It's Sunday which means it's time to take a look at what the wonderful world of the NBA taught us this week.
Melo Taking The Next Step?
Denver Nuggets forward Carmelo Anthony has always been a great scorer. His ability to score inside and out, off the dribble or the jab-step, from beyond the arc or at the rim with force is unmatched.
However, one attribute that has been missing is a true killer instinct. Anthony has hit his fair share of game-winners, but one always had the impression that he wouldn't step on the neck of an opposing team the way a player like Kobe Bryant routinely does.
It looks like that may be changing this season. Yes, it's just two games into the 2009-10 campaign. Thing is, Melo has been playing with this new mentality since the first day of practice in late September.
At the team's first practice this season Anthony hit the game-winning shot to cap off the inter-squad scrimmage. And he did it with a different look in his eye.
Scoring 35.5 points and grabbing seven rebounds per contest as Anthony has thus far this season will certainly draw attention. The fact that he has done it so efficiently shooting over 51 percent from the field and getting to the foul line at will has no doubt been impressive.
Based on his early success, people around the league are using MVP and Melo in the same sentence quite frequently. Obviously, there's still a long way to go for Anthony to solidify himself as a true MVP candidate. If he does, though, it won't be because he's putting up huge numbers. Instead, it will be because his team is winning and he's scoring when it matters most and not just putting up gaudy overall numbers.
Consider: Anthony scored 19 of his game-high 41 points in the final stanza against the Portland Trail Blazers on Thursday. The Blazers went up by a score of 81-74 in the final quarter but Anthony's Nuggets never blinked. It was clear to anyone watching that Anthony wasn't going to let his team lose.
Having spent years around Anthony there is just something different about the guy this season. He's more business-like and professional than he has been at any other point in his career. He's also carrying himself in a way that is noticeably different but impossible to quantify. There's a certain twinkle in his eye that simply hasn't been there in previous seasons.
Perhaps battling Bryant in the Western Conference Finals last season taught Anthony what exactly he has to do to raise his game to a championship level. Whatever it is, the early returns are certainly pointing towards a magical season for the man they call Melo.
Early Panic in Cleveland
NBA fans are passionate people. That's what makes a site like HOOPSWORLD so successful. A byproduct of that passion can sometimes be overreacting to situations and circumstances, especially negative ones early in the season. Such was the case last week with the Cleveland Cavaliers.
After the Cavs lost two games to start the season some people in Cleveland started to panic while fans of other teams used it as an opportunity to play the "See, I told you Shaq to the Cavs wouldn't work" card.
Let's not forget that the Orlando Magic started last season off 0-2. As I recall, the Magic went on to have a pretty darned good season.
Cleveland will be just fine. As you've read in this space since the Cavs acquired "The Big Freeze" last summer, it takes time to adjust to playing with Shaquille O'Neal.
O'Neal obviously changes the entire flow of the offense. For one, he is just so big that he changes the way the floor is spaced. This isn't a deal breaker, it just takes time for the people around Shaq to adjust.
Furthermore, there's a tendency to try and force the ball into O'Neal when guys first start playing with him as opposed to looking for their own offense. A more natural and balanced approach usually emerges over time.
One final adjustment the Cavs will have to make is on the defensive end. They are going to have to "babysit" O'Neal, for lack of a better term, on pick-and-roll defense. He's never been a great pick-and-roll defender, and when he's in the game the team really has to be focused and ready to help.
While there are certainly issues that come with O'Neal, the dude's track record of winning speaks for itself. As the Cavs adjust to O'Neal's presence, expect the team to get progressively better and remain a viable threat to win the Eastern Conference.
From 0-2 and the sky falling to 2-2 and being on the right path all in the course of just 72 hours. Welcome to the wonders of the first week of the NBA season.
Don't Sleep on the C's
In the preseason discussion of contenders in the NBA many people seemed to be sleeping on the Boston Celtics. That happened last week when I was a guest on a radio show. When I brought up the Celtics the hosts acknowledged it but almost kind of scoffed at the notion. One of the hosts even brought up the volatile past of newest Celtic Rasheed Wallace (conveniently ignoring all of the good he brings to the table on both ends of the floor).
Well, after watching Boston's first three games it's clear this team is back.
Let's not forget that the Celtics didn't lose a game last season between November 15th and December 25th, and one could make a strong argument that team wasn't nearly as talented as this year's iteration. For those keeping track at home, that ended up being a 19-game winning streak. Had Kevin Garnett not gone down in Utah shortly before the All-Star break, it's quite possible the Celtics would have been the team battling the Los Angeles Lakers in defense of their 2007-08 title last June instead of the Orlando Magic.
It's easy to forget just how stifling Boston's defense is. As a team, they can seemingly lock up any opponent with their team defensive concepts.
The Celtics held the Cavaliers to just 89 points in their opening night win in Cleveland. Boston followed that up by holding the Charlotte Bobcats to an astonishing 59 points. Last Friday the C's capped off the first week of their season by holding the Chicago Bulls to just 90 points while cruising to a 28-point victory against a Bulls team that pretty much had their way with the San Antonio Spurs the previous night.
Wallace is looking like a very solid addition in Boston. In addition, Rondo is still running circles around opponents as evidenced by the 16 dimes he dropped on Derrick Rose and the Bulls. Moreover, Paul Pierce is stepping up and making clutch shots.
Yes, I know some of the fans in Boston will recall that I have been critical of Pierce in the past. However, I have to give the man his due as he has emerged as one of the better clutch players in the game today.
It's clear Kevin Garnett is still not 100 percent, but K.G. at 75 or 80 percent is still better than a lot of players. Perhaps most importantly, Garnett is the defensive anchor for the Celtics. His presence is invaluable.
The key for the Celtics will be maintaining this pace and staying healthy throughout the 82-game grind. If the Celtics are healthy come playoff time, they are a team every club -- including the Los Angeles Lakers -- should be very much afraid of.
Here We Go Again Clipper Nation
Your friendly neighborhood columnist is not usually one to buy into mystical thinking and fairy tales. That said, if there is one professional sports organization that is cursed it would have to be the Los Angeles Clippers.
Despite all of the talent on that roster heading into the season, including freak-of-nature rookie Blake Griffin, you just knew something was going to go wrong didn't you?
It always seems to with the Clippers.
After watching Griffin throw down a crazy dunk against the Sacramento Kings in the preseason finale at STAPLES Center I really believed the Clippers could be a playoff team... for about two seconds. After the aforementioned dunk, Griffin reached down for his left kneecap. He stayed in the game, but at that moment you could tell something wasn't quite right.
The next day it was announced that Griffin would miss at least six weeks with a stress fracture of his left kneecap.
Ouch.
Since that time the Clippers have started the campaign 0-4 and the ship seems to be sinking fast. Baron Davis already looks frustrated, Marcus Camby is already nicked up, and head coach Mike Dunleavy already looks exasperated and befuddled on the Clippers' bench.
To be honest, it's hard to figure out. Even without Griffin the Clippers still have plenty of talent on the roster. The explanation I find myself coming back to is, "Well, it's the Clippers."
It's not rational, and it's not supported by any empirical data. But somehow, it just seems to makes sense given the Clippers' track record over the years.
Here's for hoping Griffin makes his return to 100 percent health soon and the Clippers find a way to right the ship this season.
NBA Truly a Global League
While the NFL remains hands down the most popular sports league in the United States of America, the NBA is quickly becoming a global favorite. The number one spot, of course, still goes to the sport of futball or what most in the U.S. refer to as soccer. However, the NBA is spreading across the globe like wildfire.
This season there are 83 international players in the NBA from 36 different countries. Moreover, 27 of the 30 teams have at least one international player on the roster. Contrast that to a decade ago when the league had 36 international players from 24 countries in the 1999-2000 season.
Omri Casspi (Israel) of the Sacramento Kings, Jonas Jerebko (Sweeden) of the Detroit Pistons, and Hasheem Thabeet (Tanzania) of the Memphis Grizzlies are representing their countries for the first time on an NBA roster. The Milwaukee Bucks lead the way with seven international players, while the Charlotte Bobcats, Kings, and Toronto Raptors are tied for second with five international players.
Say what you want about NBA commissioner David Stern, but there's no question he has spent a good portion of the last couple of decades trying to make the NBA a truly international product. It's hard to argue that he hasn't been successful, either. Expect this trend to continue well into the future with the NBA eventually expanding by adding franchises in Europe.
