Anthony Macri:
Happy Monday everybody!  Things are starting to gear into fall and with both sides indicating there is no end in sight for the lockout, my guess is everything is resolved by October 1st.  Let’s get to your questions.

I do tend to think the window is closing on the Spurs.  Of course, I’ve thought that for the last three or four years, so maybe it is a very slow, deliberate closing motion, and not the sudden, window-pane smashing that we might have been expecting.  The interesting thing this year was how pedestrian they were defensively – no where near the commitment to that end of the floor as in years past.

I’m sure they would like to bring in a premiere perimeter defender who looks like a glue guy on offense, but I’m not sure Jefferson can fetch such a price.  I will also admit to having been a fan of the RJ acquisition back in the day – oops.

 

Anthony Macri:
I don’t want to say too much about personnel until they determine who is sitting in the coach’s seat.  It is such a big determining factor that the rest is kind of irrelevant.  Let me put it this way – the difference in who they want to have varies WIDELY depending on if it’s Don Nelson or, say Larry Brown.  I do tend to think they might be able to grab a few decent pieces with what they are offering, assuming no one gets arrested or injured (or both) in the meantime.
 

Anthony Macri:
Loosens up muscles, and helps improve blood (and therefore oxygen) flow to the sore area.  More oxygen aids in speedier recovery.
 

Anthony Macri:
Likely in the 2012-13 season, and I think it’s a little early to say about Wall.  They will need to make some additional moves over the course of the next 24 months or so, then we can re-evaluate.  I also think the new CBA will make it very difficult for 2nd level stars to leave their current organizations (the amount of dollars a franchise can offer their own free agents will likely be significantly higher than what others can do, maybe cost-prohibitively so).
 

Anthony Macri:
Am I correct to think you are talking about Jonas Valanciunas and not Jan Vesely?  Who would have thoguht there’d be two lottery picks in the 2011 draft with the initials "J.V."

I think Valanciunas is larger risk/reward than Kanter, and it seems the Jazz wanted to have a little more foundation strength by selecting Kanter.  In the end, I actually think both are going to be very good players in the league – I’d be happy with either in that position – and since it seems likely that Valanciunas is at least a year or two away from being in the league, I don’t mind the Kanter selection all too much.

 

Anthony Macri:
I have a long, sordid history with ankle injuries.  They are basically the reason (along with allowing myself to get fat and lazy) that I am no longer an at-the-rim player.  Now that I’ve corrected the fat and lazy part, lack of ankle strength is still an issue for me today.

First of all, continue to ice your ankle consistently, especially after you play, even if there is no pain.  If I had done that back in the day, I think my problems now would be gone.  Next, you should definitely wrap your ankle tightly and maybe even wear supportive ankle braces for at least the next month or so, just to give it time to heal.  Finally, if you have a job that requires you to sit, or you spend a lot of time on the couch or at a computer, spend your time sitting doing a lot of ankle rolls to strengthen the ligaments around the ankle.  No weight is needed.  Just slow, deliberate circles.  Good luck!

 

Anthony Macri:
This would be fun to do.  I can pick anyone remaining in the league?  LeBron and it’s not close.  I like Dwight and all, and I know Bill has this thing for bashing LeBron, but that’s a gift pick for me.  I’ll take the league’s best player and be very happy with it.
 

Anthony Macri:
There are many parts to overall basketball fitness aside from sprinting / change of direction.  Completing a large quantity of suicides in rapid succession can definitely help, but it’s a little more complicated if you really start pushing for getting in shape.  I had more guys unable to do our stance holds (getting into defensive stance and holding the position for long periods) than unable to do suicides back when I was coaching teams.  Plyometric work would also be important if you are really trying to get into the best possible basketball shape, and some strength and core work would be mandatory (not just cardiovascular exercise).  Check out all things Alan Stein for more on basketball fitness.  I think he’s one of the best in the business – he does work with DeMatha High School in DC.
 

Anthony Macri:
Teams have to have roster limits and minimums, and just like in Fantasy Football, it makes it so that you can’t horde players all to yourself.  There are a lot of contractural reasons guys are kept inactive, so you’d probably be better off asking Larry Coon that during his chats.
 

Anthony Macri:
I don’t know if there is a study one way or the other.  I think you want functional strength, not necessarily bulk, in your legs.  If you can be functionally strong that is way more important than just getting bigger (mass).  Back in high school I used to be much better at things like leg presses and squats than a lot of the big football jocks who were building for size… I’d rather have powerful legs that can run and jump with explosiveness than size.
 

Anthony Macri:
Yeah I’m pretty sure why this is a self-fulfilling prophecy.  It’s like the cycle of violence or the cycle of poverty – once you’re mediocre, it’s hard to break out.
 

Anthony Macri:
In their prime is actually not an easy answer. I have to think about this for a second.  My gut reaction was Jason Terry, then I moved to Ben Gordon, but now I’m having second thoughts because of how good I have seen Crawford be.  I like Barbosa but he’s fourth place for me.  Let’s see other people’s opinions in the comments!
 

Anthony Macri:
I can’t imagine anyone is better than Hedo Turkoglu – am I forgetting someone obvious?
 

Anthony Macri:
I have to think any deal will allow teams to retain their own free agents without as much effect on their cap space.
 

Anthony Macri:
I think it’s hard, but not impossible.  Blazers would need to be top 4 records in the league for it to even be a possibility, which I’m not sure I see as happening anytime soon.
 

Anthony Macri:
Absolutely no clue how that would work.  I tend to think less teams would be better product overall, but I don’t see any movement toward that by either the league or the NBPA.
 

Anthony Macri:
They would be my favorite coming into a potential 2011-12 season.
 

Anthony Macri:
6’2 / 6’3 depending on wingspan is when you have to really show an ability to defend opposing point guards or bring something else to the table.  I think Joe Dumars or John Starks would have trouble in the league today.
 

Anthony Macri:
As what, the new hosts of 60 Minutes?
 

Anthony Macri:
Not until Mike Brown has a chance to get them in training camp. If things are stagnant by the February (assuming we are playing at that point), then we might see a shake-up.
 

Anthony Macri:
If you put an in-his-prime MJ on this Bulls team, I would say they have a chance to be the best Bulls team ever.  I need to see the dynamic of Rose and MJ together.  Defensively that team would be absolutely terrifying.  A better question might be – put an in-his-prime Reggie Miller on this year’s Bulls team – are they better than Bulls teams of the past?  I tend to think they might be… go talk amongst yourselves on that one.
 

Anthony Macri:
Sigh.
 

Anthony Macri:
Jason Fleming had a neat article going into what we could see if there is a lockout – click here to check it out.  I actually would rather them play less than 82 games anyway – from a pure basketball point of view it’s probably 12-20 too many.  I think it helps the young, raw guys and the older, disciplined vets, and has very little effect on anyone else.
 

Anthony Macri:
Yes.  I don’t think there is any reason to force a player to go to college except to help colleges make money.
 

Anthony Macri:
James, just three thoughts for you:

1.) I have spoken to many around league offices who are big fans of Coach Thorpe, along with a number of other important basketball people.  Anyone in this business who does not have both supporters and detractors is doing something wrong.  I have not found a better teacher or inspirational motivator than Coach Thorpe in my travels – and I am proud to have found a safe port to hitch my wagon.

2.) Never, ever have I hidden my association with Coach Thorpe or the fact that he is one of my mentors.  In fact, it’s in the intro to nearly every article or chat I do.  If you are just finding that out now, it really doesn’t speak well to your reading comprehension.  Also, anyone who chooses an anonymous chat to throw out there personal grievances isn’t someone I’d want to be chilling with anyway.

3.) I sense much fear in you.  Fear is a path tot he dark side.  Fear leads to anger.  Anger leads to hate.  Hate leads to suffering.  Let go of your fear.

 

Anthony Macri:
I tend to think so. He actually revolutionized the way people went about rebounding.  He went back and catalogued film on players to calculate probabilities for where their shots might bounce toward when taken from a certain spot (he did what Synergy did before Synergy did what Syngery does), etc.  He was just way ahead of his time in that way, and all the other things made him (and the league) more popular.  I think "Fame" means a lot more than sheer production – and in that way I think he is one of the more significant players of the last 30 years.

Well, it’s about time for me to head on out of here.  Appreciate your questions, and hope you enjoyed my answers!  I’m still going through topics for this week’s Coach’s Notebook – if you have an idea, drop me a line at amacri [at] hoopsworld.com.  Thanks!  See you next week.