Monday Insider

[Weez]

Peep Show

By Terry Brown

NBA Insider

Monday, October 6

Updated: October 6

10:31 AM ET

Washington Wizards: Christian Laettner doesn't care if Kwame Brown plays power forward or center. He just wants to see Kwame Brown play. "I think Kwame could be dominant," said Laettner in the Washington Times. "In terms of Kwame, I think the only thing he needs is minutes. Even if he has a couple of bad games in a row you need to keep giving that kid minutes because he's so big and strong and quick and explosive. Kwame really has so much to work with."

Ming

Houston Rockets: Yao Ming is back. And so are the throngs of media looking for a piece of him. "I think it will keep getting better," Yao said of handling the crush of attention in the Houston Chronicle. "I have to count on myself to find the answers." His new coach agrees. "The only thing I want to teach him is to say no and to prioritize (and) to say no to whatever it is that gets in his way," Jeff Van Gundy said. "You give up a certain part of your privacy when you are a star, and you're more captive on the road. It's not like when I go out, people are swarming me. When he goes out, he's going to draw attention. That's part of the price of fame."

Los Angeles Lakers: Phil Jackson felt the Lakers had had enough of basketball, Kobe's off court distractions and everyday injuries. So he cancelled practice and had the team play paintball at a nearby military base in Hawaii. "We want them to have some occasions to be together in situations that aren't all basketball, and still let them grow a little bit as a group, so they can absorb the amount of energy people have," Jackson said in the LA Times. "Gary Payton's got a big mouth. They're learning that about him. He's a heckler. He gets after people. Horace Grant is a fun guy to have as one of those guys who gets heckled. Karl is dangerous on the rookies. They're watching their step around him, because they'll be sent for a shaved ice, water, chicken, whatever he wants. So, there's some things the group is learning about each other's behavior that's important for team building."

Golden State Warriors: Last year, Jason Richardson didn't like the Warriors and didn't like his coach. This year, it's different. "We're good now,'' he said in the San Francisco Chronicle. "This season we're trying to start clean, get a better relationship. We're talking a lot more, we're getting to know each other a lot better and spending a little time off the court.'' And don't think it has a lot to do with the fact that he's now got a point guard who would rather pass the ball to him rather than shoot it. "Nothing against Gilbert (Arenas) or Larry (Hughes), but if you have a true point guard, they read the court a lot better,'' Richardson said. "They know where a guy is going to be at, and they know how to deliver the ball. It's going to be really good to have a true point guard.''

Detroit Pistons: With new coach Larry Brown, point guard Chauncey Billups is off and running. "It's going to be a match made in heaven," Billups said in Michigan Live. "I want to get better. I want to win a championship. I want to be an all-star at some point. I think he's the best guy to get me to that level." And that means his teammates are going to have to do a little more running, too. "For me, that puts pressure on me to get all my guys to run," Billups said. "That's not what we're used to. We're in good enough shape to do it, but it's a certain type of mentality you have to have to run every time, to be looking for opportunities early in transition."

Utah Jazz: Point guard Raul Lopez began his NBA career with a busted knee. Center Chris Borchardt began his NBA career with a broken foot. Now, both of them are looking for a new beginning. "It felt amazing," said Borchardt in the Salt Lake Tribune. "To be out there with Raul, knowing what we've gone through together, it meant a lot. It felt great." He wasn't the only one. "It was something special," added Lopez. "I felt a little weird, I was so nervous. It was strange for me. I played in the second quarter, so it [would not have been] a surprise if I didn't play again."

Hill

Orlando Magic: Apparently, it wasn't enough for Grant Hill to tell everyone that he wanted to return by February. Now, he's saying January. "ABC wanted to pair me with Al Michaels to do [NBA] commentary, but they want me to commit for the full season and I can't. Not if I think I can come back in January," Hill said in the Orlando Sentinel.

Minnesota Timberwolves: Don't look now, but Troy Hudson just realized that there are two starting point guards in the same Minnesota team. "At this point, I don't look at it as a challenge," he said in the Pioneer Press. "I made my mark on this team. They know what I can do. I'm just coming in here and being myself and playing basketball." But head coach Flip Saunders believes that having both Sam Cassell and Hudson are good things. "I think there's going to be challenges because they're both viable No. 1s," Saunders said. "I'm going to put the five best players on the floor that play the best together. They're going to be matched up against each other in practice. I think what it's going to do is make them better."

Laettner: Kwame ready to emerge

John N. Mitchell / Washington Times

Yao arrives for camp a year wiser

Jonathan Feigen / Houston Chronicle

Jackson Brushes Off Practice for Bonding

Tim Brown / Los Angeles Times

JRich wanted to leave Warriors

Brad Weinstein / San Francisco Chronicle

Lopez, Borchardt finally can play

Phil Miller / Salt Lake Tribune

Brown, Billups want Pistons to run more

A. Sherrod Blakely / Booth Newspapers

Hill hopes he can change timetable

Brian Schmitz / Orlando Sentinel

Hudson isn't sure he gets the point

Mike Wells / St. Paul Pioneer Press