Links

Long, but a must-read: Derrick Rose is the future -

This is full circle.

Early Monday morning in the Englewood section of the South Side of Chicago, and Murray Park is alive. There’s the dude who just got out a week ago, Obama tattoo on his right bicep and cell-block muscles on every other visible inch of him. There’s the busty chick with two different hairstyles on her head and a pair of Nefertiti-like eyes tatted on her breasts. There’s the tall dude with four gold chains and waves that would put any R&B singer to shame. A couple of older female cops mill around, but they don’t seem too worried about anyone here. Little boys wearing basketball shorts and wide-eyed stares come through. And lots of teenage girls, armed with camera phones, trying to get a snapshot of the young man who isn’t much older than them, the man everybody is here to see: Derrick Rose.

The 20-year-old star of the Chicago Bulls is the prince of these streets. Born and raised a couple of blocks away from the park over on 75th Street, this is the court where Derrick threw up his first jumper and honed the crossover that would later drop NBA point guards on their asses. This grass field is where he began his comically brief baseball career, hurling fastballs and robbing base hits. This sidewalk on the West side of the fence is where he used to race his friends, sprinting up and down the block, sometimes with no shoes on, showing off the speed that would later carry him past Chris Paul and Deron Williams on the game’s most hallowed courts. In the summer of 2008, more than 200 people gathered at the park to barbeque, play ball, and listen to the radio as the Bulls chose Derrick with the No. 1 pick in the NBA Draft.

...

“It’s a game. I don’t look at any game like it’s just a pickup game or anything like that. It’s a game, and I’m always trying to win,” Derrick says. “All I wanna do is win. That’s the only thing, that and getting better, no matter how you do it. How many points you get, assists, whatever … that’s not important. There was a spell this year where we lost like five or six games in a row, and that didn’t feel good at all. I had to talk to a couple people — my brothers, my mom. I’m glad they were there for me, ’cause it’s hard when you lose games. It gets to you. So people that’s losing like 20, 30-something games in a month or two, I can’t do that.”

...

And just like his monotone post-game interviews during that series, where he seemed almost bored by the whole thing, today he still doesn’t talk it up too much. Asked to reminisce on the series, he talks more about mistakes he made and turnovers he wishes he could do-over. On the day of this photo shoot, the Lakers and Magic are in the middle of the NBA Finals; Derrick says he hasn’t watched the playoffs since his team was knocked out.

“We’re not in it, so it’s like, what’s the point? It’s too hard to watch,” Derrick says.

“He beats himself up,” Reggie says. “He can win the game, but he’s thinking about the layup he missed, or the pass somebody stole, or when he saw the ball on the floor and didn’t get to it. Even in AAU, I had to be like, ‘Derrick, forget about it.’ It’s hard for him to let go. He just wants to be perfect.”

Deng at PF? -

For the purposes of this post, I'm going to go ahead and say that the Bulls best five players are Derrick Rose, Kirk Hinrich, John Salmons, Luol Deng and Joakim Noah (albeit not necessarily in that order). I don't think this is too outlandish of a statement, and if we can all agree on that, then the following blurb will make more sense.

It's almost never a bad idea to get your five best players on the floor at the same time. You never want to make your depth chart too wonky; ideally, your depth covers all positions and all matchups, with no highly exposable weaknesses and a modicum of talent to be found at every position. As any drunken trampolinist will tell you, balance is key.

Unfortunately, the Bulls depth chart is not particularly even. Noah is a centre, Hinrich and Rose are best as point guards, and both Salmons and Deng are better at small forward. The Bulls have no natural two guard, a small forward surplus, and one of the weakest power forward rotations in the league. It's a big hole we have there.

And the answer may just lie in house.

TrueHoop's Thursday Bullets -

A report that Derrick Rose's SATs could be at the center of a disaster for college basketball in Memphis. Worth noting: NOBODY in the NBA cares about his SATs, right? So why's it such a big deal to the NCAA? By any objective measure his college experience was a success, in terms of preparing him to become a successful professional athlete. But the NCAA, of course, has to maintain the illusion that he was actually a serious student, and for that, SATs matter.

A look back at a bunch of links from before game 7 of last season's epic Bulls/Celtics series -

Game 7 Preview
Well what can you say about this series?! Should we expect another OT thriller? Why not, right?!

Should we expect repercussions against Rondo for his (a) trip of Kirk in Game 5, (b) punch of Brad Miller in Game 5, (c) throw of Kirk into the scorer's table, (d) throw of an elbow at Kirk?

Answer: (e) None of the above! Congrats Boston fans, you've cheated your way into a Game 7.

Oh, one of your players is hurt?! I hadn't heard about that. Good thing the Bulls are completely healthy instead of missing a starter (Deng), having 2 starters playing hurt (BG and Salmons) and our best 2 bench players dealing with stitches because of your dirty, scumbag little PG.





In actuality, it's tough to complain about this series. It's been an absolute pleasure to watch as a basketball fan, and an epic-thrilling-each-game-could-give-me-9-heart-attacks-roller-coaster-ride to watch as a Bulls fan.

Bulls best post-MJ season: 2004 or 2008? -

I was attempting to come up with a top 10 list of the best moments for a Bulls fan post Jordan, and what I found was that virtually every moment on my list came from either the 2004/5 season or the 2008/9 season. This prompted me to consider the similarities of the seasons as well as whch one was more enjoyable.
In 2004, the Bulls played the whole season as the cardiac kids winning most games and playing them all close. After a 3-14 start, the Bulls finished 44-21, a pace which would have been good for 55+ wins if they could have maintained it throughout a season. In 2008, the Bulls entered the all-star break at 23-30. They finished the season 18-11, a pace which would give them 50+ wins if they are able to maintain it this season. Both seasons gave you great play down the stretch with reason to be excited for the next year.

In 2004, the Bulls acquired a new hero. Ben Gordon scored over 10 points in the fourth quarter 21 times. Second only to LeBron James on route to winning the 6th man of the year award and prompting the moniker 4th quarter Gordon. Despite his heroics at times, he was plagued by turnovers, inconsistency, bad defense, and long cold stretches.

When Derrick Rose jumped on the scene in 2008 he had many remarkable performances early on in the season willing the team to victories on the circus trip against Utah and Golden State while looking absolutely unstoppable. Rose went on to win rookie of the year, and the heart of Bulls fans. However, much like Gordon, he was also plagued by inconsistency, struggling with assertiveness and defense for long stretches during the year.

Downloads: Views: 625735

MJ Moments

This was the best 10 minutes of my week.

Downloads: Views: 4041

Downloads: Views: 10223

The MJ Challenge

Think you have a big collection of MJ memorabilia/collectibles?

I feel confident saying that (assuming you're just an amateur collector like me) I have more MJ memorabilia than you. I've told plenty of people about my collection, but no one has ever really seen all of it.

In response to articles like this (claiming that the MJ shrine is a corporate sham), I want to post a completely non-corporate tribute to the NBA's G.O.A.T.

I'll start with an extensive post of my collection, and then feel free to send in pics of any cool MJ collectibles that you have, and I will post them on the blog.

Quick links

NBA All-Decade team -

The Power Forwards



Candidates: Tim Duncan, Kevin Garnett, Dirk Nowitzki



There's no need for any more candidates.



Elton Brand and Chris Bosh have been successful in their careers as well, but neither are close to the caliber of the three power forwards in this decade. All of them are three of the greatest power forwards to have ever played, with Duncan possibly being the best.



It speaks volume of their dominance, considering the power forward position has been deep in this decade. I haven't mentioned Amar'e Stoudemire, or Jermaine O'Neal, both of whom were consistent All-NBA Team members every season.



The only one who comes close enough to make an argument is Chris Webber, who was one of the most well-rounded power forwards in the league and the catalyst of the biggest threat the Los Angeles three-peat Lakers faced. He's notorious for coming up short in big game situations, similar to Dirk Nowitzki. But unlike Nowitzki, Webber falls short in terms of longevity and lacks the MVP award Dirk has.



When it's all said and done, there'd be a legit argument that the 2000s power forward position was stronger than any other decade in the history of the game. Don't forget Karl Malone was still a very good player in the early 2000's as well, but he was past his prime and not on the level of those three.

Why we love pick-up hoops -

it's a rare chance, in modern society, to behave immoderately:

Everyone arrives in a mood to insult and prepared to defend against insults, basketball-related or otherwise. I like it; I think it's part of my addiction. It's not like I play ball to fight, but I crave the intensity. And my game is respected for that reason above all others. For a long time now, that has been my thing -- to be intense, to play hard, to exhibit a certain smug satisfaction at hitting shots, to want to win, to relish nifty passes, to clap and congratulate my teammates, to be loud, to be in your face, to stir the pot so that the people I'm playing against feel annoyed and insulted, so they try harder.

Afterward, everyone seems to feel the game has been better for it.

I've learned all this from years and years of being taunted and abused on various public street-basketball courts in various cities and locales. Inside the fence, you're all alone in a kind of free-trade zone of aggression and hostility and whatever else you wanted to trade in. Buckets, for example, or pride. You feel as if anything could happen. All that hostility, in the context of such a devotional love of the game, is a good way to make friends, even if you don't know their real names.

21 reasons to get NBA league pass -

8. Michael Jordan cameos — For the MJ followers who jizz in their pants whenever the G.O.A.T. is mentioned, if you watch Bobcats games on the regular, you can have a couple handfuls of Jonas Brothers moments throughout the season.
...
12. Derrick Rose & Tyrus Thomas — You know what D-Rose can do. But Tyrus manages to consistently do amazing things on the court, even if that one Highlight of the Year is the only mark he makes on the game.

My one reason not to get it: I would fail out of law school.


MJ "shrine" in the HOF -

Speaking of MJ

Richard Sandomir has an excellent piece in today’s New York Times about the commercialization and marketing whoring involved with the Michael Jordan’s pending induction into the Basketball Hall of Fame.

Instead of the exhibit being a shrine to Jordan, it’s really just a living commercial to MJ and the Jordan Brand. Even the championship rings on display are replicas of Jordan’s.

***** UPDATE ***** (missed this link earlier!)

Is "72" untoucha-Bull? -

The number 72 conjures up just one memory in the NBA: the marvelous Chicago Bulls of 1995-96, who racked up an unbelievable 72-10 record. No team has ever reached 70 wins, let alone 72. Not Russell's Celtics, not Magic's Lakers -- no one. Heck, even the Bulls couldn't match their own standard in the two title seasons that followed '96.

The depths to which the Bulls dominated the competition in the record-breaking season was astounding. After Shaquille O'Neal, Penny Hardaway and former Bull Horace Grant showed the Bulls the door in a six-game conference semifinal season in 1994-95 -- the season in which Michael Jordan unretired with two months left -- Chicago went out and grabbed the vitamin boost it needed: Dennis Rodman.

Rodman, who the Bulls nabbed from the Spurs while only giving up Will Perdue, not only squelched Grant in the Magic-Bulls matchups of '96. Rodman, along with a nearly perfect season from MJ and divine campaigns for Scottie Pippen and Toni Kukoc, helped take the Bulls to levels never thought imaginable. The Jordan-era Bulls under Phil Jackson had always been stellar on defense, but the '96 version was just suffocating.

(Props to me for that clever phrase in the link to the article)

The good old days (3).

MJ - "He can't guard me." Probably my favorite MJ clip.

Downloads: Views: 6431

Bulls and D-Rose links

Sleepers -

Chicago Bulls
How much should we read into Chicago's classic seven-game series against Boston? Was the Bulls' gutsy performance a harbinger of things to come, or was it lightning in a bottle? Did they graduate into a team that knows how to scramble defenses with a legitimate pick-and-roll game, or were they just lucky to encounter a crippled Celtics' team ill-suited to deal with their quickness and athleticism?

Those aren't the only imperative questions for Chicago. Even if we conclude that they came of age in April, is it fair to expect them to continue their progress without their top scorer, Ben Gordon, whom they lost to Detroit?

Short answer: Yes.

NBA's 10 fastest players -

1
Derrick Rose, Chicago Bulls

There is plenty of room for disagreement here — like we said, no one's timing every NBA player with a stopwatch — but Rose tops this list because of his speed in every situation. From end to end, the 2009 Rookie of the Year can cover the 94 feet as fast as anybody. In close quarters, his burst is unbelievable. He can run the fast break or penetrate through halfcourt defenses with equal velocity. And at 6-3 and 190, he has a strong frame and excellent body control, making him arguably the best athlete of all the league's point guards. Considering he won't be old enough to drink a beer till October, the 20-year-old Rose is on the fast track to NBA stardom.

Magic better than Michael? -

If Magic Didn't Retire Early, Would MJ Still Be The Best?

Earvin Magic Johnson just celebrated his 50th birthday and is widely regarded historically as one of the NBA's best ever. But what if he didn't retire when he did?

When Magic announced his first retirement in November of 1991, the Chicago Bulls were about to begin the defense of their first of six titles with Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen, and Phil Jackson.

The Bulls won their first, in Jordan's 7th NBA season, a few months earlier beating Magic and the Los Angeles Lakers in five games.

And then, right before the 1991-92 season was set to begin, Magic made his famous announcement that he was forced to retire because he'd contracted the HIV virus.

Top 10 NBA storylines -

9.Sophomore class rising



The top players from this draft class is Derrick Rose and OJ Mayo. Both of them will elevate their statuses even higher this season. Rose went nuts in the playoffs and will carry his momentum into this season. With the loss of Ben Gordon, he will also be relied on more to score.

Mayo will become a scoring machine while working on other aspects of his game such as defense. He will establish himself as the face of the Grizzlies franchise. The two surprises of this class are Brook Lopez and Anthony Randolph.

Lopez will be the second option on the team without Vince Carter. Randolph will emerge as a star himself and as the third best player from this class, ahead of Lopez and Michael Beasley.

NBA's all-time best duos -

1. Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen

You all knew it was coming.

The greatest player to ever grace the game and a bona fide all-star—who on any other team is a go-to guy—brought six titles and immortality to the Windy City.

Throw the ever-elusive Dennis Rodman into the mix, and two three-peats are a standard.

Jordan was graced with fantastic teammates and a legendary coach, but none more powerful than Pippen.

That's why these guys are the greatest duo in NBA history.

And some links I pulled from twitter (follow BBS here!) ...


From SlamOnline -

Downloads: Views: 7082

JoaNoah enjoying the off-season.

D-Rose on the cover of Kicks Magazine.

Bears Pre-season Reactions

I wish we could have seen the entire first-unit on offense (read: Greg Olsen and Matt Forte), but it was fun to see Cutler out there in a Bears uni. He didn't look great, but who cares? It's the pre-season. He did show off his laser-rcoket arm on the interception he threw in the 1Q - when he jumped off his back foot and threw a bomb. (Like I said, I don't care that it was a pick because it was the first pre-season game). The D looked pretty good too, even the 2nd unit guys (granted playing against the Bills 2nd unit). Either way, happy to see football season is getting started, and happy to see a real QB in a Bears uniform.


Cutler has room to improve -

Jay Cutler looked best when ... on second-and-6 at the Bears' 16, he took a deep drop, set his feet and fired a strike to Devin Hester on a deep comeback route. The connection covered 20 yards and displayed the best of Cutler: sturdy base, strong arm, rare velocity and accuracy. We didn't see it often on Day 1 of the Cutler Era.

Looked worst when ... he threw a near interception that Reggie Corner dropped after he had thrown an interception to Leodis McKelvin. On that Corner play, it appeared there could have been a miscommunication between Cutler and Earl Bennett that resulted in the quarterback hesitating. Tentative, Cutler pumped, pulled back and eventually threw a pass he immediately wanted back. Like most quarterbacks, when Cutler hesitates, the play is easy to lose.

COverall grade: He only made two decent throws and should have had two interceptions, but he also was playing without two weapons: Matt Forte and Greg Olsen.

Cutler human -

Unwelcome but necessary, a late arrival to the Jay Cutler Bandwagon dampened the enthusiasm surrounding the debut of the Bears quarterback Saturday night at Ralph Wilson Stadium.

Reality.

Turns out Jay Cutler can make mistakes. He will disappoint. He needs a transition period.

He might even raise an eyebrow as he holds his wide receivers publicly accountable for an interception he threw, as Cutler did when beginning an answer about his interception with an explanation of Devin Hester's role in it.

Asked what happened on the underthrown first-quarter pass Cutler heaved off his back foot that cornerback Leodis McKelvin intercepted, the Bears quarterback introduced Hester into the equation.

"Devin is more of a go-get-it guy," Cutler said. "He's not really a back-shoulder, jump-up-and-get-it [guy] and ... you learn from it. You make some mistakes. It's a preseason game."

10 Observations -

1. I thought my colleague Mike Mulligan said it best when he pointed out Tony Dungy and Mike Ditka have questioned the leadership ability of Jay Cutler, and the quarterback made the point worth pondering again in post-game remarks. Cutler was asked an innocuous question about what happened on the interception by Leodis McKelvin on an underthrown. Cutler appeared to throw off his back foot, and he pretty much implicated wide receiver Devin Hester.

"Devin is more of a go-get it guy, he is not really a back shoulder or jump up and get it [guy],'' Cutler said. "You learn from it. We made some mistakes. It's the first preseason game. Luckily enough, we have some time to correct them and keep going."

Say what you want about the quarterbacks that came before Cutler, and Kyle Orton's three-pick stinker Friday night in San Francisco said a lot on its own, but those guys never placed their receivers in front of the bus.

2. Great move by Lovie Smith to rest running back Matt Forte. There is no need for a running back to play in four exhibition games. Smith informed Forte at breakfast Saturday that he would not be playing. Forte hoped to get some action but LaDainian Tomlinson has gone entire preseasons without touching the ball.

3. If you're not worried about the Bears' secondary, you must not have watched the game. Trent Edwards was 10-for-10 and his replacement Ryan Fitzpatrick was 13-for-16. No, they didn't hit the Bears for much deep stuff, but nobody did last year and the Bears still finished 30th in the league in pass defense. Keep in mind, the Bills were without Terrell Owens. Buffalo systematically picked the secondary apart. Alex Brown did pick up a coverage sack, and Corey Graham looked smooth blitzing off the edge as the nickel back to get another sack. Here's what is scary about the defensive backfield right now, the Bears are counting on injured guys to come to the rescue. They're also counting on Nathan Vasher to bounce back. If they're playing blackjack here, it doesn't look like they're holding any face cards at this point.

4. Strong safety Al Afalava moved around pretty well. Looks like he is on the inside track for a starting job but that means Kevin Payne will be at free safety.

Some quick links ...

Top 10 PGs -

1) Chris Paul, 2) Deron Williams, 3) Steve Nash, 4) Chauncey Billups, 5) Tony Parker, 6) Derrick Rose, 7) Devin Harris, 8) Jason Kidd, 9) Rajon Rondo, 10) Russell Westbrook

Other than CP3, everyone on that list should move down 1 spot when Derrick Rose makes the leap to #2 early next season.


Who will be better: D-Rose or B-Roy? -

The Great Poohdini was amazing in the playoffs this year and Brandon Roy was simply a top 10 baller throughout the season.

D-Rose is four years younger than Roy and not only won the rookie of the year award but could have easily been an All-Star during the second half of the season.

I know they don't play the same position so it's hard to compare but they are two of the youngest and most talented kids in the game.

Rose is a straight-up baller and Brandon Roy's jumper is second to very few (Kobe & Monta Ellis maybe).

Let me know what you think. I haven't heard this question before and I think it's a fun one to discuss.

As for me, I would say they will both be all-stars for the next 10 years. If it comes down to championships, I got D-Rose, just because he is younger which helps his case.

Colangelo wants the Olympics in Chicago -

Jerry Colangelo has a World Series trophy and a gold medal. He has earned the respect of everyone who remembers Phoenix as a dusty desert pit stop on the road to somewhere else.

And now the countdown has begun.


In less than 50 days, the International Olympic Committee will announce its host city for the 2016 Olympics. Colangelo is deeply vested in the outcome, currently serving on the bid committee for his hometown. If Chicago wins, his own personal finish line comes into view.

"The vote takes place in Copenhagen on October 2nd, and I plan to be there, representing Chicago, doing whatever I can to help," Colangelo said. "It's all about the delegates. It's all about the votes."

Kevin Durant to replace Redd on Team USA? -

Just one year ago, Redd was in Beijing with the U.S. "Redeem Team" as it made its unbeaten run to an Olympic gold medal.

Redd said he has not talked to anybody about a future role with the U.S. team, although he indicated U.S. coach Mike Krzyzewski has contacted him several times to wish him well in returning from his injury.

"It's really not been on my mind, especially with the injury," Redd said. "Right now my focus is on getting healthy."

It has been speculated that Oklahoma City guard Kevin Durant, who played well in national team auditions this summer in Las Vegas, could fill Redd's role as a designated shooter on the U.S. team that will compete in the 2010 World Championships in Turkey. Krzyzewski has agreed to return for the four-year cycle ending with the 2012 London Olympics.