Kobe and the P Word

Whenever a player retires, or a person passes away, the lure to romanticize their careers and/or lives is strong. I am, however, not a fan of Kobe Bryant, so the lure is not as strong. Yet I caution myself as I write this piece as I want to get this right.  Kobe Bryant, one of the NBA’s greatest players, will be remembered for a great deal of things; he made sure of that.  The question is, “What will he be most remembered for?”

How about his five NBA Championships?  Perhaps two Olympic gold medals will top your list.  There’s that unsavory incident of a sexual crime allegation in Denver, where he ended up not guilty of a crime, but himself confessing to adultery.  There was also a civil case that followed which was settled quietly. Maybe his Most Valuable Player Award and multiple inclusions in the All NBA lists?  There was his much publicized rift with Shaquille O”Neal which led to Shaq heading to the Heat.  How about Kobe torching the Raptors for 81 points in a single game? Everyone probably still remembers his expletive-filled rant at his teammates and team officials during a public practice session just last year.  I’m sure many would remember his renaissance man qualities, able to conduct press conferences (including his latest one) in English, Spanish and Italian.

If one remembers Kobe for any one of these, or even all of these, they would not be wrong.  They would be incomplete though.

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NBA Trades: Champs and Chumps Part 1

     This season’s trade deadline was a real doozy.  All stars and superstars, draft picks and cash were all major pieces moved around, changing the whole outlook  of the NBA landscape, especially the playoffs.  With these major trades, some end up as champs, while others end up as chumps.


The Butler Did It

Dallas Mavericks receive Caron Butler, DeShawn Stevenson, and Brendan Haywood, Washington Wizards receive Josh Howard, Drew Gooden, Quinton Ross, James Singleton


Champs: Mark Cuban has always said money would be no object if a trade made sense.  Caron Butler makes sense for the Mavericks, giving them an all around player they thought they had in Shawn Marion.  Butler can and probably will be a greta complement to Dirk Nowitzki on offense, giving old hands Jason Kidd and Shawn Marion a chance to concentrate on distributing the ball and playing defense, respectively.  As for Haywood, well, any seven footer with any smidge of desire to play defense would probably be better than Erick Dampier.


Chumps: The Wizards were looking to dump Butler’s salary and dump is the best word for it.  Apparently not having enough hijinks from Agent Zero, they pick up malcontent Josh Howard, Mr. “I won’t stand up for the national anthem because it’s oppressive to black people.”  The bad part is, Howard’s energetic and all around play, which was his redeeming factor once, has not been seen in months.  The others?  Singleton and Ross are great defensive, hardworking players, but they won't be world beaters anytime soon.


Et tu Marcus?

Portland Trail Blazers receive Marcus Camby,   L.A. Clippers receive Steve Blake and Travis Outlaw


Champs: Portland GM Kevn Pritchard continues to weave boardroom magic.  Basically, in the words of an unidentified Clipper, “getting our best defensive player for a back up guard.”  With Outlaw injured anyway, the Blazers lose almost nothing, but gain a defensive presence to finally alleviate their center woes caused by the losses of Greg Oden and Joel Pryzbilla to injuries.  The trade also might help make Andre Miller more at home, now not having to worry about Blake starting over him.


Chumps: Wow. Man, I love Steve Blake and his multiple assists per game, but wow.  Clippers are just well, being the Clippers.

‘Tawn Trade


Washington Wizards receive Zydrunas Ilgauskas, Al Thornton, Cavs' 2010 draft pick, rights to Emir Preldzic, Cleveland Cavaliers receive Antawn Jamison, Sebastian Telfair,  L.A. Clippers receive Drew Gooden


Champs:  Obviously sensing that adding Shaq may not be enough against an apparently gelling Orlando Magic and a recovering Boston Celtics, the Cavs opened their wallets yet again to snag Antawn Jamison.  The former All Star provides the Cavs outside firepower, and an ability to create his own shots and get to the line.  The best thing about Jamison is not his scoring but his locker room presence.  He will be, as with his stints in Golden State and Washington, the ultimate professional and a calming presence on a team where even the two superstar “leaders” are big crybabies.


Chumps:  Washington is officially beginning its rebuilding phase…. with a mid-level talent and an old center with enough screws in his feet that he once set off a metal detector?  It’s one thing to shed salaries, it’s another to just dump players.  I mean, Al Thornton will bring some positive things, but they could have gotten more.  The Cavs were desperate to get Jamison, so the Wizards probably could have gotten a better deal if they played hardball a little longer.


(to be continued)

Shorts: Charms and Curses

(Beginning this week, From the Fifty Peso Seats will have a weekly edition of shorts, compilations of interesting but short posts of developments and trivia about the sporting world.)

World Cup Wonder?

     Admittedly, this year's Bowling World Cup lost its luster for me when both of history's greatest, Paeng Nepomuceno and Walter Ray Williams jr. were eliminated before the quarterfinals.  The victory of Canada's Caroline Lagrange, however, makes for interesting conjecture.  Keeping in mind that I just want to have fun, Lagrange's thrilling come-from behind win over Zara Glover of England makes her the fourth straight first time winner of the event.  What's more noteworthy, though, is that this makes it the third women's world champion in four years (2006 Diandra Asbaty, 2008 Jasmine Yeong-Nathan, 2009 Caroline Lagrange) with whom I have taken a picture with in years past.  Furthermore, the lone winner I didn't have a photo op with, 2007 Champion Ann Marie Putney, bowled in a World Cup where no woman had a photo taken with me.  Does this mean I am a lucky charm?  Just kidding. I'm no megalomaniac.  It's just nice to know there is no overwhelming evidence that I'm a jinx.  (Hear that Ateneo?  I didn't cause the championship drought in basketball in the early 2000s, ok?)  Despite this, though, if I were Clara Guerrero, next year might be a good time bowl the World Cup.  Ok ok, enough of this...

Shaq Fu

     First of all, kudos to Shaq for spending for the funeral costs of an American girl who was reportedly murdered.  Her family was struggling to find money to pay for the funeral and Shaq graciously covered all expenses.  Despite that, I have to drop the bomb on Shaq daddy.  Is Shaq a charm or a curse?  In each of his stops in his career, the superstar he leaves behind has their career years shortly after the "Big Aristotle" makes his exit.  The numbers back me up.  Kobe definitely had his best years after Shaq.  After Shaq's unceremonious exit from the Lakers at the start of the 2004-05 season, Kobe played the two best seasons of his career.  In 2005-06, he scored a career-best 35.4 points per game for the season, while in 2007-08 season, Kobe played his best season ever, netting himself the coveted Most Valuable Player Award.  Meanwhile, after bidding goodbye to Shaq in the middle of the 2007-08 season, Dwayne Wade launched career numbers in his first season P.S. (Post Shaq).  "The Flash" poured in career (and league best) 30.2 points per game, on top of 7.5 assists, 2.2 steals and 1.3 blocks per game (all career bests).  This year, with Shaq's departure from Phoenix, the entire Suns team seems to have revitalized, none more so than Steve Nash, who at 36 years ols, has shown no signs of slowing down.  Nash is currently putting up personal (and league best) 12.1 assists per game, and he is also shooting career best gield goal and free throw percentages.  If you want to make a real fine point to it, the best Canadian baller is also averaging a career-best 0.2 blocks per game. 

     Is Shaq a curse that when lifted, releases a player's best possible game or is a charm that augments a player's game?  Either way, when Shaq and Lebron inevitably part ways, look for King James to post even better numbers than before.  Scary huh?

Mysterious Lady

     When the story of how Tiger Woods finally married Jesper Parnevik's children's nanny after initially struggling to ask her out was told, everyone agreed it was quite a happy tale for the world's greatest golfer.  Recently, though, allegations of marital dispute, an illicit affair and a mysterious car accident have spurred interest in Elin Nordegren Woods.  Who is she and why did she smash Tiger's car windows?  One thing they should ask is, is she a charm or a curse to Tiger's game?  In five years before Tiger married, he won a total of 32 golf titles and in the five years he's been married, he's won a total of 25.  While injury and a new swing were said to have caused the slight dip in titles won, how do we know those weren't the results of the "Elin curse?"

     Ok guys.  These shorts were all in good fun and to take them seriously might not be good for one's mental health.  There are no such thing as luck and curses, right?  Now, if you don't mind, I have to go clean my rabbit's foot... 

Grading the First Wave of NBA Trades

     Before I could even finish my series of NBA year ender stories, the first wave of off season moves began, and what wave it has been.  I thought it would be nice to grade these trades, to see how the teams involved will fare in the future.

Major Trade Number 1: The Shaq Trade

Cleveland gets: Shaquille O'Neal

Phoenix gets: Ben Wallace and Sasha Pavlovic

     This trade had been in the works last season and after the Magic's domination of the Cavs, I'm sure the Cavs wished this trade happened last year.  In any case, the Cavs finally get a big and tough center to match up with Dwight Howard and a shot blocking defensive presence.  On first look, this looks great for the Cavs, but I have my doubts about this.  Shaq demands a lot of attention and ball possessions, most of which were given to reigning MVP Lebron James.  Unless Shaq finally learns to match his demand for attention with his diminishing skills, there might be a little iffyness in the team chemistry department.  Another issue would be Shaq's health.  Will he be healthy enough to actually make a difference for the Cavs?  In any case, what the Cavs have going for them is that Shaq will most likely be motivated and they can rest assured Shaq will give his best effort, if only so that Shaq can beat Kobe's team and Shaq can have more titles than Kobe again.  By giving up very little (Wallace and Pavlovic were useless in the playoffs anyway), the Cavs deserve an A for this.

     For the Suns, this isn't GM Steve Kerr's way of helping his friend, Cleveland GM Danny Ferry.  It was mostly a cost-cutting move to help the Suns avoid paying huge luxury taxes.  The move saved them a total of about 10 million dollars now, and if Wallace retires and agrees to a buyout, they save even more.  I think Kerr has recognized the need for the Suns to finally rebuild (about two years to late I think), and if they also successfully trade away Amare Stoudamire to Golden State for Setphen Curry and Andris Biedrins, the Suns would be able to rebuild, save money and still entertain fans.  They get a C from me, a B+ if they complete the Amare deal.

Major Trade 2: The VC Homecoming

New Jersey Nets get: Courtney Lee, Rafer Alston and Tony Battie

Orlando Magic get Vince Carter and Ryan Anderson

     I find this trade as actually the most significant trade of the Eastern Conference.  Once again, the Magic are looking to outdo the Cavaliers, this time in the trade arena.  While many question VC's heart and health, he has been pretty solid for the Nets for the past two seasons, missing fewer games and playing better team ball all around.  He will give the Magic a scoring threat that can create his own shot while still giving Magic the three point threat they always have on court.  While much has been said of Carter's inability to win, he has never been on a contending team as well built as the Magic.  This, along with the fact that Carter is an Orlando native, could spur him to actually bring a lot more effort to his game.  Meanwhile, Ryan Anderson will get his chance to develop behind the Magic's athletic forwards, and he may turn out to be more than a trade throw-in.  Lastly, having VC around gives the Magic a little leverage to negotiate with free agent Hedo Turkoglo.  Now that the Magic have a new forward, they won't be tempted to over pay the Turkish native, but still have a chance to resign him, since GM Otis SMith said they are willing to pay luxury taxes.  Overall, this trade is good one for the Magic, a strong commitment to winning for the next two to three years.  A solid B+ (A if Turkoglo re signs with the Magic).

     The Nets have been letting go of expensive parts for years, first with Kenyon Martin, then Jason Kidd, Richard Jefferson and now Vince Carter.  Instead of a straight salary dump a la Phoenix, the Nets actually get some quality players.  Courtney Lee gives them a starting quality shooting guard at a much cheaper price while officially turning the team over to All Star guard Devin Harris.  Meanwhile, the veterans Rafer Alston and Tony Battie both give them not only vetera minutes of the bench, but also expiring contracts, which is still in line with their plans to bring in owner Jay-Z's best buddy Lebron James in 2010.  Overall, a great move by GM Rod Thorn, and also a solid B+.

Major Trade 3: The San Antonio Resurrection

San Antonio Spurs get: Richard Jefferson

Milwaukee Bucks get: Bruce Bowen, Kurt Thomas and Fabricio Oberto (later traded for Amir Johnson)

     The Spurs' Tim Duncan era is about to come to a close, so Gregg Popovich and co. figure to give it one more go.  Adding Richard Jefferson to one of the NBA's oldest superstar trios is a much needed shot in the arm.  Jefferson gives them a cushion against injuries that will likely hit one or all of their big three of Tim Duncan, Manu Ginobili and Tony Parker-Longoria, while sacrificing very little.  Bowen has long been past useful, while Thomas and Oberto might actually be bought out and come back to them.  Overall, this was quite a steal for the Spurs and there is (literally) a spring in the step of the Spurs.  They deserve an A.

     The Bucks have long been known as a small market team and so paying the luxury tax is not really ideal for them.  The move saves them a ton of money, but they received practically nothing in return.  While saving money will enable them to re sign their "important" free agents, you have to wonder if signing Ramon Sessions and Charlie Villanueva was actually so important they gave away a former All Star for well, two grandfathers and one who plays like one.  Last year, they couldn't make the playoffs and Jefferson was their only stud, so Coach Scott Skiles has his work cut out for him next season.  This move was a total head scratcher, a D.

Major Trade 4:  Atlanta Loads Up

Atlanta Hawks get: Jamal Crawford

Golden State Warriors get: Speedy Claxton and Acie Law IV

     The Hawks had a second straight successful season but they need to add more to their roster.  While re signing Mike Bibby is one of their priorities this summer, they went ahead and got more help at guard.  Crawford will provide solid play for both guard positions.  This ensures that if Bibby leaves, it won't be a total disaster for them.  Meanwhile, Crawford gives them a player who has an unmitigated desire to shoot, which will help them avoid those weird offensive plays that went nowhere because no one would shoot.  It also gives them more leverage to try to sign Bibby to a more reasonable price.  What's best is that they gave away practically nothing.  A solid B+ for the Hawks.

     Golden State has had a lot of turmoil in the front office as well as with the players and coaches, so weird trades is not a surprise.  Barely a few months after aggressively acquiring Jamal Crawford in a trade, Coach Don Nelson couldn't wait to throw him away.  Throw is the right word as they basically got an aging, barely-used point guard (Claxton) and an official draft bust (Law).  What makes the move an even bigger head scratcher is that they just committed to signing Monta Ellis to a long term contract and they also picked up Stephen Curry (another point guard) in the draft.  Add to this the signing of mercurial guard Stephen Jackson and Corey Maggete to long term deals last year, and you can see the Warriors' front office has been slugging back too much alcohol.  They should have let former GM do his job, instead of bypassing him last year.  Obviously, either the Warriors know something we don't or they don't know anything.  In any case, they deserve a "D."

     Watch out for more NBA trades and their grades in the coming weeks.