The Shoe is Falling

Chris Paul wants out of New Orleans. I don’t know whether to be happy that there is an NBA story not circling around the Miami franchise or to be sad that CP3 wants away from New Orleans.

Step It Up

When a good player gets hurt or goes down with an injury, usually a player (and in some cases an entire team) have to step up and fill the void left or the whole season will collapse in on itself.

Now imagine how difficult it would be to fill in for a great player.

Now a top 5 player. Pretty tough, right?

Observations on the Orlando/Atlanta Game

Yeah, we’re back.

The Champ sits here in his home writing this in anticipation of tonight’s game. The Octagon is now here, good to see him. We’re still waiting on the arrival of The Franchise, and The Custodian is MIA.

Champ’s Power Rankings: Week 2

 

 

Week Two showed the Beast in Chris Paul, however the Hornets still struggled.

 

1. Los Angeles Lakers: The Lakers played without Bynum and Gasol last night and still resulted in victory. The Lakers are the top dogs in the league right now. No questions about it. Lamar Odum also translated well into his role on Keeping up with the Kardashians.

2. Boston Celtics: A slip up against the now formidable Phoenix Suns lost some credibility as well as the near win over the lowly Minnesota Timberwolves cost the C’s to slip to #2 in my rankings. However, they still head their own conference and very well could earn homecourt advantage, minus any major injuries.

3. Phoenix Suns: Surprised? Maybe a little but the Suns are the hot team in the league for now. You forget this team has Steve Nash, Amare Stoudamire, and Jason Richardson. As well as a rejuivenated Grant Hill and an up-and-coming Channing Frye. Will they stay at three? Probably not, but this is Week Two.

You Only Get What You Give

Okay, so I watched the Cavaliers and Bulls game and had a couple thoughts, actually a lot of thoughts, not all of which is directly related to the actual play of the game. I could have just done a list of random thoughts but I thought it might be better if I explained my thoughts as to leave no confusion about exactly what I am saying.

A Bunch of Chicken Littles

So, being a basketball fan in Northeast Ohio on a night not named Wednesday or Friday, the only basketball on is the Cavaliers. Seeing as how it was also voting day, I couldn’t catch all of the game, however, I have some feelings on what I did see.

Paints in the Fantasy Draft

So the teams have been drafted for the 2009-2010 Fantasy Draft and here are the rosters.

Season Preview: New Orleans Hornets

Team History:

The New Orleans Hornets were once upon a time the Charlotte Hornets before the Bobcats were even a figment of Bob Johnson’s imagination. They weren’t a great franchise, but they were certainly not bad for long stretches of time. In fact, they were often victims of playing in the Michael Jordan era, often losing out to the Bulls or their chief competitors, the New York Knicks.

Live Blogging the 2009 LeBron James Bike-A-Thon

I Wish I was a little bit taller, I wish I was a baller.

Today we were bloggers and ballers.

Attending the LeBron James King for Kids Bikeathon in Akron was our first official outing as a contingent of bloggers. Covering the spectacle were The Champ, The Custodian, and The Franchise. Many moons ago, The Franchise suggested that the group attend the King’s event to publicize The Blog. Today we went big-time, all out for Paints in the Point.

Horizontal Movement

Some trades are made to improve a team (see: Kevin Garnett). Some trades are made in order to dump salary and ease the burden (see: Richard Jefferson). Other trades are made for teams get rid of a cancerous player (see: Allen Iverson). This latest proposed deal seems to fit nearly all three of these categories, yet it doesn’t easily slide into any of these groupings.

The deal in question is between the New Orleans Hornets and the Charlotte Bobcats where the Hornets would send beleaguered big man Tyson Chandler to Charlotte for former #2 pick Emeka Okafor. The deal, while involving big names with at times big impacts, changes seemingly little for both teams.

The Hornets have been trying to rid themselves of Chandler’s large contract since last year began. He still has eight figures on his contract and trudged his way through an injury-plagued season in which he averaged less than 10 points and rebounds per game. New Orleans thought they rid themselves of Tyson in a midseason trade to Oklahoma City for Chris Wilcox and Joe Smith. After some deliberation, the Thunder thought Chandler’s injury concerns were too much to deal with and rescinded the trade. Knowing that NO was trying to pardon themselves from the Tyson table, motivation became somewhat of an optional action. His play was moderate at best and embarrassing more often than the Hornets would like.

The potential loaded Chandler thrashed in mediocrity as New Orleans barely reached the playoff plateau as star point guard Chris Paul led the charge. After a first round exit courtesy of the Nuggets, the feverish work of the New Orleans front office to send Tyson elsewhere began once again. There were rumors that the Detroit Pistons were interested in the potential draft bust before the additions of Charlie Villanueva and Ben Gordon. Then whispers boomed out of the rumor mills that Phoenix, after trading Shaq to Cleveland, were interested in acquiring Chandler for the expiring contract of Ben Wallace.

Three-on-Three Paints in the Point Live Blog

Unbeknownst to many, all six “Paints Dudes” have not been in the same room since we started this blog. However, all were present at a party hosted by The Franchise at his home. A seventh, never-before-seen “Paints in the Point” blogger was also present and provided the following commentary for his first post on “Paints in the Point.”

Please enjoy the following recap of two half-court three-on-three basketball games, as told by the newest “Paints Dude,” known only as The Enforcer (with some minor editing by The Freelancer).

A photo of the Paints Dudes playing basketball.

Game One

• The Dudes argue at length over teams. Game to 21, win by two.
• The teams are as follows: The Ivy Leaguer, The Freelancer, and The Champ versus The Octagon, The Franchise, and The Custodian.

Ain’t No Love in the Heart of the City

The New Orleans Hornets roster for the 2009-2010 season is shaping up to be about as new as Brandon Jennings’ haircut.

With the luxury tax imposing, the Hornets simply cannot compete in the free agent market, no Hedo Turkoglu, no Rasheed Wallace, or even Trevor Ariza. While players like six foot wonder Chris Paul speak out about how other teams are improving through the free agent market, the Hornets’ management remains as neutral as the Danish in World War I.

The Success Recipe

Most teams around the Association have enacted the same process for going about building a team that has a great chance of winning games. They use the same basic outline and then add a few spices to the mix in order to attain the ultimate glory.

Cupid’s Couples

Sometimes in the Association, two players will meet at one junction or another on a team and true chemistry will form. These are the top 12 pairs of players in the league right now, duos that complement each other’s capabilities on the court.

Wrap It Before You Scrap It

Well ladies and gentlemen, another NBA season has come and gone and before we throw it away and prepare for the draft, let us all take a look at what we learned.