Flashback

Hey, remember when we legitimately thought that AI and C-Webb were going to lead us to the promised land? Funny when you think back on it.



-G

P.S. Allen is about to ink a contract with Memphis, btw. That's where he'll end his career: in frickin' Memphis.

Holy Vick !!

Count me in the "this is a great move" camp. Even if it doesn't work, it's worth the shot. Vick's paid his due to society. However horrible what he did was, he's done more time than most do for this kind of crime. So, I don't really care what animal rights activists have to say. If he got off like say Donte Stallworth, then their beef would be legit.

In terms of football, this is the kind of move that we desperately needed. West, who I think should have his jersey retired when it's said and done, is turning 30 this year. We should know that we'd be lucky if he's got even one year left as an elite running back. And, he's coming off yet another injury. Even if we've got his replacement lined up, it doesn't account for the game changing ability being lost by West becoming a mere mortal. There's no one that makes us dangerous if he's not in top form. Donovan isn't that dude anymore. So now we've got a guy who changes all that. In theory, anyway.

The O-line still has to get healthy for us to have a shot. And the defense doesn't inspire a great deal of confidence right now. The pass rush looks weak, and losing Stewart Bradley was BIG. All that being said, getting Vick is a step towards being hellified at least on one side of the ball. And, if the unthinkable were to happen and Donovan got hurt, we've got a legit starter ready to take his place.

Obviously, Vick needs some time to get his game back, but time is something he's got in this current situation. If Donovan starts to feel heat on his neck, then he's gonna have to step up or step aside. At this point, Vick's either gonna make us better, or he's gonna make us realize we ain't there yet.

I got it...

All right, here’s the deal (assuming I have my numbers right*):

Oklahoma City. They have expiring contracts, and nothing good to buy with them. There is NO CHANCE LeBron or Wade are going to Oklahoma. None. Zero. And they know it.

Meanwhile, they have a nice young core with a potential superstar and a half (Durant and Westbrook). But they have some gaping holes, particularly in their front court.

So here’s my Stephanski trade:

Sammy and Speights
for
Etan Thomas and Earl Watson

In terms of money, it’s about the same (roughly $14M per package), but the Thomas/Watson package comes off the books in Summer 2010. ‘Dre walked and took $10M in salary with him. We were projected to be about $3M over the cap next summer if we’d kept ‘Dre. But subtract this $24M total (‘Dre, Thomas, Watson) from that, and we’ll be sitting at $21M under the cap next summer. And you know what that means.

Why would the Thunder do it? Because they’d get an athletic shot-blocking center to play alongside Nenad Krstic, plus a young near-stud at the 4 to play behind Jeff Green. And they give up next to nothing for it. The 2009 Thunder would look like this (backups in parens):

1 – Russell Westbrook (Shaun Livingston)
2 – James Harden (Kyle Weaver)
3 – Kevin Durant (T. Sefolosha)
4 – Jeff Green (Speights)
5 – Dalembert (Krstic)

With the right coach, that team looks a little scary, no?

Anyway, this is what’s up, Ed. Call me. I’ll walk you through the deets.

-G

*I have only a minimal handle on the cap rules, so take this with a grain of salt.

Why not?

If you’re Ed Stephanski, and you flat out know that ‘Dre isn’t coming back, is there any reason you wouldn’t extend a one-year offer to Iverson? (Assuming AI would want such a thing, of course.)



All he wants is the veteran’s minimum and to be a starter. FOR ONE YEAR. Which would give us the flexibility to join the Dwayne Wade sweepstakes next summer (provided Sammy is moved for an expiring contract and they don’t use up the ‘Dre money).

Can you imagine seeing AI back in an Erz uni? How badly would you want to be there when #3 walks out of the tunnel and returns to his home floor for the first time? I’m getting goosebumps just thinking about it.

We ain’t winning anything any time soon anyway. So again, I ask: WHY NOT?

Pride? Time to swallow.

Aaaaaand now they’re giving it back:



I don’t know, man. I’d like to think that this was just one huge PR misstep on Nike’s part. Someone panicked, took the tape...all hell broke loose. I really hate to think of LeBron having anything to do with it directly. But, hey, we’ll never know.

The Pride and the Glory

What's Nike so afraid of? "The King" plays a competitive sport. Getting beaten on a play happens to every player, every game. Getting posterized has happened to every great player in the game at least once. Even Mike (with Scottie by his side) got baptized by John Starks.

Do you think that Bron told the Nike boys to go get that video? The report said that he huddled with Nike officials before the confiscation happened. That could have been his reps pushing it. In my heart of hearts though, I gotta say, I think he was relieved to have them make the recommendation. That is, if he didn't give the order himself. Did the game stop immediately after the play? Did the ref just blow the whistle and guys in suits just walk onto the court? When did this huddling happen? During a timeout? The baptism happened early in the game and they kept playing. Did security roll up on the perpetrators as the game continued? How exactly did they know exactly who had video? The crowd had to have at least a hundred people. I would kill to have been a fly on the wall.

This is like the entire world knowing that the Zepruder film exists, but no one other than Zepruder himself having ever seen it.

To me, Bron comes off like a bigger punk for suppressing freedom of the press than he would have for having a youtube clip of him getting yammed on. What's he so afraid of? Devin Harris had his best year ever after his similar embarrassment last summer. If you don't want guys bouncing the ball off your dome with two handed stuffs while their bent knees are wrapped under your armpits and they yell with their eyes closed, then don't play professional basketball. At the very least, don't underestimate your opponent and jump late.

Kobe: Top Ten?

Now that Kobe has won one without Shaq, the big question hangs out there: Does Kobe crack the list of the top-ten all-time greatest pro hoopers? Well...

No.

Granted, this is one man’s judgement. And that one man based that judgement on the following variables:

> Stats
> All-around game (i.e., both ends of the floor)
> Impact on his team
> Level of dominance within his era
> Ultimate success (i.e., NBA/ABA rings, NCAA championships, Olympic medals, etc.)

By those measures — granted, not the most quantifiably sound, but still — I came up with eleven names before I got to Jellybean’s son. Behold:

1. MJ
2. Wilt
3. Russell
4. Kareem
5. Bird
6. Big O
7. Magic
8. Shaq
9. Duncan
10. Doc
11. Dream
12. Kobe

All right, Umi. Tell me why I’m wrong.

-G

P.S. Let me say pre-emptively that while Dream has two against Kobe’s four, Kobe wasn’t integral to his team’s success until 2000-01. From Game 2 on, Kobe was a monster in that series (it still pains me to remember). The first two rings he more or less earned on Shaq’s back (and remember, he was a downright CHOKE as a young pro). Also, Dream’s Rockets played during the Jordan era, and were only able to grab their rings during MJ’s temporary retirement. You think Kobe’s sitting with four rings if he came into the L in 1984? No way.