Opening Night!
You know me; I never like to go overboard with the analysis too soon, but it was opening night, so here goes.
> The Lakers are going to be very, very good when they are 100% healthy. Pau Gasol might be back from his right hamstring injury Friday (10/30) against Dallas. I say take your time Pau, there’s no need to rush back and end up like your countryman Jose Calderon did last season.
> Trevor Ariza in his Houston debut had 12 points on 3-8 shooting (2-4 from three) in 33 minutes. He also had 3 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 steal, 4 turnovers and was -10 in a loss.
Ron Artest in his Laker debut had 10 points on 3-10 shooting (1-5 from 3) in 41 minutes. He also had 5 rebounds, 4 assists, 1 steal, 4 turnovers and was +14 (which led the team) in a win.
Draw your own conclusions…
> News that number one pick Blake Griffin will miss at least six weeks with a stress fracture in his left kneecap did not make me feel good about picking the Clippers to make the playoffs. Then I watched Baron Davis shoot 1-10 from the field while hobbling around on a bruised right foot…and well…I should know better than to expect good things from the Clips.
> I really liked the energy that Andre Miller, Rudy Fernandez and Travis Outlaw brought to Portland’s second unit. If they can keep it up the change of tempo they provide will be huge for the Trail Blazers.
But not as huge as Greg Oden maintaining his level of activity. The big man was moving around the best I’d ever seen and was really into the game mentally. Yeah I know he had 7 turnovers and 5 fouls, but 12 rebounds, 5 blocks and his intimidating presence in the paint will be enough for the Blazers.
> I was really disappointed by the Mavericks performance. It’s pretty much inexcusable to come out flat in your home opener. In what may be a related story, Josh Howard (left ankle) isn’t expected back for at least two more weeks.
> Gilbert Arenas is officially back, and there’s more to it than his 29 points and 9 assists with only 3 turnovers. He was penetrating at will once again, taking and making big shots and being the fearless Agent Zero we have all become used to.
> Kevin Garnett also seemed to be back, but to a lesser degree. I didn’t see the same explosiveness from him but at his age (33) that might take a while to return.
I’m going to try and post more regularly this season, but I’m off to Festival 8 in Indio, CA tomorrow. So my next NBA post won’t be until mid-next week at the absolute earliest.
> The Lakers are going to be very, very good when they are 100% healthy. Pau Gasol might be back from his right hamstring injury Friday (10/30) against Dallas. I say take your time Pau, there’s no need to rush back and end up like your countryman Jose Calderon did last season.
> Trevor Ariza in his Houston debut had 12 points on 3-8 shooting (2-4 from three) in 33 minutes. He also had 3 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 steal, 4 turnovers and was -10 in a loss.
Ron Artest in his Laker debut had 10 points on 3-10 shooting (1-5 from 3) in 41 minutes. He also had 5 rebounds, 4 assists, 1 steal, 4 turnovers and was +14 (which led the team) in a win.
Draw your own conclusions…
> News that number one pick Blake Griffin will miss at least six weeks with a stress fracture in his left kneecap did not make me feel good about picking the Clippers to make the playoffs. Then I watched Baron Davis shoot 1-10 from the field while hobbling around on a bruised right foot…and well…I should know better than to expect good things from the Clips.
> I really liked the energy that Andre Miller, Rudy Fernandez and Travis Outlaw brought to Portland’s second unit. If they can keep it up the change of tempo they provide will be huge for the Trail Blazers.
But not as huge as Greg Oden maintaining his level of activity. The big man was moving around the best I’d ever seen and was really into the game mentally. Yeah I know he had 7 turnovers and 5 fouls, but 12 rebounds, 5 blocks and his intimidating presence in the paint will be enough for the Blazers.
> I was really disappointed by the Mavericks performance. It’s pretty much inexcusable to come out flat in your home opener. In what may be a related story, Josh Howard (left ankle) isn’t expected back for at least two more weeks.
> Gilbert Arenas is officially back, and there’s more to it than his 29 points and 9 assists with only 3 turnovers. He was penetrating at will once again, taking and making big shots and being the fearless Agent Zero we have all become used to.
> Kevin Garnett also seemed to be back, but to a lesser degree. I didn’t see the same explosiveness from him but at his age (33) that might take a while to return.
I’m going to try and post more regularly this season, but I’m off to Festival 8 in Indio, CA tomorrow. So my next NBA post won’t be until mid-next week at the absolute earliest.
posted by D$ at 9:30 AM
4 Comments:
http://dberri.wordpress.com/2009/11/08/more-on-the-best-starting-line-ups/#comments
This is an interesting statistical website for the NBA that I thought you might be interested in. Interesting that (96-97)Utah Jazz team is the top starting line-up since 81-82.
MIKE
Also...Kirk Heinrich has had a nice start to the season. You think he can turn it around after last years disaster?
Tyler Hansbourough had some nice minutes the other day. I didn't think he would be a productive pro, but that could make Indiana a competitor in the nearer future.
Who knows where to download XRumer 5.0 Palladium?
Help, please. All recommend this program to effectively advertise on the Internet, this is the best program!
Hey Mike, sorry it took me so long to respond to you. I'm not used to people commenting on my posts. I'll make sure to check back more often.
On Hinrich - if he can find his shooting stroke he can certainly turn things around. He still plays tough D and has a high BBIQ.
On Hansbrough - he will definitely help Indiana's big man rotation immediately. The key for the Pacers making the playoffs though is Dunleavy getting back soon and staying back after that. Also Murphy and Granger need shake off their bunps and bruises too. I like this Pacers for some reason.
Your Rockets are looking pretty tough too!
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