And don't hold back when expressing their opinions and are more than willing to criticize the league.
Jeff Van Gundy: How good are the Rockets now? I think they're one of the handful of teams that can win the championship next year. In the Western Conference, OKC, LA, SA and the Rockets - one of those teams will come out of the West. They did it a different way. They didn't tank to rebuild. I give their organization a lot of credit with how they went about rebuilding with dignity and honor. Trying to stay relevant for their fan base while also building their team back up to a championship level and they've definitely done that. Does Dwight stay with a different coach, say Phil Jackson? Most NBA players have it figured out-the media game, what to say. They say they care about winning. Very few really think that way. Dwight Howard has been unhappy with whoever has coached him. Anyone who demands accountability, he hasn't liked it starting with Brian Hill, my brother, Mike D'Antoni. He's always finding fault with something. If he wants to win in Houston, he has a great opportunity but he has to come to grips with who he is. He is a great defender, the best rebounder in the game, and even though he doesn't have refinement in his offensive game, he can still score 16-20 points a game. That's why he's the best center. I think he's a MVP candidate if he's physically and mentally right. This guy is a great basketball player. I don't think winning has been his top priority and I don't think he loves the scrutiny. I think he's more comfortable in a friendly media environment. If McHale coaches him and Hakeem is close, do you think it's not too late to improve his offensive game? The magic is not in who coaches you. The magic is in the work. If you put in the work and you live in the gym and you want to get better, and not pay lip service and you really want it, you can get better. He doesn't have a great touch or feel for offense but he can get better. A lot of players think the magic is in a two-week period with Hakeem. That's not how Olajuwon got great. That's not how McHale got great. It was hours and hours and hours and hours year after year after year of repetition. The magic is in the work. Not talking about who you're going to work out with or who's gonna coach you this year. It's over time. The amount of time and amount of hard work you're willing to put in the game. Could you see LeBron and Kobe existing as teammates? I don't see James moving from Miami to now go someplace else. He has it so good there. Miami, like the Lakers, are trying to win every year. If they're aging, they'll try to replenish the talent. I think James would stay right there.
No big deal... SVG was already use to getting fired by that point. It's not the first time a bus ran over him.
Voice of reason right there, it amazes me how some people think more people should work with Dream. He's a Rockets legend but you don't learn squat if you work with him a few hours and then go back to being who you were. I'm sure 99% of what Olajuwon has shown or taught has been forgotten or did not stick. Probably some small things that he said or a minor tweak to a move that some guys picked up on, the rest is just being in awe and trying to copy what he does for a few hours.
Amare Stoudemire had two sessions with Dream and it completely helped his game. Guys like LeBron, Kobe, Mello as well. Some big guys just don't have the coordination to learn from guys like Dream... Dream said himself it's hard for big men to learn his moves and they are more for guards and small forwards. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vww3lmLQQGM&feature=youtube_gdata_player But it would be great if Dream and McHale could just teach him a move or two.
JVG is a great interview, but he is also great at knowing who his audience is. He may have just been pandering the local Orlando fan base.
He's fine. He was just talking, nothing serious. "Lin is underrated." That sounds like an understatement.
Yeah...don't be fooled. JVG is great at commentating and is as graceful as they come. But as a coach, dude was a curmudgeon. He was entirely too stubborn in relation to deviating from his philosophy and while, the defense was important, it didn't work with the personnel. He failed because HE refused to adjust. He says all the right things and is a cool dude form all indications, but him as the coach on this team??? no way. J VGundy ball was unwatchable.
One thing that I admire JVG is his boldness in speaking things that are not popular. And unlike guys like Barkley and Shaq, he actually means it and does not just pull idiotic things out of his behind.
