| |
 |
|
NBA RUMOR MILL - Lenny Out - Jax In?
JordanZone.com
- Jordan Shoes, Air Jordan Shoes, Michael Jordan Shoes
SAW IT COMING.
Atlanta,GA (Jordan Zone) New York Knicks head
coach Lenny Wilkens met for 45-minutes with GM
Isiah Thomas, and tendered his resignation as
head coach of the Knicks. Some may say he quit
before he was fired, others may say Lenny saw
the writing on the wall, either way the Knicks
are now in the markets for a head coach, while
Herb Williams takes over as the interim head coach.
An official announcement is expected later today.
The Knicks version of the story is Isiah made
it clear that he expected a turn around in intensity
and performance over the next two weeks, basically
indicating if change wasn’t visible, he’d
have to replace Lenny, prompting Lenny to say
it’s better that he step down now. The outsider
view is Zeke simply grew tired of the failing
mentality that has crept into his locker room
and fired Wilkens, but rather than blemish Lenny's
image, they dubbed the firing a “resignation”.
Many around the NBA have felt for some time that
the NBA game had passed Lenny Wilkens by, and
that his manner and approach did not suit the
modern NBA – built for younger more aggressive
coaches. It did not take long for the New York
media to speculate that Phil Jackson could be
contacted about filling the Knicks void; although
it’s unlikely Jackson takes over mid-stream.
IN RELATED: Madison Square Garden Chairman Charles
Dolan the controlling personality of the New York
Knicks, was shot down in his bid to purchase VOOM,
the high definition satellite service started
by Cablevision last year. Cablevision was only
able to amass 26,000 subscribers, and sought to
sell off the losing venture that cost Cablevision
in excess of $1.4 billion to start. Dolan and
other family member tried to put together a bid
to buy the system personally, but ultimately Cablevision’s
board opted to sell VOOM’s satellite and
other related assets to Echostar, operators of
DISH Network. Dolan was prepared to sell off and
re-organize his ownership in many ventures to
raise the capital necessary to finance the purchase.
OH MY THE TRADES HAVE STARTED
A couple of very interesting deals were consummated
this week, that could shift the balance of power
in both the eastern conference and the western
conference, and while these deals are done there
are a few more waiting in the wings, here’s
the breakdown:
Carlos To Detroit: The Utah Jazz
shocked many of their fans in shipping recent
signed Carlos Arroyo to the Detroit Pistons for
Elden Campbell and a future first round draft
pick (likely 2006). Campbell is expected to have
his contract bought out, which would allow him
to sign elsewhere – possibly back with Detroit
if and when he clears waivers. Carlos fell out
of favor with the Jazz after an impressive Olympic
run in Greece, he returned with extra confidence
and swagger after signing a hefty new deal to
remain in Utah. The Jazz found Carlos’ lack
of defense disturbing, and apparently he had issues
following the instructions of the coaching staff.
Carlos was demoted, and with the slide the Jazz
have found themselves in, Carlos became disposable
– the problem for Carlos and the Pistons,
is if he couldn’t get off the bench in Utah,
a team that needed him - was he acquired to keep
Darko Milicic company on the bench? Larry Brown
prides himself in defense, and the very reason
the Jazz traded Carlos was because he played none
in Utah. The Pistons get some firepower and some
depth at the point guard spot, which gives them
an energy guy to go to when the offense slows
down, but it doesn’t seem the Pistons have
a place for the Carlos that played in Utah, maybe
they can get him to buy in as they did with Rasheed
Wallace last year.
JJ To The Suns: As many as six
teams made offers for Jim Jackson, but it was
the Phoenix Suns' package of prospects that got
New Orleans off the fence. The deal sends Casey
Jacobsen, Maciej Lampe and Jackson Vroman to the
Hornets for Jim Jackson and a second-round draft
pick. The Suns faced the quandary of having to
re-sign Jacobsen this summer, and with the cash
spent already on Steve Nash, Quentin Richardson
and what they’ll have to pay Joe Johnson
(if they don’t trade him to Philly for Samuel
Dalembert) – Jacobsen became expendable.
Lampe and Vroman have “potential”
– but neither was in Phoenix’s playoff
plans. Jackson gives the Suns one more gun, and
as Michael Cooper interim head coach of the Denver
Nuggets, who was also in pursuit of Jackson said
– The Rich Got Richer.
WARRIORS NEXT?: With the trade
season well into it’s groove, the Golden
State Warriors appear to be the next team to trigger
a deal, both Dale Davis and Cliff Robinson have
been mentioned in trade rumors, but it seems both
players agents are pushing the Warriors to make
a deal. The New Jersey Nets, after losing out
on Jim Jackson are said to be seriously interested
in Cliff Robinson – and are rumored to have
an offer on the table using their $10 million
trade exception and offers of future draft picks.
The Warriors could trigger that deal, and use
the exception they would gain to deal with another
team before the trade deadline. It’s also
very possible that the Nets and Warriors find
a third team to consummate a three way deal sending
Cliff to New Jersey and Dale Davis to a third
team with interest.
DONYELL: The word is Donyell
Marshall is being showcased for potential suitors
as the Raptors try to up the value. The Raptors
have been on a tear lately, winning 7 of their
last 10 games, putting serious trade talks to
the side, but Rob Babcock is still talking according
to league sources as he looks beyond this year
into next for the future cap room and draft picks
that the Raptors feel they need to re-tool around
Chris Bosh. The Miami Heat has serious interest
in Donyell, but do not have the trade assets the
Raptors are seeking. The Pacers are a new entry
into the Marshall talks, and they may have the
parts Toronto is looking for namely Fred Jones
and draft picks. The Knicks have expressed interest
in Marshall, but would have to take Jalen Rose
in any deal they make, and they do not have the
friendly contracts or draft picks the Raptors
are seeking. There is the chance New Jersey gets
in the mix with their trade exceptions, but the
Nets want Marshall too.
THE SNEAKER GENERATION – PT2
Bob Sura was one assist shy of a triple double,
in Orlando on Thursday night. You can point to
horrible defense by the Orlando Magic, you can
point to an emotional night focused on booing
Tracy McGrady. At the end of the day what you
cannot deny is Bob Sura had a very good game.
For most of the season, we have been discussing
the new era in the NBA, and Thursday’s performance
by Bob Sura got the thoughts rolling again. Gone
are the days of Air Jordan; gone are the days
of high flyers dominating the NBA scene. When
was the last time you saw the graceful swooping
dunk on Sportscenter? It’s the tomahawk,
the hammer dunk. The power move is what we see
more and more. The pick and roll? Replaced by
the crossover dribble. The shakedown moves that
turn defenders around and around. The game has
changed my friends, its changed from a grace game
to a power game. It’s changed from a finesse
jumper, to a nasty three. With every new generation
there is a banner that can and often is raised
– for this generation of the NBA, it’s
AND1. More and more you hear players talking about
the “Mixtape” move. Darvin Ham shakes
a little, and drives past Darko Milicic for a
layin, shouting “Mixtape… Mixtape”
More and more you are seeing NBA players lacing
up AND1 shoes, not Nike or Reebok. I continue
to see the shoes on the floor and hear the stats.
23% of the NBA is wearing one of the smallest
brands in the shoe world. $120 million in annual
sales is what AND1 boasted for 2003, that’s
less than what Nike profited last year. True more
nights than not it’s the bottom 23% of the
league is wearing them, but with guys like Bob
Sura lacing up AND1’s and almost hanging
a triple-double. You gotta know the scene is changing.
It’s changing around a culture derived from
a lifestyle and style of play built around a shoe.
Of the 450 active NBA players, a little under
100 wear AND1 – to me that’s an amazing
statement of where the game has come from, and
where it is going. Bob Sura, Ben Wallace, Jayson
Williams and Stephon Marbury – They are
the Sneaker Generation. And as Mars Blackman used
to say “It’s gotta be the shoes…”
DON’T DO IT – DON’T EVEN THINK
ABOUT IT
For the Indiana Pacers Ron Artest returned to
practice, partly because the Pacers still have
to pay out salary on his behalf - he simply doesn’t
get to keep any of it, it goes to the league who
donates it to charity. The Pacers want to insure
Ron stays active, and in shape. After all he is
under contract for next year, even if they cannot
use him this year. And there are worse guys to
practice against. There continues to be speculation
that David Stern “might” reduce Ron’s
suspension, especially if he is viewed as a good
teammate and working hard at basketball. (Seeing
that the Allure album Ron was promoting tanked
horribly, he needs to focus on basketball again.)
The return of Artest to the playing floor this
year is a pipe dream. David Stern cannot and should
not consider a reduction of any kind for Ron.
It sends the wrong message to fans, to the media
to sponsors and the networks. David Stern must
hold his ground, no matter how pitiful Ron can
be made to look. Ron Artest crossed the uncrossable
line. He should be held to every minute of his
suspension, and if the NBA goes light on Ron they
will become even more of a laughing stock than
they make themselves already. The Pacers have
every right to make Ron work. The Pacers can use
Ron as a practice dummy. Beyond that, that’s
the end of the discussion.
SOME SHOTS
Here are some of the random stories from the week…
ALL SHINN - AGAIN: New Orleans Hornets
owner George Shinn was granted approval to buyout
minority partner Ray Wooldridge by the NBA, giving
him 100 percent ownership of the team. Shinn reached
an agreement with Wooldridge in December to re-acquire
the 35% stake Wooldridge held in the team. According
to the New Orleans Times-Picayune, Shinn is now
seeking local investors. Wooldridge is expected
to receive more than $70 million; he paid an estimated
$56 million nearly six years ago. The NBA is also
reportedly going to return $8 million in fines
to the Hornets, those fines were levied as penalty
when the Hornets did not meet the ticket sales
goals promised to the league by Wooldridge, when
the teams sought approval to relocate to New Orleans.
WHO DO YOU LIKE?: The NBA draft is a
bit less than 160 days away, and many “pundits”
are beginning to speculate on “Who is hot,
and Who is not” – A very highly placed
NBA general manager told his staff, that hands
down “Andrew Bogut” was the best player
projected to be in the 2005 NBA draft class. But
because a lot can and often does happen in the
days building to the draft, here are the names
and players to know, as we begin the weekly tracking
of the notables:
• COLLEGIATE: Marvin
Williams 6-9 230 SF UNC Fr., Andrew Bogut 7-0
242 C Utah So., Chris Paul 5-11 175 PG Wake Forest
So., Chris Taft 6-10 260 PF/C Pittsburgh So.,
Rashad McCants 6-3 207 SG UNC Jr., Raymond Felton
6-0 194 PG UNC Jr.
• EUROs: Martynas "Marty"
Andriuskevicius 7-3 240 C Lith. 1986, Ersan Ilyasova
6-9 210 SF Turkey 1987, Tiago Splitter 6-11 236
PF Brazil 1985, Nemanja Aleksandrov 6-10 210 SF
Serbia 1987
• SCHOOLERs: Gerald Green
6-8 200 SG TX HSSr., Louis Williams 6-2 175 SG
GA HSSr., Andray Blatche 6-11 230 PF NY HSSr.
By Steve Kyler
Hoopsworld.com
January 22, 2005
|
|
 |
Archives
| 1
| 2
| 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | |
|
|
|
 |
|
|
|
