SH Blog: Kobe says current Lakers are the best talent he’s been around, James Harden confident about contract situation

Much like Monday, media day was full of players and teams that felt great about their chances of achieving great things for the upcoming season. Even the players that we’ve come to expect less from have shown up to training camp with notably improved figures in hopes to revive their careers. See who had the most impressive summer and what interesting things were said on Tuesday by a number of players such as Paul George, Rajon Rondo, Luis Scola and more below.

• Kobe Bryant believes the current Lakers team is the best team he has ever been on, according to Marc J. Spears of Yahoo Sports: “On its face, it’s the best talent I’ve been around,” Bryant said. “Whether that translates into winning a championship remains to be seen. But just on paper you’re talking Defensive Player of the Years, MVPs, All-Stars. You’re talking about a myriad of things. Guys who are at the top of their position at one point or another. It’s pretty dope.”
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  Photo of Dwight Howard and Steve Nash, via Jose3030

  Dwight Howard will gladly learn from Bryant about all things, according to Kevin Ding of The Orange County Register: “Learning from Kobe, this is something I think I need for myself so I can grow as a player and a person,” Howard said. “He’s been through almost every situation possible, on the court and off the court. And I think he can really help me out a lot.” Howard also said: “I know he’s going to be tough on me. I expect that. I want him to do that. I want to be that guy. So I’ll take all the heat that he’s going to give me, because I know that at the end of the day it’s going to make me a better player, a better person, and it’s going to make this team better.”

• Though it seemed more and more unlikely through the summer, James Harden sounded pretty confident about staying with the Thunder, from Jenni Carlson of The Oklahoman: “Harden repeated his willingness to sacrifice to stay with the Thunder, asserting that a max contract wasn’t a necessity. He even went so far as to say he believed a deal would be done by the Oct. 31 deadline. “That’s why I’m not too worried about it,” he said. Maybe the Thunder can re-sign Harden after all. Crunching the numbers and listening to the qualifiers thrown around by the Thunder brass, it hasn’t seemed like keeping Harden would be possible. Surely, he would want more money than the team could handle. Getting a deal done still seems like an extremely long shot — how much can the Thunder really offer without putting itself in luxury-tax jeopardy? — but listening to Harden on Monday, it didn’t seem completely impossible. “We’ve built a brotherhood here, a brotherhood that’s hard to break,” he said. “Other teams are just teammates, but we’re really brothers.”
• Carmelo Anthony will head into this season with a renewed approach and mindset, according to Marc Berman of The New York Post: “For me personally, I’m in my 10th year,’’ Anthony said. “Everyone pretty much knows I can score the basketball. But for me to challenge myself, instill the trust into my teammates to give them that confidence when they do shoot the ball, to have that confidence that they can make it happen as well. “I’m done trying to score 35, 40 points to win the basketball game. I don’t want that role anymore. I can do it. That’s what I do. But in order for this team to be successful, for guys we have right now, we need a more well-rounded team. If I have to sacrifice on the offensive end, I’m willing to do it. It’s easy for me to sit here and say it. But this year it’s going to be locking in and doing it as the leader of this team.’’
• The new coach of the Bobcats, Mike Dunlap, is not a fan of the long-range jump shots, according to Rick Bonnell of Charlotte Observer: “Dunlap isn’t saying he’d bench somebody for taking an open 18-foot jump shot. But he watched a lot of video from last season, and saw the Bobcats constantly defaulting to those shots. “We really want to play off the rim, the paint and the open 3(-pointer). I’m not big on middle jumpers,’’ Dunlap said. “The Bobcats took more of them last year than anybody in the NBA. They’re the least valuable shot you can get, where the most valuable is the free throw. “You need to attack the rim in one manner or another. Getting to the free throw-line says that you’re doing a lot right.’’
• Tyrus Thomas gained plenty of muscle in the offseason and will look to revive his career, according to Bonnell: “So he’s back with a new coach in Mike Dunlap, a stronger body (about 20 pounds of added muscle), and a fresh perspective. “I’m at a point in my career where it feels like ‘Groundhog Day,’ ’’ Thomas said of his seventh NBA training camp, starting Tuesday morning at UNC Asheville. “I thought last year could be the season that solidified me, but it was actually my worst. So the last few months have been about getting back to where I know I can be.’’ Where’s that? “A good player on a winning team,” Thomas said. “And I think we have that capability, particularly with the attitude of the coaches. I feel good about what is coming up.”
• Rajon Rondo believes that the current make of the Celtics roster is better than the championship team from 2008, according to CSNNE: “The Celtics’ Rajon Rondo says the current roster is more talented than the Celtics team that won the championship in 2008. Rondo was a second-year point guard on that Celtics team that won the title. He says the additions that have been made this off-season to the current Celtics make them better than the team that won it all. “I believe this team is more talented than that team,” Rondo said. “But the key to the 2008 team is that everyone bought into the system.” Rondo said that will have to happen again with the group for the Celtics to be successful. “Guys probably won’t play their normal amount of minutes that they have in the past because we’re such a talented team.”
• The Pacers expect Paul George to take his development level up a notch, from Mike Wells of Indianapolis Star: “The message Indiana Pacers associate head coach Brian Shaw delivered to guard Paul George was brief, but to the point. After George had finished one of his summer workouts at a Southern California gym, Shaw sat the third-year guard down and left him with something profound to ponder. “I told him that the fact that everybody in the starting lineup is basically already who they are with the exception of him,” Shaw recalled saying. “Whatever steps he makes are going to be the same steps the team will take.” Talk about pressure.”
• The Pacers are a very confident bunch this season, according to Wells: “The Pacers, especially coach Frank Vogel, have become a team that easily fills up your tape recorder. Vogel got it started recently when he said he feels like they’re a title contending team. Then Paul George added to things Monday. “I think we’ve shown signs of being the better team,” he said at the team’s media day. “On paper (the Heat) have better players, but we’re a better team. I think the improvements of the guys we got, that will only make things better.” George’s comments got Miami fans fired up on Twitter. Roy Hibbert added that they’re the “best kept secret.”
• John Wall is putting responsibility on himself for being drafted No. 1 overall, from Michael Lee of Washington Post: “It’s all up to me to see what I do this season to see if it will all pay off,” Wall said of his offseason workouts.And now Wall will have to wait to show how much he has learned. The knee injury was an obvious setback for Wall and the Wizards, since so much of this season is centered around his ability to ascend the status often reserved for the top pick. In his first two seasons, Wall posted respectable numbers, especially when considering that he was asked to carry a supporting cast with questionable talent and professionalism. But Wall won’t place the blame elsewhere, since the expectations for him far exceed those for his teammates — and he will receive the bulk of the criticism if the Wizards fail. “When you get drafted number one,” Wall said, “it’s on you change the program around, change the organization around, be in the playoffs and contend for a championship. That’s something I want to do.”
• Zach Randolph’s knee is back to 100%, according to Hoopsworld: ““My knee is 100 percent,” Randolph said, “and I feel good. It’s a new season. I’m turning the page.” The book on Randolph last season was that he had no lift, could no longer gobble up rebounds in bunches or bully opponents in the paint. That was after the 31-year-old veteran returned from a knee injury (a partially torn MCL) that cost him 38 games and cut down his confidence. “Man, working out has made me feel better,” Randolph said. “I know that I can do what I used to do. … I expect big things from myself.”
• Steve Novak has been working on his game over the summer to be more than just a spot-up shooter. Ian Begley of ESPN New York has details:

• Andray Blatche doesn’t think about Washington anymore and understands why he received the contract he did, according to Stefan Bondy of The Daily News: “To be honest with you, I’ve forgotten about Washington. It’s old. It happened. I took it,” Blatche said. “Now I’m moving on. I can’t do over the past. It would make me bitter and hold me back from what I’m trying to do.” Which brings us to Brooklyn’s Blatche, who is 20 pounds lighter and says he’s eager to prove himself after signing a one-year, non-guaranteed minimum deal. Washington still will pay Blatche most of the remaining $23 million on his previous contract because he was amnestied.“I understand why I got (the one-year non-guaranteed contract). And it is what it is. I’m just going to come here and work hard,” said Blatche, who impressed during voluntary workouts leading up to training camp. “I’ve been going back to being myself. I feel good, I’m playing good. My confidence is great. I’m just going to go up there and give it everything I got.”
• What role will Blatche play for the Nets? Mike Mazzeo of ESPN has the answer:

• Luis Scola opened up about his experience over the summer as an amnesty candidate, from Brett Pollakoff of NBC Sports: “This lasted two or three weeks, and at the end of those three weeks they finally told me they were going to amnesty me, which I took as a good thing, because it provided some closure. This whole not knowing where I was going to play was taking a toll on me, so I was happy that I finally got some closure on it, and I knew that the end was coming closer. So from that point of view, it was a relief. And then a couple of days after the amnesty, I started feeling a little sad because I’d been there for five years and it was my first team in the NBA and they were great to me. I had a lot of fun there and they made my dream come true, so (after it was done) I had a lot of good memories pop up, and it was a little hard.”
• Paul Coro of The Arizona Republic had some news about Goran Dragic, and it wasn’t good:

• Enes Kanter amazingly lost 51 pounds over the summer to get himself in better shape, from Reid Cherner of USA Today: “When you average 13.2 minutes a game, not a lot players have a goal of fans wanting to see less of him. But that will happen in Utah where 6-11 foot center Enes Kanter enters his second season 51 pounds lighter. Kanter, who was as heavy as 293 pounds in the summer, reported to camp at 242. Kanter, who tweeted out photos of himself during the offseason, told Bill Oram of the Salt Lake Tribune that his teammates asked “are you trying to be a body builder. I said no, I’m just trying to be in better shape.”
• Who is the most improved player in training camp for the Heat so far? Norris Cole, according to Shandel Richardson of Sun Sentinel: “It was almost like Norris Cole didn’t have an offseason. Eight days after the Miami Heat won the NBA title, Cole was in the gym working out twice daily. A strong dedication to improving is why Cole has been one of the early surprises of training camp. “He’s been one of the highlights of the camp so far just in terms of how much he’s improved,” Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said. “He’s arguably the most improved player right now. It shouldn’t be a surprise to any one of us. He had a terrific summer in terms of commitment.” Spoelstra said he challenged Cole to improve his shooting and play-making ability. That was the reasoning behind Cole traveling with the team to Las Vegas for the NBA Summer League, an event usually reserved for rookies and journeymen.
• Andris Biedrins is still trying to find himself as a confident basketball player, according to Matt Steinmetz of CSN Bay Area: “I think it is (possible to get back to where he was),” Biedrins said. “I think physically I’m there. A lot has to do with just kind of believing in yourself more than I am. I’ve had frustrating years and you kind of stop believing in yourself so much as you did before – like three years ago. That’s the main reason. But I think I can get there.” Assuming Andrew Bogut is healthy, Biedrins is going to have to get there coming off the bench. And he’s expected to get some competition at backup center from rookie Festus Ezeli. “He just needs to realize that’s he’s not a bad basketball player,” Bogut said of Biedrins.”
• Raymond Felton has lost a good amount of weight from last season, from Ben Golliver of Blazersedge:

• Kyrie Irving is hopeful of making the playoffs, from Chris Fedor of Sports Radio Interviews: “I have high hopes for us. Obviously our number one goal is to make the playoffs this year and we’re definitely going to attain that as long as we continue to get better and as long as we compete every single night. Last year, like I said, we had a few limitations but when we were playing those good teams, especially in the second half of the season not having the pieces we needed to compete every single night with the best, it definitely hurt us but this season we added some new pieces and I feel like everybody is definitely taking that next step and getting better as a pro. I’m really excited to get the thing started. I’m healthy, Andy is healthy, Dion (Waiters) is healthy so I’m just happy to see where this thing can go.”
• Deron Williams admitted he was frustrated with last season’s version of the Nets, from Tim Bontemps of New York Post: “I’ve never been in that position before,” Williams said of last season’s struggles. “So, yeah, at times I showed frustration, but I think anybody would have. No matter who it is, no matter how good of a leader you are, in that situation, if you were there every day and saw what was going on and heard what was going on in the locker room, you’d be pissed off sometimes. “You’re getting your [butt] kicked and then you [have guys] in the locker room laughing about the game afterwards. I don’t think that’s that funny. That’s what we had to deal with last year, and that’s what I don’t think we’re gonna deal with this year because just talking to the guys, the guys we have now, that’s not what they’re about.”

Knicks and Nets believe they can win championship

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