Good to see Gerald Green back in the NBA and this alley-oop reminds us of what we have missed out on. The Dunk Competition is surely crying out for his return!
If you can say one thing that defines the Lakers season this year it’s that they are virtually unstoppable at home (17-2, 2nd best record in the NBA) and pitiful on the road (6-13, 20th in the NBA). There are a number of factors that come into the Lakers inability to perform on the road including the team still learning Mike Brown’s new system, unpredictable and inexperienced role players and high level of turnovers. But the most curious and possibly defining factor between the difference in Lakers performances in and out ofStaplesCenter is the performances of Steve Blake.
At home, Blake is having a solid season and has more often than not, been the Lakers fourth option behind Kobe Bryant, Andrew Bynum and Pau Gasol. He’s averaging 7.5ppg, 4.1apg, .421 FG% and a team high .414% from beyond the arc in 24.6mpg.
However, on the road is a vastly different story, Blake is averaging 4.5ppg on .311 shooting and a deplorable .184 3P% along with 2.2apg in 24.9mpg.
Blake historically has been a good player away from home. Most seasons he’s averaged very similar numbers on the road and at home. He has even had a couple of years where he has actually played better in his teams away colours.
It’s generally known that a player gets better on the road as his career matures. But for Blake it seems that he has become the Benjamin Button of the NBA, as the differences between his performances home and away are akin to a rookie and not an 8 year veteran.
Still, Lakers fans can’t complain too much. At least he’s playing well in half the games this season, 2010 was the worst season of his career as he struggled to find his mojo in Phil Jackson’s triangle offense.
As the Lakers are looking to make a move in the next week before the trade deadline, it’s become glaringly obvious that the Lakers need to upgrade at the point guard position and Blake should be the one to leave LA LA Land. Just a small upgrade from Blake, or even a more consistant player could make the difference that this team needs without compromising the Bryant, Bynum, Gasol chemistry that is so important to the team.
With Blake, a proven veteran who could be a great bench leader for a young up-and-coming team and the Lamar Odom trade exception, some players the Lakers could go after include: Chris Duhon, Shaun Livingston, Earl Watson, Greivis Vasquez and DJ Augustin.
It will be interesting to see if any moves are made. Watch this space…
After talking about what NBA Players should have their own Reality TV Series in Episode 8 – “Law & Order Gilbert Arenas Unit”. A new age old question has come to fold… What would happen if an NBA Team had their own sitcom?
Well, the Minnesota Timberwolves would look something like this:
Some other suggestions for the NBC Thursday Night NBA Comedy Done Right lineup are:
Is there more than what we know behind JaVale McGee’s constant benching for bonehead plays in the NBA? Watch this to find out:
This week’s podcast, Episode 11, was dedicated to JaVale McGee. So what better way to celebrate the most unique man in the NBA by posting up some of his great JaFails on the site…
Check some of these out:
Let’s hope that there’s many many many more to come…
I’ve always had people asking me “Tom, how the hell do you keep up with the NBA so closely?” Truthfully, it’s almost a 2nd job… But definitely not a chore.
Thanks to the internet boom of the last 15 years, there are now so many avenues for NBA Fans outside of the United States to be able to follow the league as closely as someone with a season ticket to their local NBA team.
With this in mind, and the fact that 65% of our Podcast listeners live outside of the United States, I thought I’d provide you all with some helpful hints on how to best use media to help you consue your daily dose of the NBA.
Television
Make sure that you have access to the network in your country that shows the NBA, even if it’s on PayTV like it is with ESPN in Australia and the United Kingdom. These networks support the NBA and so you should support them back by watching the NBA on them. Plus, if you do have access to ESPN, it has a great show “NBA Tonight”, hosted by Kevin Connors and Tim Legler which is shown every few days which has a great analysis of the previous few days games. Furthermore, with shows such as Sportscenter, Around the Horn and Pardon the Interruption, you’ll have a daily dose of NBA action and will be fully informed with the happenings in the League.
NBA.TV
NBA.TV or League Pass as it’s more commonly referred to is the NBA’s online subscription package giving you access to every NBA Game throughout the season both Live & on Demand. You also get access to the NBA’s 24-7 TV Channel NBATV. Subscribing to this is a MUST. This year it’s cost was about $240 for the entire season. It’s really worth it considering how many games you get and how much you will watch. NBA.TV allows you to follow your team night-in-night like never before for anyone living outside of the United States. It also allows you to watch entertaining teams that you rarely see on television such as the Minnesota Timberwolves, Atlanta Hawks and Golden State Warriors. Plus it also has an iPhone or Android application meaning that you can watch all games live at home or wherever you are on your phone.
Another recommendation for NBA.TV is if you have a TV with a HDMI or PC Port on it, which most do these days, plug your computer into your TV so that you can watch the games on the big screen, in HD. The advent of watching NBA on a laptop or desktop can ware off quite quickly.
News Websites
Most people got to the NBA.com for their daily news. It’s a great website but I find that the news it offers isn’t as good as some other sites around the web. I recommend ESPN.com as your first choice for news. It has great writers and covers stories that the NBA won’t because they could be controversial or could potentially put the league in a bad light. It also has a great blog network, True Hoop. Also, make sure you sign up to ESPN Insider. It allows you to keep up-to-date with all the latest NBA rumors, draft hype along with providing premium videos and articles that you can’t get in the free product. It also comes with an 24 month subscription to ESPN the Magazine which is a great weekly read. Other sites I recommend are:
Make sure you read the news article from your favourite team’s local paper also. For example, if you’re a Lakers fan, read the LA Times Lakers page. It gives you an insiders view and articles on your team that you can’t get from a League-wide website.
Podcasts
Obviously you listen to #believethehype so I don’t have to include it on the list but here’s some other great podcasts that you should listen to regularly:
Blogs
There are thousands of great NBA Blogs out there. You’ve just got to pick what one suits you best. Some that I recommend are:
Make sure you follow a good blog for your favourite team also. For example if you’re a Laker fan, LakersNation.com is a must.
Furthermore, if you’re Australian, there are a number of Great Aussie basketball blogs out there which cover the NBA from an Australian angle. Make sure to check out:
If you’re from the UK or Ireland, check out these great blogs, podcasts & friends of #believethehype:
Social Media
The NBA has embraced social media like no other major sporting league has. Because of this, there are so many great places to go to on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Google+ and many more sites to be able to interact with players, teams and fans alike. I don’t really use Facebook too much for following the league because Twitter has really taken over as the ‘go to’ medium for following the NBA. Don’t follow @NBA, the official twitter feed. There’s so much information posted on it that it can clog your news feed. There are thousands of great Twitterers to follow for your 140 characters of NBA goodness, I’m not going to recommend everyone but here are 10 who are must follows:
Plus follow your favourite players and teams…
Magazines
There are some great international basketball magazines out there. If your country has a local magazine, be sure to get it regularly. Plus SLAM is available pretty much anywhere. Another great magazine to get is the Buckets Year Book. This is available online and in selected retailers. Magazines are great for feature articles that you won’t be able to see online.
So there you go, it’s a lot but it definitely makes life a lot easier for an NBA Fan from outside of the United States to be able to follow the league just as well as someone who lives right around the corner from Madison Square Garden.
JaVale McGee is a unique speciman in the NBA, no one can make a fool of themselves on a night by night basis… This weeks episode, Tom Read and Benyam Kidane show props to the big man himself and also talk about who are the best teams in the NBA at the moment and discuss what moves may happen with the trade deadline approaching. This weeks All NBA Five is – NBA Players who could become broadcasters.
Don’t forget that that you can follow us on twitter @traread and @benyamkidane and using the #believethehype tag to ask questions to be answered in next weeks episode.
Download:
Dear Kyrie,
I hope this letter finds you well.
I’m writing to you on behalf of all like-minded Australian Basketball fans who would be ecstatic to see you draped in the ‘Green and Gold’ of our nation this July in London for the Olympic Games and for many more tournaments in the future.
I’m not sure how much contact you’ve had with Basketball Australia, our national team coach Brett Brown or anyone close to the matter but I thought I’d write to you to show the respect the Australian People have for you as a player and the enthusiasm we have for your potential decision to hopefully play for our proud sporting nation.
I’m sure your former college coach Mike Krzyzewski has been urging you to stick with the USA Program but I’d like to point out to you some reasons why Australia is the right choice for your international career.
I’m aware that you are proud of your Australian background and I’m sure your father speaks of his time with the Bulleen Boomers fondly. For a country of only 22 million people, we have a proud sporting and Olympic heratige. Only 8 other countries have won more Olympic Medals than us and you regularly see Australian’s winning at the highest levels in almost any sport. We love sport, we love to win and we embrace our elite athletes like no other country.
As anyone who you speak to who has played sport at the international level would say, playing for the country of your birth is a great honour and is something a lot of people strive for in their lives. To be able to do this at the Olympic Games is something extra special.
Australians have followed your career closely for a few years now, from your days at Duke through to your current amazing performances night in, night out, for the Cleveland Cavaliers. I was also lucky enough to be in the building at the Prudential Center, just minutes away from your home to see you become only the second Australian Born Number 1 Draft pick after Andrew Bogut.
In your performances you’ve displayed a fighting spirit that’s second-to-none in the NBA and also is akin to the Australian way of life, always fighting & striving to be the best, against all odds. I don’t know if it’s hereditary, something that you’ve picked up or if there was something in the water at theMelbourne Hospital that you were born in.
Australia has a rich history in International Basketball, our women’s national team has medalled in the last 4 Olympic Games and won the World Championships back in 2006 and our men’s team has been agonisingly close on 3 occasions (1988, 1996 and 2000) to joining them on the podium.
This year, we arguably have the best group of talent we’ve seen in a long time: Fellow NBA Players Andrew Bogut and Patty Mills along with a great bunch of young guys who are playing at the highest levels in Europe – Joe Ingles (Barcelona), Brad Newley (Valencia), AJ Ogilvy (Valencia), David Barlow (Murcia), David Andersen (Montepaschi Siena), Aleks Maric (Panathinaikos), Nathan Jawai (UNICS Kazan) and Aaron Baynes (Ikaros Kallitheas). These guys are not only a talented group of ballers, but a close knit unit who I believe you’d bond with very well.
To be able to have you as the floor general with the talent mentioned above would instantly make Australia a medal contender and you would have the honour to be a leader on a team that potentially does something unprecedented in Australian Men’s Olympic Basketball history.
In London 2012, you’ll be playing against some of the top echelon point guards in the world today including Derek Rose, Chris Paul, Deron Williams, Ricky Rubio, Jose Calderon and Tony Parker. I know how competitive you are… I’m sure after a season of knocking heads with them in the NBA, you’d love to have the opportunity to steal away some of their thunder with the entire world watching.
If you do decide to play for Australia, I hope that you would consider making it more than a basketball move. The people of Australia would love to see you more than every four years at the Olympics, but it would be great to also see you get involved at the grassroots level, helping young Australian’s get involved in basketball. With your influence and leadership, you have the unique opportunity to help grow the sport to new and unprecedented heights… You’ve got to admit, that would be a pretty cool achievement right?
In saying this, I really hope that you decide to play for Australia, however, if you do choose to keep your allegiances with the United States, I fully understand and respect your decision. To me and to Australian Basketball fans, you’ll always be an Australian.
Good luck for the rest of the season and I look forward to hearing your decision next week…
After it took Dwight Howard a number of attempts to eat a cookie off his face, reformed doughnut boy Charles Barkley and the KFC King Shaquille O’Neal did it on live TV on their first attempt. Retirement’s treating the Inside The NBA crew well.
