A Few Idle LeBron Thoughts

Just a few idle thoughts on just another week in the career of LeBron James, in which he averaged a 34-8-11 while leading the Cavs to a 3-0 week despite some major backcourt injuries, with all three wins coming against .500+ teams, including a showdown win vs. Kobe & the Lakers, and a last-second block of Kevin Durant to secure Sunday's win vs. OKC:



So, there's been lots of LeBron food for thought over the last week or so, including the very good LeBron column by Bill Simmons.

Simmons noted, "As crazy as this sounds, [LeBron]'s been the most underrated story of the 2009-10 season." As much as anything, the column was a reminder that - for all the day-to-day subplots of the season, and the legitimately compelling narratives of Kobe vs. LeBron or the quest to see which player (Kobe, Shaq, Duncan) can be the first to five championships - the overriding big-picture narrative in this era of basketball revolves around this question: To what heights LeBron James can take his game?

Zach Harper had a good post on Hardwood Paroxysm last week, as he pondered whether, if we can't come to a definitive answer across the board on LeBron vs. Kobe, then can we even say there is a best player?

I was quoted in the piece, and was fairly adamant in my feelings:

"I think that LeBron is clearly the best player, and frankly, think that those who! think K obe is better are wrong. People always want to focus on W-L at a certain point, and underestimate the quality of teammates. The Lakers have an overwhelming amount of talent surrounding Kobe, the Cavs have a good collection of talent around LeBron. If the Lakers hadn’t acquired Pau, I don’t think that LeBron v Kobe would even be a conversation."

I say all this without the intention of demeaning Kobe Bryant in any way. It's certainly compelling to watch him continue to add to his game, and to see how high he can rise on the list of all-time great players. But he won't ever challenge to be no. 1 on the list; there is no comparison with Jordan.

And that's the thing: LeBron has a chance to challenge for no. 1. Yes, Kobe is a more accomplished player and ranks higher than LeBron for his career as of now. But LeBron has a chance to challenge for best player ever, and Kobe does not.

Matt Moore was much more nuanced and elegant than I in the Hardwood Paroxysm post, with the following quote:

"It’s LeBron. And I say that not because of Dwyer, Simmons, Ford, Bucher, or anyone else’s opinions, which are all the same, but because it’s a fact. The problem is that it instantly creates a slant on Kobe. But that’s not true. Kobe is as good as I can possibly imagine Kobe Bryant being. And there are literally dozens of things that Kobe does better than LeBron. But you don’t need to be perfect to be the best player, you need to be better than everyone else. And a player that is that size, with that speed, that power, that strength, that range (check out his f***ing three point numbers! For a forward!), with his vision, leadership, game-domination-ability, and playmaking ability, is better than everyone else. He does so much during a game it’s insane. It’s just insane. Kobe can take over. LeBron is constantly doing everything. He’s the best player in the game, and that doesn’t mean I doubt Kobe for a heartbeat. It just means that LeBron’s better right now."

After I wa! tched Ko be score from the low post on Thursday, and then read Matt's comment on Friday, I was reminded of what I think is a key distinction between the two players: Kobe has clearly realized more of his potential than LeBron, and it's not even close. There should be as little debate about this as there should be about whether LeBron is a better player overall.

I'd even argue that Kobe has possibly realized as much of his potential as any of the elite players in history. But LeBron's physical advantages are just too much to overcome, even if his game is not as fully realized.

Something that stands out about LeBron is that it's remarkable he's producing at such historically great levels when it still seems like there are so many ways in which he can improve his game and make it more efficient:

- What if he develops and mixes in a low-post game? His size, strength and quickness should make him impossible to single cover in the blocks, and his passing ability should make him dangerous to double.

- What if the Cavs ever start to run a little? I've said it in this space multiple times before, but LeBron is possibly the most devastating fast-break finisher in the history of the game, yet Cleveland plays at the third-slowest pace in the league, and ranks 18th in fast-break points.

- What if he stops shooting so many threes? Yes, LeBron is at a career-high .360 3PT%, but his 5.0 threes attempted per game (also a career high) still feel like far too many for a player whose advantages lie in size and strength more than shooting ability. It still seems like he should take the lead of Dirk Nowitzki, who reduced the number of threes he attempted down from a career-high of 4.9 per game in 2002-03 down to the 2-3 per game range (which actually feels too low for a guy shoots it as well as Dirk).

- What if the Cavs offensive schemes ever improve? The John Kuester era offered a brief hope for a more fluid Cleveland offense, but the team! appears to be in a more stagnant mode once again, which too often ends up with LeBron going one-on-one starting from 25 feet away from the basket.

Specifically, I wonder: What happened to the UCLA sets, which looked so promising to me at the start of last season, but soon disappeared? They allowed LeBron to receive the ball around the elbow/high-post area, a la Nowitzki, where he is just impossible to guard, and also set him up nicely to run screen/roll with Varejao at the foul line, a potentially devastating combo from that spot.

So, that's the thing that's crazy: there's still so much room for improvement. If all the pieces come together, how scarily good can LeBron be?

One last idle thought...
- I noticed on the immediately indispensable site Hoopdata that LeBron's career-high FG% of .510 can partially be explained by a career-best mark of .755 in shots at the rim (he's been in the 71-72% range previously).

Something that caught my eye is that the number LeBron's field goals at the rim which have come off of assists from teammates is *way* up from previous seasons, at 50.9%, when that number's been at 37-38% in previous seasons. Not sure what the Cavs are doing differently to cause that change this year. I wondered if it was fast-break related, but Cleveland's fast-break points per game are up only 1.5 points over last year.

Coincidentally, Cavs: The Blog has an excellent breakdown of which players have assisted LeBron's dunks and layups. Check it out. Mo Williams has been the primary setup man - it'll be interesting to see if LeBron can keep up his career-best efficiency with Mo out.

NBA Plus: Risky trade for Jackson paying off for Bobcats

Charlotte minority owner and managing member of basketball operations Michael Jordan may be the one known as a gambler, but it was Bobcats general manager Rod Higgins going all in on this one.

Stephen Jackson as resident savior? It was as much a sure thing as saying resident nomad Larry Brown will be the team's coach five years from now.

But Higgins went for the deal anyway, taking the disgruntled and mercurial Jackson from Golden State in a Nov. 17 trade that has indeed turned the Bob- kitties into Bob-tigers. Despite losing to Orlando on Saturday, they were 9-3 in 2010 and 18-15 since Jackson joined â€" good for a tie for sixth place in the Eastern Conference and the very real possibility of the franchise's first playoff berth coming in its sixth season.

When it comes to the Bobcats' decision-makers, it's the jet-setting Jordan with the final say no matter where he is at the time, with Higgins and Brown weighing in throughout. But Higgins was the only one with a prior relationship with Jackson, meaning he had the best chance at we! ighing t he risk against the reward.

Higgins was still the Warriors' general manager when Jackson was beloved in the Bay Area, when the 2006-07 team qualified for the playoffs on the final day of the regular season and pulled off an electrifying upset of Dallas in the first round. There was no guarantee this move could replicate that.

Jackson's trade demand early this season had included a desire to play for a winning team. And, as if Charlotte's history wasn't bad enough (it'd had 16 days of winning records in five previous seasons), the Bobcats were 3-6 at the time of the trade.

What's more, there was the matter of Jackson's contract â€" a combined $35.4 million owed from 2009 to 2013. Risk all around.

"I just said, 'Stephen, let's just try to treat this like a situation kind of like the one you just got out of, where you helped that (Warriors) club that hadn't been to the postseason in quite a few years get there,' " Higgins said of his conversations with Jackson immediately following the trade. " 'Come help this young ballclub, and we'll provide you with what you need.'

"With Larry and Michael and myself, we could manage him if we allowed the communication to be wide open. There's a risk in any trade you do, but he's what our team needed: another playmaker, another guy you could count on to score night in and night out. I thought it was the perfect fit."

It appears that way so far. Brown â€" the Hall of Fame coach who is no stranger to strong personalities or controversial characters â€" has the Bobca! ts ranke d as the league's top defense in his second season with the club. Jackson and former Kings small forward Gerald Wallace form a fierce duo on the wings, both respected for their defensive dedication but more than capable on the offensive end as well.

Charlotte averaged 82.4 points through its first nine games, but 97.4 points in the 32 games since the trade. And Jackson â€" who has averaged 21 points (42.4 percent shooting), five rebounds and 3.5 assists while with the Bobcats â€" is far from the only player flourishing under Brown.

Higgins cited "the evolution of (fifth-year point guard) Raymond Felton" as a key factor. Down low, the Bobcats continue to defend the rim with a combination of starting center Nazr Mohammed and reserve 7-footer DeSagana Diop that has made up for the continued absence of Tyson Chandler (foot injury, out since Dec. 22) down low. All of which is evidence that marriage between the Bobcats and Brown is going quite well, too.

That hire had risk of its own in the summer of 2008, as Brown's debacle in New York led to a two-year exile of sorts from the league until his old North Carolina friend (Jordan) brought him in on a four-year deal. He was a relative success last season, as the Bobcats were in playoff contention until March and improved by three games from the previous season.

But much like the Jackson gamble, the well-chronicled past means the short-term solution is no guarantee of long-term success. What's more, Charlotte has quickly gone from a team building a young core to a veteran squad with no projected salary cap space until the 2011-12 campaign. For now, though, they will enjoy the payoff.

"With all situations, only time will tell," Higgins said. "You give (Jackson) the benefit of the doubt, continue to work with him and with us as a group and continually try to improve the team and get to that point where we're considered a very good team."

Playing well amid tragedy

Samuel Dalembert has been more than a humanitarian recently. The Philadelphia center is a good basketball player again, too.

Lost in the news of Dalembert's yeoman's efforts to help his homeland of Haiti after the devastating Jan. 12 earthquake has been his Herculean play this month â€" on a relative basis, anyway. The upswing started before the disaster, as the third-year center entered Saturday averaging 11.3 points on an eye-popping 68.9 percent shooting.

Through December, Dalembert had been shooting 47.2 percent. His rebounding has seen a spike as well (12.6 per game), making his situation among the more intriguing heading toward the Feb. 18 trade deadline.

The question now is whether that makes him indispensable to the 76ers or easier to trade. Dalembert â€" whose production has never lived up to his contract that has a combined $24.9 million this season and next remaining â€" has reportedly been available for quite some time, and league sources continue to indicate the Kings have interest.

Yet, as is often the case, economics stand in the way of a deal. The Kings would surely look to shed some of their own future salary in such a trade, but the 76ers are committed to approximately $65 million in salaries with Dalembert.

Meanwhile, Dalembert said he's no longer looking to be traded like he was last season.

"I love the guys we have here," said Dalembert, who visited Haiti on a goodwill mission between games on Jan. 18 and Jan. 20 and has donated $130,000 to relief. "Last year I felt like my talent was being wasted. But if I can be on the floor and help out, I'm happy. Now it's about winning."

The 76ers have done more of that lately, winning seven of their last 13 games.

Arenas reaches plea deal

Gilbert Arenas

Washington Wizards guard Gilbert Arenas was charged with felony gun possession on Thursday in connection with a Dec. 21 locker room confrontation with a teammate.

Prosecutors charged Arenas with one count of carrying a pistol without a license, which carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison. But Arenas reached a plea deal that could result in much less or even no jail time, according to the Washington Post.

The charges were filed in D.C. Superior Court in an "information," a document that often signals a plea deal.

Arenas is scheduled to plead guilty Friday afternoon. His lawyer and the team had no immediate comment.

Arenas, who has been suspended indefinitely by the NBA pending the investigation, has said he kept multiple guns in his locker at the Verizon Center. The 28-year-old three-time NBA All-Star said he wanted to keep them away from his children and didn't know it was illegal.

He says he took them out of the locker on Dec. 21 in a "misguided effort to play a joke" on a teammate.

League officials have said the locker-room incident stemmed from a card-game dispute between Arenas and teammate Javaris Crittenton on a plane trip two days earlier.

At least seven Wizards players and coach Flip Saunders have appeared before a grand jury or been questioned by authorities.

Earlier Thursday, police searched for a gun at Crittenton's apartment in Virginia but did not seize any evidence, according to court documents.

It's unclear what role Crittenton played in the incident and whether he had a gun. He has kept a low profile and has said he did nothing wrong.
Police were specifically looking for a silver or chrome colored semiautomatic handgun with a black handle. A search warrant indicated police are investigating crimes including brandishing a weapon and violating the District of Columbia's gun laws.

Crittenton's agent, Mark Bartelstein, said Crittenton was there during the search.

"It went as smooth as it could have gone," Bartelstein said.

Crittenton has been excused by the team from practices and games while authorities investigate.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Glen

Sports contracts include all sorts of bonuses in order to incentivize behavior, but this one caught my attention:

The Boston Celtics are bringing back Glen "Big Baby" Davis, who agreed to a two-year deal that could pay $6 million . . . Davis will receive $5 million in base salary and can earn an additional 500,000 per season for meeting certain weight clauses, a source told ESPN.com's Chad Ford.

Davis, of course, has a history of weight problems, which may partly explain why he fell out of the first round in the 2007 NBA Draft and also why he struggled to attract much interest as a free agent this off-season (another reason is his height relative to position -- 6'6 power forwards usually aren't coveted).

The incentives in his contract suggest that Davis believes his weight woes are his own fault, or at least primarily his fault, rather than the fault of unusual metabolism or something else that would be beyond his control. After-all, if he thought his weight problems were beyond his control, then he presumably wouldn't ascribe much value to the incentive.

With obesity rates soaring in the U.S., it will be interesting to see if more athletes encounter weight woes and if, correspond! ingly, t eams turn to $$ as a way of discouraging players from putting on the pounds.

Celtics Get A Steal With Marquis Daniels and His Tattoos

Whenever this silly sign in trade is done, the Celtics will already have a better squad then the championship team. The players from what I hear ranges from Tony Allen, Billy Walker, Brian Scalabrine, and Gabe Pruitt. None of those guys are or have been any impact on the team since joining. If anyone wants to argue than, yes, Scal logged some solid minutes in the playoffs and what have you, but the guy was and will continue to be a joke.

With the addition of Wallace and now Daniels that gives us already one hell of a bench. Daniels is a very verastile player, who can play the 1-3 positions. Gets about a fifth of his offensive from each of fast break opportunities, pick and rolls, and spot ups. Shows solid one-on-one skills as well. Decent jump shot. Doesn’t show ideal follow through. Won’t hit many three pointers, but he’ll take them when he is open. As for his defense he an guard the 1-3 positions, but is best matched up against 2s, or smaller small forwards. Is excellent out on the perimeter and has a great motor.

As much as I loved Bill Walker and Tony Allen, I will take Daniels in a second over them. He is the real deal and although Boston fans know that they are getting a stud in Daniels, this will be one of the most overlooked deals by the rest of the NBA, until you know, playoff time.

Orlando Magic Sign Brandon Bass

With Hedo Turkoglu opening up the small forward spot with his departure, the Orlando Magic have been in search of a body to plug in to the starting lineup. It now looks like the open position will be filled by one of their own â€" Rashard Lewis. After signing former Dallas Maverick Brandon Bass, Lewis will shift over with Bass most likely becoming the starting power forward.

Bass is a four-year veteran who is only 24 years old. After seeing his minutes increase when he came to the Mavericks two years ago, Bass has become a much better all-around player. In only around 19 minutes per game the past two seasons, he has averaged about 8.5 points per game. Bass has also become a good free throw shooter and can provide the Magic with a big body to battle for rebounds down low. Overall, a good pickup for Orlando at $18 million over four years.

NBA Weekly: Ron Artest Signs With Lakers, Zach Randolph Traded To Grizzlies, Celtics Make Offer To Rasheed Wallace, Allen Iverson, Pistons, & More

Ron Artest Signs With Lakers

The Lakers made a huge splash this week by signing Ron Artest instead of re-signing Trevor Ariza. This move caught many by surprise including myself, since it looked like the Lakers were going to re-sign Lamar Odom and Trevor Ariza and keep this year's championship team together. The move to sign Artest shows that the Lakers are in a win now mode and are trying to build a dynasty around Kobe Bryant, Pau Gasol, Lamar Odom, Andrew Bynum, and now Ron Artest. There's no doubt that while order than Ariza, Artest is a better offensive player than Ariza is. Defensively I'm not sure Artest is still head and shoulders above Ariza, so there might not be an upgrade there, but he will definitely provide more consistency to the SF position for the Lakers. I also think this move was specifically made with the Celtics and Paul Pierce in mind. Pierce has notoriously struggled mightily when squaring off against Artest and with the Celtics healthy again next season it's very much possible that we could be seeing another Celtics/Lakers finals. I think Artest could give the Lakers some added toughness to match up against the Celtics.

Boston Celtics Offer Rasheed Wallace Contract

Speaking of the Celtics, if they do face off against the Lakers in the NBA Finals next season, not only wi! ll Ron A rtest be on the court, but it's possible that Rasheed Wallace may be as well. The Celtics have offered Rasheed Wallace the mid-level exception in hopes of luring him to Boston. I am personally drooling over the entertainment value of Rasheed Wallace and KG playing on the same team along with Kendrick Perkins. That would be one tough front court with a ton of attitude and nastiness. Not only that, but a Celtics/Lakers series with KG, Pierce, Allen, Rondo, Kobe, Pau, Odom and now possibly Artest and Rasheed would most definitely be a classic and a true matchup of titans. If Rasheed does sign with the Celtics, he would actually be coming off the bench and would probably see a lot of minutes subbing for Perkins. He would also probably see minutes at the 3 and 4. The Celtics wouldn't need much scoring from Wallace, which is perfect because he's never excelled at being one of the main guys, and he could then focus on defense, rebounding, and knocking down open three's. Think of him as a bigger version of James Posey.

In other Celtics news, Big Baby has the Pistons, Spurs, and Knicks interested in him and it looks like it's possible that Big Baby, Leon Powe, and Stephon Marbury may all not be back with them. That would probably leave some room for the Celtics to make a few other moves. A backup point guard would definitely be high on that list if they lose Marbury who just declined their latest offer and has said that he has three other teams interested in him.

Zach Randolph Traded To Memphis Grizzlies

So the Clippers did the right thing by moving Zach Randolph and creating more playing time for Blake Griffin. This is the major impact of this move, but I also think the Grizzlies will do alright by having Randolph on their team. His weakness is defensively, but that might not hurt the Grizzlies as much if Hasheem Thabeet is able to be a force on the defensive end in the paint. I don't expect the Grizzlies to be a winning team ! next sea son, but they definitely have a decent group of young players. I do have a few issues with their squad though. The first is that I don't really think Zach Randolph is going to help them in their rebuilding process, but I think since his contract expires after the 2011 season, then the Grizzlies will probably just hang onto him for this season and then flip him and his expiring contract next year.

The second problem I have with the Grizzlies is that while they have a decent group of young players in O.J. Mayo, Rudy Gay, Mike Conley, & Hasheem Thabeet; I don't feel like any of those guys is a superstar type player that can win you a championship. Mayo should improve, but he is probably a 2nd option at best and Gay is probably a 3rd option. I think Conley is going to be good enough to be a solid PG on a championship caliber team and Thabeet if he's solid defensively is a nice part to have as well. However, at some point it may make sense for the Grizzlies to try and flip Mayo or Gay or maybe even both for a superstar type player who could help them win a championship. That of course would be a few years down the line, but if that doesn't happen then I could see this team peaking as perennial 4 or 5 seed that just doesn't have enough to win it all.

Houston Rockets

A rough week for the Houston Rockets, who found out that they most likely may be without Yao Ming next season and possibly forever if his injury is indeed career ending. They also lost one of their better players in Ron Artest to the Lakers and replaced him with a less consistent offensive player in Trevor Ariza. I know we all severely underrated this team last season, especially in the playoffs against the Lakers, but they just keep losing more and more scoring and at some point you have to figure they won't be able to sustain their success. Certainly a healthy Tracy McGrady would improve the offense, but there are no guarantees that McGrady will be healthy for ! a full s eason. I have to wonder what direction this franchise is heading in and if they are just trying to make the playoffs instead of shooting for an NBA title. It's great to find all these bargins and sleeper players like Aaron Brooks and Carl Landry, but if you don't surround them with superstars then it really doesn't accomplish anything.

Allen Iverson

There has been talk that Iverson may be forced into retirement because no team is going to be willing to pay him what he probably want. Iverson will probably be forced to take somebodies mid-level exception and I think that is what will eventually happen instead of AI retiring. The Bulls and Heat are two teams that are said to be interested in Iverson, who you would imagine might prefer to play in Miami next to Dwyane Wade. However, it's been reported that Iverson wants to play for the Grizzlies next season, which makes no sense to me for either Iverson or the Grizzlies.

Detroit Pistons

The Pistons wasted no time in free agency signing two former UConn Huskies, Ben Gordon and Charlie Villanueva. Both of them are solid offensively and can score in bunches, but they also are not the best defensive players, and I think that hurts their value to their team. I don't really think they are a good fit for what what Detroit already has on their roster as well, so I would expect the Pistons to be making a few more moves during the offseason. Rip Hamilton and Tashaun Prince could definitely be changing teams in the near future.

Other NBA News

- Marcin Gortat reached an agreement with the Dallas Mavericks and should be an excellent addition to their squad. Gortat really played well off the bench for the Magic last season and he should give the Mavs some more toughness downlow. This could also allow the Mavericks to package the expiring salaries of! Erick D ampier and Jerry Stackhouse in a trade.

- Josh Childress is back on the NBA free agent scene and has visited with the Milwaukee Bucks this week. He could be a decent pickup for a playoff caliber team, but I don't see him making much sense for the Bucks.

- The Raptors have been trying to acquire David Lee, so that's something to keep an eye on. The Grizzlies were interested in Lee too, but decided to trade for Zach Randolph instead after they found out how much money Lee was looking for.

- Jason Kidd is a hot commodity right now as both the Mavs and Knicks are looking to offer him 3-year deals, which seems insane considering he's at least 3 years past his prime already. It's even more insane for the Knicks, who should be in rebuilding/save money for Lebron mode.

- Cleveland has some interest in Shawn Marion and also Anthony Parker and Linas Kleiza, who would all be solid additions to the Cavs.

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