SB Nation User Blog: Hirschof

Artest admits drinking during halftime of NBA games.

Hirschof — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 19:17:29 -0000

Artest admits drinking during halftime of NBA games.

Ron-Ron McLoopy Pants has scored again.

"Ron Artest, the often-controversial Los Angeles Lakers forward, told a magazine interviewer he used to drink alcohol at halftime of NBA games." -BSPN

He also slams Joey C. but I can't find any fault with that. Nope.

Warning: Blair Rebounding (Wallpaper)

Hirschof — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 15:48:16 -0000

BLAAAAIIIIRRR!

Ever since Jalberto showed up, I've been suffering from the photoshop equivalent of penile inadequacy and shame (thanks a bunch...).

Hirschof on that fateful day.

I went through all of the stages of grief: Denial, anger, binge drinking, depression, more anger, listening to Linkin Park, and reluctant acceptance. Now its finally time to move forward. I think I'm ready.

In an attempt to prove my myself to be somewhat worthy to step onto the same digital block as Jal, I present, Warning: Blair Rebounding.

1600 x 1200

1280 x 1024

1024 x 768

Background:Last week, BSPN was going over the top NBA rookies. Mentioned (briefly) was DeBeast and mixed into the 20-25 second highlight package was a series of vicious rebounds and aggressive put-backs.

The ~~boy~~ ~~man~~ beast needs a warning label. So I started to make something that youmight see on a hot iron, a cup of McDonald's coffee, or your wife's sister (or your husband's brother). While browsing google for texture images, I came across a warning with a long stick figure in falling motion. Sound familiar?

Blair's Ippon Seoi Nage needs work but I'm sure as hell not going to tell him...

ANYWAYS. From that point on I started working on a street warning sign. For your game thread posting pleasure...

From there I thought I could work that into a wallpaper and now here I am (submitting this nonsense to you). Many thanks to BlaseE who critiqued the living hell out of my work and offered a few suggestions that immediately found their way into the final result. Much appreciation.

Thank you.

Spurs Exercise Option On George Hill

Hirschof — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 22:12:33 -0000

The San Antonio Spurs announced today that they have picked up the option for the 2010-11 season for guard George Hill.

In his rookie season Hill appeared in 77 games, averaging 5.7 points, 2.1 rebounds and 1.8 assists in 16.5 minutes. As a starter he averaged 9.7 points, 3.4 assists and 3.3 rebounds in 27.9 minutes in seven games while filling in for the injured Tony Parker. During that stretch Hill posted his four highest scoring games of the season: scored 20 points in 29:28 minutes on 11/19 vs. Denver, had a career-high 23 points in 22:37 minutes on 11/21 vs. Utah, tallied 20 points in 28:36 minutes on 11/24 at Memphis and had 19 points – along with a career-best 11 rebounds – in 32:40 minutes on 11/26 vs. Chicago.

An early entry candidate in the 2008 NBA Draft, Hill was selected by the Spurs in the first round with the 26th overall pick out of IUPUI. He is the first player school history to be selected in an NBA Draft and appear in an NBA game.

-- via Spurs.com

The Dallas Maverick Effect. (spursreport.com)

Hirschof — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 12:35:26 -0000

The Dallas Maverick Effect. (spursreport.com)

Poorly disguised Nash joins Beijing pick-up game

Hirschof — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 13:01:20 -0000

Poorly disguised Nash joins Beijing pick-up game

"Suns guard Steve Nash showed up in disguise at a Beijing pick-up game over the weekend, hoping to shoot some hoops incognito."

Oh, Nash... too much Arizona sun?

Stephen Jackson Sweepstakes? (48moh post)

Hirschof — Mon, 31 Aug 2009 12:35:41 -0000

EDIT: BlasE's post already started a conversation on this question but I'll leave this up just in case some of you people need to be updated on 48 moh.

From our soulmates over at 48 minutes of hell.

As many of you may already know, Stephen Jackson has stated publicly that he would like to be traded by the Golden State Warriors. He mentioned the Texas Three-Step, Cleveland, and New York as potential landing spots. This all begs the question: should the Spurs attempt to trade for Stephen Jackson?

Well, PtR junkies... should they?

Jackson back in silver and black? Some of us would be shocked too.

Power Rankings (Sports Illustrated) and your Top 5 thoughts.

Hirschof — Thu, 27 Aug 2009 12:47:05 -0000

Power rankings by SI's Chris Mannix. We all know the five teams at the top of the list but I'm a little surprised with the order.

Who are your top five teams?

My thoughts on Mannix's top five

5. Magic. (EDITED) Any questions the sports world has about Dwight Howard should be answered this season. I'm not saying they will, I'm saying they should. Howard needs to prove that he is more than an athletic freak of nature. They let Turkey-Glue walk but traded for Carter. Carter is a better player but Hedo is a better team mate. Also, the Magic traded away valuable depth in Alston and C. Lee for Carter. They did create a solid starting lineup with the addition of Carter but who do they have on the bench? Past Bass and Gortat their fornt court is weak and they might as well hold walk-on tryouts for the back court. Magic fans need to pray their starters stay healthy. I expect this team to dive into mid-season salary dumps.

4. Celtics. A rich man's Spurs. This title-contender was bought instead of built but results are results. This is a great team that solidifed their bench (front court is scary) and will be playing with a chip on their shoulder. If you ignore the looming age and health issues (their "window" is smaller than the Spurs), the finals should easily be Celtics - Lakers/Spurs. Celtics/Spurs should tie for #2.

3. Lakers. Really? 3 spot? Regardless of what people think of the Artest signing (Yes, he can accept a #3 role in LA), I don't think you can knock the 08-09 champions off the top of the list. And I really don't like how they're behind Mannix's #2 team... a team with questionable depth, the current albatross of title hope's, and a super nova prima donna whose pros can't seem to outweight his cons.

2. Cavaliers. This team should be ranked fourth. The team made a flurry of offseason moves with Anthony Parker (easily the best move), Jamario Moon (athletic and versatile), and Leon Powe. However, the aquisiton of Snaq throws a wrench into the gameplan/play style/chemistry of this team. Also, who is going to come in to play while the Big Cuyahoga gets a breather and tweet time? Z? Powe? Watkins? This team is loaded with good/great players at the 1, 2, and 3 but lacks a compatible front court.

1. Yay, Spurs love.

I don't like it.

I prefer the usual "Yeah, they're great but..." from the media. There are also quite a few questions with this team. Health, chemistry, backcourt depth, matchups, etc., etc., etc... everything we've already talked about.

On paper? Phenomenal. On the court? Its going to take a bit before we (hopefully) see Holt's vision of Frankenstein's monster.

(Pesonal) Four things I prefer with the Spurs: Little bit behind at half time (they tend to cough up half time leads but come out on fire when behind), finish #1 in the division, #2 in the conference, and ignored by mainstream sports media.

So... I have it:

5. Magic

4. Cavaliers

2. Celtics/Spurs (I can't decide)

1. Lakers.

Poll

Who is #1 in your preseason/worthless rankings?

Spurs, baby.

42 votes

I hate them... I loath them... but the Lakers.

47 votes

Cleveland Shaqaliers.

1 votes

Oh oh oh, its Magic!

0 votes

The Big Green Machine, Boston.

3 votes

Fool! My #1 spot belongs to someone else.

4 votes

97 votes | Poll has closed

Wallpaper: Vitruvian Manu (updated)

Hirschof — Wed, 19 Aug 2009 21:19:11 -0000

BlaseE asked that I submit a wallpaper to help contribute to his and LatinD's wishes for new desktop decor.

LatinD and I want to make wallpapers a more regular post, so if you have an idea, post it and LatinD will feature it on the Wallpapers page linked on the left. It doesn't have to be explicitly Spurs related either. You can focus on PTR or something PTR related.

While mine isn't shiny and sharp as BlaseE's submission or as fiery as LatinD's... I hope this submission will find a temporary home on a few screens.

May I present to you, Vitruvian Manu:

(1024 x 768)

---

Update

1280 x 1024

1600 x 1200

Apologies for any distortion (shouldn't be much) Next time I will start at 1600 x 1200 and go down. I went the wrong direction.

---

Thoughts/comments/critiques/etc.? Please let me know if you see anything I should fix. I will post different sizes later.

Credit

Thanks to Sungo for the Pathology of Manu and to the awesome dude(ette?) who drew Obi Wan Ginobili.

Oh, and Leonardo Da Vinci. I hope he doesn't sue me.

'09 - '10 Salary Cap and 2010 Free Agency Scare

Hirschof — Wed, 08 Jul 2009 18:12:18 -0000

The salary cap for the NBA has been established at $57.7 million, nearly $1 million less from '08 - '09. The real story traveling around the league is the estimated drop, $6 - 10 million, from this season's cap to the '10 - '11 salary cap.

The small to medium market teams that have spent the last year or two clearing cap are now faced with an even tougher battle of signing big name free agents in 2010. Overvalued players looking for a big payday will be even more likely to resign with their current team.

The Spurs were already minor players in 2010 prior to the Dick Jefferson trade. If the Spurs would have stayed put and protected their numbers, the dramatic drop in cap would have certainly killed any chance of adding a "big name" or any kind of upgrade to the roster without a major shakeup.

RC, Pop, and Holt's (magnificent bastards) decision to improve this offseason (thank FSM) is looking even better.

Additional note: The luxury tax for '09 - '10 is at $69.92 million. That is almost a $2 million drop from last season.

Marcin Gortat - Worth the MLE?

Hirschof — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 21:27:57 -0000

Magic Unlikely To Match Offers For Gortat

The Magic aren't expected to be able to match offers for restricted free-agent center Marcin Gortat.

Gortat made just $770,000 this past season, and Orlando general manager Otis Smith said that the team would be out of the running to retain him if the offers "were north of 5 [$5 million per season.]"

Houston seems like a possible fit for Gortat with news of Yao Ming's latest serious health setback.

So... if the Spurs can't sign the forum favorites of Wallace and McDyess, is Marcin Gortat worth the MLE?

timvp of spurstalk.com listed him at #5 out of his top 25 list.

If the Spurs want to roll the dice, Gortat could be an interesting gamble. In limited minutes, Gortat has been quite impressive. His rebounding is off the charts and he blocks shots at a very high rate.

Even though he's a big and strong seven-footer, Gortat can move his feet. He's also capable of running the court and finishes with authority around the basket. The native of Poland oftentimes did a remarkable Dwight Howard impersonation during his minutes on the court.

That said, there are a lot of risks regarding Gortat. First of all, he's a very, very limited offensive player. He's a poor passer and hit a total of three shots from the perimeter all season. He doesn't seem to have a good feel of the game when it comes to spacing and knowledge of where to be to help out his teammates.

Increasing the risk is the gimmick system he played in while with the Magic. He was almost always surrounded by four players who are best out on the perimeter. With the Spurs, he'd spend a lot of time playing with teammates who thrive near the rim. Could he adjust? There's a chance. But there's also a chance that the Magic's system accentuated his strengths and camouflaged his weaknesses.