NBA

[aeu]

The triangle is a pass and move offense. Artest is a dribble and toss up a bad shot type of player.

I don't think that's a problem since the triangle is almost dead anyway. Lakers were barely using it last year. They will use it even less now.

I think LA will regret letting Ariza go. remember those steals, remember those 3 point bombs. I never heard of RonRon being a clutch player.

Last season, Artest shot almost 40% on threes while Ariza shot about 32%. His career average is less than 30%. Ariza had an insane month in the playoffs (almost 50%), but there is no way that's real improvement, noone can actually improve from regular season to playoffs like that. Some of it is the matchups, but mainly he just got crazy hot at the absolutely perfect time.

I do believe Ariza is going to improve greatly. His growth has been somewhat slow due to a number of reasons (mainly his own stupidity), but he is finally coming to his own. He is going to have a great opportunity in Houston given the team Houston has now. Becoming an allstar sometime down the road is definitely possible.

He would never get that opportunity in LA, though. At least, not in the next 3-4 years. If you are trying to milk Kobe's last couple of years as much as possible, Artest over Ariza is absolutely the right choice, IMHO.

[Exa Inova]

I don't think that's a problem since the triangle is almost dead anyway. Lakers were barely using it last year. They will use it even less now.

Oh please. I hope you're joking otherwise you dont know basketball.

Last season, Artest shot almost 40% on threes while Ariza shot about 32%. His career average is less than 30%. Ariza had an insane month in the playoffs (almost 50%), but there is no way that's real improvement, noone can actually improve from regular season to playoffs like that. Some of it is the matchups, but mainly he just got crazy hot at the absolutely perfect time.

Yes, Artest had a better regular season% but Ariza DID shoot close to 50% whether you like it or not. And every coach from Sloan in the first round til van Gundy in the finals let him shoot thinking he couldnt keep it up but he did. And I cant blame them. It was the best strategy given his numbers.

But this is all beside the point IMO. Its not that Ariza is a more talented player. He isnt. Let that be clear. But he is a better fit for the Lakers.

[aeu]

Oh please. I hope you're joking otherwise you dont know basketball.

:rolleyes:

Yes, Artest had a better regular season% but Ariza DID shoot close to 50% whether you like it or not.

It's not a matter of me liking it. It's about putting comments like "Remember those 3 point bombs" into context. Ariza has never done it before. He hasn't done it over the course of the year. He is improving true, but you just cannot improve 20% overnight, at the end of the season. So his playoff performance was, by all acounts, a fluke. Or he got hot and his shot was falling. Whatever. It's a great sign for a young player, but it's not something Lakers should weigh too heavily when considering what he could do next year.

[Andriy Czarchenko]

Artest will wear uniform No. 37 in honor of the number of weeks that Michael Jackson's album "Thriller" was No. 1 on the charts. :rofl:

LeBron/Nike confiscating all video of college-player dunking on him. :thumbsdown:

[Rhom]

LeBron/Nike confiscating all video of college-player dunking on him. :thumbsdown:

I linked a story about that in the college basketball thread yesterday. I heard sports radio going up one side and down the other on this the other day. Personally, I don't see how anyone can justify it as a good move.

If the video had gotten out it would have been on SportsCenter one night and then given Jordan Crawford 15 minutes of YouTube fame... and then it'd be forgotten. Because of this debacle, people are talking about it and it will become the "legendary dunk that no one has seen." I think its a huge PR mistake.

[Slurktan]

I have mixed feeling on Hedo spurning Portland. Small forward wasn't exactly a need position for us but this guy has become pretty damn good, certainly better than Travis Outlaw or Martel Webster coming off a missed year (I still think Webster may become very good someday). We were a better team with Turkoglu but I didn't love the idea of signing him to a five year deal. Might work out but might not. Overall, I did want to get him so I'm slightly bummed but I also kinda like the idea of this young team growing together. I don't know if we really need new players or if we just need to get older.

Shit man I forgot that you were a Portland fan. I honestly didn't like the idea of Portland picking him up originally mostly because he replicates what Roy does at the end of games. Can't have two people being the man and all that. So I think it worked out for you guys particularly if this rumoured deal goes through:

http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=4317515

I think Hinrich would be a really good fit for you guys. Doesn't dominate the ball but can hit shots and can defend 2 positions. Interesting as well that you might be offering Millsap a contract as well. I don't particularly like that move though because then you risk either pissing off Aldridge by benching him or stunting Oden's already stunted growth by benching him in order to start Millsap. I can't see Millsap agreeing to be a backup.

[AutumnEvenings]

Yeah, we're pretty confused about wtf Portland is doing. I mean, obviously, they know we want to keep Millsap. We haven't made a secret of that at all. They also know that we're a thrifty/stingy team, and are very close to the luxury (sp?) tax without Millsap. The front-heavy + huge signing bonus contract will be very hard for us to meet. Our GM has been saying all summer we'd meet whatever, but this is really impossible. (Our owner passed away a few months back, and now his brother 'owns' the team until things are sorted out. Most likely he'll keep it. But the family's wealth all comes from car dealerships, which, obv are not doing very well. There have been discounted rumors that Utah may not even be able to keep our Jazz, but while we doubt those, they do kinda illustrate our dire straights.)

Meanwhile, before this offer, we had several three-way trades for Boozer, all involving Portland. So I really don't get what they're doing. I don't really think they actually want Millsap. But they have to know that making him a huge offer makes us very untrusting of them, and now all those trades are rumored to be off. We're looking for different 3rd parties or for a direct trade.

And yes, Boozer is going. The Jazz have told him that, next year, we'll opt out. (He opted in this year, despite his previous statements.) He's requested a trade, which was our plan if he didn't leave. I kinda think telling him we'll opt out (while done confidentially, it was bound to leak) was rude. But he really burned up all the fan love, so, you know, it's his self-made bed.

But really, wtf Portland? Even though they're a division rival, I've always kinda liked them. But I don't see this move as anything more than them looking to screw us.

[Greywolf2375]

LeBron/Nike confiscating all video of college-player dunking on him. :thumbsdown:

well, it's been released-ish. And not for nothing, who cares? and? This is what the controversy was over? I mean, this isn't Starks over Jordan or Jordan over, well, everyone. It was a dunk. In the lane. oooohhh.

[Young Wolf]

Yeah, I dont see what the fuss was over. I mean it didnt look like it was something to "posterize" a person for.

[Greywolf2375]

saw another video of it - ESPN is running it - but can't get a link. It's from behind the rim he dunked on, still nothing to get excited over. Nice dunk, kids got springs...but if nothing had ever been said, this would have gone down as 2pts in a pick up game.

Though Crawford did make some nice comments about what was happening and how this is exciting him for the coming season.

So the Clips are all ready holding their breath. Doesn't sound too serious, but Griffin's sidelined for 3-4 weeks with a shoulder injury.

[AutumnEvenings]

Well it's a bit cold-hearted but it's pretty shrewd business. Presumably we knew you guys couldn't/wouldn't keep Boozer and that in that case you would see keeping Millsap is crucial. We drove up his price for you.

I don't think his price was actually run up. It was more or less what people figured he'd get over the years. It was just pretty front-loaded, which will actually be good for us next year. Keeping Millsap was always crucial; we made that no secret.

Everyone knows we're not keeping Boozer, and it's not that we 'can't', it's that he hasn't performed, we don't want to pay him, and he's kind of a dick. After he changed his mind on opting-out and opted in at the last minute, we told him that we were going to opt out of next year if we couldn't trade him this year. Not nice, but oh well. (This was before Portland made any offer.) Here's an opinion peice that pretty much sums up how we feel about Boozer, and why he'll never be a champion.

More importantly, now you've completely cut yourself out of any trades with us. Maybe the rumors weren't as strong in Portland as they were here, but almost everything with Boozer had a three-way involving you guys. Now rumors are direct trades with Miami or Chicago, with a possible salary-dump to Memphis or somewhere.

I dunno, I guess if you guys think it was 'shrewd', maybe it was, maybe you weren't that interested in any of the deals. But I don't think we got screwed over in the long term. (We had to take out a short-term loan to match the signing bonus, but once we dump Booz, it'll be fine.) So whatever, I guess.

----------

Laughed at the dunk, not because it was spectacular/humilating but because what a big deal over nothing. Bad PR.

The Clips are holding their breath? Because...they thought they'd be contenders this year? :lol: No, sorry that he's injured and all, but yeah.

[Jaime L]

So the Clips are all ready holding their breath. Doesn't sound too serious, but Griffin's sidelined for 3-4 weeks with a shoulder injury.

Jesus Christ, it's happening already?! I like Griffin a lot, why'd he have to end up on that cursed franchise?