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Tuesday, October 5, 2010

Plenty of rookie struggles and little help2

But that was not the case in the NBA. Durant’s first coach, P.J. Carlesimo, switched him from small forward to shooting guard. The coach did not want the physically disadvantaged Durant to be eaten alive by posting small forwards. Carlesimo thought that at just 215 pounds, Durant would have been bullied around not only by the likes of LeBron James (250), Paul Pierce (235) and Carmelo Anthony (230) but even slender players like Andrei Kirilenko (225). So Durant instead would be assigned to run after shooting guards who were all a head shorter than him. This was a hopeless assignment.

“Last season we had to tell Kevin for 48 minutes to stay in a deep defensive stance with his knees bent,” admitted Scott Brooks. The former NBA playmaker took over the coaching duties at Oklahoma City just 13 games into the current season. “But it’s not like Kevin didn’t want to defend as a rookie. People forget that he is 6-foot-9,” continued Brooks. “It’s not easy for him to cover smaller players.”

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As Carlesimo’s assistant, Brooks followed closely Durant’s development. And he was convinced that it was counterproductive making Durant into a shooting guard. He may have been able to keep some distance on the wing and still block shots with his long arms. But he was helpless when trying to work through screens or guard players on the drive. At the same time, his main defensive attributes – defensive rebounding and blocked shots – were suffering. After grabbing 8.1 defensive boards and blocking 1.9 shots at Texas, Durant’s NBA numbers dropped to 3.5 defensive rebounds and 0.9 blocks.

The Kevin Durant project was in shambles after just a few months.

Plenty of rookie struggles and little help1

Flashback: As the second pick of the 2007 NBA Draft, Durant landed with the Seattle SuperSonics and his reputation quickly took a hit. Observers began referring to the former NCAA star as a “chucker” just a few games into his rookie season.

Durant’s rookie season was in fact less than flattering. His 20.3 points per game were nice. But he shot just 43 percent from the field and just 28.8 percent from three-point range. The rookie took 17.1 shots per game, 2.6 of those from beyond the arc. He was a scorer but needed a lot of shots to get those points for a bad team. And there were plenty of those types of players in the league. Kevin Durant and the NBA were far from a tale of love at first sight. And there were reasons for that. But most experts, fans and media deliberately ignored them.

One reason enough was just the sight of Kevin Durant. It was clear that besides with his height he will not dominate anyone. To be successful, Durant needed to rely on his game intelligence, talent and skills. Many other members of Durant’s draft class could take over games with their strength or athleticism alone. Others were tough to defend with an explosiveness and leaping ability that provided plenty of easy baskets in the lane. And still other rookies had brute force and quick dynamic moves in the paint – making them nearly immovable forces in the block.

Kevin Durant, however, is a different type of player. His game relies on his shot. And that is based on timing, rhythm and confidence. A shooter is always at his best when his game is in a rhythm – and when he understands what’s going on around him and whether or not he will shoot before even getting the ball. Kevin Durant did not know much of this during his first year as an NBA professional. “I had to get used to the league first. Every young player who comes into the NBA has the same problem,” recalls Durant. “You ask yourself: ‘When should I shoot? Where are my spots and when do I start making my moves?’ That was the toughest part for me as a rookie.”

The games flashed by then 19-year-old. He regularly struggled with the physical style of the league, which wreaked havoc with his timing. It also stopped him from getting the ball where he wanted it on the court.

Another difficult aspect for Durant was a lack of a real mentor for him in Seattle. All-Stars Ray Allen and Rashard Lewis had just left the Sonics in the summer after having combined to score 48.8 points in 2006-07. And Durant would be responsible for filling much of that huge void. A good pass or drive, however, didn’t help too much if it came at the wrong time. So Durant was forced to score if the Sonics wanted to win even the occasional game. And it was scary how often he would regularly take very poor shots. But who else was going to do it in Seattle?

Both in his one season at the University of Texas and during high school, basketball life came easy for Durant. He was always taller than his opposing player and could see the floor without a problem. He also had an excellent shot and a feel for the game. If someone had a physical advantage on him, he could beat him with his understanding of the game, his quickness and his maturity. And the young star rarely had to defend in his early career. His wingspan and understanding of the game were enough to get rebounds and blocks. And coaches regularly put their top scorer on the side of the defense with the opponent’s least-dangerous scorer.

Monday, October 4, 2010

Export hit: Marco Belinelli

Is Marco Belinelli just a summer star or another Euro find by Don Nelson? Good question ..

The Italian shooting guard debuted in the domestic Serie A league at the tender age of 16 with Virtus Bologna. And with city rivals Fortitudo during the 2006-07 season he averaged 16.0 points. The main attraction was Belinelli’s complete and confident game.

At the 2007 NBA Draft, the Golden State Warriors selected the young Italian at number 18 overall. Belinelli would be going to Don Nelson’s team whose concept was something like “shoot first, ask questions later”. And during the Summer League in Las Vegas before his rookie season, the Italian showed that he was worth the first round money. In his opening game he poured in 37 points against the Hornets and finished the summer averaging 22.8 points per.

Actually, it’s kind of a surprise that the Italian’s arm didn’t fall off since he averaged 19.5 shots per game, including 6.7 from long range. But his excellent three-point percentage of 44.4 percent kept his teammates from locking him in his locker. But an NBA summer cannot be compared to an NBA winter. And even in Oakland there is a bit of defense to be played.

Belinelli has never been known for his defense. And the Warriors had plenty of swing men, leaving the rookie unable to establish himself with Golden State and receiving garbage time in just 33 games.

The 2008-09 season didn’t look much more promising for Belinelli getting off the bench. Over the first 19 games, he averaged just five minutes a game. But then Stephen Jackson and Corey Maggette joined Monta Ellis on the injury list.

And Belinelli took advantage of his chance. In December he scored 14.1 points a game while shooting 44.9 percent from the field and 38.4 percent from long range. He averaged 11.7 shots while dishing out 3.2 assists. But Il numero diciotto was no longer the mad bomber from the summer, drastically improving his shot selection.

Then after 20 games and 15 starts Belinelli injured his ankle. He missed 15 games and then came back in late February and started seven straight games, scoring in double figures in the last four. He then missed three games with a toe injury but was a starter in Golden State’s most recent game.

But with Ellis already back and Maggette and Jackson as well, it remains to be seen if Belinelli can keep his spot in the starting five or not.

Toronto Raptors season review – What’s next?

Toronto gladly finished their season full of turmoil, which meant the first time not making the Playoffs since 2007. The former Coach of the Year Sam Mitchell left after just 17 games and his successor Jay Triano was never able to shed the title of “interim coach”. The result was the Raptors switching between up-temp and half-court basketball throughout the 2008-09 season and never finding themselves.

But that should change under the leadership of a new coach. Manager Bryan Colaneglo, after all, was the architect of the highly attractive and successful Phoenix Suns teams. And his new coach will likely match that style. Chris Bosh, Jose Calderon and Andrea Bargnani make up the core of this team and the club has room under the salary cap as well. It remains to be seen if that money will be used to re-sign Shawn Marion or look for help elsewhere. The Raptors will have a high draft pick and may likely find a top player from the Euroleague as well – as they have done in the past. And that is very valuable in the Eastern Conference.

Additional Notes:
The Warriors and Bulls are already talking about trade offers for Chris Bosh with thoughts of the beginning of the free agent period. Bosh has an option in his contract for 2010.

Toronto Raptors season review – What’s next?

Additional Notes:
The Warriors and Bulls are already talking about trade offers for Chris Bosh with thoughts of the beginning of the free agent period. Bosh has an option in his contract for 2010.

Byron Scott Fired

It is never a question if any coaches will get fired during each new NBA season, but it is always who will be the first one to get the boot? And the winner of the current season is Byron Scott of the New Orleans Hornets!

According to sources, Scott was already on shaky ground after last season’s 1st round exit in the playoffs. It was believed he would be let go then, but Chris Paul’s support of Scott saved his job. Not even Chris Paul could help Scott this time around. After a very disappointing 3-6 start, the Hornets’ management decided to part ways with their former coach of the year (2008). General manager Jeff Bower will be replacing Scott for now. Tim Floyd, who is best known for coaching the Iowa State Cyclones (1994-1998), USC (2005-2009) in the college ranks, but also held stints with the Chicago Bulls (1998-2001) and the New Orleans Hornets (2003-2004), has been hired as Bower’s top assistant.

Though New Orleans is $3 million over the league’s $69.9 million luxury-tax threshold, their large payroll has not translated into wins this year. Looking at the Hornets’ roster, one can clearly see that this large payroll is deceiving and not necessarily a sign of good talent. Chris Paul is arguably the best guard in the league, and David West is a solid player himself, but there isn’t much balance after those two. Peja Stojakovic has been coming off the bench and is averaging a pathetic 8.7 ppg, the lowest since his rookie season where he averaged 8.4 per game. More is expected of a player who is making almost $14 million. A shooter never loses his shot, and Stojakovic is certainly still capable of averaging 20 a game, but he is just too much of a liability on the defensive end. Throughout his 11 years in the league, nobody ever accused Peja of being a defensive stopper, and now at the age of 32 his inability to defend has become more evident than ever before.

Swapping Tyson Chandler with Emeka Okafor of the Charlotte Bobcats during the off-season was a move that was seen by most as a lateral one. It was not a trade that seemed to improve the Hornets’ roster, which has been confirmed thus far as Okafor is averaging 11 ppg, 9.8 rpg, and 2 bpg. These are not bad stats, but New Orleans could have simply kept Chandler, who has very similar stats to those of Okafor. When you make a trade, the goal is to improve. This did not happen here. The trade only hurt the team’s chemistry.

The Hornets management is worrysome about keeping their star guard Chris Paul happy, and rightfully so. A player of his caliber will not tolerate mediocrity for very long. Who knows. Maybe this coaching change will turn out positive for New Orleans. Luckily for them, there are still 73 regular season games to be played.

Big money doesn’t mean big success

Other places are just missing the financially power of a big city. “There are just not as many companies here. That’s why we have to get people into the arena, no matter how,” said Sacramento Kings owner Gavin Maloof. “Ticket sales make up one-third of our budget. They are essential for our survival.” And Maloof has reason to worry. For years, the Kings were the example that a smaller franchise could keep up. But the times of Mike Bibby, Chris Webber and Peja Stojakovic are long gone. The Kings are attracting 12,279 fans to their games, the lowest number in the league. And like many other teams, the Kings are offering tickets for reduced prices this season. The NBA requires that every club offers at least 500 seats for a maximum 10 dollars per ticket. The Kings voluntarily doubled that number to 1,000. And those who buy tickets for three or more games get an additional rebate. Other clubs have also begun recently making additional special offers.

But big money and winning records do not always go together. The New York Knicks have been proving that for years. Forbes magazine estimates the Knicks as the most valuable team in the NBA at 613 million dollars. But to show that having the money does help, eight of the top 10 richest on the Forbes list made the playoffs last season. And from the bottom 10 teams financially, only one – the New Orleans Hornets – reached the post-season. Before reaching the playoffs, the Hornets made 20 million dollars, according to Forbes.

One example that finances directly affect the results is the Denver Nuggets. In the summer of 2008 they basically gave away 2007 Defensive Player of the Year Marcus Camby to the Los Angeles Clippers – a trade with no return. The reasoning for the unusual move was that the club had run up debts of 27.7 million dollars in the past 12 months – mainly due to the some 20 million dollars in luxury taxes which owner Stanley Kroenke had to pay the league for having a total salary of 87 million dollars for his players. Without Camby’s 11.25 million dollars and other savings measures, the Nuggets have been able to save the luxury tax. And no one in Denver cares about Camby’s departure now anyhow since Chauncey Billups brought his winner’s mentality from Detroit.

Despite all the lowered prices and special offers, the NBA fun is still quite expensive. According to one study, a four-member family would have to drop down 250 dollars in average for one game. That figure jumps to about 400 dollars for the Lakers. Fans of other teams have other costs, including the New York Knicks fan who has to pay 30 dollars for parking. Americans have been quite generous in attending sporting events, spending a record 32 billion dollars alone in 2007 according to Street and Smith’s Sports Business Journal. But will people continue to be able to afford such an added luxury?

The percentage of season tickets which were renewed dropped from 84 percent last season to 80 percent. The 2008-09 league-wide average attendance (on January 18, 2009) was 17,162 – just under last season’s average of 17,395. With the economy not really having rebounded yet, owners are anxiously awaiting the start of renewals for next season’s season tickets. With a lack of success, some numbers may crash – perhaps in Sacramento, for example. With the poor economy, the league is expecting lower numbers. “The only thing which will increase could be the television ratings as a cheaper alternative,” said David Stern.

The economic crisis could also affect the commissioner’s plans for the future. “The expansion plans for Europe will be put on hold for a while,” expects the sports economist Sauer. The European economy is just as affected by the financial crisis as the U.S. Somewhat better in the moment are things in China. And it’s quite fitting that the NBA closed a deal last year with builder Frederick Anschutz, who also is co-owner of the Lakers. The NBA and Anschutz’s company AEG are looking to build large arenas in China where NBA games can be played. China appears to have passed up Europe in this time of crisis as the NBA’s favorite location abroad.