More TBC Smart Points

Daryl Morey deserves some credit for stuffing the ballot boxx in the final weeks in an attempt to get Steve Nash into the game instead of the wildly popular corpse that is T-Maq. First, he saved David Stern from complete embarrassment. So he gets 5 TBC Smart Points for saving the Commish. Second, McGrady playing in the All-Star game would only showcase his lack of value. This is very important as Morey tries to hoodwink teams into taking on tee-mak and his absurd contract. Rockets brass gives him 5 TBC Smart Points. And last but not least, the fans win on this one. So thats 5 TBC Smart Points from anyone who likes the NBA. That brings the total up to 15 TBC Smart Points on this single move, which might be a little generous but we make up the rules.

T-Maq is Baq

When I saw that the Rockets had finally allowed Tracy McGrady to play last night, the knee jerk reaction was to revoke all of Daryl Morey's smart points. They guy is a basketball genius. Not the kind like Magic or Legend who who show their IQ on the hardwood, but the kind who seems to evaluate his team and his talent better than anyone and pull the right strings from behind the scenes. Inserting T-MAK back into the an aggressive and overachieving Rockets team seemed counterintuitive. Why put in a guy who is notoriously lazy, ruins the rhythm of any offensive team and plays no defense? Are you all of the sudden thinking the John Wall sweepstakes is worth it?

Then I came back to reality. This guy is smarter than that. I realized that there are two obvious scenarios. The first is that David Stern would rather McGrady get voted into the All-Star game as a starter rather than having to stuff the ballot box himself for Chris Paul or Deron Williams. The second scenario is that Morey is going to parade McGrady around the league in order to trick someone into trading for him.

Scenario 1
Currently the second leading vote getter as a guard in the Western Conference, t_maK making the All Star team would be almost as infamous as the 2002 MLB All Star game in terms of blunders. It would be even worse if he hadn't played a single game all year. So the Commish undoubtedly made a call to Morey's office and made a deal with him that was about as one-sided as a game between the Lakers and the Sparks. "Play McGrady." You don't question the Commish.

Scenario 2
Morey is trying to get his 1993 Corvette out of the shop and parade it around the neighborhood a little bit in order to get some sap in the midst of a mid-life crisis to offer him something, anything, for it. (The Corvettes of the late 80s and early 90's are by far the worst of any Corvette made. Every Corvette from that era all seems to be the same terrible maroon color. No car should ever be that color, but certainly never a muscle car. I like comparing McGrady to a crappy 90's "muscle car" because he is that era of muscle car. He is the NBA player people like who don't know anything about the NBA just like that Corvette is the car people get when they don't know anything about muscle cars. To them its a Corvette, or someone who scores a lot of points. Never mind the fact that he hasn't won a single thing in his career.) The timing is just right if you are going to parade him around the league, like bringing out the Corvette during the first warm day of the year with the top down. People get envious. Lets look at the teams/GMs coming up on the schedule between now and the trading deadline on February 18th. (note: all games mentioned are road games because that would all but guarantee that the other owner/GM will see him play)

Dallas - Cuban is always buying right?

New Jersey Nettes - His name is Tracy.

Cleveland - Just in case they want to add one more washed up All-Star or buy LeBron insurance

Charlotte - He would fit real well on top of the Scrap Heap

Memphis - Do I really need to spell this one out?

Miami - Rumors are building for this one, heaven help us. Dwyane might as well pack his bags now if the rumors continue.

Milwaukee - Last chance to see him before he is shipped out of town or back to the DL, could be the last time we ever see him in the NBA

There you have it. My guess it that both scenarios are true and that with any luck we can finally be rid of T-Maq for good. If you're listening Mr. Morey, it will be worth 50 TBC Smart Points.

TeeMAK Denied

TBC Smart Points for Daryl Morey: 6
That is 6 smart points for the season, up from 1 before this story broke. I really don't think this story has anything to do with him not being physically ready to play. It has to do with the 5-man symphony that the Rockets have on the court at any given moment. They don't need a guitar solo right now, nor ever.

Big Night for the 910 Conversation Story Lines

CP3=KG: 1
We know its early in the season but in the game against Boston, CP3 showed some true frustration...and KG envy. A loss last night to the Knicks probably didn't help matters.

Memphis Thirtysomethings: 2

Last night was the first of many disgruntled performances from Allen Iverson, the thirtysomething darling of the Grizzlies. We put you as the first thirtysomething Allen not because we want people to know how old you are but because we knew this would mean a lot to you.
We did what you said, "Go look at my resume and that will show you that I'm not a sixth man," Iverson said. "I don't think it has anything to do with me being selfish. It's just who I am. I don't want to change what gave me all the success that I've had since I've been in this league." And you're right. You are not a sixth man, you're a thirtysomething man...and the first one in our books.
It was also the first thirtysomething point total by a Grizzly of the season, Mr. Zach Randolph. Mayo messed up his chance to be the first by trying to go shot for shot with Carmelo. (for those of you keeping score at home Carmelo's 40+ pt effort doesn't count towards TBC eating a Caramello...because it was against the GRIZZLIES...the same grizzlies who made Kevin Martin look like Kobe Bryant last night)

Sactown Race To 14 Wins: 1

The Kings are moving along at a 25% clip, right on pace to put us in the lower bowl right behind the Osmonds.
Something tells me this won't last.

TBC Smart Points for Daryl Morey: 1

@ricbucher tweeted last night after the Rockets pulled away from the Jazz that "HOU is a 5-man symphony"
We knew after last year they would be scrappy and win some tough games, but with Lil' Chris Rock leading the squad full time now they are looking mighty impressive.

Heat vs. Suns tonight

One loyal reader and Suns fan wrote in wondering if this is a preview for the 2010 NBA Finals.
One can dream...one can only dream.

910 Conversation - Southwest Division

DALLAS MAVERICKS

Looking back over the last several seasons, not necessarily in any kind of scientific/wikipedia/Google way but in more of a "this is what I remember" way, it seems as if the Mavericks have a formula. The formula is: take Dirk, your franchise player, and bring in one guy to complement him. Just look– Jason Kidd last year, Shawn Marion this year, Jason Terry or Jerry Stackhouse or Josh Howard from years past. These might not seem like big moves in retrospect, but at the time there was quite the buzz going around them.

Now, by the same token, go check Sandra Bullock's IMDB page. There's a very similar philosophy/formula happening. That formula? Bring in some male lead who's getting a lot of attention and do either a romantic comedy or a suspense/thriller. There are some exceptions; Crash, Speed, The Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood. But, think about it it's largely the same formula as the Mavericks have used for Dirk Nowitzki.
And, not surprisingly, the results have been very similar. Huge box office success but never really making anything memorable. Nothing that's gonna stand up to the test of time. So much so that we pretty much know what we're getting from a Sandra Bullock movie before we even see the preview just like we can guarantee what we'll get from a Dirk-led Mavericks team. What we at the Black Converse have decided to do as we semi-follow the Mavericks throughout the year is thus Bullocked: determine which Sandra Bullock movie this season parallels the most.

Cue Will Arnett's wonderful pitchman voice: Sandra Bullock is Dirk Nowitzki in the 2009-2010 Dallas Mavericks Season

HOUSTON ROCKETS

The Rockets are starting to become a team you can't write off before the season. That's all thanks to the man behind the curtain, Houston's own Oz (the movie, not the show), Daryl Morey. This is no revelation. So what we've decided to do is award Mr. Morey with "TBC Smart Points" every time one of his moves pays off. We also reserve the right to take them away every time Tracy McGrady plays a minute this season. Also, if Smarties or Smartfood or Smartcars want to sponsor this portion of the blog, you know where to find us.

MEMPHIS GRIZZLIES

You might have expected us to contrast the Morey Smart Points with Chris Wallace Idiot Points. There are two reasons why that didn't happen: 1) We'd have to follow the Grizzlies too closely, something we cannot and will not commit to doing, and 2) they signed Allen Iverson to a rock bottom, one year rental agreement which was a really smart move in our eyes.

The more we dug into our vast NBA analytical databases, we discovered that any number in the thirties has the potential to play a large part in this Grizzlies season. They signed a thirtysomething Hall Of Famer, they might win thirty games, they could have thirty fans and they have a starting lineup in which each individual is consciencelessly capable of taking thirty shots per game. The theme of this Grizzlies season for us is Thirtysomething. We'll track anything related to thirty- losses, shot attempts, failed trade offers, you name it.

NEW ORLEANS HORNETS

CP3 is the new KG. A great player who is overly committed to a lousy team that would win about 4 games if he ever left. Don't believe us? Just watch this blog and we will be sure to point out all the instances this season that parallel KG's torturous run in the Land O' Lakes.

SAN ANTONIO SPURS

Charles Barkley has famously given Tim Duncan the nickname Groundhog Day. A great nickname by all standards and possibly Sir Charles' finest moment outside his foot race with Dick Bavetta and his golf swing.

Looking at the movie Groundhog Day, we see a lot more similarities with the Spurs as an organization and not just with Timmy. Bill Murray and Gregg Popovich have a similar facial complexion. Manu Ginobili debates every spring whether or not he wants to come off the injured list and actually play, much like Punxsutawney Phil. And every Spurs season seems to play out very similarly to the previous one with only slight deviations. So we wonder this year, how will this season deviate from a typical Spurs season?