Shaq to change uniforms again

Has Shaq done it again.

Is Shaquille O’Neal up for “Rent a NBA Title”?

You get the Shaq, you win a title, and then you wait for someone to take him off your hands.

Quick quiz: What is missing from the Phoenix Doughnuts…er…Suns.

Answer: a center!

Quick quiz number 2: What is Shaq?

Answer: a center!

Are we starting to see the logic here?

No longer confident they can win a championship with their current roster, the Phoenix Suns are close to completing a blockbuster trade that will bring them Shaquille O’Neal, a source with knowledge of the negotiations said Tuesday.

O’Neal is scheduled to travel to Phoenix aboard a private plane Wednesday, the source said, to undergo an MRI on his ailing left hip. If he passes the physical, the Suns will complete the trade by sending Shawn Marion and Marcus Banks to the Miami Heat. source

This would allow Amare Stoudemire to move over to power forward. Although some tweaking of the Sun’s small ball run all the time offense may have to happen.

The trade represents a dramatic change for the Suns, whose run-and-gun, small-ball style had revolutionized the league in recent seasons. That same style, however, had failed to bring the Suns a championship, and team officials had become increasingly skeptical about their chances of contending without giving Amare Stoudemire some help on the front line.

The Lakers picking up Pau Gasol and moving to the head of the Western Conference list of favorites could be yesterday’s news.

Kobe Bryant thought Pau Gasol was taking him over the top. Now Phoenix general manager Steve Kerr has told the Western Conference, ”I see your Gasol and raise you one Shaq.” Shaq’s style doesn’t work in Phoenix? Taking passes from Nash kind of works for anyone. And dunking and shooting 60 percent fits just about anywhere.

The Suns need a center. The Suns get a center.

Look out Lakers!

NBA Basketball Fan Question Will Shaq be effective in Phoenix?

As always, any NBA Basketball related comments are welcome.

More blogs about basketball.

Post from: NBA Obsessed

Pau Gasol brings scoring to the Lakers

The Lakers essentially traded less than nothing to the Lakers for Pau Gasol.

In an unbelievable pickup the Lakers are right back in the hunt for the NBA Championship.

Wait a minute, is Pau that good?

No, but that is the beauty of it all, Pau Gasol does not have to be that good.

Right now he is a fill in for Andrew Bynum. When Bynum gets back you have a Pau Gasol that can put up points in the triangle offense, get some rebounds, give the Lakers more length, and present a mismatch on the floor at all times.

Have you ever seen this guy play?

He has a funky release on his jump shot, but it consistently goes in. Pau can knock down mid-range after mid-range jump shot with that funky release.

Other GM’s in the league are shaking their heads.

Around the league, the reaction of executives and coaches was unanimous: What a nightmare for us. When reached with the news, one Western Conference executive said simply, “Are you kidding? (Expletive) me.” source

They just realized that you will not get Kobe in a trade from the Lakers, he is going nowhere now and that the Lakers are for real. Suddenly Lamar Odom is a distant fourth option on this team.

Kobe celebrated by putting up 47 points on the Raptors.

David Stern

Think of the wild thoughts going through the Commissioner’s head right now. He has the golden memories of all those Boston LA series with Larry Bird of the Big Three vs. Magic Johnson and Kareem Jabbar.

Now, Stern is thinking Kevin Garnett of the Big Three (Ray Allen, Paul Pierce) vs. Kobe Bryant and Andrew Bynum.

Stern is smart enough to see he role the Pau plays in this and also to see the immense marketing dollars.

Funny how a single trade of a guy that no one was talking about can change things so quickly.

As for Memphis? They are just unloading salary and cleaning house. They are pathetic and know it. Time to start over.

NBA Basketball Fan Question Has Mitch Kupchak delivered?

As always, any NBA Basketball related comments are welcome.

More blogs about basketball.

Post from: NBA Obsessed

LeBron James has the Cavaliers looking up!

This game came down to the last nine seconds.

You knew who was going to get the ball, but the result was not what you thought.

Kobe never got the shot off.

Final Score Cavaliers 98 – Lakers 95.

Final Stats LeBron 41 points – Kobe 33 points.

Luke Walton fumbled one of the pass exchanges and it cost the Lakers a chance for a heroic Kobe 3 pointer to tie the game.

That was the game decider, but not the game.

With LeBron James and Larry Hughes patrolling the 3-point line like armed guards with attack dogs, Bryant dished off to Luke Walton. James closed and Walton’s brain cramped. He fired the ball back to Bryant, who was unable to even get a shot off as time expired in the Cavs’ thrilling 98-95 victory on Sunday afternoon at Staples Center.

For a team taking pride in its resurgent defense, it’s tough to play it better than that. source

What the game was all about

The game was about two Superstars of the NBA trying to lift their teams to new heights without powerful surrounding casts.

James is averaging a league- leading 29.6 points on 48.1 percent shooting one season after leading the Cavaliers to the NBA Finals for the first time in the franchise’s inglorious history.

Bryant, the league’s two-time defending scoring champion, is second behind James so far this season with an average of 27.7points on 44.8 percent shooting. He has adjusted his game somewhat to better fit the Lakers’ newfound balance in 2007-08. He is playing fewer minutes and scoring fewer points. source

Just a perfect Sunday afternoon marquee matchup.

The Cavaliers and LeBron won this one, but it could have easily gone the other way. The Lakers were leading by 9 with 8 minutes left. Varejao had sprained his ankle and then Ilgauskas fouled out.

LeBron brought them to victory, but the key was moving Ira Newble from shooting guard to power forward. Ira spoke about is versatility as being an important factor for his team in the post game interviews and he was certainly right tonight.

So Drew Gooden became the center, Newble became the power forward, James stayed at small forward with guards Hughes and Daniel “Boobie” Gibson.

“It’s crazy — start at the two, finish at the four,” Newble said with a grin. “What helps me do that is just playing hard. When you play hard, everything else falls into place.” source

Not hard to see Cleveland’s lack of depth with that lineup.

LeBron kept talking team defense in the post game interview, but really it was mostly LeBron and Kobe on this afternoon and what could be better?

NBA Basketball Fan Question Will Cleveland be able to make a playoff run this year?

As always, any NBA Basketball related comments are welcome.

More blogs about basketball.

Post from: NBA Obsessed

Jordan and Kobe, old Bull and future Bull?

Ok, ok, Lamar had a good night and the Lakers took down the Bulls. So what?

Lamar had 17 points and 16 rebounds. Good for him, no knock on Lamar.

But you know, nobody cares about that, because tomorrow Lamar goes back to being an undersized center or an inconsistent power forward.

You just want to know the latest Kobe rumor.

Hey, did you hear Kobe is going to…

Meanwhile, Kobe was slowed down a little.

Slowed by a groin injury, Bryant scored 18 points but was a non-factor for long stretches against the team he targeted as a possible destination during the offseason.

“Everybody’s contributing and playing well,” Bryant said. “It makes the game fun.” source

Why Kobe should be a Bull

Ok, here is the beef. The Bulls are 8 – 14 mired in the basement of the Central Division. And let’s face it; the Central is loaded with solid teams. In other words, the Bulls may be going nowhere.

Now LA is having a pretty good season, but they are not strong enough or deep enough to go anywhere in the playoffs.

Now you have your facts. So what is holding up a trade of Kobe to the Bulls?

Deng dang ding a ling dang

The Lakers want Luol Deng. Is Luol Deng going to rescue the Bulls? No, he is not.

Is Deng such a good young player that you have to hold on to him? Not for the right opportunity to improve.

Think of Kobe and Ben Gordon sharing that backcourt for the Bulls and the defensive mindset brought by the Bulls by Coach Scotty Skiles and former Piston Ben Wallace.

Gentlemen, the Eastern Conference has room for a strong Bulls team to do some playoff damage.

Kobe too risky?

Chicago has been praised so much for their careful rebuilding of the franchise that they seem incapable of pulling off the big move. They are caught up in their carefulness, if that is even a word. Chicago would be afraid to use that word, because it might not be a word. Too much risk.

Chicago Bulls, you need to trade for Kobe now!

NBA Basketball Fan Question Would you trade for Kobe, if you were Chicago?

Visit my companion blog on the NFL at Squibkick.com

As always, any NBA Basketball related comments are welcome.

More blogs about basketball.

Post from: NBA Obsessed

Ha! The rumors were flying and Kobe was to be a Bull.

Not going to happen.

That is, if you listen to Jon Paxson, GM of the Chicago Bulls.

“There’s not a deal done,” he said Thursday. “There’s not going to be a deal done.”
Paxson said they discussed “parameters,” but the sides “never got down to the nuts and bolts of it because there was never a deal to be done.”

Paxson’s comments came a day after a flurry of rumors. Speculation picked up Wednesday, with one report saying the Bulls, Kings and Lakers were discussing a three-way deal that would bring the superstar to Chicago.

That scenario had Paxson sending Ben Gordon and a signed-and-traded P.J. Brown to Sacramento, with former Piston Ben Wallace of the Bulls and Ron Artest of the Kings heading to Los Angeles. Paxson dismissed the rumor, saying a deal involving Brown would send the Bulls over the luxury tax threshold. source

Hmm, where there is smoke there is fire, right? Especially in California these days. Luxury tax is not going to stop this deal or any other deal for Kobe.

Seems more likely that the Bulls would lose both veteran big men for Kobe at a time when the Lakers might have a hard time demanding top dollar for him.

The rumors won’t stop and we love rumors.

According to the Chicago Tribune one of the many trade rumors involving Kobe Bryant of the Los Angeles Lakers this week, included the Phoenix Suns, who wanted to gauge the Bulls’ interest in trading Thabo Sefolosha and other considerations as part of a package to send Bryant to the Bulls and likely Shawn Marion to the Lakers. source

Hmm, the Suns would strengthen the Lakers with Marion? Doubtful.

Here is yet another trade rumor.

Lakers vice president Magic Johnson said the deal isn’t going to happen.

”A deal can’t get done because they won’t include [Luol] Deng,” Johnson said Tuesday on TNT. ”And without Deng, a deal can’t get done.” source

No Deng, no deal. Well, deng it all, what is it going to take?

Today, Kobe is still a Laker.

NBA Basketball Fan Question Who do you think will land Kobe?

Visit my companion blog on the NFL at Squibkick.com

As always, any NBA Basketball related comments are welcome.

More blogs about basketball.

Post from: NBA Obsessed