Blog Entries for jonleenba

Knicks Prepare for the Future

jonleenba

New York President Donnie Walsh has somehow managed to undo much of the damage Isaiah Thomas inflicted on the once proud franchise by pulling off two quality cost-cutting deals on the same day.

Here is the sum total of the moves made the Knicks on Friday:

Out:
F Zach Randolph (LAC)
G Mardy Collins (LAC)
G Jamal Crawford (GS)
3 yearsof extra contracts worth over $30 million

[...]

Arenas to Miss First Month

jonleenba

According to the Washington Post, Gilbert Arenas will miss all of training camp and the first month of the upcoming NBA season.

Gilbert Arenas confirmed Wednesday that he underwent a surgical procedure this morning that "cleaned out some debris" in his left knee and won't be ready to play for the Wizards until early December. Arenas, who has undergone two surgeries to repair the left knee in the last two seasons, has been limited during the rehab process all summer [...]

Olympics Begin Now for Team USA

jonleenba

The warm-ups are over. The real games begin now for the Team USA. It beat Angola easily 97-76 on Tuesday after taking care of host China 101-70 on Sunday. Next up is Greece which beat the United States. two years ago in the world championships. This version of Team USA however is a much deeper and much more cohesive bunch than back then. The so-called “Redeem Team” has been on a mission to bring back the gold medal, and they have [...]

Bearded One Weeps As Brand, Maggette Skip Town

jonleenba

Baron Davis will not, in all likelihood, be taking his hometown team to the playoffs anytime soon. It was assumed he was signing with the Clippers with the tacit assumption that Elton Brand would be there too. Together they were supposed to form a new L.A. inside-outside power duo. Instead, whether it was the lure of the East, a rising team, the money, or his agent David Falk, Brand has signed with Philadelphia for a 5-year $82 million contract.

For this the presumed B [...]

Busy Start to Free Agency

jonleenba

What a way to start the NBA free agency period. Baron Davis unexpectedly opted out of his contract and quickly signed with the Clippers. Elton Brand also surprised some by opting out, and now is mulling over whether to rejoin the Clips with Davis or travel up north to Golden State. The offer from the Warriors is actually bigger than the Clippers one for Brand, but his original intention was to give L.A. more flexibility under the cap to go after another [...]

Live Blogging the NBA Draft

jonleenba

The NBA draft is on. Check back here throughout the day for updated commentary as the picks roll on in.

4:37: No surprise here as Chicago takes Derrick Rose to kick off the draft and my running diary. Welcome all. Rose was dominant towards the end of the NCAA season, and combines the size and athleticism rarely seen in a point guard. Don’t worry about a backcourt glut for the Bulls; Rose is way more talented than anybody on the roster.

On paper, yes it would. The Hornets had the better regular season record, and had the better MVP candidate in Paul. This is however the defending champion San Antonio Spurs. Everybody should be re [...]

Hornets-Spurs Game Five Preview

jonleenba

Paging Tyson Chandler and Peja Stojakovic. You both need to show up in a big way tonight or your team is done.

For as good as New Orleans looked in Round One and in the first two games against the Spurs, they looked equally outmatched in the last two games. Much of this I think has been due to adjustments made by Gregg Popovich (and of course homecourt). Pop saw that no matter what he did against Chris Paul the Hornets [...]

Detroit-Orlando Game Five Preview

jonleenba

Detroit will try to close out Orlando tonight at home. The Pistons hold a commanding 3-1 lead, and have shown much more focus and intensity than in the first round against the Sixers. It appears that the two losses to Philadelphia have been good for the veteran Pistons as the adversity has forced them to pick up their focus that has often wavered in recent years.

The biggest issue tonight will be the health of De [...]

NBA All-Rookie Team Announced

jonleenba

FIRST TEAM
Al Horford, ATL
Kevin Durant, SEA
Luis Scola, HOU
Al Thornton, LAC
Jeff Green, SEA

SECOND TEAM
Jamario Moon, TOR
J.C. Navarro, MEM
Thaddeus Young, PHI
Rodney Stuckey, DET
Carl Landry, HOU