The Disappointment and Anger with Dwight Howard

    (Yes I know that the blackmail claims have been dismissed by Dwight and that's it very possible that part wasn't true but this post isn't about the blackmail it's about my frustration and disappointment with Dwight)

Dwight...how could you do this to the Magic? How could you do this to your fans? How could you do this to me? This post isn't going to be a rant about how you're a loser for wanting to leave or about how you can't win one on your own. I'm not going to give you the Lebron treatment. I'm going to say why I'm disappointed with you and why I'm angry at you. I remember the happiness I had when the Magic picked you. I remember the joy of experiencing the Finals in 2009. I remember the anger of losing in the first round of 2011. Of course I also remember the first time you requested a trade...

I'm disappointed in Dwight because he didn't want to stay with the Magic. He wants to go somewhere with bigger lights and bigger cities. It has nothing to do with popularity, or "loyalty", or even money. It's just what you want to do. As much as it disappoints me that you want to leave I can understand it to an extent. It's your career and you can do what you wish with it. But the way you're choosing to reach this goal fills me with anger.

Blackmail. According to Webster's online dictionary Blackmail is an extortion or "coercion by threats especially of public exposure or criminal prosecution" So the Magic apparently "blackmailed" you by telling you that if you didn't opt in to your contract they would trade you somewhere else besides the Nets. Dwight this isn't blackmail. It's the NBA. It is the goal of the team to make a trade that is in the best interest of the team. I'm sorry if this doesn't help you get what you want but tough luck that's the way it goes. The Magic did not blackmail you. You signed the opt in that you didn't have to sign and then you went to a press conference and talked about loyalty. Loyalty? The same loyalty that you showed your coach when you demanded that he be fired? The same loyalty you showed Jameer as you threw him under the bus? The same loyalty that very likely lead to Otis Smith's resignation? Then you know what the team did? They fired that coach, the best coach in team history, Stan Van Gundy, got fired because you wanted it and then you accuse this team of blackmailing you? This fills me with all kinds of anger. So please Dwight, go. While you leave I have some advice for you. Fire your PR team. You have done nothing right in this situation and you have come off like an overgrown baby. I hope you learn from this experience. I hope you learn what the real meaning of blackmail is as well.

Orlando Magic draft night.

So as many of you know the NBA Draft was Thursday. As some of you know I'm an Orlando Magic fan. So how did they do Thursday Night?

1st round 19th Pick-Andrew Nicholson
I don't really know anything about this guy. From what I was able to look up he's a very efficient forward/big man. He's 6'9 so he's a PF/Undersized center. If the Magic use him right he could be a nice guy coming off the bench and maybe even a starter. That's all I can really tell. If the Magic re-sign Ryan Anderson I don't see Nicholson starting any time soon.

2nd Round 49th pick-Kyle O' Quinn
The first thing I said about this guy was "HE'S 6'10!" Kind of a silly reaction till you remember that since Orlando traded away Marcin Gortat they've been playing undersized centers behind Dwight. This usually ended up with being out rebounded and being beaten in the paint. I'm hoping Kyle can help on defense on the inside. I asked DDL Host Zach Harper about him. "Pretty solid big man. PF/C type guy. Can rebound the ball, block shots, has a good offensive assortment. But he is kind of a bad decision-maker. Doesn't handle double teams well." Sounds like he could use some work but I like this pick for a 2nd round guy.

What did you guys think about the draft? Did your team make you happy? (Cavs fans I doubt you're happy.) Oh and I saw the Maloofs managed to continue proving they're broke by trading the 2nd round pick for cash. Way to go Maloofs. For me, it was meh. Not as exciting as I was hoping but still had fun. See ya next time!

Who should the Hawks draft?

This year's draft really is the first time in a couple of years that the Hawks have a pick that they actually might get something good with. Of course, that doesn't exactly mean that they will get something good with it...

 However, in this deep of a draft, and with a GM that has the assurance that this pick won't make or break his tenure (he just signed a 6-year deal), I think Atlanta might actually have a shot at something here if they hold on to the 23rd pick.

The good thing about this pick is that we essentially have extreme flexibility; we can take a player at any position and give that him some quality backup minutes immediately if we want to. We can also afford to send that player to the D-League for a month or two to help their development, and then bring them up at a time where they can possibly make an impact off the bench. With that in mind, here's who I think the Hawks should look at:

Draymond Green, SF, Michigan State
A lot of people don't really agree with me on this pick, but I like the idea of drafting a guy that could probably replace Marvin Williams. Even if he can't, maybe it will light a fire under Marvin if he comes to the realization that the team really wants to be rid of him. Of course, this could easily backfire and cause the 8th year forward out of UNC to just mope around the court the whole time.

Royce White, PF, Iowa State
Another midwest player. With the possibility that Smoove may traded or walk at the end of the season, the team needs to start looking at possible replacements in the draft. While there is no doubting White's skills, he does have some disciplinary issues that may cause the Hawks to balk on another needy player. All of that aside, he was the other D-I player to lead his team in points, rebounds, assists, steals, and blocks last season. That alone should pique GM Danny Ferry's interest in the guy.

Quincy Miller, SF-PF, Baylor
As a Hawks fan and NBA observer, I'm obviously have concerns about drafting a tweener forward. (see: Williams, Marvin, and Beasley, Michael) While those two positions are something we could need depth at, depending on how future transactions play out, we would obviously need Miller to make a hard commitment to one position during his rookie year. As with Green, he would be best suited to be a potential Marvin replacement.

Tony Wroten Jr., PG, Washington
If this guy is available, I want him. While I think Teague has the ability to be a very reliable starting PG in the NBA, Wroten would bring a size element that would make a very formidable backcourt with Joe Johnson. Either way, with Hinrich gone, the Hawks need a backup point guard, and I think Wroten would be a guy that could make an immediate impact. I would even go so far to say that the Hawks should trade up a couple of spots if they have to. Make it happen, Ferry!

Fab Melo, C, Syracuse
If the Hawks are going to trade Smoove, I wouldn't mind picking Melo up a couple of spots before he likely would go. He may need some time in the D-League to season, but I think he would make a great 4th guy if the Hawks go to a Horford/Zaza/Ivan frontline. If we do keep Smoove, then I wouldn't really want him, because he'll either get glued to the bench behind Zaza and Horford, or will force Josh to move to the three where he is less effective as a player on both ends of the court. The last thing the Hawks need is for another draftee to be wasted on the bench. 

Don't Just COUNT DA RINGZZZ!!!!!

This argument is one of my biggest pet peeves. This argument is more annoying to me than some sort of crazy banshee screaming it's lungs out. It's worse than every single girl on Facebook posing with a "duckface". The act in question is done while arguing about whether or not one basketball player is better than another (Which is already annoying enough). The most annoying argument in the world that people try to use is the good-old-fashioned "COUNT DA RINGZZZ" argument  (Translation: "Player X has been on more championship teams than player Y"). It goes something like this (We'll use the LeBron James/Kobe Bryant argument to keep things relevant to what is happening currently):

Logical Debater #1: This season, LeBron had a PER of 30.8, a FG% of 53%, and is averaging a line of 27.1 PPG, 6.2 APG, and 7.9 RPG (Not to mention winning that first coveted title). Kobe, had a PER of 21.9, a FG% of 43%, and is averaging a line of 27.9 PPG, 4.6 APG, and 5.4 RPG. So, while Kobe has a slightly better PPG average, LeBron is scoring at a much more effective rate, and LeBron is also having a better all around game this year. Due to this evidence, it can be said that LeBron has surpassed Kobe as the best player in the NBA on a nightly basis.

Kobe Fanboy: KOBE GOT FIVE MORE RINGZ THAN BRON BRON. COUNT DA RINGZZZ BOIIII!!!!!!!!!!!

And this argument proceeds to annoy the living shit out of me.

After hearing this argument a few too many times, I feel like I am qualified enough to identify who uses this argument, and also why they use it. Most times, someone is arguing in favor of an aging star who has lost some of his thunder, and they are usually arguing against someone who is, both by the box score and by using advanced stats, better than the aging star. They know that their argument doesn't hold any water, so they proceed to take the "RINGZZZ" argument until you either:

A) Blow up in their faces and tell them to stop being a dumb person and think of a logical basketball argument.

B) Walk away to avoid blowing up in their faces and telling them to stop being a dumb person and think of a logical basketball argument.

My point is, if you use the "RINGZZZ" argument then you are a dumb person and are incapable of thinking of a logical basketball argument. There are so many wrong things about the "RINGZZZ", but I will try to keep this short and relatively sweet.

Those who use the argument are usually speaking of Kobe Bryant whenever they are valiantly defending his place at the top of the NBA. Other debaters will come up with arguments using stats and reasoning, but those will unfortunately be blindly rejected, as the Kobe fanboy will yell at the top of his lungs: "COUNT DA RINGZZZ!!!! KOBE IZ DA BEST EVER!!!!". But, what the fanboy doesn't realize is that by his math, there are several players better than Kobe. Some of those include the names of greats like Michael Jordan, Bill Russell, and Robert Horry.

Now, I know what you're thinking. "Wait a minute...Robert Horry? He was a good role player and made a lot of tough shots, but there is no way he is a better player than Kobe."

And that line of thinking is exactly correct. Because of this, the "RINGZZZ" argument should be thrown out. Furthermore, using the "RINGZZZ reasoning would also lead you to believe that Derek Fisher is on the same level of greatness as Kobe Bryant, and is a better player than Tim Duncan. In related news, it was incredibly hard for me to complete that last sentence without doubling over in laughter.

Another thing that is interesting is that fans do not seem to realize that just because you have been on more championship teams doesn't necessarily mean that you are a better individual player than anyone else. It just means that over the course of your career, you have had a better combination of teammates, coaches, and luck than the other person in question. No single player wins any game by himself, as much as some people may want to believe it. It's like the old cliche goes: There is no "I" in the word "TEAM".

And I know that to some of you reading, this whole post may seem idiotic and obvious, but trust me, they are a lot of people who use the "RINGZZZ" point a lot, and they all have one common factor about them. They are all dumb people who are incapable of thinking of a logical basketball argument.

The "Magic" of the Draft

I’ve never been someone who gets excited for the draft. In my eyes it’s been nothing more than graduation. Names being called and people you don’t know walking across the stage. Maybe that’s my fault for not paying more attention to college basketball. It also has something to do with growing up as a Magic fan and always being right in the middle as a mediocre team. We would draft a guy who would inevitably do nothing and then he would be gone or worse he would be good and then we would trade him away after his rookie season (bye Mike Miller).  Then there was 2005 drafting Fran Vazquez. The Magic were going to put him next to Dwight Howard, whom we had just drafted the year before, and we would have a dominating front court. Well Vazquez has yet to play a game in a Magic uniform. He hasn’t even played a minute in the NBA because he decided to stay in Europe. We still have his draft rights and I know the minute the Magic trade them Vazquez will come to the NBA and be the next Pau Gasol or Dirk Nowitzki.

So with the upcoming draft sitting at 19 and Dwight Howard wanting to bolt I should be pessimistic right? Not at all. In fact this is the most excited I’ve ever been for the draft. I discovered something at the trade deadline this year called Daily Dime Live. A bunch of people who obsess over basketball and talk about it all the time and I became hooked. They’ve shown me the fun of the draft and now I’m really excited for a night that’s probably not going to have anything big happen (Maybe a Dwight Howard trade!?) but I digress. Tonight rather than be pessimistic about the future of the Magic I’m going to laugh along with others on twitter and DDL as the Cavs and Kings potentially ruin everything and the Rockets try to come up with some crazy deal to get Dwight Howard. Should be fun and I hope to see you all there. 

A Humble Coronation of A King

I'm a New York Knicks fan.
Let's get that out of the way early, because some humble pie is deserved on my plate. Growing up a Knicks and Buffalo Bills fan, I was taught to despise everything Miami. So LeBron bolts from Cleveland, and the greatest player of my lifetime happened to join the team I cant stand. Maybe it was jealousy, or immaturity, but I used this to knock him down a few pegs on my all time greats list. But not any longer, he is easily top 10, if not higher. The way he casually rolled through my Knicks, the amount of leadership against the Pacers and Celtics, and the incredible play during the Finals, I was in awe. So, congratulations LeBron James, the crown is yours...let's hope we can have some great rivalry games for years to come.