HOOPLOG: Rashard Lewis

3/21/06 Box Score: Sonics 96 Kings 105

Wed, 22 Mar 2006 09:17:22 -0800

The unofficial box score from tonight’s game and PopcornMachine’s GameFlow.


	1	2	3	4	Total

Seattle	29	31	22	14	96	Final

Sacramento	23	35	30	17	105	ss="yspscores">

Seattle
Name	Min	FG	3Pt	FT	Off	Reb	Ast	TO	Stl	Blk	PF	Pts
R. Lewis	33	5-12	1-4	4-4	0	4	2	3	2	1	2	15
C. Wilcox	39	7-12	0-0	2-2	5	19	1	3	2	0	2	16
J. Petro	21	3-9	0-0	1-3	3	5	0	3	1	0	4	7
R. Allen	41	8-19	3-10	4-4	0	7	5	4	1	2	2	23
L. Ridnour	33	2-10	0-3	2-2	0	1	10	1	0	1	4	6
M. Wilks	15	0-4	0-0	6-8	0	1	2	1	1	0	1	6
D. Wilkins	12	2-6	0-1	1-1	1	2	0	0	0	0	3	5
R. Swift	23	6-7	0-0	1-2	4	9	0	2	0	0	2	13
N. Felix	5	1-2	0-0	0-0	0	0	0	0	1	0	2	2
M. Moore	10	1-2	0-0	1-1	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	3
N. Collison	DNP - Coach’s Decision
M. Fizer	DNP - Coach’s Decision
D. Fortson	DNP - Coach’s Decision
E. Watson	DNP - Throat Injury

Totals	232	35-83	4-18	22-27	13	48	20	17	8	4	23	96
Percentages:		.422	.222	.815		Team Rebounds: 6

Sacramento
Name	Min	FG	3Pt	FT	Off	Reb	Ast	TO	Stl	Blk	PF	Pts
R. Artest	42	10-18	3-4	11-15	3	8	6	3	1	2	1	34
K. Thomas	33	5-8	0-0	1-1	3	11	4	2	2	1	2	11
B. Miller	40	4-12	0-1	0-2	1	14	1	2	1	0	3	8
K. Martin	19	2-10	0-4	2-2	0	2	1	2	1	1	4	6
M. Bibby	39	9-20	5-10	7-7	2	4	8	2	2	0	5	30
S. Abdur-Rahim	15	2-4	0-0	0-0	1	1	3	1	1	0	2	4
J. Hart	1	0-0	0-0	0-0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	0
F. Garcia	8	1-3	0-2	0-0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	2
B. Wells	22	4-12	0-1	2-2	3	6	3	2	2	0	4	10
S. Monia	DNP - Coach’s Decision
V. Potapenko	DNP - Coach’s Decision
R. Price	DNP - Coach’s Decision
J. Sampson	DNP - Coach’s Decision
C. Williamson	DNP - Coach’s Decision

Totals	219	37-87	8-22	23-29	13	46	26	14	10	4	22	105
Percentages:		.425	.364	.793		Team Rebounds: 9

Game Info

Technical Fouls:
Seattle - C. Wilcox 1, M. Moore 1
Officials: Bob Delaney, Tommy Nunez, Tony Brothers

_____________________________________________________

PopcornMachine’s GameFlow (not yet available)

Plus/Minus
The Good: Mike Wilks +8, Damien Wilkins +5, and Robert Swift +2. The Bad: Mikki Moore -1, Noel Felix -2. The Ugly: Chris Wilcox -8, Rashard Lewis -10, Johan Petro and Ray Allen -11, and Luke Ridnour -17.

Help Value (hv=Reb+Ast+Blk+Stl-TO)
Wilcox led the team with a very strong +19 on the back of his rebounding. Ray Allen and Luke Ridnour were both +11.

Swift/Petro line of the night: 44 minutes, 20 points, 14 boards (7 offensive), 6 fouls.

Sonics: 20 assists, 17 turn overs.

Sonics send No Defense to Clippers for No Interest

Wed, 15 Feb 2006 09:35:36 -0800

Link: SI.com - NBA - Sonics send Radmanovic to Clippers for Wilcox

The LA Clippers are doing very well this seasons. Most people would assume the mirage will go away eventually. The Clippers never seem to get out of the basement of mediocraty in most people's minds, but finally, they are a respectable team. In some ways, you can parallel this season to Seattle's season last year. The team is surprising with every victory and looks positioned to be in the playoffs and bow out to the Suns, Spurs or Mavericks.

The trade completed sends Chris Wilcox from the Clippers to Seattle for Vlad Radmanovic. What either team gains in the shooting or rebounding column the other loses in defensive ability and lack of passion for the game. That being said, it's more important these days to have the size under the basket than it is to get a player who loves to shoot. Who doesn't love to shoot?

Radmanovic has complained this season about playing time. The guy honestly hasn't earned the kind of time he's expecting this season. The thought in Seattle is to try a little on defense and be smart with the offense and with gunslingers Ray Allen and Rashard Lewis in Seatlle, the team didn't exactly need a gunslinger on the bench that doesn't make an effort on defense.

Wilcox has been an enigma himself. He's had spots in his career where he could dominate a game and be an animal under the basket. Undersized a bit, but plenty strong to compete. Why hasn't his game taken off? It seems like he doesn't really care enough to try. Any team should be interested in Wilcox, if that team can light a fire under him and get his butt in gear. Can a trade be that fire?

Fantasy Basketblog Midseason Awards

Wed, 15 Feb 2006 09:35:33 -0800

What, you thought I’d let DM give out the midseason awards? As if …

Stud of the Year : To the best-performing first-round pick.
Shawn Marion, PHO
And it really isn’t even close. With Amare sidelined, Marion has been forced to pick up his game, and boy, has he ever. His FG% is up to a remarkable 51%, and he’s a legitimate 7-category player. He’s solved his struggles at the line, going from 68% in December to 86% in January. It’s at the point where, if he keeps it up, Marion could be considered for the #1 overall pick next year. Runner-up: LeBron James.

Supporting Stud of the Year : To the best-performing second- or third-round pick.
Rashard Lewis, SEA
Lewis has been the prototypical supporting stud this year. He’s a huge asset in two categories (threes and points), and doesn’t really hurt you anywhere. I’ve been very critical of Lewis in the past because he doesn’t rebound enough to be a good forward, nor does he get many assists, but at the end of the day, he does enough of everything else to give him supporting stud of the year. Runner-up: Chauncey Billups.

Breakout Player of the Year
David West, NOK
Despite the fact that I hate him for what he did to my Wizards on Monday night, West is undoubtedly the breakout player of the year. His per-minute averages haven’t changed all that much, other than points, and he’s a perfect example of why we preach minutes above all else here at FBB. Still, can he maintain those percentages in the long run? Runner-up: Mehmet Okur.

Breakdown Player of the Year : To the premier player who’s lost the most value between draft day and today.
Steve Francis, ORL
Listen, we’ve been through a lot with Steve Francis, starting with his “99.9%” guarantee to return to Maryland for his senior year. Then there was the draft debacle when he practically died on the spot when drafted by Vancouver. Then his clashes with folks in Houston. Then his clashes with Orlando when they traded his buddy Cuttino Mobley. Still, through it all, his numbers stayed OK. But now he’s complaining again, and his suspension earlier this year got him “last straw” status here at FBB. Now he’s basically admitting he’s not playing his best, because of trade rumors, and the last straw was … well, you know. You just can’t trust the Franchise anymore as a stud, and he should be avoided until at least the middle of the third round in fantasy drafts next year. Runner-up: Stephon Marbury.

Leaper of the Year : To the player who’s made the leap to stud status.
Pau Gasol, MEM
Admittedly, this has very little – if anything – to do with Gasol’s play. But when you draft him, you know you’re going to dominate the Beards category. Plus, he’s getting real live stud minutes now that the Hubie experiment is over in Memphis, and that’s allowed him to finally live up to the promise he showed his first two years in the league. The free throws are a worry, but it’s always good to have something to work on. Runner-up: Carmelo Anthony.

Junior Leaper of the Year : To the mid-round pick who’s made his way to supporting stud status.
Samuel Dalembert, PHI
All he needed was someone to believe in him. Now that he’s getting starter’s minutes, he’s turned into a legit 2nd-tier center. His blocks are absolutely incredible, but don’t overlook his respectable FT% for a center. Runner Up: Rasheed Wallace.

Let trading season begin

Wed, 15 Feb 2006 09:34:44 -0800

The Seattle Supersonics made news last night by trading Vladimir Radmanovic to the Los Angeles Clippers for PF Chris Wilcox in a move that didn’t stay in the headlines long. First the move was overshadowed by a piss-poor effort against the Milwaukee Bucks. Secondly that trade became secondary news to rumors that the Orlando Magic were on the verge of acquiring former number two overall pick Darko Milicic and possibly trading away guard Steve Francis.

With all these rumors running rampant and the trade deadline just over a week away it is clear that trade season is fully upon us.

With yesterday’s move the Sonics front office proved many people wrong.

First there is the concept that this front office doesn’t make trades. Over the last several years the team has turned over virtually their entire roster. Only SF Rashard Lewis remains from the team Rick Sund inherited. Each season fans have called for a trade of Radmanovic only to hear that the front office was asking for too much in return. What they were asking for, reportedly was Wilcox.

This team is not afraid to pull the trigger, they are however exceedingly deliberate in their dealings both contract wise and in terms of trades. Sund frequently outlines how the seeds of a trade are often planted a year, or years in advance through dialogue with opposing General Managers. This is likely one of those scenarios as the Sonics were rumored to have had interest in Wilcox nearly since the day of his draft.

The second point proven today is probably more important to the team. By trading Radmanovic the team took a step to dispel the notion that players on one year qualifying deals have no value. Radmanovic, along with teammates Reggie Evans, and Flip Murray all accepted one year qualifying offers to make themselves unrestricted free agents at the end of this season. According to the league’s collective bargaining agreement all three can be traded, but only with their permission, and by granting permission the players will waive “Bird Rights” for the team that acquires them. These particular trade restrictions are new to the CBA this year and there some serious doubts whether any team would trade an asset of substance for a player under those circumstances. By getting any value at all for Radmanovic the team surprised me, and likely many other teams in the league. The hope is that this will set a precedent for Evans and Murray to be moved when GM’s assemble at next weeks all-star gathering.

So what exactly does this move mean for the team? Clippers Coach Mike Dunleavy pretty much summed up why this deal made sense for both teams in this morning’s LA Times.

“It’s an opportunity to add a player to our system who brings a totally different dimension,” Dunleavy said when describing Radmanovic. “We have a bunch of guys who are pretty good low-post players, but we were looking for a guy who could do it more from distance.”

Take that comment, turn it around to say “”We have a bunch of guys who could do it from a distance, but we were looking for a guy who is good in the low post.” And you have your answer as to why this is a good deal for both teams.

Wilcox plays above the rim and excels at running the floor. He is not the greatest team defender but does protect the basket with athleticism and shot blocking ability that have been lacking from this team at the power forward spot. For the last several years the team has focused on savy players such as Nick Collison who focus on team ball. The hope is that a blend of the two types of players will produce a product which is better than the pieces combined.

Somewhere between Keon Clark and Jermaine O’Neil the acquisition of Wilcox, if it pans out, changes the fundamental nature of this team by providing balance to a roster that has for several years been unbalanced. No longer will the team have to rely on a gimmicky philosophy of “spreading the floor with their big men”. Between Wilcox, Swift, Petro, and Collison they can at least make a basic attempt to play a more traditional game. No longer will they attempt to coach around their physical limitations in the frontcourt. They have enough physical ability to go around.

This is a great first move but the guard rotation remains critically undermanned as Flip Murray continues his Radmanovic-esque slide to complete uselessness. By moving Radmanovic the team cleared the path for Damien Wilkens to see additional minutes at the backup SF position. He should now play exclusively at the SG and and SF position. This leaves the team with a crippling shortage of ballhandlers and the need to make one more move for a backup PG. Marko Jaric of the Timberwolves and Earl Watson of the Nuggets are guards most closely linked to the Sonics in the rumor mill, but fans should keep in mind that this notoriously tight lipped front office likes to swing deals out of the blue. The Radmanovic for Wilcox trade had not appeared in a publication for nearly a year before it happened. I would expect the Sonics to grab a guard nobody is expecting without a peep being leaked to the press.

Sonics' Lewis pleads innocent to DUI (AP)

Mon, 19 Dec 2005 14:40:36 -0800

Seattle SuperSonics forward Rashard Lewis pleaded innocent Monday to a drunken driving charge. If convicted, he faces a maximum penalty of a year in jail and a $5,000 fine. The next pretrial hearing is Jan. 19. Lewis' lawyer won a ruling during a hearing when the judge agreed the player's breath tests won't be used as evidence.

Artest a Sonic?

Mon, 12 Dec 2005 15:21:06 -0800

Hah, made you look.

There is considerable speculation throughout the NBA regarding the future home of Ron Artest, much of it focusing upon New York. Of course, Sonic fans can't be blamed for wondering if the defensively-minded small forward wouldn't just be a tonic for all that ails us.

Obviously, the Sonics would have to part with a marquee player to get someone of Artest's caliber, and the only guy on the roster that fits is Rashard Lewis (Sugar Ray, of course, is beyond marquee and his salary is out of the Pacers' orbit). A straight Lewis for Artest deal doesn't work due to their disparate salaries, but a Artest-Anthony Johnson for Lewis-draft pick deal could work, or a 3-team deal (more likely, inasmuch as the Pacers would need to get a backup PG to replace Johnson). One other possiblity would be Artest and Austin Croshere for Lewis and Radmanovic, but that deal would have to wait until after the holidays when Radman's available to be traded.

Sadly, there's little possibilty of it happening. Artest apparently wants to return home to New York, and I can't imagine Howard Schultz pulling the trigger on a guy that makes Gary Payton look like Mateen Cleaves. Count me down as one vote in favor, though. As much as Artest's mental stability can affect his team, he's young, on the cheap (relatively speaking), can play defense and score. There's nobody on the Sonics that can reply yes to all of those categories, and he would instantly make the Sonics a better defensive team. Add in a shot-blocking center and the Sonics actually could be tough in the playoffs.

Following A Little Too Closely in Ellis' Footsteps

Tue, 06 Dec 2005 07:53:03 -0800

...Or should we say, "Ellis' Tiretracks?" Cribbed from the Seattle Times.

Less than two weeks after he passed Dale Ellis on the all-time Sonics 3-pointers list, Rashard Lewis seems poised to mimic his predecessor's spotty legal history as well.

Late Monday came the news that Shard was charged for driving under the influence, two months (?) after getting pulled over on I-90 and hitting 0.132 on the Breathalyzer.

Longtime Sonics fans will be forgiven for feeling some deja vu. The Quiet Man's incident no doubt stirred up echoes of the original Silent Assassin wrecking his Benz and breaking some ribs while driving drunk way back in 1990. This is before Dale had some much-publicized domestic disputes with his wife and an ugly legal battle with his neighbors. Dale Ellis, the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come? Let's hope not...

Cynical types might now wonder if Lewis' recent charity event was a pre-emptive public relations move. If that's the case, hey, so what. At least he's done one smart thing since doing a very, very dumb and potentially life-threatening thing.

We tend to focus on the non-serious around here at the 'Soul, but I truly, sincerely hope to God that Number 7 takes a much different path from Ol' Number 3. Thankfully he's still young and has time to make up for such a boneheaded stunt.

Sonics' Rashard Lewis Charged With DUI

Mon, 05 Dec 2005 23:49:47 -0800

Seattle forward Rashard Lewis is charged Monday with drunken driving, resulting from an arrest in late September.

SIMULBLOG FOR SONICS V. BOBCATS

Wed, 30 Nov 2005 20:23:48 -0800

Sonics 56 Bobcats 46 at the half
Sonics go on an 8-0 run with 6 of those points coming on the fast break
Sups force 7 turnovers in the 2nd Quarter for a good defensive quarter.
Rashard Lewis has 19 points and looks awesome.
Very good shot distrubution by the Sups in the first half, Lewis 13, Allen 11, Radman 5.

Sonics 48 Bobcats 44 with 3:01 left in the 2nd Quarter
Off the Topic – Nate Robinson started tonight for the Knicks and played 35 minutes.
Nate had 14-3-2.
The Bobcats are great in transition. When they get out they get 2. They are brutal in the half court
Ray Allen’s strength is not dribbling and he is getting the ball too much early in the shot clock and it allows the defense to put all of its focus on Allen and it is resulting in some turnovers.
The Bobcats are shooting 56% they might not be able to do that in a gym by themselves.

Sonics 44 Bobcats 36 with 5:16 left in the 2nd Quarter
Melvin Ely has a really good low post game for the Bobcats
The Sonics offensive ball movement has been very good
Seattle has gone to a zone and it is causing the Bobcats a ton of trouble.
The Bobcats are committing a ton of turnovers and the Sonics are getting out and going.
The Soncis have done a great job of keeping the Bobcats out of transition
Luke Ridnour left with a slightly sprained ankle

Sonics 30 Bobcats 24 at the end of 1 Quarter
Lewis carries the load with 5 of 6 shooting and 11 points
For the most part the Sonics have done a very good job of keeping the game in the half court and the Bobcats can’t score in the halfcourt.
Okeafor has no jump shot. He is amazingly limited for a guy who won rookie of the year.
Ray Allen went to the bench with the Sonics up 4. One of our storylines is how they do with Allen on the bench.

Sonics 18 Bobcats 9 with 5:53 left in the 1st Quarter
Sonics come out on fire. Hitting their first 6 shots.
Nick Collison gets two fouls by the 8:00 mark. That has always been my concern with Collison is whether or not he can avoid foul trouble as a starting power forward.
Petro replaces Collison.
Sonics are working on containment defensively. Trying to avoid the penetration.
Gerald Wallace and Kareem Rush may have a tough time guarding Lewis and Allen.

STORYLINES
1) The Bobcats can't score the Sonics can't defend
2) Sonics turnovers. The bobcats average forcing 20% of opponents possesions as turnovers.
3) Can the Sonics survive without Ray Allen on the floor.

Some numbers that make you saw wow
In the last 5 losses the Sonics have allowed 187 free throws
In the last 6 games opponents have shot 38 of 78 from 3.
In the last 3 games the Sonics have allowed 105 free throws.
The average defensive efficiency in the NBA is 102. If you allow more then 109 you are in a lot of trouble. In all but 3 games the Sonics have had a defensive efficiency that was over 109. That makes it just about impossible to win.

INACTIVES
Sonics inactives: Mikki Moore, Rick Brunson and Danny Fortson.
Bobcats inactives: Sean May

Sonics Blast Bulls 98-84

Fri, 18 Nov 2005 23:25:52 -0800

Hey, look who doesn't suck anymore—it's the Sonics!

Seattle came back from 11 down at halftime to beat Chicago 98-84 Friday night at Key Arena. Ray Allen scored 20 in the second half to help the Supes claw back from the dead and win this one going away. Allen and Rashard Lewis both scored 27 points apiece to lead the team.

The Sonics, who had allowed their last five opponents to score over 100 points, finally played some defense with solid efforts from Petro-Power (4 blocks in 24 minutes) and Mateen Cleaves, while limiting the Bulls to 38 percent shooting from the field.

The Sonics started slow, but ended the game looking like the dominant force from last year. Hopefully, the season will play out that way as well.

SIMULBLOG FOR SONICS V. RAPTORS

Sun, 13 Nov 2005 11:51:42 -0800

Sonics 76 Raptors 64 with 4:40 left in the 3rd Quarter
Ridnour is hitting his mid-range shot
This team is much better with Collison on the floor then Evans.
Collison double-double in his first start and numerous strong picks to free players.
This team is much better with Petro on the floor then Vitaly.
Vitaly has lost some much lift and lateral movement that Petro makes a dramatic difference with his energy.
All of this said they are playing a terrible team.
The key to this game will still be what happens when they go to the bench

Sonics 73 Raptors 63 with 7:22 left in the 3rd quarter
Toronto is getting too many points on the offensive glass. Last year the Raptors caroled just 23.7 % of the eligible offensive rebounds and this year they have only pulled down 21%. These are historically bad numbers and the Sonics have given up 14 second chance points.
I really like Petro on the floor. He is young and will struggle but he does some things very very well and will only get better.
This starting line-up is playing very well together.
No team with Jalen Rose will ever win.

Sonics 61 Raptors 55 at the end of the half
Lewis 20 points
Flip 11 points
Collison 10 pts 8 rebs
Sonics 50% Raptors 54%
Free Throws Sonics 17-19 and Raptors 2-2

Sonics 57 Raptors 49 with 2:57 left in the 2nd Quarter
The rotation tonight is very succinct. Amazing how much easier when guys are playing well.
Rashard Lewis is carrying the load offensively. 20 points
Sonics have already taken 19 free throws and the Raptors have not taken any.
Sonics have scored 12 straight possessions.
Sonics are dominating the offensive glass.
Charlie V is the real deal.

Sonics 41 Raptors 35 with 7:52 left in the 2nd Quarter
The two worst defensive teams have finally arrived.
Charlie Villenauva is killing Reggie Evans. Evans is notorious for not wanting to leave the paint because it takes him out of rebounding position and Charlie V has hit two threes and then blew by Evans when he did close out for a dunk.
Murray has his offensive game going for the first time this season.

Raptors 28 Sonics 27 with 10:15 left in the 2nd Quarter
Turnovers and defensive breakdowns start out the 2nd quarter.
Raptors on a 20-10 run.
Will the Sonics press again or will they play calmly?

Sonics 25 Raptors 23 end of the 1st Quarter
Sonics lead 21-17 when they went to the bench
Collsion did a nice job starting. 8 points and 6 rebounds
The help defense has been very good.
Flip Murray might be the worst defensive player in the NBA.
A play that epitomized Vlady this year. Reggie threw a poor outlet pass and Vlady waited for the ball to get to him instead of going to the ball and it resulted in a turnover.
Mike James is lighting Seattle up with 13 1st quarter points.

Sonics 21 Raptors 17 with 3:32 left in the 1st Quarter
Petro’s athleticism is awesome. He made a simple move on the baseline that most 7 footers could never make. It is why he needs to start. His weakside defense has been good early in the game. In addition, he has missed two shots in the post and on both of them Collison put them back up and in on the weakside.
Here comes Flip. This is when the Sonics have been killed this year.

Sonics 17 Raptors 8 with 6:35 left in the 1st Quater
My big question about Collison starting is whether or not he can stay out of foul trouble guarding the topic power forwards in the NBA.
The raptors are the worst offensive rebounding team and the Sonics are the worst defensive team rebounding.
These are the two worst defensive teams in the NBA

Bob Weiss will change the starting line-up today.
PG -- Luke Ridnour
SG -- Ray Allen
SF -- Rashard Lewis
PF -- Nick Collsion
C -- Johan Petro

How he will substitute after that is unclear?

The Truth Is Out, Part 2

Tue, 01 Nov 2005 09:39:57 -0800

So BV did his draft recap and now it’s my turn. Like he said, we start 10 players (PG, SG, G, SF, PF, F, C, C, UT, UT), with three bench spots, 12 teams. So it’s a pretty deep league, and it’s very competitive. Hard to slip sleepers past these guys. Guys like Zaza Pachulia, Marquis Daniels, Eddie Griffin, Mike James, etc. were all gone by the 9th round, for example. My strategy going in was to heed my rankings, take the best player available with most picks, not get too hung up on positions, and not to ignore percentages, which always seem to give me problems. Let’s see how I did.

1st Round (4th overall): Dirk Nowitzki, PF
I was hoping that Marion would fall to me, but he went #3. It’s hard to complain about Dirk, and if continues to trade in a few 3s for a few more blocks, I’ll take it. He’s 27, clearly in his prime, clearly the top option on a perennially high scoring team, and he set career highs in blocks, assists and points last year. I’m banking on a repeat. I was tempted to take Kobe, and even a little tempted to shock the world and take Kirilenko, but in the end Dirk was the obvious choice.

2nd Round (21st overall): Yao Ming, C
I told my dad the day before that draft that if Yao was there for me at 21 I would take him, and I stuck to my word. Even in his “disappointing” season last year he finished 17th on the player rater, and he seems bound to take a leap forward this year, if he can continue to improve his game and his minutes per game by 3 or 4, which is a distinct possibility. I certainly liked him more than Jermaine O’Neal, and I was thought about Vinsanity and Mike Bibby, but a dominant center in the second round without reaching was too good to pass up.

3rd Round (28th overall): Pau Gasol, PF
I deliberated a whole lot here. Gasol was the highest person left on my board, but I’ve drafted him the past two years and have been burned before, by a frustrating rotation and injuries. And did I really want to go with three big men with my first three picks, after I preach about PGs so much? In the end I decided to trust myself and go with Gasol. All three players so far are big men with very solid percentages and Gasol, like Ming, seems likely to increase his effectiveness and playing time as he enters his prime and will be the featured player on a thinned-out Memphis squad. His foot problems are a concern, but I went with him over Bosh, Joe Johnson and Rashard Lewis.

4th Round (45th overall): Kirk Hinrich, G
I was absolutely thrilled to get Captain Kirk near the end of the fourth round. He was my highest ranked player left and I desperately needed a top flight PG. The next four picks – Boozer, Camby, Redd, Parker – show what a drop-off there was. Kirk’s FG% is rather brutal, but I’m hoping those first three guys could help offset it.

5th Round (52nd overall): Cuttino Mobley, SG
The middle rounds are always the toughest, and my strategy was to not give in to hype and to instead draft players who I felt would be sure-thing, solid contributors all season. Mobley may have been a bit of a reach, but he has a history of playing 40 mpg and he could very well see that on a thin Clippers team. And you know he’ll be launching his share of 3s, as well. I was strongly considering Lamar Odom, but figured I had plenty of boards and could use a gunner.

6th Round (69th overall): Rasheed Wallace, FC
Another steady, unspectacular pick. Rasheed has a solid all-around game and the fact that he qualifies at center means that I don’t have to worry about depending on one of those “who the hell knows?” guys that ended up going in the next few rounds. His percentages are rather weak, and he might have some clashes with Flip Saunders, but his track record shows steady production and good health. I might very well regret not going with Rafer Alston or Donyell Marhsall at this spot.

7th Round (76th overall): Richard Hamilton, SG
The ultimate safe pick. I’m not a huge fan of Rip’s fantasy game, but in the 7th round it’s hard to argue. I often overlook points, and Rip is always a nice source. He’s another great free throw shooter, and even if he doesn’t match his 5 apg of last year, he should be a solid contributor (see a theme developing?) there. He’s another person who you can leave in the lineup and not worry about, and I think my first seven picks, while lacking in flashiness are extremely solid.

8th Round (93rd overall): Mark Jaric, G
Here’s where you can start going for riskier picks. Or, at least that’s what I’m saying in retrospect. I don’t love this pick, at all. I’m a huge fan of Jaric’s potential, but he’s always hurt and depending on him as my #2 PG has disaster written all over it. If he stays healthy, I’m rather confident this pick will be a steal, but that’s very iffy. His high assist rate might also drop since Minnesota runs its offense through KG.

9th Round (100th overall): Josh Childress, GF
On the other hand, I was thrilled to land Childress in the 9th round. He was actually the only player that I’ve hyped up this season that ended up on my team. He was almost a top 50 player in the second half of last season, and can help in just about every category. Tayshaun Prince went three rounds earlier and I think Childress will end up with the better numbers at the end of the year.

10th Round (117th overall): Eddie Jones, GF
BV hates this pick, but I stand by it. If he was able to finish 52nd on the rater last season when he averaged nearly five points less than he had the past few seasons, he looks to have a slight resurgence in Memphis where he will be looked to as one of the main options behind Gasol. He had a horrid preseason, but this is one of those cases where I’ll take the 10 years of stats over the few preseason games. If he turns out to be a total bust, it’s only a 10th rounder.

11th Round (124th overall): Brendan Haywood, C
OK, this was a pure homer pick, I admit. Brendan is my girlfriend’s favorite player and I figured by having him on my team, I just bought myself a good 40-50 extra hours of basketball watching this season, at least. And for a third center, he’s not so bad, and it’s always nice to have a player on your favorite team to root for. It was the 11th round – Juan Dixon, Lorenzen Wright and Charlie Villanueva were the next three picks – I feel fine about this. That said, it came down to him and Mike Dunleavy and if I wasn’t a Maryland grad who was a Wizards fan, we know who I would have picked. I hope this one doesn’t haunt me.

12th Round (141st overall): T.J. Ford, PG
This one really upset BV, who cried shenanigans since I have not spoken well of Ford at all here on FBB. But hey, player value is all relative – in the 12th round, with Hinrich and Jaric as my only two PGs, I feel this is a strong pick. I still think Mo Williams is just as good of a player, at least this season, and Ford is a major injury risk, but I needed the depth.

13th Round (148th overall): Mike Sweetney, PF
With my last pick I decided to go with someone with some decent upside but also someone I wouldn’t mind jettisoning early on. Each year the waiver wire offers a few players who emerge in the first few weeks of the season that turn out to be quite valuable and you have to be ready to pounce on them. With news that Sweetney will be coming off the bench initially, and knowing that Scott Skiles can be downright Sloan/Hubie Brown-ish when it comes to rotations, Sweetney might be packing his bags soon.

So there’s my team. I think that it’s pretty (here comes that word) solid top to bottom. My top four picks are all young and in their primes, and the rest of my squad is a good mix of established vets and young, but not necessarily green, players. I don’t have any one-category studs and instead am relying on a group effort to put me at the top of most categories. I’m admittedly thin at point guard, but you know that I’m always ready to rotate through the flavor of the week at that position.

Thoughts on who has the better squad, myself of BV???

Enjoy the first games of the season tonight. Go Dirk!

2005 Fantasy Tiers by Position: Small Forwards

Wed, 05 Oct 2005 09:42:59 -0800

It’s nearly impossible to define the “typical” small forward. Some are long-range bombers, some excel at crashing the boards. Others are defensive whizzes. Taken early, your small forward will determine how some of your late picks turn out. Taken late, a small forward can really fill a need – or make a small one even more glaring. Let’s sort through the variety:

Tier One
LeBron James, Shawn Marion, Andrei Kirilenko.

The cream of the crop. James is either the first or second pick in any draft. Marion is a top-5 pick, and if he stays healthy, AK-47 has top-5 talent as well. The health is certainly a risk, but we’re huge fans of AK, so we’re putting him in the top tier.

Tier Two
Peja Stojakovic, Ron Artest, Lamar Odom, Rashard Lewis, Richard Jefferson, Corey Maggette.

These are some of the most valuable players in fantasy basketball. Some are like shooting guards who can rebound. Others are power forwards who can step outside. Each really has unique skill set. You’ll notice we’ve got Ron Artest up here. That’s not a mistake. He’s lined up for a comeback fantasy player of the year award, if such an award existed.

Tier Three
Bobby Simmons, Antoine Walker, Quentin Richardson, Caron Butler, Carmelo Anthony, Jalen Rose, Al Harrington, Tayshaun Prince, Luol Deng, Kyle Korver, Josh Smith.

All of these guys could end up as top-25 players by the end of the year. All of them could also end up being one of the worst players on your team that you just can’t drop. I’m a personal fan of Carmelo this year if you can get him late enough that the risk is low. Meanwhile, Bobby Simmons might end up being overvalued this year in some drafts. He’s just not a 4th round pick – none of these guys are. But by the end of the fifth round, you have to start thinking about this tier.

Tier Four
Grant Hill, Mike Miller, Josh Howard, Darius Miles, Mike Dunleavy, Michael Finley, Gerald Wallace, Marvin Williams, Andres Nocioni, Wally Szczerbiak.

One of the problems with tiering the small forwards is that they have such different strengths, it’s tough to differentiate on an overall level. None of these guys will be fantasy studs this year. However, each has a chance to be a solid contributer to your teams, whether it’s in 3’s (Miller or Finley), boards (Nocioni), or head cases (Miles). These are important players to research for the mid-late rounds of your draft. While they’re never great picks, they’re generally pretty safe in the 10th round of so. Don’t target them necessarily, but if a player you were going to take goes right before you pick, these guys are nice second options.

Tomorrow: Power Forwards.

Fantasy Basketball Mock Draft – Round Four

Wed, 28 Sep 2005 09:43:18 -0800

(For rounds one, two and three, just scroll down)

Players already on the team are in parentheses.

Team L: Jason Richardson (Lamar Odom, Gilbert Arenas, Brad Miller)
Team K: Larry Hughes (Pau Gasol, Allen Iverson, Paul Pierce)
Team J: Zydraunas Ilgauskas (Chauncey Billups, Dwayne Wade, Vince Carter)
Team I: Rashard Lewis (Joe Johnson, Andrei Kirilenko, Jason Kidd)
Team H: Michael Redd (Dwight Howard, Tim Duncan, Steve Nash)
Team G: Kirk Hinrich (Steve Francis, Kobe Bryant, Elton Brand)
Team F: Richard Jefferson (Manu Ginobili, Amare Soudamire, Mike Bibby)
Team E: Andre Miller (Ben Wallace, Tracy McGrady, Jermaine O’Neal)
Team D: Marcus Camby (Chris Bosh, Shawn Marion, Stephon Marbury)
Team C: Andre Iguodala (Baron Davis, Dirk Nowitzki, Yao Ming)
Team B: Emeka Okafor (Ron Artest, Lebron James, Shaquille O’Neal)
Team A: Jason Terry (Ray Allen, Kevin Garnett, Peja Stojakovic)

In round four of our mock draft, we’re seeing basically an extension of round three. With only about one round left of “solid” players (more on that later in the week), your goal in the fourth has to be to start setting yourself up for the later rounds. You want to be worried about team needs, but at the same time, you want to be able to take the best player available (BPA). There’s nothing worse than really stretching for a guy this early just because your team is really lacking in a category so far. So what you’ll see happening in our mock draft is that teams are settling for someone who at least comes close to qualifying as a team need and a BPA.

The fourth round, perhaps more than any other, is where your draft preparation will really come into play. If you’ve ranked players about 50 or 60 deep, it will make your fourth round much earlier. All you have to do is take your draft sheet, identify the 4 or 5 highest-ranked players, and then choose the one among those who best serves your needs. Take, for example, Team H. The top available players there (according to our lists) were Redd, Hinrich, Jefferson, and Miller. We would have those guys ranked with Jefferson first, then Hinrich, followed by Redd and Miller. However, we felt like this team needed some scoring punch, as it’s possible that neither Dwight Howard nor Steve Nash will put up 16 ppg this year. The highest scoring player among our BPA’s was Michael Redd, so he was the choice there, despite the fact that we had ranked Jefferson and Hinrich ahead of him.

So, what teams do you think look the best so far?

Expect Nothing (for now)

Mon, 04 Jul 2005 17:08:52 -0800

Now that the euphoria of drafting Gerald Green is finally starting to melt away, there's one thing I want to make crystal clear. We must have patience with this kid. We were spoiled terribly by Al Jefferson last year, and even he didn't get major minutes. Plus, Al is a big man that has a nose for the ball and didn't need plays called for him to be effective. Green will need to move without the ball and know what to do with once he gets it. I just don't think he'll be able to show his stuff this year. The learning curve is too great.

Everyone uses Tracy McGrady as an example. Well, he took a year and a half to show any improvement (and even then made his mark as a defensive specialist. While were at it, we can stop with the McGrady comparisons. At least we don't hear Jordan comparisons in the league anymore. But its still not a fair comparison. I tend to think Rashard Lewis (another draft day slider) is a better comparison. He's now an All-Star, but it didn't happen overnight.

We'll see what he can do in the summer league and training camp. Past that, I wouldn't expect him to get major minutes. Nobody is really sure how the NBDL is going to work, but if he doesn't surpass everyone's expectations in camp, I wouldn't be surprised if he saw some time in the "minors."

I'm as giddy as anyone at the thought of Al and Gerald leading this team into the next era. But the weight of the future is enough to put on them without adding the pressure of today. Expect nothing for now, and maybe, just maybe, we'll be plesantly surprised.