KD & Russ....Steph & KG Part 2???

Last night the Oklahoma City Thunder held on to beat the Memphis Grizzlies, it's often said that winning cures all. That is not always the case, it was reported by Darnell Mayberry that Durant and Westbrook had a "heated" discussion during a second quarter timeout. This is not the first time these two have gotten into it with each other either, many on the OKC side of things insist that it's not a big deal. Nothing more than two competitors in the heat of battle, ESPN's J.A. Adande obviously feels different in a piece he wrote for TrueHoop Blog on ESPN.com.

Adande titles the piece, "Why Westbrook won't work in OKC." Here's a piece from Adande's post, " He's told friends he feels Thunder coach Scott Brooks blames him for losses, while the credit for victories goes to Durant." If that is indeed how Westbrook feels, it may be time to get him out of OKC sooner rather later. There's no point in risking this "issue" finally blowing up during a Playoff run, the Thunder can't afford that. Adande then goes on to include finances as another reason for getting rid of Westbrook, which does make sense due to the amount of money he'd earn coming off of his rookie deal this season.

This situation reminds me a bit of one years ago, the marriage of Stephon Marbury and Kevin Garnett. In Minnesota, KG was seen as the franchise player and Steph must have felt something like Westbrook may feel now. It worked on the court at first, it was a match made in basketball heaven because the complemented each other. Steph had the ability to run the team as well as put pressure on the D with his own offense, which in turn freed up KG. KG like Durant, was sort of a quiet person in terms of demanding the ball in crunch time. Keep that in mind as Steph often took the big shots, which had many wondering as to why the ball wasn't going to KG. No disrespect to KG, but he wasn't nearly as gifted offensively as Durant was and Westbrook isnt' as offensively gifted as Steph was. The bottom line being that one of the two parties felt unappreciated, seen as a scapegoat, as well as a "cancer."

Those on the outside looking in, especially from afar will look at this situation and immediately label Westbrook as the "Cancer." Same thing happened in Minnesota, yet they never recovered after getting rid of Steph. KG never had a better running mate, nothing close as he wasted away in basketball purgatory aka Minneapolis. Steph, labeled a cancer by then became a journeyman bouncing from team to team. In hindsight, it probably would have been better for the Wolves if they had let KG & Steph work it out. That's why this situation is monumental for the Thunder as a Franchise, can you afford to give Westbrook up with confidence that you'll find something better?

Durant and Westbrook are extremely young, there's plenty of time for them to figure this out. There are many ways Westbrook impacts a game outside of scoring, especially on the boards and defensively. OKC may find someone to replace the offense, but what about the rest? Is it worth it, only time will tell what will come out of this IF ANYTHING. The silver lining being the Thunder are 3-0 on this shortened season, it could be worse.


What would you do, trade or keep Russell Westbrook? Leave your thoughts below!!

Norris Cole-School Name>Player's Game??

Norris Cole made a splash on scouts radar with his performance at the Deron Williams Skill Academy; he not only held his own, but even out played some of the higher touted guards at that camp. It's no surprise when you look at Cole's college statistics, Cole improved his numbers EVERY SEASON. Cole reminded me of a "poor man's" Kemba Walker and I mean that with no disrespect, the only reason I use "poor man's" is that he went to a smaller school which left him under the radar. Their games have many similarities as well. The biggest similarity, they are both FEARLESS in "the moment."Cole is a big school talent that attended a small school, had he attended a Duke or Kentucky than we would have ALL known who he was.

Cole's College Statistics: Sophomore- 13.3pts, 2.5reb, 2.4ast, 1.2 stl, while shooting 45% from the floor. Junior-16.3pts, 2.8reb, 4.4ast, 1.8stl, while shooting 43% from the floor. Senior-21.7pts, 5.8 reb, 5.3 ast, while shooting 44% from the floor. 

What that shows me is that his game evolved every year, he went from a pure scorer to more of a complete point guard. He started to get his teammates involved more every year, he learned how to lead a team. Cole's knock on him going into the draft was that he was wrongly labeled a "combo" guard, what's wrong with a point guard that can get his teammates involved as well as get himself going when needed. That's what makes a "complete" point guard, no one mentioned the fact that he was on the boards the way he was, or that he was working on defense as evident by his steal numbers.

Am I running a campaign for Cole to start over Chalmers, not quite. I'm simply saying that every team in the league that still needs point guard help failed by letting him slip that far. In just two NBA games, Cole has garnered national attention by his play. Cole is not in awe of his teammates, rather he holds himself accountable and plays as if he's an equal out on the floor. So him stepping up wasn't a surprise to me, the kid had 14 points in the 4th with Rajon Rondo guarding him. There aren't many better defenders in the league at that position, Cole's ability to score means the Celtics had to play HONEST on the defensive end down the stretch. They couldn't use Rondo's peskiness as a help defender, Cole commands respect with his scoring touch. Had this been last year, had it been Chalmers on the floor I truly believe the Heat would have caved and lost this game. Chalmers is a good spot up shooter, but he is a shooter and nothing more. That's the beauty in having Cole on the floor, he can SHOOT, but he is a better SCORER of the basketball than Chalmers.

Cole's great play last night did nothing more than affirm my belief that scouts, like fans get enamored with the school next to the player's name rather than the player's tools. It's validation that he was lottery type talent and scouts missed on him, I understand he went to Cleveland State but how did you not SEE what he brought to the table. For a small school guy, he came to the table with many strengths and few questions in terms of talent. There weren't any red flags character wise, so can you tell me what it was other than seeing "Cleveland St." at the top of the scouting report?

Here's Chad Ford's Player Evaluation of Norris Cole: Strengths- Steady, true point guard. Very Complete Skill Set. Great Basketball IQ. Good shooter with Range. Solid athlete.

Negatives- Doesn't do any one thing great. Playing under the radar.

Player Traits: Shooting, Penetrating, Passing.

What are your thoughts upon reading that, how is passing on a point guard with that scouting report not a mistake? Share your thoughts and comments below!!

Memo to Bobcats: Give Kemba the Keys

The Charlotte Bobcats lucked into drafting an impact player at a position of need, they reached with the 7th overall pick by drafting Bismack Biyombo. The Bobcats made up for it by drafting Kemba Walker with the 9th overall pick, Walker had just won the National Championship on the collegiate level.

Charlotte made a change last year in their style of play by hiring Paul Silas, Silas wanted an up-tempo team. He had some pieces on the wings that fit that scheme in Gerald Henderson and Tyrus Thomas, but didn't have the right player at point guard. DJ Augustin for everything that he is, is not an up-tempo point guard. He can certainly run an offense, get buckets for himself, but never gave you the impression that he could LEAD. The other thing with Augustin is that when matched up with premier point guards, he struggled to create space due to his limited athleticism.

Walker led an extremely young team to a National Championship at Uconn, what was more impressive was the way he made his teammates better. It might not have shown on the stat sheet, but those freshmen went to war with their captain EVERY GAME. He led them through adversity and hit many big shots along the way, Walker never seemed to be afraid of the moment. That's hardly a bad trait for your point guard to have, one of the biggest misconceptions about Walker is that he's a shoot-first PG. Walker played his role each year at Uconn. Freshman year he was asked to provide a spark off the bench and he did so, Sophomore year he ran the team. He didn't step on the veterans toes at all in Jerome Dyson and Stanley Robinson, never once did he take the ball out of their hands a la Russell Westbrook- Kevin Durant. Last year as a Junior, he was on a team full of freshman which meant he HAD to shoulder the scoring load for the TEAM to be successful. As the season progressed he leaned on his young teammates and they came through for him when asked. For example, check out Jeremy Lamb's FG % from early in the season compared to his FG % during the Title Run.

Kemba is blessed with elite athleticism, armed with a mid-range jumper, possesses poise, and calm in the clutch. He is said to be "undersized" at 6'1, but that doesn't stop him from finishing at the basket. Kemba needs to work on being more consistent from three point land, but his ability to break down a defense and knock down mid-range jumpers has him prepared better than most. Walker is also extremely adept in pick and roll situations, seeing that Uconn runs many 1-4 pick and rolls( PG/PF). At the end of the day, someone with his type of speed is a much better fit in an up-tempo offense.

 It was only a pre-season game, but we got to see Kemba's impact on a game down the stretch vs Atlanta. Walker took the game over by scoring the last 5 points for Charlotte, he didn't shoot well from the floor but he wasn't scared either. In 19 minutes, Kemba scored 18 points. More importantly is that he had the confidence of his teammates both on the floor and off to trust him with the ball at the end of the game.

If the Bobcats wish to put their best foot forward this season, they need to hit the ground running with Kemba at the helm.

NFL Formal Introduction, Mr. Aldon Smith

If it weren't for Monday night's nationally televised match-up between the Steelers and 49ers, most of you would have little to no idea who Aldon Smith is. It only took 15 Weeks of the NFL Season for people to get a chance to see this kid in action. Obviously the 49ers haven't had many nationally televised games, at the same time most of the country knows who Von Miller and Ryan Kerrigan are.

Aldon Smith didn't get the kind of love he deserved on draft day either, he was considered a "project" by many scouts. He was doubted, but never his physical tools. Blessed with an 84 inch wingspan, standing 6'4, and weighing 263 pounds it's obvious that Smith "looked" the part. Smith reminded me of a certain player the year before who was lauded for his physical tools, yet wasn't expected to contribute early in Jason Pierre-Paul. Flash forward a year and JPP is dominating the league as a 2nd year player with 13.5 sacks. You would think that when another player with similar physical tools is presented, scouts would reference JPP and think otherwise. Instead things like this were said:

"I would have taken Gabbert and potentially Robert Quinn over Aldon Smith at seven."
" You watch, Robert Quinn is going to be a better player for the Rams at 14 than Aldon Smith will be at 7."- Draft Analyst Robert Rang

"Smith is gifted athletically, but his game has alot of growth left. Jim Harbough clearly sees him as a fit, but Smith won't be asked simply to pin his ears back and rush the passer; he'll also need to read the NFL game." -Mel Kiper

Smith has been a factor for the 49ers since training camp, he showed flashes as early as Pre-season, he has  an innate ability to "get skinny" as 49ers DE Justin Smith would say. Great pass rushers are able to "bend" the corner, if a kid shows you that ability early you've stumbled upon a keeper. Smith has only been asked to play on "obvious" passing downs this season, so pretty much only 3rd and long situations. Now compare that with Miller and Kerrigan who have pretty much been starting since Day 1, not to take anything away from those other kids but they have more opportunities to make impact plays. All 3 of these young players are studs, I simply want to show you how much of an impact Aldon makes in his limited number of opportunities. Mind you both Miller and Kerrigan play with above average pass-rushing teammates in  Elvis Dummerville and Brian Orakpo. Which means all 3 kids are getting 1 on 1 match-ups most of the time.

Von Miller- 13 games, 11.5 sacks  

Ryan Kerrigan- 14 games, 7.5 sacks

*Aldon Smith- 14 games, 13.0 sacks

The reason JPP is such a great reference point is that neither player started, they were both in the rotation but didn't get a starter's share of the snaps. Barring an injury, both will have played in 16 games in a limited role. The difference being that Aldon tripled JPP's production in sacks in a similar sample size. This isn't a nomination for Defensive Rookie of the Year on Aldon's behalf, I'm simply serving notice that he's been doing this ALL SEASON LONG for arguably the BEST DEFENSE in the league. That is all, please leave your thoughts or comments below!

Change Coming?

Happenstance, Coincidence, or an Anomaly?? Either way you look at it, something special occurred this evening when Robert Griffin the Third accepted this year's Heisman Trophy. 

On the surface or to the casual fan,  Griffin bust onto the scene this year. Griffin surprised many with the video game type numbers he put up this year. If you were to take a deeper look, you'd see this wasn't a surprise just a culmination of his career. Griffin was talented enough to start 12 games as a True Freshman, he did more than just start though. He was pretty productive throwing 15 TD's and only 3 INT's. Griffin should have become a house-hold name during his sophomore season, he would have if it weren't for an injury. He only played 4 games that year which resulted in a medical redshirt.

In his entire career Griffin never had a QB Rating under 142.0, his rating this year which resulted in him winning the Heisman was 192.3. Griffin was highly touted coming out of High School, the only surprise was that a prospect of his magnitude chose Baylor University. He is the first player from Baylor to have won a Heisman, hopefully he won't be the last. Griffin isn't an elite athlete with the ability to play QB, he's a very good QB with elite athleticism.

Think back just one year, who won the Heisman? Cam Newton from Auburn, Newton was basically unheard of as well before his Heisman campaign. Newton went to Florida where he was hidden on the bench behind another Heisman Trophy winner in Tim Tebow. After an interesting journey filled with the supposed "scandal," Newton ended up at Auburn and led Auburn to an undefeated season and a National Championship. Newton had a crazy year as well numbers wise, most didn't want to admit it but Newton led the nation in passing accuracy.(Newton wasn't found of any wrongdoing in the investigation)

It's a slippery slope, I won't go too far into it. Throughout the history of football, African American QB's have been known to be called athletes first and QB's second. Neither of these two young men were regarded as top QB prospects until they forced scouts, the media, and fans to see them on the national stage. Not many of the talking heads were high on Griffin or Newton prior to the break out games. The ones that everyone had to watch; for Newton it was the game vs Alabama, Griffin's coming out party was against Oklahoma. On each players run to the Heisman, scouts gave them credit for their awesome athletic displays and not much else. Each of these young men are great leaders, competitors, warriors, and lastly great people. 

We shouldn't judge a QB on his color, but rather his impact on the game and his ability to WIN. Little else matters for QB's, it shouldn't matter HOW you get it done; just that you get it done. Congratulations to both of these young men for their accomplishments, I hope this changes the way some people view the QB position. Color shouldn't be a factor in rating ANY position, yet it still does. I hope this is the beginning of change, what do you think??

The Chris Paul Conundrum

Chris Paul is arguably one of the best Point Guards in the NBA, he's definitely Top Five hands down. Paul only has ONE more year left on his contract, that year being THIS year. What team wouldn't want a Top Five PG??

Last season we were able to see 3 ways that the whole "1 year left" can go, there are two examples that are at the forefront of my mind. Those being the Carmelo Anthony way, the Deron Williams way, or the Miami Heat way. The Hornets are at an extremely important crossroads; do you give in to Paul's demands and not get top talent in return(Melo) or do you jettison him off for what works best for your Franchise a la Utah Jazz & Deron Williams. Utah didn't give Williams a chance, they were proactive and sent D-Wil packing. Denver was stuck, they either accepted where Melo wanted to go and take what they could get or let him leave and get nothing in return.

What makes this even more interesting is Paul's alleged willingness or lack there of to re-sign should he be traded to a destination not of his liking. How would you feel if you were to make the trade for Paul knowing that he could just leave via Free Agency this summer, if you didn't have the type of talent that would entice him to stay...is it worth it?

There supposed Front Runners in the Chris Paul Sweepstakes are the Warriors, Clippers, and the Knicks. The Knicks having the upper-hand in my opinion seeing that they are his #1 choice and all they'd have to do is wait this season out. As for the Warriors, the Hornets would certainly want the young Stephen Curry. Would you be willing to part with him without the assurance that Paul would stay? If he did land in Golden State and left the season afterwards, you're set back even further with a hole at one of the most important spots on a basketball team. To add to this soap opera, Paul has said he'd like to play with Chandler again. He's never said getting Chandler would KEEP him in one place, just that he'd like to reunite with his former teammate. Chandler also wants to get PAID, deservingly so after anchoring the Dallas defense during their Title Run. Do you acquiesce to Pauls requests?

The Clippers are the rare team in all of this with a WEALTH of young talent to offer as well as good draft picks due to their poor track record. Will the Clippers get in their OWN way here and hold on to one of the pieces that the Hornets REQUIRE to make this deal happen? The reason I believe the Clippers have an upper-hand over the Warriors is simple: Blake Griffin. They have a bonafide Star (in the making) who happens to be a "Big." The Warriors current star is Monta Ellis and he's a guard, an undersized one at that.



Add to this mix are a few teams who are more than willing to "Rent Paul" for a season, this saga should  continue to intrigue us all. Will Paul be traded before the season, before the trade deadline, or not at all? Chime in with your thoughts below!!

Tebow, Denver Keep Rolling

The Denver Broncos are now atop the AFC West, this wasn't the case 7 games ago, since making Tim Tebow the Starting Quarterback they have gone 6-1. Of those 6, they've rattled off 5 consecutive wins, with four of the five games being on the road. That's impressive for any team, let alone a team with a new quarterback.

Much of the credit goes to the quarterback in this sport, win or lose. With that in mind, Tebow does indeed deserve credit not for what he has done but what he hasn't done. That is turn the ball over, Tebow obviously is not going to carve you up a la Aaron Rodgers or Tom Brady, but he won't give the opposing defense a chance to put his team away either. Denver either scores or punts on offense, in most cases they punt until the figure out a way to score. They are able to do this due to a very stout defensive unit, Denver's D has been able to get opposing offenses off the field quickly if not force takeaways.




Rookie Outside Linebacker Von Miller has outperformed the rookie expectations put on him prior to the season. We all knew this kid had the talent to be a great pass rusher, what we didn't know is that he'd become one so quick! Miller has 10.5 sacks on the year, Elvis Dumerville on the other hand has 6.5. Dumerville is the vet, he's earned the right to be double teamed due to his reputation. Miller NEEDS to be double teamed, the kid is also 4th on the team in tackles so he's active outside of his pass rushing prowess.

Many would like to credit John Elway and John Fox for sticking with Tebow, I think that credit should go elsewhere. Specifically to Denver's Offensive Coordinator and Quarterback Coach, the reason being that they have BOUGHT into Tim Tebow. They accept him for what he is and what he does, they tailor the game plan to his strengths! That is what changed for the Broncos, those two men accepting their QB and making the scheme work. Eventually Tebow will get comfortable throwing the ball, but until then this reliance on the run game is nothing negative. Winning time of possession and the turnover battle can go along way for teams, especially teams with young, unproven QB's. I wouldn't want to deal with this Denver team in the playoffs, Tebow like Cam Newton is hard to game plan for because of their ability to buy time and extend plays. Tebow does have something Cam doesn't, a DOMINATING defense.

What do you think of Denver's recent success, legit or fools gold??