Slam Online

Sure Shot

CHN — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 08:42:39 -0700

And to think, winning the Slam Dunk Contest is probably only the second-biggest highlight of Nate Robinson’s season. Clearly, the first is his burgeoning friendship with Will Ferrell. What do you think of these two giving dap during games? (Note that is not Ed. sitting in the expensive seats.) Whoever writes the funniest caption will win a dope prize from our vault and see their name in Trash Talk next issue.

What’s My Name?

CHN — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 08:31:42 -0700

CB4? That’s not a nickname—that’s a Chris Rock movie. RuPaul? You know we love Shaq, but come on, that was foul and uncalled for. No, Chris Bosh needs a real nickname. Obviously it’s been a terrible season in Toronto, but we’re confused as to why it’s Chris’ fault. We’d like to aim our questions at one Bryan Colangelo, for starters. Anyway, Chris Bosh. Olympian. All-Star. Player in need of a good nickname.
Whoever has the best nickname will win a dope prize from the SLAM vault and get their name in Trash Talk next month.

Michael Beasley ‘Agrees’ With Coming off the Bench

CHN — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 08:01:12 -0700

Well, sort of: “Erik Spoelstra said after consulting with assistant coach Ron Rothstein and then meeting with Beasley before Saturday’s victory over the Washington Wizards, it was decided to maintain Beasley’s role as a sixth man…’The bench has been playing well, and we didn’t want to make two changes,’ Spoelstra said after Monday’s practice at AmericanAirlines Arena. ‘He actually agreed.’ Beasley would not go that far, but said playing behind fill-in starter Yakhouba Diawara is not an issue. ‘He obviously knows more than me,’ the No. 2 pick in last June’s draft said. ‘It was respecting the elder.’”

The Day That Was

CHN — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 07:55:55 -0700

by Cub Buenning
Our fair college basketball season has finally reached its conclusion with last night’s 89-72 victory by North Carolina over an overmatched Michigan State Spartan team. The Tarheels entered the season as the favorite, spent much of the season near the top of the nation’s pecking order (those silly polls), and finished by playing a beautiful last two months of the season. Impressive, late-season double-digit wins over the likes of Oklahoma, Gonzaga, Villanova, Duke (twice) and Michigan State bookended a great season for a team that was decimated with injuries but still managed to win the ACC regular season and procure a No. 1-seed in the Tournament.
As has become the norm with this team, Carolina won the national title on the “heels” of a full-team effort. Ty Lawson and Tyler Hansbrough were great during their six-game jaunt to the title, but nothing would have been ultimately achieved if not for the supporting cast that surrounds Head Coach Roy Williams’ last two ACC Players of the Year.
In a sport (and event) where guard-play is often “pubbed” as the most important variable for ultimate success, it was Carolina’s ability to dominate the paint early on that proved to be the difference. Against an opponent like MSU, that will usually dictate play inside/on the backboards, the Tarheels not only drove from the perimeter with relative ease, but were able to pound the post and crash the offensive glass (Deon Thompson, especially) on their way to a lead that promptly swelled to 20 points only 10 minutes into the contest. Michigan State was unable to evoke the ghosts of 20 years ago as Kalin Lucas, Goran Suton and the rest of Tom Izzo’s crew continually settled for perimeter jumpers early in the shot-clock, rendering themselves a shell of the team that had shocked the basketball community by being in the final game in the first place.
From there, Wayne Ellington took over, finishing the half with 17 points and almost single-handedly squelching a late first-half Spartan run, keeping the Carolina advantage at a robust 21 going into intermission; a lead that would not be relinquished nor compromised.
Simply put, the Spartans were outclassed from the opening tip and assumed a fate similar to that endured by UNC’s previous five opponents.
Hats off to the North Carolina Tarheels, the 2009 National Champions!
The day in college basketball, however, was not solely focused on the national title game that went down in Detroit. Around the country, two major programs filled vacancies with young up-and-coming stars in the coaching ranks. For starters, now ex-Xavier boss Sean Miller finally accepted the seemingly ideal job at Arizona after other suitors (including himself just the day before) had turned down the opportunity. For a program that can boast an awesome fan base, a great arena, a national championship history, and access to the top players from Los Angeles, the west and the south, the Wildcat’s athletic department sure struggled to fill the void left by long-time head, Lute Olsen. (I have been more than vocal about current assistant, Mike Dunlap, who basically was the interim coach this year. I am more than curious to see which lucky school swoops him up.) Although, Miller tried to be loyal to his guys back at Xavier (they will be loaded next year), working at a major program in a town like Tucson has to be a better set-up than his old digs back in “The Natty.”
It was the other major signing yesterday, however, that got my attention. Kudos to Memphis University in its inking of Josh Pastner as the incumbent to the now-Kentucky head John Calipari. Many around the basketball world might not be familiar with the young Pastner, but believe me, this is a hiring that will reverberate around the Mid-South for years. Not only does Pastner already have a year with his future Tiger players (Wesley Witherspoon, Roburt Sallie and Angel Garcia to name a few) as an assistant, but he will also provide the Memphis program inside access and probable signings from one of the nation’s largest and (as of late) most fertile recruiting grounds, in Houston, Texas. (Pastner’s father, Hal, basically started and runs AAU ball in the city and Josh has been involved with coaching since he was still a player himself on the older Houston Hoops’ teams.)
Yes, the kid is young (31 years old) but he is more than ready for his first head-coaching gig. Oddly enough, Pastner cut his collegiate teeth on the court and on the bench in Tucson at the aforementioned, U of Arizona before taking the assistant’s job at Memphis last summer. To be truthful, that university should have made Pastner some promises while Coach Olsen was struggling with his health/passion. The hire for Memphis will surely not bring the national splash and flair that a Bruce Pearl or Leonard Hamilton might have, but it will guarantee the Tigers’ continued national relevance from their perch high atop Conference-USA.
With the season now officially over, fear not! For those of you diehards of the college game (and those that want to know what they are talking about before/during/after the draft) Cub Scouts will continue during the off-season with breakdowns of potential draft selections, sit-downs with coaches and players and much, much more.
Check Cub Buenning’s scouting website for weekly player reports.

Optimism in Indiana

CHN — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 07:31:19 -0700

Sometimes, you just gotta have faith: “The record isn’t close to anything Larry Bird and Jim O’Brien desired. The playoffs? They’re not going to happen for these Indiana Pacers. They may be mathematically alive — barely — but coach O’Brien has been conceding for weeks now that the playoffs are a pipe dream beyond rational consideration. And yet … It has been a good season. A productive season. A season of significant growth. Seriously. What? You were expecting a snide comment? For the first time in a long time, there is the sense the Pacers are building toward something, that next year’s playoffs are easily within their grasp if only they add bodies, stay healthy and learn how to play a lick of defense.”

A Look at the Nets’ Financial Woes

CHN — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 07:01:22 -0700

With operating losses for the year at close to $30 million, it’s not a pretty picture: “In a sign that the recession has already eaten away at the bottom line in sports, revenue for the New Jersey Nets’ operating company dipped sharply in fiscal 2009, the last five months of which coincided with the economy’s contraction. Many observers have suggested that because teams’ selling season for suites, season tickets and sponsorships finished before the economy cratered, sports would only begin to feel a bottom-line hurt as this year progressed. Revenue for Nets Sports & Entertainment, however, fell 8 percent in the 12-month period that ended Jan. 31. The financial results mark the first public snapshot of a Big Four sports club since the economy unraveled. The results are broken out in the annual financial filing of Forest City Enterprises, which owns 23 percent of the team.”

Andrew Bynum Returns This Week

CHN — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 07:01:21 -0700

That’s the plan, anyway: “After today’s practice went well, Andrew Bynum said he plans to play Sunday against the Memphis Grizzlies and April 14 against the Utah Jazz. Those are the Lakers’ final regular-season games. Bynum has said all along that he hoped to play in a couple of regular-season games before rejoining the active roster for the playoffs…’I just have to get my timing back,’ said Bynum, who did not travel with the team for Tuesday night’s game against the Kings in Sacramento. ‘Other than that, I’m ready to go.’”

At Long Last, MJ’s Comeback Fantasies Have Ended

CHN — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 07:00:40 -0700

by Marcel Mutoni
The inevitable took place yesterday, as Michael Jordan entered the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. The GOAT wasn’t too excited, however, about dwelling on his past accomplishments. The man was too busy regretting the fact that he’s no longer an NBA player.
The Philly Inquirer has the quotes:
“This is kind of a love-hate thing for me,” Jordan said. “It’s a great compliment and great respect, but for me, I always wanted to be able to have you think that I could always go back and play the game of basketball. As long as you have that thought, you never know what can happen. You never know what my abilities can do.”
Is he talking comeback? “No, but I’d like for you to think that I am,” Jordan said. “So to me, the Hall of Fame is like, it’s over and done with. You can’t ever put a uniform back on. It’s the total end of your basketball career. It’s a great accomplishment and I know I don’t walk away from it, but I didn’t want to be up here so quickly.
“I wanted to be up here when I was 70 years old, 80 years old. But I’m 45 and I still think I can play. You guys don’t know if I can or can’t, but at least I’ve got you thinking that way.”
I think we can all breathe a sigh of relief now that Jordan has finally realized that playing hoops at the pro level is no longer an option, and certainly something no one would want to see.
Thanks for the memories, Mike.

Turkoglu and Okur: Keys to Solid U.S.-Turkey Relations

CHN — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 06:31:23 -0700

Naturally: “Everybody knows that President Obama is a hoops fan. He references Hedo Turkoglu and Mehmet Okur in his speech today to the Turkish Parliament. ‘The ties among our people have deepened as well, and more and more Americans of Turkish origin live and work and succeed within our borders,’ NBC First Read reports. ‘As a basketball fan, I’ve even noticed that Hedo Turkoglu and Mehmet Okur have got some pretty good game.’”

Should the Heat Retire Tim Hardaway’s Jersey?

CHN — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 06:01:18 -0700

Tim sure thinks so: “With Alonzo Mourning’s Heat number retired, Tim Hardaway said, ‘I deserve to be up there’ too. Hardaway attributes his inability to get an NBA job to his 2007 ‘I don’t like gay people’ comment — despite his apologies. ‘I thought we were supposed to forgive and forget but it’s not happening.’”