What's happened!?

There was no shortage of impressive basketball this season, whether it be the Warriors making their franchise leading run to the top or the unlikely success of a makeshift Celtics squad. Despite these impressive story lines, there were also several teams that sorely disappointed us. For instance:

Yea so that happened...

Despite a bit of a downward spiral at the end of the regular season, the Raptors looked really strong all season. The continued emergence of Kyle Lowry and Demar Derozan, coupled with the award-winning play of Lou Williams, had us all believing this might be the year Toronto makes a deep postseason run. Then the Wizards happened. Toronto folded up like a deck of cards. Kyle Lowry was checked out for practically the entire series, their defense was as porous as my kitchen sponge, and, in the everlasting words of Jack Nicholson, they couldn't "HANDLE THE TRUTH!" 

So Now What?!
Toronto is a pretty young team. They've got tons of talent and quite a bit of depth, although I'd say their missing three things overall:
1. A backup center: Greg Stiemsma is a legitimate end of the bench option, but isn't gonna give you much efficiency. They need some size off the bench.

2. A real starting power forward: Amir Johnson looked like he wanted to be 'the guy' but just never panned out. I personally thought Tyler Hansbrough was gonna make a run for the job, but that definitely didn't happen and Patrick Patterson is great off the bench, but not so much as a starter. They need some toughness and efficiency inside. 

3. A vet: The Raptors need a gritty veteran to help close in the fourth quarter and boost morale in the locker room. The Wizards took advantage of Toronto's inability to close. They need someone to keep the team's heads up late in the game and potentially drop a bucket at the last second. 

So close, yet so far away...
I'll admit, I figured Washington had it all wrapped up, but the Hawks just wouldn't go away. You can blame it on John Wall's injury, but at the end of the day Atlanta just looked like they wanted it more. That is until the Eastern Conference Finals happened. Atlanta was just never able to produce enough steam to sneak out a win. To be honest, I never saw the Hawks beating Lebron, but I was, at least, expecting them to win a single game! Unfortunately, Atlanta had no one that could take over and dig them out of the hole they dug. Atlanta's starting five worked really well together this year, but when you're facing King James, you need a leader, and this Atlanta squad never really found one. 

So Now What?!
Atlanta has never really been much of a free agent hot spot, so enticing some marquee player to sign with them is about as likely as the ghost of Dominique Wilkins coming to the rescue. Atlanta has some great assets though, and if this sounds like heresy I apologize, but trade Jeff Teague. Dennis Schroder looked fantastic in only his second year, so giving him the reigns could actually work. I say send Teague, and whoever else you have to package, out- and bring in someone who can take your team to the next level. 

Just painful to watch...
Where to start? Well, let's start with the positive. Chris Paul, despite a plethora of injuries, played his heart out in each series. At the end of the day though, he just didn't have any help. Now the Blake Griffin fans are gonna start to complain that Blake put together some serious stat lines and they're right. What he didn't put together was a fourth quarter in either series. What does this mean? Blake can't close! When the fourth quarter comes around he either chokes or the other team has found a way to stop him. By the end of the game, Blake's lack of offensive fundamentals comes back to haunt him. If he's not on the fast break and his jumper isn't falling, Blake is completely useless. His inability to develop any type of back-to-the-basket game has me practically pulling my hair out! But alas, as easy as it is to blame all of this on Griffin, the real problem behind the Clippers is their complete lack of depth. Spencer Hawes never panned out this season and Jamal Crawford didn't show up in the postseason. Mix these two things together and you get a recipe for disaster. CP3 and Blake just couldn't keep it going by themselves, and it was because of this that the Rockets moved on. 

So Now What?!

1. For the love of God bring in a small forward! Paul Pierce would be perfect for this team. He's got an opt-out option on his current contract, so I would give some serious thought to falling on your knees and begging him to sign for cheap. He would solve virtually all of their problems. They'd have another scoring option, a three-point threat, someone to help close in the fourth, and someone who could get that dysfunctional locker room in order. 

2. Call Hakeem! Hakeem Olajuwon once stated that he'd love to work with Blake Griffin and help him develop a post game. How has this not happened yet!? Blake has all the potential to be great, he just needs to be given the tools to do so. 

3. Three-point depth: JJ Redick's back has got to be tired after carrying the three-point offense this season. He's the only legitimate shooter on the team and it showed! Do whatever you have to do; if it means trading Crawford and Hawes then do it, because this team needs backups that are going to show up!

Parting thoughts:

This season was a blast to watch and I'm thoroughly excited for the upcoming finals series. The only thing that excites me more, in fact, is seeing what all of these teams are going to do next to improve. 

My End of Season Awards

One of my favorite parts of the NBA season are the end of the regular season awards. My other favorite part is pissing off readers with my "crackpot opinions." So, without further ado, here are my top three choices for each category:

Rookie of the Year: 

3rd place- Devin Booker

So right out of the gates, I'm throwing out a, somewhat controversial, choice. A lot of people are going to be choosing Nikola Jokic or Myles Turner for the third spot, but I ask that you keep an open mind. Devin Booker plays on a REALLY bad team. After Eric Bledsoe went down, earlier this season, as well as Brandon Knight, for some time, Booker stepped up in a big way. The kid became the Sun's best and only real scoring option,  averaging about 14 PPG. Additionally, he took this responsibility and maintained a FG percentage of, almost, 43% and a 3-point percentage of, about 35%. Not too shabby for a rookie, especially one that's doing the majority of the work putting points on the board. So yes, his team is terrible, but so were the 76ers two years back when MCW won the award!

2nd place- Kristaps Porzingis

This guy really impressed me. I'm old school and when I see an international player, not named Dirk Nowitzki, drafted in the top 10, I automatically scream "BUST!" Especially when that draftee is over 7-feet tall and as skinny as he is. But again, he really impressed me. Here's what I liked: he can shoot the three ball, BUT HE DOESN'T RELY ON IT! He can play in the post and midrange, he can pass, he can handle the ball, and he's very athletic. Basically, what I'm saying is, this isn't some second coming of Andrea Bargnani. That's because, unlike Bargnani, he can rebound and play this thing called, 'defense.' Despite being, rail-thin, Porzingis averaged 7.3 RPG and 1.9 BPG. On top of that he proved that he could co-exist with, perpetual ball hog, Carmelo Anthony, by averaging 14.3 PPG. That in itself should earn him ROY considerations. 

1st place- Karl Anthony-Towns

My opinions tend to be a little crazy, at times, but I'm not stupid. This dude is, hands down, the rookie of the year. I feel like I really don't need to say anything to support this, but I will anyways, because I like the sound of my own voice. Karl Anthony-Towns is a BEAST.

B- Blocked shots everywhere

E- Efficiency rating of 22.65

A- Athletic monster

S- Stat line! 18.3 PPG/10.5 RPG/ 1.7 BPG

T- That time I ran out of words for an acronym....


He proved that the Timberwolves made the right draft selection and he's only going to get better. With The Big Ticket mentoring him, KAT is going to be a future MVP, no doubt.



Most Improved Player:

3rd place- Reggie Jackson

This one was hard, because Will Barton was my early pick for this award, but I'm looking at overall effectiveness and his team still sucks. Reggie Jackson's doesn't. I was skeptical of Jackson's ability to run the point on a team with real scoring options. Not to mention, he wasn't much of a shooter before this year and he's playing in a system that demands spacing. Reggie is averaging, just shy of 19 PPG with 6.2 APG. Here's what I really noticed. Everyone had Jackson pegged as a ball hog, yet Andre Drummond's PPG went from 13 last year, to 16.3 this year. Additionally, Andre's FG% rose a few notches as well. This team's offense flows better than it has in years and its players can coexist. Hence, why they'll be going to the playoffs for the first time since 2009. 

2nd place- Jae Crowder

Talk about rags to riches. This guy went from a quick trade add-on to an irreplaceable piece to a contending team. Yes its optimistic to call the Celtics a contender, but let me have this damn it!
It's hard to believe that he started last season on a Mavs team, never averaging more than 3.6 PPG to averaging, just under, 15 PPG, 34% from deep and is the C's most versatile defender. He's arguably their best player, although there's a guy named Isaiah Thomas that has a pretty strong argument for that title. Crowder can guard, almost, every position on the court. He's built like an ox, which allows him to defend guys like Lebron, but quick enough to move with the smaller guards. He plays with a chip on his shoulder and a level of consistency that this team sorely needs. This massive jump in player effectiveness is why Jae Crowder earns the second spot on this list. 

1st place- CJ McCollum

Defensive Player of the Year:

3rd place- Serge Ibaks

2nd place- Kawhi Leonard

1st place- Draymond Green

Sixth Man of the Year:

3rd place-



2nd place- 



1st place- 

Most Valuable Player:

3rd place- Kawhi Leonard





2nd place- Russel Westbrook




1st place- Stephen Curry

Can your roster be too deep?

Bear with me here, but have you ever looked at an nba roster before the season starts and thought, "Wow, now there's a strong lookin team," only to be disappointed? Have you noticed that sometimes teams just don't click? Well if not, then you clearly haven't been paying attention to this season, because there's several strong examples of teams that just have/had trouble getting it together. 

1. Cleveland Cavaliers-

Three starting caliber centers,  a back court that can score at will, a highly underrated power forward in Tristan Thompson, and a badass sixth man and veteran in Jarrett Jack, how could this not work out!? Good question! Cleveland went into the season with, what looked like, one of the fastest "up and coming" rosters in the NBA, but somehow they failed to make it work both on and off the court. 

2. Detroit Pistons-

Now you may be thinking to yourself, "I don't know if I'd call this team especially deep," but think about it for a sec. This team has two future franchise players in Greg Monroe and Andre Drummond. Greg is an offensive beast on the block with a healthy shooting range and not too shabby rebounding numbers. Andre is an athletic freak of nature who defends and rebounds at a ridiculous level, and he's still got a lot of room to grow. On top of these two players you have an offensively gifted point guard in Jennings, an All-Star snub in Josh Smith, a strong two-way player in Kyle Singler, and several legitimate role players after that. BUT despite this ridiculous amount of talent, the Pistons are barely treading water, and even though their rebounding numbers are high, that's about all they have to be proud of in this joke of a season. Poor Chauncey must be regretting coming back. 

3. Brooklyn Nets-

The Brooklyn Nets have been the best team since the turn of the new year so you can definitely argue that they don't belong on this list, however I list them because they just never really fulfilled the expectations of the fans. Brooklyn was ready to have Billy Kings head after the first part of the season. Deron Williams has had trouble with consistency, Garnett didn't look comfortable for the majority of the season, Joe Johnson only showed up about 50% of the time, and Jason Kidd was too busy cleaning up spilled soda to really know what to do at first. Again the Nets are heading into the playoffs strong and they may even be an upset team, but personally, I kinda was hoping they'd be a legitimate contender from start to finish.

Look at all three of these teams and tell me they haven't been disappointing this season. These deep rosters that were supposed to be capable of playoff runs and future franchise players just never really picked up the projected speed they were supposed to. Here's a couple theories why:

A) With such deep rosters, you find that allocating the minutes to keep everyone happy takes away from the effectiveness of the team. The starters are subbed out so quickly that no one has a real chance to get in their "groove." 

B) Too many competing personalities. . This seems to be the most popular theory as to why deep teams don't always pan out, just look at the Pacers. Indiana gave away virtually nothing and got strong depth at center, and a MIP of the year candidate in Evan Turner, yet since the trade they have just plain awful. This seems to be due to the teams contrasting personalities and play styles, simply translated, Bynum is a cancer to his team and Turner is a ball hog. Josh Smith is a perfect example of this as well. One of the most selfish players in the league, Smith chooses to shoot threes and make stupid plays instead of playing to his strengths and truly helping his team. His personality is one of the reasons this team isn't succeeding.

C) Finally the one thing that all these teams had in common were inconsistency at the coaching position. Mike Brown is a joke, sorry but it's true, Lebron is the only reason Brown even has a career and hiring him back was purely a political move to bring King James back. Maurice Cheeks was fired for his ineffectiveness, and frankly, inability to keep Josh Smith under control. Finally Jason Kidd; even though he has really seemed to step up lately, I can't help but wonder if he's still a bit over his head, and this winning streak isn't simply his veterans taking charge. 

The point being that deeper is always better. Sometimes you need to have that nobody bench warmer with a chip on his shoulder on your roster to add a more humble and team oriented dynamic to the atmosphere. If you have a bunch of guys who don't feel they need to prove anything then you really don't have much at all do you?

Meanwhile in Brooklyn....

         In 2007 Kevin Garnett, Ray Allen, and Paul Pierce joined forces to bring home banner 17 to Boston in only their first year together. In 2010 Lebron James, Dwayne Wade, and Chris Bosh came together to bring in two banners of their own. Whats my point you ask? SUPER-TEAMS WORK! Or at least they can. Last season Brooklyn brought in Joe Johnson to help them become relevant again, this year they acquired KG, Paul Pierce, and Jason Terry, hoping that they would be the final pieces. After an 11-21 start I think it's safe to say that it's not working. But why? Now it could be old age. Maybe we, including myself, were wrong and the former Boston stars just don't have anything left in the tank, however as a devout follower of The Big Ticket and The Truth I can't help but think that maybe it's something else.

        If I had to put my finger on it, which I'm totally about to do, I'd say its a coaching problem. Now I don't want to sound like one of those irrational fans who have been calling for Jason Kidd's head the last few weeks but after watching the team play I have certain concerns about his ability to lead. The Nets have the third worst defensive rating in the NBA and are ranked 19th in offensive efficiency. For reference championship basketball is not won with these types of numbers and when you have a defensive savant in KG and two scoring machines in The Truth and Iso-Joe, but still seem to be in the bottom tier of these categories, something is going terribly wrong. Yes it's true, chemistry is not built overnight, although if you watched the 2007-08 Boston team you might think again, but you would think these guys would have started to mesh by now. If you ever find yourself in the unfortunate position of watching a Nets game this season try not to cringe at the slow, random rotations of the defense or the confusing, assist less isolation plays that seem to occur on the offense. When you take all of this into consideration one thing becomes apparent. Jason Kidd has no idea what in the hell he's doing, and after a basically fired assistant coach, player only meetings, crappy rotations, a court walk off, and some spilled soda, this fact is becoming more apparent. Kidd was quoted recently saying that his team was not putting forth a legitimate effort, which for anyone who knows anything about KG knows that's a load of crap. This is sounding like a desperate attempt to push the blame onto someone else when in fact it is the fault of the head coach.

       I have no doubt that Jason Kidd can be a head coach someday, however he needs to spend some time as an assistant and work his way up to it. It makes no sense that they would assign a rookie coach to a veteran team with only a one or two year window to win a championship. My advice, call up the rich Russian owner, have him break out his pocketbook one last time and bring in Lionel Hollins. Hollins is a defensive minded coach who ran a team with a very similar structure in Memphis. If they do that, they may be able to scrap this season and turn themselves into a contending team. 

The Greatest Generation on their way out?

             Larry Bird and Magic Johnson saved basketball. The NBA was at an all-time low and was almost on its way out before two of the games greatest competitors entered the court. The rivalry, desire to win, and overall intensity is something that today's NBA seems to lack. Larry Bird once said that he and Magic were friends off the court and enemies on it (I'm paraphrasing of course) but this is a mindset that players today don't seem to get, and the ones that do are immediately labeled as disrespectful and bad for the game. Call me what you want but I kind of miss this kind of intensity in a game, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u4oF34p3-rQ. I love Larry Bird, but by today's standards fans would HATE him! We have forgotten that players like him, and Magic, and MJ, and Reggie Miller were "dirty players," who would do whatever they had to to win. This style has faded fairly quickly over the years with only a handful of true competitors still active. Players today are soft, see Blake Griffin for best example. Sure he puts numbers in the box and fans in the seats, but I honestly believe that if a team wants to win a championship they need to rid themselves of guys like him. You'll never see guys like Blake motivating his team to win, stepping up to take the final shot, standing up for his teammate, or playing lock-down defense against a star, you'll see him dunk....AND THAT'S IT! Basketball seems to be transitioning from a game of passion and teamwork to a game of highlights and drama, see Carmelo Anthony and Dwight Howard trade request sagas. The last competitors in the NBA are within their final years, here are a few that I believe are left:

• Kevin Garnett: Players hate him, teammates love him. Joakim Noah was once quoted calling KG, "mean." It's nice to see that Florida college education system did him some good, I'm particularly interested in Noah's experiences in the subjects of "sharing" and "playing nice." The Big Ticket employs several tactics to win, be it his fundamentals, his vocal attacks, his physicality, or Hall of Fame worthy defense, Kevin Garnett is one of the all time greatest. If you talk to any of his teammates over the years they all say the same thing, that he is a constant professional, a passionate teacher, a true competitor, and a winner. If those qualities mean that Joakim gets his feelings hurt well then maybe he should try basket weaving instead of basketball. 

• Kobe Bryant: As a die-hard Celtic fan it pains me to say this, but I must be fair. Kobe Bryant is a competitor. With a personality and swagger comparable to Michael Jordan, Bryant has made a name as a winner and a top 10 all-time player. I suppose the reason he gets this title is because he's everything Blake Griffin is not. He'll take the last shot, he'll be motivating on the sidelines, he'll take the tough defensive assignments, and he has a seemingly unstoppable arsenal of scoring moves. If you don't believe me, I can give you FIVE golden reasons why The Black Mamba is a fierce competitor. His teammates may not always love him but you can't deny his results. 

• Tim Duncan: I know I know, he doesn't really fit the criteria for what I've been saying, however he does have a right to be on here. Tim Duncan is still relevant at 37, the reason for this can be answered in his nickname, "The Big Fundamental." Fundamentals are the key to a long and dominant career. Guys like Griffin and Howard are not going to be around long because their game relies too much on physical domination. What Duncan has in common with the previous two guys is the fact that his basketball IQ is off the charts! The guy is incredibly intelligent and its half the reason for his longevity and stellar resume. He's a four time NBA champion and two time MVP, he plays well with teammates and delivers when his team needs him. He may not be as vocal as some others on the court, but Duncan displays intensity and competitiveness in his own way and for that he makes the list. 

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Players just short of the All Star cut

The NBA hosts the greatest basketball players in the world. Many try to reach the status of "professional athlete" but few succeed. Every year fans are asked to assemble two rosters of the best players for the NBA All-Star game. We all know that Kobe, Lebron, Carmelo, Dwight, and for some reason or other, Carmelo will make the cut, leaving only a few spots left for all the deserving athletes playing in these stars' shadow. Who are these silent stars you ask, that are so quickly thrown into the pool of obscurity just because they don't break some esoteric record every game? Well I'll show you...

Rudy Gay:

Hold on before you flip out and stop reading this article! Although his FG% has been just plain bad the last couple seasons, people forget that he was playing for a Toronto team that was resting its future hopes on Andrea Bargnani, so I think he was entitled to taking a few less than perfect shots to try and win a game. What people forget is that Gay has averaged 17+ PPG every year other than his rookie season. Not to mention his stellar defense and propensity to hit clutch shots. People don't often associate Rudy Gay with clutch performances but type "Rudy Gay clutch" into your search engine and you may be surprised with how much you find.

Michael Carter-Williams:

The 76ers have been a huge surprise this season, since they finished last in the Power Rankings. Many had them pegged to be a complete bust, picking up Royce White didn't help their argument, but the impressive play of the team has been inspiring if nothing else. Although a (7-16) record doesn't sound great, the fact is that they've shown they can at least compete, and have a few potential future All-Stars on the team. One of whom is an awkwardly tall PG that many thought wouldn't make much of an impact his rookie season. MCW has flirted with the quadruple double several times already, a feat conquered only by four players the last being David Robinson in 1994. Carter-Williams has battled injury so far, but is still the front runner for Rookie of the Year. If he can get healthy and continue these numbers, 17.7 PPG, 5.8 RPG, 7.3 APG, and 3.1 STLPG, then he may earn himself a spot on the East All-Star rotation.

Wesley Matthews: 

Wesley Matthews is averaging .483 from 3-point land this season and for those who don't know, THAT'S REALLY GOOD! This undrafted swingman is also averaging 16.2 PPG this season on an incredibly talented Trailblazer team. This guy can do it all, defend, shoot, put the ball on the floor, he's quickly becoming one of the NBA's premier marksmen. In addition to this his team has given him the nickname, "Ballot," due to his exclusion from the All-Star ballot. With names like Tiago Splitter and, the currently injured, Danilo Gallinari on the ballot, can someone please explain to me why Matthews isn't at least an option!?


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