Kobe sick; Can Thunder upset Lakers?
Kobe Bryant missed the Lakers shootaround Tuesday afternoon at the Ford Center with flu-like systoms but Lakers coach Phil Jackson said Kobe “usually plays in these type situations,” adding he’s just taking a little “R&R.”
Pau Gasol, sidelined by a hamstring injury, will not play. If Kobe and Gasol are both out the Thunder might have a legitimate shot at upsetting the defending champions in the Ford Center.
Watching the Lakers Friday night at home in a loss to Dallas, you would have sworn you were watching the Clippers, not the Lakers. They were that bad.
The Lakers aren’t playing well early as Ron Artest tries to mesh with the defending champions. The Lakers remain the team to beat in the NBA, but so far they’ve been very ordinary without Gasol.
Coming off a 5-1 night making picks, the only loss being Houston’s surprising win in Utah, Kobe probably plays which is why I’ll go with the Lakers.
LA Lakers 99, Thunder 96: The Lakers are vulnerable, especially if Kobe doesn’t play or is limited. One key is whether Kevin Durant gets back on track. Asked whether he puts much stock in Durant’s 3-of-21 shooting Sunday night, Artest answered with an emphatic ‘No.’
Miami 96, Phoenix 91: A matchup of two undefeated teams. D-Wade and the Heat should survive at home but Steve Nash is dishing out dimes at an alarming rate.
Cleveland 96, Washington 91: The Cavs have won two in a row but the vastly improved Wizards could pull the upset, although that’s a tall task in Cleveland.
Denver 104, Indiana 100: Carmelo Anthony leads the league in scoring (37.7). The Pacers are at home but the Nuggets find a way to stay undefeated.
Portland 102, Atlanta 100: The Trail Blazers haven’t brought their A game, yet. They better tonight or the Hawks could post an invauable road upset win.
Boston 96, Philadelphia 91: The Celtics have been impressive early. No one has really pushed them. The Sixers, at home, have a shot at posting an upset but Elton Brand needs to come up big.
Orlando 97, Detroit 92: Everyone wrote off the Magic as if last year’s Final appearance was a fluke. They’re proving it wasn’t a fluke. Detroit is at home but go with Dwight Howard, who could dominate the undersized Pistons.
Chicago 100, Milwaukee 90: The Bulls, 1-2, looked good against San Antonio, not so good their other two games. The Bucks are bad. Now Michael Redd is out. This is one Chicago should win to get back on track.
Dallas 102, Utah 96: The Jazz has not played well. The Mavericks are coming off a sweep in LA, including a win over the Lakers. The Mavs end their odd start of winning all road games and losing all home games with a win over the slumping Jazz in Dallas.
Still want the Hornets in OKC?
Funny how time can change one’s perspective.
When the Sonics moved to Oklahoma City 16 months ago, a familiar comment around town was something along the lines of: “I’m glad we’ve got our own NBA team. But it’s a shame George Shinn refused to sell the Hornets to Clay Bennett.”
What a difference a year makes.
At the time, the Hornets were coming off a season they were the No. 2 seed and lost to the Spurs in an entertaining seven-game Western Conference semifinals series.
Some national analysts predicted New Orleans would make a run at the 2009 Finals, possibly win the NBA Championship. Meanwhile, the Sonics were coming off a 20-62 season.
The disparity between the two franchises widened when the Thunder got off to a disastrous 3-29 start while the Hornets once again were well on their way to another playoff berth.
A year later, the landscape has changed. Dramatically!
Chris Paul’s confrontation with Rajon Rondo Sunday night after a 10-point loss in Boston was a reminder Paul essentially has to carry the Hornets on his back similar to what Dwyane Wade faces in Miami. The post-game war of words evidently was instigated by Rondo, who reportedly insinuated Paul’s siutation inflates his stats.
During post-game interviews, Paul said Rondo is a quality point guard who was lucky to play on a team with three perennial All-Stars, that Rondo owns a championship ring, something he hopes to someday acheive.
Reality is Kevin Durant and the Thunder probably has a better shot at eventually winning a championship than Paul has in New Orleans.
The Hornets probably will finish with a better record than Oklahoma City this season. But even that’s not a given. Peja Stojakovic’s back is so bad it’s dicey how many games he will play. Tyson Chandler is in Charlotte. The Hornets depth is sorely lacking. CP3 is special. David West can still fill it up. But overall New Orleans is in decline.
Compare that to Oklahoma City. Durant, Jeff Green and Russell Westbrook are showing signs they’re maturing. The Thunder signed defensive stopper Thabo Sefolosha to a four-year deal and drafted James Harden, who is showing signs of someday being a key contributor. OKC is building a solid foundation.
If you took a poll in the summer of 2008, a majority of local sports fans probably would have picked the Hornets by a 3-to-1 margin or better if given a choice of which team they would want to watch play 41 home games in the Ford Center.
Ask that same question more than a year later and my guess is it would flip flop to at least a 3-to-1 margin in favor of the Thunder, although some would pick the Hornets simply to watch Chris Paul play.
Patience. That’s something GM Sam Presti has preached since he arrived in town. Now we can see why.
In just over a year’s time, the Thunder’s roster is starting to look a lot more appealing than the Hornets’ roster.
Some bad games Monday nigiht
After a solid weekend making picks (21-6 record) to lift my overall record to 30-15, the key to picking Monday’s games essentially is trying to figure out which of the bad teams will play the best tonight.
LA Clippers 94, Minnesota 88: The Clippers are still looking for their first win. They should get it tonight at home against the Timberwolves.
Charlotte 92, New Jersey 88: The Nets are among the Stinky Six, six teams still seeking their first win. They won’t get it. The Bobcats win at home to improve to 2-2.
New York 104, New Orleans 100: My upset special. The Hornets are playing a back-to-back after Chris Paul was verbally attacked by Rajon Rondo Sunday night following New Orleans’ loss in Boston. The Knicks win their first at Paul’s expense.
Sacramento 95, Memphis 92: The Kings get their first win in their home opener over the Grizzlies. Sacramento, 0-3, has suffered double-digit losses in two of their three road losses, the exception a close loss at New Orleans.
Utah 97, Houston 93: The Rockets, 2-1, have played well posting a road win at Golden State and a home win over the Trail Blazers, but the Jazz is tough at home.
Can Thunder remain among undefeated teams?
Nearly a week into the NBA season the Thunder is one of only seven undefeated teams. All seven play on Sunday. How many will still be undefeated at the end of the day? My daily predictions say five.
Will the Thunder be one of the five?
Portland won 54 games last season. Over the long haul no one would pick the Thunder to finish in front of the Trail Blazers in the standings. But at this point and time Oklahoma City is playing better basketball, is playing at home tonight, and Portland is playing a back-to-back which can be very challenging.
Following a loss to Houston Saturday night, the Trail Blzaers visit the Ford Center. Portland, 1-2, hasn’t played well its last two games, losing at home to Denver and Saturday to the Rockets.
Thunder 102, Portland 98: The key could boil down to how the Thunder fares defensively against LaMarcus Aldridge, who is a nightmare matchup for OKC.
Aldridge was avearging only 10.0 points before scoring 27 in the loss Saturday night. If the Thunder holds the former Texas star to his current average of 15.3 they’ll have a great shot at starting the season 3-0. They should win even if they hold Alrdidge to 20 or less and not let Rudy Fernandez go crazy off the bench.
In other games, where my picks are actually improving:
LA Lakers 100, Atlanta 92: Here’s where one of the undefeated teams could suffer its first loss. Surprisingly, it’s not the Lakers, who looked horrible in a home loss to Dallas Friday night. The Hawks, 2-0, have played well early but the Lakers should be amped up. Talk of the Lakers possibly starting 20-1, a prediction made by TNT’s analysts, looks crazy.
Toronto 95, Orlando 91: The Raptors, having beaten the Cavs at home, could knock another team from the unbeaten ranks. The Magic, though, is very capable of staying undefeated. Should be a good game.
Boston 98, New Orleans 86: The Celtics are one of the Undefeated Seven but the Hornets are a long shot, especially with the game in Boston. The Celtics have looked like the league’s best team. The Hornets haven’t played well.
Miami 96, Chicago 90: The Heat is one of the Undefeated Seven. But similar to the Celtics-Hornets, Miami should remain undefeated at home. Dwyane Wade has been getting some help from Michael Beasley and others during a 2-0 start.
Denver 106, Memphis 93: The Nuggets are are among the Undefeated Seven. But similar to the Celtics and Heat, Denver should roll in its home opener. Carmelo Anthony is off to a terrific start.
Phoenix 100, Minnesota 88: The theme continues. An undefeated team at home should stay undefeated. The Suns haven’t dazzled early but are 2-0, finding ways to win.
Portland 2-1 or 1-2 in Ford Center?
After finally having a productive night picking NBA games let’s start Saturday with the Portland-Houston game since the Trail Blazers will be in the Ford Center Sunday night.
Portland 95, Houston 93: The Trail Blazers will either be 2-1 or 1-2 when they invade the Ford Center Sunday night, a back-to-back helping the Thunder who had Saturday off. Look for Portland to eake out a win after beating the Rockets in both teams’ season opener earlier in the week.
Philadelphia 104, New York 100: Could be a shootout at Madison Square Garden. The Sixers, coming off a win over Milwaukee, are still trying to figure out how to get Elton Brand more involved. The Knicks are still looking for their first win.
San Antonio 104, Sacramento 88: The Kings actually had a lead late in their game Friday night in New Orleans, but the Spurs should romp after having the incentive of losing at Chicago Thursday night.
Dallas 96, LA Clippers 94: Coming off a dominant upset win over the Lakers Friday night in LA, the Mavericks must guard against a letdown. The Clippers are still looking for their first win.
Washington 94, New Jersey 84: The Wizards’ home opener after splitting road games at Dallas and Atlanta. The Nets have been competitve but are 0-2.
Cleveland 96, Charlotte 83: The Cavs got back on track in Minneapolis and return home. The Bobcats who got their first win in double-overtime over the Knicks. LeBron is close to averaging a double-double during a 1-2 start.
Milwaukee 90, Detroit 86: The Bucks finally got their season started with a road loss. Their home opener is against a Pistons team that looked lethargic against the Thunder without Rip Hamilton, who is sidelined by an ankle injury.
Thunder to start 2-0?
The Thunder’s schedule is difficut the next five games.
Three Ford Center opponents — Portland (Sunday), Lakers (Tuesday) and Orlando (Nov. 
feature last year’s two NBA finalists and the 54-win Trail Blazers. The two road games — Detroit (tonight) and Houston (next Friday) — are more winnable but… they’re on the road.
Since Oklahoma City will be an underdog in all five games, securing one or two wins the next nine days would be a good start for the young Thunder.
After a so-so record making daily NBA picks here is Friday’s predictions:
Detroit 94, Thunder 90: This is a game the Thunder could win but the Pistons were impressive in their 22-point road win at Memphis. For OKC to post the upset (they’re a 7-point underdog), the Thunder must at least break even on the boards and score some points in transition.
LA Lakers 99, Dallas 92: A deeper roster was supposed to take some pressure off Dirk Nowitzki but that wasn’t the case in the opener. Lakers should improve to 2-0 but they haven’t hit the road, yet, even though that shouldn’t be an issue.
Boston 96, Chicago 88: The Celtics have been impressive. The Bulls now discover what the Spurs did Thursday night, that playing back-to-back nights, the second game on the road, is difficult.
Atlanta 98, Washington 96: One of the better games tonight. Gilbert Arenas and the Wizards played well in a road win at Dallas. The Hawks won at home. They win again at home but Washington has a shot.
Miami 96, Indiana 94: The Pacers are a slight favorite but D-Wade finds a way to get the Heat a valuable road win.
Philadelphia 98, Milwaukee 88: The Sixers try to bounce back after losing at Atlanta. Believe it or not, the Bucks haven’t played a game, yet.
Cleveland 96, Minnesota 90: The 0-2 Cavs get a break by playing Minnesota but the Timberwolves are at home. Still, LeBron and Shaq take out their frustration on rookie coach Kurt Rambis’ squad.
Orlando 90, New Jersey 85: Vince Carter’s return to Jersey. The Magic hits the road for the first time. The Nets blew a big lead at Minnesota but this is their home opener. Carter gets the last laugh.
New Orleans 96, Sacramento 86: After an ugly opening loss at Dallas, the Hornets right the ship with a home win over the hapless Kings.
Phoenix 106, Golden St. 98: The Suns posted a solid road win against the Clippers. Their home opener is against a Warriors team that couldn’t beat Houston at home.
Utah 96, Clippers 90: The Jazz are tough at home. The Clippers, a team some say is a playoff contender, are 0-2 and in danger of falling to 0-3 if they can’t post an unlikely road upset.
Toronto 95, Memphis 90: The Raptors looked good at home against LeBron and the Cavs. Memphis was horrible. But at least the Grizzlies are at home. But they were at home Wednesday night, too, and were embarrassed.
New York 98, Charlotte 95: The Bobcats are favored at home but after their dismal franchise-record low point total at Boston the high-scoring Knicks will post the upset.
Cavs 0-2? Time to panic?
The Sporting News, always trying to be ahead of the curve, did a huge story in its NBA season preview issue breaking down a projected Cavaliers-Lakers matchup in the 2010 NBA Finals. They used four pages to comapre the two teams.
Oops.
It’s only two games. The Cavs will be fine. It’s not like they’re going to miss the playoffs. LeBron James’ triple-double in the loss Wednesday night at Toronto was a reminder he’s probably still the best player in the league.
But Cleveland’s 0-2 start is a sign the Cavaliers might not be the Eastern Conference favorite many of us made them out to be, myself included.
Shaquille O’Neal, Cleveland’s much hyped off-season acquisition, has been a liability defensively. Opponents are taking advantage by pulling him away from the basket, then driving around him, exposing Shaq on pick-and-rolls.
Shaq appears to be a bad fit for the Cavs, who are at their best when they’re running in transition.
With Delonte West’s current troubles, the Cavs’ depth is thin for the time being.
Panic? No. Cleveland should win 55-plus games, possibly get to 60 again. King James is that good.
But after watching the Opening Night loss, at home, to the Celtics I certainly wish I had a mulligan on my presason picks just three days into the season.
Boston’s aging roster must stay healthy. The playoffs are a long way off. Things can change in a week or two much less six months. But early in the season, it’s apparent the Celtics, not the Cavs, are the favorite to win the Eastern Conference.
Spurs to win on the road
Continuing an early-season trend of picking every NBA game, after showing improvement in my W-L record the second night, look for the Spurs to start the season 2-0.
Spurs 98, Bulls 93: After dominating the Hornets, the Spurs flew from San Antonio to Chicago late Wednesday night. Those type of back-to-back games, flying more than 1,000 miles, is one of the toughest challenges of playing in the NBA. But the Spurs are a veteran team accustomed to the challenge.
This is the Bulls’ season opener. They’re at home. Chicago and Milwaukee are the only teams to have not played a game. But San Antonio was so efficient against New Orleans it’s hard to pick against the Spurs. And it wouldn’t be surprising if the Bulls show a little rust, having gone more than a week without playing a game.
Trail Blazers 104, Nuggets 101: This should be an entertaining game after both teams won their openers at home, two teams hoping to compete with San Antonio, Dallas and Utah for a top four seed.
Portland looked good early but was so-so in the fourth quarter in its opener against Houston. The Nuggets finally pulled away against the Jazz, led by Carmelo Anthony’s 30 points. It would be a huge road win for Denver but Portland is tough at home.
Opening night preview
When the NBA schedule came out nearly two months ago I wrote the Thunder’s scheudle is especially difficult the first two months, that if the Thunder could go 14-18 or 13-19 those first 32 games before the calendar flips to 2010, a young team might stay within sniffing distance of playoff teams much of the season.
Well, tonight we start to find out if a young team is up to that challenge. It’s Opening Night. Game 1 of that 32-game stretch is in the Ford Center, a game OKC should win.
The two most interesting items from shoot-around Wednesday morning, a few hours before tipoff, was coach Scott Brooks’ response to Kevin Durant possibly leading the league in scoring at some point during his career and Opening Night excitement.
Durant finished sixth in the league in scoring last seson. When asked if No. 35 could eventually win a scoring title, Brooks’ final answer was the most revealing.
“Kevin has an offensive game that’s pretty good at (age) 21. But he still needs to continue to learn the tricks and crafts of that position,” Brooks said. “And he has. He did a great job over the summer.”
In other words, Durant’s offensive game still has much room to grow as he gains more experience. That’s why many are predicting the former Texas star might someday win a scoring title.
One stat best sums up Durant’s scoring potential. LeBron James is the only player in NBA history to score more points than Durant before their 21st birthday.
Brooks’ initial response shifted focus to Durant’s desire to be recognized as a player who helps his team win on both ends of the court, not just scoring.
“There’s no doubt Kevin Durant is a special player,” Brooks said. “The thing I really admire about Kevin is he knows he’s good and he can score and score in a lot of different spots. But that’s not his focus. He wants to continue to develop and make winning basketball plays.
“He said it best last year. He had All-Star numbers but felt he didn’t deserve it because we didn’t win enough games, that you should be able to win games if you’re going to make the All-Star team. With Kevin he will develop and get better.”
In response to Opening Night, Brooks, as he often does, spoke about down-the-roster players since that best describes his scrappy career.
“It’s always a good time for a player,” Brooks said. “One, you made the team. Two, you get an opportunity to enjoy playing after all the hard work you put in through the summer (and see it) show up on the court.”
Thunder will win opener
After going an unimpressive 2-2 on Opening Night, thanks to the Wizards and Celtics posting upsets, here are my predictions for tonight’s dozen games.
OKC 96, Sacramento 91: The Kings dominated the final preaseson game but the Thunder played with no emotion. Tonight, the atmosphere will be electric. It won’t be easy but the Thunder starts 1-0.
Cleveland 96, Toronto 93: For the second straight night the Cavs are involved in one of the best games. The Raptors, opening at home, are much improved. If Toronto wins an 0-2 start for the Shaq/LeBron Cavs would be placed under much national scrutiny.
Orlando 94, Philadelphia 88: The Sixers are erratic and sometimes pull off upsets but the Magic is always tough at home.
Boston 98, Charlotte 90: The Celtics overcame an early 14-point deficit and looked impressive in Cleveland. They won’t slip up in their home opener.
San Antonio 96., New Orleans 84: There’s good vibes in the Alamo City following some off-season moves, bad vibes in the Big Easy where Emeka Okafor didn’t practice much all preseason. Spurs win easily.
Denver 106, Utah 97: The Nuggets hope to build on their solid trip to the Western finals last year. The Jazz is tough at home but often struggles on the road. Melo and Chauncey start 1-0.
Clippers 103, Phoenix 100: A coin toss game. I’ll go with the Clippers at home. Eric Gordon and Chris Kaman played well in the opener against the Lakers.
Miami 108, New York 102: This could be the highest scoring game of the night. D-Wade might score 40.
Atlanta 101, Indiana 94: The Hawks are trying to crack the top three in the East. Jamal Crawford makes his Atlanta debut.
Memphis 95, Detroit 93: My upset special. Allen Iverson (torn hamstring) won’t play but Grizzlies still squeak out a win to boost fan morale.
Golden State 110, Houston 104: Another high-scoring, run-and-gun game. The Rockets trailed by double digits much of their opener at Portland.
New Jersey 97, Minnesota 95: The Timberwolves are favored at home but the Nets, led by Brook Lopez and Devin Harris, post the upset.
