HOOPSWORLD Week In Review
Did Kobe Cost The Lakers Garnett?
By Eric Pincus
Was Kobe Bryant the reason the Los Angeles Lakers didn’t land Kevin Garnett?
Back in the summer of 2007 the Lakers were in disarray. Bryant fumed at owner Dr. Buss and General Manager Mitch Kupchak, declaring the team wasn’t willing to make the necessary moves to win. Kobe went on a radio campaign, blasting the team and ultimately demanding a trade.
As first reported by HOOPSWORLD, Bryant was captured on video ridiculing the team for not trading Andrew Bynum for Jason Kidd.
“Ship his [rear end] out. We’re talking Jason Kidd,” said Bryant using more colorful language than bracketed here. “They didn’t want to do that. That’s why we’re in this [messed up] position.”
Coach: Prepping An NBAer For Europe
By Anthony Macri
Going overseas to play basketball professionally is about a lot more than just packing your bags. There are some distinct differences in the way the game is played – rules and interpretation changes, stylistic variations, and modified strategic approaches – many of which are overt but some more subtle. A player who has played in the American system of basketball from a young age getting ready to slide over to the international hoops world has a lot to prepare for.
Players in the gym right now are in the midst of these kind of preparations. With the lockout creating uncertainty about the start of the NBA season, a number of contracted NBA players are looking into making the move. While others have described the differences in lifestyle in international pro basketball, we are going to look at three basketball-specific differences that players should be ready for.
Top 5 All-Time Charlotte Bobcats
By Joel Brigham
A week ago, we looked at the top Boston Celtics of all time, and I had a hard time narrowing it to just ten guys. This week, we’re looking at the top Charlotte Bobcats of all time, and putting together a list of ten in this case was barely even possible. The top five itself is admittedly a little underwhelming, but what can you do with a team that’s only been around for seven seasons? That’s nowhere near enough time to put together any Hall-of-Fame careers, so yes, this list is nowhere near as attractive as the Boston one. But we’re going to do it anyway, because “Charlotte” is next in the alphabet.
That being the case, here we go…
#5 – Brevin Knight – Let’s put it this way: Knight stopped playing for the Bobcats in 2007, and still only one player in the history of the team (See #3 on this list) has more total assists in a Charlotte uniform than he does. He’s also still third in total steals and ninth in total points and, unbelievably, ninth in total rebounds. The team selected him along with the #1 guy on this in the original 2004 expansion draft, so he’ll always have a special place in the hearts of Bobcats fans. The way things are going, he might always have a special place in the franchise leaders for major statistics, as well.
NBA’s Most Cost-Efficient PFs
By Jason Fleming
There is always much debate in professional sports about which players are overpaid or underpaid, which ones are the most efficient on the floor, and which ones are simply the most productive. But what about a marriage of all of those? Which NBA players are the most cost-efficient?
This is the third piece in a series looking at the starters at all five positions (check out the point guards, shooting guards and small forwards), one at a time, in an attempt to determine which players are the most cost-efficient players taking into account their production and salary. The assumption is there should be a general correlation between a player’s production – and for this purpose we will use John Hollinger’s Player Efficiency Rating – and his salary.
Will that hold true? Take a look at the list of starting power forwards below, with their 2010-11 salary and PER, plus a final column dividing their salary by PER to give a simple dollar amount of how much each point of PER cost their team.
The Clippers Small Forward Dilemma
By Eric Pincus
The Los Angeles Clippers have five clear starters on their roster. Unfortunately two of those players are at center (DeAndre Jordan and Chris Kaman), leaving a massive question mark at small forward.
Jordan is technically a restricted free agent but the team has every intention to bring him back and, assuming the money is right, DJ is open to a return.
At some point the lockout will end and the Clippers will be able to address their roster issues.
Of course, if the season is lost the picture changes considerably. Shooting guard Eric Gordon would become a restricted free agent. Randy Foye, Brian Cook and Kaman would all be unrestricted free agents.
Fast-forward to 2012 and the Clippers would just have Blake Griffin, Mo Williams (who can opt out), Ryan Gomes, Al-Farouq Aminu, Eric Bledsoe and a non-guaranteed Willie Warren under contract. The potential for massive cap room exists but the Clippers would much rather field a team this year and build around one of the league’s most exciting young cores.
Assuming the 2011/12 season is salvaged, how does L.A. solve the small forward problem?
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