The Thunder’s official site talked with the nice lady KD hit in the face: “Mrs. Liddell’s ‘souvenir’ for the night is a black eye from where the ball hit her, but she said she is fine. ‘That’s minor when you have somone [sic] like Kevin give me a kiss.’ She said Thabo and Jamal Crawford of the Clippers came over to check on her after she was hit the second time, one of the referees gave her a hug and Rumble came and sat in her lap. ‘After a while I said, everyone go away so I can watch that game again,” she joked.’”
Jenni Carlson on the 66ers new coach: “Darko Rajakovic knows that he is so close yet so far from the NBA. Even though the last two men who had the job he now has are currently coaching in the NBA, he doesn’t think about the next step. He lives the one-game-at-a-time sports cliché, but he comes by it honestly. Embracing the here and now is a lesson he learned during a time when bullets and bombs were as much a part of his life as basketball.”
A list of 100 NBA things to be thankful for.
It’s Black Friday so that means it’s a pretty good day to go pick up a couple new DT-Shirts.
Jeff Green on facing the Thunder tonight: “Do I still look at what Oklahoma City does? No,” a nearly expressionless Green said….“I mean, I’m in a great situation here. This is a great fit for myself, coming to a situation where I’m playing alongside Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce, Rajon Rondo. I was happy … I know what you mean,’ Green said of the prodding. ‘Like, am I more excited to play them? But I’m really not. I could care less.’”
Tom Ziller of SB Nation on the lockout a year later: “The solution was always to fix the relationship between teams. To make that palatable for the owners who stand to lose, player salaries needed to be reined in. The Maloofs and Jordans of the league had their hands out to the Busses and Dolans. The Busses and Dolans had their hands out to the Kobes and Carmelos. And that’s how we got a deal: everyone gave in enough that the charade could end. The haves got enough from the players to agree to fork over enough money to the have-nots to end the doomsday entreaties. And 12 months later, we’re talking about potential expansion back into Seattle because too many very rich men want to join the NBA owners’ club. A year later, and the resolution is all the same: the NBA lockout was such total bulls–t.”
John Schuhmann of NBA.com: “The Thunder still have issues. Their starters struggle to score and their bench struggles to defend. Though they’ve won three straight games, they’ve allowed their opponents to score 110 points per 100 possessions over the last four. Despite their easy early schedule, they currently rank 12th in the league in defensive efficiency. And as we saw last year, that’s not good enough. But the Thunder now have a victory they can hang their hat on. Next up is a trip to Boston and Philadelphia, their first multi-game trip of the season. Though neither team is currently at their best, road wins are always good wins. So the opportunity is there for OKC to continue to build some momentum toward their first matchup with L.A.’s other team on Dec. 7.”
Want to recognize and thank new DT sponsor Stillwater DeMolay who does terrific work with young men teaching them core values and principles for life. Follow them on Twitter here or visit their website and learn more here.
http://www.dailythunder.com/2012/11/thunder-vs-celtics-pregame-primer/
lets go!
Violent thoughts go through my mind when people compare Kobe and Westbrook. Kobe is an egomaniac that few players ever say good things about other than work ethic and competitiveness. Westbrook, unlike Kobe, is only doing exactly what his team asks and doing it in a manner that is obviously well respected and appreciated by teammates. Not saying he has no flaws but his hero ball tendencies are a candle to Kobe's supernova. At the same point in their careers/age, the comparison is flat out idiotic.
@wudmonster Kobe Bryant as been widely regarded as the best basketball player in the league through a great deal of his career. He has won more championships than any other player in his generation and done so with different teammates. He is considered the ultimate competitor and regarded a player willing to give anything and everything to win.
Kobe Bryant isn't perfect, but like Westbrook his good far outweighs his bad. We may not like Kobe, but the same can be said about Westbrook outside of OKC.
@rednuht @wudmonster Kobe's a prick. I've stated before that he's kinda earned that right ... My main complaint about him is when things don't go right for him he generally A) cries, or B) points the finger at someone else
@wudmonster preach
Whos going to guard Jeff Green:)
@OkcBaby Jeff Green
@OkcBaby The Rim, He's a two way player. Blocks perk, and makes sure rondo's shots never go in.
@DJ Scott Brooks @OkcBaby Our bench defense could use some more contributions from the rim.
@OkcBaby Durant and or Collison
I'm sure the Celtics would like for Jeff Green to get excited to play against the Thunder or anyone for that matter. Just get excited for once Jeff, you play basketball in the NBA.
Won't matter though, Jeff will be traded soon.
@Skyline To Who? Uncle Jeff is making more than Perkins money for the next 4-5 years
That Tom Ziller Lockout article is such Bulls**t. Player Salaries and Inter owner relationships were never the problem so much as the NBA was set up so that Small revenue teams were covering High revenue teams financial obligation to the players, Something that only partially changed over the Lockout. But High Revenue teams managed to subvert their losses by getting a luxury tax that only they could afford to pay installed. So Apart from regular performances from JD and the straight shots, nobody really benefited. the charade was stupid. But what's worse is that nobody with a voice in the NBA seems to understand why
@DJ Scott Brooks I'm not sure you're correct here or I don't quite understand your point.
The lock out occurred because ownership wanted a larger percentage of the financial pie. Despite all of the revenue streams available, arenas built with public money and the incredibly deep pockets of ownership individuals and groups some teams were either losing or close to losing money. The owners wanted to ensure that even in cases where years or decades of incompetent management occurred that profits would still be possible.
History shows that many small market teams have decided of their own volition to pay the luxury tax. We'll see how the more punitive tax is handled, but I imagine that the egos of ownership will override any apparent business concerns.
Ownership got their bigger piece of the financial pie and still had a season. They got what they wanted overall.
http://www.nba.com/official/ Apparently the nba didn't watch the clippers game the same way we did. No clippers warned for flopping :(
Shaq: "he can only do 1 thing" re: Durant & scoring... He's a dummy
@PJthe3 bka ... Did Shaq say this recently? A lot of people made this statement at Durant during his first couple of years in the league.
@rednuht @PJthe3 bka ... He said in on Open Court a few weeks ago.
@rednuht @PJthe3 bka ... Here's the video.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z6BRUEjjxNI&feature=plcp
@novelisticbee0 @PJthe3 bka ... What was the context?
Was he comparing Durant to Lebron directly in a discussion of which player was more valuable? If so Lebron has been more versatile in his career, but such a statement does diminish Durant's progression as a player and ignore the idea that Durant is still very young.
@PJthe3 bka ... should not not be paid to talk about basketball. End of story.
@PJthe3 bka ... same can be said about shaq's monster ass. stand in the paint and dunk. there's a reason there's defensive 3 second violations now cause of you
oh wait...im wrong...shaq COULD do one other thing......act...HORRIBLE *zing*
Does anyone know of a site that keeps more advanced college stats?
How much is synergy's stats?
@cemitten what do you actually want to know?
There is a sports reference version for cbb.
http://www.sports-reference.com/cbb/
****
How much does it cost to get access to synergy's stats
Is the word, chucker, offensive?
In the context that Russell Westbrook is clearly a chucker.
@rednuht
NBA Chuckers:
Jamal Crawford
Nick Young
Nate Robinson
All the guards on the Sacramento Kings
Michael Beasley
Jordan Crawford
JR Smith
I would check this out for some context on chucking: http://www.grantland.com/story/_/id/8659906/danny-granger-monta-ellis-jordan-crawford-nba-all-chuckers-squad
and also stop trolling.
@OBoy Jones III @rednuht I don't think he is trolling per se. His general opinion seems to be:
"I'm okay with Westbrook taking a lot of shots, but a smaller percentage of questionable shots would be nice."
rednuht tends to take ideas that are potentially interesting and phrase them in a way that is confrontational. I don't know why, though. I don't think he trolls, but likes to express unconventional ideas. He's just argumentative, which doesn't help his cause.
@OBoy Jones III @senseandsenescence Much like Westbrook no one has ever asked Jamal Crawford to stop shooting the ball.
If you'll remember Crawford came into the league as a point guard despite not being considered a pure point at Michigan. Crawford played point guard for Chicago and New York. In Atlanta he was asked to provide instant offense off the bench just as he is in LA.
Once again I don't see the word as a complete negative. Just as I don't see all superstar players as the same, all chuckers are not created equal.
@rednuht @senseandsenescence Jamal Crawford has been in the NBA for 12 years and has developed the reputation of being a chucker.
@OBoy Jones III @senseandsenescence How do you define chucker? I don't see how focal point of the offense is the distinguishing characteristic. Lots of the names on your list have been focal points of offenses at one time or another. Jamal Crawford is currently a focal point for the Clippers as their leading scorer.
@rednuht @senseandsenescence you still don't understand what a chucker is, that or you think Westbrook isn't a focal point of our offense.
@senseandsenescence @OBoy Jones III I'm not trying to be a troll, but I do enjoy discussing basketball and will occasionally express a view point as a devil's advocate so that I can delve deeper into a topic.
@senseandsenescence @OBoy Jones III
Would you say I'm the Westbrook of the board?:)
The number of shots outside the offense is one factor but also a factor is when in the flow of the game shots are taken.This and the overall talent and status of the player seems to be the difference between chucker and ultra aggressive.
Serge usually takes shots within the flow of the offense. While it is true he rarely looks to pass, he also doesn't have the ball in his hands enough to be considered a facilitator.
To me its more about offensive flow than FGA to assists. It's not about just the individual but how the individuals game influences the team.
@senseandsenescence @rednuht the problem is that when you say "chucker" in the NBA you're talking about a few people (the ones i posted above) and Russ is more an overall better player and more versatile than all of those guys. He takes bad shots but he impacts the game more than any real chucker.
Is Serge Ibaka a chucker? he had a lower assist rate than Nick Young last year.
@rednuht RW isn't even a chucker
@Lost Ones Is this a defensive response or based on a lack of definition for the word?
I've watched a good amount of basketball and Westbrook is absolutely a chucker.
@senseandsenescence @Lost Ones High performance chucker?
@senseandsenescence @rednuht @Lost Ones I think he's surely top 10. Possibly top 5. & definitely definitely gets a raw deal around here
@rednuht @Lost Ones Well as I think you also know, the connotations you attach to language are meaningless unless they are held by the majority of those to whom the language is directed. Chucker is clearly a negative word in basketball circles, and if you choose to use it in a different way, you should clearly state your intentions or use another word. Maybe come up with a word for high usage players with high variance over an average high performance.
@senseandsenescence @Lost Ones For me the term chucker doesn't have the strict negative connotation that some others attach to it.
No one player is the best offensive option for even half the possessions of a game. This should be self evident.
Once again confidence and aggression I don't see these as negatives, although they can certainly have some negative connotations. I too accept the positives that come from Westbrook's play over any of the negatives that are a byproduct from his aggression.
I read that article O'Boy, it's part of the reason I brought the subject up.
@rednuht @Lost Ones That's why I don't know how you can classify Kobe and Westbrook as chuckers. Both are arguably the best option at least half the time. You are talking about marginal gains after that. I'm willing to give up some marginal theoretical points, if it means the guy that can single-handedly win me games continues to believe he can do that. The psychology of the player is something that stats don't consider. I'm willing to give up some statistical dominance for the confidence of the players. That's why I think most posters here don't appreciate Brooks as a coach. He may not be a top 5 coach in the NBA, but he is definitely in the top half.
@senseandsenescence @Lost Ones Agreed for the most part except that I don't think that only chuckers who are role players and shot too much are the type of chuckers that hurt their teams and I don't think chucking is about shooting percentages, certainly not season percentages.
For me it's chucking is about a super aggressive approach in which the player routinely believes he is the best option to score the ball. It often doesn't matter what the play drawn up was, how much time is left on the clock or what the defense is, it's more about an aggressive mentality.
With both Kobe and Westbrook the potential to hurt their team is there from being overly aggressive or from not getting others involved.
A primary difference between Westbrook and Kobe is Kobe relishes his role and constantly looks for ways to show that he comes first. Westbrook seems less concerned about his own status when the game isn't being played.
@rednuht @Lost Ones He's a "chucker" in the same way that Kobe is a "chucker". They take a lot of shots and win a lot of games. It may not always work, and when it doesn't it looks really bad, but that's not really what a chucker is. A chucker is someone who is a role player that can score 20 points on any given night, but takes those shots at the expense of the team and ultimately doesn't help their team win most nights. What Westbrook and Kobe do is far beyond that, because they can give you 30+ on any given night and average 20+ a night. Kobe and Russell have the same mindset as a chucker, but are so much better and can provide other things beyond scoring, that to classify them as chuckers is to focus too much on shooting percentage and not enough on the rest of the game.
@rednuht @Lost Ones ill will respectively disagree with your assumption of russ.
@rednuht @Lost Ones hell no hes not. being a prick and being competitive are totally different . Russ knows that if he can get his offense going then that frees up KD and even ibaka. These past few games he hasnt been taking ill advised shots, his assist are up and hes finding more people in drive and kicks.
@Legendary_Dork @Lost Ones But Westbrook does put up ridiculous shots, many times a game. He shoots out of the flow of the offense, he forces his shot when others are open and he has personal scoring battles in the middle of games.
Westbrook is a lot like Kobe.
@rednuht @Lost Ones i wouldnt say chucker. chuckers will shoot even if they are told not to and put up ridiculous shots. Russ's shots are usually within his range and if he DOES shoot a bad one its cause hes handed the ball with like 4 seconds left.
Kobe..is a chucker. nick young is a chucker.
@rednuht Yes it is,
@f5alcon @rednuht Yeah, I prefer "willing shooter"
@Old Man Game @f5alcon I wonder if we could embrace the word chucker?
We've excepted Russell for who he is and know we need him to be aggressive, so why let a word make us defensive?