Sport Chit Chat

Greetings All. As the MLB has taken over much of the sports news these days I thought this would be a good time to look back at the tumultuous NBA off season and pick out some losing teams and some winning teams. Here goes…

Winners:

Houston Rockets: I think the Rocket’s have been smart this off season. They were at a point where it was apparent that Yao Ming and T-Mac arenot enough to win in the NBA. With both of their injury issues, and their inability to get out of the first round of the playoffs it was clear that the Rockets were still a piece or two away from competing in the difficult West. (Yes, they went on a 20+ winning streak last season, but that still gave them a first round playoff exit at the hands of the Utah Jazz). John Hollinger of ESPN agrees that this move was well worth the risk and I’d have to agree. Artest finally give the Rockets a big 3 and with Scola a year improved and Battier a shut down defender, the Rockets have a team that can make waves in the West. Yes, maybe they wont win the title, but the Rocket’s franchise needed to prove to it’s fans that they were dedicated to winning. The Rocket’s time is now, and the play for Artest shows their franchise, their fans and the city that the Rocket’s want to win, and now.

Philadelphia 76ers: Clearly the 76ers have had the most successful off season out of any franchise in the NBA. The 76ers went from pretenders in the East to legitimate contenders (assuming they hold onto Igoudala). Adding Brand to their roster gives the 76ers a strong front court and very scary starting five (Miller, Igou, Young, Brand, Dalembert) who match up great against all other East contenders. Additionally, by re-signing young guard Louis Williams and adding bench depth in Royal Ivey and Kareem Rush, the 76ers have set themselves up to have a very prosperous 08-09 season. Expect the 76ers to challenge for home court advantage in the playoffs. I don’t know if they are good enough to topple Boston in the Atlantic Division, but thye have made the road much more difficult for anyone in the East.

Utah Jazz: Now I am aware that the Jazz have not made many big off season moves and to me that is what makes them winners. They were able to stay as legitimate Western threats and all they had to do was nothing. “My Utah Jazz” suggests that the Jazz need to make a move but I disagree. All their young talent is going to be better, they added some PG depth in Brevin Knight, and they still have the same core that has helped them compete the last 3 seasons. Congrats to the Jazz for a successful off season of non moves. This proves that sometimes the best way to make your team better is by staying put.

The City Of Oklahoma: I understand that to this point a majority of the story lines regarding the move of the Sonics have been about the poor city of Seattle and I understand. If someone ever uprooted the Raptors I would go nuts and be very upset with the situation. But on the plus side, one must think of all the happy fans in Oklahoma City. To have over 16,000 season ticket buyers ready, and already to have purchased the minor league Tulsa 66ers, the city of Oklahoma is doing quite well for itself. They come into the league with one of the best young talent in Kevin Durant and from there anything is possible. Rumored to be called the Oklahoma City Thunder the city is a definite winner as they have been brought the magic that is the NBA. Congrats Oklahoma City & welcome to the NBA!

…Check back soon for my list of NBA off season 2008 losers…

-Maxmillien

Hello loyal readers! After an extended and unexplainable layoff I have returned to offer unpopular yet potentially correct analysis.

So, Houston decided (correctly) that there was no way they could win with just Yao and T-Mac. They needed a third, less fragile, all-star. This is good, they’ve found a weakness and are trying to turn it into a strength.
Yet somehow, they failed, oh so miserably. Ron Artest, however talented he may be is a cancer on a franchise. Firstly, Ron Artest is not reliable. I’m not talking about his attitude or his ability. I’m speaking to the fact that Artest has not played a full season in his 11 years of professional basketball. On a team where Yao routinely has some leg problem, T-mac’s back is worse than my grandma’s and their next best offensive weapon is Rafer Alston, if Artest gets hurt/suspended things could get really really ugly in the NBA’s third best Texas team.
Secondly, the offense in Houston is not a good fit as is. Adelman’s offense had to be modified to make Yao effective, and Adelman’s offense was the only reason Adelman was brought in. Now, not only does he have to work Yao into the offense, he has to make sure T-mac and Artest both get their chances with the ball. Also, Artest’s offensive strength lies in his ability to post up smaller players and bang down low. AKA take away space from Yao. I don’t see how Houston’s offense is going to run smoothly without major changes.
Third, chemistry! Yao is already worried about Artest’s attitude. We all know how big Artest’s ego is. Now match that with T-mac (a me-first star if there ever was one, at least in my books), Rafer Alston (and his undying love for taking stupid stupid three point shots he rarely makes) and Yao and Scola’s win at all costs. How does Adelman plan on managing these egos? One things for sure, it’s going to be fun to watch him try.

Props to Sacremento for trading away a guy who didn’t want to be there, and getting good value back. Forgetting Bobby Jackson, Donte Green is, in my opinion a top-level prospect whos going to be able to score and defend at a high level. And a first round pick is always good, because I have a feeling (and call me crazy for this) that Houston just maybe could slip to the lottery. I see San Antonio, Dallas, Phoenix, Utah, New Orleans (my championship pick), the hated Lakers, Portland and another wild card team like Denver, or maybe even the Clippers (who have a scary big inside duo and one of the best point guards period.) all being better than Houston this coming season. At which point Houston will have no legitimate prospect, no first round pick, and three very very unhappy and unhealthy all-stars. Sounds like a long season for the Rockets.
For those of you who disagree with me, heres the other side of the story, presented by LayupDrill.com