Cleveland Cavaliers 2010-11 Season Review: Anderson Varejao, “Thor”
Writer’s Note: This is the final installment of a 15-part series where I review the 2010-11 season of each of the Cavaliers players. Each player will be titled with one of this summer’s movies for a little added fun. I couldn’t think of any better order to do this so I’m going alphabetically. Today: Anderson Varejao. Up Next: The Season!
The longest drawn out series in history is finally coming to a close.
Thank goodness for the lockout otherwise I’d have never gotten this thing in before the season started.
Throughout this series I’ve used superhero movies as titles for several players: X-Men First Class for Daniel Gibson, Green Lantern for Luke Harangody and Captain America for Byron Scott. (Sports might be my first love, but superheroes are definitely my second.)
If we look at the Cavaliers basketball team as a band of superheroes, like the Avengers maybe, who is the most forgotten, but vital of those heroes?
On the Avengers it’s certainly not Iron Man, he’s too dynamic. It’s not Captain America, he’s the leader who came first. There’s no way it’s Spider-Man (even though he’s not in the movie), he’s way too famous. And it can’t be the Hulk who is, after all, giant and green and angry.
The answer is Thor.
Marvel Comics even overshadowed him by releasing his movie early in the summer and then putting out two other more popular films.
If Thor, who is really awesome actually, is the forgotten Avenger then Anderson Varejao is the forgotten Cavalier. (Also, if there was a guy on the Cavs who could be mistaken for a Norse god, it would definitely be Varejao.)
Part of this is probably because he only played in 31 games this past year before going down for the season with injury.
But last year Varejao was having his best statistical season ever. Every major stat was up: 32.1 MPG, 9.7 RPG, 1.2 BPG, 9.1 PPG.
Also, according to 82games.com’s Simple Rating, he was the second-best player on the Cavs last year behind only Baron Davis and only one of three players to finish with a positive rating (Daniel Gibson was the other).
I could go on with stats upon stats, but any Cavs fan will tell you that Varejao’s value is not measured in simple numbers.
There was an obvious drop in overall team play after Varejao went down for the season. He might not be a star player, but he is certainly a guy who makes the team go.
Many national writers who recognize Varejao’s true greatness lament the fact that he’s stuck playing on a crappy team when he could be a major contributor to a contender.
Which leads me to my biggest point about Varejao and how he fits into the team concept. And this also bears out some similarities to Thor as well.
Like Thor, Varejao can be a decent player on his own, but never truly great. Both Thor and Varejao’s true greatness comes when they are involved in the team concept.
Unfortunately, the Cavs right now are a little like Thor’s team from Asgard that is pretty good at defeating giant ice monsters. Thor is the best “player” on that team, much like Varejao is probably the best player on the Cavs.
But the greatest team will be the Avengers, when Thor’s greatness is still there but yet only about the No. 3 or 4 guy on the team. That’s where you want Anderson Varejao to be.
It can be fun for a while if he’s your best player and you’ll win some games. But if you want to be great then he cannot be your best player.
I think that within time Kyrie Irving will take over as the best player on the Cavs. Davis and Antawn Jamison are definitely not in this team’s long-term plans.
I hope that Tristan Thompson can develop into a player that is better than Varejao. I have my doubts but I’ll reserve judgment until I see him play first.
All that said, I’m thrilled to have Varejao back in Cleveland.
Let’s hope he brings the hammer!
You can follow Benjamin Flack on Twitter @ClevelandFlack.
If you missed any of the previous reviews you can follow the links here: Baron Davis, Semih Erden, Christian Eyenga, Alonzo Gee, Daniel Gibson, Joey Graham, Luke Harangody, Omri Casspi, Manny Harris, Ryan Hollins, Antawn Jamison, Samardo Samuels, Byron Scott, Ramon Sessions.
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William & Mary Basketball 2010-11 Preview: Older and Wiser Tribe Improving
Head Coach: Jeff Shaver—Eighth year at William & Mary: 97-134; 455-267 overall
Previous Season: 10-22; 4-14 CAA (11th)
Departures: F Marcus Kitts
Additions: F Tom Schalk, G Marcus Thornton
In the 2009-10 season, William & Mary shocked the majority of college basketball fans by finishing third in the Colonial Athletic Association with a 12-6 record and ending the year at 22-10.
That season, the Tribe defeated such teams as Maryland and Wake Forest. William & Mary lost to Old Dominion in the CAA Tournament Final and to North Carolina in the National Invitation Tournament.
With of most their key personnel not returning, the Tribe entered the 2010-11 season with low expectations. The team started 0-3 before achieving narrow victories over Gardner-Webb and Mercer.
William & Mary lost their first five conference games before defeating the Drexel Dragons at home. Primarily starting two freshmen guards, the Tribe won only four conference games and just two road contests for the entire season.
Projected Starting Lineup
PG Brandon Britt, 6’1″, 182 lbs., So. (10.9 PPG, 2.2 RPG, 2.2 APG, 31 3PT%, 38 FG%, 72 FT%)
Britt was one of best freshman guards in the CAA last year. Although he was not asked to run the team in the Tribe’s version of the Princeton offense, Britt did a great job in bringing the ball up the court even when under pressure.
Britt has a quick first step and can drive to the basket at any time. He did a good job keeping defenses honest by making 34 three-point shots.
Britt does need to improve on the defensive end as he only averaged 0.5 steals per game.
SG Julian Boatner, 6’2″, 185 lbs., So. (6.8 PPG, 1.4 RPG, 1.3 APG, 40 FG%, 83 FT%)
Coach Shaver will look for Boatner to increase his offensive input this year. Boatner shown signs of offensive improvement by averaging 8.7 points in conference play.
Boatner set a Tribe freshman record by making 58 three-point field goals. At times, he is susceptible to taking poor shots and losing confidence in his offensive abilities.
SF Quinn McDowell, 6’6″, 215 lbs., Sr. (15.5 PPG, 5.4 RPG, 2.1 APG, 48 FG%, 87 FT%)
Without a doubt, McDowell is the best player on the team and one of the most dominant scorers in the CAA. He is a solid jump shooter but can also drive to the basket.
MCDowell is a the team leader on the floor and is not afraid to take the big shots. He made 70 of his 154 attempts from long distance last year.
PF Kyle Gaillard, 6’8″, 220 lbs., Jr. (5.8 PPG, 3.3 RPG, 1.4 APG, 48 FG%, 46 FT%)
Gaillard is known for his defense but showed an ability to score when he tallied 25 points against North Carolina. He also surprises fans and opponents with his ability to dunk the basketball.
Gaillard needs to improve his free throw shooting and become more aggressive in rebounding the basketball.
PF Tim Rusthoven, 6’9″, 230 lbs., So. (5.5, PPG, 2.8 RPG, 0.5 APG, 0.6 BPG, 57 FG%, 84% FT%)
Rusthoven is probably the only new starter on the Tribe this year as he is the likely replacement for Marcus Kitts. Kitts was a tremendous passer from the pivot, and Rusthoven will have to improve his passing skills so that the offense runs smoothly.
Rusthoven ranked sixth in rebounding among CAA rookies last year. He became better at blocking shots as the season went along.
Other Contributors
G Kendrix Brown, 6’3″, 195 lbs., Sr. (3.3 PPG, 3.1 RPG, 2.4 APG, 1.1 SPG, 39 FG%, 62 FT%)
Brown will again be a backup at both guard positions. He led the team in total assists and assists per game last year. Brown is a strong defensive player with an ability to break up passing lanes.
C/F Fred Heldring, 6’9″, 240 lbs., So. (0.6 PPG, 1.0 RPG, 29 FG%, 67 FT%)
Heldring appeared in 21 games and averaged 7.7 minutes per game last season. As a senior in high school, he was rated as one of the best center prospects in the state of Illinois by the Chicago Sun Times.
Because of William & Mary’s lack of size, Heldring’s improvement this year would help the Tribe defensively against physical teams like Drexel and Old Dominion.
G Doug Howard II, 5’9″, 160 lbs., Jr. (0.6 PPG, 0.2 RPG, 50 FG%, 100 FT%)
Howard is a hard worker in practice but will mainly see the floor only at the end of blowout games. He scored a career-high four points in the CAA Tournament against Hofstra.
F JohnMark Ludwick, 6’8″, 230 lbs., Sr. (3.8 PPG, 1.7 RPG, 0.8 APG, 39 FG%, 38 3PT%, 60 FT%)
Ludwick appeared in all 32 games and started nine times. In his career at William & Mary, Ludwick has had 13 games of making three or more three-pointers.
Ludwick provides valuable leadership to a team that is still relatively young.
F Andrew Pavloff, 6’9″, 240 lbs., Jr. (0.1 PPG, 0.6 RPG, 0.1 APG, 100 FT%)
Pavloff only averaged 2.9 minutes on the floor in his 14 appearances last season. He provides the Tribe with much needed size but needs to improve his athleticism in order to gain more playing time.
G Matt Rum, 6’4″, 205 lbs., Jr. (5.1 PPG, 3.0 RPG, 2.1 APG, 35 FG%, 80 FT%)
Last season, Rum started 14 games for the Tribe. He provides scoring punch off the bench but needs to improve his shot selection.
F Tom Schalk, 6’8″, 210 lbs., Fr.
Schalk was a four-year starter and two-year captain for Apple Valley High School in Burnsville, MN. He averaged 22.8 points and 12.0 rebounds per game as a senior.
Schalk was rated as the 63rd best power forward in the Class of 2011 by Scouts Inc. He was named the MVP of the HoopsMinnesota.com Exposure Showcase.
G Marcus Thornton, 6’4″, 170 lbs., Fr.
Thornton averaged 23.4 points, 4.8 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 1.7 steals per game as a senior at Bishop McNamara High School in Upper Marlboro, MD. He was a career 52 percent field goal shooter and an 82 percent free-throw shooter in high school .
Thornton is an accomplished three-point shooter and is a perfect fit for William & Mary’s offense. He will also provide the team with some much needed athleticism.
G Ben Whitlatch, 6’1″, 170 lbs., So. (0.4 PPG, 20 FG%, 25 3PT%)
Whitlatch joined the Tribe as a walk-on last season and appeared in seven games. He was a member of the 2009 Indiana High School Athletic Association 4A State Championship team at Bloomington South in Indiana.
Whitlatch will probably see very little playing again as Thornton joins the squad as a freshman, and all the guards from last year return.
Key Games
Nov. 12 @ Hampton: This is a winnable game for the Tribe.
Nov. 14 Liberty: William & Mary’s first home game of the year.
Nov. 18 Lehigh: Another game to gauge the team’s improvement.
Dec. 3 @ Georgia State: It is important that William & Mary gets off to a quick start in conference play.
Feb. 1: Virginia Commonwealth: The Tribe welcomes the team most likely to win the CAA this year.
Season Outlook
William & Mary took a giant step backwards last year after winning 22 games two years ago. This year’s team should somewhere between those two marks.
The Tribe returns four starters and brings in two new players that should be able to contribute immediately. McDowell is a great player, but he cannot do everything himself. Britt and Boatner need to continue to expand their games to take some pressure off McDowell.
The Tribe needs to do a better job of converting drives to the baskets into points. Three-point shooting will again be the strength of William & Mary, but inside scoring and rebounding look to be the major weaknesses.
The continued improvement of Rusthoven is a key for the Tribe to be successful this year. Getting some immediate production out of Schalk would also provide William & Mary with more balance offensively.
William & Mary is one of five original teams in Division I to never participate in the NCAA Tournament. It is doubtful that this team is ending the drought, but making a minor postseason tournament is a possibility. Having a winning season and finishing in the top half of the CAA are realistic goals for the Tribe this year.
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Cleveland Cavaliers 2010-11 Season Review: Byron Scott, “Captain America”
Writer’s Note: This is Part 13 of a 15-part series where I review the 2010-11 season of each of the Cavaliers players. Each player will be titled with one of this summer’s movies for a little added fun. I couldn’t think of any better order to do this so I’m going alphabetically. Today: Byron Scott. Up Next: Ramon Sessions.
For much of this series I have called upon super hero movies to title various Cavaliers players. We’ve had Luke Harangody as Green Lantern, Daniel Gibson as X-Men: First Class and we may still work in another yet.
Whenever you have a group of super heroes there needs to be a leader. Someone who’s been there before. Someone who can galvanize the group and get individuals to work as a unit.
The same is true in sports.
Just as Captain America is to the Avengers, so is Byron Scott to the Cleveland Cavaliers.
The head coach of the Cavs won three NBA titles as a player and took the Nets to back-to-back Finals. He also had a part in turning around both the Nets and also the Hornets. Despite struggling in his first year with both teams, he eventually had 50-win seasons by no later than the third year.
As a player Scott had the pedigree of playing alongside greats like Magic Johnson, James Worthy and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar with the “Showtime” Lakers. Many people have likely forgotten that he played his last season in the NBA in 1996-97 with the Lakers when they had Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O’Neal.
Scott has a status in the locker room as being a guy who’s been there before, who knows what it takes to win and to be great in the league.
Look, we all know that last year was terrible. But when you have injuries, crappy players and about as low morale as any team has ever had, these things happen.
Going forward I believe that the Cavs have the right man for the job. I believe Byron Scott is the best coach Cleveland has had since Mike Fratello and Lenny Wilkens.
I believe Byron Scott can get the job done in Cleveland. I believe he can be their “Captain America.”
(It sure is nice to write about someone that I genuinely like and think will be a part of this team in the future. Wish I could say that about more guys on the Cavs.)
You can follow me on Twitter @ ClevelandFlack.
If you missed any of the previous reviews you can follow the links here: Baron Davis, Semih Erden, Christian Eyenga, Alonzo Gee, Daniel Gibson, Joey Graham, Luke Harangody, Omri Casspi, Manny Harris, Ryan Hollins, Antawn Jamison, Samardo Samuels.
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Which NBA Playoff Teams from the 2010-11 Season Are in Danger of Not Returning?
Amidst the NBA lockout, it may be difficult to look ahead toward next season, let alone the postseason, but considering which teams are going to make it back to the playoffs remains intriguing.
Plus, it’s never too early to look toward the future.
Every season, at least one or two teams surprise the basketball world by making an unexpected playoff push or appearance. However, a good formula for predicting teams that make it to the postseason involves analyzing the ones that made it the previous year.
Last season’s playoff class has its share of organizations mired in uncertainty, and as a result, not every team is exactly a lock to make it back.
Are Kobe Bryant‘s knees capable of carrying the Los Angeles Lakers to the postseason? Is the Boston Celtics’ core so far past its prime that its playoff days are over? Will the Denver Nuggets be able to overcome a surplus of departures to make it back to the postseason?
While the next campaign for a champion seems light years away, let’s take a look at which playoff teams from last season are safe in their postseason potential, and which are in danger of not returning.
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Re-Examining the 2010-11 Season for Steve Nash and the Phoenix Suns
With the lockout still looming, there are two things we can do.
Either we try and predict a very unpredictable future for our teams and the entire league, or we dwell on the past, throwing around “what ifs” and playing Captain Hindsight.
I will do the latter here and analyze what went right, what went wrong and what went absolutely horridly for the Suns last season.
Let’s start with the most noticeable change from the season before, the roster changes.
The Suns have changed quite a lot since their WCF roster, and while one position received a considerable upgrade, others mostly suffered from free agency.
First things first.
I have stated my unconditional love for Marcin Gortat’s dedication and play on the court. He is without a doubt the best player the Suns managed to get in the post-Amare landscape. Considering it took trading Barbosa for Turkoglu and Richardson for Carter, however, he is just a sweet cherry on top of a cake of garbage that the Suns have brought in ever since Stoudamire left.
Let’s analyze everyone else that came in:
I just don’t get Robert Sarver. One day he is extremely cheap to give Stoudamire the extension he wants, the next day he overpays two really bad players. Did he do it just to prove a point in lockout discussions, or unleash his bi-polar disorder? I don’t know.
Hakim Warrick and Josh Childress are just terrible long-term contracts that I find no explanation for. Why? Why give two guys that barely fit the Suns system so much money? Why waste the cap space if you know that there is a huge free agent class coming up?
Perhaps that is why I always said that if Steve Nash is going to get traded, one of these guys has to leave.
They might be good role players on other teams but I don’t see any use for them in Phoenix, especially with Markieff Morris coming into town. Out of all that transpires when it comes to the roster, this might hurt the most in the long haul. Vince Carter and Mickael Pietrus on the other hand, I don’t mind for the same reasons.
Yes, they’re a terrible waste of roster space and their cap hits are pretty big, but their contracts are either basically over (Carter has a $4 million buyout waiting when the lockout ends) or due to expire in the Summer Free Agent Bonanza of 2012.
When reconsidering this, I don’t have a problem with the people coming in. It’s the losses that hurt.
Barbosa was a great fit for the Suns, something I would never say about Turkoglu. The same goes for Richardson.
If the Suns somehow managed to get Gortat without him (scratch the Vince-for-JRich angle) this team would’ve probably been much closer to the playoffs.
Why? Because Richardson cared, something that can’t be said about they player formerly known as “half-man, half-amazing.”
I won’t even get started on how losing Stoudamire was terrible, because it would be like repeating over and over again that Michael Jordan is the GOAT, or that 1+1=2.
Robert Sarver should get his franchise confiscated for mistakes like this.
And finally we get to the Brooks trade. Oh, how I loathe it. Not because Brooks is not an upgrade over Dragic, although even that part is disputable, but because of the first-round draft pick that left along with the Slovenian.
The 23rd pick of the draft was filled with role-players who would bring more than the upgrade of Dragic possibly could. To name a few: Jordan Hamilton, a solid wingman with a great outside shot. Marshon (oh, this is going to be ironic) Brooks was a very underrated shooting guard with some defensive prowess and big time scoring ability. If the Suns are to ever really rebuild they need to collect prospects, rather than trade them off for undersized shooting guards.
The only positive signing of the season for the Suns was Zabian Dowdell, an undrafted point guard. Actually, I felt that he was an upgrade above both Dragic and Brooks in that he could actually play some solid defense and wasn’t a headcase. He just did his job on the offensive end, meaning passing the ball to the more skilled playmaker, even if it meant giving the ball to Vince Carter for something more than a jump shot.
In his few short stints, Dowdell has shown character, skill and a whole load of heart and dedication. This heart and dedication is what made him such a defensive asset, and also hit me in the sweet spot I have for hard-working role players in the association.
That said, what has the season shown to us when it came to the team picture? One thing definitely was the fact that the Suns were entirely dependent on Steve Nash — I believe that they’ve won only one game in his absence, something that just goes to show how valuable the Canadian is to the organization. But I think that was rather obvious. What else?
I’ll be an optimist here. This team still can play and win with the best.
They upset the Celtics, the Knicks and took the Lakers to three OTs. Had Grant Hill not fouled out they might have beaten them.
They were up there, fighting in games with teams like the Bulls, Mavs and Spurs. This was the good Phoenix team, the Phoenix team that could have delivered an upset had they made the playoffs.
However, the Suns also had another side. The team that lost to Sacramento, blowing late game opportunities away. The team that was absolutely manhandled by Oklahoma City and Charlotte, of all teams. The team that was blown out by the Celtics in their second meeting of the season.
That team has to learn a lesson about consistency and late game concentration.
When Nash and Gortat (I’ll keep praising him until he stops giving me reasons for praise) are the only people on the court really concentrating on both ends of the floor you just can’t win. Frye needed to be as clutch as he was against Indiana and New Jersey. Dudley and Carter needed to hit open shots when they got them.
So how close were the Suns to getting into the playoffs?
Had Steve Nash not been injured and had they closed out all the games in which they’ve blown big leads in the fourth quarter, they’d probably kick the Grizzlies out of their playoff spot — that’s how close they were.
What were the biggest surprises? Jared Dudley and Marcin Gortat.
These guys were consistently the best players on both ends of the floor, as even Grant Hill had his senile moments on offense.
While Gortat was definitely the most consistent Sun not named Steve Nash, Dudley deserves some love for his heart, his hustle and his greatly improved offensive arsenal of moves.
That guy quietly has one of the highest basketball IQs in the game — perhaps the only way he stays afloat when you consider his rather weak athleticism. That said, let’s just close this chapter in Suns history by a moment of hindsight sponsored 20-20 vision.
The Suns made some very bad and good moves through the season. On one hand they lost Amar’e, Barbosa and signed Childress and Warrick to terrible contracts.
On the other, they managed to get rid of Turkoglu and got a nice hefty exchange for him in Marcin Gortat even though it meant losing Richardson to the Magic.
At times they overperformed, at others they underperformed.
Somehow, this season fits the organizational limbo the Suns are in. They’re not rebuilding and not in contention. They’re caught somewhere between those two, not sure whether they are ready to take the next step either way. What about next season then?
With Steve Nash and Grant Hill slowly moving to retirement homes, many people doubt the Suns.
Me? I’m an improper optimist and I think that they are one good shooting guard away from being back in the playoffs. They are also one Canadian point guard trade away from having the highest odds in the lottery.
Once again the Suns show how delicately they toe the line between good and bad in the NBA.
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UConn Basketball Preview: Top 10 Games to Watch in the 2010-11 Season
The UConn Huskies are ready to make another serious run in the NCAA tournament.
While Jim Calhoun has to fill the gaping hole that Kemba Walker’s departure left behind, the Huskies have an exceptional returning cast:
- Jeremy Lamb (11.1 ppg, 4.5 rpg)
- Alex Oriakhi (9.6 ppg, 8.7 rpg)
- Shabazz Napier (7.8 ppg, 3.0 apg)
- Roscoe Smith (6.3 ppg, 5.2 rpg)
Calhoun was already excited about his new arrivals (two four-star recruits: DeAndre Daniels and Ryan Boatright) before the late summer signing of Andre Drummond, one of the top prospects in the Class of 2011. Drummond is a 6’11, 275 lbs. super-athletic post player whose presence might give UConn one of the best front-courts in the nation.
If Calhoun can blend this talent and find ways to replace Walker’s production (23.5 ppg, 5.4 rpg, 4.5 apg, 1.9 spg) and leadership, UConn could be scary.
If you could only watch ten Huskies games this year, here is a Top 10 list of the one’s that you wouldn’t want to miss.
This is a part of a series of college basketball preview articles, detailing the “must see” hoops action of the upcoming season.
Yesterday, we looked at the ten best games on Duke’s schedule.
Tomorrow: Kentucky
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Oklahoma City Thunder: 5 Best Moments of 2010-11 NBA Playoffs
The Oklahoma City Thunder came into the 2010-11 NBA season with high expectations, and didn’t disappoint themselves or their fans.
OKC advanced all the way to the Western Conference Finals, where they would ultimately lose to the Dallas Mavericks, the eventual NBA champions.
The Thunder overcame the Denver Nuggets in the first round in five exciting games, then beat the Memphis Grizzlies in a thrilling seven-game battle.
Let’s look at the best moments of the OKC Thunder from the 2011 NBA playoffs.
Nicholas Goss is an NBA and Oklahoma City Thunder featured columnist at Bleacher Report, follow him on Twitter for NBA/Thunder news. Follow @NicholasGoss35
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Cleveland Cavaliers 2010-11 Season Review: Manny Harris, “Harry Potter 8″
Writer’s Note: This is part nine of a 15-part series where I review the 2010-11 season of each of the Cavaliers players. Each player will be titled with one of this summer’s movies for a little added fun. I couldn’t think of any better order to do this so I’m going alphabetically. Today: Manny Harris. Up Next: Ryan Hollins
Manny Harris was, at times, one of nicest surprises on a Cavaliers team last year that had very few bright spots.
I was pleasantly surprised when Harris was named to the Cavs summer league team after going undrafted. I thought that he should have been drafted by someone after having a pretty good college career at the University of Michigan.
Harris impressed during summer league and beat out Danny Green (who was actually drafted by the Cavs the previous summer 46th overall) for one of the final roster spots.
He played sparingly for the first several months until catching on with more consistent minutes in December and then through the remainder of the season.
Overall, Harris played in 52 games, starting 15, averaging 5.9 points on .374 shooting in 17.3 minutes with a 10.49 PER. Okay, now here is the part of the article where I admit (as is custom with Cavs players this year) that these stats are nothing special.
However, the fact of the matter is that Harris probably did more last year as an undrafted free agent than most drafted rookies do in their first year in the association.
I can’t tell you if Manny Harris is going to be rotational player in the NBA going forward, or that he’ll even make the team next season (if there is a next season).
What I can tell you is that Harris is a player who works hard and plays within the confines of his game. As a 6’5″ combo guard he certainly has the look and physical abilities to stick as a third or fourth guard.
His shooting isn’t bad either, hitting at a .370 three point percentage, good for third best on the team.
The unfortunate fact is that not many undrafted players last very long in the league. And Harris’ “good” play may have only been a bi-product of the fact that he was on one the worst teams in the NBA. It’s a lot easier to look good on a bad team than it is to look good on a good team. Just ask Chris Bosh.
I would love to see Harris stick with the team and be a part of the future. Time will tell if he’s up to it.
So why “Harry Potter”?
I really have no reason. There’s almost no correlation at all. I could claim that Harris bears some resemblance to Alfie Enoch, the actor who plays Dean Thomas—a rather incidental character. But even then he’s only one of maybe two or three black characters in the whole Harry Potter series. So that would probably be profiling or something like that.
But the real reason is that when I can’t come up with a movie to attach to a player I fall back on my one rule and just pick one of the summer’s biggest movies that I haven’t used yet.
And Harry Potter certainly fits the bill as a “big summer movie” as it was only the highest grossing movie for an opening weekend ever.
And I’m also a bit of a Harry Potter fan…but we won’t dwell on the obvious fact that I’m a bit of a nerd.
I’ll just leave you with an interesting fact. Did you know that Manny’s real name is Corperryale L’Adorable Harris?
Me neither.
And I agree…we should just stick with calling him “Manny.”
You can follow me on Twitter @ClevelandFlack.
If you missed any of the previous reviews you can follow the links here: Baron Davis, Semih Erden, Christian Eyenga, Alonzo Gee, Daniel Gibson, Joey Graham, Luke Harangody, Omri Casspi.
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2010-11 NBA Efficiency Per Game Leaders
Minnesota Timberwolves forward Kevin Love drives against Dallas Mavericks forward Brian Cardinal (L) during the first half of their NBA basketball game in the Target Center in Minneapolis, March 7, 2011. REUTERS/Eric Miller (UNITED STATES – Tags: SPORT BASKETBALL)
While we muddle through another lockout, it’s not a bad time to take a look back at the top performers at each position in terms of Efficiency Per Game (EPG) and Efficiency Per Minute (EPM). Here are the top 10 in EPG at each position; only players who played 41+ games qualify.
The point guard list looks pretty solid; Ray Felton chimes in at #10 after a strong start with the Knicks…Westbrook’s efficiency stats look great because he’s really an off guard who is playing point guard. It’s important to consider assists and turnovers when evaluating point guards…John Wall makes the list in his rookie season — not bad considering how tough it is to learn to play the pos…
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50 of the Most Memorable Dunks from the 2010-11 Season
The NBA lockout is in full swing. Next season’s games are at risk. We may see less or even no on-court action during what would be the 2011-12 season due to the lockout.
However, that doesn’t stop us from revisiting some of the best dunks of the past season. As fans of basketball, we all love to see some nice above the rim action.
Throughout the 2010-11 season, there were a lot of noteworthy and memorable dunks. Blake Griffin entered the league and contributed a lot of them.
However, this will not be a Blake Griffin-exclusive list. We will see plenty of Blake Griffin dunks for sure, but we will have many other high-flyers featured on this list.
We will also have some less aerodynamic players in this montage, such as the now retired Shaquille O’Neal and the eccentric Ron Artest (or should I call him Metta World Peace?).
There will be in-game footage, and there will be dunks from the 2011 Slam Dunk Contest during All-Star Weekend in Los Angeles. There will be dunks from the regular season, and there will be dunks from the postseason. Above all, there will be dunks!
All I can say is: Boomshakalaka.
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