The consensus heading into the 2012-2013 season was that phenom forward-center Anthony Davis would win the Rookie of the Year award. Not many realized that Damian Lillard would be as good as he proved to be. Although the sixth overall pick impressed during Summer League action with 26.5 points, four rebounds and 5.3 assists, few believed that it would translate into the regular season, given the presence of LaMarcus Aldridge and the expected breakout of re-signed Nicolas Batum. Along with the
There have been exactly a dozen NBA trades made this season, from small to significant. Some teams wanted to clear up money, some teams wanted to continue rebuilding, while others took bold steps in ensuring present and future success on the court. But in our society of instant gratification and unceasing competition, we almost have an unquenchable thirst for deciding winners and losers. [Read more…]
One year ago, the Hornets bought power forward Gustavo Ayon out of his Fuenlabrada (ACB) contract and brought him to New Orleans several days before their unlocked season tipped off. Ayon started 24 games as a 26-year-old rookie and was shipped to Orlando in a sign-and-trade for Ryan Anderson this summer. That’s fairly incredible value for someone New Orleans plucked from a small Spanish club only 12 games into its ACB season. So will Ayon’s leap become the archetype for signing post-draft
In today’s column I am going to take a look at how some of the most interesting camp battles are turning out. It is very early but it’s worth looking at the impressions of people who are watching teams closely, in order to get a sense of who is gaining and who might be losing ground. If you have an early draft (and I’ve already had one and have another coming up on Friday) then it’s well worth passing on
Sunday Games GSW @ LAL: Way past my bedtime, the Warriors poured it on in the second half to trounce the Lakers. Festus Ezeli got the starting C assignment for Andrew Bogut, who is being brought along slowly. The Nigerian, by way of Vanderbilt, played 22:25 and while he didn’t fill the stat sheet, appears to be ahead of Jeremy Tyler (13:17) and Andris Biedrins (11:24) in the pecking order. Round 1 in the SF “battle” went as expected. Brandon Rush started,
Sunday is a good time to catch up on items of interest in the world of fantasy hoops. As a nod to Mike D’Antoni, one of fantasy’s greatest coaches, we’re calling this Seven Topics or Less. There’s even homework. Be sure to study yesterday’s excellent advice on strategy by Jeff Nichols. Over the next few weeks, readers will learn exactly how to take advantage of loopholes in common formats, categories and rules. There will be a test — in your draft
About to fly out to NOLA to start my first chapter as a Hornet! — Ryan Anderson (@ryananderson33) August 19, 2012 Anderson will be playing for a coach, Monty Williams, who has some serious job security after signing a new four-year contract. Hornets GM Dell Demps pulled off a steal in acquiring the 3-point shooting machine from Orlando for Gustavo Ayon. But it bears mentioning that although Anderson won the NBA’s Most Improved Player award last season, he really didn’t improve much
Before we look at last night’s games, you might want to add J.R. Smith to your team. It’s being reported that he will sign with the Knicks, and play on Sunday. It’s a great fit; instead of trying to guess between Bill Walker, Steve Novak and Iman Shumpert, you can be fairly confident that Smith will soon be the primary bench scorer. In addition to threes, he’s a decent source of STL and REB. Don’t go overboard dropping a productive