Month: August 2015

Malcolm’s 90s Player of the Week – Charles Oakley

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Inspired by 2015’s dopest summer movie, “Dope”, Down on the Block will shout out a different player from the salad days of the 1990s each week.
Inspired by 2015’s dopest summer movie, “Dope”, Down on the Block will shout out a different player from the salad days of the 1990s each week.

This week’s entry…Charles Oakley

Don't step to the Oak, Alonzo
Don’t step to the Oak, Alonzo

Charles Oakley helped define the 1990s NBA, for good and for bad. His Knicks teams were always in contention but could never get past the Michael Jordan hurdle. And when Jordan went away for a couple years they finally made the Finals but lost to Hakeem and the Rockets. Oakley had skills – he could shoot the midrange, defend the opponent’s best front court player and was a nifty passer. The 6’8″ power forward was prototypical for the position in the ’90s – a plodding enforcer and rebounder who could be a complementary scorer. That type of power forward is becoming a relic, in today’s small-ball, stretch 4 craze, and I won’t argue that the evolution is bad (even though I love the ’90s). One thing about ’90s basketball I can’t wax nostalgic about were the New York Knicks, and while not as famous as Patrick Ewing and John Starks, Oakley was the spirit animal of slow, boring, overly physical play.

Oak had some nice statistical years, especially between 1993-94 and 1996-97. He average between 10-12 points and 8-12 rebounds in those years, upping his game in the 93-94 playoffs to 13 and 12 over 25 games, and making the 1994 All Star Game.

But to be honest, enough about his numbers or even basketball in general. The true legacy of Oak is his on-court brawling, his disdain for modern players (and Charles Barkley), and his membership in Michael Jordan’s entourage. Oak has been MJ’s right hand man and security detail for years after becoming one of the most feared players in the NBA. If you step on MJ’s Pumas in a club or he owes you money from a gambling debt, have fun dealing with Oakley. But that doesn’t mean tough guys don’t dance. Watch this video from a ’90s Oprah show and thank me later.

MJ and Oakley became close when they played together for the Bulls in the late-’80s, but he probably earned his quasi-bodyguard role in the 90s after showing a quick temper that usually meant haymakers for anyone in his path. He even fought Barkley in a PRESEASON game. That’s great hustle.

In later years, Oakley has very predictably become the type of crotchety ex-player that I love to hear grieve for the game’s great past. He showed recently that he may be the least self-aware former athlete in history, quite an accomplishment, when he said the modern NBA game is hard to watch. This from a guy whose teams played some of the slowest basketball since the all white guy days, specializing in low scoring snooze-fests that only became watchable when a brouhaha would break out. Here’s one more fight video to enjoy, along those lines…

NBA Risers – Detroit Pistons

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This exercise will look at the young, building and very entertaining NBA teams that are looking to gain contender status. Some of these teams appear to be on the fast track while others are grasping to build around a cornerstone player. We’ll look at the savvy and the haphazard, while enjoying an optimist’s view into the looking glass. It’s summer, real NBA games won’t start for another 3 months and so what better time to paint a rosy picture of what could be for the NBA’s mid-tier teams? Today’s team – the Detroit Pistons.

Who are they? After a miserable half-decade, the Pistons are Stan Van Gundy’s baby. SVG is rebuilding this team as both the coach and GM, quickly jettisoning Josh Smith, letting Greg Monroe walk in free agency and betting big on Andre Drummond. They play in a tough division and will probably finish 4th behind Cleveland, Chicago and Milwaukee this season. But after many seasons of cascading downhill as a result of terrible Joe Dumars moves the arrow is finally pointing back up. Last season’s questionable old school strategy of starting three bigs (Monroe, Smith and Drummond) that can’t space the floor resulted in a 32-50 record and a ranking of 26th in attendance. SVG is remaking them in the mold of his successful Magic teams – will this strategy work? It has to be better than the recent past.

How were they built? By trades and the Draft. The lottery has yielded Andre Drummond, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and Stanley Johnson in the last four years. Brandon Jennings was acquired in a trade with Milwaukee for Brandon Knight and Khris Middleton (yikes), Reggie Jackson came over in a trade last season from OKC and Marcus Morris and Ersan Ilyasova were acquired in trades this summer. The only real notable free agent signings are Jodie Meeks in 2014 and Aron Baynes in 2015. Players aren’t exactly itching to spend winters in the Motor City playing for a loser.

Core group – Andre Drummond, Reggie Jackson, Ersan Ilyasova, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope. Drummond posted an impressive 14 points, 14 rebounds, 2 blocks season and should have more room to maneuver in the paint with Monroe gone. Detroit is making a big bet on Drummond becoming a true cornerstone player. I’ve never been a huge Reggie Jackson guy, especially at the big money Detroit threw at him. He did average 18 and 9 in 27 games with the Pistons last season, which these days gets you $80 million I guess. Small sample size be damned. KCP scores a little bit and does little else, but has a chance to be a more impactful player this year. Ilyasova is a nice acquisition, fitting SVG’s vision for a more versatile roster – he’s the stretch four Monroe and Smith weren’t.

Role guys – Jodie Meeks, Spencer Dinwiddie, Marcus Morris, Anthony Tolliver, Aron Baynes. Baynes was an overpay, but is a serviceable backup to Drummond. Marcus Morris is scorned and will either play with a chip on his shoulder or assault somebody. The rest aren’t very exciting, though provide decent depth.

Boom or bust potential – Stanley Johnson, Brandon Jennings. Johnson can defend shooting guards and small forwards, which makes him attractive to Van Gundy. He will eventually overtake Morris in the starting SF position in a perfect world, but will have growing pains as a 19-year old rookie. Jennings can fill it up when healthy, the question is will he ever be 100% this season after a nasty Achilles tear?

Optimist view – Ideally the Pistons starting five that establishes itself going forward will be Jackson, KCP, Morris, Ilyasova and Drummond, a fairly versatile unit that can score and defend enough to hover around .500, with the rookie Johnson playing meaningful minutes off the bench. A 4th place finish in the Central is probably the ceiling this year, with a serious playoff run another year away. That may not seem like much of a rise, but for a team that was 5-23 at one point last season, it’s relative. And SVG is the real deal.

Malcolm’s 90’s Player of the Week – Rik Smits

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Inspired by 2015’s dopest summer movie, “Dope”, Down on the Block will shout out a different player from the salad days of the 1990s each week.
Inspired by 2015’s dopest summer movie, “Dope”, Down on the Block will periodically shout out a different player from the salad days of the 1990s.

This week’s entry…Rik Smits

rik-smits-pinstripes(1)
The Dunking Dutchman

In the 1990s, the Indiana Pacers were a perennial Eastern Conference contender that was consistently overshadowed by the Bulls dynasty. They battled with the Knicks, Magic and Heat for the throne when Michael retired and finally broke through to the Finals in 2000 where they met another Phil Jackson-led dynasty in the Lakers. Through it all Rik Smits, the 7’4″ Dunking Dutchman, was the Pacers’ mainstay in the paint. Smits played his entire career for the Pacers, drafted in 1988 as the 2nd overall pick and culminating in the 4-2 Finals loss to the Lakers in 2000. Smits started out his career backing up the immortal Steve Stipanovich, who went down with an injury early in Smits’ rookie season. This was Smits’ Wally Pipp moment, as the Dutchman took over that starting center spot and held it down for over a decade.

Smits only made one All-Star game, in 1998, but was a model of consistency, protecting the rim, cleaning the boards and providing a fundamentally sound scoring option down low. He was always the second banana to Reggie Miller, together they gave the Pacers an identity both on the inside and outside, always keeping opposing defenses on their toes. Smits quickly became a fan favorite in Indy, where fundamentals are worshipped and white basketball players are heroes. His popularity reached its peak with the Hoosier State when he hit a game-winner at the buzzer in Game 4 of the 1995 Eastern Conference Finals. In your face Penny Hardaway.

Smits retired with the following career numbers: 14.8 points, 1.3 blocks, 6.1 rebounds, .507 FG %. His top season was ’95, where he scored 18.5 points per game. Smits never stood out at his position, where larger than life stars like Shaquille O’Neal, David Robinson, Hakeem Olajuwon and Patrick Ewing highlighted a renaissance period for NBA big men. However, Smits didn’t need to stand out…he quietly did the yeoman’s work while Reggie buried 3’s and the Davis’s (Dale and Antonio) played the enforcers. Smits was a key cog in one of the truly trademark ’90s teams.

And he dunked on friggin’ Manute Bol!

NBA Risers – New Orleans Pelicans

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This exercise will look at the young, building and very entertaining NBA teams that are looking to gain contender status. Some of these teams appear to be on the fast track while others are grasping to build around a cornerstone player. We’ll look at the savvy and the haphazard, while enjoying an optimist’s view into the looking glass. It’s summer, real NBA games won’t start for another 4 months and so what better time to paint a rosy picture of what could be for the NBA’s mid-tier teams? Today’s team – the New Orleans Pelicans.

UPDATE – This just in from brother-in-law Jeff, an actual living, breathing Pelicans fan: “They’re definitely committed to defining Davis as a PF, not C, based on Asik and Ajinca signings. Since Davis pick, they’ve taken Austin Rivers and sold/traded every other pick for Holiday and Asik. Gave up Greivis and Robin Lopez for Tyreke. Basically just a parade of bad moves since drafting Davis. Oh and Davis is quite possibly the best any 22 year old has ever been at the game of basketball, which makes up for a lot.” Well said.

Who are they? Essentially the Cleveland Cavaliers circa 2003-09. It’s a testament to Anthony Davis that these guys are considered favorites for the 7th seed in the West. Their piss poor job of surrounding their superstar with talent is reminiscent of LeBron’s first go-round with Cleveland. You can’t blame them for being misled by Philly on Jrue Holiday’s health, and the laughably small $3 million restitution for that debacle won’t make it right. The other guards they’ve targeted have been less than stellar companions to the Brow at best (Tyreke Evans) and complete duds at worst (Eric Gordon). But at the end of the day the Pelicans have a generational cornerstone in Davis, whom they’ve locked up to a long term deal, and any building team would commit atrocities for that luxury. One key addition is new coach Alvin Gentry, fresh off an NBA title as a Warriors assistant. Gentry will be a step up from Monty Williams from a play-calling perspective, and here’s hoping his time with the Warriors will help him shape this team in their image.

How have they been built? Davis was the No. 1 overall pick after David Stern rigged the lottery to help the formerly league-owned team get in position for a once in a lifetime player (just kidding, kind of). The rest of the pieces have come in free agency and minor trades, but as mentioned above, this team hasn’t really been built per se, more like randomly pasted together like a 3rd grader’s art project.

Core group – Anthony Davis, Tyreke Evans, Jrue Holiday, Omer Asik. Davis may be the second best player in the league right now, and projects to sit atop the throne for many years going forward. He’s a fantasy basketball player’s dream – compiling points, rebounds, blocks, assists and steals at an elite level, and his dominance transcends the stat sheet. He’s a one-man floor spacer, drawing defensive attention whether he’s posting up, spotting up or running the break; not to mention he’s one of the best defensive big men in the game. Evans silenced some critics with solid numbers (17 points, 7 assists, 5 rebounds per game) in a season where he was relied upon heavily. The downside with Evans is he doesn’t bring enough to the table defensively to make up for his easily criticized volume shooting and erratic playmaking efforts. Holiday unfortunately remains a question mark, though there have been some reports that he is back on his feet and rehabbing with his brother. Asik is solid and frees up Davis to roam on defense.

Role guys – Eric Gordon, Norris Cole, Alexis Ajinca, Quincy Pondexter, Ryan Anderson, Dante Cunningham, Alonzo Gee, Kendrick Perkins….yuck.

Boom or bust potential – Really nothing of note here. We know who these players are. Why their big moves this offseason were locking up Ajinca and signing Perkins is beyond me. Their deficiencies are mainly on the wing – shooting and perimeter defense. They did nothing to improve in those areas.

Optimist view – The sole reason I’m including the Pelicans in the group of NBA Risers is because of Anthony Davis; if he stays healthy they will win more than they lose, but to make the next leap into the West’s elite they’ll need to show more savvy in the front office. Last year’s 8-seed – where they were swept by the eventual champs Golden State – should have an inside track to the 7-seed, perhaps higher should one of the core six West teams suffer catastrophe. The true optimism should come next offseason, when an expanding cap gives them the flexibility to attract another star or two to join the Brow on Bourbon Street.

NBA Risers – Orlando Magic

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This exercise will look at the young, building and very entertaining NBA teams that are looking to gain contender status. Some of these teams appear to be on the fast track while others are grasping to build around a cornerstone player. We’ll look at the savvy and the haphazard, while enjoying an optimist’s view into the looking glass. It’s summer, real NBA games won’t start for another 4 months and so what better time to paint a rosy picture of what could be for the NBA’s mid-tier teams? Our next team – the Orlando Magic.

Who are they? This seems like a loaded question. The Magic are difficult to define. The Post-Dwight rebuild has been productive, through the draft mostly, and on paper the Magic look ready to be true Eastern Conference playoff hopefuls. However, they are counting on a lot of guards and wings that can’t shoot, and will need a Rookie of the Year worthy campaign from Mario Hezonja if they are going to scare any defenders on the perimeter. That said, the athleticism is there, and defensively there’s no reason they can’t be in the top half of the league. For sure new coach Scott Skiles will demand excellence on that end of the court.

How have they been built? The Draft has been good to the Magic in recent years, which is the best blueprint to success for most teams, but especially those like the Magic that have trouble attracting marquee free agents. They drafted Aaron Gordon, Elfrid Payton, Victor Oladipo and Mario Hezonja in the last few years, all players that will log heavy minutes this season. Nikola Vucevic came over in a trade with Philly and Evan Fournier in the Aaron Afflalo trade with Denver. Free agency has yielded role players Channing Frye and CJ Watson.

Core group – Elfrid Payton, Tobias Harris, Nikola Vucevic, Victor Oladipo. The gritty Skiles has a dream backcourt for his style of coaching, with guards Payton and Oladipo both bringing athleticism and active hands. Payton will continue to improve as a passer but his shot may be broken. Oladipo also struggles from outside but can get to the rim and is a model defender at the 2 spot. Vucevic and Harris have gotten big contracts in the last year, and will be counted on to make an impact. Vucevic led the team in points and rebounds last season and will need to step up his rim protection. Harris has some bad habits such as forcing bad shots and playing lazy defense. Those need to be corrected if he is to live up to his new deal.

Role guys – Channing Frye, Dewayne Dedmon, Evan Fournier, CJ Watson. Frye and Fournier will be counted on for outside shooting, while Dedmon could make a play for increased minutes thanks to his work on defense. Watson is a serviceable backup PG.

Boom or bust potential – Aaron Gordon, Mario Hezonja, Shabazz Napier. Gordon has all the talent to succeed and can thrive in the right niche as an efficient two way player if he figures out the league a bit more. Hezonja lit it up in Summer League and showed a flair for the dramatic with a buzzer beater in his first game. How that translates to the Regular Season remains to be seen, but a dead eye shooter is desperately needed here.

Optimist view – The Magic are still a year away from serious playoff aspirations, however a 10 to 15 game leap in wins is achievable. The Skiles bump is real, the young talent will mature together and wild cards Hezonja and Gordon can bump them up a level with strong seasons. I fully expect the 2016-17 Magic to give a team all it can handle in the first round of the playoffs. This year will serve as some much needed seasoning.

NBA Risers – Utah Jazz

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This exercise will look at the young, building and very entertaining NBA teams that are looking to gain contender status. Some of these teams appear to be on the fast track while others are grasping to build around a cornerstone player. We’ll look at the savvy and the haphazard, while enjoying an optimist’s view into the looking glass. It’s summer, real NBA games won’t start for another 4 months and so what better time to paint a rosy picture of what could be for the NBA’s mid-tier teams? Today’s team – the Utah Jazz.

Who are they? A somewhat anonymous defensive-minded group, but that’s about to change. The Jazz led the league last year in opponent’s points per game (94.9), which is pretty amazing for a team that missed the playoffs. Of course on the other side of that coin is their lackluster offense, 26th in the league at 95.1. In order to jump into the postseason in the Brutal West™ the offense needs to make drastic strides. The good news is I believe they are poised to do that, with young guards who should improve, forwards making the leap and a certain Frenchman on a path of destruction.

How have they been built? The Jazz have been savvy in the trade market, important for a team based in Salt Lake City – not exactly an NBA destination. Rudy Gobert was acquired in a draft day trade with Denver in 2013, in exchange for an obscure pick and cash. Derrick Favors came over in the Deron Williams trade with New Jersey and the Jazz’s patience in developing him has paid off and will continue to do so. Alec Burks, Trey Burke, Gordon Hayward and Dante Exum were Jazz draft picks, and Trevor Booker is their most noteworthy free agent acquisition (again, not an NBA destination, beautiful country though).

Core group – Rudy Gobert, Alec Burks, Derrick Favors, Gordon Hayward. Gobert is a monster. A 7’1” 23 year old that protects the rim, runs the floor, dunks on everyone and has great vision as a passer. I look for him to score more this season, perhaps stepping out his range a bit. His stoicism even after vicious blocks and his fantastic nickname – The Stifle Tower – bodes well for his rising star factor. To compete in the West with the Marc Gasols, Dwight Howards, LaMarcus Aldridges, and others, a guy like Gobert is almost a prerequisite. Combine Gobert with his frontcourt mate Derrick Favors, and the Jazz have two key legs to stand on out West. Favors averaged 16 and 8 last year, his best season, and the arrow continues to point up. He’s becoming one of the top traditional power forwards in the league, providing physicality and an efficient post game. Hayward continues to quietly produce, steadily increasing his PPG each of his NBA seasons and enjoying a bounce back campaign from behind the arc last year. A healthy Burks can be a key cog in an improving offense.

Role guys – Rodney Hood, Trevor Booker, Joe Ingles. Booker provides toughness and can break out on the offensive end occasionally. Hood can score off the bench, much needed in Utah.

Boom or bust potential – Dante Exum, Trey Burke, Trey Lyles, Raul Neto. Utah has the frontcourt problem solved, now to it’s biggest remaining challenge – developing a star point ballhandler. The Jazz need Burke or Exum to be that guy in order to truly make noise in the West. Not only are teams expected to produce points at the PG position these days, but need backcourt defense to be strong to compete with the likes of Steph Curry, Chris Paul, James Harden, even Mike Conley. Exum would seem to be the best bet, given the hype and raw ability. Burke may be destined to be at best a Jamal Crawford/sixth man scorer. Exum has already shown flashes of brilliance on defense, showcasing his length and quickness. His offense was putrid in his rookie season, so all eyes will be on the youngster’s development on that end. He is in my view the most important piece when looking at the Jazz’s 2015-16 prospects.

Optimist view – The Jazz are poised to get back into the West playoffs just two years after completely bottoming out under Tyrone Corbin and a thin roster, which speaks to the success the front office has had in quickly rebuilding. Coach Quin Snyder seems to be the perfect man for the job of developing raw talent and drawing up schemes for that talent to be successful on the court (the Anti-Ty Corbin). With a boost in Exum’s understanding of an NBA offense, the Jazz stand to benefit from more of a scoring punch, with more easy buckets for Hayward, Gobert and Favors. If the Jazz can elevate their points per game closer to 100 while maintaining their stifling defense and a real home court advantage, 50 wins is very attainable. Look for the Jazz to push for the 7th seed and even threaten to jump into the top six with a couple breaks. A truly exciting team that makes the West even more fearsome.