Debating The NBA All-Pro Teams
The NBA announced its all-pro teams today, and a vast majority of the selections were appropriate. It’s hard to argue with a first team of LeBron James, Kevin Durant, Dwight Howard, Kobe Bryant and Chris Paul. Andrew Bynum and Tony Parker were members of the second team that came closest to statistically edging out Howard and Paul, respectvely, but were not quite up to the task this season, though Bynum had more win shares than Howard.
Since the NBA is an entertainment and market driven league, they would never have left Bryant off the first team in favor of Kevin Love, but a case could be made for the Minnesota TimberWolves’ standout forward. Love averaged just 1.9 fewer points, had a higher field goal percentage, far more rebounds and had a whopping 10-6.2 edge in win shares. There would have been an enormous uproar if Love made it over Bryant, but it makes a lot of sense if you look at the numbers.
Joining Love, Bynum and Parker on the second team are Blake Griffin and Russell Westbrook. Both players had sensational seasons and Westbrook barely edged out Dwyane Wade statistically and in the ballot box (Westbrook made the second team by four points). Wade is joined on the third team by Carmelo Anthony, Dirk Nowitzki, Tyson Chandler and Rajon Rondo.
The five players who got the most votes but were left off the team featured (in order) LaMarcus Aldridge, Marc Gasol, Derrick Rose, Josh Smith and Paul Pierce. My friend Josh from Memphis, and a Grizzlies season ticket holder, made his case for Gasol over Chandler and I initially agreed with him. Then I checked the stats.
Though Gasol had the better per game average in points, assists and blocks, Chandler had the highest field goal percentage in the league (besting Gasol by nearly 20 percent), beat Gasol in win shares 9.5-8.2 and was the best defensive player in the league. Gasol deserved more votes than Aldridge, but not more than Chandler. A case could be made for Pierce over Anthony, but I’ll let New York and Boston fans fight that one out themselves. Feel free to comment!
Are The Heat Better Off Without Chris Bosh?
After a disastrous game three without big man Chris Bosh in the lineup, out with a rib injury, Miami has hit its stride in its second round Eastern Conference playoff series against the formidable and determined Indiana Pacers. The Heat controlled the tempo in Sunday’s game four, with LeBron James and Dwayne Wade dominating and Udonis Haslem stepping up and playing extremely well in the interior.
Tuesday’s game five saw more of the same, as James scored 30, Haslem shot 5-6 from the field and Miami corralled 14 more rebounds than Indiana in a 22-point win at home. That does beg the question: Would the Miami Heat be better off the rest of the season without Chris Bosh in the lineup? For old time’s sake, I promise it’s still timely, here’s an article I wrote about Bosh one year ago today. How much has changed? You’ll be the judge…
Bosh’s Bullish Performance Highlights An Inconsistent Season
In a season that seems like it’s lasted an eternity for the Miami Heat and its fans, both the high and low points of Chris Bosh’s seasons have both been against the Chicago Bulls. On Sunday, Bosh improbably gave Miami a 2-1 series lead with a 96-85 win after playing some of his worst ball this season against the same Chicago team.
In three games against Chicago during the regular season, Bosh averaged 15.7 points and 6.3 rebounds per game, well below his 18.7 and 8.3 averages. He was certainly not living up to the expectations placed on him when Miami acquired him and pundits began calling the team “The Big 2 1/2″ well before Charlie Sheen jokes were en vogue.
The Heat and the Bulls were both big winners in the free agency sweepstakes Decision bonanza of last summer and were considered the favorites, along with Eastern Conference mainstays Boston and Orlando, to reach the NBA Finals. After a couple of bumpy losing streaks along the way, Miami was 42-15 just after the All-Star break, battling Boston for the top spot in the conference. Their only problem was that they could not beat elite teams like the Celtics, Lakers or Bulls.
On February 24, a Thursday night right after the most eventful trading deadline in at least several years, Chicago handed Miami a frustrating 93-89 loss. Blame for that loss fell squarely on Bosh’s large shoulders. Bosh was a distant third in the Heat’s version of the Big Three, the LeBron James, Dwayne Wade, Bosh triumphant troika. His demeanor often seemed awkward and passive and he had games where he would make little impact and vanish in the box scores. Miami wished the latter had happened on that Thursday.
Bosh shot a historically bad 1-18 from the field in that four-point defeat, the worst shooting night for a player with at least 18 shots since the 1972-1973 season. The next day, Chicago Sum-Times writer Dan Cahill astutely pointed out that “you have to be a pretty good player because your coach has to have confidence in you to stay in the game, and your teammates have to have faith in you to keep feeding you the ball.”
Miami never lacked confidence in Bosh despite his occasional sub par performances. That confidence paid off nearly three months to the day of the worst performance in Bosh’s NBA career. Coincidentally, or perhaps not, Miami had to get past the same Chicago team that had given them the most problems during the regular season to reach the NBA Finals, where the Heat had to go to reach their extraordinarily lofty expectations.
Coincidentally, or perhaps not, Bosh’s best game of the season came against the Bulls in a crucial game three that Miami would probably have lost during the regular season. Mainstays James and Wade were off their games, shooting a combined 12-30 for 39 points. When two of the best players in the league don’t even combined for 40, the opposition usually has at least a decent chance to win. But this was the night the oft-passive Bosh chose to assert himself, prove his value and carry his team to an important playoff win.
Bosh showed incredible range on his shot, going 13-15 for 34 points after missing his first three shots from the field in Miami’s 96-85 game three win that kept the Heat undefeated at home in this postseason. In an interesting twist of fate, something that seemed nearly impossible three months ago, Bosh is the scoring leader in the Eastern Conference Finals.
“C-B had it going,” James said after Sunday’s win. “When we have someone going on our team, we continue to go to him.”
Against the team Bosh had his worst game against, he is now playing his best basketball. After dismal averages against Chicago in three regular season games, Bosh is averaging 24.7 points per game in the postseason. Perhaps Bosh and the Heat will live up to those expectations after all.
Here Are The 10 Worst Former Athletes Who Became Coaches
Most players see their coaches and probably think, “hell, I can do that.” Some players got a chance to prove they have the chops to coach. Some have succeeded and some have failed spectacularly. This post focuses on the latter.
The Worst NFL Coaches
Rich Kotite- After an unremarkable playing career, Kotite had a good start as the coach of he Eagles, but then went to the Jets and was considered one of the worst ever. He followed up a 3-13 season in 1995 with a 1-15 campaign in 1996. He never coached again.
Lane Kiffin- Oakland made him the youngest coach, 31, in team history and he went 4-12 in 2007. Late owner Al Davis tried to get Kiffin to resign but he would not. On September 30, 2008 Davis fired Kiffin over the phone and they went to court to settle on the salary. Davis won, baby.
Marty Mornhinweg- He played in the arena league and was eventually hired by the Detroit Lions in 2001. He lasted two seasons, going 2-14 and 3-13 during the Lions’ dark days. He hasn’t received a head coaching job since.
The Worst NBA Coaches
Isiah Thomas- One of the best point guards in history, Thomas was a really bad coach. He made the playoffs three times in as many seasons with Indiana, but the Pacers were built to win titles. Then he went to the Knicks. He was the general manager, made a slew of terrible trades, went 56-108 in two seasons, lost the Knicks a sexual harrassment lawsuit and is one of the most hated figures in New York sports history.
Dick Vitale- He’s a great college basketball analyst. But as an NBA coach? Awful, baby! He went 30-52 in his first season with the Pistons and then after starting the 1980-1981 season 4-8, late owner Bill Davidson went to Vitale’s house and fired him. At least Vitale has had a great career in broadcasting.
Elgin Baylor- Another Hall of Famer who was a bad coach and executive, Baylor coached the New Orleans Jazz for three years, compiling an 86-135 record. Then he was the GM of the Clippers for 22 years, and LA won one playoff series during that span.
The Worst MLB Managers
Alan Trammell- Once again, another great player who was an incredibly bad skipper. After playing with the Detroit Tigers for so long, they gave him a shot at manager. Bad choice. In three seasons, he went 186-300 including a 43-119 season in 2003.
Joe Quinn- Quinn played for St. Louis in the Union Association in 1884 and started managing in 1895. He went 11-28 with the St. Louis Browns in 1895 and then managed the Cleveland Spiders in 1899, who went a historically bad 12-104.
The Worst NHL Coaches
Wayne Gretzky- The greatest player of all time wasn’t so great as a coach. In fact, he was downright horrible. Between 2005 and 2009, the Phoenix Coyotes never finished better than fourth in its division under The Great One, and never hade more than 83 points in a season under Gretzky’s stewardship.
Barry Melrose- Like this year’s Los Angeles Kings, Melrose’s 1992-1993 version was a low seeded team that ended up making the Stanley Cup Finals. Of course, having Gretzky on your side certainly helps. After that season, things went downhill for The Mullet. LA only had 66 points the next season and Melrose was fired midway through the 1994-1995 campaign. Melrose went to ESPN until the Tampa Bay Lightning brought him back to the bench for the 2008-2009 season, only to fire him 16 games into the season.
The Last Place Yankees Have Numerous Offensive Issues
As the mist fell on the baseball grounds at 161st St. and River Ave. in the Bronx on Monday night, the New York Yankees missed numerous opportunities to score and fell not just to the Kansas City Royals by a lopsided 6-0 score, but fell to .500 at 21-21 and fell into a last place tie in the AL East with the streaking Boston Red Sox.
To say the Yankee offense is stagnant would be an affront to the order and the establishment of the stagnant. New York went an incredible 0-13 with runners in scoring position, and made Kansas City starter Felipe Paulino look like Pedro Martinez with his slider baffling New York batsmen along with his 94 mile per hour heat.
The 13 hitless at bats with runners in scoring position is the worst performance with ducks on the pond since July 1990. The team is in last place this late into a season for the first time since 2008, and they most certainly deserve to be in the cellar as we approach the Memorial Day weekend.
“At times, it looks like there’s 20 people out there playing defense,” Derek Jeter, who went 1-5 on Monday, said. “It happens every year. It happens to every team. It doesn’t look good when you’re going through it, but you’ve got to have confidence.”
If the Yankees’ offense has confidence right now, they’re doing fantastic work in hiding it. The mist at Yankee Stadium during the game looked like smoke clouding the hitters’ vision, causing an offensive power outage that has become a regular occurrence of late. The announced attendance was 39,225, but there were far fewer people there and nearly all of them were disgusted with the team’s performance.
“You’re going to hear it on the road, and you’re going to hear it at home when you don’t play well,” Yankees manager Joe Girardi said, regarding the boos. “If they’re unhappy with us, believe me, we’re probably unhappier.”
This unhappiness has yet to convert itself into results of late. Raul Ibanez went 0-3 with runners in scoring position. Mark Teixeira went 1-4 and hit seventh last night because he’s been struggling so mightily this season, in part because of a bronchial infection he’s had for nearly the entire season to date. Alex Rodriguez struck out with the bases loaded and one out in the third inning, and really heard it from the fans.
“It’s very frustrating,” Rodriguez said. “We’ve talked about it over and over again. You can’t really describe it. It’s not a lot of fun obviously going out and not getting the job done. But at this point, nobody’s going to feel sorry for us…We know we’re capable of doing a lot more, and I think we will. Tomorrow would be a great day to start.”
This writer has personally attended four Yankees games, and they’ve scored a total of eight runs in those contests. Seven of those came in one game. They are fourth in the AL East in runs scored and now tied for last place. Until the offense awakes from its late spring slumber, this team could be stuck in last place for quite some time.
2012 MLB First Quarter Awards
We’ve reached 40 games, so teams that are doing well need to be taken a tad more seriously. Trends that were viewed as passing fads gain a little more legitimacy. With that legitimacy comes awards…Which brings us to what you’ll see below.
AL MVP- Josh Hamilton, OF, Texas- He leads the AL in batting average, slugging percentage, OPS, home runs and RBI’s. He leads all major league players in WAR. This is the easiest call in quite some time.
NL MVP- David Wright, 3B, NY Mets- Wright leads the NL in WAR, is batting over .400 and has an OBP over .500. That gives him the edge over Ryan Braun, Matt Kemp and Joey Votto.
AL Cy Young- Justin Verlander, Detroit- The reigning Cy Young and MVP backed up his title by leading the AL in WAR, innings, strikeouts, ERA, WHIP and complete games. Jered Weaver is hanging in this race, though.
NL Cy Young- Zack Greinke, Milwaukee- It’s an incredibly large and tight field, and any of five players could have won the award. Gio Gonzalez, Roy Halladay, Stephen Strasburg, Clayton Kershaw and Lance Lynn all have legitimate cases. But Greinke’s FIP and NL leading WAR gives him the edge.
AL Rookie- Yu Darvish, SP, Texas- You could argue that a player like Darvish isn’t really a rookie, that’s how Angel Berroa was chosen as the top AL rookie over Hideki Matsui, but I won’t be political and give it to the player that’s clearly the most deserving. Jesus Montero belongs in the conversation as well.
NL Rookie- Yonder Alonso, OF, San Diego- He has yet to develop power, but he leads all rookies in average, OBP and OPS.
AL Manager- Buck Showalter- Baltimore- He’s led a young team with a nondescript pitching staff to the best record in the AL and the best road record in the major leagues.
NL Manager- Don Mattingly- Los Angeles- The Dodgers had an ownership change and a lot of overall turmoil, but Mattingly has risen above it the LA has the best record in baseball. Mattingly deserves a lot of that credit.
AL Comeback Player- Jake Peavy, SP, Chicago- After a series of injuries, his career was left for dead. This season, he’s 5-1 with a 2.39 ERA and a WHIP under one.
NL Comeback Player- Brian LaHair, 1B, Chicago- Deemed a four-A player, too good for the minor leagues but not good enough to hack it in the bigs, LaHair has thrived this season after finally getting a chance. He’s batting .315/.415/.629 with 10 homers and is a bright spot for the Cubbies.
AL Breakout Player- Adam Jones, OF, Baltimore- Jones is developing into a legit superstar if he keeps up this kind of performance. He’s hitting .308 with a .610 slugging percentage and 14 home runs for the league leading Orioles.
NL Breakout Player- Brandon Beachy, SP, Atlanta- With Jair Jurrjens struggling, Beachy has taken his spot in the rotation and has been better than anyone would have ever imagined. He’s 5-1 with a 1.33 ERA for the Braves and could be in the Cy Young discussion if he throws enough innings.
AL Disappointing Player- Albert Pujols, 1B, Los Angeles- $240 million and one home run? He’s certainly been the least valuable player this year and is one of the reasons why the Angels are struggling so much.
NL Disappointing Player- Ike Davis, 1B, NY Mets- The young first baseman was supposed to shine this year, but is instead is hitting .163 and has the lowest WAR of any hitter in the major leagues.
AL Surprise Team- Baltimore Orioles- Who would have expected the best record in the AL and an incredible road record? Can the Orioles keep it up?
NL Surprise Team- Los Angeles Dodgers- They sport the best record in the game and are second in the NL in run differential. Can they remain in charge in the NL West?
AL Disappointing Team- Los Angeles Angels- After signing Albert Pujols and C.J. Wilson, this was supposed to be a juggernaut in the AL West. Instead, they can’t score runs and are floundering while the Dodgers are shining up the freeway.
NL Disappointing Team- Milwaukee Brewers- The Brewers were still supposed to contend in the NL Central even with Aramis Ramirez replacing Prince Fielder, but the pitching staff has allowed the second most runs in the NL and are in fifth place in the division.
