Roundball Wrap-Up: Wednesday March 5th

Your favorite inconsistent NBA post is back from last year!  I never really had a full grasp on how to do this blog, but I think I have figured it out. There will be similar elements from Bucks Buzz, but in reality, it will be its own post on Wednesday (Or Thursday). I do not really have a time for when it will be up but there will be all sorts of random shit I happen to come across on the Internet plus some thoughts about the week that was.

Players of the Week 
LeBron James - What a massive statement for LeBron in the last 10 games. He is getting the extended player of the week as James is averaging nearly 33 points a game along with being 52 percent from three and shooting over 60 percent from the field. Do you think James was a little pissed off at the hype Kevin Durant was getting? I bet LeBron reads Sportandfashion-news and sick and tired of seeing 'This week in Kevin Durant' therefore we are adding LBJ to the mix. James' strong play has become the difference in propelling the Heat winning the last eight of 10. I am happy this is a friendly rivalry and LeBron is taking over becoming more selfish because he damn well can whenever he wants due to being the best in the world.

Kevin Love - We should have given Love this honor last week, and I did not so this is my apology. Love had a massive February and it did not stop in March. He put 33 points and 19 rebounds against Denver on Monday dominating the Nuggets as well as getting a win against Sacramento where Love flirted with a triple-double with 22 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists. The last time Love did not have a double-double where he played in the game was January 27th against Chicago. If Minnesota finds themselves in the playoffs, Love deserves to get some MVP votes. I do not know expect him to win it, but he is more than deserving right now.

This week in Kevin Durant
After Oklahoma City lost three straight, they have won three straight beating the likes of Memphis, Charlotte and Philadelphia. Durant disposed of Philadelphia with 42 points and nine rebounds. He also added 37 points against the Grizzlies which is like scoring 50 on most defenses.

'I am not mad, I am disappointed' Owner of the Week
Mark Cuban -  Cubes thinks the D-League would be a better option than the NCAA. I disagree. What's broken is the fact guys only have to stay for a year. They honestly need to have a baseball system where either high school is the choice or two or three years in college. One-and-Done is broken. If you do not know believe it, look what's happening at Kentucky basketball.

Team of the Week
Chicago Bulls - Being a neighbor from the south, you typically do not root for Chicago. Honestly, I like the Bulls when they are not playing Milwaukee. It is hard not to like Tom Thibodeau and respect what he does with the little talent he has on the roster. What if he had a team full of stars, could he make them a 65 win team? I am dead serious about that question too. Bulls are fourth in the Eastern Conference and pushing towards the third spot. People do not want to face Chicago in the playoffs, and they are hot as of late winning their last 10 of 12 games.

Team of the Weak
Denver Nuggets - It is time Denver embraces the tank. Their entire team is injured and lost their last 14 of 17 games which is bailed out by a short two game winning streak against Los Angeles and Milwaukee in early February. Nuggets need to just shut it down and try to get as high of a draft pick as humanly possible. If the Nuggets could add a Marcus Smart to their team, they become instantly better with the wealth of good talent they are already have on this team whom all currently sitting on the bench or not playing right now. At least Ty Lawson blew up Corey Brewer's ankles. (h/t @cjzero)



Sportandfashion-news Medical Injury Report  
Kevin Garnett - Tonight will be the third straight game where Garnett is missing for back spasms. Should this concern you are a Brooklyn fan? Absolutely. Garnett always had some issues with his back in recent years, and it appears to be acting up on him again. This could be damaging news for Brooklyn and their playoff hopes if Garnett battles back injury for the rest of the year.

NBA's week in Images, GIFS, Instagram, Vine, Links, anything else. 


This young Knicks fan is the greatest.  



John Wall did a step over on Kyle Lowry, respect. (H/T @Truth_About_It)

Check out @StephensonLance's 'Sir Lance A Lent' @and1basketball Aqua Mid PEs for tonight: http://t.co/KgJ9UdOQw3 pic.twitter.com/MUBykuAbjr
— SLAM Magazine (@SLAMonline) March 4, 2014

Lance Stephenson's Mardi Gras shoes last night. First, they are great. Second, I did not know AND1 still made shoes for NBA players.

Charlie. 

The Last Leg: Eastern Conference

Before the arrival of the always phenomenal NCAA Tournament, and everyone goes to sleep on the NBA for a month, I wanted to alert everyone that we did it; we have reached the fourth quarter of the NBA season. It’s been long, treacherous, and hilarious as always, but now the final chapter is taking shape. And we are all ready for the stretch run.

We need the stretch run.

Mental or physical despair has touched nearly every NBA team, and in some cases (Think New York Knicks), it has proven to be both mentally and physically despairing. Whatever the problem, it is good knowing the end is near. The playoffs are looming and due to the fourth quarter being upon us, and I want to stick with the “quarters” theme[1], I’m going to share four different things trending in my NBA head.

(Of course because there is soooo much going on in my head, I’m narrowing this post down to just Eastern Conference things, and hopefully, probably, maybe, I will do a Western Conference one tomorrow.)

Without further adieu I give you my “4 Things About the  Eastern Conference” or something…

1.THE DC BOOGIE DOWN
I’m so proud of the Washington Wizards. While I am a Bucks fan regionally, a large scale LeBron backer and mainly just an all-around basketball fan, I did peg the Wizards as a team that I could potentially fall in love with three years ago, and what they have going right now is pretty fun.

Last year, when sharpshooter Bradley Beal was healthy, they were a budding NBA offense. The problem happened to be Beal made the injury report often, and by seasons end, they ranked near the bottom in a number of offensive statistical categories:

•  Field Goal percentage: 27th (43% as a team)
•  Team Assists: 19th 
•  Turnovers: 25th
•  Points Per Game: 28th (93.2 ppg)

Wizards' fans were forced to watch sloppy basketball translating into a lot of “L’s” a season ago. The massive turnover numbers also forced down the number of shots they were able to take, and make (ranking 28th in shots made). This year however, has been a difference dance.

And Nae-Naein’ at the forefront is John Wall.

Wall, feeling slighted for a laundry list of reasons[2], has been a monster this season leading the Wizards to a record of 31-28 (the Wiz haven’t finished above .500 since 2007-2008). Beal, stayed healthy. With that combo, they have much different offensive rankings:

• Field Goals Taken: 9th
• Field Goals Made: 9th
• Field Goal Percentage: 13th (45%)
• Assists: 7th
• Turnovers: 14th
• Points Per Game: 16th (100.3 points per game)

As you can see, they have drastically improved. And it is all about Wall and Beal.

Wall: 20.0ppg 4.2rpg 8.7apg 43% FG 33% 3FG 2.0 spg
Beal: 16.7ppg 3.8rpg 3.5apg 41% FG 41% 3FG

Wall and Beal, both understand their roles, take over when necessary and it seamlessly resulted in offensive continuity. The two have benefited off each other, as well as, the steady shooting of Trevor Ariza and Martell Webster and the low post presence of Nene and Marcin Gortat. They have been sound on all parts of the floor.

There are loose ends however as a team three games over .500 are not perfect. For example, they don’t shoot free throws well ranking 26th in the league. Another major concern that I had a few months ago, as this team started to show its true colors, would they succumb to pressures in the playoffs? When you think of the Wizards, because they haven’t been that good in awhile, and the stars on this team are young up-and-comers (SEE: Wall and Beal), and not proven cornerstones, it is easy to write this team off as inexperienced. But that is far from the truth. When you look at the players, they will be relying on in the playoffs, many of their guys have major postseason chops. Marcin Gortat played major minutes in the Finals behind Dwight Howard in 2009. Nene was apart of the fun Lakers vs. Nuggets Western Conference Finals, Trevor Ariza played a key bench role on the Lakers team that beat both of Nene and Gortat’s teams and PHD. Andre Miller has obviously been around the block more times than Christy Mack.

They also have Kevin Seraphin, a young and learning power forward who will not help this team at all basketball wise, but did recently follow me on Twitter. And you can bet your ass I was pumped when he followed me. I bragged to follow Sportandfashion-news writer Murph, and he told me, “Welcome to the big leagues”.
Unfortunately, Seraphin unfollowed me a couple days later, and I have been regulated back down to the minors. I still love Twitter.

Back to the Wizards Basketball team though, and even though I have a tendency to be biased, and I might be slightly over valuing them, this is a squad to take note of in the coming months. There is a lot to be excited about, and I got a lot of faith in these guys.

And I will have even more if Seraphin re-follows me.

2. Toronto Drakes: Playoff Bound.
Two claps for Drake. Two claps for Rob Ford doing coke. Two claps for pussy eating. Two claps for eating pussy while coked out listening to Drake[3].

Now, that we got that out of the way, this is another team that has really turned things around. And most of it has to do with getting rid of Rudy Gay. It has been really funny the way this has transpired, but whenever Gay leaves town, the team he left gets a little better. In Toronto’s case, Gay’s departure improved the team's defensive efforts and helped open the door for Kyle Lowry and DeMar DeRozan to take over the offense. 

Toronto's guard tandem has been marvelous. Lowry, whom has averaged nearly 17 points a game and a little over seven and a half assists a game to go with a team high PER of 19.9, has been Toronto’s most reliable player. He shot well from downtown at a 37 percent clip and been the leader Toronto needed him to be at the point guard position. Meanwhile, DeRozan took Gay’s departure as means to take more shots and he delivered in a major way. For the season, he averaged 22.7 points per game, and thrived at getting to the free throw line. He takes seven and a half per game and makes a little over six. He has made the fifth most free throws in the league.

A lot of credit for the turn around needs to go to Dwane Casey and his ability to get his squad to “D Up”. The Raptors currently rank fifth in team defense yielding 97.1 ppg, and are seventh in Defensive Rating (104.1). They protect the hoop with a variety of frontcourt combinations that include, Amir Johnson, Jonas Valanciunas, Patrick Patterson and of course, the ultimate pot-stirrer, Tyler Hansbrough.

(Before I say anything more, I have to admit that I think the NBA playoffs are always a better place with Tyler Hansbrough in them. I don’t like him at all, but that is also exactly why I want him in there. I’m not alone in not liking him, and it even seems like players within the league don’t like him, and because bad blood = fun series, Hansbrough should be a must have in the playoffs every year, anyway…)

Raptors have a roster that features three gunners (Lowry, DeRozan, and combination of Terrance Ross and John Salmons) surrounded by a bunch of hard working defend and rebound guys. And they have been successful in this personnel strategy. They rank near the top in defense and free throw shooting. In high school and college basketball you win with defense and free throw shooting. We are not talking high school or college though, and in the NBA, there is no way around playoff growing pains. No matter what however, it is fun the Raptors are here. 

I can already smell a budding Raptors vs. Wizards rivalry for years to come.

3. Shame on you Philadelphia.
As an NBA advocate, one thing I have learned casual fans hate a lot is tanking. The NBA tried to move away from it, but with the way the lottery system is set up, combined with the trifles of being a small market team, it seems sometimes tanking is the only way to get to the top. However, what Philadelphia has chosen to do is flat out despicable. Milwaukee Bucks blew these slum dogs out the other night.

Let me say that again, the Bucks blew these guys out.

After dumping Spencer Hawes and Evan Turner, an already bad Sixers team became unwatchable, and unfortunately the NBA is forced to stand behind them with a blind eye. Philly has lost their last 14 games, and they are 0-5 since the trade deadline with an average margin of loss of 20.1 points.

Their “team” includes the following: Thaddeus Young, Michael Carter-Williams, Hollis Thompson, Lorenzo Brown, Tony Wroten, Henry Sims, Arnett Moultire, Jarvis Varnardo, Eric Maynor, James Anderson, and Bryon 'Don't call me BJ' Mullens.

I mean, gag me. Exorcism puke all over the floor, walls, ceiling, vents and anywhere else in the Wells Fargo Arena.

Aside from MCW and Thad Young, I would not expect any of these guys to be on the team come start of next season, and to expect to get fans to come out and support a group mailing it in and not caring is flat out absurd. It is offensive, and I hope the league figures out a way to stop this type of stuff from happening. But the sad reality is that will be hard to change. So I’m sorry to anyone that enjoys watching Sixer games because nothing is changing, and you have a full month and half of crapsketball.

4. Miami vs. Indiana.
The Money Makers. The heavyweights. The title fight. This is the series we all want to see come playoff time. All season the two have battled for the top spot in the East, and it has been a great fight. It is pretty obvious that I am a LeBron fan, and I will admit, Pacers are a real threat to his throne, but I also think that the throne is safer then what people are saying. And it is because a couple of factors.

The first is that I think Indiana fudged up and made two too many moves in the last few months. The first move was signing Andrew Bynum. I don’t know what good bringing him in did for Indiana. While, it never hurts to have depth, this is also a guy who does not seem to care at all, was disruptive in practice in Cleveland, and just seems to be more of a headache than a pain reliever.

Aside from the addition of Bynum, I thought the trading of Danny Granger (not the addition of Evan Turner) is a problem. While Evan Turner is a far superior player at this point in his career, I think ripping Granger from the locker room was a bad move.Four years ago, when the Pacers were a struggling team, Granger sold the tickets and started the turn around in Indiana. As Paul George skyrocketed to stardom and Granger’s knee’s failed him, he became a mentor and brought a positive attitude for Indiana’s locker room, and an integral piece to their puzzle.

When they traded him, the team seemed upset. And while the addition of Turner should help them on paper, I’m not positive his game will gel so seamlessly with the rest of the Pacers. Turner, has a high usage rate (24.1 percent) when on the floor, and does not shoot at a great percentage (40% FG, 20% 3FG). I think he might be more of a kink in the offense than an asset.

(It should also be noted that Miami has been rumored to have turned down a trade offer that involved Evan Turner for Udonis Haslem because they wanted to stay loyal to Haslem, a story that seems completely and utterly orchestrated by the media and Heat fans.)

The second reason that I feel Miami is still strongly asserted in the drivers seat, has to do with the following:

Player A: 28.0 ppg 8.5 rpg 3.0 apg  45% FG 42% 3FG PER: 24.1

Player B: 22.9 ppg 4.5 rpg 3.9 apg  43% FG 33% 3FG PER: 18.9

Player C: 22.6 ppg 6.4 rpg 3.5 apg  43% FG 36% 3FG PER: 21.1

Carmelo Anthony, DeMar DeRozan and Paul George own those three stat lines. Melo is player A, and far and away the best in this grouping, while DeRozan (B) and George (C) and actually quite similar to each other, although no one is screaming that DeRozan is as good as George. And while I do think George is an excellent player, I think the media blew him up to something that he is not. Or something he is not yet.

We do know George is an excellent two-way player, but he is by no means the best one. He totally benefited from having Roy Hibbert and David West behind him. The tandem gave him the freedom to gamble for steals and blocks, knowing that he will not get burned to the bucket. This is not saying George is not a top tier basketball player, but I think all the wins the Pacers compiled as a team, jaded our views of George as an individual player. He is a good offensive player, and plays with a tough as nails defense on a very good basketball team, that made it past the second round of the playoffs once. George is a ball player, but he is not anywhere close to being the player that he will become in the coming years.

And then of course, if any of that does not convince you the throne is safe, you can consider LeBron James scored 61 points last night and reminded everyone himself that the league is in fact his little brother, and he is in fact the King.

Happy March Folks,

~Andrew

---

[1]Turns out I just love quarters. Old quarters, new quarters, the game of quarters, quarters found under the couch, quarter bags of kush, quarter-pounders with cheese after quarter bags of kush etc…

[2]Did not win rookie of the year, did not get invited to the Olympic tryouts, Kyrie Irving (who has won like 34 games in the NBA) was voted a starter over him in the All-Star game, and probably other things.

[3]For the record my Mom just got real upset with me for that joke, but I’m not posting my weed piece about her so it’s a fair trade for now. 

Condensed Thoughts From All-Star Weekend

Instead of doing a big wordy column about the All-Star Weekend, I just wanted to give some thoughts about different people involved with the weekend. I guess it would look like #HOTALLSTARTAKES, but whatever, enjoy.  

All-Star Game - The game was fantastic. I realize defense did not get played much at all, but that's exactly what you want in this game. TNT's Reggie Miller described it as 'The world's greatest pick-up game' and I think that's the best way to describe. I also think this is the ultimate 'Give the people what they want' game where all that is needed is big dunks, points and fun combinations.

Kyrie Irving - Big game for Kyrie as he continues to be one of the young stars of the game in terms of a marketability standpoint, but now is the time Kyrie needs to start getting some victories under his belt. All of his Pepsi ads and now an All-Star Game MVP trophy are good, but it does not mean shit in the grand scheme of things. Cavs need to do something to ensure their star player does not get away in the coming years like LeBron James.

Skill Competition Duos - Saturday had a ton of faults which we will get to some of them in this blog post, but the skill competition adding the teams was awesome. I almost think they could add one more team to the mix or make it a complete relay with teams of three. There are a lot of things the NBA can do moving forward with this aspect of All-Star Weekend.

John Wall - Since he is sort of a quiet dude, does not do many commercials, casual fans are not really on board with Wall. After Saturday night, I think people are on his bandwagon more so than ever before. We talked on the podcast a couple weeks ago whether you want Wall or Irving and this seems especially given what happened at All-Star that this could be the next great rivalry. Maybe Cleveland can make some noise and be the sixth seed this year... Naaaah.

Blake Griffin - Sure he had a ton of dunks so everybody will act like Griffin did what he normally does, and while that's true, this continues Blake's big run in Feburary. We talked about it in the Roundball Wrap-up, but Griffin continues his hot month even if all he did was throw it down. I keep telling people how he is making a push at being one of the better all-around players in basketball yet people just keep throwing shade at him. Okay.

Giannis' Baby Bro - Thanasis is the Johnny Drama to Giannis' Vincent Chase.



Money Ball Rack - This is pretty much won Marco Belinelli the 3-point contest and it is complete BS. If it were not for the 3-point racks, he does not get to his dominant tie-breaker round. Marco might be the most obscure 3-point contest winner. Somewhere Jason Kapano gleams when you say it wasn't him.

Damian Lillard - I would say this was a sub-par weekend for Lillard. He won the Skills competition which is good, but he did nothing in the other events. No one came away from All-Star talking about Damian Lillard which is a shame because he is a good player but also a reason why people might stay away from doing everything events.

Dunk Contest - Kazz already covered it this morning. He is completely right.

Charles Barkley's hangover - No one has looked more hungover on television than Sir Charles. I am not mad at him, I get it but good God man, get some better cures for the hangover.

Dunk Contest Disaster

Like the end of my first relationship with a rude and swift stomach punch, NBA Dunk Contest ended abruptly and without emotion. Boos echoed down from the “Smoothie Center” rafters, as the players stood awkwardly around Nick Cannon. This was not the ending that anyone was looking for to fire them up before heading out on a Saturday evening.

We can all agree the ending of the Dunk Contest was a giant, horrific scab on the face of an otherwise successful first All-Star Saturday for the new NBA commissioner, Adam Silver. The event has been under scrutiny, as interest in the dunk contest seems to rise and fall yearly. Dunk Contest used to be the pinnacle of the weekend. Winning it absolutely meant something for the winner and his team. At its best, winning the Dunk Contest cemented a legacy for the individual. It was a competitive event showcasing athleticism that doubled as bragging rights for your team.

But that's like your Grandpa telling you a story, 'Back in my day, the dunk contest meant something.' Superstars today don’t feel the same pressure Dominique Wilkins and Michael Jordan felt to win the award, and coupled with the fact it is harder now to impress people with dunks than it was in the early 90's. An NBA player cannot use the same dunk that someone else did in years prior. That unspoken rule did not apply 25 years ago. Twice, Jordan won the contest with his own variation of the free throw line dunk. Last year, former New York Knicks forward James White could have done his between the legs dunk from the free throw line and still lost. Most of the dunks that happen in today’s event, would seem borderline incomprehensible when this event was super in its heyday. Dunk creativity has skyrocketed, and this new reality has definitely hurt how people perceive today's contest. Often negatively.

Another common knock on the All-Star weekend is how buddy-buddy the league has gotten, a perfect example of how AAU has improved league camaraderie while simultaneously making the pundits argue the game has gone soft. Whatever the matter, there is no denying that tempers don’t flare and bodies don’t fly quite like they did in the 80’s and 90’s. When you talk to any NBA fan, it was those decades seeming to warrant the most amount of respect from the casual fan. Fair or unfair, that is the level of nasty competitiveness, people seem to be looking for.

For All-Star Weekend, NBA decided to add more of a competitive flair to things in an attempt to revive Saturday in an effort to pit the East vs. West. In a season that injuries have stolen players like Derrick Rose, Kobe Bryant and Russell Westbrook, the regular season thankfully been saved by the individual greatness of LeBron James and Kevin Durant. As the media has carefully orchestrated a way from these two friends to have bad blood, their fictional rivalry would serve as a perfect parallel for the new All-Star format. LeBron Vs. Durant. East vs. West.Whatever the case, it was clear to me the league is trying to bring back any semblance of bad blood to help boost ratings. And honestly, I am all on board for that plan. The new format did not bothering me one bit. In fact, I thought it was working. I found myself cheering a little harder then usual. But then the Dunk Contest happened....

The Freestyle round was different, but unique. I had not seen that before, and thankfully, they let the Eastern Conference team of Paul George, John Wall and Terrence Ross trot out there first. They were eloquent, barely missed any dunks, and put on a show. Did I have a problem with the way it was graded with three NBA legends holding up East or West? Yes, but at least for this part of the night, grading did not bring to question any doubt within the competition, because the East team showed up, and showed out.

Unfortunately, the end of the first round also is when the door can start to swing open to criticism. The grading system sucked, as my buddy Ryan texted me, “I want a mutha f$%#$ score out of 10”.  He could not be more right. Again, I enjoyed the East vs. West moniker, but why not just still rate every dunk and then take averages and have that serve as the decider? That would work just fine, right? America likes numbers. We don’t care that TNT can afford iPads, and only the really stoned ones watching forgot which player was in the Eastern and Western Conference. So we don’t need to vote that way. NBA taking away one of the key cornerstones in the dunk contest is a massive oversight. 

And of course, the judging was just the first complaint. My next one although smaller, is to please rid the event of props. I don’t need to see a “knighting” ceremony led by Shaquille O’Neal, because simply jumping over him will speak for itself. I don’t need Drake coming out with a backwards snapback, because that can arguable lose Damian Lillard a chance at winning his “Dunk Off”. DeMar DeRozen, who I feel is the leagues best dunker, declared a few years back that he would not participate in the event again until the props are dropped, and quite frankly, he is right on the money. Terrance Ross won the Dunk Contest last year, not using props. Athleticism is all we want to see as fans.

Which brings us back to the start. The slap in the face. The punch in the gut. The fact we did not get a final round. It was tragic. Fans and players alike were duped, as we all waited for the final round. The winners of the round two “challenges” were supposed to have a final round to declare the real winner. But the NBA had other plans. And we all lost.

And we all watched the Drake Sprite Commercial.

If it wouldn’t have been for such an unfortunate ending, I wouldn’t have been forced to write this, but we were all cheated. Everything the league pushes on to us is that this is a competition worth watching. Dominique said it like 55 goddamn times. But on Saturday night, the dunk contest was a waste of my time. We did not get to see who really won. John Wall was voted winner, but I’m not even sure. They never showed me a graphic. Graphics are an easy part of the business, and something should have been produced. Nick Cannon stumbled through the award ceremony with everyone in a state of confusion.

As an NBA advocate, it embarrassed me. And I hope next year, East vs. West moniker aside, they don’t short us a round of competition because nobody has time for that. This format needs to be changed. If they don’t figure it out, the precious viewers they seek will diminish, and the only savior would be finding a way for LeBron and KD to square off.  

I have confidence something will happen. I am not saying those two powerhouses will square off, but something will draw us back next year.

I  hope that something is getting graded out of 10.

May the wind be at your back,

~Andrew 

Roundball Wrap-up: Wednesday January 22nd

Your favorite inconsistent NBA post is back from last year!  I never really had a full grasp on how to do this blog, but I think I have figured it out. There will be similar elements from Bucks Buzz, but in reality, it will be its own post on Wednesday (Or Thursday). I do not really have a time for when it will be up but there will be all sorts of random shit I happen to come across on the Internet plus some thoughts about the week that was.

Players of the Week 
Kevin Durant - I honestly could give it to KD every week, but he is out of his gorge right now. The world is Durant's right now and we are just living in it. In his last five games, he is averaging 40 points a game with shooting 50 percent from three and making 59 percent of his shots in total. In the last three games, Durant is 67 percent from three and 68 percent from inside the circle. Durant's 383 points in the last 10 games is the highest number of points since Kobe Bryant's 396 in 2006-2007 according to Elias Sports Bureau. This is an astronomical run. This is a 'Gather around the television kids, Durant is on' type stuff going on right now. He wants the belt from LeBron James. I mean he really wants to make a statement saying I am the best in the world right now while he is not, but right now, no one can stop Durant. The fact he had 56 and 48 points against Golden State and Portland is a massive statement. Sometimes you wonder whether one player can take his team all the way to the finals, and right now, Durant is looking that way. Oh yeah, he gets Russell Westbrook back at some point. Couple good tweets from Friday's game...

57 is the number. Ive always said whenever @KDTrey5 and I combine for 57 we have a great shot to win.
— Nick Collison (@nickcollison4) January 18, 2014

54 piece nugget with a side large fries .with extra salt ..lol .. STAY HOTT @KDTrey5 #MVP.... And I want a shake too lol
— Russell Westbrook (@russwest44) January 18, 2014

Rudy Gay - Last week, I dogged Rudy and this week, I call him a player of the week, that's how shit works, deal with it.  Yes I know he had a six point performance against Oklahoma City this week, but this is the Susan Lucci award. Gay deserves a ton of credit for how he responded getting traded to Sacramento. Gay had 41 points last night which has been his pinnacle for Sacramento this season. He is also becoming an efficient scorer. In November, Gay shot 37.5 percent from the field, and in January, Gay is shooting 55 percent. That's a massive difference. I have no idea what changed for Gay. But we can officially say the future is bright for Sacramento even though they are 10 games under .500?  Boogie Cousins is playing great, same with Gay and Isiaiah Thomas. Kings are one or two players away from being a playoff team next season.

'I am not mad, I am disappointed' Player of the Week
Beno Udrih - What the hell happened in New York? I guess I fail to understand how Udrih can be so frustrated with New York when he played for Milwaukee for the last couple of years. I mean maybe the big city lifestyle is not for him as he played in Sacramento and Milwaukee for his first two stints of professional basketball, but still, I would not see him being one of the more hated players on the New York Knicks. Udrih will probably get his trade because there are teams who need a backup point guard with the ability to make a mean mid-range jumper is probably very high.

Team of the Week
Chicago Bulls - Remember when this team was supposed to tank? They trade away Luol Deng, and it appeared they were heading to tank city. But Joakim Noah (He missed POW by just a little bit) and Tom Thibodeau will not allow it. Chicago has won their last eight of 10 games. Thibs might be the greatest coach for the talent he consistently has around him being limited at best. Chicago is probably going to end up being the fourth seed since they cannot seem to beat Washington (Only team they have lost to in the last 10 games). And I know we as Wisconsinites are not supposed to like Chicago-based teams, but dammit it is hard not to like Chicago with the determination and gutty nature of how they play basketball. Although Thibs, do not play Jimmy Butler 60 minutes, okay, thanks.

Team of the Weak
New Orleans Pelicans - This is a team absolutely bitten by injuries. They were .500 on December 11th. Pelicans weathered Anthony Davis' hand injury, but this team started to lose Jrue Holiday whose bothering a knee injury, Jason Smith is out for awhile and Ryan Anderson will be out until March. Pelicans are nowhere near at full strength and they have now dropped 14 of their last 19 games. Although this could work out for New Orleans. They were not figuring to be this bad as some slotted them as a low playoff team. If they get worse than this, the pick they are supposed to give to Philadelphia might not move if New Orleans can pick in the top five. Joel Embiid and Anthony Davis would block 100 shots together. Davis and Julius Randle would be unstoppable too. Pelicans need to keep losing.

Sportandfashion-news Medical Injury Report  
Nikola Vucevic - Orlando is not having a good year, and currently, their young man missed six straight games with a concussion. Orlando does not really know when they will have him back. Concussions in any sport deserve time away. I realize with Magic's not really looking to win here, they will tell Vucevic to take it easy.

This Week in GIFs, Vines, Tweets, Instagrams, Videos, Links, Pictures and anything else 
Stop it Kenneth Faried (H/T @Lashy) 


Great stuff from Kobe and Rajon Rondo

Rondo, on being called an asshole by Kobe: "That's a great compliment, coming from Kobe. I feel the same way about him."
— Baxter Holmes (@BaxterHolmes) January 18, 2014

John Wall joined the circus. (H/T @AdamMcGinnis) 


Paul George, just stop it.

Sportandfashion-news Future NBA Power Rankings: 24.) - 20.)

by Adam Hatlak, edited by Charlie Tritschler.  

Late December/early January is generally when the NBA starts to heat up. For this NBA season, this is especially true. With all of the injuries to major stars and one of the most anticipated draft classes in recent memory coming up, the landscape of the NBA is in store for a major shakeup. Due to all the changes, now is a good time to look at what the NBA will look like for the next 3-5 years. These Power Rankings were made from a fan’s perspective including many different variables: probability of future success, likeability of organization, trust in front office, and ability to acquire/retain quality players. All of the criteria are applied for the next 3-5 years, as anything further into the future is increasingly more difficult to predict.  

24.) New York Knicks
Key Assets: Carmelo Anthony, Tyson Chandler, Iman Shumpert, Tim Hardaway Jr.

Reason for Hope: Despite questions about his leadership ability, and chances to ever win a title, Anthony is still a major player in the NBA. Along with a player of Anthony’s stature, comes the ability to get hot at the right time, and have a player take over at the end of games. Additionally, if the Knicks ever get salary cap flexibility, Anthony and the New York market, will be able to attract free agents. If Chandler can stay healthy, he still can be a defensive anchor and rebounding machine. Shumpert and Hardaway are nice young wing players, especially if the team is able to limit their roles.

Reason for Concern: Melo can be a free agent, and seems like the type of player who might be willing to jump ship to a new situation. Amar'e Stoudemire unfortunately never seems like he is going to get back to the player he once was. Chandler continues to get older, and as one of the players who came straight to the league out of high school, he has more miles on his legs than his age may indicate. Shumpert and Hardaway seem to be the only young players that have a future with the Knicks, and both seem likely to be traded for immediate help. To top it all off, the Knicks have given away so many of their draft picks; they will not be able to take advantage of their own potential lottery situations.

Key Decision Looming: Does Melo stay? There have been rumors that the Knicks are interested in trading Anthony, as well as reports that Anthony would be interested signing elsewhere as a free agent such as Chicago or Los Angeles Lakers. Anthony tried so hard to get sent to New York while he was in Denver, but it seems that the partnership is near its end. The Knicks need him to resign with the team even with questions about his ability to win a championship since he is their best chance at getting there with so few assets of value for the future. The Knicks would be wise to either trade him for a superstar or sign him to a max contract again.

23.) Los Angeles Lakers
Key Assets: Kobe Bryant, Pau Gasol, Steve Nash.

Reason for Hope: While the end of his career is near, any team with Kobe Bryant is not out of the race; his sheer competitiveness and ability to take over a game needs to be respected until he retires. If Bryant is willing to be a sidekick to either a new superstar, or a young player developing, the Lakers could rise in the standings. Despite all the trades they made to put together a super team, Lakers have their draft pick this season therefore they will be able to get a stud if they place high in the lottery. If Gasol is able to improve his game slightly over the next few weeks, he could bring a decent haul of future assets, or prove capable of being a leader at a reduced cost in the future. Although the key free agents might not be available this year for the Lakers, the cap situation in L.A. is clean enough that they will be ready to get a few key free agents in the next couple of years to propel the next great Lakers team.

Reason for Concern: Bryant is old and injured, Gasol is old, and likely on his way out, and Nash is old and injured, but other than that, the veterans on the Lakers are in good shape. It is no surprise to anyone that follows the league that Los Angeles are in trouble moving forward. There are valid concerns Bryant will ever be able to get back to the player that was able to carry a team to the playoffs, much less go far in those playoffs, and Lakers have an uphill climb to find players to surround him enough to support him. Bryant’s salary is also huge, and he, Nash, and Robert Sacre are the few players that are signed long-term. Gasol has been unhappy the past few seasons in Los Angeles, and likely could find a contender that would utilize him in an offense he is happier with, a fact that could potentially cause Gasol to move on.

Key Decision Looming: When does Gasol leave? It has been years since the Lakers first tried to trade Gasol, and since then the team has been littered with rumors about him going to another team. This season has been no different, as he was rumored to potentially leave town for the right to waive Andrew Bynum’s contract. Gasol's performance slightly dwindled  as he has aged and played in a system he is not comfortable in. If the Lakers can move him at the deadline, they should, but he might not bring back any value. It is likely Gasol will leave town as a free agent, and we can only hope that he does not resign with the Lakers creating all sorts of new rumors for the rest of his career.

22.) Memphis Grizzlies
Key Assets: Marc Gasol, Mike Conley, Zach Randolph, Ed Davis.

Reason for Hope: Defense is one of the most predictable aspects of basketball, and the team has plus defensive players at two very important positions, center and point guard. Conley appeared to take a step forward in last year’s playoffs, and has assumed a bigger role since the departure of Rudy Gay. Gasol gets a lot of credit for his defensive prowess, but he also has an underrated offensive game, possessing great court vision for a big man. The team’s front office placed a greater emphasis on analytics within the last year, a decision that may be able to add a few wins above what their talent level suggests they’re at right now.

Reason for Concern: This team got old very quickly, as it seems like just a few years ago, they were an under the radar contender. Randolph is still a beast in the post, but he is losing some of his ability to carry a team, something that is necessary when players like Gasol are lost. It was a wise move to get rid of Gay and his inefficient offensive game, but they have struggled to replace the wing scoring with the likes of Mike Miller and Tayshaun Prince. Quincy Pondexter’s injury did nobody any favors, and the team seems very thin now. Potentially the biggest issue is that this team seems destined for dreaded NBA purgatory, not bad enough to win the lottery, not a big enough market to attract a star free agent, not enough cap space to over pay a star, and not enough talent to sneak into the conference finals. After a few fun years of playoff basketball, Memphis is in trouble.

Key Decision Looming: When is it time to let go? The Grizzlies rise to being a contender was fun to watch, they played good defense, they had a fun identity, but they were still underdogs. Unfortunately time and the salary cap has caught up with them. Rudy Gay was already traded from the team, and it seems that Randolph’s remaining time is limited. Do the Grizzlies continue trying to add to this season and next, hoping to recapture what they had or chose instead to invest in the future, hoping to make a run in a few years. It might be smarter to play for the future, as Gasol and Conley could conceivably be veteran leaders for a future Grizzlies team. 

21.) Utah Jazz 
Key Assets: Derrick Favors, Trey Burke, Gordon Hayward, Alec Burks, Enes Kanter, 2 first round picks in 2014.

Reason for Hope: Thankfully for the Jazz, they are no longer stuck in the middle of the Western Conference. With Al Jefferson and Paul Millsap, this was a team that was having issues getting a high lottery pick, as they would contend for the eighth seed in the playoffs. Luckily they will have a high pick this season. Favors appears to be a potential defensive anchor in the middle, and Hayward and Burks still have some potential if not the main option on offense. Burke has a lot of potential, and could be a very capable leading point guard in the future. There is still a lot of young potential in Utah, they need one star in order to fulfill it, and that player may be coming this draft.

Reason for Concern: Two years ago, this team would have been much higher on this list, and losing Paul Millsap and Al Jefferson is not what knocks them down, they were expected to leave. Millsap and Jefferson were allowed to leave so that Favors and Enes Kanter could finally get the opportunity to play more minutes, ideally developing into legit building blocks. Favors has fared better than Kanter, but both have failed to exceed expectations, as the team is off to a slow start. Burks and Hayward seem to be slow to develop as well, a troubling sign for such a young team. The team may look to move on from Ty Corbin soon, as he has underwhelmed as coach, and the team lacks development.

Key Decision Looming: Who do they draft in the 2014 NBA Draft? Utah currently projects to pick in the first three of the upcoming draft. Who they select will determine the future of this franchise. There are bound to be some busts in this draft, but selecting high should help the Jazz avoid that. Ideally, they would be able to select Andrew Wiggins or Jabari Parker, since they desperately need a star on the wing rather than help at point guard or center.

20.) Washington Wizards
Key Assets: John Wall, Bradley Beal, Nene.

Reason for Hope: The Wizards have played well this season, and that gives fans a lot of hope. They have one of the most promising young backcourts, with Wall and Beal providing a solid one-two punch. If both can continue to improve, and even rise to stardom, this team can go far in a weak Eastern Conference. Nene brought a toughness to the Wizards, and when he is on his game, he proves to be one of the better inside presences in the conference. Depending on the matchup, the Wizards might be able to make it to the second round of the playoffs, something that many fans would not have considered an option before the Martin Gortat trade.

Reason for Concern: Wall has been better this season, but still brings doubts as to whether he can be the face of a contending franchise, and is now being paid like he should be. Both he and Beal form a potentially dominant backcourt, but both have had some issues with injuries. Speaking of injuries, Nene is one of their best players, but injuries have troubled him throughout his career, making it tough to see him anchoring the post for this team long term. The Wizards gave up their next first round pick in order to get Marcin Gortat, who can leave after this season, if they are unable to resign him to a reasonable deal, the trade could end up a huge waste.

Key Decision Looming: How do they acquire one more sidekick for Wall? Nene, Beal, and Wall is not enough to truly contend, regardless if the young guys improve, but Washington is going to face some difficulties acquiring players necessary to take the next step. Free agency seems like the best option now that they are without their first round pick this year, since it was used to acquire Gortat. If they can upgrade at small forward, this team may take a leap, but finding someone is the true question.