ATL @ MIA OKC @ CHI NOH @ UTA POR @ LAC I'm most interested in seeing CP3 vs D-Will. It's often mentioned that Williams owns Paul in H2H matchups. It's true from a W-L perspective but not so much when it comes to individual statistics. CP3 vs D-Will H2H (13 games): http://www.basketball-reference.com/play-index/h2h_finder.cgi?request=1&p1=paulch01&p2=willide01 Other than Paul's unusually low FG% and 3PT%, they are just about even in most other categories, with Paul getting to the line much more frequently as well as getting more steals. Maybe Deron has just benefited from having a better supporting cast? In my opinioin, Paul is the best all-around PG in the league, even better than Nash.
I agree. It's unfortunate that his stardom is already dwindling with the Hornets' record. I still hold out hope the Hornets go into salary dump mode and we can snag him and some of their bad contracts in exchange for McGrady and some of our really good contracts (Scola, Landry, or Brooks -- but not all 3). Anyway: ATL @ MIA - Expect ATL to win. Got my fingers crossed for a huge game from Josh Smith. NOH @ UTA - Ugh, dunno who to go for. I suppose I'd prefer Utah to win so the Hornets' record becomes worse and worse, edging them ever so closer to salary dump mode (as mentioned above). Utah should win at home. OKC @ CHI - Chicago's been hot. Hopefully they can knock OKC further behind the Rockets. POR @ LAC - Go Clippers...?! Hey, they're over .500 and home, so there's a chance! Hoping for big games from Baron Davis and LaMarcus Aldridge for my fantasy teams.
I wonder how many assists per game Paul would average if he was playing in a more uptempo system. New Orleans has typically been near the bottom of the league in terms of pace. Imagine what his numbers would look like in the Suns' system with all those additional possessions and with some of the supporting casts Nash has had over the years. Nash never came close to the 10 apg mark until going to Phoenix despite playing the same minutes. Dallas ran but not like Phoenix. Paul kills Nash when it comes to defense. This is more of a knock on Nash than a credit to Paul. Nash is just a bad defender. Some people say Paul dominates the ball to the detriment of his team. I've never bought that. Not every offense is the same. Paul makes his team and his teammates better by handling the ball so often. Plus, it's not like he's ever had a dominant wing player to defer to.
I'm watching the Jazz telecast of the game because I don't get the Hornets one. During a break in the game, they just showed 4 pictures of Kirifloppo's different hairstyles over the years and asked j*zz fans to text in which one is their favorite. Utah is such a lame place. Can we give it to Canada or something?
I truly believe Nash IS the style... To me, Steve Nash distributes the ball much better than CP3 ever has... That said, I think CP3 has a playoff style pacing to his game that I love...
I can respect that you think Nash is a better distributor but to say that any player in the history of basketball has distributed the basketball MUCH BETTER than Paul is impossible for me to comprehend. Chris Paul will go down as one of the best PGs of all-time and one of the best facilitators this sport has ever seen. Nobody is MUCH BETTER than him when it comes to distributing the ball.
I stomached about 10 mins of the 1st quarter before nausea set in. The Thunder are making their move against the Bulls, now up 14. When the Thunder focus and play defense, they are tough.
What do you think is the key to their defensive improvement/turnaround? A. Sefolosha. B. Scottie Brooks. C. Durant buying in. D. Some combination of the above. E. Something else entirely.
Meanwhile, the Hawks decided not to show up tonight. Pathetic effort. I actually picked them to win the East even though I knew it was a longshot. Perhaps, they still haven't learned to stop the bleeding when they go into slumps. I also didn't realize that JJ turned down a 4-year, $60 mil extension or that he is really unhappy with the crappy attendance at home games. I assumed he would stay in ATL given the team's growth to borderline contender status. Now, I'm not so sure.
Has anyone noticed how much better Serge Ibaka is now compared to the beginning of the season. It is truly remarkable. I used to think he was a 20 year-old Malike Badianne but this guy has real potential in the NBA and his skills are rapidly improving. It's hard to believe he's never played basketball in the USA before this season. He could make Krstic expendable next summer if his mid-range shot becomes more reliable. BB, I think having PJ Carlesimo totally expunged from their system by Scott Brooks having this team from summer league on through training camp is the foundation of the improvement on defense. It gets to the point that teams have trouble making any sort of entry pass or penetration because hands come out of nowhere and knock the ball away. You can only shoot over them. The effort is too inconsistent but they are a young team. Let add for the umpteenth time that getting Maynor from the Jazz for free was a felony offense.
Westbrook is a beast of an athlete. Even a healthy Derrick Rose doesn't match him, in my opinion. The positives with Westbrook are obvious. The weaknesses I see are his outside shot and him getting out of control at times. I know he's put up some ridiculous assist numbers and is improving but I just don't ever see him having the composure of some of the elite PGs in the league like Paul, Williams, Nash, Kidd, etc...
I don't think Harden sucks at all but Tyreke looks like a beast in the making. I agree, they should've taken Evans.
A3 (it's hard to type out A_3P0 everytime), What do you think of Bayless' performances recently? I've seen a couple of games, including that breakout 4th quarter a couple of weeks ago.
I'll take Rose over westbrook any day of the year, go look up what Rose has been doing since he got healthy and you'll see the budding of a superstar...no one has the combination of power, speed and body control that rose has, just ask Chris Paul who said the very same thing about Derrick...
I'd say Westbrook has at least equal power, speed and body control. I think what separates Rose from Westbrook is his composure and decision-making. I don't care about assist numbers, independently. They both have suspect outside shots. Athletically, I don't think Rose has anything on Westbrook except maybe a slightly stronger base.
I was hoping the same thing but it doesn't look like Aldridge will be playing tonight. "Aldridge (ankle) did not travel with the team to Los Angeles and will not play in Monday's game, The Oregonian reports."
