Greetings fellow Ballaholics. We are now in our essence with action in the NBL, NBA, WNBL and the ASEAN leagues in full throttle.
In the NBL, Wollongong and Perth top the table with the other eight teams neck and neck heading towards the mid point of the season. There are still a number of top notch players out due to injuries so the power base could shift as they return. Most recently, the Gold Coast Breakers pulled off a huge upset of the New Zealand Breakers last night in NZ.
Meanwhile in the WNBL, Bulleen and Townsville remain undefeated at the top of the ladder. On the bottom rungs sit the AIS and Perth both of whom are hungry for a win. Defending champs Canberra continue to have an up and down ride at this stage of the season but never count them out.
Remember the Singapore Slingers?? Well guess who sits atop the ASEAN Basketball League ladder?? So far the Slingers are undefeated after four matches in the newly formed competition. Have a look through the rosters of the teams on the league website and you will see a few former SEABL players along with a few others who have played here in Australia.
And finally, in the last week, we have gotten our NBA fixes!! Early on, the Denver Nuggets have to be the team of note with Carmelo Anthony lighting up the score sheets. The Orlando Magic are also looking ominous. Defending champion LA Lakers have a few injured players but are winning close games through the scoring of Kobe Bryant. San Antonio rookie DeJuan Blair has proved to be a future double/double machine with his ferocious efforts off the glass.
Oh, don't forget, for us true fans, the NCAA kicks off its season in the next week or two...go Heels!!
Showing posts with label Denver Nuggets. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Denver Nuggets. Show all posts
06 November 2009
27 October 2009
Basketball junkies, your fix is on the way!!
Well it is here, the 2009-2010 NBA season kicks off Tuesday night in the US. There are lots of new faces in new places this season along with some familiar ones returning from injuries. For a start I will just make my fearless forecasts.
In the East I see the Orlando Magic, Boston Celtics and Cleveland Cavs as the teams to beat while out West, look for a Spurs resurgence in San Antonio along with the always tough Lakers and Dallas as the best picks.
Other surprises could come from the Toronto Raptors, Portland Trailblazers, Philadelphia 76ers and Denver Nuggets. In the end I’m going for a Spurs vs. Magic finals series.
In the East I see the Orlando Magic, Boston Celtics and Cleveland Cavs as the teams to beat while out West, look for a Spurs resurgence in San Antonio along with the always tough Lakers and Dallas as the best picks.
Other surprises could come from the Toronto Raptors, Portland Trailblazers, Philadelphia 76ers and Denver Nuggets. In the end I’m going for a Spurs vs. Magic finals series.
22 July 2009
Draft...the day after, Speculation time.
from BasketBloggin 27 June 2009
With the NBA Draft over and done with albeit hugely overshadowed by other world events in the last day, we can now take a look at who came out winners and who stuffed it up.
Denver Nuggets-Ty Lawson was a steal with the 18th pick draft and trade deal. He will provide solid backup to Billups and Anthony and eventually become the teams leader from the point.
LA Clippers-Taylor Griffin was the stud of this years draft and the Clippers were right in taking him. He will have time to adjust and will have a healthy Kaman and Camby up front to help shoulder the load. Will this be enough for the Baron to return to being a productive team first player?
Memphis Grizzlies-Drafted well and could get immediate help from Carroll and Thabeet will be a dominant defensive force in the years to come. Young was also a second round steal.
Orlando Magic-though they had no draft picks, the trade to bring Vince Carter back to the Sunshine state will make all parties happy. The loss of Tukoglu may not be as tough as it once seemed.
San Antonio Spurs-No first round picks, no worries!! The Spurs made out like Bandits whether or not they keep or trade Blair, Jack McClinton can score with the best of 'em and the acquisition of Jefferson helps the team transform itself into more of a threat.
Philadelphia 76ers-The Sixers got a still when a lottery pick Jrue Holliday fell into their hands at pick 17.
With the NBA Draft over and done with albeit hugely overshadowed by other world events in the last day, we can now take a look at who came out winners and who stuffed it up.
Winners:
Denver Nuggets-Ty Lawson was a steal with the 18th pick draft and trade deal. He will provide solid backup to Billups and Anthony and eventually become the teams leader from the point.
LA Clippers-Taylor Griffin was the stud of this years draft and the Clippers were right in taking him. He will have time to adjust and will have a healthy Kaman and Camby up front to help shoulder the load. Will this be enough for the Baron to return to being a productive team first player?
Memphis Grizzlies-Drafted well and could get immediate help from Carroll and Thabeet will be a dominant defensive force in the years to come. Young was also a second round steal.
Orlando Magic-though they had no draft picks, the trade to bring Vince Carter back to the Sunshine state will make all parties happy. The loss of Tukoglu may not be as tough as it once seemed.
San Antonio Spurs-No first round picks, no worries!! The Spurs made out like Bandits whether or not they keep or trade Blair, Jack McClinton can score with the best of 'em and the acquisition of Jefferson helps the team transform itself into more of a threat.
Philadelphia 76ers-The Sixers got a still when a lottery pick Jrue Holliday fell into their hands at pick 17.
Losers:
Chicago Bulls-Questions surround Johnson & Gibson.
Minnesota Timberwolves-Either a bad Chemistry experiment or stocking the shelves for a fire sale?? They are building, but what are they building??
Other Notes:
Shaq will again don the number 33 for the first time since his college days for his Cleveland debut next season.
Rubio did not show up at a Wolves press conference.
Turkoglu opts out of Orlando contract.
Next week I will start looking at the upcoming Under 19 World Championships, the WNBA, the local Aussie scene and a few other things.
Nelson says the Warriors will not trade Curry.
'til then ... shoot 'em if you're open and if not, drive and dish!!
Opening Blog --Just one to get me started
from BasketBloggin 29 May 2009
Allo All:
I was recently asked who I thought was the best basketball player to ever play in the ACC? Note this is to be for their collegiate career, not accomplishments afterwards.
First and foremost, I say that you can't go past one David Thompson from NC State. For a 6'4" Small forward/Shooting guard, he garnered unprecedented attention from other teams. None other than Michael Jordan was in awe of his unreal leaping ability. The lob pass was brought into vogue by the Monte Towe (a 5'4" point guard) to David Thompson connection. The Thompson led State teams also eventually brought an end to the awesome UCLA dynasty which at the time was lead by one Bill Walton.
Note: there will be more to come on this subject, just getting the opening comments out there for a start.
Further from yesterday, Wikipedia goes on to say that the lob pass was "invented" by Thompson/Towe, amazing. Thompson had a 48 inch vertical leap that put his game constantly above the rim.
The rivalry between NC State and UCLA during the 1973-1974 seasons is legendary but even more memorable is the in conference rivalry between State and Maryland. The 1974 ACC Championship game, a 103-100 overtime victory by NC State over the Terps is considered by some one of the greatest ever collegiate games. State went on to finish that season with a perfect record on the way to an NCAA title.
The gentleman who posed this query of the best ACC player ever has put forward Art Heyman from Duke (1960-1963), as the best ACC player ever, sorry bud you have to put aside the local hero worship and look to the facts. Among the learned, Michael Jordan, Ralph Sampson, Tim Duncan, Christian Laettner, and Len Bias along with Thompson are truly the greatest to pass through the ACC when considering just their college careers. Often at his camps, Jordan points to Thompson as the player he watched and admired most when he was growing up.
Thompson's Accomplishments:
Collegiate
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Thompson_(basketball)#College_career
Ok, look for more in the next few days as I tackle more history and current happenings in the Hoops Universe.
Allo All:
I was recently asked who I thought was the best basketball player to ever play in the ACC? Note this is to be for their collegiate career, not accomplishments afterwards.
First and foremost, I say that you can't go past one David Thompson from NC State. For a 6'4" Small forward/Shooting guard, he garnered unprecedented attention from other teams. None other than Michael Jordan was in awe of his unreal leaping ability. The lob pass was brought into vogue by the Monte Towe (a 5'4" point guard) to David Thompson connection. The Thompson led State teams also eventually brought an end to the awesome UCLA dynasty which at the time was lead by one Bill Walton.
Note: there will be more to come on this subject, just getting the opening comments out there for a start.
Further from yesterday, Wikipedia goes on to say that the lob pass was "invented" by Thompson/Towe, amazing. Thompson had a 48 inch vertical leap that put his game constantly above the rim.
The rivalry between NC State and UCLA during the 1973-1974 seasons is legendary but even more memorable is the in conference rivalry between State and Maryland. The 1974 ACC Championship game, a 103-100 overtime victory by NC State over the Terps is considered by some one of the greatest ever collegiate games. State went on to finish that season with a perfect record on the way to an NCAA title.
The gentleman who posed this query of the best ACC player ever has put forward Art Heyman from Duke (1960-1963), as the best ACC player ever, sorry bud you have to put aside the local hero worship and look to the facts. Among the learned, Michael Jordan, Ralph Sampson, Tim Duncan, Christian Laettner, and Len Bias along with Thompson are truly the greatest to pass through the ACC when considering just their college careers. Often at his camps, Jordan points to Thompson as the player he watched and admired most when he was growing up.
Thompson's Accomplishments:
Collegiate
- Three-year letter winner (1973–1975)
- The Sporting News national Player of the Year (1975)
- USBWA College Player of the Year (1975)
- Consensus First-Team All-America (1973, 1974, 1975) by Associated Press (AP), United Press International (UPI), Eastman Kodak, The Sporting News
- AP National Player of the Year (1974, 1975)
- UPI Player of the Year (1975)
- Eastman Kodak Award (1975)
- Naismith Award (1975)
- Adolph Rupp Trophy (1975)
- Coach & Athlete Magazine Player of the Year (1975)
- Helms Foundation Player of the Year (1974, 1975)
- National Association of Basketball Coaches Player of the Year (1975)
- United States Basketball Writers Association Player of the Year (1975)
- Dunlop Player of the Year (1975)
- Sullivan Award finalist (1974, 1975)
- Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) Player of the Year (1973, 1974, 1975)
- ACC Athlete of the Year (1973, 1975)
- All-ACC First Team (1973, 1974, 1975)
- North Carolina State retired his jersey number 44 (1975)
- Led North Carolina State to the 1974 NCAA championship (30-1 record), 76-64 over Marquette University
- In national semi-final win over UCLA, scored 28 points
- In championship game, scored 21 points against Marquette
- Most Valuable Player (MVP), NCAA Tournament (1974)
- Led Wolfpack to a 79-7 record during his final three season (freshmen were ineligible then) including 57-1 during his sophomore and junior seasons (27-0, 30-1), the best in ACC history. His senior year record was 22-6.
- Scored 2,309 points (26.8 ppg) in 86 varsity games; including highs of 57 points as a senior, 41 as a junior and 40 as a sophomore
- Averaged 35.6 ppg, including a 54-point high on the North Carolina State freshman team
- Grabbed 694 rebounds (8.1 rpg) in 86 games
- World University Games MVP (1973)
- Enshrined in North Carolina Sports Hall of Fame (1982)
- NCAA All-Decade Team of the 1970s
- Named to the ACC 50th Anniversary men's basketball team as one of the fifty greatest players in ACC history.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Thompson_(basketball)#College_career
Ok, look for more in the next few days as I tackle more history and current happenings in the Hoops Universe.
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