Podcast Archive

Dec. 4, 2012

Brian Geltzeiler joins 1560 the Game in Houston for his weekly spot to talk NBA with Sean Pendergast and John Granato.  In this show, Brian breaks down the possibilities and likelihood of a Pau Gasol trade. They discuss different scenarios on how the Lakers can unload the struggling star and what they can get in return.

Sean and John also fielded Brian’s opinions on the Gregg Popovich verses David Stern battle as well as his take on the rising star for the Houston Rockets, Chandler Parsons. Give a listen below to Brian’s spot on 1560 the Game.

Nov. 26, 2012

Every once in a while I’ll go on the BBC or some other British broadcasting outfit, and I’ll have to bend over backward to simplify some things that need no explaining to American fans, given their superior knowledge of the game. 

But such was not the case with Sam Millner of nbalockdown.com, a new site founded just two months ago. Millner is an avid NBA fan from the U.K., currently studying for a masters in Software Engineering at the University of Sheffield.

His best question was the one I dodged the best by making him re-phrase it.

He asked: “Who is the worst coach in the NBA?”

Instead, I told him I would tell him which coach has the most to prove in the NBA.

Click the play button(s) below to listen. This podcast comes in two parts.

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

Part 2:

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

Nov. 21, 2012

The team sitting atop the Western Conference standings this morning is the Los Angeles Clippers. Ever heard of them?

Drama queens they are not. They do not flirt with Phil Jackson. They do not stockpile future Hall of Famers and then lose 12 of their first 13 games. They do not make surprise coach hirings in the dead of night. But they keep winning — their streak is up to 6 in a row heading into tonight’s game measuring stick game on the road against Oklahoma City.

Another Rodney Dangerfield team is the Brooklyn Nets, who didn’t quite have enough to defeat the Laker last night in Los Angeles in what was the franchise’s biggest showcase game in a half-decade. But even if they had won last night and extended their victory streak to 6, you know what?

Like the Clippers in L.A., nobody in New York is talking about the Nets. It’s all Knicks, all the time — and it is going to tay that way as long as they can maintain a gaudy record.

I discussed those points this morning with Sid Rosenberg on 640-Sports Radio in Miami. Click the play button below to listen.

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

Not only will you get some historical perspective in this podcast on the personal hell long-time Philadelphia 76ers fans have gone through coming out of blockbuster trades, but you’ll also hear a story about a baseball player — a well-known one– who used to carry a photograph in his wallet of his favorite gun.

Anthony Gargano and I go back a long way, to the days when we were both covering the New York Mets at the old Shea Stadium — Gargano for the New York Post; myself for the Associated Press. Anthony has moved on to a glamorous career as a radio host, including his current gig with Fox Sports Radio.

The thing with Gargano is: He is a Philly guy, through and through. He remembers what happened when the Sixers traded Charles Barkley at the peak of his career; and the time — and this one was worse — when they sent Moses Malone and two No. 1 picks to Washington for Jeff Ruland, who played all of 5 games for the Sixers before a knee injury forced him to retire.

Those types of names and histories are popping up again following the shocking news from Bynum that both of his knees are injured. He sprung this news on the team via the Sixers beat writers after going for his own MRI on Thursday.

And what once looked like a likely December return has now become a questionable January return, to put it optimistically. In the end, it’ll be interesting to see whether Bynum or Derrick Rose returns first (we have a poll up asking that very question if you click here while listening to the latest concerning Bynum … and the NBA-leading Memphis Grizzlies.

Click the play button below to listen.

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

Nov. 14, 2012

One thing about going on the Sid Rosenberg show in Miami: You are going to hear the bombastic (and talented) host speak out of both sides of his mouth — usually with some venom and some spice.

Sid hails from New York, but he has been living in the sunshine for a few years now. Sid knows the Heat, he knows the Knicks, and he has a pulse for what folks in both cities are feeling and thinking.

His take on Miami fans: They are utterly dismissive of their team’s loss to the Knicks on opening night at MSG.

Those fans are entitled to think that way, but they should consider themselves forewarned: On Dec. 6 when the teams play for the second time this season, this time in Miami, it is going to be a heck of a measuring stick game for both teams for a lot of reasons. And that doesn’t just go for the Knicks; it goes for the Heat as well. Here’s why …

Give a click to the play button:

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

Nov. 12, 2012

During a roundtable NBA discussion on TheOpinioNationNetwork , Jabari Davis, Jamieson Welsh, Twan Staley, and Jory Dreher were joined by NBA historian/author Roland Lazenby following the news of Los Angeles Lakers’ Head Coach Mike Brown being fired on Friday morning.

Lazenby has been a fixture around NBA locker rooms for the past four decades, and is a close personal friend of Tex Winter and Phil Jackson. Lazenby has credited Winter (Father of the Triangle Offense) to have practically taught him the game of basketball. Lazenby pulled no punches, as he led into things by essentially declaring Phil Jackson as the next head coach of the Los Angeles Lakers…again.

Preliminary talks between the Lakers and Jackson were concluded Saturday, the Los Angeles Times reported.

“I don’t think they do any of this [Firing Mike Brown] without it being Phil (Jackson)…you don’t throw away $18 million dollars for a parallel move.”

When asked whether Mike Brown was simply not the right fit for the current Lakers roster?

“Jim Buss hired him. Jim came clean this weekend and admitted he’s not a basketball person and he shouldn’t have been doing that…whoever followed Phil Jackson (chuckling) was going to have a brutally difficult time. Mike Brown, had he not encountered the short season, the difficulties, the trade for a point guard, injuries in training camp…I mean, stuff happens. it’s going to happen to anybody. Not making excuses for him, but perception just led to this groundswell.”

When asked if Jackson would be able to handle a 75-game season, or if he would request special conditions?

“We would find that out if he comes back. I think he would probably be able to handle it…He’s no fool, he’s going to get all that clear before he comes back. He’s got a package in which he wants a statue at staples, he wants to share Jack’s (Nicholson) dope smoking room at halftime of games. He wants everything he can get, he wants Jeanie (Buss) to be able to pose nude one more time. [Obviously joking about Jackson’s desired perks package] Whatever Phil wants, he’s gonna make sure he gets it going in.”

On the relationship between Dr. Buss (Lakers owner) and Jackson?

“He knows that if Dr. Buss gets an advantage it will be just like 2010, when he’s making Phil give up salary just to keep coaching the Lakers. You know, these are two guys with a history with each other. It’s not warm and fuzzy. There is nothing fuzzy about it.”

On the notion of Lakers PG Steve Nash not necessarily fitting with the Triangle Offense?

“Mike Brown’s problem, are Phil Jackson’s problems. Kobe is a system player. He likes to have an organized floor…Phil can work it out. He’ll get them to do what they need to do. Phil is eager to explore beyond the triangle. He and Tex even did that. Tex always maintained that you can do anything out of the Triangle. That’s when they started doing all that screen and roll, back when they first came to Los Angeles. They’ve run tons of screen and roll out of the Triangle, and they’ve run a controlled break.”

Lazenby sure sounds certain the Lakers have made their decision, and it sounds as though Jackson is more than interested. To listen to the interview in its entirety, click the link below:

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

Nov. 11, 2012

Even if Phil Jackson wants to return to the Los Angeles Lakers, and even if everyone from Kobe Bryant to Mitch Kupchak to Dwight Howard to Paul Gasol endorses the move, does that necessarily mean he will get the job?

The man with the ultimate answer is pictured to the left.

He is Jim Buss, son of majority owner Jerry Buss, and sister of Jackson’s significant other, Jeanie Buss.

Yes, it is a tangled web.

Mike Brown, who was fired Friday, was Jim Buss’ pick over Brian Shaw. Andrew Bynum, whose potential and whose balky knees were dealt to Philadelphia in the Dwight Howard trade, was a product of Jim Buss’ draft night strategy. When the Lakers decided to clean out their front office two summers ago after Jackson left (a bloodbath that undoubtedly irked Jackson), Jim Buss’s fingerprints were all over the pink slips.

So maybe is this about Jim Buss more than it is about Phil Jackson. He runs the show in Lakerland more than people realize (unless you read Hall of Famer Mark Heisler’s columns on this site).

I discussed with Dan Bernstein and Terry Boers on WSCR 670 The Score in Chicago.

Click the play button below to listen.

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

Nov. 8, 2012

There is only one undefeated team remaining in the NBA, and New Yorkers would be ecstatic about it if they weren’t spending all of their time on gasoline lines and on hold with Con Edison.

In Miami, the Heat’s lopsided loss to the Knicks has already been written off, and they are penciling themselves into the NBA Finals — as is their right, sort of.

Here’s the thing: The Knicks have been rebuilt to defeat the Heat with a combination of size, defensive focus, depth and 3-point shooting. They have all those things.

Do I think the Knicks could defeat the Heat in a seven-game series? Not ready to say that, yet.

As old as they are, they are going to be mixing and matching lineups throughout the season as they deal with what should be a steady stream of injuries. But the Boston Celtics took the Heat to seven games last spring using Kevin Garnett at center. They had one guy the Heat could not handle, Rajon Rondo, and Boston showed that one single guy can be a monster difference-maker against Miami.

If you have a team that goes 10 deep, including five legit veteran bigs (Chandler, Camby, Stoudemire, Kurt Thomas and Rasheed Wallace), and a team that buries 3s, then what?

During my weekly appearance today on the Sid Rosenberg show on 640Sports in Miami, there was a lot of talk about the relative strengths of the two teams, plus some debate over how real the Mavericks are after their 3-1 start. Sid loves them. Me? Not so much.

Give a listen by hitting the play button below:

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

Oct 20, 2012

A little around-the-NBA preview for y’all right here with Grant Napear, longtime play-by-play voice of the Sacramento Kings and host of the drive-time show on 1140 The Fan in Sacto.

And a little preview nugget: Who did I vote third-team All-NBA at center last season? The answer is a guy Grant watches 82 nights a year. Give a listen:

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

Oct. 15, 2012

We have a guest podcast for you.

Jabari Davis, the host of Speak on It with Jabari A. Davis at blogtalkradio.com, recently caught up with Daniel Artest, the brother of a certain small forward of the Los Angeles Lakers.

In a wide-ranging interview, Daniel discusses his own extensive hoops career before offering insight on the star-studded Lakers. His relationship to Metta World Peace allows him full access to practices, which beat writers do not have.

Daniel talks about the health of superstar center Dwight Howard, who has yet to play in a preseason game but is expected to be ready for the start of the regular season. He also dishes about the contenders in both conferences, including a surprise entry in the East.

In addition to Speak on It, Davis writes for LakersNation.com. His work also can be found at realtalkonsports.com. You can follow him on Twitter @LA_SportsTalk

Click below to listen to the interview.

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

September 20, 2012

Been a long time since our last podcast, but one thing hasn’t changed: I am still of the opinion that the Lakers can win 70 games, and I’d take the Lakers over the Heat in the finals in a heartbeat.

Those were two of the points I covered today in an interview with our draft specialist, Joe Kotoch, for his Website — www.probasketballdraft.com.

Please give a listen, and while you are listening please vote in our latest polls: How many games will the Lakers win? How many games will the Heat win? And which team will win more regular season games?

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

August 14, 2012

We have a poll up on the site asking y’all how many games you think the Lakers will win. Please vote. I’ve got 70, which I reiterated on the radio in Miami this morning on the Sid Rosenberg show on 640-AM. (Send a shoutout to Sid via Twitter congratulating him on his new gig.)

We also autopsied the Olympic team and their gold-medal triumph over Spain. And since I am reiterating things, Spainish coach Sergio Scariolo make two critical mistakes — leaving Marc Gasol in during the second quarter when he had three fouls (he soon got his fourth), and underutilizing Serge Ibaka throughout the gold-medal game. And while we’re nitpicking Spain, Pau Gasol revealed after the game that the box-and-one defense they used midway through the fourth quarter was something they had never practiced.

Click below to give a listen.

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

July 25, 2012

Team USA’s 100-78 thumping of Spain on Tuesday produced two storylines.

One was Carmelo Anthony’s huge game, which I addressed in this story. The other was Spain’s reluctance to play big men Pau Gasol and Serge Ibaka together for any extended stretches.

Colleague Chris Bernucca believes Spain was too overwhelmed by Team USA’s speed to counter it with size. With relentless ball pressure and superb help defense, the Americans totally discouraged the Spaniards from going inside, imposing their will on the game.

Bernucca discussed how Team USA is debunking the long-standing basketball axiom of size over speed in an interview with Jake Scott and Tony Parks of Fox Sports Radio in Salt Lake City. He also talked about the offseason’s winners and losers in free agency and why the Jazz have all of the pieces necessary to acquire Dwight Howard – except a city where he wants to play.

Click on the arrow below to listen.

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

July 23, 2012

In winning its first four exhibition games, Team USA’s lack of size has yet to be exposed.

That may change Tuesday night, when the Americans face Spain in a rematch of their gold medal shootout in the 2008 Olympics that represents the final tuneup for both countries before the games start counting this weekend at the 2012 Games in London.

The defending European champions, Spain boasts a trio of skilled NBA big men – brothers Pau and Marc Gasol and blocks leader Serge Ibaka. Team USA has plenty of skill and speed but just one legitimate center in its regular rotation Tyson Chandler.

The Americans have been getting by with a combination of Carmelo Anthony, Kevin Love and slender Kevin Durant at power forward. But on Tuesday night in front of a raucous crowd at that Palau Saint Jordi in Barcelona, Team USA coach Mike Krzyzewski may be forced to play erstwhile 12th man and NBA neophyte Anthony Davis to combat Spain’s size.

At least that’s what Chris Bernucca thinks. In a segment with Yahoo! Sports Radio, he shared those thoughts and others about Team USA, including its infatuation with the 3-pointer and its multiple alpha dogs.

Click on the arrow below to listen. And make sure you stay through to the end, when Bernucca displays his vast knowledge of the Italian language.

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

July 18, 2012

President Obama was in the house last night in D.C. for Team USA’s game against Brazil, as was Vice President Joe Biden and first Lady Michelle Obama. The Secret Service was in rare lockdown form, and the Commander-in-Chief was in casual attire wearing jeans, a Nike shirt and a pair of sneakers that no one could quite identify.

Team USA was in casual mode, too, and found themselves playing from behind for an extended period of time for the first time since they lost to Greece in the semifinals of the 2006 World Championship against Greece.

I have a column out today foretelling possible doom for Team USA if coach Mike Krzyzewski does not make lineup changes, and I discussed the topic further with host Craig Shamon on Yahoo Sports radio. Click the play button below for a listen.

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

July 17, 2012

It is nearing zero hour for the New York Knicks to make a decision on Jeremy Lin.

The Knicks have until midnight Tuesday to decide whether or not to match the three-year, $25 million offer sheet Lin signed with the Houston Rockets. If they do, they will face a huge luxury tax hit in 2014-15, when Lin is scheduled to receive nearly $15 million.

If they don’t – as some reports already are indicating – Linsanity is over in New York.

Our Moke Hamilton was on ESPN Radio Big Island in Hawaii on Monday and broke down several aspects of the Lin deal.

He explains the risk and difficulty the Knicks are facing. He also explains how the team’s decision could impact Carmelo Anthony’s legacy in New York, where fans have been waiting 40 years for a championship.

Click the play button below and give Moke a listen.

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

July 14, 2012

OK, so new Magic GM Rob Hennigan couldn’t get a deal done with the Nets for Dwight Howard.

Now what?

Well, Hennigan can’t allow himself to be consumed by his desire to trade Howard. His team is one of two that still doesn’t have a coach for next season. And Orlando just hosted a summer league, where players needed to be evaluated.

But at some point, Hennigan does have to trade Howard. And in an interview Friday with Craig Shemon of Yahoo Sports Radio, Sheridan Hoops deputy editor and columnist Chris Bernucca laid out what Hennigan’s approach should be.

In a wide-ranging conversation, Bernucca also discussed how the current Olympic Team would fare against the original Dream Team, the Clippers’ decision to shelve newly minted Blake Griffin and whether the looming supertax will make superteams  a fleeting trend.

Click on the play button below to listen.

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

July 13, 2012

If the 2012 “We Want Esteem” team played the 1992 Dream Team, what would happen? The old guys would lose by 100, there would be ambulances involved, and Karl Malone might be the only thing keeping the final margin from being 120.

As it is, the current U.S. Olympic team got off to a great start last night in defeating the Dominican Republic 113-59, and they now head to Washington D.C for a game against Brazil before flying across the pond. Things will get interesting in the next couple weeks as the Americans play exhibitions in Barcelona against Spain and Argentina prior to the opening of the London Olympics.

I discussed Team USA, along with the Houston Rockets’ all-in pursuit of Dwight Howard, on 790-The Ticket in Miami this morning. Click the play button below to listen.

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

July 12, 2012 (evening)

With the news that the Houston Rockets will amnesty Luis Scola to make a run at Dwight Howard, you have to either give GM Daryl Moray for going all-in on a hunch bet, or condemn him for being a reckless gambler.

Is that too harsh? Or is this going to be one of those black or white situations: It either succeeds in grand fashion, or it fails miserably.  I discussed Morey’s Scola amnesty move this evening on WWLS in Oklahoma City with Thunder play-by-play man Matt Pinto.

Click the play button to listen.

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

July 12, 2012 (morning)

Dwight Howard had a wish list of one. But Brooklyn is no longer an option unless he returns to the Orlando Magic for another soap opera season (something neither side wants) and then waits until Jan. 15, when Brook Lopez becomes trade eligible.

So where will he end up? The Los Angeles Lakers have long been on his fallback list, and Dwight has been spending a lot of time there since having back back surgery in March. The Dallas Mavericks will be an option next summer if Howard plays out his contract, and the Atlanta Hawks and Chicago Bulls are two intriguing possibilities if Howard expands the list of teams with which he would sign an extension.

I discussed those scenarios and more in this interview with Grant Napear of 1140 The Fan in Sacramento. Click the play button to listen.

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

July 11, 2012

Quite a day we had/are having in NBA free agency, and as Moke Hamilton wrote earlier today, this is going to be the new norm. When you have shorter contracts, you have more player movement.

What is going to complicate things in the years ahead is the new punitive luxury tax, which is explained in Hamilton’s column and in this interview with Yahoo Sports Radio.

Click the play button to listen.

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

July 6, 2012

If the Miami Heat are going to lose Mike Miller, which is a possibility given how he spoke of possible retiring at the conclusion of the NBA Finals, they are going to need another shooter.

LeBron James has been openly courting Ray Allen, going to far as to post a photoshopped picture of Allen in a Heat uniform on Twitter, and Allen has been in Miami to speak with Heat brass.

Allen, the NBA’s career leader in 3-point field goals made, also is being courted by the Memphis Grizzzlies. Where would he have the best chance to win a championship? My answer is in the podcast below (click the play button) from an interview I did this morning on 640-AM radio in Miami.

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

July 2, 2012

You may have already seen the post on this site about how the Brooklyn Nets are still in position to acquire Dwight Howard from Orlando. If someone else tells you it is not possible, do not believe them. They are wrong.

Can I be any clearer than that?

Here are two interviews I did tonight on the Brooklyn situation and the NBA free agency market at large.

The first is with Nick Friedell and Jonathan Hood of AM-1000 in Chicago. Click the play button to listen.

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

The second is with John DeCandido of RedZebra Broadcasting in Hampton Roads, Va.

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

June 29, 2012

Who did especially well in the NBA Draft? My picks are two of the four teams that made it to the conference finals.

Should Steve Nash be chastised if he does not sign with a team with legitimate NBA title aspirations?

Where will Ray Allen end up?

Is it important for the NBA that the New York Knicks are a competitive team?

All these questions are answered in this interview from 640-AM in Miami. Click the play button to listen.

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

June 24, 2012

Tonight was supposed to be Game 6 of the NBA Finals.

But there will be no such game for a number of reasons: Not one, not two, not three …

Many of those reasons relate to the second-guessable job Scott Brooks did coaching the Oklahoma City Thunder during their 4-1 loss to the Miami Heat, who have been out celebrating ever since and have not yet stopped, according to Dwyane Wade.

Brooks, meanwhile, is at the end of his contract. And though it makes perfect sense for him to return, there are quite a few attractive candidates, beginning with Phil Jackson and extending to the Van Gundy brothers. I discussed Brooks’ coaching, the Van Gundys and the uncertainly surrounding draft picks 2 through 5 today in this interview with Bill Lekas of Sirius XM’s Mad Dog Radio.

Click the play button below to listen:

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

June 23, 2012

Much of the chatter since the NBA Finals ended has centered around LeBron James, and whether he has redeemed himself for ditching Ohio, the narcissistic “Decision” and his disappearing act in the fourth quarters of last year’s NBA Finals.

As I have been saying, there comes a time for forgiveness — but that time comes more slowly for some than it does for other. In Cleveland, the emotions are still raw.

I discussed this particular Ohioan dynamic on 92.3 sports radio in Cleveland with old buddy Joe Lull.

Click the play button(s) below to listen. Had to break it into two parts.

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

June 22, 2012

Onto the offseason, and Question No. 1 for the rest of the NBA: Where will Dwight Howard end up? As first reported here, he wants out, and the Magic know they need to take out the dynamite.

Brooklyn is Howard’s preferred destination, as it has been since the eve of training camp when he was willing and expecting to be traded to Newark for a year of purgatory before the move to the BK.

But if the Nets can’t get him, how big is his B-list? And could any of those teams on Howard’s B-list outbid both the Nets and any teams that might want to take a chance on a one-year D-12 rental?

And most importantly, as discussed in this interview on the Waddle & Silvy Show on WMVP in Chicago, might the Bulls be added to Howard’s wish list? Click the play button below for my answer to that question:

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

June 22, 2012 (Morning)

If you didn’t feel happy for LeBron James watching him celebrate his first NBA championship last night, you are either a cold-hearted ogre, a resident of Oklahoma or Ohio, or an incorrigible hater.

You can like or dislike the guy, that is your prerogative.

But no one should ever dare question that guy’s competitive desire, his growth as a human being and an athlete, and the dominance he displayed throughout this postseason in finally accomplishing the goal that had eluded him throughout his NBA career.

Those were some of the thought I shared on Yahoo Sports Radio this morning with host Dan Sileo. Click the play button below to listen:

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

June 21, 2012

Amid discussion on 640-AM in Miami this morning of Angry Birds, Angry Frogs, Frogger and pinball machines (available here), we got down to a discussion of who will be the NBA player most conspicuously ringless if the Miami Heat win the NBA championship tonight, Sunday or Tuesday.

Hint: He’s a big fella.

Click on the play button below for our consensus answer:

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

June 20, 2012 (evening)

Is it time to top hating on LeBron James?

I went back and forth on the issue with my tweeps this afternoon, and I must say there is very little forgiveness out there.   There is an intense dislike for the guy that is borderline incomprehensible for those outside of Ohio, and it is time to give it a rest.

That’s my opinion, and host Jeff Blair of The Fan-590 in Toronto was in agreement as we discussed the NBA Finals and the Heat’ 3-1 lead. Click the play button below to listen.

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

June 20, 2012 (afternoon)

Was it over when the Germans bombed Pearl Harbor? That line from John Beluschi in “Animal House” never fails to get a laugh, and it worked for me this afternoon on the Dave Krieger and Dave Logan show on 850-KOA in Denver.

But in all seriousness, there is a ton of talk about this series being over now that the Miami Heat lead the NBA Finals 3-1, to which my response is: Are you kidding?

We’ve had four great games, the last three of which could have gone Oklahoma City’s way if a foul was called in Game 2, if an inbounds play was not botched late in Game 3, and when Russell Westbrook committed a needless foul at the end of Game 4.

So why do people believe the Thunder are going to fold up and collapse? It makes no sense. Did they collapse when they were down 2-0 against a Spurs team that had won 20 in a row? C’mon. Click the play button below for more.

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

June 20, 2012 (morning)

Has LeBron James redeemed himself in the eyes of the public? Were his two clutch shots on one leg when he was cramping up in the fourth quarter enough to silence the haters?

Well, haters are a tough bunch to deprogram. But after what James has done in the NBA Finals thus far, and after what he did to the Boston Celtics in Games 6 and 7 of the Eastern Conference finals, it is almost time to give the guy his due.

Still, we’re not quite there yet. The Heat still need to win one more game. And if they lose the next three …

That was the main topic of discussion this morning on 1070-The Fan in Indianapolis in this interview with Michael Grady and Joe Staysniak. Click the play button below to listen.

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

June 16, 2012

Scott Brooks has to do one of two things prior to Game 3: He has to tell his players what time the game starts, because they seem to think it’s cool to be fashionably late with their ‘A’ game; or has has to tell them that the maturity level needed to win an NBA championship is directly proportional to the intensity level needed in the first 6 minutes of the first quarter.

Moke Hamilton, who is on duty in Miami as our lead columnist for Games 3, 4 and 5, called out the Thunder’s young players in this interview on WMVP-1000 in Chicago with Jonathan Hood and Nick Friedell. Click the play button below to listen.

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

June 15, 2012

Our blogger, Jim Park, just e-mailed me to tell me I took a hell of a beating last night for my Game 2 column saying I was pleased with the non-call when LeBron James made contact with Kevin Durant prior to the shot that Durant missed that would have tied the game with 7 seconds left. As I replied to Park (who blogged today about the beating Russell Westbrook took in the media), I can take it. I have thick skin.

I respect everyone’s opinion, and I am happy if some of you disagree and some of you agree. The comments section is always open if you want to chime in.

I have an opinion, too, and I despise ticky-tack fouls. That’s why I especially enjoy covering FIBA games, which are like mortal combat compared to NBA games. (Can’t wait for the Olympics).

Anyway, back to the non-foul. It was everyone’s big topic of discussion today, and we had a good debate on 640 Radio in Miami as I drove from Oklahoma City to DFW airport on no sleep in a lightning storm this morning. Click the play button below to listen (with a special guest appearance from GPS woman):

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

June 14, 2012

David Stern is taking a ton of flak for asking CBS’s Jim Rome “Are you still beating your wife?

Where was Stern coming from? First of all, he was clearly pissed off about answering a ridiculous conspiracy theory question for the millionth time. Secondly, he was using lawyer-speak. “Are you still beating your wife?” is what is taught in law schools as the primary example of a loaded question. If you ask that question in front of a jury, even if it has no basis in truth, it still leaves the jurors with the impression that wife-beating is a part of the equation.

Stern should have realized that Rome’s audience is devoid of very many attorneys. His flippant retort went over like a lead balloon, and he should have known better.

But Rome is to blame, too, because he prefaced the question by saying “I was to ask this respectfully” and then proceeded to ask it in the most disrespectful manner possible. He should have known better, too.

I discussed the Stern v. Rome blowup, along with Game 2 of the NBA Finals, with Mike Wise today on Mike’s radio show on  106.7 The Fan in Washington D.C. Click the play button below to listen.

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

June 13, 2012

Dwyane Wade is hurting, and everybody knows it. But you know what? A lot of guys are hurting at this point of the season, and you either play through it or you go take a seat. What do I expect Wade to do in Game 2? Not the latter.

If he is going to sit anything out, it’ll be the Olympics, from what I am hearing.

So when it comes to a question if there is any member of the Miami Heat who may need his minutes limited, it is Chris Bosh. But if limiting his minutes means holding him out the starting lineup, as Erik Spoelstra did in Game 1, is that the best move for the Miami Heat? Methinks not.

I discussed the difficulties Miami must overcome in Game 2 of the NBA Finals, and we segued into a discussion of the upcoming London Olympics in this interview with James Anderson of 680 Sports Radio in Louisville this afternoon. Click the play button below to listen.

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

June 12, 2012

You want two key factors for tonight’s Game 1 of the NBA Finals? For the Heat, it will be creating turnovers and getting transition points. Russell Westbrook was a turnover-prone player during the NBA egular season, but he has protected the ball much better over the course of the playoffs. For Oklahoma City, winning the battle on the boards, especially as it relates to second-chance points, will be crucial. Their three bangers, Serge Ibaka, Kendrick Perkins and Nick Collison, changed the course of their last series against San Antonio. They are capable of doing the same against the Heat.

For more on tonight’s big game, give a listen to the interview I did today with Jake & Tony on 1280 The Zone in Salt Lake City. Hit the play button below.

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

June 11, 2012

Lots of talk today about how most of America will be cheering for the Oklahoma City Thunder in the NBA Finals against the Miami Heat —  or the “Evil Empire” as senior columnist Moke Hamilton wrote in his Five Factors preview today. I spoke with Derek Fisher today about the age and experience factor, and you can read that column by clicking here.

Money quote from Fish:

I also went on Sports Radio 92.3 in Cleveland, where LeBron James is still Public Enemy No. 1, and we came up with an interesting question: Are there moe Thunder fans in Oklahoma or Ohio?

Click the play button below to listen to the interview:

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

Also today, I appeared on the Lee “Hacksaw” Hamilton Show in San Diego on XX1090Sports Radio, where we discussed the particular problem posed by trying to defend Kevin Durant, who is NOT 6-foot-9 despite what you may hear on TV. Hacksaw is best buds with Mark Heisler, whose column today on the Thunderkinder is a must read.

Click the play button below for that radio hit:

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

June 11, 2012

Who has been the MVP of the playoffs? Has to be Kevin Durant, right? Or maybe Rajon Rondo?

You can make a good case for either guy, which is what I did when I was asked on 590 The Fan in Toronto this afternoon who are the two best players currently playing. That puts Rondo a notch above LeBron James, and given what Rondo has done for his team throughout the course of the playoffs, getting the Celtics within one win of their third NBA Finals trip in five years, I’m satisfied that my answer is the correct one.

However …

I expect big things from James, because I’ve seen him do it before and I believe he still has it in him. How big? Click the play button below to find out.

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

June 7, 2012

Erik Spoelstra is going to lose his job if the Miami Heat lose tonight in Game 6, or Saturday night in Game 7.

That’s my opinion, not a statement of fact, and I believe the moment that will define his Heat coaching legacy (if they lose) was his decision to keep Chris Bosh on the bench for the entire fourth quarter of Miami’s Game 5 loss — plus his statement afterward that it “wouldn’t have been fair” to Bosh to ask him to play the final 3 minutes. I ranted about that (without yelling) yesterday in this video hit with CineSport.

The thing is, I don’t think the Heat are losing this series. I’ve seen LeBron James will his team to victory before when they previously couldn’t get over the hump (it was May 31, 2007, in Auburn Hills, Mich. as James scored 25 of his team’s final 27 points in a double-OT victory), and I believe the guy has another one (or two) of those in his arsenal this spring.

I discussed those two predictions, along with Oklahoma City’s advancement to the NBA Finals, in this interview with Chris Perkins and Marc Eisenberg on 640 Radio in Miami this morning. Click the play button below to listen.

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

June 4, 2012

The topic du jour is whether LeBron James should have passed the ball to Udonis Haslem on the final play of the fourth quarter vs. the Celtics last night. Never mind that he hit a huge 3 to tie the game moments earlier. Never mind that he is averaging over 32 points per game in the series and shooting 52 percent.

We judge this guy differently than we judge others, which is part of LeBron being LeBron. As I said today in this video, fair or unfair, it is what it is.

I also discussed the topic with Rick Stroud and Tom Jones on WDAE Radio in Tampa today. Click the play button below to listen.

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

May 31, 2012

Like myself, Seth Everett used to work for ESPN, and he, too, has moved on to a better life as he is now with Fox Sports radio when he is not stressing over the prospects of his beloved Brooklyn  Nets. And speaking of the Nets, do they still have a shot at Dwight Howard now that they know they must surrender their upcoming first-round draft pick to the Portland Trail Blazers?

Well, there is still a chance, because the Nets still have the ability to absorb a second large salary in a trade with the Magic — and there are very few teams with the ability to do the same. Seth and I also discussed the acccusations of a fixed draft lottery, the Celtics’ win in Game 3 against Miami, and whether the Thunder have what it takes to even their series — and possible even win it — against the San Antonio Spurs.

Click the play button below to give a listen.

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

May 30, 2012

You want to call the Hornets winning the draft lottery a conspiracy? Be my guest. But I am not buying it. If ever the fix was in, it was during the 1985 draft lottery when the New York Knicks won the right to select Patrick Ewing.

As I mentioned to host Bob Valvano on this appearance today on ESPN680 Radio in Nashville, the video evidence (bent envelope) is posted on this site as part of my item on 10 fun facts about the NBA draft lottery.

Click the play button below to listen to the interview.

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

May 29, 2012

Click on the play button below to listen to an interview I did this afternoon on KOA radio in Denver with hosts Dave Krieger and Dave Logan. Naturally, we discussed Ed Malloy — and I ran down the baby-faced referee’s resume and reputation and explained how calls like the one he made against Doc Rivers on Monday night are the types of things that fuel the conspiracy theorists.

We also discussed the Thunder-Spurs series and the Heat-Celtics series, and I addresssed the question of whether the Spurs could go 16-0 with an answer that stunned the hosts.

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

May 28, 2012

Click on the play button below to listen to an interview I did today on Yahoo Sports Radio with Bob Berger, discussing several possible Dwight Howard trade scenarios, the draft lottery, the opener of the Thunder-Spurs series and tonight’s Game 1 of the Miami-Boston series. Take note of my prediction when I am asked about the possibility of a Spurs-Heat NBA Finals.

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

May 26, 2012

Click the play button below to listen to an interview I did this morning on Sirius XM’s Mad Dog radio, discussing the merits of Mike Woodson over Phil Jackson, the ongoing Dwight Howard saga in Orlando and what its next chapter will be, and previews of Game 7 of the Eastern Conference semifinals between Boston and Philadelphia and Game 1 of the Western Conference finals between San Antonio and Oklahoma City.

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.