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Wednesday, February 6, 2008
Wild Wednesday
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
SMYRNA - Super Tuesday is a wrap.
So welcome to Wild Wednesday, in the NBA and beyond.
In LA, no one’s talking about Obama or Clinton. They’re talking about Pau Gasol and Shaquille O’Neal, and for very good reason.
One of those giants was the linchpin to three championship runs for Lakers fans, the other guy could be the linchpin to future championship runs.
Either way, it’s a sickening sight to see the rich continue to get richer in the NBA.
If Shaq is traded to Phoenix for Shawn Marion and Marcus Banks - whatever shape he’s in, last time I checked just having Shaq on your roster guarantees you’ll get a step or two closer to the NBA Finals - it’s just another blow struck by the privileged (and won’t it be interesting to see how nifty the Miami Heat look without the big fella around to blame for all their mess).
The Lakers already were on pace to be a handful for someone in the playoffs. With Gasol in the fold, they look like true contenders for the Western Conference title and beyond. I don’t know that Gasol can handle the Tim Duncans and Amare Stoudemires of the world, but it doesn’t hurt to have him trying instead of Lamar Odom and Andrew Bynum.
Watching Gasol do work (24 points, 12 rebounds and four assists) on the Nets last night reminded me of a conversation I had with Joe Johnson during training camp. We were discussing the rumors about the Hawks chasing Gasol in a trade. And I asked JJ if he thought Gasol would really help or if he was too soft.
He wanted to fight me for having the nerve to ask such a question. The short version of his answer was that anytime a player draws double teams inside, he helps everyone else out tremendously. He opens the floor for everyone else and wreaks havoc on an opposing defense, which then has to compensate for him on every possession.
Gasol’s finest qualities were being camouflaged in Memphis earlier this season. But the for the people who know his game best (opposing players come up big here) and those who have watched him dominate during international competition for years, any success he has in LA won’t come as a surprise.
I feel like a busta (careful, throwback reference for all you jokers born after 1980) for even questioning whether or not he could have made the Hawks (or any other team as desperate for a low-post presence) a better team.
… and on to assorted other topics:
I wrestled with my own conscience over the past 48 hours regarding how to adequately describe to people what it’s like chronicling the early stages of Josh Smith’s career without being too over the top about what you see on a nightly basis. I thought Andre Iguodala put things into perfect words regarding young Mr. Smith after he choked the life out of the Sixers Monday night when he said, “He is one of those rare players. Nobody in the league is doing what he is doing, concerning scoring, rebounding, blocking shots, and getting assists and steals.” When you factor in that Josh would be just a senior in college in the previous (before KG) era, it’s even more frightening to think what could be ahead for this cat. Because as hard as he works now, he’s only going to keep improving in every aspect of his game in the years to come. I wrote before this season how ill advised I thought it was for the Hawks to allow both and Josh Childress to become restricted free agents at the end of this season. I was too nice. In retrospect, it was an error of (as Silky Johnson would say) epic proportions (it’s funnier out loud when you’re doing your best impersonation of the King of Haters). The Hawks would be smiling all the way to the bank if they’d have locked young fella up with an offer of say $11 million per season and then he continued to blossom the way he has this year. Instead, they’ll have to wrestle the bears that come along this summer (and please believe that the bears will be hunting for him the second free agency starts). Again, the Hawks made an error of epic proportions by not taking care of this business before the season. I know folks in Boston will go bananas when I say this, but if Kevin Garnett needs an injury replacement for the All-Star Game, Josh Smith should be that dude. My boy Marc Spears (who covers the Celtics for the Boston Globe) says this could set off a second riot in Boston (after the Patriots’ fall from grace Sunday, he said this would just be cruel and unusual punishment to not add Ray Allen in place of KG). “You can’t have a team with the best record in the league with just one All-Star in the game,” Spears said. “With all due respect to Josh, who deserves to be an All-Star too, it’s a matter of circumstance that won’t work in his favor, unless somebody else gets hurt.”
My college football Jones has kicked into high gear today (Ash Wednesday/Signing Day for all you catholic school refugees like me), but I’m doing my very best suppress the urge to spend the rest of our time here yakking about it. But my boys are closing strong this morning - we’ve snatched a few kids from other schools that will keep me smiling for at least two or three days - and if we get Terrelle Pryor, watch out!!!!!!!
The trade winds have to be kicking up with great force in the anticipation of that Shaq deal going down. What that means for the teams like the Hawks remains a bit murky. But if a shooter is what the Hawks desire, then a shooter shouldn’t be that hard to find. The sticking point then becomes how much they want to spend on a quality shooter/scorer. I don’t know that there’s a cap on what I’d spend to solidify my team’s playoff position. But it ain’t my money, ha. But dream up your list of the best cats for the job and tell me what you’d do. Me, if Mike Miller’s available, I’d have to do whatever it took, within reason, to get him here. I’d need a proven guy, someone who not only makes jump shots but also can score baskets in whatever way necessary. Miller’s also an underrated rebounded, defender and all around player (he averages 17 points, 7 rebounds and 4 assists, in case you were wondering).
What was that? You’re tired of my long-winded rants?
Fine.
I’ll leave you in peace until this afternoon. But I’ll be checking in every few minutes (in between stints on the recruiting web sites, to see if there are any suggestions for shooters that I’ve whiffed on.
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