The Perpetual NBA Thread

[cardo]

saw that game with the lakers on short shorts. They changed to their regular shorts at half time.. must have been 'constricting' them in the first half hehe

[theveed]

Sabi nga ni Kobe, I feel violated ) )

---

Pippen wants to coach Bulls

Monday, Dec 31, 2007 3:40 pm EST




Former Chicago Bulls great Scottie Pippen says he's serious about coaching, and if there is an opening with the Chicago Bulls, he believes he's perfect.


"What's my disadvantage?" Pippen asked. "No NBA coaching experience? [Scott] Skiles' record with the Bulls wasn't that great. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to do what you've done your whole life. I've played basketball, run teams and won.


"They didn't put me at point guard because I could dribble good. They put me there because I could run a team. I wasn't the best dribbler, the best shooter. I wasn't a point guard. But I knew how to run a team."

---

I wonder if Scottie ever saw Magic, Larry Bird, Isaiah and other great players' stints as coaches hehe.

[theveed]

2007 Voting...

Who are your top 3:

1) MVP - Dwight Howard, LeBron James, Chris Paul
2) Sixth Man of the Year - Manu Ginobili, Leandro Barbosa, ??? David Lee ???
3) Defensive Player of the Year - Marcus Camby, Marcus Camby, Marcus Camby
4) Most Improved Player - Chris Kaman, LaMarcus Aldridge, Mike Dunleavy
5) Rookie of the Year - Yi Jian Lian, Kevin Durant, Al Horford

[ILuvDetailing]

I wonder if Scottie ever saw Magic, Larry Bird, Isaiah and other great players' stints as coaches hehe.

Cross Larry Bird off that list, he did take Indiana to the NBA Finals with Reggie Miller, Jalen Rose, Rik Smits, Dale Davis and Austin Croshere.

Isaiah Thomas single-handedly ruined the NY Knicks with a series of bad contracts, can you spell Big-Snacks (Jerome James) :bwahaha:

Magic didn't even last the season.

[chain]

Cross Larry Bird off that list, he did take Indiana to the NBA Finals with Reggie Miller, Jalen Rose, Rik Smits, Dale Davis and Austin Croshere.

Rick Carlisle was the one manning the X's and O's for Bird during that time. virtual figurehead dating ni Bird.

[theveed]

hehe talas dila ni Pip this week ah.

Scottie Pippen on the current Bulls

By Sam Smith
Tribune pro basketball reporter

December 30, 2007, 10:49 PM CST

Scottie Pippen says he has been watching the Bulls. Here are some of his observations:

On Tyrus Thomas:

"He can be a defender and a shot blocker. You don't want him taking those ill-advised shots, jumping and trying to pass the ball. He dribbles better with his left hand than his right. He must have broken his arm when he was a kid. He shouldn't be dribbling. He should be a fetcher. Like Ben Wallace, [Joakim] Noah, go get the ball. They don't have enough athletes. I could see why they went for someone like Thomas. He's athletic, but he doesn't know how to play the game. He's great from the neck down. What can he do? Have him do that."

On Ben Wallace:

"I'd say I need more effort from him. I need positive numbers in rebounds, deflections, charges. He's not playing with four All-Stars anymore. He plays defense every night or Tyrus Thomas is out there playing. You don't pay a rebounder $15 million. OK, they did. He doesn't know the game like Dennis Rodman did. Dennis knew how and why he got rebounds. So you keep on him or he doesn't play."

On Ben Gordon:

"It's his shot selection. You take those bad shots, you're sitting down. He's out there shooting for a contract. Offensively, they can be as good as last year. But their shot selection is horrible. [Luol] Deng also is playing for a contract. There's no flow to their game. Gordon has to make plays. If there's two, three guys running at him, he still wants to make a shot. Those shots are out of position, your teammates don't expect them, you are not in position to rebound and get back. Taking bad shots is a sign of a lack of respect for your teammates. You think I'm going to run back if I know B.J. Armstrong is jacking it up? My shot is just as good as his. That's what players think."

On Kirk Hinrich:

"He just needs direction. He's guarding Kobe, Tracy McGrady, the best players. He's not that talented. Let him run the offense. But you can't have midgets running your backcourt. Little guards always put you in a vulnerable position. You've got to send help. It puts too much pressure on the defense. I'd tell Kirk to try to control the game, don't force shots, but late in the game be ready. Early, I'd have him off the ball."

On Luol Deng:

"He's solid. But he doesn't have enough speed. He plays more upright, so it's tough for him to go out and guard smaller guys. I think Deng is on the verge of being a star. But all that money talk added pressure. Now he's trying to show 28, 29 teams what he's about instead of going out and playing. When the reality is maybe one or two would be looking at him."

On Andres Nocioni:

"I'd sit down with him and say, 'Show me you're a winner and play like it. Not with those crazy antics. Make your hustle work in a positive way.' He's turning into Rasheed Wallace with the kinds of things he does on floor. It makes the officials turn on the whole team. And you stop getting calls. Don't shoot those ill-advised shots. Don't look to get bailed out by the refs."

and then...

Replies after Pip lets it rip
Ex-Bull's critiques make some waves through locker room

By K.C. Johnson
Tribune staff reporter

December 31, 2007, 9:05 PM CST

Scottie Pippen's scorched-earth assessment of current Bulls players and his stated desire to coach in the organization spread through the locker room quickly Monday.

"I don't really care what Scottie has to say," Ben Gordon said.

In Monday's Tribune, NBA reporter Sam Smith quoted Pippen offering one of his harsher critiques when dissecting Gordon's game, claiming he selfishly takes bad shots.

"Everybody's entitled to their own opinion, but it doesn't have anything to do with anything," Gordon said. "When I see him, I say hi out of respect. He's a top-50 player. That's the extent [of our relationship], really."

Pippen also bluntly assessed Kirk Hinrich's game, claiming "you can't have midgets running your backcourt." The two had a strong relationship as teammates during Hinrich's rookie season of 2003-04.

"I always liked Pip, and we got along great," Hinrich said. "I don't think he's ever been afraid to speak his mind, even when he was here. I never felt like it was anything too crazy."

Interim coach Jim Boylan defended his players.

"It's Scottie's opinion," Boylan said. "I don't necessarily agree."

As for Pippen's desire to coach, Boylan took a philosophical approach to any and all possibilities general manager John Paxson considers next off-season. Boylan's interim contract runs through this season.

"Right now I'm standing here," Boylan said. "I've always been someone who wasn't afraid of a challenge. The challenge for me right now is to do a great job and make the Bulls hire me long-term. That's my goal. That's what I'm setting out to do."

Paxson has acknowledged the possibility of adding an assistant to Boylan's staff. Hinrich said Pippen would make a good one, although his public comments could not have sat well with Paxson.

"When he was out there, he was a leader on the floor," Hinrich said. "He was always directing things. I felt like I learned some things from him when he was here."

But players also defended Boylan in light of Pippen's stated desire to be a head coach.

"Give the guy a chance, you know?" Gordon said.

[chain]

[SIZE="4"]What cost Hill his job wasn't clash with GM[/SIZE]

Mike Bianchi
SPORTS COMMENTARY
January 4, 2008

It became all the rage last season to rip former Magic coach Brian Hill for not maximizing the personnel on the team's roster. There were Web sites calling for his ouster, fans and media who tore him apart for not developing the Magic's young talent.

Hill supposedly was fired, in part, because he clashed with General Manager Otis Smith on some of the key components provided by Smith and the Magic's personnel department.

Which is why it seemed a bit ironic when Hill, now an assistant coach with the New Jersey Nets, made his return to Amway Arena earlier this week and saw evidence that some of his unpopular personnel assessments are turning out to be frighteningly accurate.

For instance:

*1. One of the main reasons Hill supposedly was fired is because No. 1 draft choice J.J. Redick couldn't get into Hill's playing rotation last season. Guess what? Here we are nearly halfway through this season, and Redick can't get into new Coach Stan Van Gundy's playing rotation, either.

*2. Hill wouldn't start Darko Milicic because he thought Darko was too lazy, too soft and too inconsistent. Guess what? After Hill was fired, Darko signed a lucrative deal with Memphis, where he is averaging 6.6 points and 5.7 rebounds and has been a major disappointment because he is considered too lazy, too soft and too inconsistent.

*3. Hill questioned whether Jameer Nelson was a championship-caliber starting point guard. Guess what? Van Gundy has benched Nelson because, so far this season, he hasn't been a championship-caliber starting point guard.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying the Magic would be 22-12 if Brian Hill were still coaching them. In fact, they'd probably be 12-22. For one reason and one reason only: Dwight Howard likes playing for Van Gundy, and he didn't like playing for Hill. And, really, that's the one and only reason Van Gundy is here and Hill isn't.

The reason I bring this up is because I've always been curious about the weird circumstances involving Hill's firing after last season.

Hill himself has refused consistently to comment about the specifics of his dismissal, telling the Sentinel again Wednesday night, "I'm not going to get into that." But it took only five words from Dwight on Thursday to finally unearth the real truth.

Dwight confirmed that Magic management consulted with him before making the decision to fire Hill. And here is Dwight's assessment of Hill's dismissal:

"I was cool with it."

Riddle solved.

Those five words doomed Brian Hill.

Think about it.

If Dwight had said, "I'm NOT cool with it," does anybody think the Magic would have had the audacity to fire Hill? Of course not.

As it turns out, the Great Brian Hill Mystery was no mystery at all. He was fired for the same reason most NBA coaches lose their jobs: Because their star players quit paying attention to them. It happened to Hill last time he coached the Magic when he lost the confidence of Shaq and Penny. It happened with Van Gundy in Miami when he supposedly lost the support of Shaq.

It just happened with Scott Skiles in Chicago, where pretty much the entire team despised playing for its coach.

"You have to like your coach," Howard confirms. "I think that's very important. It's hard to be around somebody all the time if you don't like them."

Howard will not come right out and say that he disliked playing for the strictly regimented, oft-inflexible Hill, but it's very clear that he is responding much better to Van Gundy's more freewheeling style.

And let's not forget Howard's quote when it appeared the Magic had hired Billy Donovan to replace Hill. Said Howard then: "Basketball is going to be fun again here."

Translation: Basketball wasn't fun under Hill.

Former Magic and Pistons coach Chuck Daly put it best a few years ago when he said of the NBA: "It's a player's league. The players allow you to coach them or they don't. Once they stop allowing you to coach, you're on your way out."

So there you have it -- the real reason Brian Hill was fired.

Not because of the development of J.J. or Jameer, but because of the development of the only player whose disenchantment is non-negotiable. When Smith fired Hill, he made the only decision humanly possible.

And make no mistake about it, every major move this franchise makes over the next several years will be determined by asking one very simple question:

Is Dwight cool with it?

its either that or trade Dwight...

[Gumusut_Amige]

ganda ng laro ng suns kanina... nag target shooting sila from downtown 20/31. not good dahil kalaban ko ngayon si m2 sa league B with marion's monster game

[mazdamazda]

ganda ng laro ng suns kanina... nag target shooting sila from downtown 20/31. not good dahil kalaban ko ngayon si m2 sa league B with marion's monster game

with 0 TO to boot.

hope makabawi na ako sa league b... tagal akong dinala sa kangkungan ni foye.

[theveed]

Grabe mahal!

Nike to release 23rd Air Jordan; he's not saying whether it will be the last
By SARAH SKIDMORE, Associated Press Writer
January 8, 2008


BEAVERTON, Ore. (AP) -- It's gotta be the shoes, right?


No other basketball shoe has changed the face of business, athletics and marketing like the Air Jordan. This month, Nike releases the 23rd edition, and it is expected to be just as venerated as its predecessors.
[SIZE=-2]ADVERTISEMENT[/SIZE]


The sleek design and link to Michael Jordan's jersey number make it a touchstone in the line. It's also Nike's first basketball shoe designed under its "Considered" ethos, which aims to reduce waste and use environmentally friendly materials wherever possible.


The Air Jordan XX3 will be released in three hyped-up rounds from January to February, starting with a limited edition to be sent to only 23 retailers to be sold for $230 and concluding with the national launch at $185.


There had been talk at Nike about retiring the shoe at No. 23, because of his iconic jersey number. But company officials won't say whether this will be the last of the line. Neither will Jordan.


"You'll just have to wait and see," Jordan said in an e-mail to The Associated Press, responding to questions about the upcoming release.


Before launching the first shoe in 1985, Nike had just signed Jordan for $2.5 million over five years. Nike won't say what Jordan's current contract with the company is worth.


Jordan's deal with Nike opened the door for sneaker manufacturers to chase after athletes, signing them up -- sometimes just out of high school-- for multimillion-dollar contracts in hopes of being able to cash in on the next superstar. It sent sneaker prices to new heights, which has since generated a backlash against selling pricey shoes to basketball-loving kids.


"The Air Jordan franchise created the most coveted basketball footwear in the world and changed the basketball landscape forever," said Nike Brand President Charlie Denson.


Unlike most basketball shoes to date, which were often white and utilitarian, the Air Jordan was a shock of black and red. It was initially banned by the NBA for not conforming with other players' shoes.


Jordan continued to wear them and was fined $5,000 a game, which Nike paid.
"Nobody expected the mass hysteria created by its release," Jordan, who has been a part-owner of the Charlotte Bobcats since 2006, said in his e-mail to The AP.


A new edition was launched each year, and release dates had to be moved to the weekends to keep kids from skipping school to get a pair.


The frenzy got dangerous. People were mugged and even killed for the shoes.


The Air Jordans helped spawn a subculture of collectors, who line up at stores to buy the shoe's latest edition.


Jordan said he never expected that the shoe would become an icon.


"Like every kid growing up, I dreamed of making winning shots at the buzzer and I was fortunate to live out that dream, but never in my wildest dreams did I ever entertain the idea of the success of the Air Jordan franchise," he said.


The Air Jordans moved basketball shoes from true high-tops or low-tops to a middle range and used unheard of styles, such as patent leather toes and elephant print.


As Jordan's success grew on the courts, so did Nike's in the shoe industry.


People from the streets to the suburbs were wearing $100-plus basketball shoes, which was unheard of at the time.


That price is the norm today, but it has launched a backlash, such as the partnership between New York Knicks player Stephon Marbury and the Steve & Barry's store chain to sell basketball shoes for $14.98 -- a direct stab at pricey sneakers like Air Jordans.


At that time, the Air Jordan captured a mix of design, marketing, athleticism and player charisma that hadn't been seen before in the industry -- everyone wanted to "Be Like Mike."


"Athletes had been endorsing products for years prior to this," said Tinker Hatfield, Nike's Vice President of Innovation Design and Special Projects.


"But they were just signing their name to the shoe. I think there was a very understandable difference...Michael's personality and even the changes in the game and inspiration from other walks of life were all sort of being designed into this product and that made it more interesting."


Jordan and Hatfield work together on the design and function on many of the Air Jordan shoes. Jordan has final say on design matters.


Air Jordan was the lightning in the bottle that every company hopes for.


Advertising images of Jordan soaring across the sky were ubiquitous. Spike Lee could be heard hollering "It's gotta be the shoes" on television. And Jordan's outstretched arms with the swoosh nearby adorned walls across the country.


Nike quickly moved from a running company and newcomer to the basketball category to the market leader. Some industry estimates put Nike's current share of the basketball shoe market at about 85 percent. Far behind are Adidas and Reebok.


The idea of adding such unusual style to a product or so closely aligning with a personality was novel at the time, but it paid off.


Other companies tried to follow suit but it was like trying to come up with the next Harry Potter or iPhone for basketball.


The relationship completely changed the idea of sports marketing. Companies now make athlete sponsorships the centerpiece of their business, spending millions signing them and designing product lines and marketing platforms around them.


Jordan's original deal seems like a pittance compared to multimillion-dollar contracts inked these days, such as Nike's $90 million agreement with LeBron James.


"The beginning of the Jordan era marked a new and more sophisticated approach to leveraging an athlete," said Paul Swangard, managing director of the Warsaw Sports Marketing Center at the University of Oregon.


Like any bet, athletic companies take their risks -- some pay off, like Tiger Woods or LeBron James. But some don't, a la Michael Vick. Nike terminated its contract with Vick last August after his plea agreement on dogfighting charges.


Jordan was spun off into its own division in 1997, a move that some high up in Nike questioned when Jordan retired.


But the business is a key component, with new players signing on under the brand. Nike has spun that Jordan swagger into performance and luxury apparel for men and woman.


The Air Jordan remains the pinnacle piece for shoe collectors. The original Air Jordan 1 can sell for thousands of dollars, depending on various factors.
Jordan said: "It blows my mind that even after five years removed from the game the shoe would be stronger than ever and I would still be greeted by fans as if I had just won a championship all over again."