Oakley Cafe

When you speak of unrealized potential in the NBA, former player Keon Clark has to come to mind. As a player he defied any sort of categorical classification with regard to position. He weighed next to nothing. He liked drugs. He left us with too few highlights from a heavily blemished career.

Regardless

"Move, trick. Get out the way."

Some things which excite me before the coming 2008-09 NBA season:

-Nathan Jawai's health. Did Colangelo pick up a Mike Sweetney character here? Is his blood-type Dr. Pepper? This guy is a year younger than I am, is a professional athlete, and has cardiac problems. Jawai might have Eddy Curry-syndrome.

-Jose Calderon getting full burn in Toronto. Is Calderon more effective as a spark plug off the bench? Can he progress from last year's breakout season?

-Greg Oden. Part of me feels like he'll be his generation's Bill Walton. Which could bury a promising TrailBlazers franchise.

-Darius Miles, namely how long it'll take before he starts sweating red wine in practice.

-Clippers fans. Expect some big names to fill up the courtside seats at atrocious Clippers home guys while they support their new best friend, Baron.

-Like any year, the shitty teams. I can't wait for the Jefferson-Love-Miller era in Minnesota or the Gay-Mayo era in Memphis. Wow, Gay-Mayo. That's great.

-Denver Nuggets. I fully don't expect them to make the Western Conference playoffs, but with Camby out of town, an already dismal defense gets even worse. What's the over/under on how many times they give up 135+ points? I think a 9.5 makes things interesting.

White Boy

In the late 90s the Sacramento Kings became one of the league's great teams - and ultimately one of its underaccomplished - due partly to Jason Williams arrival. Catching the Kings on national television now became easy. Here was a team both charismatic and reckless, balanced and flawed. For the start of the 1998-99 season, Jason Williams and Paul Pierce were the early favourites for Rookie of the Year before Vince Carter usurped their spots at the top of the rookie class. Regardless, Williams netted a spot on the NBA All-Rookie First Team with his flash and style. Whether by side-arming no-look passes or crossing over opposing point guards, the Kings became must-watch NBA basketball. None of us wanted to miss his next highlight.

Which is why Jason Williams' (affectionately known as White Chocolate) retirement from the NBA, just yesterday, is as underwhelming as the eventual plight of those cherished Kings teams. There's that old Neil Young line (it's a bit overused I realize, but I digress), "It's better to burn out than to fade away." And Williams did fade away. He managed to sign on with the Clippers this summer, during, what was for him, a quiet off-season of free agency. The news of his retirement will barely register with most sportscasts, though at one time his jersey was the highest-selling of any NBA player.

What I remember about Williams is that he made the pass cool. For ninth-grade basketball players, most of whom could barely touch the rim, we took unprecedented levels of influence from his game. Granted, we were taking influence of that infamous, reckless style, but scoring was no longer the most important aspect to the game. If we could fire a no-look pass with flair, that was just as good.

During English class in Grade ten, my teacher requested the class write a report on someone who greatly influenced our lives. Not wanting to go with the requisite choices of Pierre Trudeau or Martin Luther King Jr., I chose Jason Williams. A guy who was suspended from the University of Florida towards the end of his collegiate career for smoking pot. A guy who was the Eminem of basketball. He was a little misunderstood, a little trailer park trash, but his game was undeniably fun to watch. A logical choice for an impressionable NBA junkie. At one point his Kings team was the only in the league to average over 100 points per game. Offense was going down the tubes and Williams did his best to keep it alive. Shockingly I received an outstanding grade for the report.

When Williams ended up on the Memphis Grizzlies, his individual play flourished. Hubie Brown did his best to tame J-Will's wild tendencies. The reckless point guard was now among the league leaders in assist-to-turnover ratio. He posted his best statistical season as a Grizzly. But we all tuned out. The half-court bounce passes were few and far between. I have no idea how to sum up the career of a guy like Williams. He faded away, my support diminished. Though I always felt a twinge of excitement when Williams came in for the Heat and occasionally launched up some ill-advised three-pointers. There was a joy to his game that wasn't really conducive to the pro game. Here I'll leave you with a video of some moments in a difficult, and awe-inspiring, career:

Formatting

The NBA dunk contest continually ranks as one of the top moments in any NBA season and the hallmark event of All-Star Weekend. (As much as I enjoy Bill Laimbeer and Michael Cooper tanking half-court shots with WNBA players whose team names elude me at the moment...) My first memories of the dunk contest are as follows: the older guys at school putting the ball through their legs and sorta-dunking on the monkey bars a la Isaiah Rider (no word on whether they emulated anything from Rider's personal life); and watching my first televised dunk contest, the year in which Brent Barry defied the racial odds and beat out such NBA luminaries as Jerry Stackhouse & Michael Finley. (Rick got the scoring prowess, Brent the hops, Jon the, uh, broadcasting skills?)

For any basketball fan who is beginning, in childhood, to take awe of the game and its freakish levels of athleticism, the dunk contest becomes an annual event of pure indulgence: for a moment we take away all the notions of 'proper' basketball - as preached by coaches at any level - and eschew its constrictions in favour of basketball's equivalent of candy. The game frequently dazzles on any given night, but there's also the final three minutes of a game (which take a good twenty to thirty minutes to complete), the lackadaisical beginnings of the third quarter, and the overall gamesmanship (READ: defense) which requires teams to put away any notions of the spectacular.

Vince Carter, in an interview with the Toronto media several years ago, said he was going to stop dunking. That two points were two points. That, basically, dunking was a frivolous skill. (At this point, Vince was already wildly unpopular with the Toronto media and, days later, was dunking during games.) And sure, he's right - a dunk and a lay-in are worth the same on the score sheet. But a lay-in doesn't inspire, nor does it make the highlight reels or ensure any level of endorsement. The foundation of basketball is built on the spectacular.

My cynical eleven-year-old self noted that Barry, in his winning foul-line dunk, had technically taken off from inside the line, if one were going by the location of his toes. Yet it was still the stuff that sent kids to their six or seven-foot rims.

Over the years the dunk contest has gone through some great highs and the occasional lull, but the same enthusiastic sentiment remains. However, if I could find one fault in the current system, it's that the NBA is doing everything to discourage its superstars from participating. Sure, we occasionally get players like Dwight Howard and Amare Stoudamire, but we've had some underwhelming winners, players like Gerald Green who don't see any significant NBA minutes. The Dunk Contest, I believe, should be about the best dunkers in the league. So yes, Green deserves a spot. But there are players like Lebron James who possess otherworldly athletic abilities and vertical leap, yet would never go near the dunk contest, and frankly, are afraid to do so.

In the dunk contest years post-Carter (there's room for another jab at VC), the superstar player has shown apprehension with taking part. Let's take a look at Carter's dunk contest year: Vince Carter, Steve Francis, Tracy McGrady, Jerry Stackhouse, Ricky Davis, and Larry Hughes all participated. Regardless of how we all feel about their respective talents, the fact remains that four all-stars competed in that competition and two elite-level players. The contestants from 2008 featured Dwight Howard (a superstar), Rudy Gay (nice sophomore player), Gerald Green (one year from a career in Italy), and Jamario Moon (energy player, ultimately nothing special).

Another point: Jordan participated in the dunk contest on three occasions, Dominique Wilkens an astonishing five times. Dr. J participated in two during the twilight of his career and on neither occasion did he win. The dunk competition has become an exhibition for capable athletes who are largely one-dimensional, with maybe the room for one I-don't-give-a-fuck type superstar. And it's got more to do with the system.

What I loved about the Barry-era dunk contest was that you had 90 seconds to put together three dunks in the first round of competition, then 60 seconds for two dunks in the final round. Players would rattle off whatever they could in that amount of time. The pressure of nailing dunks on one opportunity didn't exist. You did what you could in the allotted time and saw how it panned out. Some things didn't work, others did. When some failed you had time to think up something on the spot and try it out. This was a free-wheeling era in dunk competitions.

But ultimately, the prospect of competing wasn't nearly as scary. The whole thing is hyped up so much these days, and rightly so, but with so few competitors and so little room for error, why would a superstar, someone of Lebron's caliber, risk embarrassment as a global audience tunes in? In Carter's day, there was at least some modicum of honour in winning the title. Now we're all too scared to step out and take some risks. The honour is still present, but the journey to that desired end result is difficult and not-at-all conducive to NBA stars. Let me repeat: Jordan competed in three of these things. The chances of Lebron competing in one is suspect. It's much more comfortable videotaping it, next to Damon Jones in a leopard suit, on the sidelines.

Baron Davis, a Bit Chunky

That's some lame shit right there.

Over the summer Elton Brand left the once again-hapless Clippers in favour of the surging (and young!) Philadelphia Sixers. One of the key stories to come out of the transaction, aside from the Sixers' predicted rise in the Eastern Conference, was that of Baron Davis, who had signed with the Clippers after receiving confirmation from Brand that he'd stick around in LA. A number of journalists came out and tried to rank/assess the level of backstabbery on Brand's part. Needless to say it was often not a favourable response to Brand's character (though Brand has been a pretty classy, workman-type player in his basketball career).

So what about Baron Davis' reaction to the whole thing? Davis didn't care too much. Brand made his decision. Davis respected it. And thus the story deflated. At this point the Sixers look like a so-so contender in the Eastern Conference and the Clippers look to fall even further in the West, thus assuming their former perennial mediocrity.

Few journalists, however, commented on Davis' post-basketball career. Baron has made no attempts to disguise his leanings toward a film career once his career ends. He runs a movie blog. He's gotten into documentary producing. This move to LA only cements his ability to further schmooze with the Hollywood elite as his career winds down (which it will, very soon). Did you see the guy sitting courtside with Adam Sandler during the Lakers playoff games? Dude was already hanging out in LA with actors. He's been linked to Teri Hatcher (yikes). And now TrueHoop links to some photos of Jessica Alba, Baron, and some other shirtless dude hanging out on the beach. In what universe are we living in when Baron Davis, Jessica Alba, and some other guy (probably her husband) are frolicking on the beach? Baron Davis: richest third-wheel in date history.

I see this move for Davis as purely post-basketball finances. He wants to hang around LA, make some connections, and further his career in film production (AKA chill out with attractive celebrities and lay some of the Desperate Housewives). I also see Davis' career taking a nose-dive in the immediate future. To start, look at his body. The man looks like Oliver Miller in point guard form (well, not quite). But he doesn't look to be in the greatest shape in the weeks preceding training camp. (Thornton's gonna dunk on his face. Kid is nice.) Baron was a great story last season. He faded down the stretch, and the Warriors faltered in their playoff pursuit, but he still put together a solid season, especially for a point guard with that amount of mileage. I just don't see Davis holding up over the course of 82 games. Playing with the Clippers only makes matters worse. It's one thing to try and hold onto your health with a contender, but another thing with a bottom-dweller.

I caught the news of Shareef Abdur-Rahim retiring after 11 seasons in the league. Shareef easily had one the most understated and underwhelming careers in recent memory. He notched some impressive statistics in his career, though never played in a big market or for any particularly formidable teams. The one thing his retirement brings to mind is a dinky little home page I started ages ago in middle school. I provided a ranking of the top-ten NBA players. Rahim placed third (!), finishing behind Shaq, and either Tim Duncan or Jason Kidd. My rankings were clearly flawed, but Rahim was a player in those Grizzlies days. His placement was largely influenced by averaging 24.5 ppg in the preceding season. The Grizzlies were terrible mind you (Royal Ivey could've notched 17 on that team), but Rahim was an interesting SF/PF hybrid, maybe even a trailblazer for tweeners like Beasley who fall somewhere in between the post and perimeter.

Meditations on Bargnani

Excuse the lack of updates. We'll get back to it.

Andrea Bargnani has become a sore subject for Raptors fans in the past year. And things turned quickly. After his rookie season - one in which Bargnani regularly drew comparisons to Nowitzki and Europe's finest exports - the Raptors faithful thought we had a one-two punch between AB and Chris Bosh that was sure to compete, and potentially dominate, the Eastern Conference for a good decade. (Foolishly I thought Bargnani had a chance to usurp Bosh as the team's number one offensive option, or at least become the go-to guy in the game's final moments. His first couple games of his sophomore season featured offensive performances that outshone Bosh's - this didn't help my radical and idealistic viewpoint w/r/t Bargnani's future worth.)

But then all of that talk dissipated in a season of inconsistency which came to exemplify all the reasons why "sophomore slump" is an appropriate and cliched term to throw out there in reference to out-of-the-gates blazing talent in sports, music, whatever. Most sports columnists and commentators chalked it up as a lack of confidence. This is an understatement of sorts. Bargnani looked like a corpse for large portions of 07-08 campaign. The vacant eyes, the gaping mouth - he had the look of a village idiot. Only he was 7-feet tall and could ball at a reasonable level. Perhaps Bargnani is just a sensitive guy. More recently we've seen Vince Young's fragile interiority reach a sort of breaking point in a promising young career. I don't expect suicide concerns or dispatching the Police to look for AB in Sarnia, but he could be another one in a series of athletes who - though physically blessed and holding the required physicality to excel in their respective sports - is missing something in the head to push him into consistent productivity.

So what's going to happen with Bargnani? Some fans want him canned. This is a bit rash. His stock couldn't be that good right now. There's no chance the Raptors could grab David Lee from the Knicks for him (purely as an example, disregarding fiscal terms of said deal), though, in reality, Bargnani's ceiling is much higher than a guy like Lee. The difference is that you know what you're getting from Lee: hustle, about 10/10 per night in minimal minutes, and he gets his numbers without having to run any plays his way. He's a garbage man. And I reliable one at that.

But let's put away any thoughts of a trade. He still averaged double figures (barely) in 07-08. And when he played well, much like his first season, he can elicit excitement like few players in Raptors history. When Bargnani knocks down a series of three-pointers and shows some genuine passion for the game, there's no way you don't go berserk. He possesses a game-changing ability no other player on the Raptors does. Sure, we've got Bosh, and this talk may seem blasphemous in some Raptors circles, but Bosh is a whole different thing. He plays hard every night, he gets his stats by using his brain (something mentioned by Lebron on CBC's The Hour), not his physicality, and he's a great first option. But he's not a game-changer. Do I feel comfortable with Bosh having the ball in his hands as the clock runs out? His mid-range game is probably a little under-rated, but he's not a shooter (even a scorer) by any means. His offensive repertoire is equal parts hard work and intellect. He picks his spots, stays aggressive, takes the ball to the hole with intensity, and has great shot selection from 15 feet out. But Bargnani is the type of player who could throw up a twenty-five footer to win a game. I've seen enough passion in the kid to know that the vacant look in his eyes is a symptom of his disillusionment with his respective game. You can't blame him too much. Or at least I hope that's what it is. General complacency would be a whole thing altogether.

Colangelo should be lauded for keeping him around. He could've swung a deal before Bargnani's trade worth plummeted. But as it stands he still has that huge ceiling we caught glimpses of in a largely positive rookie season. Season three, however, is the last opportunity for him to take the next leap in his career. If not, I expect to see him back in Europe and end up an even greater disappointment that Darko. At least that dude is still kicking around.

Gist I Say!

One of my favourite individuals in the NBA game is the 'role' player one would define as an undersized power forward. Second-round draft picks like Houston's Carl Landry and Utah's Paul Milsap are the prototypical new-age power forward: a couple inches under the preferred height, loads of NCAA experience, the ability to pick up points without a play ever being called for them, and a preternatural ability to find boards, often on the offensive glass. These guys are almost always steals in the draft. I fail to see how three or four-year collegiate players from major conferences who put up big numbers and have a knack for finding the basketball are often over-looked in lieu of 'projects' or European dudes who play in suspect leagues. Simply put, you can't teach aggression and tenacity, and Landry and Milsap have it. Last year Landry was a huge steal, and looking at this year's draftees, I believe the same could happen to James Gist out of Maryland. I'd call him a SF/PF hybrid - certainly his ability to run the floor and finish around the hoop is reminiscent of wing players or only the most athletic of PF's. It'll be tough to get burn in San Antonio, but Gist injects some much needed athleticism into a locker room starting to resemble a geriatric unit.



Here's an article from Sam Smith on Hoopshype in which he talks about basketball players being a little more politically-charged and opinionated during this election campaign, in comparison with other years. For the most part, NBA athletes have pledged their support support for Barack Obama - fair enough, my politics seem to coincide with theirs. But I hardly agree with Smith that athletes have become any more politically opinionated with this election. Earlier in the article he references Bill Walton's attempt to deliver a letter to Nixon asking for his resignation and, in addition, Walton's on-campus protesting at UCLA. We're all familiar with Muhammed Ali, the pinnacle of sports and politics intersecting in a manner of discourse. There's a big difference between an athlete taking a stand for issues than Greg Oden posting his preference for Obama on his blog. The athletes mentioned in Smith's article have done nothing more than say they support Obama. We don't even know whether they're in favour of his politics, simply that they support him.

The race card is a difficult thing to get into. Look, I'm all for Barack Obama and feel he's the superior candidate. But let's go over some statistics: the NBA is around 80% black; the Democratic NBA supporters mentioned in the article were black; the only Republican mentioned was Spencer Hawes, a big white dude who most likely hunts bucks with his pa. There's nothing revelatory about several black athletes showing their support for a black presidential candidate, yet somehow Smith has misinterpreted the degree to which athletes are getting involved (apparently Baron Davis has hosted events, so he's off the hook). Offhandedly mentioning you're a Barack supporter during an interview does not qualify you as a politically-charged individual when the candidate is of the same race as you. I am glad athletes are lending their support, yet somewhat feel there's an inherent moral obligation to support a leading member of your racial community. Once again, I'm treading in difficult water here, but a truly maverick guy would be the black athlete who openly expressed his preference for McCain/Palin. And I think most African-American athletes share more in common than you'd think with McCain and Palin's policies, especially those individuals who hold the same religious beliefs.

It's nice that Sam Smith could point out some instances of athletes eschewing their standard sense of political apathy, but the comparisons to truly passionate individuals who were willing to risk and/or sacrifice their reputation and image for the greater good are out of place. It's sad that we're willing to pat an athlete's back for having an opinion. Very little is at stake for African-American athletes showering praise and support upon Obama, so there's no need to congratulate them when other athletes have used their public platform to not only announce their opinions, but strive for social change.