For all of Shandon's shortcoming on the offensive end, he makes up for with his play on the defensive end. Don't give me this crap about him being an overrated defender, and that one man can not make a defense good, therefore Shandon's contributions are rendered useless. The guy is a defensive monster.Sure you can point out a few games where he got scorched, but I can find a hell of alot more games where he's shut the other teams best player down. If you want to blame Shandon for missing the whole 5 shots he gets a game, that don't come in the flow of the offense, fine, but don't try to make it seem like because he doesn't put points on the board that he has done nothing for this team. ------------------ "P*ssy"- Cuttino Mobley to Lamar Odom
The Cat, How can you consider a guy making $2 mil/year that has started every game over the past two years a bust? The only real "BUST" on this team is Cato. ------------------ Kenny Thomas had a foul called on him in the Western Conference Finals.
I don't think that Mo is a bust, but I do think he can do a lot better than what he's doing now especially using his body a lot more forcefully. There aren't really any plays ran for Shandon so I don't blame him for not getting 15 points a night, but I wish he was more consistent when he does get the ball. Look at C Rog, he doesn't get set plays for himself, but he cleans things up and gets us points. The only real bust on this team is obvious..........Steve Francis. J/K No seriously, Cato is the only real waste of space on the team (a lot of space .) Some of the guys could improve, but there's really only one BUST and I'm surprised the fella who wrote this article didn't name him. ------------------
That guy is an idiot. Lenny Wilken a bust? He has Vince Carter, who doesn't play defense and shoots to much, an aging front court, lost a young athletic, budding superstar bolt to a fellow conference team in Tracy McGrady, then lost a top notch 2-guard in Doug Cristie, then had his starting PG traded, and doesn't have a 10 man rotation, the team is thin, slow and unathletic, YET he has them 6 games over .500 and in the playoff hunt. Never mind the stupid selection of guys like Mo Taylor, John Amaechi, and Joe Smith, who is a role player and isn't expected to be a superstar. ------------------ Meow!
Crash and burn: The NBA's biggest disappointments By Dave D'Alessandro - The Sporting News This column is dedicated to Isaiah Rider, who never let us down. And to Derrick Coleman, who is a veritable Gibraltar -- the dimensions are comparable, anyway -- in a sea of uncertainty. And finally to Vin Baker, as constant as the North Star. These guys are not going to be mentioned below, because they are not underachievers. They merely are what they are, and it is time we all stopped expecting anything more from them. What follows is TSN's first-annual NBA All-Crash Team, a compendium of disappointing players who possess what Isaiah and his like do not: ambition to be more than a self-absorbed malcontent. WESTERN CONFERENCE SF Rodney Rogers, Suns. A year ago, he was a landslide winner of the Sixth Man Award, averaging 13.8 points and 5.5 boards and shooting 48.6 percent (43.9 percent from downtown, fourth best in the league). This year, his numbers are 11.8, 4.3 and 43.4 (30.3 from deep). Let this be a lesson to all you kids: Lay off the Krispy Kremes. He hit bottom against the Mavericks last week, when Scott Skiles played him four minutes. The coach explained: "Rodney has been lethargic for so long now, and frankly I'm tired of watching it." At least Skiles doesn't have to pay for the privilege. PF Shawn Kemp, Trail Blazers. Because it just doesn't seem like a team without him. Put another way: Patrick Ewing's numbers look Ruthian compared with Kemp's. C Michael Olowokandi, L.A. Clippers. Just one more year, and he graduates to J.R.-DC-Vin status. SG Larry Hughes, Warriors. And you wonder why Antawn Jamison won't pass the ball. Hughes averages 16 shots (the same as All-Star counterparts Allan Houston and Ray Allen), but he hits only 38 percent. He shot 40 percent last season, 41 percent as a rookie. PG Mike Bibby, Grizzlies. His numbers are up across the board, but he doesn't get along with the team's real star, and he hasn't shown much leadership. Indeed, the front office is as inept as it gets, but why would it have shopped a guy with his numbers so vigorously when he's making only $3 million? Sub Maurice Taylor, Rockets. He had his first playoff game last week, so to speak. It was against the Clippers, the team he left because he was fed up with losing. The L.A. crowd booed him every time he touched the ball, he shot 4-for-13 from the floor and the Rockets lost. If the Rockets miss the postseason by one or two games, they'll remember that 1-3 mark against L.A. They'll also remember their starting power forward is their fourth-leading rebounder. Sub Tariq Abdul-Wahad, Nuggets. What will $43 million buy you? Roughly four points and one assist per game in the first season. If they had gotten anything from this position, the Nuggets would have been a playoff team. Coach Phil Jackson, L.A. Lakers. In one interview last week, he said Kobe Bryant was an egotistical brat who values style over substance and vanity over victory, and accused him of sabotaging his own team in high school. Rumor has it Phil then applied for the Texas Tech job. EASTERN CONFERENCE SF Keith Van Horn, Nets. You want to cut him some slack, since he missed the first two months with a broken leg. But when the Nets needed someone to pick up the slack, he ran for cover. Seems a lot softer now, afraid of contact, even though the refs used to treat him like royalty. PF Austin Croshere, Pacers. He really seemed on his way last season, but no player in the league was affected more this year by a coaching change. Isiah Thomas' decision to bring him off the bench two months into the season messed with his head, and that cannot be changed. The good thing is the Pacers will get good return for him in a trade, because he's big, strong, and he's a range shooter. C John Amaechi, Magic. It's because of this guy that Doc Rivers must start Andrew DeClercq. 'Nuff said. A sterling example of a big man who is infatuated with his jump shot, and at 39.4 percent, there isn't much to love. SG Jim Jackson, Cavaliers. You'd have thought he would be pumped about returning home after playing for six teams in four years. But on a young team crying out for a leader, for a dependable scorer and for an anchor, he just didn't show. His worst season as a pro. PG Tim Hardaway, Heat. He has asked for this, really. It was two months ago that he said he no longer would tolerate any discussion about his physical deterioration (as obvious as it is), saying it wasn't an issue. But it is excruciating to watch this aging and deluded superstar, whose entire self-esteem is wrapped up in the occasional dagger 3. His teammates have grumbled about his shot selection for months. In one recent game, he had more than 35 touches yet managed to take his dribble into the paint twice. The legs just don't work anymore. Sub Robert Traylor, Cavaliers. They gave him the starting power forward job on a silver platter. He ate it. Sub Joe Smith, Pistons. What exactly was the fuss about this guy, again? Coach Lenny Wilkens, Raptors. Has anyone gotten less out of more talent in this conference? He has the best scorer, a terrific collection of long bodies up front and a rotation that goes 10 deep. So why do they always lose the close ones? ------------------ "Eat your kids, play with your dinner and join the chat" - Dr of Dunk gives a public sevice announcement at the request of Mike Tyson .
Does anyone here know Dave's email? I am searching for it right now... he will have an earful from me. He clearly insinuates the loss to the Clippers to be Mo's fault (in a game I'm sure he didn't see, just the stat sheet) which further proves the ignorance he has repeatedly shown over the years. It was a team loss. P.S. If you're going to choose a Rocket to call a bust, there's one you should pick way before Mo Taylor-- Shandon Anderson. To consider Mo a bust and Shandon not... it really shows Dave's complete ignorance on the topic. ------------------ "We're not settling for just getting in the playoffs." "We want a higher seed. There's no doubt. We expect to get in."-- Steve Francis President of the Mo Taylor and Jason Collier fan club! Draftsource.net ClutchTown.com [This message has been edited by The Cat (edited March 27, 2001).]
Right here cat , daved@sportingnews.com . ------------------ "Eat your kids, play with your dinner and join the chat" - Dr of Dunk gives a public sevice announcement at the request of Mike Tyson .
Am I the only one that is a little bothered by him putting a Hall of Fame coach on this list? All of a sudden Lenny Wilkens can't coach? ------------------ Mmmm ... open-faced club sand wedge.
Yea, but is it solely the player's fault for the inept season? ------------------ Cuttino: When you have thousands of people telling you, 'You can do it, you can do it,' it helps you out an awful lot.
