SB Nation - Chucky Atkins

Game 25 Preview: Oklahoma City vs. Detroit

Zorgon — Fri, 18 Dec 2009 22:13:00 -0000

More photos » by Duane Burleson - AP

Kevin Durant won't get to shy away from Ben Gordon tonight, because he's injured! Instead, he'll have to deal with the ferocious Chucky Atkins.

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This also counts as an open thread, so feel free to post your thoughts during the game here.

Time: 7 PM Central Standard Time

Place: The Ford Center, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma

TV: Fox Sports Oklahoma, Fox Sports Detroit

Radio: WWLS The Sports Animal (98.1)

Enemy Blog(s): Motown String Music, Need 4 Sheed, Detroit 4 Lyfe

Backstory: Detroit is one of the league's enigmas. At times, they look like a quality team, able to put up wins against strong opponents like Orlando, Atlanta, and Denver. At other times, they drop a bunch of stinkers, losing to teams like Chicago or Toronto. Still, there is some reasoning for it, as Rip Hamilton, Tayshaun Prince, and Ben Gordon will all be gone tonight, and the Pistons have been battling injuries all season. Without those 3 players, I really can't see them beating us tonight, so I'm ready to throw out the celebration stuff.

And we all know the Thunder's story. They've been sliding because they've faced 3 of the leagues top 5 teams, and none of us want to see them slide below .500 and get into the muck of the West. Kevin Ollie is out through December, Kyle Weaver is out through March.

Matchups:

Center: Nenad Krstic vs. Ben Wallace

Last time, Nenad Krstic was able to break out for a decent game against the slow-footed Ben Wallace, and I don't expect this time to be any different.

Power Forward: Jeff Green vs. Jason Maxiell

When Jeff Green was faced Charlie Villanueva, he put up good numbers. But, this time, he'll have to face Jason Maxiell, and I think he'll have below-average numbers for yet another game.

Small Forward: Kevin Durant vs. Jonas Jerebko

That's right, Jonas Jerebko, a 2nd rounder the Pistons decided to use on the court. He strikes me as a European style forward, able to shoot and rebound, but not really able to get very gritty offensively or defensively. That being said, I've never seen him play, so I can only infer from the statistics. Still, Kevin Durant will undoubtedly have a better game, unless Jerebko is concealing a secret weapon that I know nothing about.

Shooting Guard: Thabo Sefolosha vs. Rodney Stuckey

Thabo normally closes out on scorers well, but last time, he had some trouble with Ben Gordon. And I have reason to believe that he'll have trouble guarding someone with the scoring style of Stuckey. So expect Stuckey to out do Sefolosha in every area of the stat sheet.

Point Guard: Russell Westbrook vs. Chucky Atkins

Yeah. Remember that ill-used guard we had last year? The one that was only good for shooting 3s? Well, he's starting for the Pistons now. Still, he is a decent scorer, so expect him to score around 10 while providing no defense whatsoever. This should open the way to a much better Russell Westbrook performance than last time.

Battle of the Benches:

Villanueva, Daye, Bynum, and Wilcox. Am I mistaken, or is that lineup far better than their starters? In any case, I'd say our benches are about even. We all have ample reserves for each position, and we're both missing a couple of guards.

Coaching and Intangibles:

Both teams have been on losing streaks, and both are well rested. I'll have to give it to the Thunder, because they're at home.

Bottom Line:

There is absolutely no reason we should lose this game. The Pistons are without their 3 best players, and they have to resort to secondary scorers and some of the Thunder's scrubs from last year in order to survive. We have the advantage at virtually every position. Let me say it again....we better not lose this game.

Prediction: Oklahoma City 95, Detroit 88

How do you think the game will go? Vote in the Poll!

And, again, feel free to drop any comments you might have during, before, or after the game below. I'll be in the Ford Center cheering the team on, but I'll be back to write a recap later tonight. Go Thunder!

Poll

Who's going to win tonight?

Injuries, What Injuries? Pistons 101, Nuggets 99

Packey — Fri, 11 Dec 2009 07:09:12 -0000

Entering tonight's game the cards were not stacked in Detroit's favor (unless you believe in curses). The Pistons were missing not one, not two, but four of their better players (Hamilton, Prince, Gordon, and Bynum) and playing the second game of a back-to-back against one of the best teams in the Western Conference (0-5 in back-to-backs entering the game).

So it's realistic that Denver was overlooking Detroit and looking forward to returning home after a four game road trip. Charlie Villanueva thought so:

(Denver was) on the last game of the road trip. They might take us a little bit lightly, seeing all the guys out. But in this room, the guys believed we could win this game.

Pistons fans better believe it, too. We are 22 games into the season and despite all the injuries, falling behind (and sometimes big) in games, and having all odds against them, the Pistons continuously put forth 100% effort and scratch it out until the very end. Thursday night against the Nuggets was no different, and incidentally it also resulted in a hard-earned victory.

In addition to the injuries and any burnout from finishing a game less than 24 hours ago, Detroit also had to overcome a superstar performance from Carmelo Anthony. Anthony was essentially unstoppable tonight, dropping 40 points on 16-28 shooting.

Which makes one wonder why the Nuggets decided to give their final shot to tie the game, or win it with a three, in the hands of former Pistons guard, Chauncey Billups. Perhaps George Karl thought it was fate for Chauncey to come up big against the team, and in building, where he was coined as Mr. Big Shot. That's a noble thought, but 'Melo is one of the best clutch shooters in the NBA and just put up a career game. Why not let him finish it out right? Thanks, Coach Karl.

Big ups are also in order for Big Ben Wallace. He is averaging nearly 13 rebounds in the last seven games and without him tonight, the Pistons lose (by double-digits). He grabbed 16 rebounds tonight, six of those coming on the offensive glass. None were bigger than the tip in he had after an ill-advised Chucky Atkins shot around the two minute mark to put the Pistons up 99-96. He also had three steals, one which came with a minute remaining and led to a Stuckey layup to put the Pistons up 101-98.

More than those two huge plays and what the box score can tell you, he forced 'Melo to miss (when he did) a few times and created many other problems for the Nuggets that led to other Pistons collecting steals and/or rebounds.

Big Ben embodied Pistons basketball for all those years back around the time they won the championship, and he's doing it again. It's not really sexy to say a guy who has 16 rebounds to go with an ugly offensive game is our MVP, but then again, neither is the Pistons style of play, nor was this win.

Rodney Stuckey had his sixth quality game in a row, dating back to when he made his first start at the two spot. Tonight, he finished 7-14 from the field (11-15 from the line), which was good for 25 points. This was the first game of the season he did not have a single rebound. Charlie Villanueva added 27 points off the bench and had a team-high five assists.

More thoughts after you click.

Pistons are on a four game winning streak.
Denver has not won at The Palace since 1995. I didn't mean to dismiss that streak in the first paragraph, but I felt the way the Pistons continue to play was the bigger story. Denver Stiffs has an entertaining recap of what they think is a curse at The Palace of Auburn Hills. Being a die-hard Lions fan, I think I believe in curses.
Nuggets had a chance to gain momentum and possibly start to pull away when J.R. Smith had a wide open break to the basket. He tried to create a highlight reel double-clutch dunk and he missed! The Pistons then hit a three to tie the game on the ensuing possession. I think Ben Wallace was the game changer, but this was as close to a game changer as they come.
Harping some more on this team's hustle, it almost makes you forget that there are guys injured. While I'm watching the Pistons grind it out, I'm so encapsulated by what's going on, these Pistons don't give a fan much time to remember that they are missing key players. It's fun to watch, to say the least.
Austin Daye gave a solid 22 minutes of action, hitting three big shots (7 points). I sound like a broken record, but I love his shot.
DaJuan Summers hit a big time three pointer after a nice across court pass from Rodney Stuckey that gave the Pistons an eight point lead with 9:30 left in the 4th quarter.
Jonas Jerebko finished with 12 points and eight rebounds. Hustled, like woah, and turned in another noteworthy game. His night included this and-one, which was Number 6 on Sportscenter's Top 10 plays ("count that baby and a foul!"):
The Pistons got to the line 41 times and took advantage of it by knocking down 35 of them.
Chris Wilcox was the only healthy DNP.
Highlights courtesy of NBA.com:
Box Score
Quotes
Pistons return to action on Saturday against the Golden State Warriors. I'll be in attendance, let me know if you will be, too.

Stuckey Has Your Answer: Pistons 90, Sixers 86

Packey — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 05:03:11 -0000

More photos » by Matt Slocum - AP

Feed me starter minutes. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)

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It started out as another one of Rodney Stuckey's patented wild drives through the lane. With the score tied at 86, Stuckey was determined to get a shot up, at all costs, praying he'd get a call or his circus shot would fall with less than 10 seconds left. Unfortunately, he was swarmed by Sixers and Andre Iguodala taught him a quick, clean, lesson by blocking his wild attempt. Luckily, the loose ball wound up right back in Stuckey's hands. He promptly put up a fade away jumper that toilet bowled home and the Pistons had a two point lead they wouldn't give up.

It elicited the thought of a scene from one of my favorite movies. A sharp pang in my stomach seeing him try to force up a shot, followed by elation witnessing him redeem it a second later.

And Stuckey deserved that second chance opportunity. He had arguably the best game of his season, scoring a game-high 27 points on 10-19 shooting. He was perfect from the free throw line (including two clinchers), had eight assists, five rebounds, and committed just two turnovers. Rodney Stuckey was tonight's player of the game.

Allen "The Answer?" Iverson, not so much. While he did hit a tying jumper with a minute to go, he shot just 3-10 and had six (count 'em) turnovers against his former team. As he looked the other night against his other former team, the Denver Nuggets, Iverson seemed intent on sticking it to his former squad. Unfortunately for him, he just didn't have it either night.

It's a shame ESPN decided to cancel this match up, because with the Iverson "drama" and the game itself it was a great one. Neither team held a lead larger than eight throughout the course of the game and the leads were going back and forth the entire fourth quarter. Aside from the rebounding discrepancy (45-32 Detroit) the statistics were nearly identical.

But in the end, it was the Pistons who walked away with their third straight win and handed Philly their 11th straight loss. Detroit ended a five game road losing streak and a two game losing streak in Philadelphia. And, as George Blaha would say, don't look now, but the Pistons are currently sitting in the 8th seed in the Leastern Conference with a 9-12 record.

More after the leap.

This game was a great example of Pistons basketball. Detroit scrapped it out, hustled down rebounds, moved the basketball around (24 assists). It was like watching the good ol' days again. It's nice actually being entertained while watching the Pistons again, unlike the past few years where it was like going through the motions.
Jonas Jerebko has developed some offensive swagger. He had 17 points on 7-12 shooting and 10 rebounds for his third double-double in his last five games. He's averaging 14 points and 8 rebounds per game in his last six games. Unreal.
Kwame Brown had his best offensive showing of the season, thanks in large part to hitting 7 of 8 freebies. He was just 2-5 from the field but got to the charity stripe often. He also had five rebounds.
Will Bynum played 18 minutes and shot poorly again. He was just 2-7 and finished with four points. His ankle has to be bothering him. I plan on having a separate post up on that tomorrow maybe.
For all the jive I was giving Stuckey for his poor shooting earlier this year, he has really turned it on. He's currently 26-48 in his last three games, averaging 24 ppg and 6.3 assists per game.
Also, Stuckey absolutely broke AI's ankles tonight (although it could have been a mix between a fall & cross-over). I'll be on the lookout for that highlight.
Notable: Ben Wallace and Chucky Atkins were a team best +14 tonight. I'm not in love with Chucky at point guard, but the way Stuckey has been playing, I don't want Kuester to change anything right now.
Charlie V had a relatively quiet 11 points and five rebounds in 27 minutes.
Andre Iguodala led the Sixers with 18 points, 9 assists, and 6 rebounds. What I failed to mention in the recap above was he had a WIDE open three pointer to win it for the Sixers that banged off the back of the rim.
Box score
Liberty Ballers
Highlights:

Game 2 Pre-Game: Oklahoma City at Detroit

Zorgon — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 12:02:31 -0000

More photos » by Joe Murphy - NBAE/Getty Images

Hopefully we can stop Ben Gordon's infamous scoring tonight. But, things are looking bad, as even the blindingly light-blue and shimmering "Beale Street Blue" uniforms of the Grizzlies didn't stop him from dropping 22 points.

Browse more photos »

This also counts as an open thread, so feel free to post your thoughts during the game here.

Time: 7 PM Central Standard Time

Place: The Palace of Auburn Hills, Detroit, Michigan

TV: Fox Sports Oklahoma, Fox Sports Detroit

Radio: WWLS The Sports Animal (98.1)

Enemy Blog(s): Motown String Music, Need 4 Sheed, Detroit 4 Lyfe

The two undefeated teams of Oklahoma City and Detroit are getting ready to square off in the Palace of Auburn Hills. Both teams have unimpressive resumes. the thunder are coming off of a 23 win season and have beaten the lowly Kings, while the Pistons are clearly waiting for next seasons Free Agency, totally collapsed last year, and have only beaten the lowly Grizzlies.

But, I think the Thunder have the upper hand here. For starters, Rip Hamilton could possibly not play tonight. And even if he does play, he could be slowed down from his usual self. Second of all, their big men don't do a lot of scoring. Charlie Villanueva was sub-par last game, and Ben Wallace, as everyone knows, is not an offensively minded guy. If we can equal their scoring in the back court and drastically out score them in the front court, we can definitely win this game.

Below: Matchups, Predictions

Matchups:

Center: Ben Wallace vs. Nenad Krstic

Ben Wallace isn't want he used to be, but Nenad Krstic definitely can't tango with him in the post. I'll say that Krstic definitely scores and rebounds below average for this game, but Ben Wallaces stats won't be any better. I say Ben Wallace wins.

Power Forward: Charlie Villanueva vs. Jeff Green

There's no question who's going to win on scoring and on defense here. Jeff Green is simply a better player than Charlie Villanueva, and then though Charlie might get a few more rebounds, Jeff Green will have a far better stat sheet.

Small Forward: Tayshaun Prince vs. Kevin Durant

This will be a matchup for the ages. Some might go so far as to say Kevin Durant is a younger Tayshaun Prince. I look forward to an all out battle here that may just become the focus of the game. Tie.

Shooting Guard: Rip Hamilton/Ben Gordon vs. Thabo Sefolosha

It's unclear who will start tonight, but a huge key to the game will be how successfully Thabo can stifle the offense of Ben Gordon and/or Rip Hamilton. If he can hold them to a below average night, we'll stand a good chance of winning. Still, in any case, Hamilton and Gordon will have far better nights.

Point Guard: Rodney Stuckey vs. Russell Westbrook

Stuckey may be a point guard on the rise, but he's no Russell Westbrook, especially in the assist department. Westbrook will score less than Stuckey, but he'll have a better overall stat sheet.

Battle of the Benches

The Pistons have a pretty formidable bench even without Ben Gordon, with Jason Maxiell, Kwame Brown, and even Chris Wilcox. They're pretty thin at the guard spots though, bringing in good 'ol Chucky Atkins and former D-Leaguer Will Bynum. But, as a whole, it's much more powerful than the Thunder bench, which sports names like Etan Thomas and Kevin Ollie.

Coaching and Intangibles

The Pistons have the clear upper hand here. Deeper bench, more experienced and are at their home floor.

Bottom Line

I think the Thunder can pull out the win if the backups can come into the game without screwing it up too much, if our front court outscores their front court, and if we can hold guys like Tayshaun Prince, Ben Gordon, and Rip Hamilton to sub par nights. It looks like a tall order, but it's really not, and I'm confident we can win this game.

Prediction:

Thunder 97, Pistons 95

A closely contested battle pushes slightly our way.

How do you think the game will go? Vote in the Poll!

And, again, feel free to drop any comments you might have during, before, or after the game below. IHopefully I'll be here, commenting while simultaneously watching it on Television. Go Thunder!

Poll

Who is going to win tonight?

The Detroit Pistons

24 votes

The Oklahoma City Thunder

52 votes

76 votes | Poll has closed

Pistons Fizzle in Dallas: 113-88

Packey — Fri, 16 Oct 2009 06:30:13 -0000

Well, that happened.

Pistons hung in there for 24 minutes, trailing by six at the half, but fell flat on their faces in the second half. Dallas outscored Detroit by nineteen in the final 24 minutes, paced by their absurd 36-point third quarter, to finish the game out with a cakewalk 25 point win.

Where did this game go wrong?

I could take personal blame. I stopped watching live at halftime because I decided to watch a couple of the great Thursday night shows and the final innings of the playoff baseball game (I would never do this during the regular season). I still wound up watching the second half when NBA TV replayed the game at midnight.

Of course, I don't think it had anything to do with me. Honestly, the momentum of this game shifted for good near the end of the first half. With under two minutes to play, Rodney Stuckey committed a bad turnover with the game tied at 48, which led directly to an easy dunk from Dampier. Then on the very next possession Stuckey took an awkward three pointer because he was too open. Jason Terry then ended the half with two three pointers (with a Gordon bucket mixed in there), one of them coming near the buzzer. From those final possessions, Dallas gained a lot of momentum going into the locker room and it definitely carried over into their big third quarter.

Like any preseason game, I wouldn't get too worked up about this one. Remember that Detroit was without Tayshaun Prince, Ben Wallace, and Charlie Villanueva again. John Kuester also decided to mail it in fairly early, as Jonas Jerebko, DaJuan Summers, Deron Washington, and Chucky Atkins all played the entire fourth quarter with the exception of Jerebko who was replaced by Maceo Baston for the final few minutes. With that being said, Dallas was also without two big guns, Shawn Marion and Josh Howard.

I don't want to belabor this defeat any more than I have to.

Some more thoughts/notes:

Rodney Stuckey was the worst the other day, according to BrGulker, but looked vastly better on Thursday. He shot just 8-18, but he looked dominant in the first half when he scored 17 of his 20 points. The play of the night was actually after the whistle when he was called for traveling. He crossed over traveled past his defender and slammed one home in the face of Chris Humphries. It was a thing of beauty.
Some people experience mid-life crises, but Richard Hamilton might be dealing with an end of Pistons-life crisis (I don't think there's anyone who believes he's not near the end of his stint with Detroit). He showed up to media day with a Mohawk and tonight he buzzed his head, but left a ridiculous looking patch in the back. I wish I could say he was being silly and filling in the spot where former Piston Rasheed Wallace didn't have hair or he just couldn't reach that spot when he shaved his own dome.
For all the comparisons people make between Tayshaun Prince and Austin Daye, their shot is like night and Daye. Tayshaun didn't play tonight, but we all know how ugly that lefty "cock, aim, pause, and shoot" trigger is. Tonight was the first I've really seen of Austin Daye and it was a treat. That kid has one sweet stroke.
You're not going to win many games when you let the opponent shoot 56% from the field (55% from three-point land). And some of that has to do with Dallas being simply en fuego, but ultimately, Detroit has to find a way to contest shots better.
That's the second loss in a row for the Pistons against a team with a coach who has been fired by Detroit. Flip Saunders on Tuesday and Rick Carlisle tonight.
Really liked what I saw out of Wilcox and Kwame tonight. I'm actually pretty excited about what these guys, and Ben Wallace, can do with real minutes.
Detroit, now 3-2 in the preseason, returns to action on Saturday in Memphis. Game time is 8:00 PM EST and sadly, not televised.
Charlie Villanueva should be ready to play on Saturday.
Video highlights after the jump.

Chris Bosh Now Owns Nearly Half of the Pistons Domains

Packey — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 17:25:54 -0000

Chris Bosh is probably viewed as a hero in Toronto for his play on the court (especially if he decides to re-sign there). Today, he's viewed as somewhat of a cyber-hero for a result in the court, as he just won a legal case that freed up over 800 domain names from a cybersquatter. The domain names were transferred over into his possession.

This story from the New York Times this morning:

A federal judge in California has ordered a cybersquatter to surrender chrisbosh .com to Bosh, the Toronto Raptors forward, settling a lawsuit filed last year. But the court went a step further — or several hundred steps.

Judge Florence-Marie Cooper of United States District Court ordered Luis Zavala and his company, Hoopology .com, to release some 800 illegally registered domain names to Bosh.

According to the lawsuit, Zavala registered the Web addresses in order to sell them to those whose names he appropriate, in violation of federal law.

The only relevance this story has in terms of the Pistons is that of those 800 illegally registered domain names, Bosh now owns seven current Pistons' domain names, should they ever want to have their name serve as a personal website.

Those Pistons include Rodney Stuckey, Tayshaun Prince, Charlie Villanueva, Kwame Brown, Chris Wilcox, Dajuan Summers and Chucky Atkins. Notable former Pistons include Darko Milicic and Arron Afflalo.

I know Richard Hamilton's personal website is RipCity32.com, Ben Gordon's is BenGordon.com, and Charlie Villanueva actually has a website, but it's CV31.com. And maybe Rip and Charlie's websites are what they are because some cybersquatter bought their full names ahead of time hoping to sell them illegally if the players came asking, but the players didn't want to go through the trouble. Or they just didn't think of purchasing their names in addition to what they went with.

Either way, whether these Pistons and former Pistons want to start a personal website using their full names or not,, nearly 800 other NBA players and other big names know where to go now, if they decide they do. Chris Bosh and the law has taken care of the situation.

Guards Carry Pistons in 100-91 Win Over Hawks

Packey — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 01:27:36 -0000

For the second straight game, the four major Pistons' guards combined for the bulk of the team's points to help take out the opposition.

On Wednesday night, Richard Hamilton, Ben Gordon, Rodney Stuckey, and Will Bynum compiled 72 of the team's 113 points in their victory of Milwaukee. On Sunday evening, it was much of the same as the four combined for 68 points en route to a nine point win against the Atlanta Hawks.

Gordon led the four with 22 points on 6-12 shooting (3-6 from three-point land). Stuckey was 7-11 shooting, which was good for 20 points. Rip contributed 15 points on 6-9 shooting. The three shot 59%.

Will Bynum had his first off-game of the preseason, but still wound up scoring 11 points on 4-11 shooting. He also added four assists.

The most unique stat of the night might be that the Pistons had three buzzer beaters, all coming from the top three scorers, in ascending order (and arguably in ascending order of impressiveness). Richard Hamilton beat the buzzer in the first quarter, Stuckey swished one at the end of the half, and Ben Gordon nailed the most impressive with a half-court shot to beat the clock at the end of the third quarter. You could say that these three's last second makes were the main difference makers in this game.

Some other notes/thoughts:

Ben Wallace, Kwame Brown, Chris Wilcox, and Jason Maxiell had another solid showing: 16 points on 5-9 shooting, and 21 rebounds.
This was the first preseason game Detroit was out-rebounded. Hawks snagged 48 to Detroit's 36. Hawks corralled 18 offensive rebounds, while Detroit had just seven. We should probably get used to seeing this difference.
Tayshaun Prince was 0-5 with three rebounds.
Chucky Atkins saw his first action of the preseason (a little over seven minutes). He was 1-2 shooting, good for three points.
Austin Daye's length is proving to be a valuable asset on the defensive side of things. He had another two blocks in limited action, which makes that five total in the preseason in 27+ minutes.
Jonas Jerebko made the most of his 17 minutes. He scored six and grabbed six rebounds.
Remember, Charlie Villanueva STILL hasn't played. This team could be lethal when he does return, or there could just be way too many scorers to keep everyone happy or effective. Hopefully, he can return soon, so we can get a look at this team with CV31.
Another 57 fouls called by the replacement refs, but no ejections as far as I know.
Video highlights after the jump

First half highlights. Again, I'll upload the full game highlights when they become available:

Ben Gordon makes sweet, sweet string music with this third quarter buzzer beater from half-court:

Pistons Players Answer Fans' Questions on Media Day

Packey — Mon, 28 Sep 2009 22:08:18 -0000

I didn't have the privilege of being at the Palace today, but I did try to keep up with it as much as I could.

One way I was able to follow what was going on was by visiting the live blog over at Pistons.com, hosted by Pistons writer, Ryan Pretzer. Ryan answered a number of fans questions and had the opportunity to pull several Pistons players away for a second to answer the fans' online questions.

I took the liberty of going through the e-interactions with the players and pull the most interesting stuff for you to read here. Scrolling through a lengthy live blog (when it's no longer live) can be messy and take forever, so I thought why not make it easier on people who didn't have the chance to follow it live? If you're interested in the truncated version, continue reading. If you feel like seeing everything in its entirety, click over here.

Chris Wilcox:

Q: Why are you number 9? (formed into a question based off of Ryan's statement)
CW: maxiell has 54 so i just added it up

Austin Daye:

Q: Any nerves about going to work against the chiseled vets? (From KP)
AD: haha naw not worried just focused.

Jonas Jerebko:

Q: Why do you wear the number 33? (From Joshua in Ann Arbor)
JJ: because my 3 other numbers where not available.. first 11..then 32...then 21.. so i went with 33.. looks good and larry had it.

Q: Congrats on being the soon to be first Swede in the NBA. (From Scott)
JJ: thank you very much it is an honour to be the first one from sweden. Hopefully sweden can get some recognition in the basketball world.

Deron Washington:

Q: Hey Deron, how has the free throw shooting been coming this summer? (From George)
DW: Its much better now summer league was a bump in the road

Q: Deron, we're expecting a couple swats on Lebron this year (From Fatty)
DW: I'll let that situation play itself out.

Kwame Brown:

Q: Kwame, love your approach and work ethic. You're a Piston! Keep working hard. (From Jesse of PistonsNation)
KB: Thanks.

Q: Kwame, what have you been working on in the offseason (From JP)
KB: free throws free throws and free throws lol

Maceo Baston:

Q: Maceo, what's up welcome, did you enjoy your time in Toronto or Indiana more? (From Rban)
MB: i enjoyed my first stint in indiana the most with rick carlisle

Chucky Atkins:

Q: Chucky!! How do you think the long ball will treat ya in 09-10? (From Adam)
CA: The Long ball is better than ever! i ve had a great summer and had a lot of practice after 2yrs of injuries so its feel good

Q: What can you bring to the Pistons the second time around (From Scott)
CA: well the 2nd time around i bring more experience...i'm alot more patient and i'm seasoned...i've gotten better in every aspect of my game especially the mental part and i relish the challenge of being the leader and mentor that this team needs

Jason Maxiell:

Q: First congrats on your recent nuptials. Are you ready for the challenge to be McDyess' replacement? And what can we expect from you when you step on the court this season? (From Jeff)
JM: while i feel that this year is time for ME to step up and play his roll and be the guy that is doing the tough jobs

Q: Jason, I just saw a recent article about you being one of the best dunkers in the NBA. Please keep getting those awesome dunks! (From Eddie)
JM: ha ha lo no prob

Q: J-Max have you lost weight and how much? (From Pistons Fan)
JM: nope not really i was really busy and when i went to Africa i didnt eat a thing but when i came back to the states i ate for days lol

Will Bynum

Q: Will, what did you work on this summer? (From Bryan W)
WB: i worked on my shot alot and my body i lost 15 pounds from last year to become quicker and jump higher and defend harder for long periods of time and i watched tons of film

Charlie Villanueva

Q: The Twitter King himself! Are you going to get these other guys tweeting CV? (From Jesse of Pistons Nation)
CV31: i been trying to get them on twitter, its a working progress,

Q: Hey Charlie, did you see Rip's mohawk? (From Matt -- yes, Rip had a mowhawk. You can see it, sort of, here.)
CV31: yes i def see the new mohawk, different, but cool

Q: Charlie, what do you think about the new rules coming about twittering? (From Scott)
CV31: well i have to respect the rules, but if i had it my way, tweet at halftime :)

[image via @DETPistons]

UPDATE: Matt Watson over at Detroit Bad Boys will be providing links throughout the evening about Media Day.

That's all from me for today, but feel free to share your thoughts in the comments. This is going to be a really exciting season. It officially begins tomorrow with the first day of practice.

Guest Post: ShamSports on Otis Smith, the Orlando Magic, and "Creative Financing"

Ben Q Rock — Mon, 28 Sep 2009 12:00:33 -0000

Editor's note: 3QC is honored to have Sham, of ShamSports, write the first Guest Post in site history. Sham runs England's finest basketball site, which includes the most authoritative NBA salary database available to the general public. In this guest post, he assesses Otis Smith's construction of the latest Magic team. With no further ado, here's Sham:

"Creative financing" has long been a favoured phrase for Orlando Magic general manager Otis Smith, most famously in the run-up to the 2007 offseason. Smith used the term to describe how the Magic were going to handle having maximum cap room, juggling signing other team's free agents along with retaining Darko Milicic. It was a fairly generic term that said something without really saying anything. And it only gained its resonance after Smith used all his money to give Rashard Lewis the biggest six year contract in the sport's history. (It's definitely financing, but I'm not sure about its creativity.)

Smith's use of the term in conjunction with the Lewis deal made it something of a running joke in amongst the world's particularly nerdy NBA fans. (The kind of folk who make jokes about traded player exceptions. We're a fun bunch, we are. We throw the best parties.) "Creative" became synonymous with "terrible," and Smith didn't help himself by spending his way right up to the luxury tax barrier, on a team that refused to cross it. Paying James Augustine an unnecessary $243,145 to be under contract for two weeks in mid-July didn't help anybody, either. (Other than James Augustine.)

But just how creative is the Magic's financing?

Not including Morris Almond and Linton Johnson, the Magic have a 2009/10 payroll of $82,060,953, the sixth largest in the league. The only teams ahead of them are the Lakers, the Mavericks, the Jazz, the Celtics and the Cavaliers, most of whom are perennial big spenders. The Magic also have the most committed future salary of any franchise in the league, by miles, and it's not even close. Including this upcoming 2009/10 season (and assuming for consistency's sake that all option years and partial guarantees are invoked), the Magic have $316,442,872 committed in future salary, far in excess of the second place L.A. Lakers with $256,433,829. (For comparison's sake, in last place are the Oklahoma City Thunder with only $108.7 million. Never before has the phrase "$108.7 million" been prefixed with "only.")

The Magic are juggling three of the biggest contracts in the league in Dwight Howard, Vince Carter and Rashard Lewis. Those three alone combine for $203.46 million in committed salary, more than 19 NBA franchises have committed to their entire rosters. And even though all three have unguaranteed final seasons (Howard with an ETO, Lewis and Carter with partially guaranteed salaries), that doesn't mean a whole lot. Dwight is not likely to opt out of $19.54 million, and if he does he'll re-sign for something similar anyway. Lewis's astronomical $22.7 million salary is a minimum of $10 mil guaranteed (rising to as much as $17.25 mil guaranteed if he meets performance benchmarks); however, while that represents a huge saving should he be waived, it also means an 8 figure commitment to someone who wouldn't be on the roster, which is not comforting and definitely not creative. And while Carter's final season is only $4 million guaranteed, waiving him before that final season would mean paying him $37 million for two seasons of work, which is is equally uncomfortable. The Magic have taken on an absolutely massive burden, which will be doubly painful if it doesn't work out on the court.

Thankfully, the other players are more competitively priced. Smith hit a sweet one when he extended Jameer Nelson to an incentive-laden 5 year, $40.5 million contract that pays a flat $8.1 million per season. This is a market value contract to a key player, who figures to only get better throughout the life of the contract. Brandon Bass and Mickael Pietrus are on similar deals, both signing flat rate contracts (for $4 mil and $5.3 mil respectively) which have performance incentives that could increase their value. Marcin Gortat is entirely worth the full Mid Level Exception, if only as a future trade chip. And no other player on the roster has a sizeable salary, with the next highest being J.J. Redick's expiring $2.84 million. The bottom third of the roster is done at bargain price, with Jason Williams and Adonal Foyle earing the minimum (only two thirds of which is charged to the Magic's cap), Ryan Anderson on a rookie scale contract, and with Matt Barnes earning only slightly more than that ($1.6 million for two years). Giving Anthony Johnson two years was a mistake - giving Anthony Johnson one year was a mistake - but it hasn't cost Orlando anything significant.

Smith and the Magic front office have had a fine offseason, paying market value prices to acquire some good quality players. Even the little things, such as the inclusion of Ryan Anderson into the Carter deal, were handled well, and they've been able to assemble the deepest Magic team in the franchise's history. (Not the best, though; that title is forever bestowed upon the 1999/00 lineup that featured liberal dollops of Ron Mercer, John Amaechi and Chucky Atkins. Great fun.) But all of this offseason's succees is only possible because of ownership, and their new-found desire to spend.

Don't get me wrong; spending is good. Being able to spend means you're able to buy, to obtain players and assets that non-spending teams could not. And in this tough economic climate, where most teams are inclined to sell and borrow, it's an even bigger blessing. But what would have happened if the Magic had lost to the Celtics after all? What if there was no Finals berth? What would have happened to the spending? The always tax-shy ownership - who have never previously paid any luxury tax - might have been shy of doing so now. They're currently on tap for a payroll of roughly $100 million, once tax deductions are taken into account. Had last year's Magic team been less successful, that figure might have been $30 million less.

It's not, though. As we've seen, the Magic are willing to spend their way to success, moreso than ever before. Because of that, Otis Smith has been able to offset the loss of Hedo Turkoglu and build the deepest Magic team of all time. And he's done it well.

As a Bulls fan, I'm jealous of this. Our ownership have always said that they'll pay for a 'winner,' but they've never done so, in spite of having profits bigger than Kirk Hinrich's Adam's Apple. Perpetually needing to make a big time deal for a front court star, the Bulls haven't been as gun shy about it as the press would have you believe, but the one time they were able to find the right deal (Pau Gasol), ownership vetoed it, not believing that Pau Gasol was worth paying the luxury tax for. As a result, we had to see out the 2006/07 season with P.J. Brown at power forward, and slumped back into the lottery the following season. Not cool.

We look up to you, therefore, as an example of how an NBA team's ownership really will step up and pay for a winner. The Magic did not pay for a winner when they weren't one, but now that they are, they are. (If that makes sense.) In contrast, Bulls chairman Jerry Reinsdorf occasionally speaks of the Bulls' willingness to pay tax for a Finals team, but because we've never had one, it's never happened. We have to strive to avoid it, in fact, and this meant a dump of Thabo Sefolosha for Taj Gibson at the deadline just to be under the tax threshold this season. With profits like ours, it need not have happened....but it did. Bad times.

Yet as flattering as our envy may be, this does not matter to Magic fans. All that matters to you is the fortunes of your own team. And those fortunes are born directly out of the renewed commitment to the team by ownership. If Rich DeVos had forgotten that he was his own first name and pansied out of the luxury tax this year, your future would look a lot different. There may not have been no Vince Carter deal, for example, and no retaining Gortat. There might not have been a Bass signing, either, and the luxury of having Matt Barnes as a fifth forward option just wouldn't have been possible. With the luxury tax set at $69.72 million this upcoming season, the Carter trade left the Magic with $68.96 million in committed 2009/10 salary with only 8 players under contract. Without the Carter deal, there wouldn't have been a whole lot more money to spend, with $64.32 million committed to only 9 players (three of which would be point guards, one of which would be Tony Battie).

Had it not been for this new-found willingness to pay the tax, you would probably have entered this season with a worse team than last year's. The money just would not have been there to keep together the previous team, let alone to build upon it. To improve upon the former team would have involved finding some real bargains, cutting salary in a market where most teams are trying to do the same, and reducing the Magic's short term financial commitments without affecting the on-court product too much. To get all of that done, it would taken some truly creative financing.

And as much as he likes to talk about it, Otis Smith isn't very good at that.

So buy a cap, place it on your head, and then doff it towards the Orlando Magic's ownership. When called upon, DeVos coughed up cheese that he didn't need to cough up, all for the good of the franchise. The Magic just enjoyed arguably their best season ever, and if they do it again - or go one better - then it's directly because they took the shackles off the payroll, and financed the fine personel moves.

Otis, you buy a cap too.

Five Questions with Mark Warkentien [UPDATED]

Dave — Fri, 25 Sep 2009 06:34:09 -0000

More photos » by Jack Dempsey - AP

Denver Nuggets vice president of basketball operations Mark Warkentien hoists up his award for being named the top general manager in the NBA, during a ceremony in Denver on Sunday, May 3, 2009. (AP Photo/Jack Dempsey)

Browse more photos »

Update: In response to the continuing questions regarding his relationship with current Blazers management, evidenced in the comment section and referenced before on this site, Mr. Warkentien had this to say:

While I don't have a decade of history working with them like I do Paul Allen, I truly like the guys (KP and Tom Penn) that currently run the Blazers. They are doing a tremendous job and I respectfully decline to comment on anything about them; I hope they go 78-4 while the Nuggies finish 82-0

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This week we were privileged to spend a little time conversing with the Vice President of Basketball Operations for the Denver Nuggets (and last year's NBA Executive of the Year) Mark Warkentien. As most remember, Mr. Warkentien was a member of the Trail Blazers organization for a decade, rising from the scouting ranks to Assistant General Manager to Director of Player Personnel in 2003-04. Here are his reflections on the Nuggets, the power of Chauncey Billups, the splendor of the Western Conference, and his time in Portland.

Blazersedge: Last year the Nuggets posted 54 wins, their best finish in the franchise's NBA history, won the division, and gave the Lakers a tough go in the Conference Finals, also a franchise milestone. Can you top that? What are the goals for this year? Is it rings or bust?

Mark Warkentien: Four years ago we won 44-games, three years ago we won 45-games and 50-games two years ago. Last year we won 54-games and advanced to the Western Conference Finals; we'd like to continue the northern trend. That said, the championship is ALWAYS the goal.

Blazersedge: One of the things Portland fans have talked about for the last couple of years is the effect the right veteran can have. Give us an idea what Chauncey Billups has meant to the Nuggets and specifically how he improved the team.

Mark Warkentien: Chauncey put everything in balance for us...The Nuggets had two outstanding shooting guards - Iverson and JR Smith - and zero big-time point guards; by swapping Iverson for Chauncey we now have one of each. Anthony Carter became our back-up PG; where he is an excellent off-the-bench player...The biggest winner from the trade might have been Melo. Suddenly, he had room to operate from his mid-post area because Smith and Billups, who are deadly shooters, loom on the outside and can punish double-teams. He also had the ball there a lot more and a lot earlier in the clock, because of Chauncey's outstanding distribution skills...We believed that we needed another sniper in the backcourt to make Coach Karl's system work. In fact, that's one reason we inked Chucky Atkins in July-2007. In Billups, we found our sniper...It also helped with the fans. Chauncey is a high-character guy with local roots and his presence created good karma with the locals; the Pepsi Center is not an easy place to play...I had the privilege of working with George Karl, The Glove and Nate-Mac in Seattle and as a group we suspected that pairing a terrific coach like GK with a great PG like Chauncey was a tree that would bear much fruit.

Blazersedge: A couple of teams in the Western Conference appear to have been hurt by injuries and trades. A couple more have made significant acquisitions to try and get better. Break down the West for us a bit. Besides the Lakers who do you see making waves?

Mark Warkentien: For the past decade the best basketball conference on the planet has been the NBA's Western; not Euroleague, the ACB or any other venue. As usual, it will be an absolute slugfest; 9-10 good teams going for eight playoffs spots. The players are great, the coaches are great and the fans rabid; fasten your seat belt and lace up your Chuck Taylors REAL tight. It will be wild once again.

Blazersedge: You worked in the Trail Blazers organization for ten years. Any reflections on your time in Portland?

Mark Warkentien: This guy is the absolute best; he was terrific to me and my family for a decade...People in Portland do not understand just how good of an owner he is and - in my opinion - is underappreciated in the Rose City. His commitment to the success of the franchise is a matter of record and he has an excellent basketball mind; this guy knows the game. He asks great questions and challenges all to be better...Success in any organization starts at the very top and it is not an accident that the Blazers have an excellent roster and are positioned for substantial future successes.

Blazersedge: You also worked with Bob Whitsitt, a name which is often vilified around these parts...

Mark Warkentien: Let me be crystal clear that I absolutely enjoyed working with Bob Whitsitt...I worked for 12-seasons with Bob Whitsitt in SEA and POR; we went 591-361 during that span; won 62% of our games (approximately 51-games per year) and made the NBA Playoffs all 12-seasons...Those that are critical of Bob should try to post like digits, prior to pontificating. The facts and figures follow:

1991-1992       SEA     047-035           .573                 Playoffs-SECOND ROUND

1992-1993       SEA     055-027           .670                 Playoffs-CONFERENCE FINALS

1993-1994       SEA     063-019           .768                 Playoffs-FIRST ROUND

1994-1995       POR    044-038           .536                 Playoffs-FIRST ROUND

1995-1996       POR    044-038           .536                 Playoffs-FIRST ROUND

1996-1997       POR    049-033           .597                 Playoffs-FIRST ROUND

1997-1998       POR    046-036           .560                 Playoffs-FIRST ROUND

1998-1999       POR    035-015           .700                 Playoffs-CONFERENCE FINALS

1999-2000       POR    059-023           .719                 Playoffs-CONFERENCE FINALS

2000-2001       POR    050-032           .609                 Playoffs-FIRST ROUND

2001-2002       POR    049-033           .597                 Playoffs-FIRST ROUND

2002-2003       POR    050-032           .609                 Playoffs-FIRST ROUND

TOTAL                           591-361           .620

During our time together he tackled some of the most complicated deals imaginable; including negotiating and managing more than $1 billion in player contracts with the Blazers/Seahawks and securing funding for the $450 million Seahawks football stadium and exhibition center. Bob is a guy that understands how to cut through the complexity of any business situation to get to the essential components that can mean the difference between success and failure. He was a dogged competitor who outworked and outmaneuvered opponents, often by taking bolder risks.

I love the guy.

Thanks to Mr. Warkentien for joining us. The West will be quite a battle this year. I'm sure most agree that a Nuggets-Blazers matchup in the playoffs would be epic.

--Dave (blazersub@yahoo.com)