Recently, I've been thinking a lot about how the NBA, as a unified league, could be improved. In this modern, technological era, everything is about the glam, fame, and large scale of everything. But, what happened to loyalty? What happened to teams being built vs. bought? In 2010, LeBron James and Chris Bosh decided to leave the Cleveland Cavaliers and Toronto Raptors, respectively, and team up with Dwyane Wade while also reducing their salaries. Although this is not the first example of players taking reduced contracts to team up with others, it is certainly one of the most prominent and recent. When the “Big Three” was born, I was highly against. Not only was I opposed to it because I am primarily a fan of an Eastern Conference rival, but because I thought it was immoral and basically cheating. Although the argument can be made that LeBron was moving to a better situation to win in Miami, the WAY he did it was just wrong. Yes, indeed, I am still sour about “The Decision” and all of the drama surrounding it. So, you may be asking yourself, why am I even talking about this? Well, I felt something needed to be said with the recent news that both LeBron James and Carmelo Anthony have opted out of their contracts with their teams. I understand why Carmelo Anthony may have opted out of his contract with the struggling Knickerbockers, but I don’t understand why LeBron would leave Miami. Now, just because he has opted out doesn’t necessarily mean that he will be leaving Miami, but if he does, I don’t understand why. He has made four straight finals appearances with the Heat, which is extremely hard to do. Why leave? Because you can play with Chris Paul and Blake Griffin? Great players are constants on their teams and find a way to win. They aren’t nomads traveling from team to team. Hopefully, LeBron goes back to Miami is able to build up that franchise and make it his on. Also, hopefully, Carmelo doesn't join him in Miami. If he does, the combination of Wade, Bosh, James, and Anthony playing together ALL with reduced salaries would ruin the league. Every team should be able to have a chance to win, not just the location destinations like New York, Los Angeles, and Chicago. Written By: @ProSportsTalk0 As the NBA closes in on the start of their free agency period, many teams are preparing to make a run at the premier free agents of this year’s class. Many teams, however, face the dilemma of missing out on these top players. So who should they go after? There are a lot of talented young guards in this free agent class, and they will command plenty of attention themselves. Here are five of them that your team could consider.
Written By: Kevin Creed @_AssassinCreed Whenever a team decides the time has come to trade its star player, they are always going to
hold out for the best possible deal. They will inform the world of their intentions, in order to provoke a bidding war among contending teams. This is precisely what the Minnesota Timberwolves have done, in the process of shopping Kevin Love, but not only has the story gotten stale but it may ultimately become counterproductive for the franchise. This story has been hyped up beyond all reason now, but one thing must be remembered during all of this: Kevin Love is not a superstar. Lebron James is a superstar, Kevin Durant is a superstar but Kevin Love is merely a star. Thats not to criticize the guy, he is an amazing player that any team would want, but he isn't in the very top echelon of the league. So why has the story been hyped up so much? Well, its because there isn't a lot going on right now, there are still column inches to fill (and yes I know I'm a massive hypocrite here) and hours of radio and TV time to kill. Joel Embiid breaking his foot, just before the draft, is of note but nothing special. Lebron has opted out of his deal in Miami, no surprise there. The same goes for Melo in New York. Rudy Gay has opted in to the final year of his deal with Sacramento, for $19.3 million. Nobody can blame him for taking the money, because he sure as hell wouldn't be getting anywhere near that kind of money elsewhere right now, but it does bring into question whether he is really serious about winning a ring anytime soon. Yet none of these stories quite cut it compared to some good old fashioned trade rumors. As with all potential blockbuster trades, the rumors vary from possible to absolutely ridiculous, but this story seems to have lasted so long that it has meandered between the two without missing a beat. Firstly it appeared that the Celtics were the frontrunners, because Love was seen in Boston and shockingly he was pictured shaking hands with a fellow NBA professional! That picture with Rajon Rondo and the hype it provoked were ironic really given that Rondo is the only real asset the C's have to trade for Love. Which made this a non-starter to begin with, as the reason the Celtics were trying to get Love was to ensure Rondo would sign a new contract, when his currently deal finishes, at the end of next season. Then there were, the now seemingly defunct, trade negotiations with the Golden State Warriors, centred around Klay Thompson. Which was interesting for one reason, it revealed a lot about some people's view on the 3rd year guard out of Washington State University. Some seem to be laboring under the misapprehension that Klay Thompson is some mixture of Lebron James and Jesus (well that might be a bit over the top, but you get the idea). He is a fine young player with a great deal of potential, but he is no superstar and likely never will be, so why should the 'Wolves just jump at the chance? The answer is, they shouldn't and seemingly they won't. Most intriguingly of all, from a personal perspective, was the mooted deal with the Denver Nuggets involving Kenneth Faried. On the face of things, the deal would seem to work for Minnesota. In Faried they would be getting a fine replacement for Love at the 4 and would surely relish the Faried/Pekovic front court combo. The Nuggets also have some interesting smaller role players that could add value to the deal. However the stumbling block with this deal as with the others is that Minnesota seemingly want a little too much. Understandably, after such a bad run in the last few years, the Timberwolves want to win now, with or without Love. In this deal they want to get back players that can help them win now, but they also want really good draft picks now and possibly in the future. They want to have their cake aswell as eating it, but in doing so they take something of a risk. They could end up driving away many teams, leaving them vulnerable to having to take a subpar last minute deal or being lumbered with an angry and disgruntled star. Either of these possibilities would be damaging to the long term future of the franchise as it would cement the impression that Minnesota is the place where potential goes to die. Kevin Love must be all too aware that Kevin Garnett slogged his guts out for years with them and only found success once he left. So it's extra stupid of returning head coach Flip Saunders to compare the current Love situation to that of Garnett in 2007, if he is serious about wanting to keep his star power forward on the roster for next season. Ultimately, whatever happens next and wherever Kevin Love ends up, I hope its resolved soon because, quite frankly, I'm bored with this story now. I want the NBA world to move on to more interesting things and I want the man himself to be on a team where he can compete, because he deserves his opportunity. Most importantly of all, however, I want the NBA back, its only been gone a week and half and I miss it already. Even with the impending draft and the potentially huge free agency summer that lies ahead, nothing beats actual basketball. I really can't wait for October 28th, bring it on! Written By: Kevin Logan @kflogan 10. Steve Nash No surprise here, one of the best point guards to ever play in the NBA and future Hall of Famer Steve Nash makes this list. The two time NBA Most Valuable Player has averaged a 49% from the field, 42.8% from 3-point range, and 91.7% from the free throw line. Nash is also 12th all time in 3-pointers made, granted he has played 18 seasons and is currently the oldest player in the NBA. But will still go down in history as one of the most efficient shooters of all time. 9. Kyle Korver If you haven't heard of him, well you have now. Kyle Korver is the Atlanta Hawks 3-point specialist who currently holds the record for most consecutive games with a made 3 at 127 games. He also holds the record for the highest 3-point percentage in a season with 53.6% in the 2010 season. Korver also averages 88% from the line and 43.8 field goal percentage. If you get to watch a Hawks game every time this man shoots the ball everyone in the building is on their feet thinking it's going in. 8. Glen Rice Glen Rice the first player on the list not currently playing! Glen Rice the Small Forward out of Michigan averaged a 45.6% from the field, 40% from 3, and 84.6% from the line in his NBA career. Rice finished with 1,559 total 3-pointers made in his 15-year career. 7. Peja Stojakovic The Serbian sharpshooter, this man was known for hitting it from long range. His silky smooth q uick release made him nearly impossible to guard. Stojakovic was a great role player and an amazing off the ball player always working to get open. Peja shot 45% from the field, 40.1% from 3 and was a 89.5% free throw shooter. He is also 9th in all time number of 3s made at 1,760. 6. Steve Kerr The 6th man on the Jordan-led Bulls, who knocked down multiple shots in the clutch for Michael and Scottie including the Finals winner in 1997 vs the Jazz. The now coach of the Golden State Warriors was known as one of the best pure shooters in the NBA with a 47.9% FG percentage, 45.4% from 3, and 86.4 from the stripe. 5. Steph Curry Son of another great shooter Dell Curry, Steph with only 5 years played he has become one of the greatest shooters the NBA has ever seen. He has set the record with most 3-point field goals made in a season with 272 last year. He has averaged 181 made 3s a season in his NBA career which is on pace to beat Ray Allen's record by 285! If you took his average over the last 2 seasons (when he had 272 and 261 3s) he would be on pace to beat it by over 1000! Steph has a 46.7 FG percentage, 44 3-point percentage, and 89.6 free throw percentage. 4. Jerry West First off I want to say that this man Jerry West was such a good shooter that he made the list even though the 3-point line wasn't invented when he played! Do you know who the NBA logo is modeled after? Well if you didn't its this man right here. Recognize him now? West averaged a 47.4% from the field throughout his career coming in at 17th all time points scored in the NBA at 25,192. He also went by the nickname "Mr. Clutch". 3. Larry Bird Larry Legend, well not much to say here besides that this man is not only one of the greatest players of all time but one of the greatest shooters of all time. Although Larry only shot 37.6% from deep he shot 51% from 2-point range! When Bird also stepped to the free throw line he was almost automatic shooting 88.6%. 2. Reggie Miller The man who scored 8 points in 9 seconds in the playoffs vs the New York Knicks. Earning him the nickname "Knick Killer" Reggie Miller is Pacer basketball. He is second all time on 3-pointers made with 2,560, 16th all time in scoring with 25,279 points scored. The 5x All-Star is the all time leading scorer for the Pacers and won 2 gold medals. averaging 18.2 PPG Reggie shot 47.1% from the field, 39.5% from 3-point range, and 88.8% from the free throw line. 1. Ray Allen
Probably the most anticipated choice out of the other 9. Walter Ray Allen Jr. leads the NBA in most 3-pointers made and attempted at 7,429 making 2,973 of them at a nice 40%. Ray also holds the record for most made 3-pointers in the playoffs at 352. AND holding the record for most made 3-pointers in a NBA Finals game with 8 vs the Lakers, making 7 of them in one half! Whether you call him; Walter, Ray-Ray, Jesus Shuttlesworth, or just Ray this man has one of the purest strokes the NBA has ever seen. Making him the greatest shooter of All-Time. Let me begin by providing full disclosure that Yes, I am a Miami Heat fan. Not just a LeBron Fan, or D-Wade fan (All though I represent Wade County) but a true, Ron Seikaly cheering, Harold Miner remembering, True Miami Heat fan. That being said, I just want to let it be known that:
These current Pacers team will NEVER beat this current Miami Heat team with the “Big 3*” …. NEVER. *Big 3 consists or James, Wade and (Insert 3rd name here) How do I know this? How can I be bold enough to make such an assumption? How can I be so definitive with that statement when the series isn’t even at the half way point? Very simple my friends. The Miami Heat were once this Indiana Pacers team. We were good, damn good, 61 wins good. But we also had a LeBron that kept beating us year after year. That man also known by one name. Jordan. We had legends in that era, Hall of Farmers in the likes of Hardaway, Mourning, & Marjerle. Grind it out tough guys like PJ Brown. Much like this current pacers team we had size and skill, but we could never get past those damn Bulls teams. No matter how great a regular season we had, no matter how many adjustments Pat Riley would make, we could never get past Jordan. Not in the first round, not in the second round, not in the third round, until it got to Never. Each time the Bulls went on to win the championship. Sound familiar Pacer Fans? So I know what many may think “oh, here’s another cocky Heat fan taking trash” but I’m not. I just wanted to let Pacer fans know that we feel their pain. We were there once and it sucked, It really sucked. So much promise, so much hope, All for nothing. All just to be a foot note In a Dynasties chapter that were the great Chicago Bulls. That’s all this current Pacers team will be in history. A foot note in a chapter of a Great Dynasty. It’s not all bad news Pacer fans, I do have a silver lining for you to hang your hat on. Hopefully your one time great player, now front office decision maker Larry Bird is taking note of the greatness that was built in this era. The greatness that he is witnessing and being on the opposite end of. The greatness that will be noted in Basketball almanacs for many years to come with the likes of “Showtime” and the “Bad Boys”. The greatness that came to be from the vision of the great Pat Riley (And a little collusion by Dwayne Wade). Hopefully your great Larry Bird is taking note and knows his time will be in the future if he plans for it NOW. In 4 to 6 years LeBron will be in the tail end of his career, Wade will be in the front office and Pacer Fans will finally have their shot to be an elite team and nab a superstar of their own. After all, this year’s draft class will be eligible for free agency and lets be real…………. Who wants to stay in Cleveland. Wishing you the best, Pacer Fans. Rich Delgado @2Rich305 |