Posted Thursday, May 16, 2013 01:00 AMNow that the Oklahoma City Thunder have been knocked out of the playoffs, its time for them to make a coaching change if they ever want to have a chance to win the title with this group. I know that Russell Westbrook is out and if you read my other blogs you would see I ranked him as the second best point guard in the league. So I do understand what a huge loss it is for him to be out of the playoffs. The fact is that I have been calling for him to be fired for a couple years now and now it has been shown that he is not a good coach.
Why Should He Go?
Ok, so it seems from the outside that OKC has done better and better every year under Scott Brooks, and with a key injury this year its not his fault they aren’t winning it all or getting to the finals. Wrong. Lets look at it from the other side. You have three young up and coming stars in Durant, Westbrook, and Harden. They are all in their early twenties and are just learning the game and learning how to win. So year by year they get better in the regular season and get further and further into the playoffs. How many teams with players that young make the finals? Very few. So you have to ask what Scott Brooks did to help them achieve more than they should have. And I say nothing. I see him adding no value. In fact I think he is somewhat of a joke. Last year during the season, they would have him miked up and he would say over and over, “We are a defensive team,” and the team basically laughed at him. They gave up the most points in the NBA, and were clearly an offensive minded team. Second, what do they run down the stretch and in big spots? Nothing. They spread the court with Westbrook, and he dribbles and goes one on one. During this time Durant stands at the top of the key with his guy all over him with his hand up calling for the ball. If Westbrook passes it to him, then guess what he does? Goes one on one. There is no creativity, nothing new or different, to get his team a great look. Look at coaches like Doc Rivers and Gregg Popovich. Down the stretch they run great plays to get great looks. Off the top of my head I can think of a play where Pop had Ginobli inbound to Duncan at the elbow and pretend like he would run behind him for a 3 and then backdoored for an UNCONTESTED LAY UP in the last 10 seconds of a game. I can think of Doc Rivers having Garnett at the top of the key, and Paul Pierce posting up. While this is happening, Jeff Green loops around Garnett, and while Garnett appears to be looking at Pierce for a post up, Pierce actually sets a back screen for Green for a WIDE OPEN LAY UP to WIN THE GAME.
Next, lets look at what has happened since Westbrook went down. What adjustments have Brooks made since the injury? I see nothing. I see them running their awful one on one offense where they hope that Durant can score on 1, 2, or 3 defenders every possession. If I was him, I would have been running Durant off downscreens and double screens and pinch screens, instead of having him bring the ball up on every possession and trying to create vs multiple defenders. Also, how about making him a decoy? How about you run him off a bunch of screens and hit Collison or Ibaka on a slip for a layup. Never have I seen that. And with Westbrook out, it means that Durant has to score more, defend more, rebound more, and lead more. And Brooks is having him bring the ball up as well. This is a terrible idea. Bringing the ball up makes you more tired, and it brings the defensive focus to you. They are all in help side watching the ball and their man. If Durant were off the ball and came off screens then they couldn’t focus all their attention on him, they would have to focus on the ball.
Lets look at their personnel. PG-Reggie Jackson vs Michael Conley-advantage Conley. Kevin Martin vs Tony Allen-advantage Martin. Kevin Durant vs Teyshaun Prince-advantage Durant. Serge Ibaka vs Marc Gasol-advantage very slightly to Gasol. Kendrick Perkins vs Zach Randolph-advantage Randolph. Bench-slight edge to Memphis. With all of this the difference comes down defense and how personnel is used. Memphis’ defense is waaaaaaay better than OKC’s. Serge Ibaka now stands on the perimeter and shoots jumpers even though he is one of the most athletic players in the league. There are just so many things that are wrong.
Who Should Be Hired?
Phil Jackson. Jerry Sloan. Jeff Van Gundy. No one else. Offer Phil whatever he wants and find yourself in the NBA finals next year.
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Here is my list. Argue as much as you like, its just my opinion.
1. Rajon Rondo. I love his game and he has gotten a little better every year. I love pass first pgs (although I'm about to contradict myself). He makes everyone on his team better. Watching the Celtics without him this year should show you just how valuable he is. They don't have guys that can get by their defender. And I think to be an effective player you need to be able to make the other team use a second defender to guard you. Whether it be a pg getting by his primary defender, or a post player drawing a double, or even guys like Kobe and Lebron who get double teamed on the perimeter before they even take a dribble, if it takes multiple guys to defend you, you are a commodity. This allows your shooters and cutters and role players to get easier looks and to get shots they can't get on their own. 2. Russell Westbrook. Ok this is where I contradict. I know he is a pass last pg, but I absolutely love his game. I almost put him first but after thinking for a while he got the two slot. He puts sooooo much pressure on the defense on every possession. He plays harder than basically everyone in the league, and he plays with a chip on his shoulder which I love. What sets him apart is that he is basically unguardable. His pull up is basically whether he makes or misses, because the defender has no say in the matter. And he just attacks the rim without mercy. Some say he shoots too much but look at OKC in the last two games. They look like a team that doesn't have an identity. And talk about creating opportunities for others. He is an underrated passer, and just by him having the ball, all the defenders have to take another step towards guarding the paint and giving his teammates a little more space.
3. Derrick Rose. I give him the nod over Chris Paul. I think he is so explosive and can get to the rim at will and dunk on you too. He is an impossible player to guard, and his 3 point shot is improving all the time. He took this Chicago bulls team that can't score 80 unless Nate Robinson goes off to being one of the most explosive offenses in the league and the #1 seed last year which was best record in the East. And on top of it, he tears his ACL in game 1 which the Bulls won, and then they lose to the terrible Sixers who had a losing record (I believe) during the regular season. He is the ultimate example of a guy who makes a bunch of very average players into the best team in the conference.
4. Chris Paul. Never been a big Chris Paul guy, although I do like him more now that I have seen him play more often now that he is here in LA. He is a great competitor and great all around offensive player. I'm not a huge fan of his defense and I think he struggles with physical point guards. But he has turned the Clippers from irrelevent even with Blake Griffin and D'andre Jordan, to a second tier team in the West which is saying something with how deep the West is. Having Paul this low is blasphemy to some people but I just like the other guys a little bit better.
5. Stephen Curry. This guy is rising the charts in a ridiculous fashion. The problem is he may not be able to rise any further with the guys above him. Some people may like him better than one or all of the people above him but I still would take all of those guys ahead of him at this point. His shot is so smooth and he needs absolutely no space to get it off. He is becoming a better passer every year and cutting down turnovers. He does struggle on the defensive end, which is part of the reason I don't have him higher, and he has been hurt so much so far in his career, I don't think he has gotten to reach his full potential. And I am thinking he is pretty close right now and its really impressive. He might be the most fun to watch of anyone on this list because of how he can just hit you for a quick 10 or 22 like he did in 6 minutes the other night.
the rest of the top 10 for me:
6. Tony Parker
7. Derron Williams
8. Kyrie Erving
9. Damian Lillard
10. Gerives Vasquez (sorry about spelling)
Thats my list. Feel free to bash it.
Going out to eat with my mom be back to see reactions in a couple hours
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I still like Warriors at +2. I know that the Spurs flexed their muscles i game 3 but its a do or die game for GSW. thoughts?
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Iman Shumpart Putback Dunk
This is a great time to be watching the NBA Playoffs. Conference semis, which means there are still a good amount of games. Its like the NCAA tournament where the first two weekends are the best because there are games all day. The final four is fun and stuff, but its also fun when there are 16 games a day haha. Gives a bball junkie like me entertainment and hoops all day long.
So another great performance by the Warriers last night and this time they were able to hold off the late runs by the Spurs and tie this series at 1. This is definitely the most compelling series of the four, because you have the Warriers, who don't understand they aren't supposed to beat the Spurs and aren't supposed to be in this series at all. It was like, "aww look at Steph and those guys, they beat the Nuggets, thats nice for them. But now they are playing the big boys." But they aren't laying down. They are actually in control of the series. They should be up 2-0 and frankly, I think the Spurs don't know what to do. They have rendered Tim Duncan useless, they have held Ginobli down pretty well, and Parker at 7-17 is another matchup victory for GSW. The best players for the Spurs have been Danny Green who is hitting, and Kawhi Leonard who is really emerging as a great young talent. Now the series shifts back to the Oracle, with OKC, I'd say the top 2 crowds and home court advantages in the NBA. I think the Warriers will win one or both of these games and if they win both, are looking the conference finals in the face.
The Memphis/OKC series is far less compelling. It is frustrating to watch Kevin Durant try and carry this team by himself. He is playing so hard and so well, but without Westbrook, they just don't have that second threat and that second scorer and defender. I really like Memphis in this series. They are able to grind it out and pound the paint, while Conley and the role players do their jobs. They could easily be up 2-0 as well and I think they will ultimately have too much strength for OKC.
The Miami/Chicago series was tied up by Miami last night. I love Lebron and I'm hoping that game 1 loss woke them up. They really haven't had to try yet, and after losing game 1 they came out and destroyed the Bulls. Now its only one game and it doesn't matter if you lose by 1 or 50 its still just one loss. Now if there are suspensions for Noah or Gibson, that could be big, but I hope it doesn't really matter. If the Heat play like they did last night, this series won't be on too much longer.
Pacers/Knicks is also tied 1-1 heading back to Indiana. I really think the Pacers will win this series, but they are known for laying eggs sometimes, which they did in the second half of game 2. That is the scary thing. If they go cold, it is hard for them to come back because the Knicks can get to the line and get good shots for Carmelo and J.R. Smith. I like Indiana to win game 3 but if they give away one of these games, they are gonna make it really hard on themselves. And don't forget that Stern wants the Knicks and the Heat in the conference finals, so for Indiana to win it, they are gonna have to earn it.
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Change your
life. Be financially free. Empower yourself.
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mailto:johnjanssen3@yahoo.com. Skype: johnnyballer1
If I had to guess I believe the spread will be GSW -4. If its out already I haven't seen it. I still think the Warriers are the play in this situation. I think they will think the Spurs will really try and take game 3 and take back control of the series. But there is no reason to think GSW can't win this game by 10 like they did tonight. They are lethal at home and that place is gonna be rockin. Thoughts?
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Change your life. Be financially free. Empower yourself.
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