NBA Chat With Susan Bible 7/28/12

Please join Susan Bible for her NBA Chat this Saturday at 11:00 am EST. Susan is a Newlines Editor and a member of the fantasy team at HOOPSWORLD. She covers the Oklahoma City Thunder and the NBA at large. Drop in your questions now.

  1. michael h

    What do you think about the jazz and their summer signings so far and do you see them trading Millsap or Jefferson

    • Susan Bible

      Pretty solid offseason with veteran pieces (and voices) added. They filled some holes by acquiring Mo and Marvin Williams, plus Foye. I can’t see a Millsap or Jefferson trade at this point as they look to make a run.

  2. Naj

    Can you rate the offseason move of Bulls? From 5-10. Malcolm Thomas will be a great addition to them.

    • Susan Bible

      Really surprised they gave up Asik, but it’s all about the future, i.e. looking ahead at extensions and committed salaries. I like the return of Hinrich (especially with the loss of the PGs that filled in so well for Rose), but all in all, not way impressed with their offseason, yet it’s understandable. With all the short-term deals in place, they’re just treading water until they can be a contender again.

  3. Vlad

    What do you think of job Kahn did in MN. Before you jump to conclusions please review the Wolves main assets in 2009 and roster main assets in 2012:
    2009 assets: Love and Big Al + rights to Pek plus 3 lottery picks. Those are the assets, correct?
    2012 assets: Love, Rubio, Pek, Luke, Bud, DWill, AK-47, Shved, Roy and ADELMAN.
    So is it a bad job? May be nothing out the ordinary, but not a bad job at all IMO.

    • Susan Bible

      Kahn’s best move was still signing Adelman. That was just brilliant and impressed me the most. It may take some considerable time for all the new pieces to find cohesiveness with the existing pieces, but I’m looking forward to watching them this season. AK (they overpaid him), Roy, Love, Pekovic, Rubio (though I think he won’t return at least January), even Shved…pretty intriguing. It’s still hard to believe Roy is returning. And like Kahn just said, he’s got versatility now with many players able to play multiple positions.

  4. Vlad

    I looked up Perkins advanced and regular stats. He is a joke! There are not too many centers in the NBA with worse stats. I think Thunder needs at least an average center to win it all. Unless Durant and Westbrook improve a lot again, which is not really possible IMO.

    • Susan Bible

      Perkins is not the type of player whose performance is completely captured on the box score, and I would sure say he’s better than average. Is he that scoring big that would be nice to have? No. Is he that intimidating defender they really needed? Yes. Sometimes I think Presti went after Perkins mainly to get past the Lakers, based on what happened in the 2011 playoffs. And he did his job against Bynum during the second round in 2012 – while fighting through an injury – holding him in both points and rebounds below his season averages. His defense was really solid in the Mavericks and Spurs series, but his groin injury affected him in the Finals vs. Miami. He’s had two surgeries in the offseason; hopefully he can move like he did earlier in the year. As constructed, the team works, obviously. They were in the NBA Finals last season. The lack of confidence and experience hurt them.

      And I disagree, I think Westbrook and Durant – both just 23 years old – can and will improve.

  5. JJ from Blueberry Bay

    Which rookies will surprise this year and whose numbers will exceed their draft position?Underated meets opportunity for these four:Lillard,White,Zeller and Nicholson.Does your list look any different?

  6. Hunter

    Are signing 2 former all-stars and bringing in Alexey Shved enough to please Kevin Love and make the playoffs or does a blockbuster signing or trade have to take place to make him happy?

    • Susan Bible

      I think winning, i.e. getting to the playoffs, will go a long way in keeping Love happy.

  7. Linda St. Onge

    Quickie: Has Derek Fisher signed with anyone yet?

    • Susan Bible

      Last I heard, Fisher was connected with the Nets, but then they picked up C.J. Watson for the veteran’s minimum, so it seems like that’s out. The Bulls and Cavs have also been tied to his name, but to my knowledge, nothing is close.

  8. shawn

    With nobody claiming andray blatche off of waivers which probably would have been cheaper than signing him, do u see any team signing him before the season starts?

    • Susan Bible

      Well, his agent said he expected teams to make a serious push for him at the conclusion of the Las Vegas Summer League which ended last Sunday, but I haven’t heard a word. Miami was tied to his name a few days ago, but that’s not confirmed at all. He’ll land somewhere.

  9. Kid

    Hey Susan , when do you think Philly will retire iverson’s jersey? Where does ai rank among best sixers of all-time?! I am very sad to know that my favorite player did not get a second chance, because he has done so much for the game of basketball and he is one of the coolest trendsetters, from making the crossover the most deadliest move ever in the game of basketball, holding his ear for the fans to make some noise,being the best underdog who plays his heart out for those who watch him play,to wearing braids and sleeves, and he is living proof that no matter how much pain one goes through , there is always a light at the end of the tunnel when you have enough heart and courage to stay true to who you are.thank you for the read and haven hope your summer is going great!

    • Susan Bible

      I don’t know when, but they will someday. I won’t ever forget Iverson and the way he played. I was always a fan. Iverson’s on the list, but that’s a long list when you consider all the other greats who played there (Erving, Malone, Chamberlain, etc.).

  10. Ric

    I had read somewhere that James Harden said he would consider the Suns if he doesn’t sigh an extention with the Thunder. Now that he has been marinating in the premier superstar juices, do you see him commanding max-money, and the Thunder losing him? Also, do you think that Hasheem Thabeet, not this season, but maybe next, could possibly make Kenrdick Perkins expendable?

    • Susan Bible

      Harden definitely said he’d be open to joining the Suns: http://www.hoopsworld.com/james-harden-open-to-joining-suns Did you hear that noise? That was the collective gasp of fans here in Oklahoma City upon hearing those words. I keep remembering what Harden said at the exit interview last month; he kept talking about “sacrifice” – I took that to mean he, and maybe Ibaka, would take less money to keep the core together in OKC. That said, both are eligible for extensions and neither have signed any, so it sure leaves the door open for consideration that he may not be in OKC for the long-term. If they don’t reach a deal, Harden could become a restricted free agent next year wherein he will surely generate serious offer sheets the Thunder may be unable to match.

      The Thabeet signing caught me off guard. Presti invested a lot of time into him prior to the 2009 draft (where he went second to Memphis), so maybe he sees real potential there that I don’t see. He’s no Perkins.

  11. Murad

    Any chance the Hornets go after Jose Calderon? They have cap space, the Raptors are looking to trade him, and I feel like he would be a great addition to the team.

    • Susan Bible

      Calderon has one more year at over $10M; it looks like Toronto is content to keep him around until they get a good return on his value. Teams, like the Hornets, would love to see Calderon waived so they can pick him up on the cheap.

  12. thunderdome

    Hello Susan from Australia!!
    ith all this talk on Serge and james staying for the long term , how important to you rate the Thunder locking Thabo Sefalosha for as long as possible?

    • Susan Bible

      Greetings! Sefolosha’s contract runs through 2013-14, so we’ve got a couple more years. I’ll tell you, I’ve talked to him – he’s great – but I really get the feeling he’d move on. His lockdown defense on opponents’ best players has proven to be very important to OKC’s postseason success. If he were more consistent offensively, I think they’d really make the long-term push.

  13. jack

    In the end were does DH end up? any Information?

    • Susan Bible

      I have nothing. I said the Nets for a long time, now maybe Lakers? Rockets? Mavs? I’m starting not to even care.

  14. RSG

    Morning Susan. Where do you think D12 ends up and what do you make of the Dan Fegan leak story? BTW Peter Vescey lost his mind on twitter! You gotta read some of the stuff to believe it!

    • Susan Bible

      Morning! Oh man, I’ve got to check that out. I have to agree with Stern, it makes for great drama.

  15. matt

    Do you think Cesc Fabregas is like Rajon Rondo or more like DRose (You have to know soccer to answer this)

  16. matt

    I think the only hope my raps have is to follow the Pacers model. It’s hard to follow the OKC model(draft 3 all stars in seasons where your team gets a top 5 pick) or SAS model (draft a top 10 player all time + then have the best scouts in the nba)

  17. JM

    Is Lowry really an improvement over Calderon, and can the 2 play together for 10-15 min a game in a small lineup?

    • Susan Bible

      No doubt he’s an improvement; not feeling the two together.

  18. BigErn

    Did OKC do the right thing by standing pat during the off-season? Lakers, Clippers and others seamed to improve.

    • Susan Bible

      What, you don’t think Thabeet was an upgrade? Yes, they did the right thing, since all the core players are returning this season, and don’t forget they’ll have a healthy Eric Maynor. Plus I think we’re all anxious to see how Perry Jones can contribute.

  19. Darren

    With there being little interest in Derek Fisher as a player do you think he would be interested in being an assistant coach with the Lakers? They have lost two assistants this summer so there is room for him. Your thoughts?

    • Susan Bible

      I just don’t think he’s ready to hang it up yet. When he does, he’ll be a terrific addition to a coaching staff.

      Thanks for the great questions this morning. If you are a Suns fans, be sure to read my new article on Kendall Marshall here. Enjoy the Olympics!