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The Works: Oscar on LeBron, Depressing Anthony Randolph Trade Rumors

September 07, 2010   Bethlehem Shoals and Tom Ziller   No comments

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In The Works today: when “out-athleting” makes sense, but doesn’t; Kevin Love, secret weapon or boring garbageman?; and the heartbreaking rumor of a potential Anthony Randolph trade.

But first, Oscar Robertson speaks truth on LeBron James.

The Great Cynic: The ranks of basketball royalty haven’t been universally opposed to the Miami Three — it’s just seemed like it. Legendary former Georgetown coach John Thompson spoke highly of LeBron James’ decision to join the Heat, and even Isiah Thomas — a not-so-undercover Knicks operative — appreciated that LeBron exercised his right to choose.

Most other Hall-of-Famers who have spoken, though, have panned the move. Michael Jordan razzed LeBron for not being willing to do it on his own; Magic Johnson and Larry Bird also slipped on their tough-guy pants to assert they would never have teamed up with a top rival in the quest for glory. But all three of those legends are currently affiliated with teams in some capacity — Magic as a partial owner, Jordan as a majority owner and Bird as a general manager.

 

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The Works: Who Is Kevin Durant?

September 03, 2010   Bethlehem Shoals and Tom Ziller   No comments

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In WNBA‘s super-heavyweight Storm-Mercury bout; the World Championship in maps; and readers teach us more about Ramadan.

But first, who is the real Kevin Durant, and why do we care so much?

The Man Who Wasn’t There: Dateline, this week on the Internet. Tommy Craggs, writing for that hotbed of skepticism Slate, asked whether we’ve gone too far with the whole Kevin Durant, Goodness and Light, thing. Nate Jones, social media expert for the Goodwins — Durant’s representation — weighed in the next day, via Twitter, with his thoughts on the article.

The first leg of disclosure: I am a big fan of Craggs, especially his writing for Slate; I think Jones is one of the best at what he does, and frequently consult him when social media issues invade the NBA news cycle.

The rest of it: I consider both of them friends, or at least web-pals. Tommy and I get together when I’m in New York, and Nate and I have been on-and-off colleagues for years. I finally met him in person the other night. Then I accidentally knocked over a table on press row at Key Arena. It was the table’s fault.

So yeah, it goes without saying that I have to give my two cents about this one.

 

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The Works: Invisible Danny Granger and the Celtics’ Psych Ward

September 02, 2010   Bethlehem Shoals and Tom Ziller   No comments

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Today in The Works, we wonder how all those high-maintenance Celtics manage to get along, provide reassurance for fans of Canadian basketball and delve into why NBA Muslims fast during Ramadan while those at FIBA are not.

But first, a Pacers star’s weird entrance into the public arena.

Danny GrangerGive Granger Some: Danny Granger called Europe, and Europeans, stinky. It was such big news that it crashed through the glass ceiling that usually hinders small market stars and ended up on Huffington Post.

This might be the most famous Granger has ever been; when the Pacers traded for Darren Collison, few bothered to note that a versatile, skilled All-Star forward in his prime suddenly had a potential stud to set him up.

Wednesday, Kelly Dwyer asked if the problem with Indiana wasn’t one of perception. Namely, that its fans, and to some degree all of us, simply refuse to accept incremental progress — ever since a legit contender came unraveled in the wake of the Brawl. Landing Collison was enormous for Granger, and Larry Bird’s job security. Brandon Rush‘s drug suspension, which brings back memories of those old evil Pacers and proves that Bird is failing, resonates more. It’s more familiar, less work, and less of a risk than realizing that this team isn’t there yet, but it’s closer than you think.

 

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The Works: Brandon Jennings, Sub-Media Darling

September 01, 2010   Bethlehem Shoals and Tom Ziller   No comments

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Today in The Works: how Carmelo Anthony could set himself up with a wonderful future and why losing Tony Parker uncovered France’s special talents.

But first, Brandon Jennings blazes more path.

Brandon JenningsNew Media Somethingstar: Quietly, or at least not on a register we’re used to taking seriously, Brandon Jennings has been huge lately. I know some readers think I believe too ardently in the power of the interwebs, most notably the silly 2.0 version that kids use on the electric bus. There have also been some disagreements in the past between myself and Mr. Jennings, namely, I am several years older than him and don’t quite always get his meaning.

But in a summer that has seen LeBron James simply killed for his misadventures with television and virtual print, Jennings has used Web 2.0 to set an agenda and hone his image — all without ever seeming to try too hard.

He has used Twitter and gossip sites to lambast the Heat and other prospective super-teams; was filmed playing with fellow young turks Stephen Curry and Tyreke Evans in some summer run that, compared to Miami’s corporate gigantism and Team USA’s delicate national interests, was practically the raw uncut; slyly asserted that sneaker interests played some role in who made Team USA; and finally, danced to Lady Gaga even if he totally looked like a dancer from Madonna’s Truth or Dare.

If you don’t think Jennings is busy constructing a more layered, intricate public persona, well, you’re not on the right frequency. Jennings’s frequently shifting, sometimes locked, Twitter accounts aren’t so different from pirate webcasts or disposable cell phones. The low-risk, high-reward world of social media — where an item can live and die in a matter of hours, and imperfect archiving means you’re always left with some form of ghost — is the future of athletes-in-public. Unlike more durable “stories,” there’s an element of unpredictability, fan input, and freedom that makes it at once exhilarating and potentially dangerous.

Brandon Jennings knows how to play the game like no other. These are a few of his stories.

 

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The Works: Tiago Splitter, the Ho-Hum Superstar Import

August 31, 2010   Bethlehem Shoals and Tom Ziller   No comments

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In The Works today: Kevin Durant, America’s one-man band, and how to make the World Championship more like the NCAA tournament.

But first, a look at the most forgettable superstar import the NBA may ever see.

Tiago SplitterA Spur’s Spur: Tiago Splitter won’t be a superstar in the NBA — he’ll be good, maybe fantastic, but not a superstar by any definition. But he’s certainly a superstar in Spain, where he’s played professionally for years, and Brazil, where he’s currently leading his home nation on an escapade through the bright lights of the FIBA World Championship’s Group B.

Monday, Splitter led Brazil to a near-upset of ever-hulking Team USA, totaling 14 points and 10 rebounds and generally making everyone in America rue the day they trusted Lamar Odom to handle a pretty straightforward pick-and-roll.

Splitter is due in San Antonio in one month’s time, joining the team which drafted him two years ago with the understanding he may never cross the pond due to excessive European buy-out issues. Honestly, everyone knew Splitter was one of the best players of the 2007 NBA Draft — heck, they’d been hoping he’d declare in 2006; many pundits seemed crushed when he didn’t. But Splitter fell deep in the bottom of the first round in 2007 because of buy-out issues and a perceived lack of interest in Splitter coming to America. Or, it was this philosophy: a decent prospect tomorrow is better than a great prospect perhaps in three years.

 

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The Works: Fear and Loathing in 2011 Free Agency

August 30, 2010   Bethlehem Shoals and Tom Ziller   No comments

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In The Works today: why Team USA doesn’t move us like the Thunder and the concept of liberated fandom in international competition.

But first, what it means to be a 2011 free agent.

Jumping the Gun: The Worlds wouldn’t make it stop, but at least, we thought, they might bring some relief. We could use just such a lull, for basketball to not be crowded thick with CBA concerns and stars telegraphing their need for instant gratification. Well, we got about a weekend off, and then the offseason from hell made its next great leap forward.

I’m referring, of course, to reports that Carmelo Anthony isn’t just hesitant to sign an extension, or seek a trade before the deadline: according to Woj, Melo told the Nuggets that he wants out, sooner rather than later. On a related note, Hawks guard Jamal Crawford, coming off the best season of his career, wants an extension or a trade out of Atlanta, the only winning team he’s ever known.

Anthony and Crawford aren’t in identical situations, nor are they comparable players. On a good day, Anthony has franchise implications; Crawford has rehabbed himself into a nice pick-up.

But the motif is the same: as time slips away, and the icy-cold death-tentacles of the new collective bargaining agreement creep nearer, players want their situations settled. There will be no waiting game, no hedging against next summer. They want their money. They will also be trying to stay relevant in the post-Heat league. And we should all start preparing to see it happen far sooner than expected. If the Summer of 2010 had its own special nature, 2011 will be marked by, among other things, this sudden call to action. Something about the fierce urgency of now, I suppose.

 

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The Works: Is Team USA Doomed?

August 27, 2010   Bethlehem Shoals & Tom Ziller   No comments

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In The Works today: how a potential lockout and Team USA crisis could affect the 2011 NBA Draft; and whether J.R. Smith went too far.

But first, some 2010 FIBA World Championship predictions.

Joga Bonito: Exactly 24 hours after this column is published, the FIBA World Championship will tip off in Turkey. In three weeks, we’ll have a champion, and we’ll know whether to gnash our teeth over another embarrassment for once-unbeatable Team USA or whether we’ll be telling LeBron and friends the country no longer needs their services.

Of course, it’s not that black and white. Among observers who write for a living, Team USA is the underdog going in — Spain, the reigning World Champion, is a popular pick. And for good reason: the Spaniards nearly beat a balls-out U.S. effort in a warmup last week, and simply dominated in both 2006 and in last summer’s EuroBasket tournament. And no fan will soon forget the test Spain gave the star-studded Redeem Team in the gold medal game in Beijing two years ago.

Greece, despite what you saw in a sham of an exhibition Wednesday, is also ready to fight. Remember: Greece is the last team to beat the Americans in a FIBA tournament (in the semifinals of the 2006 Worlds). Argentina, Serbia, Turkey, Australia and Brazil are also looking like medal contenders.

 

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The Works: Lauren Jackson and the Wild, Weird WNBA

August 26, 2010   Bethlehem Shoals & Tom Ziller   No comments

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In Thursday’s The Works: when meddlesome owners strike, Rajon Rondo vs. Russell Westbrook, the next Euro cult favorite and Luol Deng returns to Southern Sudan.

But first, Lauren Jackson and the WNBA‘s spirit of innovation.

Lauren JacksonA New Aesthetic Is Born: Revisiting Kwame Brown and the 2001 Draft got me thinking about the way scouts thought about their job at the time. In the wake of Kevin Garnett, all prospects — especially the ones from Europe — were expected to be unprecedented weirdos.

Have you read Herodotus? It was like that. Foolhardy, and naive, and yet indicative of an impulse to discover a new frontier of basketball. That’s what I feel is behind all this Positional Revolution business: we want to understand, maybe even predict, where the game is headed.

I am done trying to convince people that the WNBA is closing the gap with the men’s game because the fact remains, women just don’t have the size, speed, and athleticism that men do. I see a league that feels a hell of a lot more like the NBA than it did when it started, something that comes across when you compare the game of an OG to one of her younger peers. That’s half-full; to many, the WNBA remains half-empty.

That is, unless you’re someone who still believes in the dream of 2001.

 

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The Works: Rajon Rondo’s Mysterious Exit

August 25, 2010   Bethlehem Shoals & Tom Ziller   No comments

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Rajon RondoIn Wednesday’s The Works, Carmelo Anthony thinks Rockets; a look at how Gregg Popovich has managed to beat the second law of thermodynamics; and Kwame Brown‘s curious career continues.

But first, some questions about Rajon Rondo‘s departure from the national team.

A Most Mysterious Exit: The official line is that Rajon Rondo left Team USA to deal with family issues. He did recently fly from New York to Kentucky for an uncle’s funeral, and it’s hardly our business to guess at anyone’s grief. These things take time. Yet there are reasons to believe that Rondo withdrew to save face, or was pushed as much as he jumped. It’s purely circumstantial at this point. But in what’s effectively an off-year for USA Basketball, did this team really want Rajon Rondo?

The question isn’t whether it needs him. Maybe he’s no Kevin Durant, but Rondo was one of the few elite players to show up. Nor will his spot go to a quality big man, something this team could probably use. The other most likely casualty was Stephen Curry — who with all due respect, isn’t an All-Star with a ring and several near-legendary playoff performances to his name.

After Rondo received a DNP against Spain and expressed his frustration to the media, Coach K argued for the effectiveness of a Derrick Rose-Chauncey Billups backcourt. His teammates — none of whom saw it coming — found out once the official announcement had been made, like he hadn’t been one of them.

In short, the disparity between USA Basketball’s handling of Rondo and his talent level is, to say the least, questionable.

 

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The Works: Return of Ricky Rubio, the Basketball Jedi

August 24, 2010   Bethlehem Shoals & Tom Ziller   No comments

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Ricky RubioIn The Works today, we introduce Grizzlies owner Michael Heisley to a few more money-saving clauses and judge Americans for being uneducated.

But first, we wade into Ricky Rubio’s bog.

The Prodigy Strikes Back: When the air takes on that distinctly international scent of FIBA Basketball, you know it’s time for a Ricky Rubio argument to erupt. The Ricky conversation has always been contentious, but clearly the results of the 2009 NBA Draft have further polarized the discourse. Rubio did himself no favors by avoiding the workout circuit in the run-up to the draft, and his wishy-washy reaction to landing in star-starved Minnesota painted him in unflattering light.

That said, Ricky was simply terrific in Euroleague and ACB competition this year, showing the attributes which made him the No. 5 pick in a good draft. He’s back, hoping to help Spain defend its FIBA World Championship title. The spotlight will be as bright as ever with Jose Calderon ruled out, launching Ricky into the starting role. Per usual, American players raved after Rubio’s performance in Sunday’s tight warm-up game; the replication of what fellows like Chris Paul said after Ricky’s 2008 Olympic gold medal game is eerie.

That said, in the Sunday warm-up, the one which American players raved about, Rubio had seven points, three assists and four turnovers. That’s not exactly incredible output.

 

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