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The Pulse of the NBA - Week 6
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By Andy Roth
Contributing Editor
Recent Articles
Where Politically Correct Opinions Get Rejected
New York, NY (Sports Network) -
MIAMI HEAT
I guess we can end the debate on whether or not the Heat will break the Chicago
Bulls' single-season NBA record of 72 wins. But I also think it's safe to say
that this team isn't a serious title contender. You don't win championships
with two bad starters (Zydrunas Ilgauskas and Carlos Arroyo) in your lineup and
without having an inside presence on the defensive and offensive end. I also
think the sum isn't as good as the individual parts when it comes to the
pairing of LeBron James and Dwyane Wade. Both players are used to dominating
the ball and at their best when it's in their hands. Neither one is comfortable
playing off the ball, and when one of them has it, the other one basically
turns into a jump shooter. Tracy McGrady, whose game was much like James and
Wade when he was in his prime, echoed those same sentiments recently. "When
they're on the court together they're terrible. They're rhythm players like me.
I'm like that. I can't stand out there and catch and shoot. I've never been a
guy that sits out there waiting for the ball to come to me."
NEW YORK KNICKS
Rookie Landry Fields, who was selected 39th overall, looks like he was clearly
the steal of the 2010 draft. And I'll go one step further. He may turn out to
be the best player in this draft not named John Wall. He plays with amazing
composure for a rookie and obviously has an extremely high basketball IQ. There
are no weaknesses to his game and he just seems to have a great feel for it. He
certainly has a knack for the ball as he leads all NBA guards in rebounding
with 7.3 per game, which includes a 17-rebound performance among his six,
double-digit rebounding games
.
Fields' contributions have helped the Knicks get off to a 12-9 start, which
currently includes a seven-game road winning streak and four games overall. But
giddy Knicks fans should temper their enthusiasm because I believe a big
reality check is right around the corner. So far, they've mainly feasted off
weak teams, but for a one month period beginning December 12th against the
Nuggets, the majority of the 14-game stretch is against high quality clubs.
Only two of their wins this season have come against teams who are currently
above .500 (Bulls, Hornets), and New Orleans played without their leading
scorer David West.
NEW ORLEANS HORNETS
After opening the season with an 11-1 record, the Hornets are starting to show
major cracks in their armor, having dropped six of their last eight. A good
deal of their early success can be attributed to their play on the defensive
end. The Hornets rank fifth in the NBA in points allowed, giving up just 92.7
ppg. But their deficiencies on offense (94.9 ppg, 23rd in the NBA), along with
a very weak bench, are starting to be a big problem and it's getting worse as
the season progresses. In their last nine games the Hornets scoring average has
dropped to 89.8. Because New Orleans is having so much trouble putting the ball
in the basket, I think Chris Paul (16.2 ppg) has to look for his shot a lot
more than he has. He just can't be a playmaker on this team. He's got to have
the mindset of a Derrick Rose (25.7 ppg) or Deron Williams (21.6ppg), who are
much more aggressive in looking to score the ball.
CHICAGO BULLS
The Bulls welcomed Carlos Boozer back to the lineup after he missed the first
15 games of the season with a broken bone in his right hand. But the results
weren't too pretty as they were fortunate to win one of three games. The first
two games were big tests against two of the elite teams in the Eastern
Conference and they failed both miserably, losing by an embarrassing 29 points
at home to the Magic and then being clearly outplayed in a 12-point loss in
Boston. The only win came at home in overtime against an undermanned Rockets
team, and the Bulls needed a 3-pointer at the buzzer at the end of regulation
to force the extra session.
PHILADELPHIA 76ERS
Rookie Evan Turner's poor play forced head coach Doug Collins to remove him
from the starting lineup in favor of second-year player Jodie Meeks. Turner has
showed some flashes of why the Sixers selected him second overall, but for the
most part he's really struggled as a pro going back to his poor summer league
play. He was used to having the ball in his hands most of the time at Ohio
State, and is really struggling playing off the ball in the NBA. He seems to be
a tweener, who doesn't have the skills to be a high level point guard or
shooting guard. Meeks, by the way, put up 26 points in his second game in the
starting lineup, hitting on 7-of-10 from 3-point range.
NEW JERSEY NETS
Brook Lopez is supposed to be the centerpiece of this young club that is
rebuilding, but I'm beginning to wonder if he'll reach the levels expected of
him. His standout games are usually against teams that are very weak in the
middle, and his rebounding has been atrocious (6.2 rpg). He's had just two
double-digit rebound games this season and needed triple overtime in one of
them to reach that mark. There's no excuse for a seven-footer who weighs 265
pounds to be this bad off the boards.
Andy Roth covered the Knicks for NBC Radio and AP Radio for eleven years and
was an NBA Columnist for Celtics Pride Magazine for two years. He's covered
many of the major sporting events, including the Super Bowl, World Series, NBA
Finals, U.S. Open Tennis and Golf.
Copyright
2010
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