Wed25

Bobcats at Suns – BigCat’s take

Posted by on Feb 25, 2009 in Featured, Phoenix Suns | 0 comments

Bobcats travel to Phoenix    
 
This biggest of the Bobcats 3 major trades this season was a 3 for 3 swap with the Phoenix Suns.  Former coach Terry Porter wasn’t using Boris Diaw or Raja Bell the way they once were and the players and teams seemed prime for a divorce.  In come the Bobcats and the Suns seeming need for a wing shooter and before you know it former Chicago Bulls Golden Years teammates Michael Jordan and Steve Kerr had swapped Jason Richardson, Jared Dudley and a 2nd rounder to Phoenix and Boris Diaw, Raja Bell and Sean Singletary coming this way.  At first the Bobcats’ weak offense seemed to be weaker, losing their leading scorer in Richardson; down a “glue” guy in Dudley and the Suns just might have ripped off the “lowly” ‘Cats.  3 weeks later, some very solid wins and an improved flow to the game and I looks like MJ and Rod got the best of the Suns.
 
Add in 2 arrests and a fired coach and then Amar’e Stodumire’s displaced cornea and we really got the better of this deal.  Lately we’ve seen a bit of a resurgence with the run and gun style that Interim Coach Alvin Gentry has put in place but really, with the injury to Stodumire, the Suns must be feeling a bit like the Bobcats circa November 15th.  Yeah, 5, 1, 2, 3 starting positions are taken care of but who do we start at the 4?  Jared Freakin Dudley?  The answer for both teams at each juncture was “ugh, yeah maybe?”  Until the interview with MJ and his contention that yeah Jared is a nice player but realistically he should be 8th or 9th guy in the rotation, Larry was starting the surprise first round pick and former ACC player of the year.  This is no knock on Jared Dudley, he’s great and I do miss his presence here but he’s not your starting 4 in the NBA, not if you want to win ball games. 
 
Phoenix has fallen from the top of the heap in the west under former coach Mike D’Antoni, as one of the most entertaining teams to watch, all the way down to the outside looking in for the playoffs in the west.  They have some serious talent, but not much behind it.  I believe I stated why it was such a big win for the Bobcats back in January against Phoenix at home.  It was somewhat redemption for the 3 guys that come to Charlotte to play for Larry Brown.  Phoenix is apparently buzzing about the return of Diaw.  In a blog filed under the heading Apocalypse Diaw the writer states that the call-in - sports talk radio guys are  ”numbskulls” for regretting the trade that sent Diaw away leaving them with no PF option.  Instead he looks to Diaw’s numbers here in Charlotte, really you need to look at every-one’s numbers, especially team assists. 
 
The trade may just work for everyone, who knows or it could be one of those 6 of one half dozen of the other deals where neither team gets markedly better they just both change.  What I do know is I have a good feeling about the Bobcats rolling to Phoenix tonight.  True, they have fallen on their faces after an overtime loss in Orlando, a win against the Pacers and then a complete drumming at the hands of Orlando and again at Houston on Sunday.  The Orlando and Houston losses come off of bad shooting and sloppy play.  I don’t think that it’s a trend but it’ll be in the back of my mind tonight. 
 
I’m amazed at the road trip.  The passing of the time zones makes it look like the Bobcats are playing every day this week.  One game carries to the next day, travel, play an hour earlier on your body clock.  I just hope on the other side, we’re better off than we are now in the win column.  That’s right I said “we.”

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Tue24

Charlotte Bobcats / Phoenix Suns preview “The Revenge of Boris”

Posted by on Feb 24, 2009 in Phoenix Suns | 0 comments

Yeah, I know that the Phoenix Suns  have been putting up about 5,000 points per in their last few games, They’ve been looking a lot like the run and gun Mike D’Antoni squad that was not only fun to watch but damned difficult to beat. The Bobcats on the other hand have looked pretty bad in their last couple of games. The last two games in particular have arguably been some of the ugliest Bobcats ball of the post-Ham Biscuit era.Poor ball movement, bad shot selection… It has not been pretty. With that being said, the Bobcats are going to catch a violent beatdown tonight, Right?

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Sat24

Charlotte Bobcats / Phoenix Suns Recap 1/23

Posted by on Jan 24, 2009 in Phoenix Suns | 0 comments

You ever have a day where you see something good, then something bad and it’s so bad that you really can’t remember the good thing?  Well the benches for the Bobcats and the Suns did that to me today.  I’m so freakin congested I think the badness of the 4th quarter has gotten stuck in there.  I keep reminding myself that the Bobcats were up by 30+ against a pretty good Phoenix team for most of the game.  3 minutes into the game was the last tie.  What’s the story here though?  The Suns are aging, so it’s not as big a win as it would have been 2-3 years ago when they were running through the west and run they did.  Tonight they didn’t see 80.  This team has averaged 118 against Charlotte in their previous 8 wins.  Charlotte had never beaten Phoenix until their complete drumming tonight. 
 
I think the story has to be how the 5 player trade has worked out.  It’s pretty much equal, except for the fact that tonight’s win puts the Bobcats 2 games over .500 since and makes the Suns .500 exactly.  Raja Bell scored 25 in 2 straight games, tonight he had 9 but I give him a pass for not making it to double figures because between him and Raymond Felton, they held Phoenix’s backcourt to 12 points and 6 assists they also forced 7 turnovers.  I use the term forced loosely there because Phoenix basically threw the ball away.  Boris Diaw who is the Bobcats’ 3rd leading scorer since the trade (13.6ppg), almost made 30 tonight.  Jason Richardson however, ended up with 8.  Poor guy, I really like him and I miss him but man, you can’t cheer for one player to do well against your home team, you just can’t.  That is of course, unless that man is playing garbage minutes.
 
Oh and how garbage those minutes were.  Terry Porter couldn’t really draw up a 32 point 4th quarter so he figured, give the bench some minutes.  Jared Dudley, again much like when he was playing for Charlotte, was the highlight of my 4th quarter viewing experience.  12 points, 4 rebounds, 1 steal.  Kid was all over the court, chasing down loose balls, playing solid defense.  It was an ugly, ugly 4th quarter with basically no one doing much of anything except making turnovers and tripping over themselves but it was really nice to see Dudley get some PT for Terry Porter.
 
ESPN and the AP and whoever else you read will tell you the story was horrible shooting and turnovers for Phoenix.  Something along the lines of they gave the game away to an improving but still lowly Bobcats team in front of one of the highest attended games in the arena all year.  Yeah, they took bad shots but it was good defense that forced up those horrible shots.  It was obviously frustrating to Phoenix and early in the game to the Bobcats as well.  Larry Brown got an early technical foul called on him for arguing a call and probably saying one of those really bad words that sets off an NBA referee that’s embarrassed of how bad his last foul call was.  Terry Porter pulled a “T” towards the end of the game.  Mild mannered Grant Hill drew one as well.  Chasing the referee the entire length of the court looking for an explanation, only to have to run to the opposite end to break the Bobcats press.  It was a frustrating game for a couple reasons.
 
Phoenix couldn’t make a shot, shooting 36%, except for the Big Aristotle, the Big Cactus, Shaqovitch (60% from the field and 66% from the line).  One of only two Phoenix players to score in double figures, it looked like the old Hack-a-Shaq was in effect but I don’t think it was intentional.  As has been the problem for opposing teams for 17 years, how do you actually guard Shaq?  It’s nearly impossible with his size, quick step and moves near the basket.  Either you give him space, don’t foul him or you stay close and he moves and shifts in such a way to draw a foul.  A foul is physical contact denying another player access to a space that player has rights to as deemed by a referee.  I think, I mean that’s my definition.  There are 8 types of fouls in the NBA rule book, most have the words “illegal contact” in the definition.  If I were a referee I’d call what Shaq does illegal contact.  A defensive player has the right to a certain area just as he does, the fact that he shoves you off your mark in such a way that gets you to contact him is his problem, not that of the defender.  I’m not arguing rules here or how a particular player has been refereed around for the past 17 years.  My point is simply, it makes for ugly basketball, that unless you’re a Shaq fan, doesn’t seem fair.  Also, if he’s drawing the fouls, as he was tonight (7 attempts at the line, more than anyone else by 7), it makes for real real ugly ball because of the way he shoots his free throws, which has gotten better.  But it’s just not fun.
 
Anyway, wrapping up the wrap up, Bobcats looked good.  Diaw and Bell are the right guys for the job.  Dudley needs to get a chance for some team, somewhere, somehow.  Shaq has basically cheated for the last 17 years. 
 
What a way to wrap up this week-long home stand that included one near win, against San Antonio, and 3 wins?  Now the Bobcats roll up to Indy for the beginning of their “Circus Road Trip.”  Check in tomorrow/later Saturday for a preview of the Pacer game.

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Tue16

Bobcats / Suns Trade Recap: Why this is a good deal for the Bobcats

Posted by on Dec 16, 2008 in Phoenix Suns, Trades | 0 comments

If you’ve got to trade someone, you traded the right guy….I guess

I can’t say I fully agree with the recent trade between the Suns and the Bobcats. As a Bobcats fan, I feel like we kind of got screwed with one caveat: We really weren’t lighting the world on fire with J-Rich and Dudley. The 3 players received in return, Diaw, Bell and Singletary add up to more than Jason Richardson and Jared Dudley and a 2nd round pick in 2010. It just sucks when everyone who knows anything about the NBA nationally says “Suns stole Richardson from hapless Bobcats.” Hollinger over at the worldwide leader broke it down pretty well. Biggest point I got from it was that the money worked without Dudley. Why throw him in? It’s tough to say how this went down, we get very little information and quotes out of the Charlotte front office. Bobcatsplanet member/trade and contract guru Tamburello compiled a nice list of comments from involved parties. You know, we can analyze this trade until we’re blue in the face but we can’t change it. “Would you do it again?” Who cares? We can’t, wouldn’t be proposed again, and couldn’t send players back to either team for 30 days right?

If there are two things I can completely confirm is that Jason Richardson is a great guy, great player and if I had to pick to trade away him or another one of the “core” of this team, I’d pick him over and again. All the rumors out there involved Gerald Wallace, Raymond Felton and hopefully one of the trio of disaster: Carroll, Mohamed or May. Jason Richardson and Jared Dudley were never mentioned as far as I can recall. But you know what? I’m pretty glad it wasn’t Gerald Wallace or Raymond Felton. Jason Richardson is sort of a dime-a-dozen-type player. Not really dime-a-dozen but maybe nickel for half a dozen? I don’t know. He’s awesome but you can replace his output with either a few others stepping up or another player just stepping in. I’m not belittling the guy because he’s gone; Phoenix has a legit 2nd level 2 guard. He’s not quite a dominating force, he’s no slouch either. He’s the Glen Rice of this generation. Great talents, scores lots of points, will have a long career but will only be an All-Star once or twice, if he’s lucky, in his career.

The two guys I mentioned that I’m glad were not traded, Wallace and Felton are in fact, special. In my estimation Wallace fills up a stat line like few in the league do, not just because he’s on a “bad” team as I’ve seen my diabolical nemesis say but because he’s a hustle guy whose athleticism and determination drive him to. Last year there were 3 guys in the league who averaged as many points steals assists and rebounds and that was Lebron James, Dwight Howard and Gerald Wallace. He’s a special Small Forward and he means a lot to this team, the fans and the community as evidenced by the recent outpouring of sympathy and well wishes from this board in particular.

Raymond Felton’s role is a bit more nebulous. 3 coaches in his 4th year in the league. He’s a SG, PG. He’s worse than Jeff McInnis, he’s better than Chris Paul. Ok, he’s not better than Chris Paul but he is a very serviceable point guard and shooting guard. Right now he is 16th in the league in assists per game and that’s with his ever shifting role.

While I felt like we should not trade any of the “core” (Wallace, Okafor, Felton, Richardson) of those 4, Richardson is the most expendable. If the parts we got in return are worth his loss….that remains to be seen….and I haven’t even mentioned Jared Dudley!

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Tue12

Blogcat’s Take, 8/12

Posted by on Aug 12, 2008 in Boston Celtics, Denver Nuggets, Golden State Warriors, Phoenix Suns | 0 comments

Today’s Office Tip will serve you well no matter what profession you choose: Never—under any circumstances—allow Smokey Robinson’s “Cruisin’” to be the last song you listen to before you leave the house. It implants itself like that bug did to Arnold in Total Recall and leaves its victims helplessly signing/humming it all day until co-workers become suicidal. Now that I think about it, that song is evil in two ways. Besides having a secret ingredient that makes you crave it, it’s also responsible for one of the more underrated “yuck” moments in film history (on the list right below Luke tongue-kissing whom he would later find out was his sister in The Empire Strikes Back): Huey Lewis and Gwyneth Paltrow performing that song together as father-and-daughter in Duets. Did they not look at the lyrics beforehand? This is not a tune a father should be singing with his daughter; that’s what songs like “Hip to Be Square” are for. Forget about the “this is not a one night stand” line, Smokey/Huey coos for permission to “open up and go inside” and–after his request for access was apparently allowed–then proclaims, “I can just stay there inside you.” Ick. Why didn’t they just follow that up with a karaoke of Lil Wayne’s “Pussy MVP”? Just disgusting.

Anyway, we’ve traded the 38th pick of this year’s draft, G Kyle Weaver, to Oklahoma City for a 2nd round pick in next year’s draft. This transaction signifies either a) nothing of consequence or b) yet another scouting failure; I’m not sure which. Weaver was supposed be a selfless, solid defender—traits that usually transcend a player’s college-to-pro transition. But they didn’t—at least in the Summer League—so we’ve cut Weaver loose. The potential upside of this deal is if OKC continues Seattle’s futility and therefore the eventual pick we get next year will be higher up in the second round than this year’s 38 (and the pool of talent is also deeper). I’d rather analyze the trade that way, because the alternative conclusion is that we simply guessed wrong on yet another pick.

One other item on this non-news generating week: in a comment to one of my earlier posts, Nate pointed out that our uniforms are ugly—not just ugly, 1980s Houston Astros ugly. However, unlike just about every other aspect of this team, I’m actually not eager to flog the Bobcats on their uniforms. True, the orange is ghastly. It looks like the old Denver Broncos jersey on crack. And yet, I have to give the look points for uniqueness, especially when those alternate blue jerseys are just so generic; they’re just like the Knicks/Suns/Wizards (that is, when they’re in non-C3PO mode).

But at the same time, I don’t think they’re transcendently ugly. Nate mentions the Astros, but before we leave our sport for comparisons, I’d ask him to look no further than Houston’s basketball team. Those mid-90s Rockets pinstripes were the uniform equivalent of New Coke. Other jerseys that I think are worse than ours (in no particular order):

1. The Philadelphia 76ers. Like the Rockets, their current look is especially unforgivable, because they also had a perfectly decent color scheme that they inexplicably ruined. Throughout the 80s, they had a simple red/blue format with a clean “Sixers” across the chest, and they desecrated it with that Vegas-style font and Viet Cong-black look. Spider-Man did this same switch back in the mid-80s, and the results were so disastrous, the hate mail so abundant (I actually wrote one myself to Marvel Comics at the time and turned it in as a 2nd grade writing assignment—and I got an “A”) that they eventually made the black uniform its own villain, Venom.

2. The Wizards. Need I say more? In fact, they’re the only team to pull off a double-double of sorts by killing both a cool name (Bullets) and a cool color scheme. And come to think of it, Michael Jordan was in the front office for these guys too! At this rate, let’s hope MJ never joins Boston’s front-office, otherwise the Celtics might adopt some sort of teal look.

3. The Bucks. Terrible name, terrible color scheme. I’ve said it before: their emblem is a literal deer-in-the-headlights.

4. The Warriors. I’m one of the few people who doesn’t like those retro outfits with the trolley on them—too “hand-drawn” looking.

5. This deserves special mention here: The 2008 US Men’s Team uniforms. Cluttered imprints, non-matching patterns, white-on-white lettering and background. Really, if you want to desecrate the flag, it’s a lot cheaper to just burn the damned thing. Not since Vanilla Ice’s flag-inspired Zubaz have I seen red-white-and-blue butchered so badly. I can’t believe Mamba blessed off on those digs.

On the flip side, I love just about everything the Nuggets have ever done. Whether it’s the current powder blues, the no-frills orange “Denver” ones, or the incomparably spectacular Alex Englishes with the Atari font and cityscape picture straight out of Missile Command, they simply cannot go wrong in my book.

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