With the NBA season headed into its final stretch, I couldn’t be happier for the real games to start up again tonight. All-Star weekend was, to put it nicely, underwhelming. As in, by the end I was almost catatonic.
Let’s see: HORSE dragged along before coming down to a sudden death three-point shootout (which was much less exciting than it sounds), the three-point contest was won by a Celtic and then there was the dunk contest.
I really don’t know what I can say about that. If you watched, you know how bad it was. LeBron James, it’s time for you to step up and save this thing. Dwight Howard, I’d welcome you back. Josh Smith? Anybody? I’ve had enough of the Shannon Browns and Nate Robinsons of the world.
Anyway, the point is that I’ll be happy to watch functional basketball again. In light of the players returning to action, let’s go over some of the more surprising developments of the season so far. If this sounds like a lame excuse to write another NBA column, well, I’m sorry. You’ll just have to bear with me. Or turn away from this column in disgust. Your choice.
1. The Grizzlies are actually good
Be honest. Did you really think Memphis had a chance to win more than 15 games this season? I sure didn’t. It looked like a disaster waiting to happen. To recap: Memphis won 24 games last season, largely because it was a team full of me-first players like O.J. Mayo and Rudy Gay. This season, it added Zach Randolph to the mix. You know, the guy who once said, “I’m a gangster not a Blazer.”
Fast forward to February 2010. The Grizzlies have two more wins (26) than they had all of last year and are just three games out of the playoffs. To top it off, Randolph is an all-star, averaging a double-double and regularly described as a “team leader.” Huh?
2. Channing Frye can play basketball
I watched a lot of “the frying pan” last year when he was on the Blazers. I always liked him, particularly in the commercials when he told me to recycle. But I did wonder how exactly he got into the NBA. He was a big man who didn’t rebound and floated around the perimeter. In other words, he was me if I were 6-feet 11-inches.
As it turns out, I was completely wrong. Frye’s real problem was that he was in the wrong system on a team that was too deep. Now, he’s flourishing on a Suns team that encourages him to shoot as many threes as he desires. His .433 percentage from beyond the arc is a career high, and he even had a respectable showing in the three-point contest over the weekend. It’s a nice story, and now I’ll remember him for more than a corny commercial.
3. Kevin Durant: Genuine superstar
Ok, so this isn’t exactly a surprise. We all knew Durant was a great player who had an exceedingly bright future. But take a moment and look at his statistics: 29.7 points per game (second only to LeBron), 7.4 rebounds, .485 field goal percentage, and to top it off the Thunder are nine games over .500.
In case you forgot, Durant is 21 years old. His accomplishments at such a young age should not be underestimated. Plus, he may become the first player to average 30 points and struggle to bench 100 pounds. I think this is worth noting.
4. It’s Miller time
Call me a homer, but I just have to mention this. As a Bulls fan, I watch every game that I can. I don’t think anything has shocked me more than Brad Miller’s ability to drive to the hoop. This is a man who is 33 years old, never had speed to begin with and enjoys drinking large quantities of beer in the off-season.
Yet, despite all of this, teams continue to fall for Miller’s patented pump fake and subsequent lumbering to the hoop. Really, I can’t emphasize how slow this guy is. I think teams are so surprised to see him driving that they don’t know how to react. There’s no other way to explain this phenomenon.
In short, this season has taught us that, as Kevin Garnett might say, “Anythinnnnng’s possibbbbbllllle!!!!!” Even a 7-foot tall, 261-pound geezer blowing by defenders. And you wonder why I love this league so much.
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