UNDER-APPRECIATED?

I came across this article in the New York Times on the Cleveland Cavaliers, who will face the Orlando Magic in the Eastern Conference Finals beginning tomorrow night in Cleveland.  This piece contributes to the ‘talk’ of how basketball players lack fundamentals.  

For the Cavaliers, this has been a spectacular and oddly quiet postseason. They set a franchise record by sweeping the first two rounds and an N.B.A. record by winning all eight games by double digits. Their average margin of victory: 16.8 points.

Yet despite their dominance, or perhaps because of it, the Cavaliers have been almost an afterthought.

An afterthought? Not really.  I like the writer Howard Beck, I think he does a good job but to me, the Cavaliers play the right way.  There’s a reason why they have won all their playoff games.  

TNT and ESPN have attracted record audiences, no thanks to the ratings-busting Cavaliers, whose dominance borders on boring.

James may be the N.B.A.’s most riveting player, but his puppet likeness has enjoyed more air time in recent weeks than James has.

That’s a joke and a big reason why people criticize the lack of fundamentals in basketball players-The Cavaliers boring? Mr. Beck needs to step up and learn the game.  On one hand they want excitement, flash and slam dunks;but on the other they want player to be fundamentally sound.  James provides both; he plays above the rim and below the rim, not many players can do that.  He makes his teammates better and loves the game.  

The media and the fans used to say the same thing about the San Antonio Spurs and the Detroit Pistons-they said they were boring, played slow and had zero flash.  A perfect example is Chauncey Billups and Allen Iverson.  Iverson is the flashy/popular player  who sells a lot uniform tops and Billups is the more controled/unknown player to most.  But Billups now has the Nuggets in the Western Conference Finals and Iverson is waiting for a team to pick him up.  

When Team USA failed to win the Gold and had to settle for the Bronze medal a couple of years back there were complaints; too much one-on-one, too many slam dunks, all show, not enough team work.  Now you have players playing the right way and they say it’s boring.  Make up your mind!

PLAY THE RIGHT WAY!

-Coach Finamore

Hoops135@hotmail.com

WHAT’S THE ANSWER?

Jason Whitlock wrote a piece about Allen Iverson – a must read for all!

Despite what Iverson’s media apologists write and say, The Answer was an underachiever on and off the court.

WOW! Here’s more.

Winning has never really mattered to Allen Iverson. He is the embodiment of everything that has gone wrong in America, an unexposed, all-style-little-substance Hall of Famer.

And lastly, he mentions Iverson with Isiah Thomas.

Iverson tailored a compromise position — points guard. For much of his career, he played both backcourt positions at the same time, leaving his teammates plenty of opportunity to stand around and watch. In 13 NBA seasons, he’s averaged 22 shots, 27 points, six assists and 42 percent shooting from the field. In comparison, Isiah Thomas averaged 16 shots, 19 points, nine assists and connected on 45 percent of his shots. In 11 seasons, Thomas played in 111 playoff games and won two titles. Iverson has played in 71 postseason games and advanced to the conference and NBA Finals just once. (It’s also worth mentioning that in two college seasons, Thomas won an NCAA title, and in the same amount of time, Iverson never made the Final Four.)

Coach Finamore

Hoops135@hotmail.com

PLAY THE RIGHT WAY!

ADDITION BY SUBTRACTION?

The Detroit Pistons are 3-0 since Allen Iverson went out with an injury. Before Iverson went out, the Pistons struggled. Many people are saying they are a better team without him. The Houston Rockets are playing great without Tracy McGrady. Many are saying the Rockets are a better team without T-Mac.

Can all this be true?

When I watch Iverson with the Pistons, I see a guard who pounds the ball a lot. I see four Pistons standing around on the perimeter watching him. I don’t see much ball movement. Without Iverson, the ball is hopping. Guys are moving, setting screens and Richard Hamilton is getting the ball. I also see better ball pressure on the perimeter. Against the Celtics, Will Bynum picked up Stephon Marbury in the backcourt and ripped him twice. Iverson doesn’t pick his man up early, he usually runs back and picks his man up at the three-point line.

It’s going to be interesting when ‘The Answer’ comes back. The Pistons have defeated three solid teams; Magic, Celtics and tonight the Nuggets. Will Iverson come off the bench? And if he does, will he be happy?

Tonight Carmelo Anthony didn’t play because he was suspended by the Nuggets. It seems like he refused to come out of a game and Coach Karl got upset. Shouldn’t a player listen to the coach? The A.P. has the story.

During a timeout against the Pacers, though, Karl said Anthony became the first player in his two-plus decades as a coach to stay on the court after being told he was being taken out of the game.

“There’s a thin line between passion and an aggressive want to be on the court and emotional immaturity,” Karl said. “It happens all the time. Coaches snap and act like an idiot on the sideline because of the emotional stress of the game.

“Our mantra and mission statement from the beginning of the season to be more discipline, to be more professional and to do things the right way.”

-Coach Finamore

Hoops135@hotmail.com

BILLUPS FOR IVERSON

Yesterday the Pistons and Nuggets made a trade involving two big time players.  Living in Michigan, I can tell you there are a lot of upset Pistons fans.  Chauncey Billups, who was traded to the Nuggets for Allen Iverson is going home.

After listening to a lot of people talk abut the trade, the overall opinion is, “The fans are upset and they are losing a good guy in Billups.”

On the other hand, you are also hearing, ‘Why do the Pistons want Iverson?”

Listen to the man they call ‘The Answer’, maybe he’s changed? MLive.com reports.

“I’ve tried it my way plenty of times,” the 13-year veteran said. “I’ve tried it different ways and it hasn’t been done. So once again, that’s something I have to look at myself in the mirror and think of things I can do to help us win a championship.

“Maybe there’s some things I’ll have to change. But one thing’s for sure, I’m going to do whatever the coach wants me to do out there on the basketball court. If he gives me an assignment, I’ll just try to carry it out.”

I’m not here to try and explain the trade, I trust Joe Dumars, the guy has been around a while and played the game – and boy could he play.  Matter of fact, he’s a lot more qualified than I am to try and explain the trade.  I’m hearing people are saying it had everything to do with ‘cap-money’.

Iverson on coming to D-Town via MLive.com

“I want to be the piece that can get us over the hump,” he said Tuesday at a news conference at The Palace that ended with him posing with Joe Dumars behind the No. 1 Pistons jersey he will wear and that fans are accustomed to seeing on Chauncey Billups.

“I’ve done so many things in this league as far as being an All-Star, scoring champion, first-team All-NBA and things like that. But I haven’t accomplished my No. 1 goal, and that’s to win a championship.”

I do know this – Iverson can play! And he plays hard.  (Try and name 3 other Sixers from the team that lost to the Lakers in the Finals a few years ago when Iverson led them?) Time will tell if this trade works for Detroit.  You can talk all you want about how he is going to disrupt the chemistry and how he’ll be a distraction and not pass the ball.  But last I checked, he gets 8 assists per game.

Here’s what head coach Michael Curry said about the deal and the players he” doesn’t want”: Thanks to Mlive.com

“That guy competes,” Curry said. “I hear a lot of stuff about Allen, but no one ever had any complaints about how hard he plays. I’ll take a guy that plays hard all the time and that’s talented. Now what I don’t want is guys that are not talented and don’t play hard all the time.

“I told Joe (Dumars, Detroit’s president of basketball operations) not to bring those guys here. As long as he brings me talented guys, and guys that are going to compete every night, I welcome that all the time.”