Be Wary of Falling in Love with Rockets

Heading out of the All-Star break and following their trades of their two most prolific power forwards at the deadline, talk focused around the Houston Rockets falling out of the playoff picture and being overtaken by a suddenly (and at times miraculously) hot Lakers team that has been led by Kobe Bryant, a man clearly on a mission.

But with a win against Golden State on Friday night, the Rockets are instead pushing their way towards the front of the pack, now only a game behind overtaking the Warriors for the sixth seed.

The two teams meet up again next weekend, but face vastly different competition over the next nine days. The Rox will only play three times, two games against the lottery-bound Phoenix Suns and a game against the injury-depleted Minnesota Timberwolves. The Warriors, on the other hand, face a surging Milwaukee Bucks squad that has won four of its last five games, a struggling but still tough New York Knicks team, a winnable game against Detroit, and a very tough matchup against the Chicago Bulls.

By the time the squads meet back up, it’s very possible that the Rockets will have already overtaken the Dubs.

Laker Dwight Needs to Be More Celtic

This post just seemed fitting seeing as the Lakers are playing the Celtics tonight.

Also, now that Mitch Kupchak has come out and made statements regarding “not trading” Dwight Howard that are so definitive that he would never get anyone to believe him again if he went back on them, it is time (for those outside of Orlando who didn’t already know) to accept these facts.

Howard, in my opinion, is not a franchise player. He is not a leader. He doesn’t just shy away from conflict and scrutiny, he passive aggressively avoids them. He is not serious—ever. He still remains noncommittal on his future with the Lakers. He is a one-dimensional player who believes himself to be three-dimensional. He refuses to consistently do the two things that he is better at then everyone else in the league—pick and roll to the hoop, and defend. He has not improved any of his weaknesses since entering the league. He has built an impressive career off his unmatched athleticism, but has come nowhere close to returning to that athletic level following offseason back surgery. He’s talked a lot about his injuries and how they have aversely affected him this year, but was still able, and willing to do this. Despite getting everything he said he didn’t get in Orlando (big market, championship caliber roster, first class front office), he has pouted and somehow managed to rub all of his teammates the wrong way—even Steve Nash, the world’s preeminent teammate.

Second Half Season Preview: LA

Lakers

It’s been one crazy ride. The most recent development was the passing of owner Dr. Jerry Buss who finally succumbed to his nearly two-year battle with cancer. For those in the know, this was an inevitability just waiting to happen. For the rest of us, this came as somewhat of a surprise—though in this Lakers season, nothing really is surprising anymore.

Rest in peace Dr. Buss—the greatest sports owner in the history of American professional sports and a true visionary who helped mold and create the game that I love.

To Franchise or Not to Franchise

In today’s NBA, what constitutes a franchise/cornerstone player?

Star power. Elite or versatile skill set. Youth and/or superb health record. Superior athleticism. Leadership/dependability. Obviously, in an ideal world, you want your franchise cornerstone to have all five of those qualities (and really, I listed eight qualities)—but there’s only one Lebron James and only one Kevin Durant.

That said, if you have a player that checks off four of those five boxes, you’re definitely thinking about offering him a max contract and feeling confident that he can be a vital piece if not the foundation for a championship-caliber franchise.

So, the question the Los Angeles Lakers should be asking themselves is—is Dwight Howard a franchise player?

Let’s go down the list after the jump.

D'Antoni Remains the Lakers Biggest Problem

Three wins is three wins. Especially this season. A season in which the Lakers have struggled to win.

It’s been beautiful to watch Kobe “Magic Bean” Bryant dish like he’s on Real Houswives. It’s terrific that the Lakers had 34 assists on 39 made buckets Tuesday night against the Hornets. It’s been exciting to see the Lakers actually look like a team that gives a damn.

That said, Mike D’Antoni is still the wrong coach for this team, and all of his flaws and all of the Lakers flaws will be exposed if the Purple and Gold can indeed pull themselves into the playoffs.

D’Antoni is the wrong coach because he isn’t a coach at all. He’s an ideologist with a philosophy. A missionary with a religion. He’s more Plato, than PATFO. More Billy Graham than Bill Self.

D’Antoni preaches “ball finds energy” and like a backwoods fundamentalist refuses to stray from that dogma. Instead of trying to figure out ways to put his players in situations that provide energy for them, to put them in situations that compliment their skillsets (a la Popovich), he instead clings to his overly simplistic mantra.

Fools (Purp &) Gold

Despite cloudy skies in Los Angeles Saturday morning and a forecast of continued rain throughout the weekend, Lakers fans are feeling much better after their team dismantled the Utah Jazz on Friday night 102-84. The Lakers played stifling defense behind terrific effort from Dwight Howard. Steve Nash took 11 shots and made six of them. Pau Gasol was 7-8 with seven boards off the bench. And Kobe Bryant had 14 assists to three turnovers, and only 10 shot attempts.

Many wise people are shaking their heads today. To them, the key is those 14 dimes and only 10 shot attempts. There is certainly some truth to the notion that a facilitating Bryant is more beneficial to this Lakers squad. He probably shouldn't be taking 23 shots a game. That said, the Lakers didn't win because Bryant passed the ball. If Bryant is shooting over 50 percent, he should be shooting the ball. This game does nothing to dispute that logic and that strategy.

What this game did is prove that matchups are everything.

LA's Lost Season?

The Lakers could turn things around. They could reasonably string together a 15-3 stretch and be right back in the thick of the playoff race and perhaps the "championship contender" conversation that they were featured heavily in during the offseason.

That very well could happen.

But the reality is, with each additional loss, the absolute certainty of the playoffs evaporates into the ether. Let’s not even talk about a championship this year.

The Lakers stink—and moral victories, while offering a glimmer of hope, are irrelevant to this particular squad. This isn’t the Bobcats. This isn’t the Orlando Magic.

Only a month ago, I wrote how Mike D’Antoni was the right man for the job because he was hungrier than Phil Jackson and because Jim Buss wanted him.

Can I recant that proclamation? Because D’Antoni thus far, has not been hungry, has not been a winner, has  not even played his role as prophet of the Seven Seconds or Less religion that he brought to the NBA—a religion he blindly follows no matter how dark and desolate his situation becomes.

Lakers / Celtics Trade Suggestions

I get that these are usually fruitless, complete stabs in the dark. But that doesn’t make them any less fun to ponder and debate about. Here’s a couple I’ve been mulling over lately.

Chris Broussard is an Idiot

I have a love/hate relationship with ESPN's Chris Broussard.

On the one hand (the hater hand), Broussard writes a bunch of sensationalist garbage and tries to pass it off as journalism. On the other hand, he gets the wheels spinning in my head because he obviously represents the popular opinion and my views on the NBA are almost always at odds with his. 

More to the point, Broussard wrote a piece today (I won’t bother linking to his piece, because it’s not worth your time reading) that points to Kobe Bryant as the problem to the Lakers woes this season. Basically, as Broussard has done his entire career, the gist of his argument is that Bryant is shooting too much and is the reason the Lakers have vastly underperformed. 

Poor commentary greatly angers me and provokes a pointed response.

Center of Attention

The Lakers won for only the third time in December last night in Philadelphia. While they won by 13, it wasn’t particularly impressive considering the Sixers were missing Jrue Holiday. The more interesting takeaway from the game was the comments made by former Laker Andrew Bynum.

As standalone quotes, his words come off a lot more scandalous-sounding then they actually were. That said, Bynum sure did have a lot to say—especially for a guy who has yet to log a single minute of playing time this season.

Let’s break down his quotes…and his logic.

Chris Duhon's Return to Relevance

With Mike D'Antoni now the head coach of the Lakers, don't be surprised at all if the corpse of Chris Duhon is resurrected. He had a career season as the lead guard under D'Antoni in 08-09 averaging 11 points and 7 assists for the New York Knicks. Was he suited for the Steve Nash role? No. But he did excel in the system.

Mike Brown Fired

What a panic-driven move if I've ever seen one. While anything is possible, I feel like the Los Angeles Lakers have significantly reduced their chances of winning a championship this year with the short-sighted, knee-jerk reaction firing of Mike Brown today. And, it's not as if those chances weren't already slimmed down thanks to the injuries to Steve Nash and Kobe Bryant, the winless preseason, and the inability of the big four to mesh together overnight.

Kobe Bean

The Lakers as a whole have not looked particularly good, let alone historic-level good as some anticipated. Sunday against the Detroit Pistons helped, but was far from an impressive showing.

Dwight Howard has put up some terrific numbers, but he is not nearly as explosive as he was early last season. He also is a step slow. And while he physically looks like Adonis, Howard is clearly out of shape. Despite all that, he’s averaging 23 and 10 and shooting 69 percent.

Steve Nash looked like anything but Steve Nash in the two games before his injury. There’s been calls for Mike Brown’s head on a stake. There’s been hullabaloo over handing the keys of the car over to Nash who from 2002 to 2010 orchestrated the NBA’s best offense.

And while I recently wrote the obituary of Seven Seconds or Less, Nash will adapt to the Princeton offense. When that point comes, the pick and rolls will follow.

The Death of Seven Seconds or Less

Having watched the first two games of the Lakers this season my instantaneous reaction—like many others out there—was one of shock and disbelief. How could the Lakers not be utilizing Steve Nash, orchestrator of arguably the most beautiful style of basketball--Seven Second or Less? Why was this two-time MVP running around and setting picks and spotting up behind the three-point line?

I found myself thinking, “Give the damn ball to Nash and let him do his thing.”

Shaquille O’Neal: A player feature from a fan’s perspective

As a Lakers fan, I had the opportunity to watch Shaquille O'Neal play in Los Angeles for eight years. In his prime, he was by far the biggest, strongest, most agile (for a player of his mass) big man I ever saw. He was both the unstoppable force and the immovable object, a nightmare matchup for opposing players and the refs as well. With Phil Jackson’s tutelage and Kobe Bryant at his side, he led the Lakers to three straight championships. I have to give respect where it’s due. Those banners in the Staples Center don’t exist without the Big Fella.

However, in light of the recent hubbub he spawned with his comments regarding Dwight Howard, I have to give criticism where it’s due as well. As much as Shaq has done in his career, he left basketball fans wanting, and this shortcoming stems from one main thing: his attitude.

Deconstructing Andrew Bynum (pt. 3)

Data from last season shows the opposite of the eye test regarding whether Bynum can carry a team or not. According to John Hollinger at ESPN.com, Bynum spent 20 percent of his time playing without Kobe Bryant or Pau Gasol last season (384 minutes). Hollinger’s advanced stat PER indicates that Bynum put up identical numbers and efficiency with a 23.2 PER without Bryant and Gasol, and a 23.1 PER with them.

Of course, Bynum was usually the first starter to sit, and he’d usually come in with the bench squad in the second quarter—meaning, a good many of his 384 minutes without Bryant and Gasol came against other teams’ bench units.