Spottieottiedopalicious

(Editor's Note: If you need help with the title, go here. After reading, hopefully you'll catch the relation between title and post.)

After watching Nuggets-Lakers last night, I see some startling correlations between a team's offensive philosophy and they way that roster is constructed. What I mean is that the more chaotically uptempo a team plays, the more castaways that are present on that team.

The biggest example of this is the Nuggets. They look like the Association's answer to "The Longest Yard." Let's see. There's 'Melo—who seems to be sort of the Forgotten Man among the great class of 2003 as Wade and 'Bron ascend to Justice League status. J.R. Smith, who just can't seem to focus his absurd talent enough to be more than just a long-distance mercenary off the bench. They added the Birdman, the former drug addict looking for a fresh start among his semi-kinfolk. Even Nene' has been converted, and now rocks the cornrows. Perhaps the best example is Ronaldo Balkman, who is a Knicks throwaway and branded as a scrub because he was drafted by Zeke. But he is an energy guy in the second unit that heavily contributes on the defensive end for a team that plays little defense. At Denver's epicenter is Billups, a former outcast himself that found maturity in the D; and is now being brought in as the mentor who has traveled down that wayward path to stabilize the scatterbrained Nugs and teach them concentration and winning. Mainstream may be blinded by all the tattooed ink that they may not see that Nuggets are a damn good basketball team.

Another example is the Phoenix Suns under D'Antoni's influence. Those that have found oasis in the Desert include another throwaway Celtic, a Maestro without an orchestra, an allegedly immature high school monster, a small forward that can only function at the 4, Atlanta's tossed-out versatile Frenchman, Raja Bell, a man that found his ankles, Superman: Resurrected, and Matt Barnes. All these players had been thought of as expendable at one point; yet have become relevant again or have elevated his place in the Association by going through Phoenix. It also doesn't hurt to play in a style in which the goal is to attempt a shot in the first third of the shot clock.

I first began noticing the outcast/uptempo correlation by watching everyone's recent darling, the 2006-2007 Golden State Warriors. With Boom Dizzle as their brash flag bearer that Chris Paul made everyone loathe in the Big Easy, and Stack Jack as their Ride-or-Die Fearless Captain, they held the NBA captive with their Bay Area lawlessness—rather, their making of their own laws and giving the proverbial bird to "conventional" positions and just played ball. S-Jax is interesting because he's viewed by most as a convict in a headband; but in NBA circles he's very respected as a great teammate—even when he was in the Land of Bland that is the Spurs' locker room. This current band of Warriors may not have the same appeal as the one that toppled the Mavs, but Anthony Randolph is the individual definition of Basketball anarchy. Just throwing that out there.

But why does this outcast/uptempo correlation exist? It may be because those players mentioned don't play basketball in the traditional sense, therefore must reside on teams that don't play the purists' Way. In contrast, to me, the Spurs look like the kind of guys that crack observational jokes that are funny, but funny on an intellectual level. The Warriors look like the guys that will snap on anyone and everyone, and while they may not mean a word of it, no one would dare challenge them—either to the Dozens or the physical. While I love the fundamentals of Timmy, it's nice to see J.R. Smith pull from 30 feet. Both are a pleasure to watch.

Peace.

STAT: All Shine And No Heat...?

Every time I do one of these criticism-based pieces, I must preface them with the proverbial, "I'm not a hater," disclaimer. So consider that previous sentence this piece's informing of impartiality. I had originally put this idea off because I had found better things about which to essay. But with the recent announcing of the Association's all-star starters for this year, it must be shared. After the random picture, let's get to it...

Amar'e Stoudemire is a freakishly gifted athlete playing power forward. When he made Michael Olowokandi a poster in his rookie season, he seemed poised to spearhead the second coming of the power forward. However, my beef with Amar'e is that while he is an offensive battering ram with vertical rocket fuel, he seems to only showcase it when he can be awesome. To put it simply, he'll only try hard when it looks good.

Stoudemire plays no defense, and with all that athleticism, only manages eight rebounds a game. To give a comparison, Dwight Howard, who is the only big man that rivals Amar'e in physical gift, leads the Association in rebounds. For all of Howard's playfulness, he'll still dunk on you and play defense and rebound. Amar'e, for whatever reason, is only concerned with matters pertaining to the dunk.

I maintain that if it were not for his knee injury three seasons ago, he would never have developed the solid medium range jumper that he now has. Once his flight was taken away from him, Stoudemire saw his basketball soul flash before his eyes; and he found cause to add a newer, more fundamental dimension to his game.

So what needs to be done? What needs to happen that will compel Amar'e to commit to defense and rebounding in thought, word, and deed? I firmly believe he needs to be embarrassed by someone, and on a big stage. He either needs to be dunked on, or put through the ringer for a playoff series. David Lee did the former, and Tim Duncan does the latter on the regular; but Tim Duncan does that to everyone so it goes without mention. I mean it needs to be blatantly obvious that Amar'e is getting destroyed by an opposing player, and the media can't let him escape the criticism. Maybe then it'll be implanted in his head that he isn't elite until he competes on both ends of the floor and do the grimey work that doesn't make the highlights. Your move, STAT.

Peace.