The Season is Here

Your weekly NBA Pacific Division Update

By Tara Sadat-Tehrani

Frederic J. Brown / Getty Images

The time has come, and the NBA season has started.  Rankings and predictions were made all of preseason and during training camp, but how have teams done keeping these projections of their performance in mind.  For the NBA Pacific Division, the predictions and guesses have been quite on point with a little surprise for some teams, but I believe that there is always rust when it comes to the beginning of an 82-game season.  Let’s see which teams are on the road to success in the West, and which others may have no hope even though there has only been up to four games.

First place goes to the Los Angeles Clippers.

The Clippers did lose to the Lakers opening night, but since then, they have put the Warriors to shame and “Lob City” has yet to leave its game plan like originally wanted by Doc Rivers.  Chris Paul and Blake Griffin have had chemistry from anywhere on the court, and the Clippers should come out as No. 1 in the Pacific Division and the Western Conference based on their talent and other analyst opinions.

Golden State Warriors take second.

 This is a whole new team this year.  People doubted the trade of Monta Ellis two years ago, but the team has only improved.  Andre Iguodala has brought tenacity, and Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson have already showed that they are going to play their best this year.  With the Warriors’ fan base and young exciting team, there is a huge chance that they will make it far in the West this year. 

The Phoenix Suns have been the most shocking so far this season after three games coming in at third.

 No one has paid attention to the Suns for the past years after Steve Nash, Amare Stoudemire and Shawn Marion left the team.  The team’s struggles just kept going, and nobody noticed them like they used to.  But with players like Goran Dragic, Eric Bledsoe and Archie Goodwin, anything can change.  Give them a couple of seasons for this roster to spark and change people’s views of the Suns.  Hopefully they can keep this streak going, but it’s likely that their chemistry won’t outlast the rest of this competitive West.

Lastly, the Los Angeles Lakers (2-2) and the Sacramento Kings (1-2) place last, but that should not be a shock for most NBA fans. 

The Lakers had an impressive performance against the Clippers without Kobe Bryant, but without their franchise player, clutch moments will probably not come in clutch times.  The Lakers need Kobe Bryant even if he does not fully come back with his star power.  They need his support on the floor either way.  The Sacramento Kings, on the other hand, need to make more changes and mature before the team have any chance of having a new appearance in the West, let alone the Pacific Division.

Overall, the West once again is looking like a dominant conference that will have close calls when it comes to entering the playoffs.  Forgetting about predictions and analysts, it is time for these teams play their hardest and win games if they want to live up to what people think of them. 

Super Man or Super Soon?

Kobe Bryant may be pushing himself too hard

By Tara Sadat-Tehrani

Mark J. Terrill / AP

The moment Kobe Bryant fell to the ground against the Golden State Warriors on March 13, 2013, fans knew that Los Angeles had to be ready for a new team without their star.  As he slowly got up and hit two free throws, Kobe Bryant went straight to the locker room hoping to return to the game.  

Unfortunately, Kobe was advised to get surgery for his ruptured Achilles and would have to be out the rest of the season and part of this season.  As we all know, Bryant does not enjoy sitting out of games.  He played with a torn ligament in his wrist most of 2012 and still averaged twenty-seven points.  Now, the real question is, when will Kobe return this season?  Will he prove to all NBA fans once again that he can come back before most players or will he play it safe and come back when it’s most appropriate?

The earliest Kobe Bryant should be returning to games is October, but the latest would be in January.  Knowing Bryant, he wants to come back as soon as he can to help his team succeed and so far he believes that he is “feeling good” although there is no time table for his return.

 Judging from his social media updates, Kobe wants us fans to believe that he will be coming back by the first game of the season.  He has posted videos on Instagram of him running on an altered gravity treadmill teasing the NBA audience that his improvement is way ahead of schedule.  Now, NBA analysts on Twitter are even backing up Bryant saying that he will be coming back at an impossible time for anyone who has ruptured their Achilles. 

Mike D’Antoni and the rest of the coaching staff are probably cringing with all the news surrounding Kobe’s injury and probably hope that this isn’t pressuring the super star to come back by the season opener versus their city rivals the Los Angeles Clippers. With the buzz around the league, Kobe wants to prove everyone wrong.  But what’s new?  He knows that he can play through anything and show every other athlete that they should do the same.

Bryant’s super man habits have even changed us as fans to believe that any injury is something small, and getting back up from a rolled ankle is not a big deal.  Let us NBA fans cross our fingers that Kobe Bryant’s unlikely timetable will be one more realistic than others.   His skills are something every NBA fan, whether they dislike him or not, are ones to look forward to, but if he wants to play the superman role and comes back a little too soon, his NBA days will be delayed or maybe even over.  

Chopping Down the Beanstalk

Both the Orlando Magic and the Washington Wizards played the upset role this week beating two high caliber teams

By Kyle Basedow

Fee fi fo fum where is Andrew Bynum?

On Sunday night, all Lakers fans were begging that question. The Orlando Magic beat the Los Angeles Lakers 113-103 after an impressive performance from the Magic’s starting five.

The Lakers, on the other hand, were less than spectacular, especially on defense and at the free throw line. Dwight Howard shot 9-21 from the line while scoring 21 points and grabbing 15 rebounds.

Howard was acquired in the blockbuster trade this summer that involved four teams and sent former Lakers center Andrew Bynum to the Philadelphia 76ers where he has yet to play due to injury.

AP Photo/ Mark J. Terrill

The Magic, meanwhile, shined on offense with all five starters scoring in double digits. Arron Afflalo had 30 points with 5 rebounds and 5 assists, Jameer Nelson had 19 points and 13 assists, Glen “Big Baby” Davis scored 23 points with 12 rebounds, and Nikola Vucevic had 17 points with 4 blocks and 12 rebounds. The only Magic starter who had an average night was J.J. Reddick, who scored 14 points with 7 assists.

With both teams scoring close the same amount of points in the paint and on fast breaks, the game ultimately came down to who could shoot free throws better. The Magic shot an impressive 19-20 from the line as a team and the Lakers shot 25-39 with Dwight Howard accounting for all of the misses except for two.

It’s ironic that Howard’s former team beat his new team in their first matchup against each other since the trade. Adding to the irony is that Dwight Howard, who was trying to get out of Orlando as fast as possible, is quite possibly the main reason for the loss, due to his poor shooting and his less than stellar defensive play.

The Washington Wizards also knocked off a giant of their own on Tuesday night, beating the Miami Heat, one of the top ranked teams in the NBA, 105-101.

The Wizards triumphed despite having only one player score above 20 points. The Heat, on the other hand, had every member of the “Big Three” score more than 20 with LeBron James drop a triple-double with 26 points, 13 rebounds, and 11 assists.

The Heat dominated points in the paint 56-34 but fell short due to poor shooting. As a team, Miami shot 28.6% from three-point range and 68.8% from the free throw line.

The Wizards, on the other hand, shot 36.8% from three-point range and 75.9% from the free throw line.

The difference in shooting wasn’t much, but it was just enough to make a big difference. The Wizards led at the end of every quarter, despite only out scoring the Heat in the opening quarter.

The game was still close in the end, with the Heat within a basket from tying the game up, but poor shooting by Mike Miller and Ray Allen led to the game slipping away from them.

Still, with 0:06 left on the clock, the ball was in LeBron’s hands and he was able to get off an awful shot from the corner that never really had a chance at going in.

Two things that are interesting to note here: this was only the Wizards second win of the season and their second in three games after starting 0-12. The other is that when the game came down to it, LeBron James had the game in his hands as opposed to Dwyane Wade or even Ray Allen. Granted, Wade isn’t a great outside shooter, but Ray Allen is the one of the best in NBA history so it’s an interesting play call by Heat coach Erik Spoelstra.

Lakers Fire Coach Mike Brown

By Ryan Raigrodski

Just a few days ago, after the Los Angeles Lakers lost to the Utah Jazz and fell to a 1-4 record, Lakers Executive Vice President Jim Buss came out and defended now former head coach Mike Brown.

"I have no problems with Mike Brown at all," Buss said yesterday to the media. "He just works too hard and he's too knowledgeable for this to be happening.”

And yet one day after publicly defending his head coach, the sports world received a shocker when the Lakers announced the decision to fire head coach Mike Brown.

While the Lakers have not been able to live up to the preseason expectations so far, it seems like a move of panic to fire Mike Brown so early into the season. First of all, Steve Nash has only been able to play one game, injuring his leg, so it is unknown what Brown could have done with the team with Nash in the lineup. Also, Dwight Howard suffered a back injury at the end of last season and is nowhere near 100 percent health wise yet.

Not only are injuries one reason why it is too early to get rid of Brown, but Nash and Howard also are both new to the team. When teams dramatically change the roster the way the Lakers did this offseason, it takes time for the new players to get accustomed to the play of the rest of the team.

As the Miami Heat lifted the NBA trophy last year, people forgot that when LeBron James and Chris Bosh joined the team, the team struggled early. They stuck by their coach through their early struggles and now they have a ring.

Many have speculated that the Lakers decided to make the move because Kobe is unhappy with Brown, and that could very well be the case. When it became a reality that the Lakers would not beat the Jazz on Wednesday, Kobe made what is being referred to by many in the media as a “death stare” which may have reflected his distaste with Brown. If this is why the Lakers made the decision, that goes to show how some players have too much power within their organization, as it should be the general manager or owner’s decision to fire a coach, not a player.

The question now becomes who will become the next Lakers head coach? Assistant coach Bernie Bickerstaff will take over on an interim basis as the Lakers search for a permanent replacement for Brown.

Many have speculated that the Lakers could hire Mike D’Antoni, formerly coach of the New York Knicks and Phoenix Suns and an assistant coach on the most recent United States gold medal team. However, he just had surgery on his knee and will not be able to walk for a few more weeks.

The Lakers might make a call to former head coach Phil Jackson, who won five rings with the Lakers and is in a relationship with Jim Buss’s sister Jeanie. He recently retired though, so it is unknown whether he will be willing to come out of retirement and return to the Lakers. If D’Antoni and Jackson do not work out, the name to watch out for is former Portland Trailblazers head coach Nate McMillan. He was quite successful in Portland and may be a fallback plan for the Lakers should they not be able to hire D’Antoni or Jackson.

Lakers Struggle Early Due to Princeton Offense

By Ryan Raigrodski

As the season began, most every fan of the National Basketball Association (NBA) thought that the Los Angeles Lakers would stand atop the West, if not the entire league. It appeared that a team that has four star players in Steve Nash, Kobe Bryant, Pau Gasol and Dwight Howard could lose very few games. And yet somehow, they begin the season with a 0-2 record.

"I've won so I can (tell people to shut up)," Bryant said to the media yesterday about the team’s early season performance. "For Mike it might be a little tough to say that so I'll say it for him: 'Everybody shut up. Let us work. At the end of the day, you'll be happy with the result as you normally are.'”

AP Photo/ Mark J. Terrill

While Bryant may feel the criticism of the team is too early or unjust, watching the games forces you to disagree. Whether it is game one or game 82, it doesn’t feel like the style of many of the Lakers’ play fits this offense.  

What the Lakers are running right now is known as the Princeton offense. The Princeton offense emphasizes a half-court offense, in which the ball is moved around the court many times until a player can find an opening. The offense is slow and involves many passes, which is why many college teams use it, as college athletes do not have the athleticism that professional players do, particularly the Lakers.

In Phoenix, Steve Nash thrived running the pick and roll offense. He even had a rule for the offense: shoot and score in seven seconds or less. With this new Lakers offense, they barely get the ball across midcourt in seven seconds. The quick offense Nash ran in Phoenix would also suit Howard’s game, as Nash could throw him lead passes off of picks and Howard would be open to dunk the ball.  

While this offense may be a worse fit for Steve Nash then anyone, he, like Kobe, tried saying all the right things to the media yesterday to quiet the criticism.

"It is dramatically different from what I've done the last eight years," Nash said. "But I still think there's a lot of room to find a comfort in the offense. It's not all about how I can be the centerpiece. It's about how can we all collectively make each other better, and I think this offense provides us with an opportunity to do that, albeit, in time."

On paper, the Lakers may have a great roster. But fans have forgotten the key element, which is the head coach. Mike Brown still has yet to win a championship in his career, even with opportunity after opportunity in Cleveland. The question is, can Brown make the right decisions and utilize the stars he has to their full potential so the Lakers can win a championship? Right now, with the decision to run the Princeton offense, he is not doing that.