Remembering Kobe Bryant

Kobe by Jacob Weinstein

I don’t know if I will ever fully comprehend the passing of Kobe Bryant. The last few days struck me harder than I ever imagined they would. Like many, I find my self fighting back tears regularly. Yet, my grief is inconsequential.

The loss of Bryant, his daughter, Gigi, and seven others is tragic. I can only faintly imagine what the families must be going through.

Still, the outpouring of emotions from so many will eventually help heal those greiving. What’s impressive is how Bryant’s life, flaws, off-court indescretions, and all, impacted so many–both positively and negatively. His larger than life presence on the basketball court, where he will be immortalized, garnered respect, adoration, fear, and anger. He fed off all of it. This little site wasn’t impervious to Bryant’s aura. It takes its name from him in part.

In the past few days and those that follow, remembrances and tributes will continue. All have and will find the words to characterize his life and that if his daughter better than I ever could.

Yet, there’s one lasting image of Bryant that I keep coming back to through it all. It’s not of him winning championships or roasting the Dallas Mavericks in the regular season. No, it’s an illustration by Jacob Weinstein from the first FreeDarko book. When I first saw it, it allowed me to understand at least a small part of the man I saw on the court. I think it captures the relentless drive to perfection that we all know was the driving force of Kobe Bryant.

To all the lives lost, Rest in Peace.

Dirk Nowitzki remaining with Mavericks as expected

Dirk Nowitzki was never a free agent in the traditional sense. The Mavericks’ future Hall of Famer stated time and again that he had every intention of resigning with the only team he has played for. Now, it appears there is an agreement in place that will keep Nowitzki in Dallas.

ESPN’s Marc Stein reported on Thursday afternoon that the Mavericks and Nowitzki verbally came to terms on a three-year deal worth approximately $30 million. The third year of the deal is reported to be a player option meaning that Nowitzki could return to free agency in the summer of 2016. Dirk will also retain his no-trade clause.

It was reported that Nowitzki would hold off on inking any deal with Dallas until the team sat down with Carmelo Anthony. Anthony was in Dallas on Wednesday and met with representatives of the team at Mark Cuban’s house after dinner at Nick and Sam’s in Uptown.

With the meeting over, the Mavericks wrapped up negotiations with Nowitzki. As expected, he took a considerable discount so that the team would have financial flexibility to pursue other free agents this summer.

Anthony has been Dallas’ main free agent target since he opted out of his contract with the New York Knicks. The Mavericks are also rumored to be interested in Houston’s Chandler Parsons, Cleveland’s Luol Deng, and a bevy of other players. Dallas must also decide which of their own free agents to re-sign.

Even though he wasn’t going anywhere, Nowitzki was the most important player to sign this summer. His cap hold on the team hovered around $26 million. It had to come off the books to free up money to improve the roster.

With the rest of the summer shrouded in uncertainty, the Mavericks and their fans can continue to rely on Dirk. And why shouldn’t they? He has yet to disappoint.

Kobe Bryant’s Kobe Beef…wait, what?

Here at The Kobe Beef, we (I) value a sense of levity in our (my) writing. This is no more apparent than in the title of our site. The name came about in a brain storming session all the way back in 2010. It just clicked. I could go into the myriad of meanings behind the play on words but chances are no one is reading this as the site is mostly dormant these days.

Anyway, this little tidbit of visual media was pointed out to me by Rami Michail, a swell writer over at The Smoking Cuban. It seems that Kobe Bryant sent out an Instagram video featuring “Made by Kobe” items. Included in the several “Made by Kobe” products is Kobe Kobe Beef.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Kobe Bryant (@kobebryant)

Well, we certainly know something about Kobe Beef. Heck, why weren’t we clever enough to use the Mamba logo on a steak when we branded the site? Wait, we probably would have been sued if we did. Please don’t sue us, Kobe! It’s just a pun!

LeBron James speaks to the media before game against the Mavericks

Please excuse my sideways video, I am not a YouTube expert.

 

Dennis Rodman assembles team for North Korean exhibition

Dennis Rodman has been on several trips to North Korea in recent years. Vice traveled with Rodman, during his last visit, and a few members of the Harlem Globetrotters to the DPRK and documented the experience. Now, Rodman, who claims to be close friends with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, is back in the communist country.

This time, Rodman has a slew of former NBA players with him. Yahoo! via The Associated Press has the details:

Rodman leads a team that includes former NBA All-Stars Kenny Anderson, Cliff Robinson, and Vin Baker. Craig Hodges, Doug Christie and Charles D. Smith are on the team, as well. They will play against a top North Korean Senior National team on Jan. 8, marking Kim Jong Un’s birthday.

Though Rodman calls this “basketball diplomacy,” it will likely do little to ease global tensions.

However, there is one question that is certainly swirling through everyone’s head: Did Christie’s notoriously possessive wife join him on the trip? For the sake of remaining in a tentative peace, let’s hope she kept Stateside.

Pistons send Tony Mitchell to D-League

The Detroit Pistons have sent Tony Mitchell, a favorite of this blog, down to the Fort Wayne Mad Ants of the NBA Developmental League. Mitchell was selected by the Pistons in the second round of the 2013 NBA Draft with the 37th overall pick out of the University of North Texas. Peyton Siva, another second round pick by Detroit, was also reassigned to the D-League with Mitchell.

Moving Mitchell to the D-League was an inevitability.  He appeared in only 10 games, totaling 37 minutes on the court. His per 36 minutes numbers of 10.7 points, 10.7 rebounds, one assist, one steal, 1.9 blocks, and 1.9 turnovers are promising. However, with Detroit’s frontcourt composed of Andre Drummond, Greg Monroe, and Josh Smith, there are few minutes to be distributed to a 6’8″ rookie.

Mitchell should hone his skills in the D-League as he will see more playing time. Unfortunately, the move down could hurt his chances of appearing in the Sprite Slam Dunk Contest during All Star Weekend. None of the participants have been named yet, but Mitchell’s dunking ability warrants notice and has appeared in various Vines throughout the season.

There is a dunk contest in the D-League but it doesn’t draw a large audience. The NBA’s dunk contest has been lackluster in recent years and needs revitalization. It needs Tony Mitchell.

The Detroit Pistons: on the Cusp

Hope again (The Associated Press)

Summer League brings with it a new sense of hope. It alleviates the summer doldrums that occur after the Finals have ended, the NBA Draft, and the start of training camps. This renewed feeling of enthusiasm is especially true for teams that have been mediocre or worse for a number of years. Perhaps the sense of renewal will never completely pan out in the long-term. However, for a time, it allows for a glimmer of what might be, new heights, and a new beginning.

The Detroit Pistons have not had a winning record since the 2007-08 season. Detroit’s fall from grace mirrored the fall of the city’s overall economic collapse, though basketball had nothing to do with the underlying issues that the city succumbed to. Nonetheless, as often is the case, sports teams are symbols of a city or region. They serve as an escape from the realities of everyday life. For Detroit, though, the Pistons are not an escape. The team and city have been through so much since the Pistons won the NBA Championship in 2004 that it is a distant memory. With Summer League in full swing now, the Pistons, and their fans, may actually have something to look forward to.

With the eighth pick in this summer’s Draft, the Pistons selected Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, a guard out of Georgia. Caldwell-Pope’s best asset is his ability to pull up and make pump shots. With the frontcourt duo of Andre Drummond and Greg Monroe clogging the middle and drawing double-teams, Caldwell-Pope’s opportunities, should he be on the court with one or the other, to get open looks should be frequent.

In the second round, Detroit selected North Texas’ Tony Mitchell. If ever there was a pure athlete, Mitchell is it. (I wrote about him in detail here.) What he brings to the table is an NBA body combined with phenomenal leaping ability. He is also adept at finishing at, but more than likely above, the rim as well as blocking shots.

The Piston’s also selected point guard Peyton Siva, from Louisville, in the second round. Silva is more of a defender than offensive threat, however he manages the pick-and-roll well. This skill will come in handy with the aforementioned frontcourt players as well as Mitchell. Of course, as with all rookies, his skills will only be in service if he sees playing time. Nonetheless, the Pistons hauled a promising young group of players in this year’s Draft.

Perhaps, though, the biggest addition to the Detroit roster is the free agent signing of Josh Smith. Smith has proven time and again that he has the capability of playing at an extremely high level and was one of the most coveted free agents this summer. The Pistons now have a star to build around and many pieces are already in place. However, Smith is not the most refined player. He is prone to taking jumpshots all to often, as shown here. Where Smith is most efficient and effective is within nine feet of the basket. Therefore, his role in Detroit is a tricky one to figure out.

With Monroe likely remaining as the starting power forward, Smith will move into the small forward spot. Drummond and Monroe do much of the heavy lifting inside. With his propensity to take so many ill-advised and low percentage jumpers, Smith could once again drift from the paint with it occupied. If this happens, it could turn out poorly for the Pistons. It will take a degree of ingenuity on the part of new Head Coach Maurice Cheeks to open up lanes and allow Smith to get his shots on the inside.

A solid model to study would be that of last year’s Denver Nuggets. That team took the vast majority of their shots, 55.74 percent, within eight feet of the basket. With so many big men, Mitchell included, who can score well inside, it would behoove Detroit to attempt something similar.

There are still a lot of uncertainties with the Pistons. It is a new new for all respects. Yet, there is reason to believe that this could be the start of Detroit’s turnaround. They had a solid draft and brought in a big-name All Star. Not only that, but a member of Detroit’s last championship team, the beloved Rasheed Wallace, has joined Cheeks’ coaching staff as an assistant. That in and of itself should be reason to take interest in this year’s team.

Summer League has a funny way of leading to the “what-ifs” of the season to come. Detroit’s team has shown promise, especially the play of Drummond. While nothing may pan out, we can all  hope for the best. Right now, that is all Detroit has but at least  the pieces are there to make things interesting until opening day. And that is the joy of Summer League.

Meanwhile, in Another Dimension… The Heat Lost

This image, courtesy of Deadspin, is a screen capture of the footage the local ABC affiliate in Miami was airing just after Game 7 of the NBA Finals. As you can clearly see, the graphic on the screen says that the Miami Heat lost the game. They did not. Instead they won their second consecutive NBA Championship.

Maybe, however, this was a feed from another dimension, a multiverse even. One where Christopher Bosh must battle the forces of evil. Could this explain the errant graphic on the screen?

Nah. They just gone and messed up. First the fans doubted the Heat in Game 6 as they bounced out of the AAA early and now a local television station outright says they lose. There’s a reason Miami isn’t considered a town with loyal fans. Way to prove that point once again.

NBA Mid-Season Awards

Thunderstruck might not win any awards, but Durant likely will

The NBA is just past the mid-point of the regular season so the Kobe Beef decided to jump on the bandwagon and list our selections for who is deserving of an award thus far.

Coach of the Year

Ben Gooding: Tom Thibodeau, Chicago Bulls

I’m sure you guys like Mark Jackson.

Travis Huse: Mark Jackson, Golden State Warriors

“Mama, there goes that man!”

After years of hearing Mark Jackson spit his catchphrases beside Jeff Van Gundy on ABC, I could have never envisioned that he would be the man to lead the Golden State Warriors back to the playoffs. But now with Monta Ellis gone, The Warriors can now play Stephen Curry at the 2, and allow Jarrett Jack to handle more of the distribution duties. Once you factor in Klay Thompson’s advancement and the return of Andrew Bogut, it is evident that the Warriors might just be the beginning of a perennial playoff team.

Doyle Rader: Mark Jackson, Golden State Warriors

It was a bit premature for Mark Jackson to declare that the Warriors would be playoff-bound after he was named head coach last season. However, he was only off by a year. Barring a collapse on the level of the 2007 Mets, Golden State will reach the playoffs for the first time since 2007 as they have already topped their win total from last season. Jackson has melded his rotations well and rode the chemistry that David Lee and Stephen Curry have developed to this point. Not to mention this team is all buckets everything. They shoot 45.6 percent from the floor, and lead the league in 3-point shooting percentage with a mark of 38.8. The Warriors are also the only team to have defeated the Thunder, Heat, and Clippers. Now the team has Andrew Bogut back which will only bolster their roster. His handling of Curry’s recent ankle tweak, by sitting him, also shows that he is not risking his team’s future for one game.

Most Improved Player

TR: Paul George, Indiana Pacers

This award is not even up for discussion. To begin the season, Indiana looked like a sure lock on winning the Central Division, but were derailed by Danny Granger’s knee injury and disappointing play from Roy Hibbert. George has filled the superstar role nicely, and the Pacers now have a serious chance to overtake the Bulls in order to land the 3^rd seed in the East by the time playoffs roll around.

DR: Greivis Vasquez, New Orleans Hornets

Vasquez’ play this season has been nothing short of superb. He has quarterbacked a bottom feeding team as well as anyone could imagine and has already set career numbers in points, assists, rebounds, and 3-point shooting percentage and he has done it all in ewer total minutes than he played all of last season. New Orleans has a +/- of -7.9 and a Net Rating of -8.1 when Vasquez is on the bench.

Defensive Player of the Year

BG: Joakim Noah, Chicago Bulls

Chicago is 27-17 and Derrick Rose has not set foot on the hardwood all season. What could be even more astonishing? That the Bulls have that record by only scoring 93 points a game (that’s 27^th in the league, folks).

How are they doing it? Defense and Joakim Noah is leading the way. Midway through the season, Chicago is only giving up 90 points a game (3^rd in the league) and they are gathering 44 rebounds a game (6^th in the league).

Noah is gathering 7.2 rebounds a game and 2 blocks. He’s gathered 15 boards or more eight times this season. His energetic style matched with stingy defense all over the court, is allowing the Bulls to bide their time before Rose returns.

TH: Joakim Noah, Chicago Bulls

The Bulls’ success in the absence of Derrick Rose speaks volumes about the work of head coach Tom Thibodeau, and the way he has managed to keep this team performing at an elite level without his MVP point guard just might be his biggest success to date. But with the defensive identity of this squad is the glue that holds them together, and Noah has been phenomenal as a defensive leader, in a capacity similar to Kevin Garnett’s role on the Celtics.

 DR: Larry Sanders, Milwaukee Bucks

Larry Sanders may be an odd choice for Defensive Player of the Year. Yet, I cannot get past a few aspects of his game that let me to select him. Sanders is by no means a household name. He has scrapped for playing time in Milwaukee, a team laden with forwards, but now seems to be coming into his own as a defensive presence. Sanders currently has the second best defensive rating in the league, 95.9, behind only Tim Duncan and leads in every block category. The most striking statistic being that he blocks nine percent of all the shots taken when he is on the floor. NINE PERCENT! JaVale McGee is second with 7.9. Opposing offenses only shoot 52.7 percent, a dreadful number, from the restricted area when Sanders in patrolling the paint. He also pulls down 8.2 defensive rebounds per 36 minutes and sports a defensive win shares rating of 2.3.

Sixth Man

TH: Jarrett Jack, Golden State Warriors

Jarrett Jack is just one of those players who can really rally a second unit, and I am pretty damn unsure as to why he hasn’t managed to secure a starting spot on an NBA team. At any rate, he has helped out many a crappy team (looking at you, Chris Paul and Chris Bosh) while being buried under talented starters, and you just have to enjoy him.

[Editor’s note: Jack was the starting point guard for the Portland Trail Blazers during the 2006-07 season. He started in all 79 games that he played.]

DR: Jarrett Jack, Golden State Warriors

One of the reasons that the Warriors have been so successful this season, aside from their coach, has been the willingness of Jarrett Jack to accept his role as the team’s sixth man. Not only has he accepted this position but he has excelled in it. This is Jack’s first season coming off the bench since he backed up Chris Paul in New Orleans. Now he comes off the bench to spell Stephen Curry or play alongside him. He has posted a win shares rating of 3.6 to go along with a true shooting percentage of 56.2 and 7.1 assists per 36 minutes. The Warriors are a deep team with many good bench players, Carl Landry especially stands out, but it is Jack who has contributed the most.

Rookie of the Year

Unanimous: Damien Lillard, Portland Trail Blazers

BG: Portland won 28 games last year. So far this season, they are 22-22. May not seem like a lot but it is when you consider how cursed this team has been with rookies (Sam Bowie, Bill Walton, Greg Oden). Seems like all they needed to do was stop drafting centers to break the curse.

Regardless, no one expected to see what we have already seen from Lillard this season. A 37-point game and six double-doubles so far this season are just a few things padding his resume.

TH: I have tried all season to believe in Anthony Davis. I drafted him too highly on our fantasy league. I bought into all the hype about his “NBA readiness,” and I am still trying to believe that he will pull off winning this award.

 With the passing of each day, it becomes more and more unlikely. The Hornets have been very careful with their franchise prospect, and Eric Gordon has finally returned, taking some of the scoring load off Davis.

 Lillard, though, has crafted an amazing year, finally giving the fans in Portland a capable distributor. He is smart with the ball, and he has been willing to shoulder the burden of a leadership role right out of college. When was the last time the Blazers had that? He maximizes the performance of teammates LaMarcus Aldridge and Nicolas Batum. Blazers GM Neil Olshey certainly drafted himself out of the hot water that he was in after matching Batum’s $46 million, four-year offer sheet from Minnesota.

DR: When I saw him fearlessly attack and harry Steve Nash during the preseason, I was sold.

Most Valuable Player

Unanimous: Kevin Durant, Oklahoma City Thunder

BG: It’s hard not to see him winning MVP at this point in the season. The Thunder have only lost two games in a row once this season and one of those games was to the Heat. He leads the league in scoring (29.6 ppg) on one of the best teams in the league (2^nd in the West and league, OKC with 34 wins).

While its just as easy to mention LeBron James in this conversation, it’s an award that belongs to Durant. We never expected Durant to be what he is now while the media, fans, and the league completely set the stage for LBJ.

His stat sheet includes over seven rebounds and four assists a game. That matched up with shooting 91 percent from the free throw line and 42 percent from past the arc, spells out history. Only Dirk Nowitzki, Reggie Miller and Larry Bird have maintained the 40-50-90 line throughout a full NBA season.

TR: Even though Lebron James is the best basketball player in the world, the Miami Heat haven’t particularly shined this season, and that will hurt his chances of hoisting a fourth Maurice Podoloff trophy. Instead, I opt for Kevin Durant, who looks driven and determined to win a ring. His team has managed to maintain such a high level of play even though they traded away James Harden, and Durant is poised to take home his fourth straight scoring title. While Durant has lived under Lebron’s shadow the past few years, this is Durant’s time to shine.

DR: Kevin Durant is in rare form. He is currently a 50/40/90 player, meaning that he shoots 50 percent on field goals, 40 percent on 3-pointers, and 90 percent on free throws. If he can maintain this through the rest of the season he will join the ranks of Larry Bird, Mark Price, Reggie Miller, Dirk Nowitzki, and Steve Nash as the only players to finish a season shooting at such a level. Not only is his shooting impressive but he is averaging 7.4 rebounds and 4.4 assists per game to go along with his league-leading 29.6 points.

Memphis and Wiz, Slow Your Roll

Staying put… for now.

This past year, Washington D.C. looks like the worst place to be a young athlete. Stephen Strasburg benched, Robert Griffin III sidelined with injury and John Wall missing a huge chunk of this year’s NBA season. Now that Wall is finally back, looks like the Wiz have already made an attempt to dump their Rookie of the Year candidate.

Wait, what?

Yes, after just one Washington game with both Bradley Beal and Wall in the Wizard’s backcourt, trade rumors are swirling around the young rookie out of Florida who was taken third overall in the 2012 draft. Sources are reporting this morning that Wiz GM Ernie Grunfield apparently sent an offer to Memphis for Rudy Gay.

Memphis has put it out there that they are shopping the starting forward in his seventh season out of UConn and already fallen out of a possible trade with Toronto. Problem with that trade: the Griz were asking for too much. The deal would have potentially sent Jose Calderon, Jonas Valanciunas and Terrence Ross to the city of Graceland.

In return, Toronto would have gotten an average perimeter scorer who has yet to live up to his larger-than-life ability that people saw him achieving. Not to mention Gay’s contract that has another $37 million attached to it after this season. The biggest knock on Gay coming out of college was his lack of a voice and leadership. It’s looking like he’s never going to develop those traits.

Washington is definitely looking for more scoring. Right now, the Wiz are last in the league in scoring with a mere 89.4 points a game. Additionally, their frontcourt is less than stellar. Emeka Okafor is having the worst season of his career with less minutes and Nene hasn’t been healthy. It’s going to take a lot more than Martell Webster to take a team to the postseason especially on a team that is currently experiencing its only winning streak of the season with two.

By putting Beal on the block, the Wizards are showing a complete disregard for their future. We have seen the two-guard combo work on several other teams if not to bolster their roster at the time but to build a tradeable player later down the road (Stephen Curry and Monta Ellis with Ellis being sent to Milwaukee and Golden State sitting pretty well right now with that 5^th seed in the West). Right now, a third overall pick for an underwhelming forward doesn’t just doesn’t seem fair.

The same could be said for Memphis. Frankly, the frontcourt with Zach Randolph, Marc Gasol and Gay is working out. They took the Clippers to seven games last season in the first round and the year before they upset the No. 1 seeded Spurs; however, Gay missed that series with a shoulder injury. The trade would also completely disregard their breaking up of the O.J. Mayo/Mike Conley backcourt. Mayo is now in Dallas and would load their backcourt back up. Although that deal was done to save money in the long run, Memphis is winning with defense and bringing in a young guard would not contribute to that formula.

It’s conclusive that this trade really didn’t need to happen. Both Memphis and Washington need to step back and look at what they really need. Frankly, the Wiz’s season is already over. With only six wins, it’s apparent that they need to build that frontcourt with the draft since there really is nothing to save with their 2012-13 season.

In Memphis, it’s always been about saving money for an organization that needs to step up and spend some cash. Yes, they do have four max contracts with Connely, Randolph, Gasol and Gay but that’s not necessarily a bad thing when you have a chance to win now. This team just learned how to make the playoffs so it would be best to see how that plays out.

Put the brakes on guys. This trade did not need to happen since it would have been premature on just about every level.