mudderfudder77

Quote: The Lakers and the Rockets (in recent times) didn't have top notch defenses. Not to mention going back to the Showtime Lakers, 76ers, Sonics, Wizards, Celtics, and Bucks. Historically, the Pistons, Bulls, and Spurs have ushered in defense as the catalyst to a championship. But honestly, these teams were really teams had good offenses that could produce. The Bulls without MJ's clutch scoring would not have won anything. The Pistons as I said before had the best Points per shot attempt average of all the teams playing in the last 2 yrs. That means that they were very effecient at scoring. The previous pistons (bad Boys) had all kinds of offensive weaponary from Gentleman Joe, Zeke to Lambeer from outside and Vinny the microwave. Finally the Spurs. The Spurs won games with the most unstoppable PF on the planet. Notice, my statement. Defense doesn't win games & DEFENSE IS SECONDARY to OFFENSE What that means is that teams only persue defense after they get strong offensive pieces. It's in the rebuilding blueprint of all teams. Get the offense then fill in with defense. Most of the time, teams believe that they can get strong offensive players and then play strong TEAM defense... Notice the focus.. Strong offense followed by defense... Defense being Secondary to offense. Even here on Hawksquawk... Don't be hypocritical.. Many of you would much rather us play Salim Stoudamire at PG (even though he's not a PG) than to see us play and develop Royal Ivey... Why is that?? I think My point is made here Mudderfudder. Unfortunately for you, not with me. The game has changed in the last 15 years, ever since the Bad Boys of Detroit started winning their championships. And we'll just have to disagree on the role defense has played in winning championships since that time. I think Dallas and Pheonix have both proven that having a fun explosive offense will win in the regular season, but when the playoffs start those teams lack of defense will get exposed. And for the record I think starting Salim and JJ in the backcourt is an absolute disaster.

Quote: OK, I see a lot of you guys wanting the quick fix. Or the fix that fills the position. If your gonna do this rebuilding thing right. You continue to take Best Player Available. It doesn't matter what you need now. It's all about stock piling talent. Donta Smith and Royal Ivey are some pretty solid players. They can't even scratch minutes for us. It's a good sign! It's a long ways to draft time, and no clear number 1 right now. If Gay is the guy. TAKE HIM! If you can acquire a future 1st and drop a couple of spots to take a Brewer, then do it. It's so much easier to have an abundance of talent, and over paying for a position that will put you over the top. Were not there yet. Continue to plant the talent seeds on this team. We can harvest later. TYRONE LUE = TOP PICK IN THE DRAFT! You're joking right?

But didnb't you hear Diesel? You don't need defense, you just outscore the other team...

Someone tell me the last team to win a Championship that didn't have a top notch defense. In the last 15 years: San Antonio? Detroit? LA? Chicago? Houston? Detroit? Anyone noticing a trend? Yes they all had good offensive teams (except maybe Houston), but I don't see the Pheonix Suns on that list. Offense will get you to the playoffs, but if you don't have a stout defense - you're not winning in the second season. Re: Detroit vs. San Antonio Detroits problem was that they ran into a defense that was just about as good as their's but had a slightly better offense. If it comes down to Offense vs. Defense - the team with defense is going to win out. The Bulls are an example of that, last year they were a team that had no business being .500, but their relentless D kept them in every game.

Well if it wasn't confirmed before, it is now - Chilldress has the ugliest shot in the history of basketball.

Quote: Quote: Cenk is our pg of the future any way. Forget it, he is not a pg! Cenk is a swingman who has good handling skills, perimeter shooting and killer drives. I watch him twice every week So he's JJ's younger Turkish brother?

Quote: Cenk is our pg of the future any way. Thats fine 4 years from now, but who is going to play in the meantime. And what happens if Cenks game doesn't translate from the Turkish league?

Quote: MW isn't a swingman though (2/3) he is a 3/4...which is more valuable. I agree that 2/3 swingmen are a dime a dozen. We didn't have any though, before we got Smoove and Chill. I don't necessarily agree that we need a PG, we just need another guard without a size liability that can handle the ball with JJ, because JJ has PG skills. T Lue isn't a guard without a size liability and he is too selfish to run with JJ. I'm sorry, I wasn't making that statement in regards to the Williams pick - just in general. PG's annually are the hardest positions to fill (along with legit C's), while there are usually enough 6'8" G/F to fill a clearence rack at Wal-Mart. Teams every year are looking for the pass-first PG who actually has a jump shat and every year teams are disappointed in what prospects are available.

Quote: Quote: There is no way BK passes on Brewer A tweener with an ugly jump shot. I don't see how BK could resist. LOL - I said the same thing. Another guy that can't shoot - why not?

Quote: Although Chris Paul is a better player right now than Marvin, he is a short PG that is limited on D and Marvin is already almost as good and going to be better than Chris Paul. PGs are a dime a dozen and big men are scarce, we would have drafted Bogut if we had the #1 pick, after that it was BPA, and combining skills with potential, MW was the best pick. PG's are a dime a dozen? I hope you're joking, because along with Center - PG is the hardest position to find. If anything, long athletic G/F's are a dime a dozen.

About the Hawks: Quote: Joe (Atlanta): How does Billy Knight keep his job? EVERYONE knew we needed to draft Chris Paul! This doesn't make any sense! Does he actually get paid? Couldn't Stern have just forced him to draft Paul for the good of the league? SportsNation Marc Stein: Harsh but fair. I'm with you. The Hawks' future would undoubtedly look rosier if we were looking at a Paul-Joe Johnson backcourt. Rest of the chat: Quote: Chat with Marc Stein Welcome to The Show! On Tuesday, ESPN.com senior NBA writer Marc Stein will drop by to talk about the NBA season! Are the Clippers really the best team in L.A.? Is Washington for real? Is Kobe Bryant marching to an MVP? Send your questions now and join Marc in The Show, Tuesday at 11 a.m. ET! Stein Archive: Chats | Columns SportsNation Marc Stein: Hello again. Hope you saw the new around-the-league notebook edition of the Dime over the weekend. And now to the questions . . . Jim (Detroit): Marc, is this the year Chauncey Billups finally makes the all star team? He's been the finals MVP the and he was the Pistons best player last year against the Spurs. He won't have great stats in the regular season b/c the Pistons are so balanced, but is there a point guard you'd rather have leading your team in a play off game? SportsNation Marc Stein: The better question is whether there will be room for Chauncey and Rip if they keep playing this way. You knew Chauncey will do well in Flip's system, since he already knew it, but Rip doesn't seem to mind all the movement in Flip's playbook. I imagine we'll see at least one of them in Houston, and maybe both. San Antonio: I can't believe that you are questioning Manu Ginobili's head in your weekend Daily Dime. If playing in game 7 of the NBA Finals after an all-star season didn't make him crack from the expectations, then a few early season games certainly won't. If Manu's struggling early, it's because he's injured but doesn't want to use that as an excuse to sit out. SportsNation Marc Stein: Uh . . . the only person who questioned Manu's head was Manu himself. Did you really read it? King, NJ: Hi Marc, It looks to me that the Sixers will win the Atlantic division not the NETS. The big 3 are not really that big. What do you think? Thanks for answering SportsNation Marc Stein: I'm glad you have it figured out after two weeks. Because I don't. Dare I say the Nets will get better. Philly is playoff material as long as AI is there, but over the 82-game haul I still like New Jersey's chances of picking up its defense and getting more out of Krstic. Oz (DC): Marc, the Wizards look good so far but they still need any type of low post presence if they're going to contend in my opinion. Please tell me Ernie Grunfeld knows this and is keeping his options open!! SportsNation Marc Stein: Yes. They know. But the important thing is that they lost Hughes and appear to have found ways to compensate. At both ends. Building this team is still a work in progress. They never said they were ready to contend for a title this season. dan (milwaukee): who is your early favorite for rookie of the year? paul has been great but if the bucks keep winning his much and bogut is starting does he have a chance to win even if paul has better numbers, simply because the hornets will lose so much? SportsNation Marc Stein: Agreed. If Bogut hovers in the 10-and-10 range all season and Milwaukee makes the playoffs. he'll get this vote. John (Portland, ME): Is Pierce still going to be traded? He seems to be happy at the moment and is playing very well on a Celtics team that appears to be better than most thought. SportsNation Marc Stein: Everyone close to that situation says the trade chatter has gone silent. If the Celts remain on their current path, you'll hear it less and less. Dwayne (Tulsa): What do owners and players around the league say privately about the Hornets in OKC? SportsNation Marc Stein: Same stuff they say publicly. That the people of OKC have made it clear that they are prepared to support an NBA team. I don't think anyone would be too surprised if OKC gets one someday now, whether or not it's the Hornets. Jeff (New Haven, CT): Marc, you thoughts on the emergence of Smush Parker? Already a fan favorite in LA! SportsNation Marc Stein: Surprised mainly because Phoenix and Detroit had him last season, two of the better organizations in the league. So if neither kept him, you had to figure that Smush had some sort of fatal flaw. He is fortunate to be in a system that doesn't require a traditional point guard and with a team whose coach is addicted to big guards. Of course, it must be said the Lakers don't look especially competitive unless Smush scores 20. Is he going to do that regularly? John (Sacramento): Marc, Do you really think the Kings will drop Adelman, and if so who would they pick up? SportsNation Marc Stein: After all the success Adelman has had there, I'd expect him to get more than seven games or a month to turn this thing around. But he's in the last year of his deal, and it's quite apparent (at least to me) that the Kings are going to have to take a step back to go forward again, so I'd bet on more big changes (roster and bench) between now and next summer. Jonathan (New Orleans): Marc, how could you give ROY to Bogut if his team makes the playoffs while Paul plays better??? The Pistons have rookies too, doesn't mean they should get ROY. SportsNation Marc Stein: If Bogut is putting up 10 and 10 in a significant role for a contender, what Paul is presently doing in New Orleans doesn't mean he's outplaying the Aussie on this scorecard. Sorry. The assumption when Milwaukee got Magloire held that Bogut's role would be reduced to allow him to ease his way into the NBA. It's only been two weeks, but if both guys stay at their current levels, Bogut is having a more significant impact. To me. Chris (Milwaukee, WI): I understand it fun speculation, but do you think fans will ever realize that it's pointless to get all worked up about yearly awards and records after 5 or 6 games? A lot of unforseen things can happen in 6 1/2 months. SportsNation Marc Stein: You're probably right. My fault for posting the question and sending us down that road, jon (new york): marc, if the knicks win the atlantic, i think you should agree to hold an all- knicks chat. it should be stipulated that for the purposes of this chat, you must refer to isiah as "isiah thomas, personnel genius, stephon and marbury will be simply be called, "the best pg in the nba." do we have an accord? SportsNation Marc Stein: So Larry wouldn't get any credit from you? Cedric (Dallas, TX): Will KG be traded this year? If so, what team? SportsNation Marc Stein: No. It will be talked about incessantly and asked in every chat, but the Wolves aren't going to engage in a major philosophical change like that in the middle of the season. If they ever do trade KG, I believe it's something that would happen in the off-season. Ray (Boulder, CO): Marc, are the Nuggets forced to play the whole season with who they have? After the loss of Nene and the diminished value of Watson (b/c he doesn't play), are there no assets to acquire a starting shooting guard like Pierce? SportsNation Marc Stein: Watson's value hasn't diminished yet, but he was never going to bring back a big man by himself anyway. There's nothing they can do about Nene, but K-Mart is another matter. Until we know how serious K-Mart's knee issues are, you can't jump to conclusions like yours. And even if the Celts were ready to send Pierce to Denver, I struggle to see a Pierce-Melo combo meshing and I have bigger questions about Pierce playing for George again after their experience on the World Championships team in Indy in the summer of 2002. Drew (FL): Marc, is Peja to the Bulls a real possibility this yr or next... seems like he's targeted them for a while with the large serbian population in chicago. How would a move like this impact the franchise and especially Deng's development? SportsNation Marc Stein: Folks in Toronto -- and any other city with a big Serbian population -- are hoping for the same thing. I do think Peja's days in Sacto are coming to an end, but it's still too early to know where he's headed. As for Deng's development, I wouldn't worry. There isn't a team in this league that couldn't use a shooter like Peja. Joe (Atlanta): How does Billy Knight keep his job? EVERYONE knew we needed to draft Chris Paul! This doesn't make any sense! Does he actually get paid? Couldn't Stern have just forced him to draft Paul for the good of the league? SportsNation Marc Stein: Harsh but fair. I'm with you. The Hawks' future would undoubtedly look rosier if we were looking at a Paul-Joe Johnson backcourt. Tyminator (Lewisburg, PA): If AK-47 ever figures out a way to stay on the court for 60 games, is he a MVP? He means the most to his team individually of anyone in the league. SportsNation Marc Stein: MVP, no. Defensive Player of the Year? Yes. But I think you meant 70 games. Hopefully he won't miss more than a week or two because the Jazz are unwatchable without him. Ryan (Gaithersburg, MD): What did Darius Miles do in the off season? He looks about 15 lbs. thicker and has a decent j. Did this guy finally work on his game? SportsNation Marc Stein: I've been a Miles backer for ages and every year he fails to reward my optimism. So I'm going to need to see more than a couple good weeks before I get excited about him again. Nick Collison (Seattle): Am I going to have more games like I did Sunday (20 points, 12 rebounds, heavy minutes)? SportsNation Marc Stein: You better. Because no team in the league has been more disappointing. Three straight losses by a combined 93 points? Shameful. Sean (Toronto, ON): Right now if you had to pick a team to win it all: San Antonio or Detroit? SportsNation Marc Stein: I picked San Antonio to beat Detroit in the Finals before the season started. I wouldn't change it if the Spurs were 2-5. You make a pick and then you ride with it. Them's the rules. Zach (Onsted, MI): Hey Marc, how much do you make answering these questions? SportsNation Marc Stein: Mark Cuban advised me not to answer this one. Dave (Toronto): I'll give you $20.00 if you rank the Raps 29th in the next rankings... seriously. SportsNation Marc Stein: U.S. or Canadian? No, seriously, donate the money to charity instead, because the committee (of one) will never be swayed by cash. Matt (Brooklyn): City til I die! SportsNation Marc Stein: Good way to end it, Matt. Thanks for all the good questions everyone. We'll do it again next week.

LOL Salim with 37 points - against that Spurs defense. I don't think so. A win maybe, the Spurs have been stretched by a few teams this year.

So you'd start two rookies, a second year man out of high school and no point guard?

Thats was always his issue in Chicago - even last year when he was in shape - was that he was wiped out by the time the fourth rolled around and was a complete liability defensively.

What he should do, and what he is capable of and what he has done are all different things. You're right - he should go strong to the basket, but he doesn't. He never has. He has the physical skills, but some guys as great as they are just don't have that instinct to draw contact and get their shot off. I'm just telling you what history has shown. Someone like Dwayne Wade or AI avg over 10 FTA a game - JJ hasn't even come close to that, his all time high is 9 FTA's - Wade's is 23!

This is JJ's 5th season, and he has never averaged over 3 free throw attempts a game (this year he is averaging just over 4 through 6 games). I don't think its wise to think that he is going to turn into slasher/finisher - thats not his game. He's an excellent defender/shooter, but he's not going to be able to put up points the way a AI or Kobe or Tracy or Lebron, Gilbert, Dwayne do - all of those guys in that 25 point range average anywhere between 7 to 10 free throw attempts a game.

Interesting, I hadn't heard that. He didn't fall much further than expected though - I guess people didn't expect too much to begin with.

Hell, you guys haven't had a good draft pick since Lenny Wilkens.

Quote: Darius is leaving at the end of the year, so their frontcourt will basically be Sweetney + Chandler. Neither of those guys, or anyone else on the roster, can really score consistently in the post. Chandler is the perfect compliment to Al's game. I just think expecting to get him cheaply is naive. I'm not opposed to him returning, but it depends on improvements to his game, his health, and the price. Otherwise, I would rather S&T him for a defensive big to complement Marvin and Zaza. Darius Songalia? They just signed him to a two year contract. The Bulls currently have Luol Deng & Andres Nocioni at SF - neither of whom are going anywhere anytime soon. The only positions the Bulls will be spending their off-season money on are either a big guard, or a center/PF. Harrington is neither, and he wouldn't make it off of the bench playing for Skiles. Just like Tim Thomas is riding pine now, Harringtons atrocious defense would earn him a permanent spot as the 12th man. With the continued Development of Kirk Hinrich, Ben Gordon, & Luol Deng, and the addition of Mike Sweetney whos proven to be more than effective in the post, the Bulls will be looking to add another defensive big man. The only scorer I could see the Bulls throwing their money at would be Peja.

Just what the Hawks need, another G without a jumpshot.. re: Rondo

There is no way that the Celtics trade a legit big man who is only two years removed from High School for a SG/SF without a jumpshot.

Quote: If you want to stick with your statistics... Do this. Go to NBA.com... Take those games in March when Al played with on again off again tendenitis and get ppg, apg, rpg, FG%. I dare you to compare it with others playing PF. Okay, I did. Harrington was 13th in scoring among Forwards only, 30th overall. Among Forwards who had higher ppg averages 7 had higher FG%'s Among Forwards who had higher ppg averages all 12 had higher 3 pt fg averages Among Forwards who had higher ppg averages all 12 had higher FT percentages Tried to get the rest of the info you were asking about, but the NBA.com stats page is all f$*%ed up right now.

I don't think there is any way to truly quantify this, but how many of Al's points were the result of playing in garbage time against another teams 11th and 12th guys. Atlanta was in very few games last year, and I would say there plenty of fourth quarters where Al was playing against a guy who probably shouldn't even be collecting a paycheck in the league. I don't have a strong opinion of Al either way, although I would hope that the Bulls don't go out of their way to look at him if he becomes a FA this offseason.

Quote: Quote: The NBA has a ton of players who can score 17.5 ppg in 38 minutes with all the touches Al got last year. You said the NBA has tons of players... Find me 3 who played SF and averaged 17.5 ppg with 986 attempts or less... When you give up, let me know! Well the attempts is worthless, because those are effected by injury - now if you want to got off FGA a game avg - Harringtons is 14.9 There are a few SF's who averaged the same or better (or slightly fewer) points with the same (approximate)or fewer FGA's a game: Joe Johnson 17.1 points - 14.4 fga's a game Paul Pierce 21.6 points - 14.9 Corey Maggette 22.2 points - 14.9 Jalen Rose 18.5 points - 14.3 Desmond Mason 17.2 points - 13.5

Quote: Hmm... Charlie V... ROY? Or will it be Chris Paul? This is great, I always love these old posts that get brought back to life...