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Rounding into shape? Lakers improving, but fourth title still not a givenPosted: Friday February 14, 2003 3:18 PMUpdated: Friday February 14, 2003 6:13 PM
Are the Lakers back? That's the hot question in this week's mailbag. Winners of seven in a row through Thursday, L.A. already has climbed back into the Western Conference playoffs. As well as the Lakers have played, however, I'm still not convinced Phil Jackson's team is quite back to championship form yet. The Lakers' defense has yielded more than 100 points in five of their last 11 games. They have been relying on Kobe and Shaq to carry the load even more than usual. And their bench remains shaky. With seven of their next eight games at Staples Center, beginning with Friday's showdown against the Spurs, the Lakers have a great chance to smooth these rough edges and show they're truly back to form. Until then, let's wait a bit before handing them that fourth NBA title. Now onto the 'bag:
What are your thoughts about the NBA's decision to go to a new seven-game format for the first round of the playoffs? How do you think it will affect the success rate of those lower seeds (see '94 Denver Nuggets)? I have been a fan of the NBA for 20 years now and I hate to see this kind of change. I enjoy the possibility of the upset in a five-game series. Is this just another money-grab opportunity for the NBA? I've got to agree with Mavs guard Steve Nash on this one, and say it is unnecessary. Five games should be enough to determine the better team in most cases. Besides, as you point out, the shorter series added a little element of danger for those otherwise lopsided 1-vs.-8 and 2-vs.-7 matchups. Now the chance of another Cinderella like the '94 Nuggets and '99 Knicks seem more remote. As for the NBA's motives, of course it was about money. The league agreed to do it as part of its new TV deal.
Where is Horace Grant? How productive would he be to a team that needs a little inside presence and veteran leadership? The Lakers apparently feel Grant can still play a little. The 6-foot-10 veteran power forward has a standing offer to rejoin his old L.A. mates for one more title run, according to agent Jimmy Sexton. Grant, who was waived by the Magic earlier this season after appearing in just five games because of injuries, is trying to decide whether he wants to put his 37-year-old body through the rigors of another postseason. After all, he's still being paid $2.7 million by Orlando. If he's healthy and with the right team, Grant probably could be useful. He won't provide much offense, other than an occasional 15-foot jumper, but he's a smart defender and another big body to grab a few rebounds.
What happens when a player gets waived? Does he still get paid what he was allotted in his contract? If he re-signs with another team, does he get paid more money on top of what he would have been receiving under the previous contract? If so, couldn't a player in demand theoretically make more money underperforming to purposely get waived with the intention of resigning with another team? Yes, a waived player (such as Grant) still gets paid the full amount from his original team. If he re-signs with another team, he gets the extra money on top of it. But it's unlikely a player would intentionally underperform to get waived. For one, playing poorly is generally no way to get another team to want your services. Also, there is a clause in the basic player contract that requires employees to give their "best effort." If a team believes a player wasn't performing in good faith, it could take the case to arbitration.
What do you think of the Bucks' chances this year? They were one game away from making the Finals two years ago and barely were out of the playoff race last year. Do you think trading Glenn Robinson was such a good idea? After a terrible start, the Bucks had won 12 of 15 games to climb back into the Eastern Conference playoffs. I see Milwaukee as a playoff team, with an outside chance to make the second round based on whom they face. The Bucks have some great shooters in Ray Allen, Sam Cassell, Toni Kukoc and Michael Redd, but their lack of interior defense will prevent them from going much further. As for the Big Dog trade, they probably weren't going to win with him anyway. Besides, they did it as much for financial reasons as basketball.
Darius Miles is, in my opinion, very underrated as a player because he has played for two unsuccessful teams. Do you think that he will ever get credit for his talent and maybe even become an All-Star player? Miles, the former high school phenom drafted No. 3 overall, has had a rough season with the Cavaliers. Bothered most of the year by tendinitis in his left knee, he's averaging about 8.5 points and 5.5 rebounds while shooting a dismal 40 percent from the floor. Miles has unbelievable athleticism, but he needs to improve his jump shot and learn how to play the NBA game. The good news is he's just 21 years old. If he works at it and stays healthy, he could certainly blossom into an All-Star.
In a previous mailbag, you said that the Mavs can't stay with the Kings or the Lakers in the postseason "when the game slows down in the half-court"? I've heard this sentiment echoed a lot, and my question is why? Why does a team like the Mavs have to stop running in the postseason? Why not set the tempo and run? I would think if the Mavs, and to a lesser extent, the Kings (and teams of the same ilk) would run the Lakers full-court, all game for the first couple of games of a series, they'd tire out. Especially since the Lakers have questions about Shaq's toe and knee limiting his ability to get back on defense, and the lack of production their bench has had this season thus far. Any thoughts? You might be right, Cory. I'm sure Don Nelson will try this exact strategy against the Lakers if they match up with them. But it seems to me that you've got to be able to stop people to dictate the pace. The Lakers, for example, will slow it down and pound it inside. If the Mavs can't get stops, they're pulling the ball out of the net and allowing L.A. to get back and set up its defense. In last year's playoffs, the Kings annihilated the Mavs inside, which in turn prevented Dallas from getting out on the run. The Mavs can beat most teams by playing run-and-gun, but they will need to play much better defense against the better teams like the Lakers and Kings.
I believe that Jalen Rose is a detriment to the Bulls. I have always felt he was a complementary player. He has proven to be an inconsistent "go-to" guy on a below-average team this year while stunting the creativity of Jay Williams, who needs the ball and a little freedom. Do you agree? Rose isn't a superstar, but he provides an important dimension to the Bulls. Basically, he's their only legitimate scorer and a reliable playmaker. Yes, he can't guard a chair, and he jacks up bad shots now and then, but Chicago would be in much worse shape without him. Before they got him, the Bulls were one of the lowest-scoring teams in the NBA. Now they rank in the middle. Jay Williams might be their answer long term, but Rose will win a lot more games for them now.
Assuming they stay healthy for the rest of the season, do you think the Raptors can make the playoffs this year? The Dinos, winners of five of their last six, aren't quite extinct yet. After all, didn't everybody count them out last year before they rallied to win 12 of their last 14 to make the playoffs? Don't they have basically the same team back this year? However, Vince Carter & Co. have dug a serious hole for themselves. Right now, they're about 10 games back of the Wizards and Magic for the last spot in the East. The schedule in March and April looks tough. Even if they play their best, it's hard to envision them making it this year.
Why does the back of Yao Ming's jersey have his first name on it and not his last? The Chinese custom is to go by the surname first and the birth name last. Thus, Yao is his family name.
In a previous mailbag, you mentioned that there were four quadruple doubles recorded in NBA history, the last by Spurs center David Robinson? Would it have killed you to name them? Now I'm sitting here wondering about the other three. Help a fan out. A thousand pardons, Jon. The four NBA players to accomplish an official quadruple double are Robinson, Hakeem Olajuwon, Alvin Robertson and Nate Thurmond.
Regarding the question last week on the "quadruple double", and your response that Wilt probably would have accomplished it had the NBA recorded blocked shots as an official stat back then. I think it's also safe to say that perhaps Wilt even had a "quintuple double" during his career: Points, Rebounds, Blocks, Steals, and ... I think you know the other stat that he was proficient at! I'm not going to touch that one. Marty Burns covers pro basketball for CNNSI.com. Click here to send Marty a question or comment.
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