Contributors

2010 NBA MOCK DRAFT (VERSION 1.1)

by DOUG FERGUSON

1) Washington Wizards- John Wall/PG/Kentucky
Seems to be pretty much the consensus so who am I to argue with the masses….

2) Philadelphia 76ers- Evan Turner/SG/Ohio State
Alot of silly trade talk here but they will be just fine with Turner OR Cousins….they should feel extremely lucky to have this pick….

3) New Jersey Nets- Demarcus Cousins/C/Kentucky
If they pass on Cousins and take Favors they should report to the nearest bridge and jump off but it looks like they might….

4) Minnesota Timberwolves- Derrick Favors/PF/Georgia Tech
Kevin Love is one of the hottest names on the trade block so this is the perfect fit….

5) Sacramento Kings- Wes Johnson/SF/Syracuse
He may not slip this far but could be highly overhyped….

6) Golden State Warriors- Al Farouq Aminu/SF/Wake Forest
Fits the Nelly’s prototype wing player perfectly….another tailor made pick….

7) Detroit Pistons- Cole Aldrich/C/Kansas
This pick would seem to be between Aldrich and Monroe but they are more in need of a center than another 4 man…..

Los Angeles Clippers- Epke Udoh/PF/Baylor
There is no evidence to support this pick except that Udoh is the draft’s hottest name so he will likely rise from the mid-first where he is projected now….

9) Utah Jazz- Greg Monroe/PF/Georgetown
Jerry Sloan proceeds to dance a jig in the town square of Salt Lake City…

10) Indiana Pacers- Ed Davis/PF/North Carolina
The Pacers’ refusal to take anyone with even minor character questions really handcuffs them….this isn’t the first time its happened….

11) New Orleans Hornets- Xavier Henry/SG/Kansas
My super sleeper in the top of the draft….Chris Paul will finally have someone dependable to kick to on the wing…..

12) Memphis Grizzlies- Hassaan Whiteside/C/Marshall
Hoping that either he or Thabeet cash in on their full potential….super bonus for them if they both do…..

13) Toronto Raptors- Patrick Patterson/PF/Kentucky
In need of a replacement for Chris Bosh….this is their concession that they won’t even try to get him back…..

14) Houston Rockets- James Anderson/SG/Oklahoma State
Shooting guard as well as scoring are needs for the Rockets so this works….

15) Milwaukee Bucks- Dontas Motiejunas/SF/Lithuania
Outstanding value as Dontas would be the draft’s biggest slip if he falls from the lottery….Milwaukee also always has eyes for the Euro combo forward….

16) Minnesota Timberwolves- Avery Bradley/SG/Texas
Talk about hooking some potential oozing from their ears….Favors and Bradley could have 2 of the draft’s highest upsides….

17) Chicago Bulls- Daniel Orton/C/Kentucky
Taking a flyer here on the Bulls’ reported interest in Calipari….this would officially start the last stage of LebronMania….

18) Miami Heat- Luke Babbitt/SF/Nevada
The Heat need major help on the wing whether Dwyane Wade stays or not…..

19) Boston Celtics- Gordon Hayward/SF/Butler
Still looking for the next Larry Bird 30 years later I give you the Boston Celtics….but this pick makes sense too as they try to find eventual replacements for their aging stars….

20) San Antonio Spurs- Elliot Williams/SG/Memphis
His good character and similarity to Manu makes him a good fit here….

21) Oklahoma City Thunder- Solomon Alabi/C/Florida State
It has been said that all OKC needs is a presence inside….well here it is congratulations members of the Thunder bandwagon….

22) Portland Trail Blazers- Larry Sanders/PF/VCU
Looking for triple stampsies on their inside post man insurance….

23) Minnesota Timberwolves- Damion James/PF/Texas
The Timberwolves now look at strictly combo forwards with all 354 of their remaining picks…..

24) Atlanta Hawks- Willie Warren/SG/Oklahoma
A big part of this year’s draft is going to be teams insuring huge parts of their team that could potentially leave via free agency….Defense Exhibit A….

25) Memphis Grizzlies- Devin Ebanks/SF/West Virginia
Defense Exhibit B as Rudy Gay is possibly gone from the Grizz….

26) Oklahoma City Thunder- Gani Lawal/PF/Georgia Tech
Keep bringing the beef to the cattle ranch in Oklahoma City……

27) New Jersey Nets- Alexsey Shved/SG/Russia
It is also hard to believe that teams with their head’s in the clouds for a big name free agent won’t try to save some bread by drafting abroad if they aren’t sure……

28) Memphis Grizzlies- Eric Bledsoe/PG/Kentucky
Mike Conley is in the Memphis dog house and Bledsoe is one of the best PG’s out there….good value at this pick…..

29) Orlando Magic- Jarvis Varnado/C/Mississippi State
Outstanding backup for the often foul-strapped Dwight Howard…..

30) Washington Wizards- Nemanja Bjelica/SF/Serbia
This pick becomes a foreign player for sure if the Wizards somehow find a way unload Gilbert Arenas….They now have some free agent clout with the first pick now they just have to dump some garbage salary….

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NBA TOP 3 DRAFT PICKS (WHY NOT COUSINS?)

by RAY MERNAGH

Kind of an interesting bit of info came out recently — I think on SI.com — about the who the top 3 picks of the next NBA draft will be. The picks were John Wall, Wes Johnson and Evan Turner — with Wall probably being the top choice (something I’ve believed for a long time). But here’s the question I have: If you watched DeMarcus Cousins the last few times he’s been on TV, wouldn’t you be hard-pressed to maybe pull the trigger on him after Wall goes first?

The guys a monster offensively and he’s still learning how to play. His motor seems to be just fine. the thing that really stood out to me about his game against South Carolina was, even though Downey broke his ankles, and he got his shot blocked once, he was the one guy on Kentucky that made a big-time play down the stretch. He plays hard, or at least seems to everytime I watch him.

Now he allegedly popped a fan in South Carolina but hey, I told you he was nasty!

He’s 6′11″, 260 pounds and nasty. How many offensively truly gifted post players are there in the NBA right now? Shoot, how many gifted post players are there in college hoops?

I believe by the time the tournament is over Cousins will crack that top 3.

NBE ASSOCIATION’S NBA ALL-STAR TEAMS

by DOUG FERGUSON

I always tell everyone my girlfriend is basketball. It is fitting henceforth that this year I get to express my love for my babe on Valentine’s Day when the best in the world are all in same place. The 2010 NBA All-Star Game is February 14 in La Casa de Jerry Jones and here is the NBE All-Star Teams selected by a special panel. All ties were broken by me since it is my big day with the old bird.

Please don’t mistake our list for that of the Major League Baseball All-Star Game as there is just one team with multiple representatives (Phoenix). That’s just the way it worked out though.

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Nate’s 41-Point Outburst, Hughes’ Benching Exposes D’Antoni’s Woes

By Zach Smart

Is it really “nothing personal?”

Mike D’Antoni claims Nate Robinson’s permanent perch in the D’Antoni
Doghouse during a 14-game span in December was not personal. The
decision to ditch Robinson in the doghouse, to bury him on the bench
while players who’ve done considerably less for the organization ate up
all his minutes, was solely based on D’Antoni trying to refine,
regulate and unravel a winning formula in New York. D’Antoni was simply
going with what works, living by the old cliche “if it ain’t broke,
don’t fix it.”

It still seemed like Nate was being punished for a crime he never
committed. Robinson’s exile was akin some headcase high school player
who stopped going to class suddenly falling out of favor with a
discipline-demanding head coach. In this case, D’Antoni treated the
veteran like a kid with a dicey past who was lucky to get a second
chance.

Nate hadn’t smelt the hardwood since the very beginning of December. He
was relegated to a pure benchwarming role nobody envisioned for the
5-foot-8 sparkplug, waterbug, energy-bleeding guard.

It was at the beggining of last month when D’Antoni had an epiphany.
His self-actualization told him the Knicks without Nate are great.

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TOP 25 BIG EAST NBA PLAYERS: #19 ‘SLEEPY’ FLOYD

In the next two months NBE’s ‘The Association’ will celebrate the previous 30 years of the Big East conference by counting down the 25 greatest NBA players from the league since its inception. Note that the list is made up of players who played for the 16 CURRENT schools of the Big East, not necessarily IN the Big East. We hope this trip down memory lane is fun and historically informative to all who read. ENJOY!!!!!!!

#19
Name: Eric “Sleepy” Floyd
College: Georgetown
NBA Teams: New Jersey Nets (1982-83, 1994-95)
Golden State Warriors (1983-87)
Houston Rockets (1987-93)
San Antonio Spurs (1993-94)

Our second consecutive player who actually played in Big East Conference games is Georgetown point guard Eric “Sleepy” Floyd. Floyd broke the expectations of the New Jersey Nets by appearing on any “Greatest” list.

After a great career at Georgetown in which he was 15 seconds from a National Title before being Jordaned, the Nets chose Floyd 13th overall in the 1983 Draft. After a first half so bad John Daly could legitimately call it sub-par, they decided it would be cutting their losses to ship off to San Francisco. As a Golden State Warrior Floyd played well under the tutelage of head coach John Bach but achieved All-Star status in 1987 under new coach George Karl.

During this All-Star campaign in which Floyd was averaging a career high 21 points per game he was rewarded by the Warrior organization by being traded again. This time he was dealt to Houston in a somewhat mega-deal for the time in a trade that brought Ralph Sampson to Golden State. Neither player ever returned to the form of their earlier career. Floyd however was far less disappointing than Sampson though playing 5+ steady seasons for the Rockets.

Floyd finished out his career where he started in New Jersey where he made it longer than he did the first time by playing one FULL season. His NBA career was like his college career as he wasn’t suited for superstar life but was dependable as a sometimes 2nd but mostly 3rd option. Just as he came just short at Georgetown he never managed to pull off an NBA title but offered up solid play for over 10 years.

Career Accomplishments: 1987 NBA All-Star
12,260 career points (203rd all-time)
5,175 career assists (45th all-time)
1,120 career steals (91st all-time)

Voters

Doug Ferguson- Lead Writer NBE The Association and Midwest Editor NBE Basketball Report
Paul Hayes- Fantasy Analyst NBE The Association
Sean King- Contributer NBE The Association
Michael LaFreniere- Scout/Analyst NBE The Association
Ray Mernagh- Senior Columnist NBE Basketball Report and College Basketball Editor for the Pittsburgh Sports Report
Zach Smart- Contributor, NBE Basketball Report
Newt Younger- Historian/Consultant, NBE The Association

Bulls Need to Say “Arrivederci” to Vinny

by DOUG FERGUSON

I have been very vocal about my opposition to coaches in all sports being put on the chopping block without at least three years to implement what they want to do. But its clear when a team blows a 35 point lead with about 18 minutes to go your plan will never work regardless of how long the coach has to put it in place.

I live in the Chicago and I will be the first to say that this decision has been a long time coming. If this was a one time thing for Vinny I would be completely on his side as I was when he had his timeout fiasco last season. Everyone makes mistakes. This is more than a mistake though. One has to ask themself “When do I know when a coach needs to go?”. Most of the time it is deeper than the common answer that one will hear. Not in this situation though. The answer is when their team gives up on them and there is no other explanation for what happened last night other than just that.

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1ST QUARTER NBA REPORT CARDS

by DOUG FERGUSON

If this was a horse race we would be seeing who was setting the pace and as is commonplace in these times it is the Boston Celtics. God bless the Celtics for getting another championship and a well-deserved ring for Kevin Garnett, but I hope the Boston fans remember how bad they were a few years ago because those times aren’t that far from being a way of life again.

Anyways some teams have a brand new “my son made the Honor Roll in the NBA” and some are just hoping their parents forgot that its report card day so they can go to Suzie’s party tomorrow night. Here is a look at who gets twenty bucks and who is grounded from using the telephone.

First off we have to have a fun fair. However instead of choosing which teacher we want to see get dunked into the dunk tank, we will see what would the perfect dunk contest be. I’m tired of there being such an awesome thing like the NBA dunk contest their for us and we fill it with such second rate crap every year.

Lebron James
Shannon Brown
Josh Smith
Dwight Howard
Tyrus Thomas
Andre Igoudala

Now that is a real dunk contest!

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TOP 25 BIG EAST NBA PLAYERS: #20 OTIS THORPE

In the next two months NBE’s ‘The Association’ will celebrate the previous 30 years of the Big East conference by counting down the 25 greatest NBA players from the league since its inception. Note that the list is made up of players who played for the 16 CURRENT schools of the Big East, not necessarily IN the Big East. We hope this trip down memory lane is fun and historically informative to all who read. ENJOY!!!!!!!

#20
Name: Otis Thorpe
College: Providence
NBA Teams: Kansas City Kings (1984-85)
Sacramento Kings (1985-88, 1997-98)
Houston Rockets (1988-95)
Portland Trail Blazers (1995)
Detroit Pistons (1995-97)
Vancouver Grizzlies (1997)
Washington Wizards (1998-99)
Miami Heat (1999-2000)
Charlotte Hornets (2000-01)

We can now finally get to a player who was neither played for the Chicago Bulls nor laced them up for the Fighting Irish. Otis Thorpe on the other hand played his college ball in the smallest state in the union at our favorite little catholic school, Providence College. Thorpe is one of the few players in NBA history that can be considered a true journeyman as well as having his face recognized distinctly with a particular franchise.

Thorpe played for eight teams in his 16 seasons in the NBA, most recognizably though were his six as a Houston Rocket. After being drafted 9th overall by the Kansas City Kings in 1984 he played one season in Kansas City and three more for the franchise after they moved to the capital of California. He then moved on to Houston where he proceeded to personify toughness in the NBA. He was an All-Star reserve in 1992 mainly based upon the respect he had among players and coaches as there were many who had more deserving stats. This is something that isn’t seen too often in today’s NBA which is driven by who has the most eye-popping stats and hair-raising dunks.

Thorpe was the muscle behind the most talented defensive frontcourt in NBA History in playing for the championship 1994 Houston Rockets. In his aging days in the association, his had such a winning reputation that he was used as the bait in some of the most notoriously one-sided ripoffs in the history of trades. Teams thought so much of him that they let it happen 3 times and if he wouldn’t have retired, teams probably would’ve came back for more.

After winning the NBA title in 1994 Thorpe was traded the following season at the deadline to Portland for Clyde Drexler along with some other inconsequential pieces (no offense to my facebook friend Tracy Murray). In a “what could have been” move the VANCOUVER Grizzlies thought they were one tough guy away from becoming a contender when they traded away a first round pick to the Detroit Pistons in 1997 for Thorpe. Five years later the gauge of how wrong they were could be determined by the fact that they had to have that pick pried away from them due to the fact that it had been lottery protected for said five years. Even lottery protection wears away its welcome after five years however and they were forced to give it up in 2003 when the Pistons used it to take Darko Milicic. Although this may have actually been a deal for the Grizzlies on its face when one thinks about it more in depth they realize that any other team besides Detroit that year without a doubt takes Carmelo Anthony and irreversibly changes the fortune of their team. One thing I’m for sure of is that any change of fortune for the Grizzlies would be better than their fortune is now or ever. Later that year, the Kings traded Thorpe along with fellow aging star Mitch Richmond to Washington who, in their rush to get rid of the problematic Chris Webber made the Kings consequential for the first time in their history.

When I tabulated the votes for this list I had one major problem with the voting and Otis Thorpe being number 20 was definitely it. Otherwise I was very proud of the voters. However, Thorpe has numbers that you won’t see out of some of the players in the top five and he is a champion.

Career Accomplishments- 1994 NBA Champion (Houston Rockets)

1992 Western Conference All-Star Team

1,257 career games played (18th all-time)

39,822 minutes played (20th all-time)

Played all 82 games 9 times

17,600 career points (61st all-time)

10,370 career rebounds (31st all-time)

3,446 career offensive rebounds (13th all-time)

54.6% career FG shooting (14th all-time)

4,146 career personal fouls (10th all-time)

NBA DRAFT BIG BOARD (PART VI)

181. Gerald Lee/PF/Old Dominion/6-10/250/SR
182. Antoine Diot/PG/Le Mans Sarthe Basket/6-4/180/France/1989
183. Jon Diebler/SG/Ohio State/6-6/205/JR
184. Nemanja Gordic/CG/KK Buducnost Podgorica/6-4/180/Bosnia/1988
185. Talor Battle/PG/Penn State/5-11/160/JR
186. Miles Plumlee/PF/Duke/6-10/240/SO
187. Stefan Markovic/PG/KK Hemofarm/6-5/205/1988/Serbia
188. Chavdar Kostov/SG/Lukoil Academic/6-5/190/1988/Bulgaria
189. Zeke Marshall/C/Akron/7-0/205/FR
190. Pablo Aguilar/PF/CB Grenada/6-9/200/1989/Spain
191. D.J. Richardson/SG/Illinois/6-3/180/FR
192. Vernon Macklin/PF/Florida/6-10/240/JR
193. Jerome Randle/PG/Cal/5-10/170/SR
194. Jon Riek/C/Mississippi State/7-2/250/FR
195. Elmedin Kikanovic/PF/BC Red Star Belgrade/6-11/210/1988/Bosnia
196. D.J. Kennedy/W/Saint John’s/6-6/215/JR
197. Rick Jackson/PF/Syracuse/6-9/240/JR
198. Elias Harris/CF/Gonzaga/6-7/220/FR
199. Taylor King/SF/Villanova/6-6/230/SO
200. A.J. Slaughter/PG/Western Kentucky/6-3/180/SR
201. Evgeny Valiev/SF/Triumph Lyubertsy/6-9/200/1990/Russia
202. Chris Braswell/PF/Charlotte/6-9/220/FR
203. Abdoulaye Mbaye/PG/Dijon/6-1/190/1988/France
204. Andy Rautins/SG/Syracuse/6-5/205/SR
205. Justin Mason/SG/Texas/6-2/195/SR
206. Derrick Caracter/PF/UTEP/6-9/255/JR
207. Andreja Milotinovic/SG/KK FMP Zeleznik/6-6/190/1990/Serbia
208. Will Coleman/PF/Memphis/6-9/230/JR
209. Dexter Strickland/PG/North Carolina/6-3/180/FR
210. Lacedarius Dunn/SG/Baylor/6-4/205/JR
211. Rodney Green/SG/LaSalle6-5/205/SR
212. Eugene Harvey/PG/Seton Hall/6-5/165/SR
213. Pranas Skurdauskas/C/Rimini Crabs/6-10/250/1988/Russia
214. Jeremy Evans/PF/Western Kentucky/6-9/200/SR
215. Hasaan Whiteside/PF/Marshall/6-11/230/FR
216. Kyryl Natyazhako/PF/Arizona/6-10/250/FR
217. Milan Macvan/PF/KK Hemofarm/6-9/265/1990/Croatia
218. Kevin Coble/SF/Northwestern/6-8/210/SR
219. Mark Payne/SF/UC-Davis/6-8/205/JR
220. Daniel Clark/PF/MMT Estudiantes/6-11/250/1988/England
221. Jeff Allen/SF/Virginia Tech/6-7/230/JR
222. Osiris Eldridge/SG/Illinois State/6-3/190/SR
223. Marqus Blakely/W/Vermont/6-6/225/SR
224. Keith Cothran/PG/Rhode Island/6-4/195/SR
225. Marshon Brooks/SG/Providence/6-5/190/JR
226. Tony Crocker/SG/Oklahoma/6-5/190/SR
227. David Wear/PF/North Carolina/6-9/225/FR
228. Doneal Mack/SG/Memphis/6-5/185/SR
229. Rodney Williams Jr./SF/Minnesota/6-7/190/FR
230. Marquis Gilstrap/W/Iowa State/6-7/210/SO
231. Jerry Smith/CG/Louisville/6-3/190/SR
232. Yannick Driesen/C/MMT Estudiantes/7-1/230/1988/Belgium
233. Travis Wear/PF/North Carolina/6-9/220/FR
234. Brian Zoubek/C/Duke/7-1/255/SR
235. Alex Stepheson/PF/USC/6-9/235/JR
236. Mladen Jeremic/SG/BC Red Star Belgrade/6-5/190/1988/Serbia
237. Augustus Gilchrist/PF/South Florida/6-10/235/SO
238. Kenny Frease/C/Xavier/7-0/255/SO
239. Robin Benzing/SF/ratiopharm Ulm/6-10/210/1989/Germany
240. David Weaver/C/Wake Forest/6-11/250/SR

ZSMART & NBA SULLY’S FAKEST TOUGH GUYS

By Zach Smart

ZSMART’s Fakest G’s Of The League:

1. Jason “White Chocolate” Williams: The only dude this cat after got after it with was a Chinese fan who told him to get used to having bench splinters instantly inserted in his ass (though not in those words).

JWill responded by verbally ambushing the peaceful man, a Golden State Warriors loyalist who was shocked by no.55’s racist, profanity-laced tirade.

This incident took place back in 2001 when JWILL was getting his NBA teeth cut alongside Chris Webber in SacTown.

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