SB Nation - Bill Walker

Last Night In The D-League - Where A Marriage Proposal Happened

Scott Schroeder — Sun, 20 Dec 2009 15:00:20 -0000

by HO - AP

The guy that proposed didn't look like Tony Gonzalez. And his future wife didn't look like Tony's wife, who is apparently named October. Probably because it happened in North Dakota.

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The one thing I don't like about the D-League is the fact that the majority of their games are on the weekends in the evening. It's not like I have a bustling social life, but still. Anyway, I feel we kind of cheated you by not recapping last Friday nights action, so I didn't want to be a complete failure today.

It's still the weekend, however, so in lieu of my usual great notes, I'm giving you tweets from yours truly, Matt Moore at Hardwood Paroxysm, Steve Weinman at D-League Digest, Mookie at A Stern Warning and Jim Fossel from CelticsTown. Yes, there were multiple people semi-regularly tweeting about the D-League last night. Ain't it great?!

First, some general D-League analysis:

Can we get a petition letter to get plus/minus added to the D-League boxscore? (Matt Moore)

Seriously, why not? It couldn't be that hard to include, am I right? Or, is Moore right? If it takes Jon L writing a post about this and "Blocks Against," we'll do it. Don't test us.

This stuff kills me. RT @HPbasketball RT @RUBasketball: Nothing classier than proposing at the first timeout of a D-League game. Seriously. (Slam's Holly Mackenzie)

This happened at the first quarter of the Wizards-Skyforce game. Added romanticism came with the sponsored Wizards-logo'd t-shirts the couple wore.

Futurecast drivers REALLY need to quit using the baseline cam. You are one dude with a button, not a TNT production crew. Keep it wide. (MM)

Two palming calls in Maine tonight. Will that top the NBA's season total? (Steve Weinman)

Do the D-League players have their names at the bottom of the jerseys because they're names that are on the rise? (Mookie)

Tulsa 66ers 94, Rio Grande Valley Vipers 89 (OT) (Box Score)

RGV has to be the best team in the league, right? I mean, I get Maine. But Harris, Anderson, Dorsey? With Garrett Temple? (MM)

Antonio Anderson may need to be on the call-up list this week. block on a three, a reverse, then a 10 foot baseline. I'm digging this. (MM)

Man, Harris with a catch and face-up, 20 foot jumper's good. that's 22 for Harris. CALL HIM UP (MM)

Liking Latavious Williams' aggressiveness. Needs to do that in the A. In college, they'd be teaching him to brick seven foot js on the break. God, Latavious Williams' is a physical freak. Two years and he's going to be beasting. (MM)

Overtime in Tulsa. Crank up your Futurecast! (SW)

Fort Wayne Mad Ants 113, Maine Red Claws 105 (Box Score)

Ron Howard was amazing. 9-for-13 FG, 11-for-13 FT, 30 points total + 5 steals. Who knew? (Me)

Looks like Sean Sonderleiter will lose starting role to Jared Reiner. Makes sense, makes me sad. (Me)

No Kyle McAlarney. Ow. Fort Wayne needs a backup PG. Lucky Rob Kurz dished 8 assists. Pt forward? (Me)

Bill Walker flings a cross-court pass away and then forgets his man can shoot on consecutive plays. Not ideal. (SW)

Bill Walker just posterized Rob Kurz. (SW)

Walker was frikkin brilliant. 32ish points. Kicking ass & taking names. (Jim Fossel)

Alexis Ajinca is actually getting those points inside! He looks as good as I've seen him. Very impressive night.(SW)

What's your feeling as to how long it'll be before Ajinca can be a rotation player in the NBA? Playing minutes is often all it's about. Have switched over to watch the final 2:15. (Mookie, making the D-League transition)

"We'd be amiss if we didn't mention the rubbah chicken shootin at that last timeout." #NortheasternersTalkFunny (Me)

Dakota Wizards 103, Sioux Falls 96 (Box Score)

Who's excited for pajama day tomorrow at the Dakota Wizards game!?!? That may top the mid-20-second-timeout wedding proposal, honestly. (Me)

Romel "George The Iceman Gervin" Beck. Seriously. (Me)

Has there ever been an explanation for Beck's occasional offensive disappearances? It's not that he goes cold, just invisible. AND Yup, it's really weird. Every time I watch him, he scores efficiently, just seems like he goes quarters without even a touch. (SW)

David Bailey still as quick as ever. He had some drug "issues" in Australia -- no probs lately? (Mookie)

Scoring balance: No one has 20, but 11 players are in double-figures in tonight's Skyforce-Wizards game. Cool. (SW)

Iowa Energy 95, Erie Bayhawks 88 (Box Score)

Nobody tweeted about this game, so I bring you tweets by Iowa's Cartier Martin.

Bout to play Assasins Creed 2...then it's nap time. Got a big game tonight.
Game went well...we got the dub. I'm slowly but surely gettin my groove back.
what's good bro? Man that Europe shit got a #@$%# game all f'ed up.
Me chillin at the table wit my goons! You better be careful how you run up on me..they something vicious! http://yfrog.com/4gvydj

Bakersfield Jam 107, Idaho Stampede 80 (Box Score)

Ouch (The World upon finding out Bakersfield won a game)

Maine Red Claws 96, Erie BayHawks 75; Free Trey Gilder!...?

Jon L — Fri, 18 Dec 2009 14:01:45 -0000

At 7-1, now who's laughing at Crusher (hint: still us) (via nbamusings.com)

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So now it's my turn to talk about these two teams. It would've been nice if the BayHawks had won so I could tout them a little bit but...

Hey guess what! I'm gonna try doing this recap Scott Schroeder bullets-stylee. Which means it might be even longer than my usual recaps. I know you're going to have fun.

Scott talked about this a little bit yesterday, but Trey Gilder probably should start somewhere. I understand that he's probably not starting in Maine while Bill Walker's around, but Gilder's good enough to make the NBA. It's a nice problem to have for the Red Claws. 23 points on 9-12 shooting and 10 boards for him, both team highs and both off the bench (if that makes sense).
Alexis Ajinca had his biggest offensive output of the (D-League) season with 14 points. Too bad it came on 15 shots. Too, too bad. No free throws either. At least Bill Walker had the good sense to get to the line while shooting 1-5 from the field.
Pro wrestling reference!
Cedric Jackson has had exactly one good game outside shooting-wise this season, so I have no idea why he's attempting four threes. Who does he think he is, Ron Howard? (jokes) The 11 assists are welcome, but let's cut down on this whole "doing-things-you're-not-good-at" thing, shall we?
Come to think of it, none of Erie's players have been that great at shooting so far this year. Ivan Harris was their big three-point specialist last year, but he has only 14 attempts over seven games this year. He's made two of them. Twice? Two times. Jackie Manuel has had some okay games, but then he'll usually follow them up with something like last night's 4-14 outing.
Donell Taylor is having a decent season so far, in that he's ' making 38.5 of his threes, averaging almost six rebounds a game and playing some decent defense, but I can't help feeling like a 27-year old former NBA player should be dominating, and Taylor isn't. Maybe he gets a pass against a stacked Maine team, but six turnovers against Fort Wayne? 9-23 shooting against Sioux Falls? Averaging more turnovers (four) than steals (3.6) on the season? 59 percent free throw shooting? I know he was originally miscast on this team as the starting point guard, but I guess I expected more.
Have you seen John Bryant? No seriously, have you seen him? If they still put pictures on milk cartons, I might suggest doing so with this guy. He got a DNP last night, okay fine, but after pretty much dominating the first four games of the year he shot 4-10 and 1-5. Dude is disappearing, which is kind of tough to do when you're as, uh, big as Bryant is.

Last Night in the D-League: Where NBA-Assignee's Happen

Scott Schroeder — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 20:34:25 -0000

More photos » by Brian Babineau - NBAE/Getty Images

Bill Walker should probably stick to doing this, not shooting jump shots.

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[This was supposed to go up at 7 am this morning but somehow didn't. So here it is. - JL]

I'm writing this while catching up on three night's of DVR'd "The Sing-Off" so forgive me if this isn't as spot-on as my usual commentary (Whoa! How much did I sound like a young Jeff Potter on that one?). Anyway, back to basketball and not Bea Arthur Whoa(!) montages. Lester Hudson is good. So is Bill Walker. Since they don't need either of these players, I assume the Boston Celtics are good as well (at things other than flagrant fouling Brad Miller... h8u Rondo!)

Lester Hudson had a succesful debut. 25 points (14 in a pivotal fourth quarter), seven boards, six assists and a game-sealing block with three seconds left in a four point game. With former NBAer Donnell Taylor and Cedric Jackson taking turns watching him pop jump shots or fouling him on the way to the rack, I was happy to notice Hudson's athleticism show through in the ultra-athletic-but-usually-without-the-skills-to-match D-League. Unfortunately, I don't think he used enough of it, often settling for jumper's, but shooting 4-for-9 from deep helps ease this pain. He had a couple mental lapses (four turnovers), but that's to be expected when it's the first day on the job and the chemistry isn't quite there.
Bill Walker, please learn that your specialty is not the jumper. Last night, you scored 16 points, shooting 7-of-18 from the field, and by my count, your jumper accounted for four of those makes and 10 of your misses. In my opinion, Billy, this is a problem. No turnovers and six boards is a nice little takeaway though, so props on that.
Trey Gilder is probably a bit upset that he can't get a start in the D-League, even after starting this season with the Memphis Grizzlies (who, despite what you've heard, are not a D-League team). Gilder's long and efficient and getting the mention here because he was the only other Red Claw to score in double-digits, totalling 13 points in 31 minutes off the bench.

And now, since the Bayhawks lost to a team that shot 28 of EIGHTY from the field, they're after the jump. Sorry Bayhawk fans, if you read RU, comment. Maybe we can be friends.

First, a little love for Jackie Manuel from Blog Talk Bayhawk:

[...]Manuel is my early pick for BayHawks MVP. He's just a consistent all-around performer. Whenever Manuel makes a key play, the crowd at Tullio Arena is treated to a sound clip of Ozark Mountain Daredevils' "Jackie Blue." Point is, we heard it often tonight. Manuel dominated the third quarter offensively for the BayHawks, scoring the team's first 8 points. For the game, he scored 15 on 7-15 shooting to go along with 10 rebounds, 3 assists, and 2 blocked shots. Not surprisingly, he also led the team in minutes played with 46:25. Manuel has led the team in minutes played in all but one game so far this season.

And now a little (not) love for Big John Bryant from BTB:

[...]after hearing him touted as a potential all-star and watching him fill out the box score to start the season, I'm concerned. Coach Treloar took my advice (wink) and played Bryant just over 17 minutes tonight with Aminu and Gunter seeing increased roles. To Bryant's credit, he pulled down 10 rebounds while he was in there. But he also looked out of sync on offense (1-5 shooting, 4 turnovers) and overmatched on defense (5 personal fouls).

That about sums it up, it seems.

Lester and Billy Own The D-League

Jeff Clark — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 10:34:59 -0000

Green Street " Hudson impressive in NBDL debut

Celtics rookie Lester Hudson scored a game-high 25 points in his NBDL debut as the Maine Red Claws defeated the Erie BayHawks, 81-77, on Wednesday night.

Hudson, who was assigned to the NBA Development League on Tuesday, premiered with an impressive stat line: 8-19 FG, 4-9 3PG, 5-6 FT, 7 rebounds, 6 assists, 1 block. He had previously scored a total of 11 points in 13 games with the Cs. Hudson was assisted by fellow Celtic Bill Walker. The forward scored 16 points off of 7-for-18 shooting and grabbed six boards. Walker entered the game leading the Red Claws in scoring and rebounding.

Just as the Celtics are riding a winning streak, the Red Claws have won their last six games.

Nice to know that the youngsters are making the best of their time in the minors. Of course you could say that they should be dominating a level down, but it is always nice to hear that they are taking their opportunity seriously and putting in the work and effort it takes to make themselves better and get good experience up in Maine.

By the way, this seems like a good place to remind everyone that we created a forum in the message boards specifically for the Red Claws and D-League discussion. Check it out.

In other news...

Big Three have company - The Boston Globe

Ainge confirmed the possibility of forward Glen Davis (broken right hand) joining the team for a Dec. 25-30 road trip. "He’s working on getting the strength back in his hand and staying in shape,’’ Ainge said of Davis. "He will probably go on the trip, unless we think he can get better working at home.’’ . . . Ainge said no timetable has been set on the return of Marquis Daniels (left thumb ligament). "His hand is still heavily bandaged,’’ Ainge said

Also, Steve Bulpett takes another look at the 72 win record. (make it stop!)

Poll

Who will be called up first?

Gameday Preview Charlotte Bobcats vs. Boston Celtics

David Arnott — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 16:17:23 -0000

Pump Up Music: The Devil Wears Prada -- "Still Fly"

The Big Picture: This game hardly matters to the Boston Celtics. From a purely rational standpoint, all they have to do is get to the playoffs with a reasonably good record, and as long as they're healthy and rested, they're championship contenders. Rajon Rondo is the only member of their core on the right side of 30. If you were coaching the Celtics in December, how would you distribute minutes in the middle of a four game road trip? They may not be dramatically limiting minutes, yet, but it's only a matter of time before they can afford to start thinking about "staying fresh" for the real season.

For the Cats, this is another major test for the reformulated, S-Jaxified, roster. Believe me when I say that I love Stephen Jackson for everything he brings to the floor, especially his defense -- see what he did covering Dirk in the '07 playoffs for further confirmation of his versatility -- but he's best as a complementary player, not relied upon as the pillar. We're not quite there with him. I'd argue we don't really have a pillar, because Larry Brown seems to believe that he can go against history and build a successful team with four or five solid to very good pillars instead of building around one or two exceptional pillars. But as soon as the team believes Jackson, or Gerald, or Raymond, or anyone on this current roster, is a star they can lean upon to carry them through a rough patch singlehandedly, that's when we'll be in trouble.

Wallace is closest to meeting that definition, but the roster path we're following requires that role players contribute more than most successful teams' role players do. It's a grand experiment, in a way. Despite years of evidence that the best basketball teams operate with one or two superstars dictating the action in a variety of ways, the Bobcats are trying to operate a team with relatively equal parts working in concert to be greater than the sum of its parts.

The recent winning streak is wonderful, exciting, et cetera, but I don't think they've had enough time to show who they really are. Remember, the 35-win team last year had a 6-game winning streak.

Key to Victory: The Celtics will give the Cats all the three point shots they want. They'll give them all the 20-foot jumpers they want. The Bobcats must resist. Charlotte is among the worst distance shooting teams in the league, shooting below 30% from beyond the arc and only 36% from 16-23 feet. Boston will play their floating zone, pack the lane, and dare everyone to settle for the jumper instead of working the ball around to get angles at the basket. Settling for jumpers will lead to under 70 points... or 59.

Detail That Might Interest .08% of You: Bill Walker once urinated while standing in the Kansas State bench area, during a game. And yes, there's video.

The Lobster Roll: Issue 2

indeedproceed — Mon, 30 Nov 2009 20:33:19 -0000

Well the first week of D-League play is over, and the Red Claws made it out a solid .500, going 1 and 1. They're still obviously ironing out the kinks within the rotation, and trying to work Bill Walker into a starting spot of the rotation. Their roster seems to be coming along though, and DraftExpress has them ranked 8 out of 16 in their inaugeral D-League Power Rankings. For a full recap of the Red Claws' week, check out this fanpost by Celticsblog user JFoss.

Now that they've got some games under their belt, it's time we took a real deep look at what the Red Claws are working with. Prepare to embark on the promised FULL ON ROSTER PREVIEW EXTRAVAGANZA!!!

The Red Claws' roster, like most basketball teams, should be separated into tiers to be evaluated honestly. There is the 'Top Tier', usually consisting of two or three players. These would be the 'stars', and the guys who play the majority of the minutes and do most of the heavy lifting. Then, there are the remainder of the starters and the first guys off the bench. Finally there is the bottom layer, the guys who get sporadic playing time and are usually called on for specific roles (3pt shooting situations for instance).

A D-league team is like that, except with one very important difference. D-League teams need to play the guys who are assigned by their pro affiliates, regardless of chemistry or even sometimes how it affects wins. Usually the pro players do pretty well, but it is assumed that even if they do no, they will still receive playing time.

Note: This is not like the NBA where players have contracts with specific teams. In the D-League your contract is with the league. There are five ways a guy can get on the Red Claws.

One, he can be allocated by the league to a team that plays in an area where he has a vested interest, like Will Blalock, a Boston native.

Two, he could tryout like Mike Williams from Bryant College.

Three, he could've been drafted by the Red Claws in the yearly D-League draft, like Syracuse Junior Paul Harris was in this years' draft first round.

Four, he could be drafted in this past years' Expansion Draft only for new expansion teams like the Red Claws, like Billy Thomas was.

Finally, but most importantly, a player can be assigned to the D-League by the teams' affiliate team, as was Boston's Bill Walker. The Red Claws' other affiliate is the Charlotte Bobcats.

With that in mind, your Maine Red Claws!

Tier 1: The Big Dogs: Billy Thomas, Will Blalock, Darnell Lazare, Paul Harris

Tier 2: Heavy Rotation: Noel Felix, Tony Bobbitt, Anthony Terrell, Stanley Thomas, Abdulai Jalloh

Tier 3: The Rest of the Roster: Gary Ervin, Mike Williams

Tier ?: The Assigned Players, Future and Present: Bill Walker, Lester Hudson and JR Giddens

Tier 1: The Top Dogs

Billy Thomas

AGE	HEIGHT	WEIGHT	POSITION	D-LEAGUE DRAFT	PPG	RPG	APG
33	6'5	220	SG	EXPANSION SELECTION**	16.1*	3.4*	3.7*

* D-League Stats

50-Word-Bio

Attended Kansas and played under Roy Williams. Set school record for made 3’s. Went undrafted in 1998. Has played for fourteen teams in ten different league on four different continents. Has played sporadically in NBA. Couldn't play overseas in 2009 because of dispute with FIBA, alleges Serbian team stopped paying him.

Anticipated Role:

Thomas has a rep for having a very well rounded game, being a great locker room guy and being a professional. He's not a sharp shooter but he's got range. He's not a top tier play maker but he makes smart passes. He's not a defensive ace but he plays solid mostly mistake free defense. He's an all around good player in any league, and in the D-League he's an All-Star. The downside is he's 33 (soon to be 34 by the end of December), and he takes a lot of pride in being a professional. Think 'Crash' Davis in Bull Durham. He ought to be the leader from day one.

Will Blalock

AGE	HEIGHT	WEIGHT	POSITION	D-LEAGUE DRAFT	PPG	RPG	APG
26	205	6'1	PG	ALLOCATION	12.5*	2.8*	5.3

*stats are from 2007/2008 in NBA D-League, Blalock played 08/09 for Hapoel Jerusalem, but managed only 10 games.

50-Word-Bio:

Boston, MA native, played for Iowa. Drafted second round by Detroit Pistons and managed 14 games in 2006/2007 before being waived for lack of roster spot. Considered to have potential to be NBA player, but not the current skill. Regularly invited to summer teams and NBA camps, but can't seem to stick.

Anticipated Role:

He'll get the majority of the point guard minutes unless Lester Hudson or another NBA player gets assigned to the team, as his only competition is Abdulai Jalloh, a D-League rookie. Blalock still has enough people excited about him to keep getting invites to camps, but as far as prototypical point guards go, he's lacking a lot of the skillset. Defensively he's got the body to contribute in the NBA but his passing and long range shot have both been knocks on him since his days at Iowa, and he's done little in the last two years to rectify that. (Austin) Ainge has said however that this team will play defense first, so while Blalock probably won't dominate the boxscore very much, he will probably see a lot of time. One of the knocks on Blalock during his last stint in the D-League were that he needed to be a better on the court leader and be more assertive. If he can mange to improve there he should look to join Billy Thomas as a veteran presence in the locker room.

Darnell Lazare

AGE	HEIGHT	WEIGHT	POSITIONS	D-LEAGUE DRAFT	PPG	RPG	APG
24	6'8	240	PF/SF	Rd 2 Pk 9	13.9*	5.8*	1.2*

*stats from Ukrainian Super League

50-Word-Bio:

Played on the LSU team BBD and Tyrus Thomas took to the final four in 2006. Played all four years of college career, graduating in 2007. Undrafted in NBA, spent 07/08 with Gothia Basketball, Sweden, then 08/09 with Dnipro Dnepropetrovsk, Ukrainian Superleague, playing a significant role on both teams.

Anticipated Role:

Unknown. This is a player that Austin Ainge or Jon Jennings must have really liked, and it was not because of his college career. Whatever secrets they know, he played well in the preseason game scoring 19 points and grabbing 8 boards in about 35 minutes in a starting effort from power forward. The rest of his season won't be so cozy however, because with Billy Walker needing minutes, and 1st round (in the D-League Draft) pick Paul Harris soon coming back from injury, it will probably be Lazare who misses out, as neither Walker or Harris will likely steal minutes from Blaylock or Thomas, so Walker will probably be bumped down to the power forward position. Regardless though Lazare has proven he's a valuable scorer and active overall player.

Paul Harris

AGE	HEIGHT	WEIGHT	POSITIONS	D-League Draft	PPG	RPG	APG
23	6'5	225	SG,SF,PF	Rd 1 Pk 9	12.0*	8.1*	2.2*

*College stats

50-Word-Bio:

Buffalo native, played until Junior season for SU. Surprisingly went undrafted this spring despite what was by many accounts a very strong series of workouts, an exceptional Junior season, and an NBA ready body. Possesses a 6'10 wingspan. Played Summer League for T-Wolves and invited to camp with Utah Jazz.

Anticipated Role:

Hard to gauge. He's still recovering from a knee injury right now, but when healthy he should see significant playing time off the bat. Because of his tweener size, he's the type of guy that is kind of built for the D-League, but will have to prove he has a bigger skillset to get a more permanent invite to the NBA. He's listed at 6'6 but that's wishful thinking. He's 6'5, or more likely 6'4. The knock on Harris since his freshmen year is that he can't shoot, and when he gets to dribbling he tries to do too much with the basketball. This isn't a professional diagnoses, but you might call it "Ron Artest Syndrome". From the beginning though he has all the tools right now to be a heck of a stopper and a finisher. He may suffer from turnover-itis at first, but he should be a stat filler right away, posting high marks in rebounding, steals, blocks, and with his literally freak athleticism he should be able to grab 12-15 ppg.

The problem of course for Mr. Harris is the unstoppable Mr. Walker. Bill Walker is 6'6, Paul Harris is 6'5 (ish). They would both be amazing 6'9 power forwards. They're both skill deficient small forwards, and Paul Harris is in an especially tight spot, because in socks he looks like a great point guard with big arms. He'll be competing directly with Bill Walker for minutes for as long as Bill Walker or JR Giddens for that matter are on the Red Claws. That's a losing battle for the hungry Harris.

Tier 2: Heavy Rotation

Noel Felix

AGE	HEIGHT	WEIGHT	POSITION	D-LEAGUE DRAFT	PPG	RPG	APG
28	6'9	245	PF/C	EXPANSION	13.2*	6.6*	1.2*

*D-League

25-Word-Bio:

Fresno State alum. Undrafted. Been to the big leagues, but has also played in Europe. Usually gets invited to a camp, but usually doesn't stay.

Anticipated Role:

Felix's strengths on this team are his size (there is 1 other guy taller than 6'8 on the team, and he got 11 mins in the 1st preseason game), and his athleticism. The problem is that he only has those things working for him as a player. He's shown littler improvement over the last few years and the biggest thing pro scouts are looking for from him is the ability to hang in the post. In the D-League a guy of his size and raw athletic talent should be getting more than 6 rebounds per game. Felix was a DNP the first game and I don't anticipate him starting, but this team is thin on height and thin on actual NBA experience so he'll find a significant role.

Tony Bobbitt

AGE	HEIGHT	WEIGHT	POSITIONS	D-LEAGUE DRAFT	PPG	RPG	APG
30	6'4	205	SG	Rd 7 Pk 8	13.1*	2.3*	2.4*

*Career NBDL stats

25-Word-Bio:

Graduated Cincinnati University after playing 2 years for Southern Idaho. Played brief stint with the Lakers, then with the Lakers minor league team. Played overseas.

Anticipated Role:

He's principally a scorer off the bench, and Billy Thomas's main sub. He's also probably going to play the main role of sniper for the squad, and just as an example out of 11 total 3pt shot attempts for the Red Claws in their preseason game, Bobbitt took 6. Expect that kind of aggressive attitude whenever his hands touch the ball.

Anthony Terrell

AGE	HEIGHT	WEIGHT	POSITION	D-LEAGUE DRAFT	PPG	RPG	APG
28	6'6	230	PF	Rd 6 Pk 9	.6.0*	3.9*	.6*

*06/07 stats

25-Word-Bio:

Went to school at UNC Wilmington. 80 games w/60+ starts. Never averaged above 9ppg after high school. Played in USBL, ABA, NBDL. No NBA experience.

Anticipated Role:

A bruiser down low. Obviously not going to log much time at any position outside of 4/5. Should have significant role however, because there aren't many physical guys on the roster. Height would be a problem in the NBA but as long as he's working hard, shouldn't be a problem here. Not going to wow much with stats but he'll throw his body around.

Stanley Thomas

AGE	HEIGHT	WEIGHT	POSITION	D-LEAGUE DRAFT	PPG	RPG	APG
29	6'5	205	SF,PF	TRYOUTS	20.6*	5.8*	1.8*

*ABA stats

25-Word-Bio:

2 years at Texas Tech, then 2 years at Robert Morris. Former ABA team, "Chicago Throwbacks," played in Attack Athletics building, same building managed by MRC's AC Mike Procopio.

Anticipated Role:

Will see nights where he gets 9 mins per game and nights where he gets 25 mins per game. If Bill Walker sticks around the D-League, won't see a huge uptick in mins, but if Walker is called up and JR Giddens does not get demoted to take his place, Thomas could even be a starter at the SF. Natural scorer, but with bulk should be taking it to the hoop more than he does. Won't be asked to take many 3's but has the range. Played for the Chicago Throwbacks last season the in ABA, where he had to do everything for the team. This season will be asked to do more but if he wants to see his minutes increase needs to really up his consistency.

Abdulai Jalloh

AGE	HEIGHT	WEIGHT	POSITION	D-LEAGUE DRAFT	PPG*	RPG*	APG*
23	6'2	190	PG/SG	TRYOUT	15.5	5.5	2.9

*Junior season at James Madison University

25-Word-Bio:

Made the team on a tryout basis despite missing almost all of senior season at JMU with torn rotator cuff. Spent first 2 yrs of college at St. Joe's

Anticipated Role:

Both Billy Thomas and Tony Bobbitt CAN play the point, but that does not mean either SHOULD. Abdulai Jalloh looks to be the guy to fill the void at the backup point, but he's not exactly traditional either. In college he was one of those "SG's in a PG's body". He's a scorer, a defender, and a rebounder, but I don't think he's that much of a distributor. For now he's got the support of the coaching staff, logging 23 minutes per game over the first 2 regular season games, and unless Lester Hudson gets reassigned (which he has said he is not ready to do), Jalloh should keep logging those high rotation minutes.

The Rest of the Roster:

Gary Ervin

AGE	HEIGHT	WEIGHT	POSITION	D-LEAGUE DRAFT	PPG*	RPG*	APG*
26	5'10	183	PG	Rd 4 Pk 9	8.2	2.3	2.7

*D-League last season

10-Word-Bio:

Graduated from Arkansas 2008. Previoulsy played at Miss State University.

Anticipated Role:

Looks like he's the low man on the totem poll for the backup point minutes, and another case of buyer's remorse for the Maine Red Claws. Of the 8 players selected in the D-League Draft, the Red Claws have kept only 5, cutting their 3rd, 5th, and 8th round picks. Ervin was selected in the 4th round, but appears already behind Abdulai Jalloh on the depth chart, and he was only a tryout. He's not a great passer, and he's undersized as a defender. He can score proficiently and he can probably manage the ball in the D-League without too many turnover, but he's far from a traditional point. His minutes should probably hover around 5-10 per game, no matter who is brought on. He's not a realistic NBA player at this point, and with his size (listed optimistically at 5'10) he'll need to really revolutionize his game to get a look at for a call up.

Mike Williams

AGE	HEIGHT	WEIGHT	POSITION	D-LEAGUE DRAFT	PPG*	RPG*	APG*
27	6'11	245	C	TRYOUT	5.2	9.1	UK

*ABA Stats

10-Word-Bio:

Bryant College, played overseas and in ABA. Holds record for blocks at Bryant.

Anticipated Role:

He's the tallest guy on the team at 6'11, but if the early season has been any indication, that will only get you so far with Austin Ainge. Ainge cut Tyrell Blair, a 6'11 center the team also had, and this is a team that is severely short on height. Williams should get around 10 mins per game if only by sheer lack of competition on the depth chart, but he'll offer a solid weakside shotblocker in the paint and he also should be getting his share of boards while on the floor.

Tier "?": The Assigned Players, Future and Present

Ah, the ringers. The pros. The guys who are actually getting paid. As I've said before, the D-League is a different game. It's not always so much about team, as it is about developing yourself as a player. In that vein, the guys the Celtics and Bobcats choose to assign down to the D-League are always going to play ahead of the actual D-Leaguers, regardless of who is the better actual player.

There are 7 players between the Celtics and the Bobcats that could theoretically be assigned to the D-League. Those players are Bill Walker (already there), JR Giddens, Lester Hudson, for the Celtics, and Gerald Henderson, Derrick Brown, DJ Augustine, and Alexis Ajinca for the Bobcats.

Of those 7 guys, Gerald Henderson and DJ Augustine are probably scratches on D-League time, as they both have established roles with significant playing time on the Bobcats.

The Red Claws are currently carrying 11 contracted players, plus Bill Walker. The team saves 2 roster spots per pro team affiliate, so the Celtics can assign one more player and the Bobcats can assign 2.

If you've made it this far, you've read about 2000 words about guys you don't know, so I won't waste your time telling you about the guys you do. Click for breakdowns of the games of Bill Walker (ESPN), JR Giddens (ESPN), Lester Hudson (Draft Express), Alexis Ajinca (ESPN), and Derrick Brown (Draft Express)

The remaining players most likely to be assigned (in your humble bloggers opinion) are JR Giddens for the Celtics and Ajinca and Brown for the Bobcats. Once a player is assigned, they are thrown right into the fire. Bill Walker was assigned on a Sunday and was starting on a Monday, and has started every game since. He's currently averaging 22 points and almost 10 rebounds per game.

Giddens has already proved himself a D-League All-Star, starting 23 games last season for the Utah Flash, and just absolutely filling the stat sheet. If Walker is still on the team when he is assigned, he'll take minutes from Billy Thomas and Tony Bobbitt.

Ajinca, who is by most accounts can be considered a real NBA player in much the same way that Kool-Aid can be considered a 'juice drink', has also shown some promise in the D-League, getting about 12 pts, 7 boards, and 2 blocks per game in 11 games played last season. He'll take all of Mike Williams's minutes and eat into Anthony Terrell's time as well.

If Derrick Brown is assigned to the Red Claws, he'll send Darnell Lazare to the bench. He actually duplicates a lot of Lazare's skill, and he's one guy I could see really flourishing in the D-League.

So when I watch, what do I watch for?

Well, as Celtics fans, first and foremost watch Bill Walker. He's quickly becoming one of the more polarizing Celtics players, but you'll see why he has such a devoted amount of groupies (yours included) on the site very quickly. Beyond that though, there are still plently of things about the D-League that should endear it to the common but discerning basketball fan.

D-League games are messy, and it's not just because of the quality of play. Also, the players (not assigned by a NBA team) in the D-League are signed to yearly contracts, so each season they log they're only getting paid between $15,000 and $25,000 (2007 numbers, probably slightly higher now). They're not playing for the big bucks, they're playing because they want if not a call up from a NBA team, at least a camp invite next summer. Becaue of that when a guy is on the floor, he's trying to make stuff happen. You can't be satisfied being Bruce Bowen or James Posey in the D-League. You have to prove you have a skill a better (and better paying) team will value.

So watch to see what guys like Darnell Lazare and Will Blalock are doing with the time they spend on the floor. They're younger guys who still have to improve their games to get on with a pro club. Watch other guys like Stanley Thomas or Anthony Terrell, who are trying to prove maybe not to NBA teams but to overseas teams that they are worth a lucarative contract. Watch seasoned vets like Tony Bobbitt and Billy Thomas. They're not trying to prove they have the skills, they're trying to prove they STILL have the skills, and that at a moment's notice they're ready for a 10 day contract to be the 9th or 10th guy in a rotation, with no rust. There is drama to be had, you just have to know what you're looking at.

References:

Stats provided from NBA.com, and CREZ Basketball

Images obtained from Maine Red Claws team page

Recapping Last Night's Games, Where Bob MacKinnon Picked Up Where He Left Off

Jon L — Sun, 29 Nov 2009 15:00:13 -0000

Sundiata Gaines was everywhere for the Stampede.

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Idaho Stampede 137, Reno Bighorns 115

New Idaho coach Bob MacKinnon is apparently taking the "Stampede" name seriously, as the team raced their way to 111 possessions in this came. For comparison, NBA pace leader Golden State averages a little over 101 per game. This is nothing new for MacKinnon, whose Colorado 14ers were the fastest team in the league last year, but the front office has done a terrific job of acquiring the right players for that style of play. Sundiata Gaines had a fantastic D-League debut with 31 points on 15 shots (he went 7-11 from the free throw line), 12 assists and four rebounds. He also had six turnovers, but did I mention that his team had 111 possessions? Anthony Tolliver was equally efficient, scoring 26 points off of 14 shots and adding eight rebounds. Mike Gansey played well off the bench, putting up 12-7-5 with two steals and a block in 22 minutes. Overall the Stampede made more than 55 percent of its threes.

Reno hung in for awhile, up until the fourth quarter when they were outscored by 15, with many of those points coming either out on the perimeter or at the free throw line. Desmon Farmer played pretty well, scoring 25 points, grabbing seven rebounds and handing out six assists, but he also shot 0-4 from downtown. Marcus Hubbard must have received an ultimatum not to shoot threes because he had zero outside shots yet again (which is a good thing) and he finished with 20 and seven, but he also picked up five fouls, and I would imagine that a fair amount of Tolliver's production came against him. Rod Benson struggled a bit, picking up three (very) early turnovers (he finished with four overall) and shooting 3-9, though he had five offensive rebounds and six blocks. Outside of Brian Laing (16 points, eight rebounds) the Bighorns got nothing from their bench, with four players combining for nine points, three rebounds, three assists, two blocks (both Cezary Trybanski's) and six turnovers. That doesn't even match Gansey's production. David Noel should play better in the future, and Majic Dorsey is a decent backup point guard, but the Reno starters got next to no help last night.

The rest of the games are after the jump.

Rio Grande Valley Vipers 109, Austin Toros 102

This was a similar story to the other night, but with a different result. Mike Harris played well from the jump and finished with 28 points on 20 shots and 10 rebounds, six of which came on the offensive glass. Frontcourt-mate Joey Dorsey cleaned up as well, scoring 22 points on 9-11 shooting, with seven offensive and 17 total rebounds. Austin's Dwayne Jones finished with decent numbers, but he struggled a little bit early on and I'd imagine Dorsey's defense was a part of that. Jonathan Wallace didn't show a whole lot in the first game, but he dished out seven assists in this one to go with 5-8 shooting. Antonio Anderson came back to earth on offense, shooting 1-9, but he got to the line and made nine of his 11 free throws, and realistically any scoring the Vipers get from him is a bonus anyway. RGV still couldn't hit threes (6-18, and they needed a few to go in late in the game to even reach that mark), but last night that didn't matter

As for Austin, they're 1-1 and have a lot of positives, but I'm really trying hard not to frown on this team. Curtis Jerrells was shaky once again, with more turnovers (six) than assists (four) and needing 19 shots to get 18 points. Marcus Williams used to turn the ball over six times in a game too (occasionally), but he usually had double-digit assists when he did it. Jerrells had six steals, which is a positive, but he might be more of a project than I thought. As I mentioned above, Jones did alright, with 17 points on seven shots (and he was perfect from the free throw line, which is great for him), nine rebounds and two blocks, but he was almost non-existent in the first half. Alonzo Gee is clearly the best player on the team this year, as he had yet another terrific game with 23 points on 12 shots (and went 9-12 from the free-throw line), five rebounds and three steals, but he's not much of an outside shooter. Luckily he knows it and doesn't attempt many (if any) three-pointers, but as Austin's roster stands now they don't have anyone who can consistently hit from downtown. No Marcus Williams, no Malik Hairston, no Blake Ahearn. Other than the ball movement thing (again a problem last night with just 12 assists on 35 field goals), the lack of an outside threat is probably the Toros' biggest concern right now.

Tulsa 66ers 98, Utah Flash 87

Tulsa got even on the strength of its backcourt, with Mustafa Shakur scoring 23 points on 16 shots (though eight of those came at the free throw line) along with six rebounds and four assists and Moses Ehambe contributing 17 points, including being perfect from three-point range and the free-throw line. Larry Owens had a pretty good all-around game 15 points, seven rebounds and four assists. I thought Owens was just okay in Summer League (he was on the New Orleans roster), but he could turn out to be a really nice player for the 66ers. Byron Mullens had 17 rebounds, eight of which came on the offensive end, and while his shooting improved that just means he went 7-16, and he turned the ball over seven times (a variety of ways; traveling, offensive fouls, bad passes) and fouled out in a little over 33 minutes. He needs a looooooooot of work. Speaking of needing work, Latavious Williams! Mostly on the offensive end, as he missed all four of his field goals and bricked three of four foul shots. The rebounding skill is definitely there, however, as he grabbed eight boards in about 12 and a half minutes, and another positive are his zero fouls and one turnover. Ac-cent-tchu-ate the positive.

The Flash suffered from yet another okay-but-not great game from Dontell Jefferson, only this time backup Orien Greene played terribly (he shot 2-12 with three assists and five turnovers). As I say, Jefferson finished with alright numbers, 17 points on 11 shots with six rebounds, four assists and two steals, but it took him awhile to get going and he turned the ball over four times himself. Luke Nevill played almost the exact opposite of the first game, where he didn't rebound particularly well (three boards in 19 minutes), but he shot 6-9. Carlos Wheeler had a nice game beside him with 15 points and 12 rebounds, and Bennet Davis had six and eight off the bench. Jason Richards picked up a lot of assists in college, and he had four in 12 and a half minutes for the Flash. He could do well in a larger role should either Jefferson or Greene get called up

Maine Red Claws 107, Dakota Wizards 97

The Red Claws took a few minutes to get going in this one, missing three of their first four shots, turning the ball over and committing fouls, but they settled down and ended up outscoring the Wizards in the first quarter. One of the reasons they did so was pulling Bill Walker with about five minutes left in the first, as he was rebounding well but defending pretty poorly and doing silly things like shooting three-pointers. Tony Bobbitt came in and played well in his stead, and when Walker came back in the game he was clearly more focused, and finished with 18 points on 6-11 shooting and eight rebounds. Best of all he had just two turnovers, both of which came at the end of the game when the victory was well in hand (and one of them was a palming call, which is sometimes iffy anyway) . Billy Thomas was on fire again last night, hitting four of his five three-pointers on the way to 18 points of his own. Maine did a great job closing this game out, particularly since it was the second night of a back-to-back, making 13 of their 18 shots and outscoring Dakota 32-21 in the 4th quarter

Dakota didn't play particularly poorly, as the moved the ball around fairly well and didn't turn it over too much (outside of four apiece from Romel Beck and Curtis Withers), they got out-rebounded a little bit but not on the offensive end, and those 97 points coming on 88 possessions. Losing your home and season opener to a team playing it's second road game in as many days hurts, though, so I'm sure they're looking for answers. Beck and Maurice Baker shooting a combined 4-13 on three-pointers isn't great, and looking at the game, three of Beck's six misses from long-range came in the fourth quarter when he was undoubtedly trying to get his team back in the game by himself. Beck is 27 years old, so if he hasn't learned by now how rarely that works...well, you all can finish that sentence yourself. Still, there's a fair amount to build on, with Curtis Withers dropping 22 and 10 (including four offensive rebounds) and backup point guard Jason Straight playing pretty well off the bench, and everyone else on the team made 60 percent of their threes. I wouldn't start worrying if I was Dakota.

Los Angeles D-Fenders 103, Albuquerque Thunderbirds 99

That the Thunderbirds lost this one shouldn't be a huge shock, as they were yet another team playing for the second night in a row, but boy did I overestimate Kevin Pittsnogle. (And underrate Michael Fey, which I'll get to in a minute.) Pittsnogle missed his first several shots and finished the game 2-8, including 1-4 from behind the arc. He also didn't rebound or defend nearly as well as he did in the opener. Perhaps the guy who's been out of basketball for over a year isn't who you want starting games at the beginning of the season, eh Coach Coffino? Sticking with Albuquerque, backup center Erek Hansen is a terrific shotblocker (he had two) but still needs work in the other areas (zero points, one rebound, five fouls). This team has some talent (Carlos Powell had 14-4-5, Keith McLeod had 21 points on 13 shots and five assists), and they're to be commended for coming back after starting the game extremely flat (a large amount of which was Pittsnogle), but the center position is anything but solid at this point

As for the D-Fenders who, you know, actually won, this really was about the terrific game Michael Fey had. He started out 3-5 with a hook shot, a dunk and a layup and forced Pittsnogle to the bench five minutes into the game. The rebounding was largely absent (just three in over 27 minutes), but he finished with 22 points on 13 shots and generally caused some problems in the middle. Michael Fey, I officially apologize for saying Kevin Pittsnogle wouldn't have any serious defensive responsibilities in this game. As for the rest of the team, Ryan Forehan-Kelly was his usual solid all-around self with 19 points, four assists, three rebounds, a steal and a block. Deron Washington is still raw offensively (eight points on 11 shots), but he grabbed seven boards and handed out four assists. Horace Wormely ran the offense pretty well with seven assists and only three turnovers, and Dar Tucker had a nice game off the bench with 14 points on 10 shots, six rebounds and three assists.

Iowa Energy 96, Springfield Armor 84

I was right about a few things in this game (though not about James Cripe getting more playing time, just five minutes for him), most notably that Iowa's shooters would probably miss more of their shots while playing a game less than 20 hours after the last one. And, in fact, the Energy made just 13.3 percent of their threes and shot 38 percent overall. So how did they win? A few things. First, they did a great job of getting to the free throw line. There weren't an obscene amount of fouls handed out, and while Iowa had an free throw advantage it wasn't really enough to question the calls. Neither Curtis Stinson nor Mark Tyndale had a great night from the floor, but Stinson sank nine of his 10 freebies and Tyndale went 8-10 from the line, while Pat Carroll made all five of his free throws and Earl Barron went 5-6. Stinson had another nice game overall, with 19 points, 10 rebounds, five assists, three steals and only two turnovers in 45 and a half minutes. That rebounding number isn't an aberration; Stinson is one of the best rebounding point guards in the league, if not the best. Tyndale also played well overall, adding 10 rebounds (five offensive) to go with 14 points

Meanwhile, the Energy were horrible from the free throw line, shooting 53 percent as a team. When I say the team shot horribly, I mostly mean Kentrell Gransberry who missed seven of his ten free throws, though he played decently in other areas picking up six rebounds, three assists and two blocks. JamesOn Curry didn't shoot any free throws at all, which is pretty bad when you need 13 shots to get 13 points. Even worse for the Armor and for Curry were the turnovers. Curry coughed it up seven times, and let's break them down. Four came from bad passes, one came off of a traveling call, and two came from steals by Stinson and Carroll. Even if you give him the traveling call, a lot of those were likely avoidable. Tre Whitted had five turnovers and Adam Harrington added four, and that plus the foul shooting is your ballgame. The Armor have some decent scorers, including Curry, but they desperately need someone who can take care of the ball. Perrin Johnson got into some early foul trouble which limited his effectiveness, which is too bad for Springfield because he needed only five shots to get eight points, and added nine rebounds and four assists. At least the Armor get an "A" for effort (and also for "Armor," I assume).

Previewing Tonight's Action, with some Rematches

Jon L — Sat, 28 Nov 2009 18:23:04 -0000

David Bell and the Dakota Wizards begin the D-League season tonight against the Maine Red Claws

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Now that the D-League season is officially underway, it's time for the rest of the teams to get in on the action. Well, except for the fact that three of these games are rematches of last night's contests. But you know, other than that.

Iowa Energy at Springfield Armor

What, again? Last night's boxscore still isn't correct, but based on what's there Curtis Stinson and Pat Carroll had very good games, which makes sense given the Armor's lack of perimeter defenders at the moment. Perrin Johnson shot the ball well (early on, anyway) for Springfield, and he could turn out to be the team's main offensive weapon rather than JamesOn Curry. I also wonder for how long Kentrell Gransberry will start over James Cripe. Cripe's pretty athletic and had a nice game (again, early on at least), while Gransberry can do some nice things, but he also doesn't have the most stamina in the world and almost no offensive game to speak of. He's been working hard over the last few seasons, I'm just not sure he's starter material yet. Both of these teams will probably be a little tired given the game's early start (it's actually underway as I write this), and I certainly don't expect another blowout. Springfield could hang with the Energy if tired legs don't let shots go down.

Maine Red Claws at Dakota Wizards

Maine also could come out sluggish, given that they also played last night and had some (relatively minor) travel on top of it. Add to that the fact that the Wizards have the defenders who can slow Bill Walker down. Maine's hope should lie in the fact that Dakota doesn't really have a ruthlessly efficient scorer in the mold of Reggie Williams, so if Romel Beck decides to take the Red Claws on himself or if David Bell's shots don't go down the Red Claws could stay in the game. Will Blalock also hasn't impressed yet this season, but he's talented and could be due for a nice game for Maine.

Utah Flash at Tulsa 66ers

Yet another rematch, and while I've tried to be hopeful for the teams that got blown out last night (like Springfield and Maine), I'm not sure the 66ers can pull this one off either. They have some nice pieces - Moses Ehambe was scoring pretty well before Tulsa had to put up a lot of shots to try and get back in the game, Keith Clark is capable of putting some nice games together, Mustafa Shakur looks like a nice pickup at point guard - but Utah is one of the most loaded teams in the league right now, and they have a lot of frontcourt talent to throw at Byron Mullens and keep him shooting as poorly as he did last night. The fact is, the Flash won by 15 last night without getting great games from Dontell Jefferson or Luke Nevill (offensively, anyway), so there's even some room for improvement for them. Tulsa should improve over last year's poor season, but it's not hard to see them starting 0-2.

Rio Grande Valley Vipers at Austin Toros

Quin Snyder is a good coach, and Curtis Jerrells is a talented point guard, so it's entirely possibly that Austin will improve on last night's game (did I mention that they won?) and share the ball a little more, but Rio Grande Valley should be mad that they lost last night when so much went right for them. I'm still not crazy about the Vipers' three-point shooters, but they should do better than 21 percent. Joey Dorsey also should come out motivated to perform better offensively and also take some of those rebounds away from Dwayne Jones. If the Vipers play just a little bit smarter and a.) not turn the ball over so much and b.) not foul so much, they could split this mini-series.

Los Angeles D-Fenders at Albuquerque Thunderbirds

The good news for Kevin Pittsnogle is that the D-Fenders don't really have a center who will demand a lot of his defensive attention, and also that it's hard to miss all of your shots two games in a row. At some point one of them is going to go in. Los Angeles also doesn't have a lot of players who can challenge Pittsnogle's outside shots, either because they're more post-oriented (Longar Longar) or because they're not tall enough (pretty much everyone else on the roster). I know the Thunderbirds won in a walk last night with Pittsnogle playing terribly on the offensive end, but he could end up being the key player for them tonight. Ryan Forehan-Kelly and Deron Washington both came off the bench in LA's preseason game, which isn't necessarily how I'd do it, but I also would expect them to play a little bit more. Forehan-Kelly can help out in a lot of areas, and the D-Fenders could use his rebounding ability against Albuquerque, and Washington is more talented than a few of the guys who got the start ahead of him. This game is itself a rematch of that preseason contest when Albuquerque won, 83-77, but even factoring in having played last night the Thunderbirds could easily repeat that outcome.

Reno Bighorns at Idaho Stampede

Finally, a game in which neither team played last night. Idaho looked very impressive in the preseason, although I wouldn't expect Roberto Bergersen to make all of his threes again. There will be some nice point guard matchups with Russell Robinson vs. Sundiata Gaines and Lanny Smith vs. Majic Dorsey. I'd expect to see Marcus Hubbard spend some time checking Anthony Tolliver, at least while Tolliver is out on the perimeter, as Rod Benson and Cezary Trybanski are better at defending the post. Given the pace at which Idaho plays now, Reno's Desmon Farmer could put up some really nice numbers, though he should be careful that they don't come at the expense of the rest of the team's offense and he needs to be careful about taking care of the ball. That also goes for Hubbard, who should build on his solid preseason game and not get the itch to start jacking up threes just because the other team is doing it. This could be the best game of the night.

Last Night in the D-League, Where Potential Meets Blowouts

Jon L — Sat, 28 Nov 2009 14:00:26 -0000

John Bryant had a nice D-League debut for the BayHawks (via www.slamonline.com)

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I never did get Futurecast up and running last night, but I was able to follow along reasonably well for most of the games. There were definitely some flat teams, as five of the six opening night contests were decided by double digits. Yikes. Regardless, I'm definitely excited that the D-League season is back on and that we have stuff to watch and talk about now. So let's get to it.

Erie BayHawks 85, Fort Wayne Mad Ants 77

I called made this game the main course in my Thanksgiving semi-related preview (I hope everyone had a good Thanksgiving, by the way), and I guess the fact that this was the closest score justifies that. The game wasn't even really that close, though, as Erie had a 49-34 lead at halftime. John Bryant had a fantastic game for Erie, with 16 points on 7-12 shooting, 14 rebounds, three blocks, three assists and two steals. He had five fouls, which is something to work on, but that's a pretty great debut. Jackie Manuel played pretty much out of his mind, with 18 points on nine shots, nine rebounds and four steals. He had six turnovers and five fouls, and most of his production came in the first half, but otherwise it's something to build on.

For the Mad Ants, I'm really, really confused. Ron Howard, Brandon Cotton and Sean Sonderleiter led the team in field goal attempts, which is mind-boggling with guys like Rob Kurz and Ryan Ayers on the roster. Kurz didn't attempt a single field goal! And this is a guy who started in the NBA! Howard is a good defender, but he should never take 16 shots in a game, and he showed why by making just five of them. He got to the free throw line and made eight of his nine shots there, but otherwise I can't imagine this is the offense Joey Meyer envisioned. I should say that Sonderleiter played pretty well, improving his rebounding in the second half and finishing with 21 points (on 11 shots) and 10 boards, and was able to draw some fouls himself. Jeff Potter has been writing that Sonderleiter has been putting in work this offseason and looking pretty good in camp, and the results are there. I still think this team missed Chris Hunter, though, not just in taking some rebounds away from Bryant but in taking shots away from Howard as well.

Hit the jump for the rest of the night's games.

Sioux Falls Skyforce 112, Maine Red Claws 95

Reggie Williams is going to be a fantastic scorer in the D-League. I know I've said it before, but he made me say it again by scoring 29 points on 13 shots to go with four rebounds and four assists. He's not particularly athletic but he's crazily efficient and does a good job of getting to the free-throw line. Keith Brumbaugh and Joe Krabbenhoft each had pretty good games, Brumbaugh scoring 18 points and grabbing eight rebounds and Krabbenhoft picking up nine points, eight rebounds, three assists and two steals. Those rebounds were key for each of them as starting center Greg Stiemsma had a pretty terrible game.

NBA assignee Bill Walker played, well, like an NBA assignee should with25 points on 18 shots and 11 rebounds. He also led his team with five turnovers, though, and that likely made the difference in the game. The Red Claws weren't out-rebounded by a large margin, they did a decent job of distributing the ball (15 assists on 34 field goals, which isn't spectacular but is okay) and they shot just two fewer free throws than their opponents, but they turned the ball over 19 times to the Skyforce's 12. Billy Thomas had his three-pointer going, making three of four shots from behind the arc and finishing with 18 points overall. Stanley Thomas and Abdulai Jalloh each had 17 points, on 11 and 10 shots respectively. And before you ask, I know almost nothing about Jalloh. It looks like he played at St. Joseph's where he did pretty well (even being the team's second-best rebounder at 6'1"), then he transferred to James Madison and was terrible.

Austin Toros 93, Rio Grande Valley Vipers 82

This was sort of the opposite of the Erie-Fort Wayne game in that it was closer than a double-digit win would indicate. The Vipers actually outscored the Toros in the second quarter and were down by just one at the half, but Alonzo Gee finished with 24 points on 15 shots and Dwayne Jones had 11 points and 12 rebounds, nine of which came on the offensive end. Curtis Jerrells was a perfect 12-12 from the free throw line, but he shot just 3-11 from the field and finished with just three assists in 40 minutes to go along with six turnovers. Wherefore art thou, Marcus Williams? Jerrells, and by extension the Toros, are going to have to figure this out, because even though they won the signs weren't entirely positive, and that starts with the ball distribution. Seven assists on 32 made field goals is pretty terrible. The team also made just one three-pointer out of nine attempts and was out-rebounded 39-48.

Rio Grande Valley really could've had this one. Why didn't they? For starters, Joey Dorsey struggled on the offensive end, shooting 3-9, and he also had a hard time handling Jones on the glass early on. Kurt Looby came in during the first half and fared better, and ended up with six rebounds in 18 and a half minutes. Dorsey's board work improved, and he ultimately grabbed 15 rebounds (eight offensive), but that was one early struggle for the Vipers. Another was three-point shooting. I will probably mention this a little too often early on this season, but new coach Chris Finch has said that he prefers an up-tempo, three-point-heavy offense, but the Vipers shot just 3-14 from behind the arc last night. Antonio Anderson led all scorers with 28 points on 19 shots, which is nice, particularly from a guy known more for his defense, but he was 1-5 on threes and turned the ball over six times. This team might need to trade for some outside shooting, because from what I've seen in this game and in the preseason, it's just not there in-house.

Utah Flash 100, Tulsa 66ers 85

Dontell Jefferson shook off some early struggles (he started the game with a missed three and a pair of turnovers) to finish with 18 points on 11 shots and five rebounds, though he also had just two assists. Backups Orien Greene and Jason Richards helped out in that department, with Greene picking up five assists to go with 17 points on nine shots, eight rebounds and three steals. If he can bring that kind of production off the bench on a consistent basis then the Flash should be set in the backcourt, for as long as Jefferson is around anyway. Richards added three assists in 13 and a half minutes. Luke Nevill and Carlos Wheeler weren't particularly efficient offensively, with Wheeler needing eight shots to get 10 points and Nevill scoring 11 points on 12 shots, but they did pretty well with the other stuff. Wheeler grabbed 10 boards and had two blocks while Nevill added nine and four, respectively. Bennet Davis added nine rebounds in 26 minutes off the bench. Garrett Siler got a DNP for some reason.

Tulsa has a decent starting point guard, Mustafa Shakur, they just need a backup. Eight of the team's ten assists came from Shakur, and Larry Owens was the only other player with any (two, if my math is correct). NBA assignee Byron Mullens struggled with his shot early one, and he finished with 14 points on 17 shots, five fouls and four turnovers (though he added 10 rebounds). Keith Clark played pretty well, with 14 points on eight shots, seven rebounds and four steals. Latavious Williams played a little under 11 minutes off the bench, and while he didn't put up a single shot attempt he still had three rebounds and a block, which is decent production, particularly since he also didn't turn the ball over or commit a single foul. It's always good to temper expectations, anyway.

Albuquerque Thunderbirds 102, Bakersfield Jam 81

So this game was as ugly as I feared it would be, although it didn't really get that way until the second half. The good news for the Thunderbirds is that Carlos Powell is good and on their team, as he finished with 20 points on 13 shots, nine rebounds, five assists and only one foul in 37 minutes. The other good news is that their centers are pretty good rebounders, as Kevin Pittsnogle, Erek Hansen and Chad Toppert combined for 18 boards. The bad news is that their centers aren't what you'd call "good" offensively. Pittsnogle was particularly bad, shooting 0-10, and five of those shots were three-pointers. He's played well in the past, but at this point he's been away from the game for so long that it will take some time for him to get his game back. Hansen shot 2-8 and Toppert was 2-7, so the alternatives weren't much better. (Okay, Toppert is actually a guard and not a center. This is why I shouldn't write these things at 2 am.) Yaroslav Korolev proved me wrong for at least one game, finishing with 15 points on seven shots, five rebounds, two steals and only one turnover. Good game outta him.

For the Jam, yikes. Where to start. First of all, it's never a good thing to have a better three-point percentage (.435) than overall shooting percentage (.319). Robert Swift had a decent rebounding outing, with 11 boards, but he was pretty much a non-entity offensively with four points on 1-5 shooting. He also picked up five fouls and turned the ball over four times in 30 minutes. This is another team without a point guard, and they mustered just eight assists on 22 made field goals. Justin Hawkins shot just 3-14, though he made up for it somewhat with eight rebounds and 9-10 shooting from the free-throw line. And all isn't entirely bleak, as Reece Gaines and Jared Newson did fairly well offensively, with 19 points on nine shots for the former and 18 points on nine shots and four rebounds for the latter. Still, these are your starting guards and they best they can give you is a pair of assists from Gaines? And the backup PG Lance Hurdle gives you a zero in that department? Yikes.

Iowa Energy 106, Springfield Armor 73

Ahhh, it's good to have pro basketball back in Springfield, Massachusetts. The boxscore/play-by-play for this game was acting up all night, and as of my writing this the stats are still stuck in the second quarter. I'll update it whenever the D-League fixes their site.

It's (Almost) D-League Opening Night, Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhh!

Jon L — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 20:01:35 -0000

I couldn't get a picture of Byron Mullens with a pilgrim hat on, so this will have to do.

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It's here! It's here! Remember to join us at 7 pm eastern/6 central/5 mountain/4 pacific/3 Alaska/2 Hawaii/8 atlantic as I Open Source Live Blog the opening night games. Tonight's the night, this is the thread.

Yes, yes, I know that the season starts two days from now, and that there's a preseason game tonight (LA vs. Albuquerque), but because tomorrow is Thanksgiving (perhaps you were aware?), and because few people will be reading the internet tomorrow or possibly Friday (when everyone will be wearing black all day, from what I understand) I thought I'd get this opening night preview up this afternoon for your perusal. Don't worry, we will have an OSLB on Friday as I try to watch parts of all six games on Futurecast, and I'll try to catch any breaking news that might come up between now and then. Because of the holiday I thought I'd give this preview a Thanksgiving theme, but I never got farther than naming the games after various food items. Oh, and there might be some terrible puns thrown in as well. Enjoy!

Soup: Iowa Energy at Springfield Armor

For the first game we'll go with a starter. Something with butternut squash perhaps. The Armor didn't exactly impress in their preseason game the other day, and although Craig Austrie was a decent defender in college, the Energy simply have too many shooters to be able to shut down their perimeter game entirely. I'd say they also have the advantage down low, as Earl Barron should be able to shut down whatever the Springfield big men try to get going. Things aren't entirely bleak for the Armor, I suppose, as JamesOn Curry could get his shot going early and score a bunch, but overall the Armor's roster seems a bit rickety. But hey, pro basketball is back in Springfield, am I right?

The main course, sides and dessert after the jump.

Turkey: Erie BayHawks at Fort Wayne Mad Ants

These two teams are something of regional rivals but also recent trading partners, having swapped Alade Aminu and Rob Kurz during the draft. Point guard is probably the weakest position for each team, as Erie plays Donell Taylor out of position and Fort Wayne alternates Kyle MacAlarney and Andres Sandoval. The Mad Ants may still be without Chris Hunter, since although CJ Watson is expected to be back for the Warriors tonight I don't know what the timetable will be for waiving Hunter and him getting back to Indiana. Sean Sonderleiter and Anthony Kent each played decently when these two teams met in the preseason, but they picked up nine fouls between them and given their track records I'd expect similar troubles on Friday. These two teams have a lot of talent, though, with some guys who have played in the NBA (Taylor, Rob Kurz), some with pretty good college careers (Ryan Ayers, John Bryant), some with a track record of D-League success (Ivan Harris, Ron Howard) and some with a lot of raw talent (Aminu). Overall this should be a good main course for the evening.

Stuffing: Utah Flash at Tulsa 66ers

Even when it's not actually stuffed, I still call it stuffing instead of dressing. And no, calling this game the stuffing isn't a Garrett Siler weight joke. Although I suppose it could be. Anyway, I like Utah's roster a lot, and they have a stacked (or should I say stuffed? Again, not a Garrett Siler weight joke) frontcourt. Tulsa has a lot of forwards too, they just have a little less upside. Although, I suppose this is the official start to the Latavious Williams era, and it it's anything like the unofficial start we could be in for a treat. The Flash have some decent defenders up front, so perhaps they'll keep him in check, but it's exciting that we're having this conversation about a guy right out of high school, isn't it? There's also the chance that this game will get ugly, as both teams had problems distributing the ball in the preseason. I expect Dontell Jefferson to rebound from yesterday's performance, though, and without Kyle Weaver now, Tulsa's backcourt is a bit thin. Mustafa Shakur has played well in Europe, but he'll likely be guarded by Jefferson who can lock him down. I'm also intrigued to see how Byron Mullens looks. There's a lot to like about this game.

Roasted Chestnuts: Maine Red Claws at Sioux Falls Skyforce

I don't know about you, but I think the Skyforce have found a chestnut in Reggie Williams. Get it? Because he's good. If the preseason game against Dakota is any indication, in fact he'll be very good. He's a scorer, but even more than that he's an efficient scorer. I don't expect Will Blalock or Bill Walker to play as poorly for the Red Claws as they did in the preseason, but overall I just don't like that roster, and if Paul Harris and Noel Felix remain out with injuries, both Williams and Raymond Sykes could go nuts (unintentional) for Sioux Falls.

Sweet Potatoes: Rio Grande Valley Vipers at Austin Toros

These sweet potatoes don't have marshmallows on them, because that's gross. I'm actually not having sweet potatoes this year, just like I'm not going to the Toros game (so that I can watch the rest of them on Futurecast). That works as a parallel, right? Anyway, this is another pairing that's a repeat of the preseason, and to be honest I expect a similar result. I expect Curtis Jerrells and Dwyane Jones both to be a little better than they was in the last game, but other than that Alonzo Gee should play well again, as should Joey Dorsey. I'm still not what to make of Kurt Looby's bad game last weekend; it could be either a fluke or a sign that his game just doesn't fit Chris Finch's system. The other thing to watch will be the point guard play, with Jerrells and RGV's ~~Mike Harris~~ Garrett Temple both being borderline-to-probable NBA players (though "sources" in the comments section tell me Jonathan Wallace will get the start at PG) and Vipers backup Kenny Dawkins having a good college career. Also keep your eye on Austin's Russell Carter, who was named all-Big East as a senior and who shot 7-9 in these teams' preseason matchup.

Who Cares What Kind of Pie: Bakersfield Jam at Albuquerque Thunderbirds

I gave this team the dessert not only because it's the last one of the night but also because I don't like pie and I have a feeling I won't like watching this game. Bakersfield's roster looks rough, particularly with Amara Sy out with an injury. Robert Swift could have an easier time since he's not going up against a player of Rod Benson's caliber (though I thought Erek Hansen was a good pick for the T-Birds), but other than that I'm not sure who's going to guard Carlos Powell, and while I don't expect the Jam to shoot quite as poorly as they did yesterday I'm not entirely sold on Reece Gaines or Lance Hurdle. ~~Things would obviously better if Sy came back to play, as he's been an efficient scorer in Europe, but he's not a great shooter either.~~ (Sy was just released by the team due to injury, and they expect him back in about two weeks. Maybe their arena will even be completed by then.) But hey, Kevin Pittsnogle! That's something to get excited about, right? Right? Sigh. This one could get tough to watch.