Mark Jackson has been fired after three years as head coach of the Golden State Warriors. Jackson had a 121-109 record in his first head coaching position in the NBA. The rumors that Jackson would be released have been swirling around the Warriors organization since the waning weeks of the regular season.
The Warriors 51 regular season wins are the most the organization has seen in 22 years. Last year Jackson guided Golden State to the teams first playoff series victory since the 2006-07 season. The decision to release Jackson was not basketball related. Jackson was let go due to differences with the front office. The divorce is truly a shame, Jackson has helped cultivate the careers of numerous players on the Warriors roster. He is a players coach that is not afraid to go to war for his team.
Stephen Curry has developed into one of the best point-guard's in the NBA under the tutelage of Jackson. Curry plays with the same cockiness his coach embodied during his 17 year playing career. He also played an intricate roll in the development of Draymond Green and Clay Thompson.
Jackson played for Rick Pitino, Larry Brown, Larry Bird, Jeff Van Gundy and Jerry Sloan during his days as a floor general. To question his knowledge of the game would be foolish.
He has had his share of run-ins as a coach. He reassigned assistant coach Brian Scalabrine to the Developmental League last season due to irreconcilable differences. There was also an issue with Jackson traveling back and forth to his church. Jackson may have brought some of his troubles upon himself. Whatever the case may be, he certainly didn't deserve the boot after producing winning results far from what the organization is accustomed to.
Jackson has ties to the New York area. He starred at Bishop Loughlin High School, attended St. Johns University and was selected with the 18th pick of the 1987 NBA Draft by the New York Knicks. He was a leading candidate to get the Knicks job when Donnie Walsh was still calling the shots. Phil Jackson will likely pass on Jackson. Phil is looking for someone who is an extension of himself from the front office.
Knick fans may scowl at this this, but Jackson may be the perfect fit in Indiana if Frank Vogel is let go. The Pacers are young, talented and immature. Jackson has the type of personality as a coach that would challenge the Pacers. He has ties to the front office in Indiana. He led the Pacers to their first NBA Finals appearance in 2000.
Mark Jackson has proven he deserves a head coaching job in the NBA.
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The best part of Kevin Durant winning his first regular season MVP award was his acceptance speech. Kevin had a tough time getting through his speech without getting choked up. He doesn't broadcast it much, but Kevin had a tough upbringing in a single parent household. The tears were flowing as he thanked his beloved mother for the job she did raising he and his brother. Kevin's speech was so emotional his teammates began to shed tears as he praised them for their contributions.
Russell Westbrook was in and out of OKC's lineup the entire season. Kevin was forced to burden the load for much of the season. This resulted in him having his best season as a Professional. He averaged 32 points, 7.4 rebounds and 5.5 assist per contest. He is the first scoring champion to win the MVP award since Allen Iverson in 2000-01.
"He's been the most consistent guy all season long," said Westbrook. "He's done a great job of leading us to where we are now. He's basically put himself in front of everybody else in the league and shown that he's the best player in the world."
Kevin has come a long way since his rookie season. The franchise was in the process of leaving Seattle. He shot a putrid 28% from three point range. That first year Kevin played the shooting-guard position for much of the season. Although he scored 20.3ppg, he never truly seemed comfortable his first year in the NBA.
Kevin's second NBA season would prove to be different. He increased his three point shooting to 42% while scoring 25.3ppg. His numbers increased in virtually every statistic across the board. Seven years into his career, he still has not stopped improving his game. He is a gym rat during the summer. Kevin's goal is to add something new to his arsenal every year. This way he always stays ahead of the game.
"I've always been a player that was excited for my teammates' success," Durant said. "Not just mine, but my teammates' as well. Wanting to see them do well translates to my game, which is wanting to pass the ball and seeing my teammates reap the benefits."
Prior to this season you could make the argument LeBron James could be named MVP on a yearly basis. This year Kevin earned 119 out of a possible 125 votes. This likely wont be KD's last MVP award.
Shaquille O'Neal, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Michael Jordan are the only players in league history to capture the scoring title, league MVP and an NBA Championship in the same season. Michael accomplished the feat four times. If Kevin can get OKC to the finish line, his season will be viewed as one of the most impressive in NBA history.
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Kevin Durant has been the best player in the NBA this season. In all likelihood Durant will receive his first regular season MVP award in the next few days. However, Chris Paul stole the show in game one of the Los Angeles Clippers and Oklahoma City Thunders second-round showdown.
Chris was up and down during the Clippers first-round series against the Golden State Warriors. Perhaps Donald Sterling's brash of racist comments was too much for the all-star point-guard to overcome. Chris is a high ranking member of the NBA Players Association as well as a member of the team Sterling owns. Not only has he been forced to deal with the backlash the incident has caused, but Chris is also expected to be a leader at this time.
Chris jumped all over the Thunder in the first quarter. He scored 17 points including 5-5 from three point range. After one period the Clippers held a 39-25 lead. Tonight Chris showed why he is considered by many to be the best point-guard in the NBA. He finished with 32 points, 10 assist and only two turnovers. The Clippers biggest question coming into the series was how is a hobbled Chris Paul going to contain Russell Westbrook? Tonight Westbrook was the one frustrated and confused for much of the evening.
The Clippers offense was unstoppable for most of the game. Los Angeles scored 104 points through three quarters. The 122-105 final score is not indicative of how dominant the Clippers were in game one.
Oklahoma City has shown a great deal of resiliency over the past two postseasons. Durant and Westbrook are at their best backed against a wall. The young guns from the Midwest will come out firing in game two. The Thunder must keep Paul under wraps to have any shot at winning this series.
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Mikhail Prokhorov now has his first playoff series victory as an NBA owner. Prokhorov didn't move the Nets across the Hudson River to play second fiddle to the New York Knicks. The Knicks were arguably the most disappointing team in the NBA this year. Until further notice the Nets have bragging rights in the Big Apple.
With Sundays dramatic 104-103 victory over the Toronto Raptors, Jason Kidd became the first rookie head coach to win a game seven on the road in NBA history. First year coaches are usually abysmal in deciding games. Kidd is the 19th coach in league history to be in this position and the first to accomplish the milestone.
Paul Pierce was unusually quiet for a game of this magnitude. He finished with only 10 points shooting 4-10 from the field. Pierce chose not to force the action down the stretch, opting to defer to his teammates which proved to be a wise decision. The Nets management acquired Pierce in the offseason to be a closer. His block at the end of regulation is the biggest play of the Nets season thus far.
Joe Johnson led the Nets with 26 points going 11-25 from the field. Johnson may be the x factor for Brooklyn going forward. When Joe cool is playing well the Nets are an extremely dangerous ballclub.
Marcus Thornton was a pleasant surprise for Brooklyn in game seven. Thornton chipped in 17 crucial points in 20 minutes of action off the bench. Brooklyn's bench outscored the Raptors 38-23. A sweet victory was moments away from turning into a disastrous loss. The Nets lead by 12 in the fourth quarter before allowing the Raptors to cut the lead to one.
Brooklyn swept the season series with the Miami Heat 4-0 this year. History is on the Nets side entering this series. On two occurrences in NBA history a defending champion faced a team in the postseason that swept them during the regular season. In both cases the defending champions failed to win that series. The Nets are attempting to become the third team to accomplish the feat.
Brooklyn looked old at times in the first-round. Deron Williams needs to pick up the slack if the Nets are going to compete with Miami. Williams has been quiet thus far this postseason. Despite the ankle woes, he is still the Nets best player.
Brooklyn quietly wanted this series with the Heat. LeBron James, Kevin Garnett, Ray Allen and Pierce are all familiar with one another come playoff time. Allen decided to take his talents to South Beach, simultaneously becoming the enemy in Garnett's eyes.
Brooklyn has the series they wanted. Now is the time to play ball!
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Rarely does a player reach superstar status after only two years in the NBA. After last nights game winning three point basket it is safe to say that Damian Lillard is now a superstar.
The second year guard out of Weber State University was relatively unknown entering the NBA Draft. Anthony Davis was penciled in as Rookie of The Year prior to Lillard stepping on the scene. In this era there is a stigma towards players who stay in college for four years. Lillard is a throw back player in many ways. His success is a testament to working on your game for a few years, developing your body and coming in NBA ready.
In his two years in the NBA Lillard has averaged 19.9ppg, 5.8 assist and 3.5 rebounds. Keep in mind LaMarcus Aldridge is the Trailblazers primary option. In the next few years Lillard's production should be right up there with the NBA's best. Sky's the limit for this young man.
The best part about watching Lillard play is the way he carries himself. He plays with a poise far beyond his years. He knows exactly how to get his without stepping on his teammates toes. He and Aldridge are going to be a force to reckon with for years to come.
This season Paul George was expected to make that leap from good to elite. The jury has been out on George the second half of the season. Indiana has struggled mightily and George has looked nothing like a superstar. Right now their isn't a superstar within 100 miles of the Pacers locker room.
Damian Lillard is the next big name in the NBA!
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I was in opposition when former NBA Commissioner David Stern changed the first- round of the NBA Playoffs from a five game series to seven. That decision changed the mystique of what the first-round used to be all about.
The truly dominant teams such as the Chicago Bulls would use the first-round as a tune up. Get out to a quick 2-0 series lead at home and then squash the bug in a competitive, but fun game three. The intrigue in playing a five game series is the threat of an upset. A shorter series benefits the lower seed in most cases. The 1994 Seattle Supersonics were good enough to win an NBA Championship. The Denver Nuggets stole game five and won that series in one of the most infamous first- round series in NBA history. Now that the first round is a seven game series that threat of losing a home game and being in hot water is all but gone.
This year is the first time in league history three game sevens will take place on the same day. The extended series serve as an extra treat for the fans, but at what cost? At this rate teams are going to be burned out by the time the NBA Finals roll around.
The NBA season is too long to begin with. It doesn't take 82 games to figure out what teams truly deserve to compete for a title. Adam Silver made a splash with his first ground breaking decision as commissioner by banning Donald Sterling from the Los Angeles Clippers as well as the NBA for life. Commissioner Silver needs to look into going back to the traditional five game opening round. That was one of the elements that made the first-round so popular.
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Two years ago the Oklahoma City Thunder were the new kids on the block. The trio of James Harden, Russell Westbrook and Kevin Durant shocked the world by knocking off the San Antonio Spurs in route to the NBA Finals. The Thunder put up a valiant effort, falling to the Miami Heat in five hard fought games.
Last year the Thunder entered the season with the franchises highest expectations since moving to Oklahoma City. James Harden was dealt to the Houston Rockets in an unexpected deal prior to the start of the season. The Thunder acquired Kevin Martin to fill in the scoring void. With the emergence of Serge Ibaka as a consistent scorer, Oklahoma City moved on with the belief the team had enough to win a championship.
Russell Westbrook's torn meniscus proved to be too much for Oklahoma City to overcome. The Grizzlies overwhelmed a depleted Thunder roster in a relatively easy five game second-round series. During the offseason Durant made it known he's tired of finishing in second place.
The Thunder have been an anomaly the entire season. Sometimes they appear to be a better ballclub without Westbrook. At a certain juncture Durant and Westbrook can be the best duo in the league. Right now the team is facing elimination to a team they're supposed to be better than.
Durant is the favorite to win his first MVP award this season. Going into a hostile environment needing a win to survive calls for an MVP performance. The Oklahoman released a headline today calling Durant "Mr. Unreliable". Carmelo Anthony would be used to such an accusation playing in New York. These are unchartered waters for the 25 year old superstar. One thing that's certain is Durant needs to step up with a statement game if he is truly worthy of the NBA MVP award.
