The Dribble

• J Gurney talks about teams with easy/difficult schedules to start the season at lowpost.net/blog:
  
• Anthony at Page 4 suggests that the Raptors should:
  

Ron Artest contributes yet again to his "legendary status".

I love the guy and what he brings to the court but one would expect to keep a low profile (at least for a year)


is he ever gonna learn to spell...?

• After the win in Miami (again) Nowitzki said: "It's a fun place to play"-ya right especially when you win as Josh Howard led all scorers with 25 points and 11 boards while Antoine Walker was an obvious non-factor on his 1-13 shooting
  
• Celtics end slide on the shoulders of Pierce's execution in the final minutes and Lafrentz's solid 37 min game: as he goes 8-13 from the floor, 3-5 from the stripe, 3-5 from 3pt land, 4 offensive of a total 10boards along with 2 steals, 3 blocks for a total of 22 pts against Charlotte
• Jaric teases in Minnesota against Milwaukee and drops 24 points with 3-5 from three point territory in victory while Magloire seems to be coming around for the Bucks with his 14 points and 10 boards, Garnett shows his toughness (again) after receiving six stitches to go along with his 17 points 12 boards and six assists and Sczerbiak posts season high 30
• Phoenix came out on top while giving a different look vs. the Nets as the primary passer was Boris Diaw with nine assists leaving Kurt Thomas to clean up on the boards with 6 offensive and a total of 19 leaving Nash to lead all scorers with 27
  
• Stunner in Indiana as the Hawks squeak by and win their second in a row while shooting 36% from the floor despite O'Neal's monster game of 30 points 10 rebounds and 4 blocks as the Pacers clearly missed Ron Artest who was out with a bruised wrist
  
• Houston still winless without T-Mac and remain turnover prone (18) as Shane Battier wins the game for the Grizz on 20 point (12 in 4th Qtr) 7 board and 3 block performance
• The Chicago Bulls frontcourt "controlled" Duncan and the quick backcourt closed down Tony Parker's penetration to pull out a complete team win in San Antonio as they brought their overall record up to .500 (5-5)
• Toronto lost another one posession game as the Sacramento Kings came back to edge out the Raptors in the final minutes
• The LA Clippers played their worst game of the season turning the ball over 16 times and lost to the Nuggets as Carmelo Anthony steps up with 35 points 6 rebounds 4 assists and 2 blocks all the while shutting down Cuttino Mobley on the defensive end as Camby sits out and K-Mart came back in limited minutes
• the game of the night belonged to the Wizards and Pistons who comibned for 61 personal fouls as the two teams went to double overtime as Washington took it one posession at a time to eke out the win in Detroit as they shut down the foul prone Pistons and their leading scorer Richard Hamilton limiting him to only 11 points on 4-15 shooting while getting a surprise offensive output from Chucky Atkins who went 6-7 from downtown

• NBA Superblog has a different look at the modern version of the "globetrotters" especially their GNP (Gross National Product)
• rookie Luther Head of the Rockets goes 5-8 from 3pt land for a total of 28 pts along with 3 ast and 7 rebounds in losing cause vs. the Mavericks
• fellow blogger Michael Deuser now of The Sporting News (congratulations) says to watch out for Nick Collison, Leandro Barbosa, Mike Sweetney, Jarrett Jack/Juan Dixon, and Mike James
• Darren Andrade at Hoopsworld says that Rafael Araujo may "resurrect" his career by playing the enforcer card for the Raptors
• the Denver Nuggets are leading the NBA in fast break baskets and are still leaving everyone puzzled as to why they picked up Earl Watson as Boykins' fine play of late has been making his acquisition irrelevant (Drew Gooden for Andre Miller or some Watson package...hmmm)
  
• if Marcus Camby can stay healthy he should definitely be considered to make the all-star team (that's a big "IF" considering his history)
• ProBasketballNews.com gives their version of "why" the Houston Rockets are still having problems so far this season citing McGrady's injuries and Yao's lack of aggressiveness on both ends of the floor and suggests: "Rockets exclusively utilize the pick-and-roll and little else. Perhaps a motion offense of some sort, or some misdirection plays"

Anthony Peretore at NBA Source vents his anger against fantasy addicts and calls for participants to show some semblance of etiquette while following their favorite sports.

Notes and observations:

• The 7-0 Detroit Pistons are still simply playing on another level lately (hmmm...)
• Kobe is getting shut down by teams using a zone defense and crowding him.
• it's still very early but could you see yourself voting Richard Jefferson for MVP?
  
• did Desmond Mason forget something in Milwaukee?
• how long before the Nuggets give away a guard now that K-Mart is out..?
• will Ebi find a home before Sprewell?
• last year's pleasant surprises (ie.: Travis Outlaw and Damien Wilkens) getting no respect or playing time)
• Dampier disappeared against the Nuggets but Diop stepped up quite admirably hauling in 16 rebounds and 6 blocks
• may have found the motivation for Arenas' play of late:
  

Between diaper changes and milk bottles I made some notes of the game between the Raptors and the Sixers;

• Araujo the one time big Raptor big man looked mentally beat up
• if Jalen Rose had half the class everyone says he has he would say stuff like: "Bosh is an elite player that is in a class/category of his own" and would wipe that "I can't believe I'm still playing here" look off of his face
• I am not yet sold on Iguodala's defensive awareness just yet he looked confused at times out there
• the Toronto Raptors will improve when Joey Graham and Charlie Villanueva (who might just yet be a newer version of Antoine Walker) stop looking at Iverson like: "WoW! its' really him."
  
• we all know that Webber just won't keep this up all season
• Salmons is a keeper
  

The high scoring game by the Washington Wizards got me thinking, what are the teams playing this season that are worth the scalpers steep price of admission to go and watch.

Firstly you want to watch a team that plays well at home as they feed off the energy of the fans in the stands.

Secondly you want to see a team with at least one All-Star in action, someone that can dominate the game and change its outcome at any given time.

Finally, to really get a feel for the NBA game you don't want to watch a blowout where half the arena leaves at the end of the 3rd quarter, therefore you need a team that has both defensive potential and offensive talent with a flair for a little "showtime".


The candidates would be:

• Washington Wizards (you don't really expect 137 points from them on a regular basis do you, this young team will battle for every victory as Gilbert Arenas is out to prove that he is the best point guard in the league)
• Philadelphia 76ers (Iverson is unstoppable, takes a beating, and gets back up for more he will win any basketball fan over eventually regardless of the attitude)
• New Jersey Nets ("high flying gravity defying aerials")
• Cleveland Cavaliers (the king James show; Lebron isn't the youngest player to score 4000 pts for nothing and now has a decent supporting cast to help)
• Minnesota Timberwolves (KG does it all)
• Golden State Warriors (enjoy the teamwork)
• Houston Rockets (Yao & T-Mac gulp!)
  
• Dallas Mavericks (entire roster oozes with talent)
  
• Los Angeles Lakers (Kobe Bryant, one the most "pure" scorers ever)
  

The Score.ca checks in again with their analyisis of the sophomore class that is stepping up or slipping away.

Slippery:

• Josh Smith
• Josh Childress
• Jameer Nelson
• Al Jefferson
• Luol Deng

Step-Ups:

• Andre Iguodala
• Chris Duhon
• Emeka Okafor
• Ben Gordon
• Dwight Howard
  

Boyakasha check these tv spots.

Big ben in detroit ? ? ?

Steve Nash and underpants ????

Ali g vs those 3 dumb tnt hosts

Steve Nash the MP3

Ali G vs Kobe

• Anyone else think Chandler is turning into another Mutombo (not that there's anything wrong with that, everyone needs a Mutombo). Just look at how the Bulls shutdown the Warriors with a stifling defense and a deep frontcourt.
• Dallas has issues and showed how fragile a threat they are in the west as Nowitzki left with lower back pain and the 76ers (who are still without Dalembert) only needed to play Steven Hunter 15 minutes
• has Phil Jackson found a hidden gem in Lakerland in starting PG Smush Parker (don't expect his FG% to stay as high as it is-55%)
• now that the Knicks are 0-4 it's only a matter of time before we see alot more of Malik Rose and Mo Taylor as Thomas tries to finish his puzzle
  
• who won the Garnett vs. Brand showdown??? They both get a win at home and both average a double double
• with things going so well in San Antonio you can't help but wonder if Timmy is turning into a "pothead" (he's got the look now and that would explain why he's hitting his free throws and is so timid)
• will Okur keep playing like this when Boozer comes back?
• Miami seems to have figured out how to stop the Nets; shutdown Kidd and the frontcourt Kristic/Jackson (ya like that's so easy)
• will Memphis make a move to solidify their frontcourt cause they're not playing the rooks or are they gonna wait until it's too late? They have the tradeable assets in Miller/Dahntay Jones/Lorenzen Wright
• scary thought...4-1 Clippers played better with Magette back
• Minnesota played zone defense to shut Kobe down. Think any other teams noticed...?
• LeBron had the Magic Johnson swagger in full effect vs. Seattle (even though his assists are way down from last year)
• in the "DOH!!!" category of moves made by franchises the echoes are resounding in Denver and Lakerland as Earl Watson and Aaron McKie are getting no play time whatsoever
  
• the only way players would be interested in coming to Toronto would be if the Canadian governement follows through on their plan to legalize marijuana (hehe...)
  

Lineups are already a little clearer, preseason performances are a thing of the past and some hot streaks have begun.

Games of note in week #2:

Monday night starts with a playoff preview as New Jersey plays in Shaq-less Miami and hopes to run them over (I can hear Mourning panting already). While Sam Cassell of the undefeated Clippers comes back to Minnesota in the second part of their home and home as the T-Wolves try to avenge their one point loss in LA.

Now that the critics are starting to take the 3-0 Milwaukee Bucks a little more seriously they have a solid test on their hands when they play host to the Golden State Warriors on Tuesday night.

Wednesday night sees yet another playoff preview and a big test for the Heat (again, because nobody is really convinced of their worth) on the road as they "battle" the Indiana Pacers. The Sacramento Kings who are off to rough start play the Nuggets in Denver on the same nightin part one of a home and home.

New Jersey @ Indiana on Friday night could get nasty as Jefferson so far has looked unstoppable and menacing while gettting ejected in the first week and will face off against Artest (who has convinced none that he has toned it down). The Kobe road trip comes to Philadelphia. Denver faces Sacramento in part two of their western conference showdown.

Saturday night has the Warriors run 'n gunning last year's fast break champs in Phoenix.

The weekend winds down with Minnesota on the road in Denver on Sunday night.

Daniel Dobish at http://www.sportsline.com/nba/fantasy reminds us that fantasy owners need to remember that the value of the average player scheduled for four games is higher than the star that plays only two games in a week. Therefore plan your lineups and your waiver wire transactions wisely.

Teams with four games: Charlotte, Cleveland, Golden State, Houston, L.A. Clippers, Memphis, Miami, New Jersey, Sacramento, San Antonio, Seattle and Utah.

Teams with three games: Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Dallas, Denver, Detroit, Indiana, L.A. Lakers, Minnesota, New York, Orlando, Philadelphia, Toronto and Washington.

Team with two games: Milwaukee, NO/Oklahoma City, Phoenix and Portland.

Now that the Orlando Magic are 0-3 one would have to question Brian Hill's choice to have a starting 5 of Francis at the PG and Stevenson at the SG while leaving Jameer Nelson to come off the bench. Stevenson is logging significant minutes and while posting some decent stats through the first three games you can't help but wonder if he's being showcased for a trade:

"A Magic source said this week that prior to the NBA draft, the club had a chance to nab Jalen Rose from Toronto in exchange for Tony Battie, DeShawn Stevenson and the draft pick that became Fran Vasquez, but choose to pass – admittedly there was no way Orlando could have known the #11 was gonna be Fran or that Fran was gonna flake out on them"


"Over the summer, the Nuggets and the Lakers were mentioned as possible spots. Last week, Latrell Sprewell's name surfaced as a possibility in Orlando or Miami. It is possible that Sprewell dragged his heels on a deal just to avoid the preseason. That's what Wolves center Michael Olowokandi thinks. "I'm pretty confident that he's trying to fine-tune the details of what he's going to be doing," said Olowokandi, who stays in touch with Sprewell. "Spree is pretty meticulous in everything he does, be it practicing, his businesses, his gadgetry, whatever it is. I'm pretty confident he'll be somewhere . . . sunny."

make sure to check out http://www.givemetherock.com/ on a regular basis great insight and opinions on current affairs in the NBA.

The Score.ca has a decent article on their site where they cover the battles for playing time that have remained unresolved from training camp and the preseason on various teams across the league. Read it here.

The 2005-2006 season is finally under way.

Now that training camp is over it's nice to see fresh boxscores that count for something as opposed to seeing players tease us with minutes and statistics they would never get during the real season. But that's another story.

Opening night gets four games?
While day 2 of the season has 14 on the slate.....go figure.

• AK47's mask not only makes him look like a psycho but seems to be bothering his performance
• Milwaukee 2-0, no overtime needed versus the Nets
  
• looks like Doc Rivers chose the right PG in Boston as Delonte West was one rebound and one assist away from a triple double
• Antoine Walker left no doubt to the contributions he can make for the Heat as he hauls in 16 rebounds to go with his 25pts (although it was vs. Memphis who is far from the strongest rebounding team out there anyways)
• Looks like the Nene rumors are done
• the price for any Darius Miles trade will be steep
• Iverson doesn't seem to have lost a beat but unfortunately neither have the 76ers (0-2)
• John Singleton (who....??) the product of Murray State went undrafted and signed on with the Clippers, had a solid preseason and in game one of his regular season's career went 7-8 from the floor for 14 pts and 10 rebounds with one assist, one block, and one steal in 25 minutes
  

NBA.com has posted the opening day rosters for the 2005-06 NBA regular season.

ATLANTA Batista, Esteban Childress, Josh Edwards, John Harrington, Al Ivey, Royal Johnson, Joe Lue, Tyronn Pachulia, Zaza Smith, Donta Smith, Josh Stoudamire, Salim Williams, Marvin INACTIVE LIST Delk, Tony	BOSTON Blount, Mark Davis, Ricky Dickau, Dan Gomes, Ryan Greene, Orien Jefferson, Al LaFrentz, Raef Perkins, Kendrick Pierce, Paul Reed, Justin Scalabrine, Brian West, Delonte INACTIVE LIST Allen, Tony Banks, Marcus Green, Gerald	CHARLOTTE Bogans, Keith Brezec, Primoz Carroll, Matt Ely, Melvin Felton, Raymond Jones, Jumaine Knight, Brevin May, Sean Okafor, Emeka Robinson, Bernard Rush, Kareem Wallace, Gerald INACTIVE LIST Anderson, Alan Burleson, Kevin Voskuhl, Jake	CHICAGO Allen Malik Chandler, Tyson Deng, Luol Duhon, Chris Gordon, Ben Harrington, Othella Hinrich, Kirk Nocioni, Andres Piatkowski, Eric Songaila, Darius Sweetney, Mike Thomas, Tim INACTIVE LIST Basden, Eddie Pargo, Jannero Powell, Kasib
CLEVELAND Gooden, Drew Hamilton, Zendon Henderson, Alan Hughes, Larry Ilgauskas, Zydrunas Jackson, Luke James, LeBron Jones, Damon Marshall, Donyell Pavlovic, Aleksandar Snow, Eric Wilks, Mike INACTIVE LIST Andriuskevicius, Aleksandar Newble, Ira Varejao, Anderson	DALLAS Armstrong, Darrell Christie, Doug Dampier, Erick Daniels, Marquis Diop, DeSagana Harris, Devin Howard, Josh Ilunga-Mbenga, Didier Nowitzki, Dirk Powell, Josh Terry, Jason Van Horn, Keith INACTIVE LIST Marshall, Rawle Podkolzin, Pavel Stackhouse, Jerry	DENVER Anthony, Carmelo Boykins, Earl Buckner, Greg Camby, Marcus Elson, Francisco Johnson, DerMarr Lenard, Voshon Martin, Kenyon Miller, Andre Najera, Eduardo Nene Watson, Earl INACTIVE LIST Hodge, Julius Kleiza, Linas Russell, Bryon	DETROIT Arroyo, Carlos Billups, Chauncey Davis, Dale Delfino, Carlos Evans, Maurice Hamilton, Richard Maxiell, Jason McDyess, Antonio Milicic, Darko Prince, Tayshaun Wallace, Ben Wallace, Rasheed INACTIVE LIST Acker, Alex Hunter, Lindsey Johnson, Amir
GOLDEN STATE Biedrins, Andris Cabarkapa, Zarko Cheaney, Calbert Davis, Baron Dunleavy, Mike Fisher, Derek Foyle, Adonal Miles, Aaron Murphy, Troy Pietrus, Mickael Richardson, Jason Taft, Chris INACTIVE LIST Diogu, Ike Ellis, Monta	HOUSTON Alston, Rafer Anderson, Derek Barry, Jon Baxter, Lonny Bowen, Ryan Head, Luther Howard, Juwan McGrady, Tracy Mutombo, Dikembe Swift, Stromile Wesley, David Yao Ming INACTIVE LIST Glover, Dion Norris, Moochie Sura, Bob	INDIANA Artest, Ron Bender, Jonathan Croshere, Austin Granger, Danny Harrison, David Jackson, Stephen Jasikevicius, Sarunas Johnson, Anthony Jones, Fred O’Neal, Jermaine Tinsley, Jamaal Walker, Samaki INACTIVE LIST Foster, Jeff Gill, Eddie Pollard, Scot	LA CLIPPERS Brand, Elton Cassell, Sam Ewing, Daniel Kaman, Chris Korolev, Yaroslav Maggette, Corey McCarty, Walter Mobley, Cuttino Rebraca, Zeljko Ross, Quinton Singleton, James Wilcox, Chris INACTIVE LIST Goldwire, Anthony Livingston, Shaun Ndong, Boniface
LA LAKERS Brown, Kwame Bryant, Kobe Bynum, Andrew Cook, Brian George, Devean McKie, Aaron Medvedenko, Slava Mihm, Chris Odom, Lamar Parker, Smush Profit, Laron Vujacic, Sasha INACTIVE LIST Green, Devin Wafer, Von Walton, Luke	MEMPHIS Battier, Shane Burks, Antonio Gasol, Pau Jackson, Bobby Jones, Dahntay Jones, Eddie Miller, Mike Roberts, Lawrence Stoudamire, Damon Tsakalidis, Jake Warrick, Hakim Wright, Lorenzen INACTIVE LIST Cardinal, Brian Roberson, Anthony Thomas, John	MIAMI Barron, Earl Haslem, Udonis Kapono, Jason Mourning, Alonzo O’Neal, Shaquille Payton, Gary Simien, Wayne Wade, Dwyane Walker, Antoine Walsh, Matt Williams, Jason Wright, Dorell INACTIVE LIST Anderson, Shandon Doleac, Michael Posey, James	MILWAUKEE Bell, Charlie Bogut, Andrew Ford, T.J. Gadzuric, Dan Gaines, Reece Ilyasova, Ersan Johnson, Ervin Kukoc, Toni Magloire, Jamaal Redd, Michael Simmons, Bobby Williams, Maurice INACTIVE LIST Davis, Josh Smith, Joe Welsch, Jiri
MINNESOTA Carter, Anthony Frahm, Richie Garnett, Kevin Griffin, Eddie Hassell, Trenton Hudson, Troy Jaric, Marko Madsen, Mark McCants, Rashad Olowokandi, Michael Szczerbiak, Wally Tskitishvili, Nikoloz INACTIVE LIST Dupree, Ronald Jones, Dwayne Wright, Bracey	NEW JERSEY Carter, Vince Collins, Jason Jackson, Marc Jefferson, Richard Kidd, Jason Krstic, Nenad McInnis, Jeff Murray, Lamond Padgett, Scott Planinic, Zoran Robinson, Clifford Vaughn, Jacque INACTIVE LIST Handlogten, Ben Johnson, Linton Wright, Antoine	N.O./OKLA. CITY Andersen, Chris Bass, Brandon Brown, P.J. Butler, Rasual Claxton, Speedy Macijauskas, Arvydas mason, Desmond Nachbar, Bostjan Paul, Chris Smith, J.R. Vroman, Jackson West, David INACTIVE LIST Banks, Sean Lampe, Maciej Snyder, Kirk	NEW YORK Ariza, Trevor Barnes, Matt Crawford, Jamal Curry, Eddy Davis, Antonio Frye, Channing James, Jerome Marbury, Stephon Richardson, Quentin Robinson, Nate Rose, Malik Taylor, Maurice INACTIVE LIST Butler, Jackie Hardaway, Anfernee Lee, David
ORLANDO Battie, Tony Caton, Kelvin Diener, Travis Dooling, Keyon Francis, Steve Garrity, Pat Howard, Dwight Morris, Terence Nelson, Jameer Outlaw, Bo Stevenson, DeShawn Turkoglu, Hedo INACTIVE LIST Augmon, Stacey Hill, Grant Kasun, Mario	PHILADELPHIA Dalembert, Samuel Gai, Deng Hunter, Steven Iguodala, Andre Iverson, Allen Korver, Kyle Nailon, Lee Ollie, Kevin Salmons, John Thomas, James Webber, Chris Williams, Louis INACTIVE LIST Bradley, Michael Mashburn, Jamal Randolph, Shavlik	PHOENIX Barbosa, Leandro Bell, Raja Burke, Pat Diaw, Boris Grant, Brian House, Eddie Jackson, Jim Jones, James Marion, Shawn Nash, Steve Thomas, Kurt Thompson, Dijon INACTIVE LIST Reiner, Jared Stoudemire, Amare Tischer, Lucas	PORTLAND Blake, Steve Dixon, Juan Jack, Jarrett Miles, Darius Outlaw, Travis Patterson, Ruben Przybilla, Joel Randolph, Zach Ratliff, Theo Smith, Charles Telfair, Sebastian Webster, Martell INACTIVE LIST Ha Seung-Jin Khryapa, Viktor Monia, Sergei
SACRAMENTO Abdur-Rahim, Shareef Bibby, Mike Garcia, Francisco Hart, Jason Martin, Kevin Miller, Brad Price, Ronnie Skinner, Brian Stojakovic, Peja Thomas, Kenny Wells, Bonzi Williamson, Corliss INACTIVE LIST Sampson, Jamal	SAN ANTONIO Barry, Brent Bowen, Bruce Duncan, Tim Finley, Michael Ginobili, Manu Horry, Robert Mohammed, Nazr Nesterovic, Rasho Oberto, Fabricio Parker, Tony Udrih, Beno Van Exel, Nick INACTIVE LIST Marks, Sean	SEATTLE Allen, Ray Brunson, Rick Collison, Nick Evans, Reggie Fortson, Danny Lewis, Rashard Murray, Ronald Petro, Johan Radmanovic, Vladimir Ridnour, Luke Swift, Robert Wilkins, Damien INACTIVE LIST Cleaves, Mateen Moore, Mikki Potapenko, Vitaly	TORONTO Araujo, Rafael Bonner, Matt Bosh, Chris Calderon, Jose Graham, Joey James, Mike Peterson, Morris Rose, Jalen Villanueva, Charlie Williams, Aaron Wiliams, Alvin Woods, Loren INACTIVE LIST Sow, Pape Eric Williams
UTAH Brown, Devin Collins, Jarron Giricek, Gordan Harpring, Matt Humphries, Kris Kirilenko, Andrei McLeod, Keith Okur, Mehmet Ostertag, Greg Palacio, Milt Whaley, Robert Williams, Deron INACTIVE LIST Boozer, Carlos Miles, C.J. Owens, Andre	WASHINGTON Arenas, Gilbert Atkins, Chucky Booth, Calvin Butler, Caron Daniels, Antonio Hayes, Jarvis Haywood, Brendan Jamison, Antawn Jeffries, Jared Ruffin, Michael Taylor, Donell Thomas, Etan INACTIVE LIST Blatche, Andray Ramos, Peter John Storey, Awvee

NBA.com has posted the results of the response that some of the General Managers have given to their survey in regards to the players and teams and the upcoming season.

It's interesting to see the opinions of the actual guys that have a big say in deciding a team's roster and their answers to questions ranging from "Which team will be the most fun to watch?" and "Which player in the NBA would you want taking a shot with the game on the line?" and at the same time offering which players are worth looking out for.

Read it here.