SB Nation - Mike Taylor

Ridiculous Transactions 11/16-11/22

Jon L — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 15:15:27 -0000

More photos » by Chris Pizzello - AP

Mike Taylor is dribbling his way over to Serbia.

Most of this week's big transactions are already known (D-League cuts, the Chris Hunter call-up), but I thought I'd do a little clean up and post some lengthier comments about a few things.

November 19: Rio Grande Valley Vipers - waived Cliff Clinkscales, Antoine Hood, Rashad Woods, Jamarcus Ellis, Deangelo Alexander

Ellis and Alexander were injury cuts. Alexander probably was a longshot, although I think Ellis could develop into a decent minor league player. Clinkscales is somewhat of a surprise, though I suppose this shows how much the team is committed to developing Garrett Temple at point guard and/or how much they like Kenny Dawkins. There are a few D-League teams that could use a point guard, so Clinkscales could stick around, especially since the overseas demand has slowed to a trickle.

November 20: Mike Taylor - signed with Red Star (Serbia)

Speaking of the overseas market, Mike Taylor the guy who couldn't get a contract with the Memphis Grizzles because Mike Conley and (the other) Marcus Williams are just so great (sarcasm), is heading to Serbia. He's undoubtedly do well, and while I imagine he'll be back next Summer League I can't help but hope that he doesn't acquire the stigma of being a "Euroleague" player and not get serious looks from NBA teams. Taylor is just on the edge of this website's purview anymore anyway, but he really could help several NBA teams right now (Knicks, Nets, I'm looking in your direction).

November 21: Chris Hunter - signed with the Golden State Warriors

This was the big news of the week, of course, and while I don't want to repeat myself too much (check this Golden State of Mind post for some of my thoughts and links to RU posts about Hunter), the Warriors have been paying some attention to the D-League in recent years (they were thisclose to signing Othyus Jeffers last season), and I think Hunter is a good fit for them. His offensive game isn't nailed to the post in the way that Don Nelson seems to hate, he can rebound, and he even apparently D'd up on Greg Oden (D'd up is how you write that, isn't it?). And sure, Hunter is with the team because of all their injuries, and as soon as one of the wounded comes back Hunter is likely back out the door (as he represents contract number 16 for the Warriors), and sure there's a (not unreasonable) tendency among NBA watchers to dismiss a player's stats with "well sure, but it was for/against the Warriors," but Hunter can play in the NBA, even more so than someone like Trey Gilder and probably more than Derrick Byars, and given Don Nelson's recent comments about Hunter and Nelson's noted fickleness with the players on his roster hunter may get a real chance to show the league what he can do.

Waive Goodbye, Part 3

Jon L — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 13:15:16 -0000

by Chris Young - AP

Pops! (AP Photo/The Canadian Press, Chris Young)

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We wrap up our look at which players got waived last week and which made their respective teams with the Divisions Atlantic and Southwest. Really, I promise those are the correct divisions. I know some of these cuts happened a while ago, but I think that seeing them all as a group helps give a broader perspective as to which teams around the league are filling out the end of their benches with cheap talent (and it is talent). Here's part 1, and here's part 2 (and ignore the whole "Derrick Byars made the Bulls" thing. It happened, then it didn't happen.) Part 3 is here:

Boston Celtics

Who got cut: Mike Sweetney

Who got kept: No one.

Well, not no one, but their third-string guards are going to be recent draft picks Lester Hudson and the J.R. Giddens Rebounding Machine. Mike Sweetney is trying, he really is, and he's mostly fine on the offensive end. His conditioning is awful, though, which means he gets hurt and that he's several steps too slow on defense when he makes it onto the court. There's been some suggestion that he could try working his way back into shape in the D-League, and it will be interesting to see what he does from here. J.R. Giddens will likely see some D-League action himself, as his shooting is still really bad. I'm guessing Lester Hudson will as well. After all, the Celtics have a team in their own backyard, and they can't make Danny's son look bad by withholding their NBA talent.

Dallas Mavericks

Who got cut: Jake Voskuhl

Who got kept: No one.

What, you want me to talk about Jake Voskuhl? The Mavericks also rid themselves of Nate Jawai, who hadn't been there all that long, but I suspect that was more of a cap move than anything. D-League-wise, ESPN's Marc Stein things that rookie Rodrigue Beaubois could see some time in Alberquerque, as minutes could be hard to come by for him in Dallas. Beaubois is definitely talented, and he had an intriguing Summer League, so he could be fun to watch for the Thunderbirds.

Houston Rockets

Who got cut: Will Conroy, Romel Beck, Garrett Temple

Who got kept: Pops Mensah-Bonsu

The Rockets had to waive Brent Barry in order to keep Pops, so that's something. It's a shame Conroy couldn't stick around, as he played very well in Summer League and decently when he got preseason minutes, but the (ridiculous?) upside is that he hopefully showed other teams around the league that he can run an offense and is ready to play in the NBA. It's great that Mensah-Bonsu made the team, obviously, but it shouldn't really be that much of a surprise. A power forward/center somewhere between 6'6" and 6'9" who rebounds the hell out of the ball? Sounds like the Rockets to me. Add to that the fact that the team doesn't really know what it's going to get from new center David Andersen either, and you can see why they might want some extra frontcourt help behind Scola, Hayes and Landry. Mensah-Bonsu's offense will be up and down, but as Rockets fans are finding out, that's going to be true for a lot of their players. I'd definitely expect to see Jermaine Taylor and hopefully (for his and the team's sake) Chase Budinger in Rio Grande Valley at some point later this season.

Memphis Grizzlies

Who got cut: Mike Taylor, Thomas Gardner, Leon Rodgers

Who got kept: No one.

Again, it's not really "no one," as Trey Gilder is still around after signing a partially-guaranteed contract back in August. Mike Taylor has proven that he can play in the NBA, provided he can keep his turnovers to a minimum. It will be interesting to see what he does, as other players with less NBA experience have already said they're fed up with trying to make it out of the D-League and are heading to Europe. Taylor probably could lead the Euroleague in scoring, but he'd also be perhaps the number one call-up candidate should come back to the D-League, based on his NBA experience and ability.

New Jersey Nets

Who got cut: Bennet Davis, Will Blalock, Brian Hamilton

Who got kept: No one.

I didn't really expect any of these guys to stick around. Blalock and Hamilton are headed back overseas, I suspect, while Davis would do well to go back to the D-League and either develop an offensive game or become a top-notch post defender to go with his elite shot-blocking ability.

New Orleans Hornets

Who got cut: Earl Barron, Larry Owens

Who got kept: No one.

The Hornets are one of those teams that clearly don't care about the D-League, so I'm not really sure what to write here. Pass? Incomplete? Not qualified? Earl Barron has a D-League pedigree, sure, but even given his time with the Miami Heat this was pretty clearly not going to work out for him unless Hilton Armstrong went down with an injury. I'm guessing Barron goes the overseas route, but seeing him in the D-League would be a pleasant surprise.

New York Knicks

Who got cut: Warren Carter, Sun Yue, Ron Howard, Gabe Pruitt

Who got kept: Marcus Landry

Plus, don't forget the team also cut partially-guaranteed guys Chris Hunter and Joe Crawford. This team is all about winning on the cheap, right? And yet they cut several good, cheap players. But hey, have fun with that whole Jared Jeffries thing. Carter is probably going back to Europe, though I think coming to the D-League might be worth his time, because as I've noted several times before he has a David Lee-ish game. Ron Howard may come back to the D-League, though I'm less certain about Sun or Hunter. I wouldn't be surprised if Sun entered the draft, as he's become a semi-prominent example of a Chinese basketball product aiming for the NBA, and to give up on that while he's so young could be somewhat embarrassing. It also would give the D-League someone to market with so many players headed overseas this year. If he does enter the draft, it will be interesting to see both where he ends up and in what round, as the league considers him somewhat of a star, and while NBA stars can play pretty much anywhere, I'm not sure the same is true for the D-League. A crazy thought popped just into my head: would the Spurs/Toros be interested in giving him the Marcus Williams Treatment? Sun's offense isn't nearly at the level that Williams's is and was, but the Toros essentially created an NBA point guard where there wasn't one, which is what Sun Yue is. Or isn't.

Philadelphia 76ers

Who got cut: Stromile Swift, Sean Singletary, Rashad Jones-Jennings, Brandon Bowman, Dionte Christmas

Who got kept: No one.

So the 76ers apparently were comfortable with their roster as it stood. How's that working out? Yeah, yeah, they already had a lot of guaranteed contracts, and it's not like Sean Singletary is the bee's knees, but this is yet another team that doesn't really care about the D-League, or where their end-of-bench guys come from. Singletary could benefit from some D-League time, but a lot of European teams don't really care whether their point guards can distribute the ball as long as they can score, so that's likely where he's headed. Christmas could stay in the U.S., if for no other reason than to be on hand if the 76ers decide they want to sign him to a 10-day and then not play him.

San Antonio Spurs

Who got cut: Marcus Williams, Curtis Jerrells, Dwayne Jones, Jack McClinton

Who got kept: Malik Hairston

San Antonio went with Keith Bogans over Marcus Williams, even though Bogans played pretty poorly in the preseason while Williams barely played. I say that Williams was waived instead of Bogans and not Malik Hairston because Hairston played so well in both Summer League and the preseason that I would've beeen pretty shocked to see him gone. McClinton, Jones and Jerrells have already signed overseas, and Williams is another guy who it will be interesting to watch, because he'd be at the front of the call-up list should be come back to the D-League. He'd probably also be a first-round D-League draft pick and maybe the first player taken overall. As much as we praise him here at RU, Williams does still have some work to do as a point guard, mainly getting his turnovers down. And, if he tries to hang around the Spurs universe he'll have to become a better-than-passable defender. But the fact that he's gone from a gunning wing to a high-scoring, (mostly efficient), high-assist point guard in the span of less than a year is a testament to Williams's talent and how hard he's willing to work to improve his chances, which speaks well to his basketball future.

Toronto Raptors

Who got cut: No one.

Who got kept: No one.

Okay, this is who should get the pass/incomplete/not qualified. They didn't sign any waiver fodder, so they didn't have to cut any waiver fodder. All is not lost, however, as Sonny Weems seems to have landed solidly in Toronto after being traded twice this offseason. He's begun the season on the inactive list, where I suspect he'll see a fair amount of time, but still.

Training Camp Invites - Memphis Grizzlies

Jon L — Sat, 10 Oct 2009 18:06:23 -0000

More photos » by Pat Sullivan - AP

8 months ago: Los Angeles Clippers' Mike Taylor, left, is pressured by Houston Rockets' Aaron Brooks during the first half of an NBA basketball game Saturday, March 28, 2009, in Houston. (AP Photo/Pat Sullivan)

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Mike Taylor - You should know who Taylor is but this point, as he's probably the D-League's biggest recent success story. After making his name in the D-League primarily as a scorer and a dunker, Taylor finally got his shot with the Clippers last season, and he made the most of it. He's still not a premier point guard, as he averaged just under five assists per 36 minutes last season, and he's not a great three-point shooter, but he filled in admirably when Baron Davis was out with injury, and he works hard and hustles. In some ways he makes more sense on the Memphis bench than Allen Iverson does, and if Taylor can work to limit his turnovers he could be an interesting player for the Grizzlies' backcourt.

Thomas Gardner - Gardner initially got some notice as a solid perimeter shooter, but that skill has yet to translate in NBA games (his career eFG percentage is .364, and his three-point percentage is .200). He's not particularly athletic or quick, and he doesn't offer much in the way of assists or rebounds, so Gardner will have to show that he can adjust to NBA defenses and still make his shots if he wants to show that he can stay in the league, let alone on the Grizzlies' roster.

Leon Rodgers - Rodgers has been a scoring big man over in China and around Europe for the past several years. Last season with the Jilin Northeast Tigers he averaged 35 points on 56 percent shooting, including 42 percent on three-pointers. He's an okay rebounder, but the biggest question with Rodgers is whether his prodigious scoring ability will translate over to the NBA.

OKC Thunder @ Memphis Grizzlies OPEN THREAD

Mr Pappagiorgio — Wed, 07 Oct 2009 23:30:17 -0000

TV: None | Radio: WWLS (98.1 FM, 640am in OKC, 97.1 FM in Tulsa)

Opponent Perspective: Straight Outta Vancouver

2009-10 Oklahoma City Thunder Pre-Season Roster
NUM	PLAYER	POS	HT	WT	DOB	FROM	YRS
40	Ryan Bowen	F	6-9	218	11/20/1975	Iowa	9
4	Nick Collison	F-C	6-10	255	10/26/1980	Kansas	5
35	Kevin Durant	F-G	6-9	230	09/29/1988	Texas	2
22	Jeff Green	F	6-9	235	08/28/1986	Georgetown	2
13	James Harden	G	6-5	220	08/26/1989	Arizona State	R
	Mike Harris	F	6-6	240	06/15/1983	Rice	1
9	Serge Ibaka	F	6-10	235	09/18/1989	Congo	R
6	Tre Kelley	G	6-0	188	01/23/1985	South Carolina	R
12	Nenad Krstic	C	7-0	240	07/25/1983	Serbia & Montenegro	5
14	Shaun Livingston	G	6-7	185	09/11/1985	Peoria Central HS (IL)	4
23	Byron Mullens	C	7-0	275	02/14/1989	Ohio State	R
7	Kevin Ollie	G	6-2	195	12/27/1972	Connecticut	12
51	Michael Ruffin	F-C	6-8	248	01/21/1977	Tulsa	9
2	Thabo Sefolosha	F-G	6-7	215	05/02/1984	Switzerland	3
36	Etan Thomas	C	6-10	260	04/01/1978	Syracuse	7
5	Kyle Weaver	G	6-6	201	02/18/1986	Washington State	1
0	Russell Westbrook	G	6-3	187	11/12/1988	UCLA	1
3	D.J. White	F	6-9	251	08/31/1986	Indiana	1

2009-10 Memphis Grizzlies Pre-Season Roster
NUM	PLAYER	POS	HT	WT	DOB	FROM	YRS
00	Darrell Arthur	F	6-9	235	03/25/1988	Kansas	1
1	DeMarre Carroll	F	6-8	212	07/27/1986	Missouri	R
11	Mike Conley	G	6-1	185	10/11/1987	Ohio State	2
31	Thomas Gardner	G	6-5	225	02/08/1985	Missouri	2
33	Marc Gasol	C	7-1	280	01/29/1985	Spain	1
22	Rudy Gay	F	6-8	222	08/17/1986	Connecticut	3
2	Trey Gilder	F	6-9	185	01/24/1985	Northwestern State-Louisiana	R
15	Hamed Haddadi	C	7-2	265	05/19/1985	I.R. of Iran	1
45	Steven Hunter	C	7-0	240	10/31/1981	DePaul	7
3	Allen Iverson	G	6-0	165	06/07/1975	Georgetown	13
55	Marko Jaric	G	6-7	224	10/12/1978	Serbia	7
32	O.J. Mayo	G	6-4	210	11/05/1987	USC	1
50	Zach Randolph	F	6-9	260	07/16/1981	Michigan State	8
21	Leon Rodgers	F	6-6	217	06/19/1980	Northern Illinois	R
24	Mike Taylor	G	6-2	165	01/21/1986	Iowa State	1
34	Hasheem Thabeet	C	7-3	267	02/16/1987	Connecticut	R
5	Marcus Williams	G	6-3	205	12/03/1985	Connecticut	3
4	Sam Young	F-G	6-6	220	06/01/1985	Pittsburgh	R

Thunder Gameday: Oklahoma City Thunder at Memphis Grizzlies

Mr Pappagiorgio — Wed, 07 Oct 2009 14:00:42 -0000

Finally, finally, finally! The Oklahoma City Thunder get their 2009-10 season underway tonight, in Memphis, against the Grizzlies! Who cares if its only the pre-season? Thunder Basketball is back, so get ready to Thunder Up! Sadly enough, at the time of this writing (Last night), we don't have any update as to whether or not this game will be televised anywhere that Oklahomans will be able to see, but at the very least we should all be able to listen on the WWLS, The Sports Animal, which should be carrying the game (although I haven't confirmed that yet either). I'm sure you are quite tired of hearing me complain about the game not being televised, but let's face it, if you are reading this blog on a regular basis, chances are you are a pretty big Thunderhead yourself and just as pissed off. So hey, I'm being your voice, and you just never know who is reading. I griped and moaned all season about games that weren't broadcast in HD and a quick look at the TV schedule for the upcoming season will show that perhaps someone was listening as every single game is listed as being in HD this season.

It is still just a pre-season game, so why should you even care? Well, I'm gonna take a few minutes and hopefully give you enough reasons to be interested. First and foremost is your Thunder Roster is very different than it was just a few short months ago as the team closed out its inaugural season. When you make the jump, you'll see the entire pre-season roster which will be cut down substantially before the season begins. Gone are the likes of Robert Swift, Malik Rose, and Earl Watson, and inserted in their place are a host of new players that you should be just as anxious to see such as Etan Thomas and Kevin Ollie. As young as this team was last season, it may have gotten even younger this year as James Harden joins the mix along with some other terrific young players including Serge Ibaka, and Byron Mullens, amongst others. So go ahead and make the jump to see the full roster, along with our continued preview which will have a few more reasons to be interested in tonight's game, because there are a few more, I assure you.

If you can remember back a few short months, there was some extremely heated debate regarding who the Thunder should take, Hasheem Thabeet, or James Harden. Regardless of who we wanted or who we would have picked (although it does seem pretty clear that Harden had emerged as our guy shortly before the draft), the Grizzlies went ahead and made things a bit easier for us by picking Hasheem Thabeet with the #2 overall pick. So tonight will be our first chance at seeing these two guys match up head to head, even though they'll rarely be close to one another on the court since Harden plays guard and Thabeet is six million feet tall.

Another reason you are going to want to tune in is to check out Allen Iverson in his new home. We all know him, we all um, okay, so we all don't love him, but you still have to respect the guy on the court, no matter his flaws. For now he doesn't even seem to be a clear cut starter on the team, but it'll be interesting to see if that's a motivating factor for him in the pre-season. It'll also be fun to see how he works and interacts with guys like O.J. Mayo and Rudy Gay. Oh wait, that's what you could have looked forward to if he didn't get himself injured on Sunday, so I guess we'll have to look forward to seeing that later on in the year. The Grizzlies are quite possibly the most exciting young team in the league outside of our own beloved Thunder, so this game will definitely be intriguing as two of the leagues better, up and coming, young teams, square off head to head. I tend to think we're a bit further ahead in our cycle than they are and should come away with a win, even if it is just a pre-season game, but the fun part will be watching, err, listening tonight.

Also, we will have a Live Game OPEN THREAD for commenting tonight as I'm sure one way or another a lot of us will be either listening to or watching the game. Hell, if we are listening, there is no reason to not be on the site commenting, so you better get your ass into the thread by tipoff so we can get some nice live game commenting going. Also, we'll update this post and the live game thread with anymore information on TV and Radio Coverage as the information becomes available.

2009-10 Oklahoma City Thunder Pre-Season Roster
NUM	PLAYER	POS	HT	WT	DOB	FROM	YRS
40	Ryan Bowen	F	6-9	218	11/20/1975	Iowa	9
4	Nick Collison	F-C	6-10	255	10/26/1980	Kansas	5
35	Kevin Durant	F-G	6-9	230	09/29/1988	Texas	2
22	Jeff Green	F	6-9	235	08/28/1986	Georgetown	2
13	James Harden	G	6-5	220	08/26/1989	Arizona State	R
	Mike Harris	F	6-6	240	06/15/1983	Rice	1
9	Serge Ibaka	F	6-10	235	09/18/1989	Congo	R
6	Tre Kelley	G	6-0	188	01/23/1985	South Carolina	R
12	Nenad Krstic	C	7-0	240	07/25/1983	Serbia & Montenegro	5
14	Shaun Livingston	G	6-7	185	09/11/1985	Peoria Central HS (IL)	4
23	Byron Mullens	C	7-0	275	02/14/1989	Ohio State	R
7	Kevin Ollie	G	6-2	195	12/27/1972	Connecticut	12
51	Michael Ruffin	F-C	6-8	248	01/21/1977	Tulsa	9
2	Thabo Sefolosha	F-G	6-7	215	05/02/1984	Switzerland	3
36	Etan Thomas	C	6-10	260	04/01/1978	Syracuse	7
5	Kyle Weaver	G	6-6	201	02/18/1986	Washington State	1
0	Russell Westbrook	G	6-3	187	11/12/1988	UCLA	1
3	D.J. White	F	6-9	251	08/31/1986	Indiana	1

2009-10 Memphis Grizzlies Pre-Season Roster
NUM	PLAYER	POS	HT	WT	DOB	FROM	YRS
00	Darrell Arthur	F	6-9	235	03/25/1988	Kansas	1
1	DeMarre Carroll	F	6-8	212	07/27/1986	Missouri	R
11	Mike Conley	G	6-1	185	10/11/1987	Ohio State	2
31	Thomas Gardner	G	6-5	225	02/08/1985	Missouri	2
33	Marc Gasol	C	7-1	280	01/29/1985	Spain	1
22	Rudy Gay	F	6-8	222	08/17/1986	Connecticut	3
2	Trey Gilder	F	6-9	185	01/24/1985	Northwestern State-Louisiana	R
15	Hamed Haddadi	C	7-2	265	05/19/1985	I.R. of Iran	1
45	Steven Hunter	C	7-0	240	10/31/1981	DePaul	7
3	Allen Iverson	G	6-0	165	06/07/1975	Georgetown	13
55	Marko Jaric	G	6-7	224	10/12/1978	Serbia	7
32	O.J. Mayo	G	6-4	210	11/05/1987	USC	1
50	Zach Randolph	F	6-9	260	07/16/1981	Michigan State	8
21	Leon Rodgers	F	6-6	217	06/19/1980	Northern Illinois	R
24	Mike Taylor	G	6-2	165	01/21/1986	Iowa State	1
34	Hasheem Thabeet	C	7-3	267	02/16/1987	Connecticut	R
5	Marcus Williams	G	6-3	205	12/03/1985	Connecticut	3
4	Sam Young	F-G	6-6	220	06/01/1985	Pittsburgh	R

In Other News: CA Wraps Up Camp

djturtleface — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 04:00:47 -0000

More photos » by Lance Murphey - AP

Fresh off an impressive summer league performance, the Grizzlies' 27th draft pick DeMarre Carroll has impressed in camp this week. (AP Photo/Lance Murphey)

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The Commercial Appeal continues their very respectable coverage of the Grizzlies' training camp so far. They've wrapped up the camp with this list of ten bullets, which I'll summarize:

The Grizzlies still act like a young team, often losing focus despite Hollins' and Iverson's rants.
O.J. Mayo looks to be shooting even better, Rudy Gay appears to be much improved and more aggressive.
Allen Iverson is the backup, mostly because he hasn't outplayed Conley. Apparently Iverson couldn't get past half-court in three tries during a drill against Mike Taylor. This is only one example.
Zach Randolph and Marc Gasol look great on offense, as both can stretch the floor. But they seem to really struggle at defending the rim.
Hasheem Thabeet and, surprise, Sam Young, have been two of the more unimpressive players in camp.
DeMarre Carroll has impressed with his unending energy and toughness.
Hollins has clearly shown leadership.
Iverson and Randolph have done nothing in camp to suggest that they're destroying morale or young attitudes. Inversely Iverson has been Hollins' greatest supporter.
Iverson believes he should still be able to play his style of ball dominating basketball.
Hollins seems to suggest that team chemistry isn't right because, "We just need our veterans to try to play in the flow a little more." In other words disregard points 8 and 9.

Also this little tidbit is in the news, wow, count me as incredibly impressed with the support:

''The last four or five weeks, we've been in the top 10 in (ticket) sales in the NBA,'' Pugliese added. ''It's definitely been an exciting time.''

Who Is Mike Taylor?

Jeff Clark — Sat, 12 Sep 2009 23:11:21 -0000

More photos » by Pat Sullivan - AP

Mike Taylor

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One of the names thrown out there recently for the backup PG position is Mike Taylor, formerly of the Clippers. He's not exactly a household name, so it might help to get better acquainted with him. Tom Halzack takes a look at Taylor on the Conn Post.

6′ 2″, 23 year old Mike Taylor was a rookie for the Clippers last season. He played in just 51 games for them and averaged 5.7 points and 2.1 assists in 15 minutes. On his best night, Mike scored 35 points in one game against the Knicks and followed that up with 23 more against the Kings the following game.

He started 5 games and averaged 11 pts with 3.2 assist in 28 minutes in those games. After the All Star break, in 18 minutes he averaged 7.7 points and 2.4 assists in 27 games for the Clips, while shooting 39% from the arc. He only weighs 165 lbs. I haven’t really watched him play much, so I can’t offer too much more than that.

An Iowa State player, Taylor played for the Iowa Stampede of the NBA Development League before being drafted by the Portland Trailblazers.

This could be a battle of late second round draft picks as Taylor was the 55th pick in ‘08, and Hudson is the 58th pick in ‘09.

Lester Hudson is solidly built and has been suggested as a potential poor man’s Nate Robinson by one writer.

Only after seeing each of the above players play will I be able to make a more informed judgment on them.

Update: Here's another link on Mike Taylor (with relevant quotes after the break)

If you're wondering why Taylor was waived today, you need to realize that his three year contract was unguaranteed, and that it became guaranteed as of August 1. From the moment the Clippers acquired Sebastian Telfair two week ago, particularly in light of their pursuit of Ramon Sessions, this moment seemed inevitable. The Clippers were working too hard to shore up the position Taylor plays - and with roster spots becoming scarce and Taylor's contract unguaranteed, this was bound to happen. It's too bad for a lot of reasons, one of which is that we'd all prefer to have Taylor from a basketball and potential standpoint as opposed to say Ricky Davis or Mark Madsen. But those guys have guaranteed contracts, in their final year no doubt, so they have a value of a different kind. The roster was too crowded, and Taylor was the odd man out.

It's tough to reconcile today's events with the events of March 25, 2009 in Madison Square Garden. On that evening, a little more than 4 months ago, Taylor scored a career high 35 points against the Knicks. It was the third highest scoring game for a rookie last season - after Eric Gordon's 41 and Anthony Morrow's 37 against the Clippers. It's also worth noting that he followed up that game with two more solid outings, scoring 69 points in that three game span, while at the same time doing a better job of taking care of the ball - a 3 to 1 assist to turnover ratio during those games. It seemed, perhaps, as the season was winding down, Mike Taylor was 'getting it.'

Memphis Awaiting Answer from AI

David Arnott — Fri, 04 Sep 2009 22:29:38 -0000

Allow me to read between the lines for you on the story coming out of Memphis today that Allen Iverson might give the Grizzlies a Yes/No decision sometime today: He's waiting on what another team or teams might offer in response. I can't imagine anyone would give Iverson more than a one year deal for the mid-level, and the Bobcats are in no position to offer that much to him.

Interestingly, at the bottom of that Commercial Appeal piece, there's a who's who of backup point guards listed as other free agent options besides AI, especially since Ramon Sessions has finally gotten his own deal (16mil/4). Not mentioned in that list--but, oddly, given a blog post devoted to him--is the first D-League player ever drafted in the NBA Draft: Mike Taylor. Maybe I'm biased because he's a 2K9 staple, but dude was far from terrible for the Clippers last year, and can jump out of the building. If he'd take less than $1 million to be a backup, then it boggles the mind that he wouldn't be able to find any work this year.

RU's Movie Quote Offseason Roundup Spectacular Part 2

Jon L — Fri, 21 Aug 2009 13:00:13 -0000

The Colorado 14ers winning the championship is just one development discussed in this look at the D-League offseason, using quotes from "Dave Chappelle's Block Party."

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Today we're wrapping up our look at the D-League's offseason so far through the lens of "Dave Chappelle's Block Party." Part 2 somehow ended up even longer than part 1, even though I left stuff out, both from the offseason and the movie. I mean, I didn't even get to talk about my favorite thing in the entire movie, when Michel Gondry asks Jill Scott if she's nervous about performing after Erykah Badu and she laughs at him for six solid seconds. Instead of rehashing things here, then, I'll direct you to part 1 for a brief summary of what we're doing here and of "Dave Chappelle's Block Party," and to my thoughts on offseason developments involving players and coaches below the jump.

"Ahmir Thompson, I'm the official photographer of this event."

The unsung hero of the concert is the Roots' drummer Ahmir "?uestlove" Thompson, who not only plays with his band but who served as the concert's musical director, hiring musicians to play as a sort-of house band during everyone else's sets (except for the Fugees), and who had to learn/teach five songs for every artist who performed. Other than during the Fugees' set and Jill Scott's (and maybe one other, but that's all I could see), ?uest was onstage playing drums the entire time. The band he got together sounds good, too, and he's a somewhat-notoriously precise bandleader so that makes sense, but I can't imagine he had a ton of time to go over everything. His role isn't really discussed in the film - his non-musical time on camera is spent mostly talking about the other performers and their audience - and it's certainly not called attention to by others, but it's pretty clear the concert couldn't have been as successful as it was from an artistic standpoint without his leadership behind the drums. Sure they could've just used DJs (A-Trak was there for Kanye's set, for instance). After all, who cares what the guitar part sounds like as long as the raps are good, right? But the result has a lot more energy and contributes more to the block party atmosphere than just having a DJ would. And that leads me to talk about coaches.

There's been some recent discussion around here about what attributes a D-League coach should have - is it an ability to teach the offense a particular NBA team runs or is it an ability to help players develop their games and make themselves more NBA-ready? Hardwood Paroxysm's Matt Moore believes that a D-League affiliate should exist as a testing lab, to basically do whatever the NBA team tells it to do, and not worry about winning games. But here's the thing - you can do both. In Austin, Quin Snyder compiled the second-best record in the league all while helping Dwayne Jones dramatically improve his free-throw shooting and developing Marcus Williams into a capable point guard, not to mention all the call-ups, injuries and players joining the team mid-season that he had to deal with. The Utah Flash made the conference finals while having players from the Jazz and Celtics cycle in and out throughout the season. Another point is that, if at this point, with not every NBA team owning its own affiliate, if a coach is only focused on developing the NBA assignees, other talented players aren't going to want to play there, and that doesn't serve anyone well. Heck, even with directly-affiliated teams like the Toros, Williams wasn't an NBA assignee when he joined the team, but he showed enough and improved enough throughout the season that the Spurs decided to put him on their roster, even though that meant releasing Malik Hairston to do so. That's important because if NBA teams are truly going to benefit from having a minor league, they'll have to use it to find unsung players who can contribute to their team and who they can sign for relatively little, not just as a place to send the multi-million dollar center who needs to work on his offensive game.

That's the concern that we at RU have with some of the recent hirings and potential hirings - some teams understand that you can do both, while others have an offense apparently so complex that only members of the Adelman family can grasp it fully that they hire a coach to do nothing more than tell players where to stand at what times and hopefully, maybe, please, at least try get the ball in the basket occasionally. Or, they hire coaches to do nothing more than get people in the door because they remember he used to play NBA basketball in that state (for a team that isn't even affiliated with the team he's coaching), without giving thought to the fact that winning games and playing good basketball gets people in the door. So I'd like this opportunity to salute all the solid, ?uestlove-like head coaching hires that were made this offseason, but were done so long ago that it's hard to remember them happening. I'm talking about guys like Tony Fritz, Joey Meyer, Nate Tibbetts, Chucky Brown and Rory White. Not all of them will succeed in their opportunities, that's the nature of the business. But, I'd say right now that their teams likely have a better chance to succeed both from a player development and an in-game standpoint. Not flashy hires, but solid and likely effective ones.

"We took a trip on the Staten Island Ferry, a little ocean voyage to Staten Island. And as we walked the streets of Staten Island what did we discover in the gutter but an angel, broken in seven pieces. When we both discovered this I turned to him, who was not my husband at the time, and I said 'it's an omen! It's a sign! I'm to marry you, of all people!' and I did. I married him, and Sunday is our 46th wedding anniversary."

Guess who? The rest of the story is that the guy put the angel back together, and in its broken-and-glued-back-together state it acquired a kind of grace to replace its former factory-made stiffness. The house they found abandoned and broken, and are putting back together, and that's why they call it the Broken Angel house. But go back to that quote. You decided to marry a guy because you both found a broken statue? In the gutter? In Staten Island? That was the sign that this guy was the one for you? Did a watery tart lob a scimitar at you as well?

Speaking of odd decision-making processes, Bakersfield decided to lets its season-ticket holders and members of the media vote on three finalists for their coaching search, then when two of the three finalists took other jobs they just hired the third guy rather than asking for another vote or interviewing other candidates. The Will Voigt era has begun! Honestly, his resume is starting to look more and more distinguished as more relatives and guys who got bored with broadcasting become head coaches, but the process by which he was hired seems full of terrible ideas. The media should decide who the coach is? Really? People who, by and large, don't care whether someone can or should play or coach or not, so long as they give good copy? And while giving the fans a greater investment in the team is fine and all, especially when you're about to charge an arm and a leg for tickets, shouldn't basketball decisions be made by, you know, basketball people?

"This is called the Airplane Room that we're in now. My son named this room the Airplane Room. He had a tent, he lived in a tent, he was 15, and all the planes flying over to LaGuardia fly over this building."

The Broken Angel couple have a son! A child grew up in that insane house! If it's only one-third complete after 40 years, what state was it in when their son lived there? How old is this guy now, anyway? What does he do now? A public interest lawyer sounds about right, doesn't it? I'm pretty fascinated with this guy who never appears on camera and who's mentioned only once, in passing. And do you know who else has a son? Danny Ainge! And he was the best candidate the Red Claws could find for their head coaching position!

"I intend to live to probably about 400, as I am also a witch, but a good witch, and I only want happiness for mankind, not to create chaos and to be angry at everyone, but to he happy. That is my aim in life, to give happiness to the world."

Oh. Oooooookay. That's the Broken Angel house lady (their names are never given), but it's also how I reacted to the Dee Brown hiring. I know why the Armor did it. I'm not sure I agree with it, but he's at least been a coach before so we'll see how it goes. As with Ainge, and with Voigt, and with whatever coach ends up in Rio Grande Valley, they may succeed. But at this point I'm not all that optimistic of their chances.

(Also, now do you see why Gondry was so taken with the Broken Angel couple? Also, I've probably come across as a little too mocking of them, when in fact they seem really nice and genuine, and the outside of the house itself looks pretty fantastic. They also talked about their plans to put an old Sea King helicopter at the top of it and turn it into a sculpture of a whale, which is also fantastic. Oh right, BASKETBALL.)

Common is in this movie, did I mention that? There's not really a good quote from/about him so I'll just talk about it. He actually performed a set of his own at the concert, but that got cut from the film. Instead, he shows up in other performers' sets, rapping his part to Kanye West's "Get 'Em High" and Erykah Badu's "Love of My Life." He's also hanging around during Mos Def/Talib Kweli/Black Star's set. I don't know if they performed "Respiration" though or if he just decided to hang out onstage and be the hype man. Aside from the odd little bounce that Common does when he raps, the notable thing about his appearances in the movie is that he seems genuinely happy to be hanging out with the other performers and supporting them onstage. He's also something of a (pretty literal) spiritual leader for the group, as Gondry shows Common leading Mos Def and some of the other performers in prayer before the concert, and while he's gotten kind of annoying with his clothing ads and movie appearances and increasingly-misguided albums, it's clear there's a lot of goodwill among him and everyone else at the show. But right, right, basketball. How's this? Like Common getting his set cut from the film but still shown helping everyone else out, there are a pair of assistant coaches who probably should've gotten a look at a lead job this coming season - Mike Sanders and Randy Livingston. Both of them are considered up-and-coming coaches, with Sanders also having some head coaching experience in the CBA and time spent as an NBA assistant, but for now they're going to be helping their peers out. Sanders took a job as an assistant with Joey Meyer in Fort Wayne, and that strong staff combined with a fairly favorable schedule should make the Mad Ants a candidate for big improvement next year.

"Now how hot would it be if these kids got a chance to come through Bed-Stuy, beatin' them drums and playin' them horns, and the whole neighborhood is screamin', they sayin 'it's CSU!'"

Back to the marching band for a minute to recognize those D-League coaches who are taking it to the NBA next year, Bryan Gates and Robert Pack. Pack was an assistant in Rio Grande Valley last season who will be in the same gig for his hometown New Orleans Hornets this year. Gates was one of the most respected coaches in the D-League who helped develop a lot of good players and coaches, and who will be an assistant for the Sacramento Kings this year. Whether either of those guys convince their teams to use the D-League that they've largely ignored thus far remains to be seen, but we're hoping.

This is also a good way to transition to talking about players, because there are several players who spent significant time in the D-League last year but who have strong chances to make the NBA this year. Jawad Williams signed onto the Cleveland Cavaliers, who currently have only 13 players on the roster. They've signed several forwards this offseason in addition to Williams, so his roster spot isn't as assured as much as it was, say, pre-Leon Powe, but he's a good player and a friend of Mo Williams, and while he's been in this position with Cleveland before, and the Cavs have a history of signing a D-League guy, keeping him through preseason then cutting him five or so games into the regular season (this happened with Trey Johnson as well), this could be the year that Jawad Williams sticks in the league. The San Antonio Spurs have two such players, Marcus Williams and Malik Hairston, both of whom played extremely well for the Toros last year and who seem to have made their way onto the NBA roster. As I mentioned earlier, Williams wasn't on the Spurs' roster last year but played well enough and developed into a good enough point guard that they decided to sign him, while Hairston was a former Spurs draft pick (actually a Suns pick who was traded for Goran Dragic) who really just needed playing time and to work on his defense a little. The Spurs backcourt is actually fairly open beyond its three main players, and Manu Ginobili's back isn't getting any younger while Tony Parker has dealt with little injuries here and there for the past few seasons. Combine those with the fact that current backup point guard George Hill continues to be erratic, and both Williams and Hairston could expect to play solid roles for the Spurs this year. Now how hot would that be?

"Old people f-in love me, man. You know you must be doin' something right if old people like you."

Let's hear it for the NBA Draft. While this year's event had some interesting storylines - the group of guards may be stronger than previously thought, DeJuan Blair improbably (and probably disastrously for everyone else) falling to the Spurs in the second round, Ricky Rubio deciding to stay in Spain, but what the NBA Draft is about, what all sports drafts are about, is old people falling in love with young people.

"Where you goin'?"
"Somewhere in Brooklyn, we don't know."

From what I've gathered watching this movie a hundred times, the way they got people to come to the concert was announcing/leaking it on a few websites, telling people to show up at a bus depot somewhere in New York for the concert. From there they were taken to the show, but no one had an idea beforehand of where the actual concert was. That sort of sounds like someone, hang on...it's coming to me...

Jeremy Tyler everybody! Who one day decided/was convinced to go to Europe, but he didn't know where it would be. Would it be Greece? What about Spain? There are some pretty good French teams, what about those? How does Slovenia strike you? Tyler ended up in Israel, and best of luck to him, though as I've said before I have doubts as to how much development/playing time he'll get. he was bored playing high school ball, which is understandable, but I still need to be convinced that being a backup (or even third-string?) center in Europe is the best answer for that.

"It's good to see all these black people in college, you know what I'm saying?"

That quote comes from Wyclef Jean, who ends up talking to a group of the CSU students at some point and singing them his song "If I Was President." It's kind of a neat moment, because other than Kanye West watching the marching band perform "Jesus Walks" there isn't much interaction shown between the performers and the CSU students. There was a green room for the performers in the preschool on the block as well as a barbecue on the roof, and it looks like the Ohio contingent got to meet and mingle with some of the performers up there, but I don't know how many of the marching band members got to talk to the rappers and singers who performed.

Oh, and speaking of college, that's the route John Wall was told decided to take. He'll be at Kentucky next year, and he's already dunking on NBA players (however old they may be). I doubt Wall will be getting much of an education next year, but that's the de facto route for guys good enough to play in the NBA at age 18. I know David Stern would never go for this, and I've said this several times before, but the D-League can provide just as good a basketball education as college ball can, if not better.

"They was happy to see me doin' my work just like I was happy to see them doin' theirs."

This is the drum major who asked "compensation is what?" earlier in the film. He shows up a few times, and gives the impression that it was a positive experience for a lot of people in the band,who represent an HBCU in southwest Ohio. His quote above reminds me of Summer League, where several NBA players showed up to watch their younger teammates play. I know Antawn Jamison and Mike Miller were there, for instance,and there were others that I can't find references to right now. But the bottom line is, those guys didn't have to be there. Sure it was Las Vegas, but it was also the middle of summer when Nevada gets really hot. Any of those players could've been at home in the pool, or I don't know, somewhere else that wasn't sweltering. But they showed up to Summer League anyway, and that was nice to see.

"You want to see a rap concert I'm throwing?"
"When?"
"It's in Brooklyn on Saturday."
"Sorry, I can't do that."
"I can get you on the bus."
"I'm going to Canada on a bus."
"Canada? You dodging the war?"

Chappelle's exchange with an older Ohio lady is one of the few indications in the movie that things are happening in the world. There are a lot of mentions of racial issues, with dead prez performing, Fred Hampton Jr. taking the stage and the mic during Mos Def's "Umi Says," ?uestlove talking about how their audience "doesn't look like us" and a few others, but in terms of "this movie took place in America in 2004," Chappelle's draft-dodging joke is about it. It's a small but significant sign that these events are taking place in a real environment, one that had gotten fairly tense in September, 2004, and which a rap concert in which everyone's having a good time seems to have alleviated just a little bit.

Reality is intruding into basketball this year. Nothing as dramatic as war, but a lot of the economic pressures that NBA owners are either facing or exploiting (and let's face it, there probably are some teams that are going to use the economic stuff as an excuse when they don't have to), and as such NBA roster spots are scarcer. More and more D-Leaguers are heading overseas to larger, if not steadier, paychecks and ride out the current storm. Hopefully they'll be able to return in another year or two and come back to the D-League and a climate more accepting of their talents and willing to take a chance on a guy whose name you may not know but who can play better than the guy you do.

Special Appearances by: Pharoahe Monch, Bilal Oliver

Guess what? Neither of these guys are in the movie. At all. Oh they were there at the concert - Bilal performed during Common's set that got cut, for instance, but I've watched this movie I don't know how many times and I can't find them. It's entirely possible that they're at the back of the stage or out of focus in one scene that I just haven't noticed, but while they performed at the concert, they got cut from the movie. Speaking of guys who got cut, both Mike Taylor and Sun Yue are looking for work right now. Two D-League success stories (real in Taylor's case, part of Dan Reed's dreams in Sun's). I'm not sure why the Clippers cut Taylor other than Mike Dunleavy didn't feel like giving him time/room to grow. Sun Yue's a long way from being an NBA player at this point, but some further development might do the trick.

"All these people, what we all have in common? I think we all have a very personal message that they try to get across, and it's about more than just making money."

Lance Allred has a pretty incredible life story, and he finally sat down and wrote about it. His book, Longshot: The Adventures of a Deaf Fundamentalist Mormon Kid and His Journey to the NBA came out a few months ago, and was reviewed by RU. The question gets raised periodically as to why players toil in the D-League making low (and in some cases very low)-five figures while they could make ten times that amount over in Europe. My answer is usually something along the lines of "they get more exposure and have a better chance of making the NBA," and while that's true, I don't think that always gets emphasized in the correct way. It's not just that by making the NBA they can earn enough to make up for all that time spent in snowy NoDak or hot-ass Texas. For a lot of kids growing up, playing in NBA is the dream, it's something that they think about every day because that's what they want to do. I haven't been fortunate enough to always know what I want to do with my life. Even now, when I think I've figured it out, most of my time is spent pretending I haven't because still, who knows?. Spending every day working to make the NBA every day and being willing to take an almost absurdly-low salary to do so takes love, and dedication, and an unshakeable belief in yourself and your abilities that's pretty admirable and is one of the great things about following the D-League. As Allred puts it in his book, "I do not care about the money, or the fame. I just want to say that I set an 'unreachable' goal and I made it."

"We shook up the world. We shook up the world!"

Our last quote goes to the D-League Select team, which finished 3-2 at the Vegas Summer League (and one of those losses was to a D-League-heavy Denver team, so that one's sort of a moral victory for the league) and impressed just about everyone who watched them. They're last win may have been the most impressive, where they beat Portland's team at the buzzer despite being down to seven players total and only one guard after injuries to Trey Johnson, Othyus Jeffers and Walker Russell. The Select team had five players shoot .500 or better over the course of Summer League and solidly out-rebounded and out-worked (that's a word, right?) their opponents. Unfortunately it hasn't translated into many NBA preseason invites and many of the players are going to be over in Europe next season (parallels to Chappelle stopping work on his show post-"Block Party" and leaving the spotlight?), but the fact remains that the D-League players, none of whom had gotten other Summer League invites, formed a team to be reckoned with and turned some heads in Vegas this year.

So there you have it: my summary of the D-League offseason so far. We still have a little over three months until the season tips off, and a lot can happen in that time. Who knows, maybe we'll come back and do this again. You like "Ghostbusters," right?

Interview with NBA Agent Bill Neff: The Economic Downturn, Affiliations, and the Direction of the D-League (PART 1)

Aisander D — Mon, 17 Aug 2009 12:00:10 -0000

Recent occurrences in the D-League have made it abundantly clear that we are approaching a difficult time for both the NBA and Developmental League. The financial markets have begun to predicate many of the actions taken by major league and minor league franchises. Bakersfield recently announced their platinum club plan, charging exorbitant prices for D-League games. A quick scan of our transactions list reveals that a lot of well known D-League players are making the jump overseas. Many NBA teams have been cutting staff and signing players very cautiously, in an effort to guard the bottom line. Combined, all of this paints a painful picture, filled with tough decisions ahead.

In order to get a handle on the state of the D-League and the outer forces influencing it, we're going to be interviewing a series of people who can be considered "stakeholders" in the League. GMs, coaches, players, and agents will be the target of this effort, which will essentially try come to some understanding about where the D-League stands in the next year and where we are headed in the future.

Our first interview in the series is with well known agent Bill Neff, who works for Saga Sports and has over 15 years of experience with the CBA, NBA, and D-League. Bill graduated from the University of Michigan in 1980 and has represented mostly minor league players for much of his career. Mr. Neff's current client list includes the likes of well known player/blogger Rod Benson, Gerry McNamara, Jamaal Tatum, Kevin Ollie, Mike Wilks, Jason Hart, and Demetris Nichols. Bill was also representing Mike Taylor when he was the first player drafted from the D-League in the 2008 NBA draft.

Today's post is Part 1 of the interview, followed by Part 2 tomorrow morning.

AD: How long have you been representing players and how long have you been working with the D-League?

Bill Neff: I have been representing players for about 16 years now and have worked with the D League since its inception and the CBA before it. The essence of our firm [Ed. Note: Saga Sports], its DNA, if you will, is minor league players. We believe strongly in it. First, because of the kinds of players we get or try to get, where we do not do anything which violates NCAA or NBPA rules, they will not necessarily get drafted. However, they may be as good as a drafted player but not received the exposure that some of the draftees get. The minor leagues help that. Second, you have to play to get better. Sitting on an NBA bench as a younger guy is a waste of time. See Ramon Sessions. Third, all of my players go through the D League and prior to that, the CBA. It makes them so much better. It is graduate school.

All of my players go through the D League and, prior to that, the CBA. It makes them so much better. It is graduate school.

AD: Generally how have you seen the D-League grow or change over the course of your interactions with the League? What have been some positive and negative changes?

Bill Neff: The D League is a work in progress. Used correctly, it could be a great vehicle, as the Bucks did with a terrific coach in Joey Meyer for Sessions. They were lucky, in that regard. If the NBA sees the D League as an opportunity, it can be that. If you see it as an expense, it is an expense.

If the D League is about development, you can take a late second rounder and turn him into a mid level player. It happened for me with Troy Hudson who, by the way, looks great now that he is healthy. Younger players need to play. If you are like the Jazz and run the same system as the NBA team, that is a good way to go. Or, if you make sure your draft choice goes down and gets to play, it should be helpful.

Or, if you use it to give an incentive for players to come there. For instance, promise the players that they will be on your summer league roster. If you can handle it logistically, attempt to work out with the Players Association, an angle where D League players get practice time benefits, such as money, if they practice with the big club. Add that to the CBA. Tell your Personnel Directors if you find a Kevin Ollie, Mike Wilks or Jason Hart in the minor leagues, we will boost your pay. Have them work like Mark Warkentien (Dahntay Jones) and Carroll Dawson used to with Chucky Brown and Mario Elie and find championship pieces in the minor leagues. They are there.

The problem is too many NBA people look at the NBDL as a lesser place. It is not. Some really good coaches like Phil Jackson and George Karl toiled there [Ed. Note: both coached in the CBA in the mid-80's] and the recent generation of Dave Joerger, now with Memphis, Bryan Gates, now with Sacramento, and Meyer are every bit their equal. The view from the NBA has changed, unfortunately.

In short, the D League has grown because of the assignment aspect of it but it is still hampered by the NBA's/NBDL's lack of creative thinking. Spend a touch more in salaries, which they won't, allow more freedom to go to Europe and you will have a great league. Relax the rules to allow players to choose which team they can go to but what has happened is because of the D League's byzantine rules, you must be very careful when you put your guy into the pool. Also, teams like San Antonio have tinkered with the rules to their advantage. The rules should be simple, allowing for the best players to enter into the League. They do not exist now. Only because I believe in the D League have I pushed my players there. I am in the minority of agents. So, the positive changes are some NBA teams' mild embrace of the league, its greater exposure but the negatives remain which hamper its development: an embrace by the NBA as an equal partner, unclear rules, low salaries, so it will continue to lurch along by fits and starts until it cleans up some of those things.

The problem is too many NBA people look at the NBDL as a lesser place. It is not.

AD: Over the past few seasons, but this season in particular, the global and regional financial outlook has been fairly grim. It's well documented that NBA owners are trimming the pocketbooks and preparing for rough times ahead. How do you think this affects the D-League? Are there fewer opportunities for players to be called up from the D-League, or will NBA teams be seeking more cheap talent than ever?

Bill Neff: The global economy has affected everyone and will affect the D League. There will be fewer callups. I wish it were different. The NBA should be seeking cheap talent but by the way they used the summer leagues and just promote their own players for the most part, they will not be looking to the D League, as they should. They should be encouraging cheap talent. The hybrid teams should attempt to encourage players to come by offering summer league spots but they do not. It is really a waste of a good product to some extent.

Stay tuned for Part 2 with Bill Neff tomorrow morning.