Friday Bolts – 8.31.12

Andy Kamenetzky of ESPN LA on how the new Lakers would’ve helped the old: “Westbrook earns an and-one after beating Kobe off the dribble, then drawing the reach foul from Gasol, who’s caught from behind on a backscreen. In the meantime, a flat-footed Bynum makes no real attempt to prevent Westbrook’s easy score after the foul. While obviously impossible to prove a negative, it’s tempting to wonder whether Howard would have done better as the last line of defense.”

Royal Ivey on something we don’t know about KD: “He doesn’t like greens. He just started eating salad like a year ago. He loves chicken wings though, but yeah, he won’t eat greens, and he’ll tell you that he doesn’t like greens or salad. I don’t know how he got so tall, or how he stays so skinny without eating greens, but he doesn’t. I sit next to him on the plane and have never seen him eat greens.”

Trey Kerby of TBJ on that revelation: “But now we have to wonder if Kevin Durant is going to be mad at Royal Ivey for tattling on him not eating his veggies. Everyone always says that the Thunder are like a family, so if one of the kids is telling on the other kids, that could cause some trouble. They should probably just both go to their rooms and think about what they’ve done. Nick Collison will punish them when he gets home.”

Chris Palmer of ESPN.com on the Lakers: “They’ve got arguably the best, most well-equipped roster in the league. On paper. But there will be a pretty rigorous adjustment period that their key stars will have to go through to get those fantastic pieces to jell. Bryant will face one of his biggest personal challenges in tailoring his game to mesh with Howard and Nash. He’s still a fantastic scorer and will want to get the most out of his ability as long as his body will allow. How he handles the inevitable shift of power is the key to L.A.’s success this season.”

TrueHoop TV talking Thunder.

Kurt Helin of PBT on Eric Maynor: “We don’t know how far OKC ownership is willing to go into the luxury tax, but it’s probably not that far. The Thunder drafted Reggie Jackson as a potential Maynor replacement, although he has not looked fully ready (we’ll see how he improves into his second season). So they have a quandry. One thing to look for is Maynor’s name in trade rumors around the deadline — the Thunder do not want to lose him for nothing, which could happen if he becomes a restricted free agent. But this could play out any number of ways.”

Russell Westbrook’s interview with ESPN Radio transcribed.

Nick Collison wrote about his experience in Kenya: “Our day wasn’t over yet. We then went to the Nadirkonyen Center for Street & Exploited Children. These kids had also been removed from situations where they have been abused or neglected. The kids had a dance prepared; there was singing, and a very touching poem about their struggle. It was a really fun end to a long day. After the program we took all the kids to their basketball court and tried to teach them some skills and played around. After hearing story after story about the awful things that have happened to most of them, it was so much fun to see them running wild and having fun. The past two days have felt like two weeks with everything I’ve done out here. The emotional rollercoaster I’ve been on is like nothing I have ever experienced.”

Zach Lowe of SI.com with some interesting data: “James Harden shot 77 percent on shots taken after qualifying drives in 37 recorded games, a shooting mark that’s both insane and the highest of any player who recorded at least 40 drives with any outcome (pass, shot, drawn foul, turnover, etc.). Manu Ginobili, Harden’s double, matched that 77 percent in fewer games, and Steve Nash (78 percent) edged it in a tiny 10-game sample. Keep an eye next season on Kyrie Irving, who (in just eight recorded games) shot 70 percent on drives and recorded the second-highest points per possession mark among all sampled players, trailing only Harden.”