The NBA: Why you should care

H o o p s C o r n e r . c o m

HoopsCorner

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December 14, 2007

Santa Clause once said, “You never foul a jump shooter. Box out, then go for the rebound. And for goodness sake, get your hands up on defense!!”
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OK, maybe the Jolly Red Giant never said those things. But if he’s a basketball fan – and why wouldn’t he be? Today’s NBA has legions of fans in Canada, South America, and even China; true globalization is here, baby! – chances are he’s at least thought them while watching a game.

So in honor of St. Nick and the season that ‘tis upon us, we at HoopsCorner.com are breaking down who’s been the NBA’s naughtiest player thus far, and who’s earned their way to the top of the Nice list (and no, Tony Parker’s wife Eva Longoria is not eligible to be on either).

Here’s the catch – Isiah Thomas is always bad. And Steve Nash is always nice. So we’ve set apart space for one boy who’s been especially naughty, and one who’s been particularly nice. If these players’ surprise starts have been discussed ad nauseum (ESPN”S practically torn the Bulls’ roster a new stocking stuffer, for example), Santa declared them ineligible for discussion, in the spirit of equal coverage time this holiday season.

Ms. Clause! The ‘winners,’ please!

NAUGHTY: There’s a whole horde of Knicks rightfully receiving severe local and national criticism – Isiah Thomas, Stephon Marbury, Eddy Curry, and James Dolan have had the most dung thrown on their names and games.

Yet the biggest disappointment on this team has to be newcomer Zach Randolph. While the others have a history of ineptitude, Zach seemed to elevate his game to a new level last season in Portland. This year, conversely, his offensive numbers have dropped right back down the chimney in a softer conference.

The drop-off simply hasn’t been noticed much because Randolph’s disappointing play is still better than the to-be-expected mediocrity of his teammates, and the Knicks’ off-court troubles are far more enticing stories than its on-court ones.

Yet check out the difference in these per-game averages, even after a possible breakout contest (27 points, 16 rebounds) against Seattle on Wednesday:

2006-07: 35.7 minutes, 23.6 points, 46.7% FG, 81.9% FT (7.1 attempts per game), 2.2 assists. 2007-08: 33.2 minutes, 17.6 points, 45.7% FG, 67.5% FT (4.6 attempts per game), 1.7 assists.

Obviously Zach’s had to adjust to a new team and style. And Thomas does the big man no favors by playing him alongside the lane-clogging Curry and an army of questionable decision-makers. But it’s not like Randolph had great help in Portland and the bottom line is a team that’s not going to win with defense needs him to put up more than tinsel-tame numbers in the East.

Also getting coal: Kirk Hinrich and Ben Gordon (but again – a too well-documented nosedive to qualify), Pau Gasol, Dirk Nowitzki, Yao Ming, Jermaine O’Neal, Jason Richardson, Gilbert Arenas.

NICE: I’ve already sung the praises of electric elves Jason Terry and Chris Paul in another article (Why You Should Care, Part II) and I’m not convinced Chris Kaman’s pleasant uptick in production won’t downtick (albeit, to levels still higher than what we’re used to) once Elton Brand is 100% again and eating the Clippers’ post opportunities.

So I’m betting the No. 1 ‘nice’ surprise on Santa’s list this year is Carlos Boozer. The scouting report coming out of Duke in 2002 said this guy’s ceiling was supposed to max out at “nice hustle player who will get you boards but not much else (he was a second round selection of the Cavs, remember – how nice a team could THAT franchise have today with Boozer still around?).” Carlos has exceeded those expectations since Day One, but this early season he’s taking his jollies to legitimate-superstardom-stratosphere.

While Utah fans can debate how much of Boozer’s increased productivity is due in part to point guard Deron Williams’ improvement, facts are facts, and here are the relevant ones regarding their power forward:

- His 25.2 points per game are destroying his previous best of 20.9, set last season, and are tied for third in the league behind some guys named Lebron and Kobe.

- His effort on the glass hasn’t suffered at all because of it (11.5 rebounds per game and a rebound rate of 19.5; tops among players 6-9 or shorter not named Kurt Thomas).

- The defense is at an all-time high. Too often, effort on the ‘other’ end of the floor is rated purely off steals and blocks, but these numbers are still good activeness-indicators and Boozer’s averaging a career high in the former (1.3 per game) along with his best in four years in the latter (.6 per game).

Boozer’s team is slipping on the icy slopes of the tough Western Conference right now (losers of five in a row), but not because of him.

Also getting candy: Caron Butler, Lebron James, Manu Ginobili, Chris Paul, Jason Terry, Andrew Bynum, Brendan Haywood, Jason Maxiell, Dwight Howard, Josh Howard, Glen Davis.

E-mail HoopsCorner writer Tyson Wirth at tyson-wirth@uiowa.edu

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