USA Bay Bay

Photo. Jonathan Mannion
The summer leagues were cool, but you don’t know how hyped we all were to watch the Team USA scrimmage/exhibition game yesterday. Going in we weren’t sure what kinda vibe to expect, and we ended up getting a slightly more-spirited All-Star Game that got pretty intense at the end. Definitely not as lackadaisical as the last time the NBA invaded Vegas (All-Star ‘07), but there were moments where you knew it wasn’t a super-serious affair — i.e. Chris Bosh firing a step-back three and Carmelo trying to shoot it every time he touched it.
It came down to the final possession. Kobe stuck a pull-up J from the top of the key over Tayshaun Prince with 6 seconds left (has Tayshaun just been getting abused over the last couple months or what?), putting the Blue team up by one. And you knew Kobe (26 pts, 10-for-22 FGs, 4-for-9 threes) was getting the last shot. On the White team’s turn, LeBron drove and tried a floater (very possibly letting the clock run out before getting the shot off) and hit all glass.
The ultimate goal here is to prep for the Olympic qualifying tourney, so we liked that both sides played some zone to get everyone used to seeing it. Even though the NBA guys don’t run the zone as well as, say, Greece, there was still some obvious confusion on how to attack it offensively. One of these days, the U.S. needs to figure that out.
The designated shooters must have had the green light to fire away: Michael Redd (17 pts, 11 3PA), Mike Miller (22 pts, 15 3PA) and J.J. Redick (2 pts, 0-for-3 beyond the arc) were letting ‘em fly whenever they saw daylight. The problem was that while they were gunning, it seemed guys like Kobe and Carmelo felt the need to match them shot-for-shot. Kobe had his 22 attempts and 9 treys, while ‘Melo took a game-high 24 shots and 5 from deep. That’s not what the U.S. needs. Jerry Colangelo’s crew brought in guys like Redd and Miller specifically for outside shooting — everyone else should just play their game and not get into a “Who’s got more range?” contest. Save that for practice.
Naturally, Kobe tossed up a three on his first touch of the game. LeBron’s first possession was a jumper that hit all glass (just like his last shot), which he followed with consecutive turnovers on his next two times down the court. After that he settled down and let Jason Kidd (7 asts, 6 rebs, 2 pts) set him up with some easy buckets.
In the first quarter, Kobe passed up a baseline J and took it hard to the rack. Dwight Howard (21 pts, 9 rebs) had position to challenge, but he must have had a flashback, because he stepped out the way and let Mamba have the layup.
Best play of the first half: J-Kidd on the break faking a pass to LeBron (18 pts) on the wing, bringing it back while in mid-air and then hitting ‘Bron with a lob.
Something was up with Amare’s hair. It looked like he’d been sporting a mohawk, but has since let the rest of his hair is grow in to the point where yesterday you can only see the remains of the mohawk. Or maybe it was just the lighting.
Coach K got booed during intros. Are Vegas fans still mad over that Duke/UNLV title game? Or does everyone just hate Duke everywhere? We’ll go with Door #2.
LeBron got the biggest ovation during intros, with Kobe a close second and ‘Melo a distant third. Bosh (13 pts, 12 rebs) got a surprisingly loud cheer considering his team is hardly ever on national TV.
In the first half Kevin Durant didn’t look outclassed on the court with a bunch of NBA superstars and blended in. In the second half he started ballin’, finishing with 22 points and 4 steals and was one of the best players on the court. Durant’s best sequence came when he stuck a three, picked Redd in the open court the next time down, then a minute later spun off Shane Battier and dropped in a hook.
Is it just us or does Tyson Chandler have an imbalance of tats on his right arm compared to his left? Look for yourself
It’s gonna be interesting to see who actually makes the Olympic qualifying tourney roster. The thing is, you know the team needs guys like Shane Battier, but what coach is really gonna leave Battier on the team and cut an offensive weapon like Durant? Battier drew his contractually-obligated charge, one possession after he was all in ‘Melo’s shirt and forced a bad miss.
Interesting note: Kidd is 28-0 in international comp.
Were the announcers right that Dwight Howard outweighs Amare (12 pts, 13 rebs) by 30 pounds?
Best play of the second half: Bosh casually going baseline and dropping the hammer on Chandler on a reverse dunk, plus one. After missing the free throw, Bosh got the board himself and dunked it again. And later on, Bosh took Chandler (13 rebs) baseline again and scooped in a crazy reverse layup with his off-hand.
Deron Williams racked up 13 dimes.
The under-19 USA squad lost in the gold-medal game at the U-19 World Championships to host country Serbia. North Carolina big man Deon Thompson led the U.S. with 16 points.
Have you been paying attention to this Stephon Marbury vs. LeBron beef? It started earlier this year over sneakers: LeBron said something along the lines of “you get what you pay for” when asked about the $15 Starburys. Steph responded that at least he owns his product and doesn’t work for anyone. Then, in Steph’s New York Post blog yesterday, he fired another one at ‘Bron while defending himself against allegations that his blog posts are, um, chemically influenced: “You want to make me the clown. I’m not the dude on the ESPYs, getting carried on a throne. I’m not him,” Steph wrote. “I’m the good guy, not the bad guy. I don’t want to be carried on the throne. I just want to walk among the people.”
When the Rockets traded for Mike James, we thought Rafer Alston’s days in Houston might be numbered. Since then the team has also drafted Aaron Brooks and signed Steve Francis. The Houston Chronicle says the Heat are now trying to get Rafer in a trade, with Udonis Haslem’s name coming up as a possibility. That would be a good move for Houston. They need a solid PF to play next to Yao, and Brooks looked good enough in the summer league to justify a Rafer trade. As far as the Heat, while they need a PG, can they afford to give up Haslem? Who’s gonna play the four if he’s gone? All you’ve got Earl Barron and can’t-stay-healthy Wayne Simien, unless they wanna play Alonzo Mourning or Michael Doleac at that spot.