http://www.yardbarker.com/content/player/4364 Recent articles about Mike Bibby en-us Two of my favorite NBA bloggers are Tom Ziller (Kings) and Matt Watson (Pistons). The Kings just got a little less crazy and the Pistons got a little more busty. Lets watch as the bloggers react. (The following are just snippets from larger posts, which are worth the read) This City Just Got a Little Less Zany (http://www.sactownroyalty.com/2008/7/29/582371/this-city-just-got-a-littl) Ron Artest, a talented talent with real talent, was not built to play for a rebuilding team. All the fantastic traits Ron-Ron embodies on the hardwood -- toughness, passion, shrill desire, the constant choreographed flailing -- mean the most to a winning squad. At no time was this truth, or Ron-Ron's talents, more apparent than in late 2006 when the dark, brooding, slightly frightening Kings took the galaxy by storm and gave the defending champs a fight. Despite being out of shape after a long layoff, Ron-Ron was near perfect from February to May. With Bonzi, a budding Kevin Martin, a raw Francisco Garcia, an Adonis-like pairing of Kenny Thomas and Shareef Abdur-Rahim, and those old farm hands Mike Bibby and Brad Miller, the Kings made a stunning effort. That team will not soon be forgotten in Sacramento, and Ron-Ron was without doubt the motor. The irrational, belligerent, zany motor. These Kings... Wed, 30 Jul 2008 09:21:25 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/297965 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/297965 They could be very good in a couple of years. Wed, 23 Jul 2008 03:52:15 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/294187 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/294187 Rookies tend to get most of the hoopla during Summer League action, but the reality is that very few of them will make an immediate fantasy impact. So here are a few non-rookies to look out for. Not all of them are worth drafting, but all have the potential to put up nice numbers if they continue to improve and the opportunity presents itself. Some non-rookies who looked great in Summer League 2007 and carried that momentum into the regular season include: Louis Williams, Francisco Garcia, Kelenna Azubuike, and Jason Maxiell (all had solid fantasy value at some point last season). Sat, 12 Jul 2008 22:18:24 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/289669 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/289669 Rookies tend to get most of the hoopla during Summer League action, but the reality is that very few of them will make an immediate fantasy impact. So here are a few non-rookies to look out for. Not all of them are worth drafting, but all have the potential to put up nice numbers if they continue to improve and the opportunity presents itself. Some non-rookies who looked great in Summer League 2007 and carried that momentum into the regular season include: Louis Williams, Francisco Garcia, Kelenna Azubuike, and Jason Maxiell (all had solid fantasy value at some point last season). Sat, 12 Jul 2008 22:18:04 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/289668 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/289668 Do you know who Mars Blackmon is? Do you know? Do you know?? Do you know??? Mon, 07 Jul 2008 06:47:03 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/286433 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/286433 The offer the Goldenstate Warriors, have made to Elton Brand has an interesting ripple effect on the rest of NBA's free agents. Monta Ellis is in a nice position to hold the team hostage should Elton Brand decide to resign elsewhere rumors are he'd be looking for upwards of 10 million per season and the Goldenstate Warriors having just lost out on Baron Davis and Brand, would be face a very tough decision with their young star. Then turn to Corey Maggette he wants to play in Orlando but they have only a mid level exception to offer and are looking to add both a PG and a wing, right now both their targets: Corey Maggette, Chris Duhon are holding out for the whole thing. Then the Philadelphia Seventy Sixers are quietly poised to cause "Offer Sheet" mayhem as they like both the Josh's from the Atlanta Hawks and will offer Josh Smith a 5 year deal over the 42 million that the Hawks have offered him and could go as high as 5 years worth as much as 67 million. This would put alot of pressure on the Hawks as they already have the large contracts of Joe Johnson and Mike Bibby, but supposing they match. The Sixers will just turn their attention to Josh Childress their second target and begin the process again albeit with reduced figures, my guess is one of these Josh's will be a Philadelphia 76er next season. The Knicks are not so quietly looking for a PG, having already offered Chris Duhon slightly more than half their 5.5 mid level veteran exception, and should Duhon sign elsewhere they woulld immediatly turn their attention to others like: Sebastian Telfair, Tyronn Lue, Jannero Pargo and Keyon Dooling all the while embattled former star Stephon Marbury waits in the wings having not benn bought out and currently not part of the teams plans. Stephon Marbury has something to prove and when he is bought out, it will be very interestng to see where he ends up. Last if this drama isn't enough Emeka Okafor, Ben Gordon, Luol Deng's situation haven't played out yet at all Chicago is in tough as they just have too many guards and players like Kirk Hinrich and Shawn Marion are already being shopped by their teams. Thu, 03 Jul 2008 15:51:40 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/285609 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/285609 Roland Beech of 82games.com takes a look at the tape. Was Game 6 of the 2002 Western Conference really fixed? Was there a clear bias shown to favor the Lakers calls? Or was it just a poorly officiated game? Tue, 01 Jul 2008 14:25:15 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/284685 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/284685 The NBA draft is just days away and undoubtedly, someone will make a franchise crippling decision, like drafting the next Kobe Bryant and trading him for an over-the-hill center, or passing on the next Dwayne Wade in favor of the European mystery bag that is Darko Milicic. Only time will tell how good (or not so good) this class will be, but for now, let's take a look at some blunders of the past. 10. Jonathan Bender, Toronto Raptors/Indiana Pacers Perhaps 13 teams missing on Kobe Bryant three years earlier played a role in this 1999 selection, but Bender was undoubtedly a mistake. Selected fifth overall by the Raptors and promptly dealt to the Pacers, Bender was selected in front of talents like Shawn Marion, Richard Hamilton, and Corey Maggette. 9. Ed O'Bannon, New Jersey Nets One could argue that Joe Smith was a bad pick at number one overall, considering the talent in the 1995 draft class. I would argue that 13 years later, he's still in the league. By 1997, Ed O'Bannon wasn't. Not good for a top ten pick. Michael Finley or Brent Barry would have been more serviceable picks. 8. Shawn Bradley, Philadelphia 76ers It's tough to call a guy who lasted 12 years a bust. At 7'5", Bradley was supposed to be a giant who could run the floor. Unfortunately he was just a giant. Despite his lack of athleticism, size can help a whole lot in the NBA, and he sure had that. However, the Sixers probably wish they would have sent the card in with Penny Hardaway or Jamal Mashburn's name instead. 7. Kwame Brown, Washington Wizards In 2001, the Wizards were looking to start over and Kwame Brown was to be the face of the franchise. Sadly, it was an ugly, ugly face. Averaging 7.5 points and 5.7 boards a game for a career, Brown was a huge bust. It's astonishing that the Wizards were able to deal him to Los Angeles for Caron Butler, who went on to play make back to back All-Star appearances in 2007 and 2008. 6. Michael Olowokandi, Los Angeles Clippers The Clippers tend not to draft well. With a pretty good 1998 draft class, they really shouldn't have bombed, but boy did they… The "Kandi Man" was selected first overall, in front of Paul Pierce, Dirk Nowitzki, Vince Carter, Antawn Jamison and Mike Bibby. 5. Rick Robey, Indiana Pacers How does one average less than 15 points and 8 rebounds a game in college and still get drafted in the top three? It's still a mystery thirty years later, but in 1978, the Pacers made Robey a top three selection. In hindsight, they probably shouldn't have let a hometown kid from Indiana State fall to the Celtics at pick six. Larry Bird probably would have been a better selection. 4. Dennis Hopson, New Jersey Nets Hopson was picked third in the 1987 draft and actually went on to have a decent career. But it wasn't the career of a Scottie Pippen, Kevin Johnson or Reggie Miller – all picked after him. 3. Darko Milicic, Detroit Pistons You knew he was coming. The 2003 draft was among the best in history, and certainly in recent memory. But pick number two was not one of the next big stars in the NBA. Darko was selected in front of Dwayne Wade, Carmelo Anthony, Chris Bosh, David West and Josh Howard, among others. 2. LaRue Martin, Portland Trail Blazers If you're the number one pick in the draft, you should really stay in the league longer than four seasons. You should probably average more than 5 points a game. It could be argued that Bob McAdoo (picked second) or Julius Erving (picked twelfth) would have been better picks in 1972. Perhaps… 1. Sam Bowie, Portland Trail Blazers Taken number two overall in 1984 by the Blazers, Bowie had an okay career. But what makes a bad pick a bad pick in the NBA isn't necessarily how good or bad you were, but how good or bad everyone around you in that draft was. And in the Blazers defense, they already had Clyde Drexler, so the pick made sense at the time. Unfortunately for Sam Bowie, and the Blazers, the team passed on guys like Charles Barkley, John Stockton, and some guy who used to wear 23 in Chicago. Tue, 24 Jun 2008 14:27:27 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/281819 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/281819 Maybe he's right about Game 6 of the 2002 Western Conference Finals.....You make the call... Wed, 11 Jun 2008 11:23:45 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/276830 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/276830 Posted on Ballhype earlier this afternoon was this little article by John Marziulli of the New York Daily News. It may seen relatively standard of the occasional Donaghy-related story we see every now and then, but something in particular caught my eye. Marziulli writes: Donaghy claims he was told that two refs who were "company men" acting in the interest of the NBA conspired to extend a playoff series in 2002 to a seventh game. My immediate reaction was the same as any other fan of the league who read the article: which series was it? The document does not name the teams. Well, how hard could it be to find out? As it turns out, not very -- only two series went to six games or more in the entire playoffs, and both were the conference finals: New Jersey versus Boston and Los Angeles versus Sacramento. So, I looked at the rest of the description in Marziulli's article to determine which series... Tue, 10 Jun 2008 18:28:56 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/276597 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/276597 Over the next five weeks, I will go position by position and rank the top 30 players by total value. The NBA is a business, so it doesn't make sense to purely rank the players only by their talent or stats, or by some other qualitative measure (though those factors do matter). We must also look at a player's salary relative to his peers. Obviously, if a player is in the middle of a very reasonable contract, he'll get a boost in the rankings. To summarize a player's stats, I'll use the NBA Efficiency statistic, which is defined as: EFF = ((Points + Rebounds + Assists + Steals + Blocks) - ((Field Goals Att. - Field Goals Made) + (Free Throws Att. - Free Throws Made) + Turnovers)) I'll list Efficiency Per Game (EPG) for each player, which will give a nice snapshot of his stats. To compare two players that get vastly different minutes, I'll occasionally mention Efficiency Per Minute (EPM), which is simply the player's total efficiency divided by his minutes. I'll also consider a player's age and potential. All else being equal, a franchise would probably prefer a 25 year-old point guard to a 32 year-old point guard, right? Essentially, the order of this list comes down to this question – would you trade Player X for Player Y, assuming the goal is to win a title in the next three seasons at a reasonable payroll? To summarize, there are four major factors I'll consider: talent (statistical performance), contract, age and potential. Without further adieu, here are the top 30 point guards, ranked by total value: 1. Chris Paul, Hornets Age: 23 EPG: 27.8 Contract: two years, $10.6 M ($5.3 M per) Not only has Paul emerged as hands-down the best point guard in the game, he is still on his rookie contract, so he's a bargain to boot. 2. Deron Williams, Jazz Age: 23 EPG: 23.0 Contract: two years, $11.8 M ($5.9 M per) Williams is bigger and stronger than Paul, and is also a better outside shooter. But Paul has the edge in quickness, ball handling and court vision. 3. Tony Parker, Spurs Age: 25 EPG: 16.9 Contract: three years, $37.7 M ($12.6 M per) Parker is young, speedy and a proven player in the clutch. Plus, his salary is fairly reasonable for a player of his caliber. His defense is mediocre at best. (See the rest of the list after the jump.) Mon, 12 May 2008 14:33:45 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/266125 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/266125 Chris Paul is for real. He lead the New Orleans Hornets from no playoffs the year before to the 2 spot in the highly competitive West. He's extremely dangerous to other teams when it comes to decison making. From pulling up for a jumper, to driving in the lane to dishing it back out to an open teammate, they're all possibilities for him in just one play. He is the best point guard in the NBA. Player (Current Team/Former Team) PPG, RPG, APG, SPG * = Best in Category (R) = Rookie Steals 1+ Shown 1. Chris Paul (NOH) 21.1, 4, 11.6*, 2.7* 2. Baron Davis (GSW) 21.8*, 4.7, 7.6, 2.3 3. Deron Williams (UTA) 18.8, 3, 10.5, 1.1 4. Tony Parker (SAS) 18.8, 3.2, 6 5. Steve Nash (PHX) 16.9, 3.5, 11.1 6. Gilbert Arenas (WAS) 19.4, 3.9, 5.4, 1.8 (13 Games) 7. Chauncey Billups (DET) 17, 2.7, 6.8, 1.3 8. Jason Kidd (DAL/NJN) 10.8, 7.5*, 10.1, 1.7 9. Andre Miller (PHI) 17, 4, 6.9, 1.3 10. Mo Williams (MIL) 17.2, 3.5, 6.3, 1.2 11. Jamal Crawford (NYK) 20.6, 2.6, 5, 1 12. Raymond Felton (CHA) 14.4, 3, 7.4, 1.2 13. Jamaal Tinsley (IND) 11.9, 3.6, 8.4, 1.7 (39 Games) 14. Jose Calderon (TOR) 11.2, 2.9, 8.3 1.1 15. Rafer Alston (HOU) 13.1, 3.5, 5.3, 1.3 16. Rajon Rondo (BOS) 10.6, 4.2, 5.1, 1.7 17. Devin Harris (NJN/DAL) 14.8, 2.7, 5.8, 1.4 18. Kirk Hinrich (CHI) 11.5, 3.3, 6, 1.2 19. T.J. Ford (TOR) 12.1, 2, 6.1, 1.1 20. Beno Udrih (SAC) 12.8, 3.3, 4.3 21. Derek Fisher (LAL) 11.7, 2.1, 2.9, 1 22. Mike Bibby (ATL/SAC) 13.9, 3.3, 6, 1.1 23. Jameer Nelson (ORL) 10.9, 3.5, 4.6 24. Sam Cassell (BOS/LAC) 11.2, 2.5, 3.9 25. Nate Robinson (NYK) 12.7, 3.1, 2.9 26. Louis Williams (PHI) 11.5, 2.1, 3.2, 1 27. Daniel Gibson (CLE) 10.4, 2.3, 2.5 28. Delonte West (CLE/SEA) 8.3, 3.2, 3.8, 1 29. (R) Mike Conley (MEM) 9.4, 2.6, 4.2 30. Kyle Lowry (MEM) 9.6, 3, 3.6, 1.1 Just Missed It Ramon Sessions (MIL) 11.5, 4.9, 11.3, 1.5, (10 Games April) Antonio Daniels (WAS) 8.4, 2.9, 4.8, 1 Sebastian Telfair (MIN) 8.3, 2.3, 5.9, 1 Just a few things to say before I wrap this up. Jamal Crawford, he's a shooting guard running the point. He did pretty good, but Nate Robinson really should have taken that spot, and he might get that chance with Mike D'Antoni heading to New York and Marbury possibly opting out or getting traded. In fact a lot of players in the NBA are going to get their chance to shine in the NBA soon. A lot of the star veterans are nearing retirement. Players like Steve Nash, Chauncey Billups, Allen Iverson, Shaq, Dirk Nowitzki, even Shawn Marion turned 30 a few days ago. Soon they'll start to break down and eventually retire, making room for the younger guys to take charge. In a few years, the NBA's going to be a whole differnt game. Mon, 12 May 2008 13:19:10 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/266095 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/266095 Awesome comic depicting the Cavs/Celtics series and those bizarre split screen face ads from the NBA. Tue, 06 May 2008 14:41:12 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/263982 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/263982 These are just 33 things that I saw or noticed throughout the series. Congratulations to the Celtics for advancing, and congratulations to the Hawks for getting back on the NBA map. Mon, 05 May 2008 17:00:32 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/263701 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/263701 this is a terrible organization, last year they had the second worst record in the league, not because they were the second worst team, but becauseb they sat out any player with an ounce of talent. paul pierce sat out basically the entire year with a bruised pinky toe, and it wasnt because they wanted to play younger players either, they would take out gerald green, jefferson, delonte west, sebastion telfair and ryan gomes whenever it was a close game, then they traded away these young players and the draft pick that was supposed to give them a bright future for a bunch of LOSERS, ray allen, kg and paul pierce couldn't win S#!T before they came together, so they needed each other, lets hope these guys keep losing and keep your fingers crossed for a celdicks loss Sun, 04 May 2008 11:32:16 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/263302 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/263302