Thursday Bolts – 8.15.13
Ethan Sherwood Strauss for TrueHoop: “Despite this, it’s common for perimeter players to be closely guarded as they dribble, just in case they hoist. It’s possible that dribbling players are, in general, guarded far too tightly. It’s also possible that, and here’s where advanced stats can help, certain players actually shoot worse when wide open. Can not guarding be the new guarding?”
Steve Aschburner of NBA.com on the NBA and smartphones: “Once the systems are in place, with sufficient bandwidth, the next frontier is optimizing the in-game experience. It can be as simple, for example, as tipping hungry fans to the concession stands with the shortest lines. Or offering thank-you discount codes on the phones of repeat customers, whose previous attendance has been tracked wirelessly as well. Then there are the NBA-specific possibilities, such as streaming video, stats, premium content and more. If the accessibility to social media – and simple phone calls and texts – are what might keep fans tethered to their worlds, the opportunities of in-arena wireless can bring them together the way the peak moments of great games do.”
KD’s on the cover of The Hollywood Reporter.
KFOR took the Bieber thing too far.
Steve Aschburner of NBA.com on the Wolves negotiating tactics: “The Wolves do have that to explain any inconsistency in negotiating tactics. Kahn was Kahn, with whom Love did not click for a variety of reasons, and he’s gone now. As a restricted free agent, Pekovic didn’t have much leverage but then, coming off his rookie deal, neither did Love. Also, there’s nothing to prevent Love and the Wolves locking the double-double machine in for five seasons with his next extension. Nothing either now, frankly, from the Wolves — with owner Glen Taylor’s needed blessing, of course — using the designated-player slot on Ricky Rubio so that all their main guys are together for the long term.”
The reason I bring that up? Love has a player option in two seasons. Something to keep an eye on.
Yahoo wants to see Russell Westbrook as a free safety.
Fran Blnebury of NBA.com says Jeremy Lamb is a Sixth Man contender: “The deck is cleared and the stage is set. The ball will come to him for open shots and Lamb has to knock them down. Simple, huh? Well, the game is always going to be easier when a couple of your teammates are named Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook. The second-year man who saw little playing time outside of Tulsa in the NBA D-League last season is no James Harden coming off the bench at this point. But he should step into the void left by Kevin Martin’s departure and get plenty of opportunities to make defenses pay. He’s a long shot in his first year with significant playing time, but is worth keeping an eye on for the future and will likely have played a big role if OKC makes a run for best record in the league.”
