Column: At Jason's advanced age, nothing's Kidd-friendly
by By Dave D'Alessandro
Tuesday April 29, 2008, 9:23 AM
At around 9:30 tonight, the Dallas Mavericks' season will end in what is likely to be one of those classic, made-for-TV moments, with shots of Mark Cuban fuming and Dirk Nowitzki scowling and the TNT boys yukking it up with their gone-fishing leitmotif to commemorate the moment.
We'll never truly know how Jason Kidd feels about it, because he'll hide behind his practiced, stone-faced equanimity and spout the usual platitudes about how the Mavs were beaten by a better team, which is absolutely accurate.
It's just a shame that no one will agree with him. As he is engulfed by this Mardi Gras moment inside New Orleans Arena, his 14th season about to be history, the lasting memory will be of his clumsy, desperate grab at Jannero Pargo's neck at the end of Game 4, backpedaling as he tried to avoid getting the ball shoved down his throat -- a common occurrence in this series.
He looks old. From Dallas to Demarest, people will never forgive him for that, but Chris Paul has made it clear that this Game 5 -- spoiler alert -- will be the last important game of Kidd's dazzling career.
That's the worst part about these playoffs: Everyone assumes that experience is the most important ingredient to postseason success, but history is replete with examples of young legs prevailing against the old guard.
Last year, it was the Chicago kids sweeping Shaq, and LeBron demolishing the Pistons.
This year, it's Tony Parker vs. Steve Nash, and Paul vs. Kidd.
Sometimes it's so one-sided you want to avert your eyes.
Is it something to celebrate? Sure, if you happen to cheer for the victors. But if you watch just to root against Kidd -- and there are a few million inhabitants of this particular NBA precinct that have no trouble admitting to such jaundiced motives -- then the past 6 1/2 years didn't really mean much.
The Germans have a word for it: schadenfreude. That smug pleasure one receives from someone else's misfortune. It's a waste of time.
When Kidd's name comes up, the first association should be how he turned the most wretched franchise in professional sports into one that mattered -- for a while, anyway. Moreover, he should be remembered as the last, ardent disciple of the Magic-Bird era of this new century: They were champions, sure; but more important, they made us all look at the game differently than we had before their arrival.
Kidd did much the same thing. Very few players have that intuitive quality, and the ability to demonstrate it. For that, the average fan -- especially those situated between the Delaware and the Hudson -- should be grateful.
Wait, don't say it: He was a jerk this season. You won't get an argument here. Every month brought another sign that he had checked out mentally on his team, his coach and his employer.
In October, he was clubbing at 2:30 in the morning during two-a-days. In November, he essentially declared that his team had no hope. December brought the infamous migraine. The trade demands intensified throughout January. By February, he was gone -- which was a good thing, in retrospect, but nobody ever issues back-slaps and attaboys for guys who give up on a dysfunctional marriage.
Then he tried to rationalize every selfish step, in that vertiginous, self-absorbed way he has. Old news.
And now he's in Dallas -- age 35, and looking it every inch.
You should hear what they say about him there. Some fans on the Dallas-related websites were hoping he would be suspended for the flagrant foul on Pargo, just so the Mavs could activate Tyronn Lue, who would be a better defensive matchup against Paul.
Kidd can't do much about that. He's just another player on a team that was never going anywhere in the first place. Some say the Mavs never should have given up Devin Harris, but those who make that facile argument haven't seen Harris defend lately. It was a risk Cuban had to take -- period. They weren't in the Lakers' or Spurs' class, and they knew it.
But the Dallas defeat will fall on Kidd's shoulders. Few will remember that Josh Howard, admitted devotee of the wacky weed, is shooting 26 percent through four games for Dallas. Indeed, there were a lot of stars who looked inept over the first week of the postseason. Carmelo Anthony in Denver. Philly's Andre Iguodala. Chauncey Billups of the Pistons.
And yes, Kidd. Some will point to the delicious irony that it was Byron Scott's point guard that made him seem so feeble. Whatever. We say Paul will do that to a lot of opponents down the road. And that no 35-year-old stands a chance.
underrated escribió:A Villanueva me lo traía por el precio justo. El chaval tiene potencial, aunque tenga fama de acomodado y poco sufridor (vamos, un poco vaguete).
underrated escribió:Los Nuggets son otro equipo que podrían agitar un poco su plantilla tras el fracaso en playoffs... ¿qué os parecería ir a por Camby? Nos vendría bien si no renueva Gana, aunque tampoco perdería la cabeza por él (con perder la cabeza me refiero a dar a alguno de nuestros jóvenes), porque ya es mayor y cobra bastante, pero si se pone a tiro porque Denver hace limpieza...
DIEGO-ESTU escribió:underrated escribió:Los Nuggets son otro equipo que podrían agitar un poco su plantilla tras el fracaso en playoffs... ¿qué os parecería ir a por Camby? Nos vendría bien si no renueva Gana, aunque tampoco perdería la cabeza por él (con perder la cabeza me refiero a dar a alguno de nuestros jóvenes), porque ya es mayor y cobra bastante, pero si se pone a tiro porque Denver hace limpieza...
Un gran center, pero cobra un pastón.
¿Cuántos años le quedan y a razón de cuanto?
Big Summer Ahead for Sean Williams
By Matthew McQueeny, NJNets.com
April 29, 2008
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. -- If anything, Sean Williams learned one thing from his first season in the NBA:
“Patience is a virtue,” said the baritone-voiced 21 year-old.
Williams – like the Nets – had a rollercoaster of a season. In his ascendant moments, he showed an athleticism and instinct nonpareil. In his completely mortal moments, he exhibited all the traits of a young player out of sorts with schemes and assignments.
Then again, that can be the story for most high-upside first-year pros.
Said Nets President Rod Thorn, “Sean’s year was like a lot of rookies: he had some early success, fell back a little, and then had some more success around the all-star break. Then after the all-star break did not have much success so I think he played more games this year than he has every played by far. I’m sure he got a little tired as the season wore on. I heard him saying several times that his legs felt heavy. I think he’s another player that needs some strength, but he’s a guy who showed at three or four different periods of the season that he could be a player that could be a helpful player. It’s a big summer for him with summer league, other work he’ll be doing this summer. Athletically, he’s certainly in the top 10 percent of the league athletically and has an upside and it’s up to us and to him to make sure that he does what he needs to do in order to get better.”
Williams, who only started playing organized basketball in the summer before his senior year in high school, played 69 total games in three college seasons at Boston College. In his rookie season with New Jersey, he played in 73 contests. He finished the year with averages of 5.6 points, 4.4 rebounds, and 1.5 blocks in 17.5 minutes a game.
He did, however, start 29 games, including a stretch from late December to early February in which he started 24 of 25 games. In that stretch he had slightly better averages of 7.5 points on 50 percent shooting, 6.2 rebounds, and 1.9 blocks.
While consistency was an issue, it was his moments of unparalleled explosion that had those who watched seeing the future. Against the Kings on December 18th, he had 11 points, eight blocks, and seven rebounds; on November 17th against the Heat he had 22 points and eight rebounds; against the Wizards on December 28th his line was 14 points, 10 rebounds, and five blocks; and at the Clippers on January 19th the rookie notched 11 points, 11 rebounds, and six blocks. In all, he had 14 double-digit scoring efforts, four double-digit rebounding efforts, and blocked 106 shots, making him only the third rookie in team history to reach the century mark in swats (Kenyon Martin, Mike Gminski).
Now that he knows what it is like to go through an entire NBA season, Williams looks to build this summer and come back better next season.
“I take that I have a lot to work on and it’s going to be a long hot summer in that gym and I’m going to love it. There’s a lot of motivation not making the playoffs. We went into the year with a lot of expectations and for us not to make the playoffs; it just shows how much work we have for this team and for me.”
Outside of summer league, a few trips back up to New Jersey and a quick summer vacation with his girlfriend, Sean will be mostly in Houston in the gym working with John Lucas.
“Specifically I want to work at my aggressiveness on the boards and just knowledge of the game. Every time I play I learn something about the game. I just want to keep playing so I can learn and get better at the game. I’m still young at this game and I feel my ceiling is very high. I still can’t even touch it with as much height as I have.”
Outside of being late once for a shoot around, magnified because it was before the Nets first preseason game of the season, Williams was noted for being a stand up citizen and teammate this year. According to him, there is still much to learn though.
“I definitely did get a lot out of this year. There are a lot of things that I want to work on for next year outside of basketball - from a professionalism standpoint - like being on time. I’m on time but I’m on time.”
“You have to be early, not on time.”
He will look to carry those professional lessons into his sophomore season in the NBA, because he certainly has all the physical assets he needs.
“For me next year is really I feel about establishing myself. I’m not going to be a rookie anymore so you can’t fall back on that. I’m going to have to come in and be a pro.”
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