Czar Star: Danilo Gallinari

January 9 by 1 Comment

Italian import Danilo Gallinari is creating a buzz in the Garden, along with David Lee and Wilson Chandler, that hasn’t been heard for far too long if you’re a Knicks fan.  In his second season we’re seeing signs of a potential All-Star player.

Thursday night in the final minutes of the fourth quarter — and with the momentum starting to shift to the Bobcats — he coolly hit a big 3.  Then a couple possessions later he knocked home the dagger from 5-6 feet behind the arc.

Not everyone has what it takes to make that shot, especially in New York, and we’ve seen Gallinari do it several times this season.  I like his makeup: he missed a couple clutch free throws some weeks back and whereas a lot of young players might get down on themselves, he didn’t — instead going on a free throw tear over the next few games.  We know he has the three — he’s living up to Coach D’Antoni’s pre-season praise by leading the league in 3-pointers made — and this year we’ve seen him play off it and get to the rim with an improved first step.

If Gallinari continues to develop his game the sky is the limit and the Garden could be rocking like the days of old. In fact, after a terrible start the Knicks may even slip into the playoffs this year — which will be a good experience for the young guys.  My only knock on Gallinari: he’s no Sinatra.

Filed Under: Czar Star Tagged With: ,

Fired Up: When’s That Bowl Game Again?

January 7 by Leave a Comment

The waiting is almost over — counting down the hours ‘til tonight’s long anticipated BCS National Championship.  Maybe I’ve just grown impatient with age, but feels like I’ve been sitting in the movie theater watching the increasingly drawn-out and dull previews for too long.  Let’s get on with the show already.

I used to enjoy turning on the TV New Year’s morning and watching a steady stream of marquee bowl games — the Fiesta, Sugar, Orange and Rose – perfect way to kick off the new year.  Now it’s difficult to keep track of the 34 bowl games that span a lengthy 3-week postseason.  The addition of so many periphery bowls in an effort to generate revenue has diminished the once remarkable occasions.

From a coach’s perspective, it’s got to be incredibly challenging to sustain a team’s momentum and keep the players sharp — both teams have been waiting for 33 days since winning their respective Conference championships.  Seems excessive and a bit unfair to the players as well as the fans.  Let’s hope tonight’s Tide vs. Longhorns battle is worth the wait.

Filed Under: Fired Up Tagged With: , ,

Fratello Fundamentals

January 7 by Leave a Comment

Always challenge your opponent’s jump shot. Unless he’s cashing in on a foul at the free throw line the shooter should never get an easy look at the basket. In last night’s game the Hawks wound up shooting almost 60% largely because they had so many wide-open shots.  As in the previous game against the Bucks, the Nets did not hustle to put pressure on the shooters, which resulted in runaway leads both nights.

Watching your defense give up open looks at the basket drives you crazy as a coach. Contesting shots is just a matter of will and effort, not talent, so there’s no excuse for letting your man have a clean look. The defensive side of ball may not be glamorous, but night in and night out it’s where games are won or lost. If you look at the field-goal percentage splits, contested jump shots are made significantly less than uncontested shots. You must get a hand in the shooter’s face on every attempt – that’s how games are won.

Filed Under: Fratello Fundamentals

Czar Asks You

January 7 by 25 Comments

A lot of people thought after Blake Griffin that last year’s was a shallow draft class.  But the freshman pool has proven deep and 40 games in, it looks like this may go down as one of the top drafts for guards in NBA history.

We have Tyreke Evans in Sacramento threatening to work his way into the 20/5/5 club — the current three members of that club: the Big O, Jordan and LeBron — doesn’t get any more exclusive than that.

Last night I had the chance to see Evans’ fellow Rookie of the Month Brandon Jennings in action against the Nets and a couple of things come to mind:  incredible speed and quite a haircut. Back in the eighties I managed to grow a couple inches thanks to my ‘do as well.  Jennings went for 55 points earlier in the season usurping LeBron as the youngest player ever to do so. A lot of teams will be kicking themselves for years for letting this guy slip. He has the quickness and vision to break down a defense along with a surprising jump shot.

When the Wolves took Jonny Flynn sixth in last year’s draft it raised a few eyebrows after taking Ricky Rubio the pick before. Well that selection is looking pretty good now with Flynn averaging 14 ppg and 4 assists — and along with Jefferson, Love and Brewer forming a promising core in Minnesota. Now they have to figure out what to do with Rubio and all the cap room next year.

On draft night Stephen Curry thought he was going to join Rubio in Minnesota, but ended up going one pick later to Golden State. He’s shooting 46 percent from the field and 42 percent from the arc this season. In Tuesday’s game against Denver, he hit six consecutive 3-pointers en route to 26 points. I like Curry’s game and his demeanor on the court; he’s going to do his dad proud in this league.

And finally don’t overlook hard working, hard playing Taj Gibson.  Back in the Bull’s starting lineup, he’s improving day by day and could be a sleeper in the Rookie of the Year race.

I anticipate a photo finish.  Who do you like for Rookie of the Year?

Filed Under: Czar Asks You Tagged With: , , , , ,

Around the League

January 4 by Leave a Comment

Young Guns

Young guns Derrick Rose and Kevin Durant, who face off in Chicago tonight, were named Eastern and Western Conference Players of the Week.  Rose’s play has noticeably improved from earlier in the season and last week we saw him average 26.7 PPG, 5.7 assists and 5 boards, highlighted by the 30-point, seven-assist, six-rebound effort in Saturday’s win over Orlando, the Bulls’ fourth in a row.  With Rose coming into form and several pieces of the puzzle returning from injuries, hopefully the whispers about Vinny Del Negro will quiet.

I can’t say enough about what 21-year-old Kevin Durant is doing this year.  He’s making an impact in all facets of the game and his points come easily in an Iceman-esque style. He’s on a seven game streak of 30+ points per game and last week led his young team to three wins averaging 34.3 points to go with 7.3 rebounds, 2.8 assists and 1.8 steals. OKC is now tied for eighth place in the West and I wouldn’t be surprised if they made some noise in the playoffs.

The King Breaks His Curse While Atlanta Takes a Turn for the Worse

“Old” man LeBron James isn’t quite ready to give up his thrown yet. The King turned 25 last week and he celebrated his birthday by going for a season-high 48 in completing the sweep of a back-to-back against Atlanta.  He had some help from Anderson Varajao who made an improbable three-pointer, his first career three, to seal the victory and gift wrap LeBron’s first birthday victory of his career. I bet Shaq didn’t expect that his Phantom VI Rolls Royce would be outdone.

LeBron also became the youngest player to reach 14,000 career points when the Cavs defeated the Nets 94-86 for their seventh straight win.

After losing back-to-back games against the Cavs the Hawks continued their disappointing week dropping a tough one to the Knicks in overtime. Nate Robinson returned to the lineup for the Knicks after spending a few weeks at the end of Coach D’Antoni’s bench and had a monster game, putting up 41 points.  Led by David Lee’s inspired play, the Knicks are digging out of the 1-9 hole they dug to start the season and are only a half game out of the eighth spot in the East.

The Injured List

The top team in the East has lost a top player: Celtics’ Kevin Garnett has missed two games and could be out for at least 10 more days while he recovers from a hyper-extended right knee.  I hope that’s all it is.  Last year Garnett played in just four games in the final two months of the regular season and missed all of the playoffs. Without Garnett, already banged-up Boston will suffer as he’s the heart and soul of the team, especially on the defensive end.

Back over in the West Pau Gasol left Sunday’s Mavericks’ matchup with a left hamstring strain.  This is no doubt of concern for Lakers fans as Gasol is a key piece, if not the key piece, to the Lakers puzzle. He missed 11 games earlier in the season with a strain in his right hamstring and the team just wasn’t the same without him. Pau’s one of my favorites and I hope he’s back quickly. But if he’s out for an extended period let’s see if Bynum steps up his production with more touches and space to operate in the lane.

Locker Room Low Down

Off the court the Wizards are garnering unwanted attention. Peter Vescey broke the story in which Gilbert Arenas and his teammate Javaris Crittenton allegedly drew guns on each other in the team’s locker room over a disputed gambling debt.  Not surprisingly this incident has already ignited endless speculation and condemnation.  No use fanning the flames until all of the facts are brought to light.

Filed Under: Around the League
«Previous Page
Next Page»