ok so...i just listened to that interview from slam. but damn, he sounds insane. ...i say we go get him. he sounds crazier than artest!
Mike James DOES sound crazy in this Slam interview. He sounds downright delusional. My favorite rant - "I'm trying to do it. I'm trying to give back to the community. I'm trying to give back to the kids, because the one thing I've learned is it ain't about me. God has blessed me with plentiful, man, and my biggest concern is I just want people to know who I am. I'm just tired of people not knowing and discrediting what I've done in the NBA since I've been playing." So let me get this straight, it's not about you, it's about people knowing who you are. Nice one, Mike.
Wow. I hadn't gotten to this gem yet - "Do you know why Avery Johnson changed up his lineup in the Dallas/Houston series when I was in Houston? Because his focus was stopping me! He said if we stop Mike James we get it." Right, Mike. They weren't worried about McGrady or Yao. It's all you, Mike. This guy is absolutely insane. Seriously. I now understand why he's been on six teams in the past four years.
You forgot about when he said his goal for next season is to be the league MVP. I see now why everybody wants him. We definitely need a guy like Mike James, who is best suited to be a scorer off the bench, trying to win an MVP trophy on a team with Yao and McGrady. Yeah, you can officially consider me a member of the "I hope to god they do not re-sign Mike James" camp.
Here is another interview that he did yesterday that I saw on the realgm raptors website. New Mike James Interview My Comments - I am beginning to think that Mike James is wrong for this team. His production would be so welcomed but his ego will only hurt the team if he is unwilling to sacrifice. This team needs a team player and not a player in search of his own agenda to demonstrate to everyone that he is a superstar. I'm not berating him in wanting to demonstrate that he is a superstar in fact all power to him but he needs to do it on a team that has only one other star. The problem is Houston already has two and there is only one basketball. What I got from the interview is that James wants the ball in his hands in game deciding moments and is through with being a bench player. This is the wrong player to obtain ... we need a player who won't close himself to sacrificing for the betterment of the team if asked to ... kind of like Ginobili despite being an all-star player being o.k. with playing off the bench to help his team. Mike James is so frustrated with being under-appreciated throughout his career that I'm afraid his frustration will only get in the way with the Rockets' goals.
the talk about being an All Star, leading player, and significant piece in a team from the earlier mp3 reminded me of an quote (at the beginning of the season not long after he was traded) where he spoke of another player being scared of his abilities alluding that he was on the verge of upsurping someone on the team? the article was posted on the bbs, maybe someone with search can post the link?
James is more a SG than PG. I think if we can get a decent backup PG at the draft, then why not bringing him back for some more offense power?
How about laying off the rhetorics?James quoted AJ. He didn't say it's all about him. It's not entirely unfounded either. James was key in us winning games against Dallas. Unless you can prove that Avery didn't say it, you can't fault MJ for thinking so. Surely Mike James feels that he's underappreciated, and it's true. I'd feel the same way if I was him. What matters is whether it translate into a positive impact on the court, and it did, at least for us. You guys are reading too much into it, what James said is he's not a selfish person who doesn't care about community, hence "it's not about me." Then he went on saying he's fed up with people misunderstanding him. Let me get this straight, you think that an unselfish person can't complain about others misunderstand him? As for his other self promotional sayings, his action says otherwise. The best way to be a league MVP is not coming to Houston to compete with Yao and T-Mac, it's staying on some sorrty a$$ team like the Raptors. If Mike James is crazy enough to think that he's better than Yao and T-mac, he would be already in a mental hospital. That's total detachment from reality.
Sorry I forgot one interesting thing, if you take Bill Walton's remarks on the players and games on face value, you'd think that he's a lunatic at large.
Would like Mike James back if he played a similar role like last time and a little more. The thing that still doesn't make it all come together right with MJ being a good pickup is that they traded him for a pass first PG (mistake or not) and because he would test free agency and look to spike up his pay. Which is what he's seemingly doing outside his comments about coming back to Houston. And what role would be play the 2nd time around? He was already with the Rockets, and if they so covet his skills they shoulda just kept him on the team then resigned him in the 1st place. Why get rid of the guy because they didnt want to pay him in full, then bring him back paying in full? Ex: Trade away Steve Francis cuz they realize there's a better fit to the team and don't want to pay him max money cuz of that. Then Francis goes into free agency, they bring him back paying the max money. Doing that they'd have to admit they made a mistake or feel the team has changed to where those skills are needed again. Maybe the Rockets go through the draft to bring in some of those similar skills (Marcus Williams?)
if t-mac wants him back i say why not. he's been successful here and it's already been shown that t-mac was not involved in them trading him away. he's talking a lot of noise but that's all it is. his game and personality are exactly what this team needs a shot of.
What he implied was that he was the focal point of the Dallas Mavericks defense - that Avery Johnson's main concern was shutting him down. That's ridiculous and for you to defend such a claim is equally ridiculous. Yes, Mike James was a contributor in that series but you can't possibly believe they were more concerned with him than McGrady or Yao. I honestly recall Jon Barry having as big of an impact on that series as Mike James. I doubt you'll ever hear Barry claiming that Avery Johnson changed the line up just to shut him down though. As far as being underappreciated - by what standards? Elton Brand is under-appreciated. Shawn Marion is under-appreciated. What exactly is Mike James but a journeyman who can't seem to stick with any team for whatever reason? Yes, there are a lot of people producing less in the NBA while still earning more money, but Mike James isn't starving. There are CEO's that would drool at the kind of money Mike James is making. First, if you are indeed correct in your interpretation of Mike James comments then you're familiar with a langauge I don't speak. There was no transition between those two issues. None. He was still speaking on the same topic. It was seemless. Secondly, he didn't say anything about being 'misunderstood'. He said he wants recognition and for people to quit discrediting his accomplishments in the league. That's all fine and well, but forgive me if I find it a bit humorous that he would talk about how he's learned it isn't about him and then two sentences later he says "my biggest concern is I just want people to know who I am." Now, it's true he could have such a poor grasp of the english language that he can't properly express his thoughts, but if he meant what he actually said then those two sentences are in direct opposition. That's funny and just a little bit crazy. As far as claiming that the best way for him to win an MVP is to stay on a crappy team like Toronto - Kobe Bryant just proved you can't win the MVP on a crappy team. If he really does want to win an MVP he has got to put himself on a good team. If his ego is even 1/10th as big as I think it is after reading and listening to his recent interviews, he truly thinks he's the missing piece that could take two guys like Yao Ming and T-Mac to the championship. Further, I really do think he believes he's better than them or at least as good as them. Why else would he say that? Claiming you want to win the MVP means you believe you're among the absolute best players in the league. Can any of you even imagine Mike James making an All-Star team or so much as making 3rd team All-NBA? No way. Guys like Cuttino Mobley have had seasons comparable to the one Mike James just had. He's a good ball player, but I personally think he's best suited to be a 6th man in the NBA. I also believe he's good enough to be a starter on a very good team (in the right system) but any team that depends on him to be their MVP is going to be right where Toronto is - at the bottom of the standings. I have no problem with somebody hearing that interview and still wanting the Rockets to sign him, but c'mon man, he sounded bat sh*t crazy in that interview. You actually made my point with your last statement except I disagree he'd already be in a mental hospital ( but only because he's not ). He could very well be on his way there though!
Great post, jmwilliamson. If Mike James could assume a 3rd option/6th Man role on this team, I'd love to have him back. The only problem is that EVERY time he talks to the media he can't shut the hell up about wanting a huge payday, respect, or an MVP trophy. The guy has his head up his ass at the moment and would be too much of a chemistry risk to bring aboard in his current state of mind.
You missed the point entirely again. The point is not whether MJ was the focal point of the Mav's defense. The point is MJ claims Avery Johnson said that if the Mavs stop MJ they get it. Whether Avery Johnson said it or not is the issue here. If Avery did say something to that effect, you should blame Avery for saying it, not Mike James. You admit Mike James is underpaid, and that's a sign of being underappreciated. MJ being the third best player on this team and fans wanted to credit only Sura and Barry also shows he's underappreciated. You are an example of misunderstanding what James said. Now read the words in bold so Mike James wouldn't be misunderstood by you. He was talking about two aspects. First his relationship with the community, second his public relationship in the NBA. Frankly, if you fail to grasp it again, I'm afraid no English lesson or Reading comprehension 101 can help you. "I'm trying to do it. I'm trying to give back to the community. I'm trying to give back to the kids, because the one thing I've learned is it ain't about me. God has blessed me with plentiful, man, and my biggest concern is I just want people to know who I am. I'm just tired of people not knowing and discrediting what I've done in the NBA since I've been playing." Basically, he wants people to know and understand him personally as well as professionally, I don't see how it can be spinned into being self centered. The best way to win MVP is to take a team with some talent but no bona fide superstar to the next level. The Allen Iverson way, not to come and compete with Yao and T-Mac. The fact that he's not a clinic and the NBA teams want him shows he's not crazy, only choose talk in such a way. You think the NBA teams don't do research on him? You think the NBA teams would spend millions of dollars on a guy who's crazy? You think Carrol Dawson who said MJ is a candidate for the MLE don't know that Mike James said?
I did a little research on James shooting frequency. On the Rockets, James took a shot every 2.31 minutes. On the Raptors, James took a shot every 2.38 minutes. The difference, I would say, is insignificant. That really supports the claim that James is delusional because he REALLY wants to be a league MVP. I thought James took a shot every 1 and half minute.
You can't be an MVP not being the best player on your team. You can't be an MVP being the best player on a mediocre team. The only way to be an MVP is being the best player on one of the best teams. Mike James is either joking or he is crazy if he thinks he can be MVP one day, especially when he is already not young.
