Felix

QUOTE (MexSoxFan#1 @ Jan 13, 2012 -> 04:06 PM) His mid-range jumper has been solid for a while and he's good in the open court. Basically what I was trying to say is that if Luol Deng wasn't as good at defense as he is, he wouldn't be anything special. His offensive game is ok, but he's not particularly efficient and his shooting isn't great (according to the numbers). However, when you put a slightly above average offensive game alongside VERY good defense on the wing, you have a very valuable/good player. I don't think there's much question whether or not Deng is a top 10 SF in the league.

Deng is one of the best wing defenders in the league. He's quite, quite good. His offense isn't great, but it's tough to ignore his defensive prowess.

QUOTE (MexSoxFan#1 @ Jan 13, 2012 -> 01:49 PM) Aw, come on dude, you're not gonna get flamed for not putting DRose at #1 I've been flamed for less My top 10 has a lot of interchangeable parts, but would basically be split up into tiers. Players in each tier can be moved around, etc. etc. 1. Lebron 2. Dwight -- I'll take these two over anyone else in basketball if I was starting a team right now. Physical freaks that are damn near impossible to defend, plus two of the best defensive players in the league (especially since Lebron can basically guard anyone on the floor). 3. Durant 4/5. Rose 4/5. CP3 -- As far as I'm concerned, Rose/CP3 are interchangeable. They're both elite level point guards that have very different styles. Depending on the team, I'd prefer CP3 at the point. On the Bulls, Rose is a great fit. You can't go wrong with either, however. Durant might be a little overrated on this list given his defense, but given his age and potential, I'll give him the benefit of the doubt. 6. Kobe 7. Dirk 8. Wade -- Blah blah blah words 9. Westbrook 10. Carmelo 11. Manu 12. Gasol 13. Love 14. Griffin 15. Aldridge -- This is a crapshoot. A lot of them are very close, so I just put them in some order that I was ok with. Not the biggest Carmelo fan in the world. He basically kills any offensive flow that a team has and is a pure volume shooter with no interest in defense. I find him incredibly irritating to watch, even when he's scoring.

QUOTE (MexSoxFan#1 @ Jan 13, 2012 -> 01:33 PM) Felix, who would be in your top 10 NBA players list? 1. Derrick Rose 2. Derrick Rose 3. Omer Asik 4. Derrick Rose 5. Derrick Rose 6. Derrick Rose 7. Derrick Rose 8. Derrick Rose 9. Derrick Rose 10. Luol Deng Even in top 10 lists, Luol Deng is underrated.

QUOTE (WHarris1 @ Jan 13, 2012 -> 12:09 PM) I think Zach Randolph has a vertical leap of less than 12 inches, I am investigating, but not finding many results. Dude is very crafty on the glass though and exceptional at tipping the ball to himself. Zach Randolph rebounds in a similar way as Kevin Love. It's not about getting the ball when it's at it's highest point, it's about using your legs, hips and strength to get your opponent out of the way, then catching the ball on it's way down. Love is probably the best in the NBA in getting in position to make a rebound and if you watch him consistently, his rebounds in traffic usually involve either tipping it to himself or grabbing it without actually jumping. Love will also always lock arms with the opponent which causes it to look as if they're fouling him, which the refs have somehow yet to notice but routinely call on the other player. I haven't watch Z-Bo as much as some, but he seems to be in the same school of rebounding. It's more about brute strength and positioning than actually jumping to the highest possible point. For this reason, he always gives Love fits on the glass. He's one of the toughest matchups in the league for Love when it comes to glass cleaning. As far as the top 10 lists go, I'm not sure I'd put Love in there. He's definitely top 15, but his inability to create his own shot (and his lack of a great post game) really holds him back. I wouldn't be surprised if he shows up next year with a highly refined post game, though. He's made significant offseason improvements to his game every year since entering the league.

QUOTE (KyYlE23 @ Jan 13, 2012 -> 10:03 AM) I just watched the "highlights" of the game vs the grizzlies, and every highlight is the grizz grabbing a rebound and flying to the other end of the court while the knicks just jog behind. No effort whatsoever. When Boris Diaw can do to your defense, you know it's bad.

QUOTE (KyYlE23 @ Jan 13, 2012 -> 09:50 AM) I am taking great pleasure in the total mediocrity of the New York Knicks They are absolutely awful to watch as well, unless you get off watching iso after iso.

Part of me regrets not watching Orlando/Golden State tonight, until I realize that I would have had to watch Dwight Howard shoot 39 free throws. Jesus christ...

QUOTE (chw42 @ Jan 12, 2012 -> 12:25 PM) I counted 6 steps. It's almost as bad as

Since everyone can get behind LeBron bashing: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=32o8uHmX36o

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Jan 12, 2012 -> 08:59 AM) I was amazed out how many outside shots Love took against the Bulls. His attempted three-pointers has pretty much doubled since last year. Last season, he basically would take it when the defense gave it to him (especially when he was trailing coming up court). This year, he's running the pick and roll with Rubio a lot which frees up a number of good looks from beyond the arc. That wasn't his best game by any means (or even an average game for Love), but at least Love (usually) has the sense to take a three instead of a long two. Plus, Love is a 41% three point shooter, so I'm usually ok with him taking a three. It makes a lot more sense than when Blake Griffin does it, since Love isn't athletic or big enough to really dominate inside like Blake does.

QUOTE (Steve9347 @ Jan 12, 2012 -> 08:54 AM) The issue is he has zero post game (like most big men these days). Those 75% are open dunks and/or alley oops. The 3-9 are when space has already been created. Very true. But why wouldn't he try to develop an actual post game as a young post player BEFORE trying to expand his range to the three point line? It's mindboggling.

Since I normally rag on Rose for his shot selection, I guess it's time to pick out someone else. What the f*** was Blake Griffin thinking last night? He took 9 shots from 16+ feet. If you're Blake Griffin and you are as athletic/strong as anyone in the league, why would you move your game to the perimeter? There were a number of times where he'd catch the ball just inside the three-point line and instead of actually trying to get a better look, he'd just take the jumper because no one was guarding him closely. Here's a hint, Blake. No one was guarding you because you suck at shooting from that distance. I mean, the long two is a bad shot in the first place, but when your 4 is starting to take that shot as often as he is, it's even worse. He's averaging five and a half shots per game from 16-23 feet and is shooting just 33% on those jumpers. Comparatively, he's shooting 75% at the rim (on seven attempts per game) and 49% from 3-9 feet. He's one of the better finishers in the painted area in the league and draws a s***load of fouls when he's in there. Why would he EVER take over 30% of his shots from a spot where no one will defend him and where he can't make a shot consistently?

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Jan 12, 2012 -> 08:07 AM) chicagobulls Chicago Bulls #Madhouse #Defense RT @JeffGurt: In the four home games so far, the Bulls have held opponents to 67.5 PPG. Yes, really. 17 teams are holding opponents to 95 points or less in a game (four under 90), compared to just seven teams last season (and three the season before that). Some of that is the small number of games that have been played, but it's also lockout basketball.

QUOTE (Quinarvy @ Jan 12, 2012 -> 12:55 AM) Best DJ Steve Porter thing still. Beats Press Hop. Fully agreed. I don't think it's even particularly close, but I generally don't like mashups.

QUOTE (Quinarvy @ Jan 12, 2012 -> 12:50 AM) But you see, it's not my fault. The refs called a terrible game and it's not like anyone ever said it was gonna be easy. Those refs have to wake up tomorrow with their crappy lives. Thank you for leading me to rewatch this: EDIT: Oh hey, this was post 10,000. Cool. I need a life.

These last two Miami games have been amazingly satisfying to watch.

QUOTE (Quinarvy @ Jan 12, 2012 -> 12:43 AM) WTF is Battier b****ing about I think he was saying he fouled Griffin and not Billups, but they weren't shooting free throws anyway, so I don't know why it was relevant.

Miami's last FGM was with 7:31 left in the fourth quarter.

LeBron's free throw performance down the stretch might officially make this game more hilarious than last night

This game has been almost as hilarious as last night's game

QUOTE (SoxFan1 @ Jan 11, 2012 -> 10:13 PM) The way you worded your case. Right.. the Bulls are infallible (even during a 20-2 run) and Rose has never made a bad decision in his life. My deepest apologies.

QUOTE (SoxFan1 @ Jan 11, 2012 -> 10:09 PM) This is funny, coming from you. What part of that specifically is funny?

QUOTE (chw42 @ Jan 11, 2012 -> 10:07 PM) It surprises me that Rose would talk s*** like that, especially to a guy like Rubio. I imagine Rubio's style of play would get under the skin of his opponents. Lots of flash, lots of poking to pry the ball loose on defense. Russell Westbrook basically blew a gasket earlier this year when they played the Wolves. He even "bashed" Rubio after the game to reporters. Of course, when Russell Westbrook does that, it's much less surprising than when Derrick Rose does it

QUOTE (chw42 @ Jan 11, 2012 -> 09:46 PM) http://www.nba.com/games/20120110/CHIMIN/g...8#nbaGIboxscore Watch the end of the recap video. They blurred out Rose saying something to Rubio (I think it was Rubio at least, that's who was guarding him). I think I saw "f*** you man" from reading his lips (hard to do since it's blurred out a bit). It could have been "f*** yeah", but you'd think he would have said it with a little more expression. Rose was getting pissed off at Rubio during the game (specifically during that 20-2 run). Rubio forced a couple turnovers in a row and then proceeded to tear up the Bulls defense on the other end of the floor, which led to a terrible Rose three-point attempt IIRC. I wouldn't be surprised if it was "f*** you man" at all.