anderson, Chris Douglas-Roberts, Brook Lopez, Devin Harris, Vince Carter

New York Knicks:
MVPM---Mardy Collins, Wilson Chandler, Nate Robinson
LVPM---Quentin Richardson
NYSTOM sleeper candidate---Zach Randolph
NYSTOM starters---David Lee, Wilson Chandler, Zach Randolph, Nate Robinson, Mardy Collins

Orlando Magic:
MVPM---Dwight Howard, Rashard Lewis, J. J. Redick
LVPM---Keith Bogans
NYSTOM sleeper candidate---J. J. Redick
NYSTOM starters---Rashard Lewis, Hedo Turkoglu, Dwight Howard, Anthony Johnson, J. J. Redick

Philadelphia 76ers:
MVPM---Louis Williams, Andre Miller, Andre Iguodala
LVPM---Kareem Rush
NYSTOM sleeper candidate---Willie Green
NYSTOM starters---Elton Brand, Thaddeus Young, Marreese Speights, Louis Williams, Andre Iguodala

Toronto Raptors:
MVPM---Chris Bosh, Jose Calderon, Kris Humphries
LVPM---Jason Kapono
NYSTOM sleeper candidate---Jermaine O’Neal
NYSTOM starters---Chris Bosh, Joey Graham, Jermaine O’Neal, Jose Calderon, Anthony Parker

Washington Wizards:
MVPM---JaVale McGee, Caron Butler, Antawn Jamison
LVPM---Darius Songaila
NYSTOM sleeper candidate---Antawn Jamison
NYSTOM starters---JaVale McGee, Caron Butler, Etan Thomas, Antonio Daniels, DeShawn Stevenson

Do you agree or disagree with these rankings? Post your comments.