March 10, 2008 at 5:50 am · Filed under NBA, NCAA, Videos
The NBA draft is still three months away, but the top lottery picks are already starting to rise to the top. The NCAA features another handful of fabulous freshman this season, many of which will be “one-and-dones.” Among the players likely to jump up to the NBA next season include O.J. Mayo, Kevin Love, and Michael Beasley.
So if college basketball seems a little bit too structured for you, enjoy the highlights of this always-sloppy McDonald’s All-American game.
With the statistics from the Orlando Pre-Draft camp measurements, Greg Oden should be cemented in as the top player in the draft. Although Kevin Durant overtaking him seemed unlikely, Durant had a far more impressive season statistically. You can argue that Oden played with an injured shooting hand and his team made it to the championship game, but he had an underwhelming season when compared the Durant’s soliloquy performances.
Now that we see Kevin Durant failed to complete a single 185-lb. repetition, many (myself included) wonder how a star, soon-to-be professional athlete, could fail to reach a strength benchmark. One glance at Durant and you may not expect to see much strength, but he should have still had at least a half-dozen repetitions. Durant should be grateful that most guards only performed 3-8 reps, and fellow softy big man Brandan Wright only completed two.
Kevin Durant got crushed in almost every measurement, which means the Seattle Sonics should be happy that basketball is not a race or powerlifting competition. While he does have long arms (7′ 4.5″ wingspan), Durant fell well short of his athletic reputation. He put up miserably slow speed and agility times, falling to the bottom of the pack in most rankings.
Greg Oden, meanwhile, shocked people with mobility to match his strength. At this point, Oden looks to be far more athletic than Durant, who seems to be a regular lead-footed big man with sticks for arms. Any team what wants to add Durant for his athleticism should also appreciate his skills if they hope to satisfy their urge to draft him.
Still, draft superexpert Jonathan Givony knows that measurements rarely relate to performance on the basketball court; the measurements merely keep fuel in the fire during a month when most fans have little basketball to follow. Some of the fastest players in the NBA (Chris Paul, T.J. Ford) failed to distinguish themselves as speed demons. Although it may be temporarily fascinating to basketball statisticians, Durant may still easily win the Rookie of the Year award.
Now that Billy Donovan has talked his way out of $30 million to coach the Orlando Magic, the NBA wants to prevent coach and teams from backing out of signed or publicly noted deals. Donovan likely won’t be allowed to apply for another NBA coaching job for five years. That shouldn’t be a problem with his cushy Florida Gators contract; however, he’s likely one of the first coaches to get punished for taking part in a common situation.
The Magic offered Stan Van Gundy the position after Donovan backed out. However, it looks like the Sacramento Kings have already anointed him their new head coach. Van Gundy could still consider the Magic as an option, but he may not want to jump into the controversy there.
Although they got crushed by Cleveland Cavaliers, starting point guard Chauncey Billups believes his team is better in every category. “There’s nobody on that team who is better than ours. And maybe I’m crazy, maybe I’ve got too much confidence in these guys, but I believe in us. I believe we’re the better team.”
While on paper that’s the case, the team lost one matchup: the Detroit Pistons vs. LeBron James. The LeBron Rules didn’t work, at least after the first two games. Still, the team plans to keep Flip Saunders as their head coach, while some Pistons’ fans thinks a major change needs to be made if they hope to contend for a title.
Now it’s official, Greg Oden will join Kevin Durant in this June’s NBA draft. Many believed the humble seven-footer would stay with the Ohio State Buckeyes for his sophomore year, but Oden, Mike Conley Jr., and Daequan Cook all declared for the draft. Cook and Conley have yet to hire agents, giving them the option of returning to school.
NBA fans now know that the 1985 Draft Lottery was rigged, at least according to Bill Simmons. You can see that the New York Knicks‘ envelope was blatantly thrown into the side of the glass drum, while the eight others fell in without any bent corners.
After only one season with the Sacramento Kings, (former) head coach Eric Musselman is now out of work after a disappointing season. Musselman went 33-49, survived Ron Artest, and accumulated a couple DUIs before being relieved of duty with the team.
Bizarrely, Kevin Garnett may have spoken with the team about signing a contract extension. Garnett definitely deserves a trade to a contender, after the Minnesota Timberwolves have missed the playoffs for the last few years. Unless the deal leads to a trade, Garnett should look forward to free agency.
Vince Carter and Carmelo Anthony took home the Player of the Month awards for their respective conferences. Carter’s coach, Lawrence Frank, and the Golden State Warriors‘ head coach, Don Nelson, won the Coach of the Month awards.
BallHype has a review of the season previews compiled by bloggers at the beginning of the season. Predictably, most teams fell short of high expectations, and only won team (the San Antonio Spurs) had their record guessed correctly.
Without the Washington Wizards‘ recent collapse, the Miami Heat have clinched their division title and the #4 seed. However, they won’t have home-court advantage, and their star Dwyane Wade nows ails with tendinitis in his left knee along with his previous shoulder injury. In the three games since his return, Wade has put up solid numbers, but nearly six turnovers per game.
The legendary UCLA coach John Wooden was released from the hospital after another bout with health problems. His daughter said this of the 96 year-old, “He is at home and doing well.”
Georgetown stars Jeff Green and Roy Hibbert plan to submit their names to the NBA draft. Both are first-round picks, though Hibbert could be a lottery pick because of his size.
This season, Kobe Bryant has scored 50+ points more times than any other player has in a single season since Wilt Chamberlain in 1964-1965.
Bill Russell says Greg Oden could be an outstanding player in the NBA — not exactly a new expectation, but many Boston Celtics‘ fans see Oden as their new franchise player if they win the lottery. “He’s grown so fast, it may take a year or two before the rest catches up.”
After his individual play conquered the NCAA during his freshman season, Texas forward Kevin Durant will take his skills to the NBA next year. While most fans agreed Durant would become an amazing player, few assumed Durant would beat out Greg Oden for the major awards.
If Oden enters the draft, the team with the first pick will have a tough choice. Take Oden, who seems to be a guaranteed solid pick, or take Durant knowing he has the chance to be one of the best ever after an incredible freshman year? Sounds like the 1984 NBA draft. Were the Houston Rockets really crazy to take Hakeem Olajuwon over a guard from North Carolina? It could be possible to choose an amazing player and still have made the wrong decision.
The Dallas Mavericks clinched the best record in the NBA with five games to spare. Already, the team plans to lose some games it should be clear favorites to win. Head coach Avery Johnson said that Dirk Nowitzki and Jerry Stackhouse won’t be playing until the first round comes,”I told them if I see them on the plane, I’ll fine them.”
“Former Kansas Jayhawk” sophomore Julian Wright plans to submit his name into the draft.
Apparently, the Boston Celtics plan to offer head coach Doc Rivers an extension after the exceptional job done tanking the season in an effort to get the #1 pick. Of course, this is pure speculation from around the league, but we’re talking about Danny Ainge here.
