Tag Archives: Josh Powell

by | October 16, 2010 · 10:39 AM

Roster Depth…Who needs It?

Each of these players has more rings than LeBron James

When it comes to team depth, it seems like the average NBA fan is all too ready to dismiss the notion as pure folly. They seem to feel that it is entirely irrelevant. The most common example they bring up is that depth does not win championships. It seems to them that the combination of two to three strong players (I’ll use some examples that were put in front of me by someone else: Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen, Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O’Neal, Kobe and Pau Gasol) and a role player or two and you can pretty much guarantee a championship. Signed, sealed, delivered, it is yours. Frequently, those who hold this belief puff up their chests and issue a challenge to prove them wrong. Well, lucky for them. I am always good for a well natured challenge and giving them that example is exactly what this article intends to do. First, however, the issue of roster depth must be addressed appropriately.

The Los Angeles Lakers have won their second title in a row and head into the 2010-11 season as favorites once more. In each of those championship runs, the Lakers rotation was sliced to six players essentially. Bryant, Pau Gasol, Ron Artest (2009-10), Trevor Ariza (2008-09), Derek Fisher, Lamar Odom, and Andrew Bynum were the key cogs that turned the gears of this team. In each of the championship runs the Lakers were paced by Bryant and Gasol with Odom in 2009 and Artest in 2010 logging the third most minutes. Only in 2009, when Ariza played slightly fewer minutes than Odom, was there not a dramatic fall off in the number of minutes played between the “role player” and the rest of the team. Interestingly enough, Bynum was essentially the sixth man, in terms of minutes played, on each of those playoff teams. (Can we call him a bust yet? I will.) There you have it. This is the argument that everyone makes when it comes to roster depth. You do not need it. Look at what the Lakers have done recently and you can see their point. Ah, but not so fast.

This off season, Los Angeles (not the Clippers) was sitting high and Kobe Bryant was simply sitting to rest his knee, heal his finger, ice down his body, and take pain medication. Yeah, he is beat up. Despite the fact that the team had just won its second straight championship with virtually the same roster, Artest and Ariza being the only difference, the Lakers did not seem content to try it again without making changes. So what did they do? They went out and added depth to their roster. “GASP! No, say it is not so! How can we, the Lakers faithful, who have exclaimed from on high that roster depth is a pointless pursuit come to terms with the fact that our team feels differently. Woe is us for our eyes and ears have been deceived. Oh, Zen Master, what did we do wrong to deserve such a cruel fate?”

Steve Blake, Matt Barnes, and Theo Ratliff were brought in and are all blatant roster upgrades over the likes of Jordan Farmar and Didier Ilunga-Mbenga. (No offense to Mbenga, I love that guy. But Farmar should take complete offense.) The Lakers kept Shannon Brown around, signing him to a two-year deal his offseason but will likely see his playing time dip with all the new additions. So why, if a small rotation wins championships, did the Lakers reload their bench. Simply put, their bench was terrible over the past two seasons. Awful, truly awful. Phil Jackson knew it, why do you think he played his starters so much? Sure they are good, but they need to rest at times. The bench was a liability and hurt the Lakers as a whole.

Donkey and Shrek

Look at last year’s finals, it is the perfect example of why roster depth is important. The Boston Celtics were much deeper than the Lakers were and they used it to their advantage. (“But the Lakers won so any point you are trying to make is invalidated.”) The series would not have lasted seven games if it was not for Boston’s bench. Game four is a perfect example of why bench play is important to a team. Boston’s bench doubled the point production of the Lakers’ reserves as they were led by Glen Davis and Nate Robinson. Davis contributed nine points in the fourth quarter which helped to stem a Lakers surge and secure victory for the Celtics thereby tying the series at two games apiece. Yes, the Celtics lost the series eventually, mostly because Kendrick Perkins went down in game six with a torn PCL and MCL, but their bench played a key role in the series unlike the Lakers bench. Depth improves a team.

So where is my example of a team that won a championship with an extended rotation? “Ha, you haven’t found one, have you? I knew it. What a blowhard. This guy over here doesn’t know anything about basketball. I don’t even know why I take time to read this stupid blog anyway. Pssh, I’m gonna go read the latest Bill Simmons and John Hollinger articles. At least those guys know what they are taking about. Get ready for another Lakers’ three-peat. Lakers rule!” Well, now that most of you have probably stopped reading, I can get to the team that defies this notion that depth wins nothing.

They did not need to worry when their starters sat

As a Mavericks fan, I write what I am about to write only because it proves my point. If it were not for that I could never bring myself to do such a thing as this or even admit to having knowledge of it. During the playoffs in 2007, the San Antonio Spurs used not only their star power, but also their overwhelming depth to beat every team they faced on route to a sweep of the Cleveland Cavaliers in the NBA finals. Did they have a better starting five than the Cavaliers? Yes. With LeBron James worship reaching more demigod proportions everyday it would seem hard that a team could beat the chosen man-child. That being said, a better starting five will always have the advantage in the playoffs. Nonetheless, depth still helps.

Unlike the previous two Lakers championships, the Spurs in 2007 do not have a significant drop off in minutes or games played. Instead they have a steady, calculated decline with a complement of ten players receiving quite a bit of playing time. Jacque Vaughn played in all 20 of the Spurs playoff games totaling 208 minutes for an average of 10.4 minutes a game. Only Matt Bonner and Beno Udrih saw less playing time than Vaughn. Contrast that with last year’s Lakers, Jordan Farmar played in all 23 of their postseason games logging 301 minutes for an average of 13.1 minutes per game. Luke Walton, Sasha Vujacic, Josh Powell, Adam Morrison, and Mbenga all saw less playing time than Farmar. Both of these players were their team’s respective back up point guards. The Spurs depth simply out classed each of their opponents, having only seen a six game series once, against Utah, on their way to the championship. Ten of the Spurs’ 12 players played in at least 18 games with eight playing in all 20. Eight of the Lakers’ players from last season appeared in all 23 of their playoff games; however, five of them only appeared in 16 or fewer of them.

Yes, rotations get shorter in the post season. It only makes since for a coach to play his best players more so that the team performs at a higher level when the stakes are greatest. This is a no brainer. Nor should Josh Powell be expected to play near as many minutes as Kobe Bryant. This is not what I am trying to say. What I am stating is that the Spurs team in 2007 breaks the argument that roster depth does not mean a thing in the playoffs. They proved that it does. Yes, Tony Parker and Tim Duncan logged the most minutes on the team but they were not forced to play 40 or more minutes a game because they had help coming off the bench who could maintain the same level of pressure on an opponent without any catastrophic decline in the team’s overall performance on the court.

Is the standard championship model based on the superstar, his sidekick, and a role player or two. For now it appears to be that way. This level of thinking is amateurish, though. The Spurs proved that in 2007. No, my example does not squash the two star player championship combination but it proves that an extended rotation is more valuable than it is generally believed. Ignoring the benefits of roster depth is to fail to grasp the entire point of a roster at all. Basketball is a team game no matter how much the media focuses on individual players. The Lakers are not about Kobe Bryant, they are about the triangle offense in which the team plays. There is absolutely every reason for a general manager to sign players who can come off the bench and replace starters while helping improve the quality of the team. This is why the Lakers signed Blake, Barnes, and Ratliff. (I think the Ratliff signing was in part because they expect Bynum to continue to underachieve and remain perennially injured.) It is why teams like Dallas signed Tyson Chandler. They do not want to see a performance dropoff when their starters leave the floor. A good second unit is a valuable thing to have, especially during the regular season when they can help you get wins to secure seeding in the playoffs.

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by | July 31, 2010 · 8:28 PM

NBA: Free Agency, News, Notes, Trades, Judaism & More

Together at last

As the first full month of full-fledged free agency mayhem draws to a close, we here at the Beef bring you yet another update of what has transpired since our last posting on the subject as well as trades, a few other musings, and bits of news. It is hard to believe that free agency has only been going on since July 1 with so much that has happened so far. It seems like the events that have taken place in the span of one month could fill a span of six months. Without further adieu here are the latest moves:

Movement:

Last time we wrote on the subject of Matt Barnes his future remained in limbo as the Toronto Raptors did not think to adjust for currency exchange rates, or for that matter even look at their cap room, when attempting to acquire him. Barnes, the Canadian faithful believed, would make the team tougher. With this belief the Raptor’s fan base revealed their subconscious belief that what Bryan Colangelo is not meeting with their full approval. (Chris Bosh may have relaxed on the team in the final months but Colangelo is the one to be blamed for not fostering a constructive and successful atmosphere.) Bringing in a player who now gets spotty minutes and frequently sits out games because of an ailing back is a rather unlikely candidate to make a team any tougher. Oh, Canada. At least Torontonians can take solace in their consolation prize, David Andersen. Andersen easily qualifies as the poor man’s Brian Cardinal but since he is Australian it would translate more like this: David Andersen, Australian for Brain Cardinal.

Where the Raptors have failed the Los Angeles Lakers have succeeded. Kobe Bryant, after being denied by Raja Bell, was still on his quest to bring veteran defense to Hollywood. Bryant certainly did not “flinch” at the opportunity in front of him and the Lakers. He found Matt Barnes in his state of limbo and set forth to woo him with the notion of a ring and the Lakers’ remaining $1.8 million of their midlevel exception. One of the NBA’s better known journeymen (he has played on eight teams in eight seasons) is coming home to L.A. Barnes signed a two year deal worth $1.77 million in the first year with a player option worth almost $2 million in his second year. This signing could be seen as another stinging blow that Bryant has dealt the Raptors in his career (*cough* 81 points *cough*) but chalk it up to bad front office management by the Raptors.

The same day that the Lakers signed Barnes, aging veteran Theo Ratliff, signed a one year deal worth $1.35 million. (Do not tell Dale Davis though, he may expect a knock on his door next.) This acquisition could not have come at a better time for the Lakers as Luke Walton appears to be on the cusp of missing the entire 2010-11 season and Andrew Bynum has just had another knee surgery.  It seems like Bynum has had surgery on his knee or had it drained at least once for every year he has been alive by now. Ratliff now has the opportunity to become fast friends with Josh Powell, D.J. Mbenga, Adam Morrison at the end of the Lakers bench.

While the Lakers have been keen at adding pieces to their bench they have also made an effort to unload many of the pieces that we so fondly belittle here at the Beef. Currently, Los Angeles is trying to trade Sasha Vujacic. If they could unload him it would free up room to help entice Shannon Brown, whose overhyped abilities do not work at all in the triangle, to stay with the team. It has been reported that Brown has received an offer from the New York Knicks worth around $4 million a year. That would be a lot of money to turn down for a player who would likely only get spot minutes behind Steve Blake next season.

Just when you thought that David Kahn was done associating the Minnesota Timberwolves with any more point guards, he goes and trades for two more. To Kahn, point guards are pets, not quite domesticated, however. With Jonny Flynn missing three to four months after hip surgery maybe Kahn was actually the cunning one for the first time. Minnesota finally unloaded Ramon Sessions (it was well known that they had every intention to do so for some time) and packaged Ryan Hollins in a deal with the Cleveland Cavaliers for Delonte West and Sebastian Telfair. Yet, as is Kahn’s way (he is a madman), the trade is never to be taken at face value. It is likely that the Timberwolves will waive West because his contract is not guaranteed and then try and move Telfair. Kahn is after something, he is going after it with everything he has got as if it were a white whale or the genesis device. What the end goal actually is, only Kahn knows. For now the fans of the Timberwolves will have to remain trapped deep within Regula with only a glimmer of hope and where hours can seem like days.

Eddie House in an effort to remain somewhat relevant has chosen to follow the lead of many other has-been players and ride the coattails of the Miami Thrice. House joins Shavlik Randolph and Carlos Arroyo as the latest recruits to join the Miami Heat. The Heat now have a full 15 man roster and are ready to start the season. As a fantasy basketball roster, the Heat have constructed a mediocre lineup aside from four or five players. Despite this, there will likely be quite a number of W’s for this team in the coming season.

In what equates to a loss for the Dallas Mavericks will translate into a huge win for the Bay Area. Jeremy Lin, the Summer League standout who overshadowed John Wall in their matchup, has signed with the Golden State Warriors. Harvard University is known for graduating future presidents, Nobel laureates, and Supreme Court justices but Jeremy Lin is following another path after graduating from the prestigious institution. He becomes just the fourth player to play in the NBA after attending Harvard, and the first in 57 years. The others were Wyndol Gray, Saul Mariaschin, and Ed Smith. Lin grew up in Palo Alto, California which is 26 miles from Oakland so his joining the Warriors is a homecoming of sorts and has the Bay Area rather jubilant. Also joining the Warriors is Jannero Pargo who inked a two-year deal worth $2.4 million.

Lin proved that he is NBA material with his play during the Summer League

It is unfortunate that Don Nelson appears to be on his way out in Golden State once Joe Lacob, the Warriors future co-owner along with Larry Ellison (I have beef with Ellison dating back to high school, ask about it later), gets his mitts on the team. Lacob has publicly stated that “It’s not really whether Nellie is here this year or not. He’s not going to be here beyond this year, that is clear.” So obviously the writing is on the wall, not only that but it is bold, red, and embossed as well. It is a shame that that is the case. We here at the Beef have poked fun at Nelson’s coaching style and his losing ways but there is something do be said about the way he schemes and plays the most frenetic small ball in the league. Just think of a lineup with Monta Ellis, Stephen Curry, Jannero Pargo/Jeremy Lin, Ekpe Udoh, and David Lee on the court.  That would be pure madness; it would be pure Nellie. At least on video games, the Warriors will still be fun once Nelson has been forced to pack his bags.

Josh Howard seems to be adhering to the trend of former team bashing. Howard has stated that the Wizards have given him the opportunity to play his game that he was never given previously. The one time Maverick signed a one year deal with the Washington Wizards that could net him $4 million if he meets certain incentives. Howard had surgery in mid-March and is on schedule to be ready for the start of the season, according to his agent, Derek Lafayette, but there has been no official word about when he will actually return. To resign Howard, Washington was forced to release James Singleton. Also on the injury front for the Wizards, newly acquired forward, Yi Jianlian, has injured his arm while playing in a competition in China. 哦!

Other signings:

Will Bynum has resigned with the Detroit Pistons, Joey Graham has signed with the Cavaliers, and Von Wafer has signed with the Celtics. The signing of Wafer is likely a response to Tony Allen’s departure to Memphis. Instead of coming back to the NBA and coat-tailing like Eddie House, Stephon Marbury has spurned the Heat preferring instead to sign a three-year deal with Shanxi Zhongyu in China. (There are contradicting stories about whether the Heat actually approached Marbury about signing with the team, but I’m going to give Starbury the benefit of the doubt. Miami needed players bad for a while.) It’s all about the Chairman Mao’s, baby!

Roots:

Shalom

This week Amar’e Stoudemire discovered that he has some Jewish heritage on his mother’s side and has traveled to Israel to learn more. According to ESPN’s Marc Stein, Stoudemire has shown interest in Judaism for some time and recently had a Star of David tattooed on his hand. This new tattoo should go along quite nicely with the prominent “Black Jesus” that he has tattooed on his neck. With the news of Stoudemire’s newly found Jewish roots the Knicks have successfully pulled off one of the greatest marketing coups that any sport has ever seen; too bad for them that he will spend the last few years of his playing career in either Orlando or Miami. (I kid, I kid!)

Team USA:

The team trimmed its roster down from 19 to 15 players this week. On the chopping block were Tyreke Evans, O.J. Mayo, JaVale McGee, and Gerald Wallace. Team USA begins training camp August 10 in New York City.

Shaq:

Shaquille O’Neal was once a professional basketball player. Now the “Big Aristotle” is just a reality television star who occasionally sings songs with Justin Bieber.

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by | March 9, 2010 · 4:10 PM

Land O Lakers Not So Buttery Smooth After All

Trouble in Lakerland? Does the current skid belie certain problems with team chemistry including overall motivation and effort? The analysts across the web and television spectrum seem certain of it now. Especially with their recent three game skid. But to what extent are the commentators, prognosticators, pencil pushers, number crunchers, and casual viewers right and do they see the whole picture? All of this attention will certainly die down, as much as it can with the press and national coverage the Lakers garner, if the team strings together a nice run to close the regular season. Yet, much still is ignored and forgotten while television ratings and short memories reign supreme. What is really going on behind the scenes?

I have said most of the season that the Lakers are a paper tiger. (This being my first entry about the Lakers only my friends can honestly attest to this claim). No, it is not because I am bitter with those teams that hold championships and rings. It is much more. The Lakers, to start the season, played 20 of 31 games at the Staples Center (I’m not counting “road” games against the Clippers) from October 27 through December 29. By far, this was the most favorable beginning season schedule that Emperor Stern and the Association provided. To the victors go the spoils. Early season favoritism by the schedule makers catapulted the Lakers to the top of the standings in the West. During their home stay they also rattled off an eleven game win streak from November 17 to December 11. Only one of the games was on the road, at Golden State on November 28. The rest of the West was left as an afterthought and the Lakers stole the conversations and the spotlight leading no one to seriously question their return to the NBA Finals.

However, things are not always as they seem. More was going on in Tinseltown than the press and NBA wished to look into. Early season triumph at home has begun its sea change to late season road troubles. The Lakers have lost four road games in a row beginning with a 101-96 loss on 24 February at Dallas. To close out the season the season the Lakers have 11 of their remaining 18 games on the road. Of these 11 games, which include a stretch of 5 road games in a row from March 24-31, five are against quality playoff opponents: Phoenix, San Antonio, Oklahoma City, Atlanta, and Denver. Four of their home games will be against teams scrapping for favorable playoff seeding. These are Toronto (tonight), Utah, San Antonio (Despite losing Parker for six weeks I still expect them to play well. George Hill is no slouch) and Portland. That’s half their remaining schedule against playoff bound teams.

Recently, the Lakers have played to a level that they have not during the Gasol era. They lost three games in a row. This is not the big story, though. Looking further one can see that the Lakers have lost five of their last nine games all while being at full health. Watching the game against the Magic it was clear that the Lakers lack the focus that is needed to beat certain teams. Focus issues appear to be running rampant throughout the team, even after Kobe’s “Come to Jesus” speech. Ball movement has completely stagnated over the last five losses with Kobe’s seven assists against Orlando being the Lakers highpoint as the team totaled only 16 dimes in forty eight minutes. Against the Bobcats and the Heat they totaled 15 assists in each game. Against the Heat they had an extra five minute frame to play and still the assist total was this low. The Lakers totaled 19 assists against the Mavericks, which was their highest total in the five losses, to go a long with 17 turnovers. Playing at home against Boston their total assist production on the evening was a lowly 14 to go along with 10 turnovers. The average assist high for a Lakers’ player during those losses was four: Artest with four vs. Charlotte, Bryant against Miami, and Shannon Brown in the loss to Boston. Derek Fisher and Lamar Odom had five apiece in the loss to the Mavericks. Four of the five losses came on the road and all of the losses came against playoff teams. Kobe cannot do it all. He certainly tried in the fourth quarter against the Magic though. Is it wise to let Kobe take over? History would remind us that it is not. (Kobe’s incredible, mind-blowing, and downright stupid sick 81 points against Toronto aside. That was a different team.) The Lakers play better as a team, not as a man despite what Sports Center’s Top 10 would have us believe. Kobe’s efficiency rating is not as high as one might think. He is not in the top 10. He ranks 14th teammate Pau Gasol ranks higher at 11th. He shoots .458 from the floor, nice; but only .316 from downtown, ugly. Do Phil Jackson and the Lakers really want to shut it down and hand the ball to Kobe every possession with the game on the line? I wouldn’t. Kobe, as good as he is, I believe him to be one of the best of all time, and the Lakers relationship works well when he is the facilitator and the distributor. Case and point: the recent win over Denver. Kobe went 3-17 from the floor but dropped 12 dimes and had a +/- of +11. He knew he wasn’t getting his shot so he backed into the post and fed dive cutters and kicked out if a double team came. If you are going to lean on Kobe at least do it in a productive manner.

It's hard to swallow the fact that even Adam Morrison got a ring on the Lakers' bench in '09.

When Kobe facilitates the mediocre, at best, bench (outside of Odom) he can actually be productive even if only slightly more than normal. Jordan Farmar’s recent games resemble that of a rollercoaster. In the last 5 games his point production ranges from 19 in a blowout win against the Pacers to 0 in the game against the Magic. Outside of spotting scoring, Farmar contributes little if anything else offensively or defensively. The overhype machine that is Shannon Brown is slightly more consistent than Farmar. Over the past 5 games he has averaged 6.8 points, his high of 12 also coming against the lowly (sorry, but it is true) Pacers. Other than the steady low scoring output he is good for a steal a game. Adam Morrison. That’s it, nothing there other than a name on a roster. Pretty soon he is going to change his name to DNPCD. How does he have a ring? Josh Powell, his numbers do not honestly reflect his hustle. I like the guy. He was drafted by the Mavericks. Yet, over the last 5 games you will find just slightly more than tumbleweeds when you dust off his box score. D.J. Mbenga: see above description of Josh Powell. Luke Walton: kid can pass. He can also drain an occasional 3 pointer which is sure to cause a groan from the opposing team’s fans but as for right now he continues to ride the pine with injuries. (He must have inherited that from his dad). Too bad too, I was looking forward to seeing that Grateful Dead tattoo in action again. These are the players that the Lakers rely on coming off their bench. Yes, they have Odom (odd that he isn’t in 6th Man talk), he is key to the functions of the entire team on both sides of the ball. But outside of him there is not a whole lot to lean on when the playoffs roll around.

When the playoffs do eventually roll around, as they do yearly, the Lakers should be glad that they will most likely have a home court advantage throughout the West playoffs. The Lakers have a decent road win-loss record of 17-13, not impressive but above .500 nonetheless. Of their wins on the road they have beat just seven teams that, if they started today, would be in the playoffs. These teams are the Bulls, Bucks, and Celtics in the East and Thunder, Mavericks, Trail Blazers, and Jazz in the West. The victories against the Bucks and Mavericks came before each team improved dramatically before the trade deadline. Out of 17 wins only seven have come against a quality opponent. But who have they lost to? In their 13 road losses they have lost to 10 teams that would make the playoffs if they started today. In the East they are the Cavaliers (who they have not beaten this year), Raptors, Heat, and Orlando. Out in the West the teams they have lost to are the Nuggets, Jazz, Suns, Trail Blazers, Spurs, and Mavericks. That is six of the eight teams that will make the playoffs in the West. These are the teams that the Lakers will have to face just to get to the finals. This brings the Lakers road record against quality teams to 7-10. Those numbers shouldn’t make anyone scream championship.

The Lakers have a lot to prove to themselves and skeptics like me over the remaining 18 games of the season. Should their play and confidence continue to falter against other playoff teams, there is no reason to believe that they should go far in the playoffs. Numbers and star-power are never true indicators of how a team will perform in the postseason.  What it comes down to is if the team is emotionally capable of handling the pressure (or the referees dictating the game).  A six-man rotation is certainly not the ideal for a team that was handpicked to win it all or at least come out of the West as the favorites. As for now the paper tiger is growling the loudest in Los Angeles.

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