Bibby Fined By Bulls For Defensive Play

Breaking Story: Mike Bibby fined by the Chicago Bulls for playing defense.

ESPN's Greg Stink reports that Heat guard Mike Bibby was caught on video moving his feet on the defensive end of the court and keeping his body between Derrick Rose and the basket. The Bulls have fined Bibby $125,000.00. Sources say Bibby will not appeal the fine and he issued an apology through his agent this afternoon.

"It wasn't until after the game, when I was out of the heat of the battle, and I saw the tape that I realized how disruptive my actions were. My coaches have been telling me for years that defense is something I shouldn't play. I don't know what got into me last night and I sincerely apologize and I promise that it won’t happen again.”

Bibby also said through his agent that he didn’t expect any further action from the league and that the fine from the Chicago Bulls should be seen as sufficient punishment.

Later, after the media was let into the practice facility following the Heat’s practice, Bibby addressed the media further on the issue. He referenced the Lakers and their recent string of post-season success with an over-the-hill point guard occasionally playing some textbook defense. His point was that just because someone happened to catch his defense on tape, upload it to YouTube and then share it across Twitter and Facebook, doesn’t mean his offense was any less egregious than Derek Fisher’s undocumented defensive play. When asked about the fine as a deterrent in the future Bibby responded by saying that the culture of defense in the league is too engrained and will likely persist even with fines and public backlash.

Bibby’s later comments will surly draw repercussions from the league but he also raises some intriguing points. Surely the league will look into how to curb this recent spark in defense before fans start tuning out in exchange for something more open to offense and scoring.

Wire Tapped Conversation

The following conversation was leaked by an as yet unnamed government operative who happened to be wiretapping either Chris Bosh (suspicion that he is actually an alien?) or Carlos Boozer (just trying to deport for the hell of it). It occurred someplace in South Beach last Saturday night.

BOSH: Hey, Booz.

BOOZ: Hey, Bosh.

BOSH: (awkward silence) Look, yo. I got to clear the air.

BOOZ: Sure. And why are you suddenly talking like you're some urban playground dude?

BOSH: Not sure.

BOOZ: Fine. Continue.

BOSH: OK. So I need to clear the air– when you referred to the Miami Heat as the Big 2, that kind of hurt my feelings. I mean, I make as much money as they do!

BOOZ: Ah, man, Bosh. I'm sorry. I didn't think you would take it THAT way...

BOSH: What do you mean.

BOOZ: I mean, I know and everybody knows that you make as much money as they do. You're undeniable that way.

BOSH: (blushing) Aw, thanks, Booz.

BOOZ: Yeah. What I meant was: they are the Big 2 of SKILLS, of SUPERSTARDOM, of PLAYING BASKETBALL. Not money, Bosh.

BOSH: (relieved) Oh good. I thought maybe you were trying to insinuate that I don't get paid like they do.

BOOZ: Never.

BOSH: Man, I'm glad we talked about this. Now look there's this other thing...

BOOZ: Yeah?

BOSH: I was thinking...

BOOZ: Go on, Boshie.

BOSH: What if, tomorrow, we just sorta let each other go off. Shut up the naysayers who are saying we're soft and overpaid and not producing. Just a gentlemen's agreement. You get your 20-10. I get mine.

BOOZ: Interesting.

BOSH: I just think it's mutually beneficial.

BOOZ: It is. It is. But I'm gonna need at least 15 boards just to shut up Noah.

BOSH: I'll give you 15 boards. You give me 3o points...I'm a scorer. Ight?

BOOZ: Ight.

BOSH: (pauses) What about who wins?

BOOZ: (waits, watches Bosh for a reaction) You know we don't care about the W's. Just the GW's. (laughs maniacally as if he has just dunked on a role player when the game is already out of hand)

BOSH: (laughs)

BOOZ: (laughs more)

BOSH: (tries to laugh more than Boozer, gets tired) Look, we get paid the same for an L or a W. And we both know neither of us is gonna win or lose a game for any team, much less these two.

BOOZ: So...we on? 20-15 for me? 30-10 for you?

BOSH: We on. (shakes hand)

BOTH: (letting go, wringing hands gingerly with overdramatic winces)

BOSH: You know I played more than you in the Olympics, though, right?

BOOZ: Huh?

BOSH: Nothing.

Daddy! I WANT A STATUE!

First of all, the headline is pretty funny.

"Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Unhappy"

The man is known for many things– his iconic and unstoppable skyhook, the goggles, championships at UCLA, MVP awards in the NBA, appearances in Airplane! and Full House– none of which are his absolute contentedness. It's a headline in the vein of "Sky Is Above Us" and "Music Has Notes." It doesn't exactly shatter our idea of Kareem or make us feel like we're learning something new. It's a little more like what my friend used to say about listening to female artists like Sarah Mclachlan and Natalie Merchant; he always felt like he'd hear their songs and think, "Awww...what's wrong now, Natalie?"

As a kid, I read Kareem's autobiography, the second one, entitled Kareem. I was a fan of Showtime. I can rattle off the names of the role players on those Laker teams. I remember Kareem's big farewell season, when teams were gifting him rocking chairs and stuff. And as the brother of somebody who died of cancer, I have deep sympathy for his battle with leukemia. So I come from a place of at least moderate measuredness.

I get that Kareem is one of the Lakers' and the NBA's and the history of basketball's greatest players. Dominant at every level, a crazy specimen in both his peaks and his longevity. He's way more than a Hall of Famer. He's in the argument for most dominant ever (the argument only, though, because it's still Jordan) I will not argue that.

And that's precisely why this statue tantrum is so crazy. Are all the other accolades not enough? Was being recognized as an All-Star NINETEEN times a little condescending? Were you not awarded your SIX MVP trophies with enough fawning adulation? Were the SIX championships and TWO Finals MVP trophies not given enough weight in the public eye? Is it feeling a little snubby to have only won THREE NCAA titles and who knows how many All-NBA and All Defensive team spots? Is the fact that the NCAA banned the dunk primarily because of your dominance not quite outstanding enough?

Kareem has been honored plenty for his playing, which he stopped doing 22 years ago. Now, I'm not going to argue that there shouldn't be a statue of Kareem outside the Staples Center. That's not the point. Magic has one. Chick Hearn has one. I think Kareem meant as much to basketball as those two greats did.

The point is: since when are we entitled to statues? Since when does anyone DESERVE a statue? Especially while we're still alive? David slew Goliath and got a statue in Florence, Italy hundreds of years later; not even the place where he downed the giant. Beethoven only got a lousy bust that goes on top of your grandma's piano; the least she could do is dust it.

Want a statue today? Commission it yourself, Kareem. You've gotten more recognition and opportunities and money in your post-playing career than most of us will ever see in a lifetime. You're a legend. Even your biggest critics have to admit that. Now stop acting like a jealous toddler, EXPECTING a statue and move on with your life.

Kareem has a history of shoulder chips, abrasiveness, and moaning about opportunities that haven't been his, mistreatment, and more. Some of the chips are probably justified. But not the statue tantrum.

BENCHED!

Game 2 of both the Bulls/Heat and the Thunder/Mavs series' have featured key players and all-stars banished to the bench in the 4th quarter. Boozer, Noah and Westbrook. This got me thinking, which albums, that have been on rotation in the first half of 2011 are at risk of being benched and who might be stealing their playing time.

In order to qualify for a shocking benching, they must have performed at a high level throughout the season, or at least have been highly touted. In otherwords, its not bad to be on this list right now, just don't be on the bench in the 4th quarter.

First half All-Stars who could be at risk of being unseated:
Iron and Wine
The Decemberists
The Low Anthem
Wye Oak
Bill Callahan
Jessica Lea Mayfield
Paul Simon

Albums coming up that I expect a lot from/could get some play in the 4th quarter:
Bon Iver, Bon Iver
Wilco 8th LP
Richard Buckner (making a long overdue return to my radar)
My Morning Jacket
Beirut
Jane's Addiction (with Dave Sitek from TV on the Radio)
Coldplay
Fiona Apple
Avett Brothers
Death Cab For Cutie

One of the things Blake Griffin said he took away from his rookie campaign was being able to pace himself. He would play all out in the first quarter and first half of games and then end up with nothing in the tank when the 4th quarter rolled around. As a takeaway lesson from his rookie season, he said he was going to learn how to pace himself and save something for the 4th quarter so that he could close out games with the same intesity that he used in the 1st quarter.

The same could be said for artists planning an album release. Sometimes you're so excited about what you've just done in the studio that you want to get it out to the public. If you want to end up playing in crunch time, making year end lists and garnering editorial praise, sometimes its better to pace yourself.

Life or Death or Basketball

As The Black Converse lies writhing on the ground, mere breaths away from a finally being being freed from this cruel world, there are some around the NBA wondering if their fate is somehow running parallel to this blog. There are others (cough...Spike...cough) who are wondering if their fate on this blog is tied to an NBA roster. Indeed it is a strange time for all things basketball and blogs.

In a matter of weeks we might see the passing of an entire generation of champions. 17 of the last 21 championships are in the hands of Phil Jackson, Shaquille O'Neal and the Spurs. All may have had their last rodeo. Or they might be back like one sequel too many in an action series, complete with "I'm getting too old for this @#$%" quips and all the grunts and groans that come with aged bodies. Its also fair to say that these upcoming Conference Finals may contain 17 of the next 21 champions. Or they may fail to yield put anyone ahead of Adam Morrison on the NBA rings ladder.

It’s this uncertainty that makes sports so great. We actually get to see it happen rather than some grainy YouTube video or contradicting third hand accounts or Hollywood reinterpretations.

I'm a homer. I probably always will be. I like all things Heat and resist most things not-Heat. But I am trying to enjoy how things are playing out in these playoffs. I was fixed on every Lakers game that "was headed for a terrible wreck, and like good tragedy it’s what we expect*." I found myself, along with Spike, being able to fully enjoy Chris Paul like we were listening to Dashboard Confessional — in a sound proof, hip proof room and turned all the way up, singing along. I have loved the tension and brilliance between Westbrook and Durant and I can't help but feel like they are going to give us a Yankee Hotel Foxtrot before painfully splitting up a la Tweedy and Bennett. I have especially enjoyed seeing Wade and LeBron play beautiful basketball without the weight of the world on their shoulders. I have unexpectedly enjoyed Memphis' improbable run like I unexpectedly enjoyed seeing Animal Collective live (and with the same parallel of not being interested in anything else the Grizzlies ever do).

*Josh Ritter "Thin Blue Flame"

I had a big long post about how the Heat have done things their way, regardless of the second guessing and criticism, and have been successful in doing it. But I felt like that took away from the spirit of excitement around every game, every night. Maybe LeBron can't do it alone. Maybe Wade can't either. Maybe winning a championship is such a heavy task that it can't be done alone. I'm struggling to find a player who won it all with a team of 4th graders. Heck, Frodo couldn't even throw a ring into a volcano without help. Who really cares? This isn't life or death. It's basketball. There is a month of basketball left this season, and regardless of who is playing I am going to enjoy the hell out of it.

Especially because the Lakers are out.

10 Things I Expect To Happen In The Next 6 Weeks

1 - That I will like the New Fleet Foxes record more than I will like the Western Conference Finals.
I messed up when I wasn't patient enough with Fleet Foxes last album and I wrote it off as "too boring." And the WCF will probably be Lakers/Spurs. Now thats boring.

2 - Derrick Rose will regret gunning for the MVP.
This might mean Wade and LeBron eviscerating him on the night he receives the trophy or it might mean he will run out of gas halfway through the second round (see also the 1987-88 Bulls). Don't count out Dwight Howard's elbows taking issue with it as well. We'll need a bloody face at some point to add some drama to the ABC promos.

3 - Mark Cuban on Shark Tank is going to be more successful than the Mavs postseason run.
And no, Shark Tank doesn't look good.

4 - If Heat/Knicks happens, we will see Jeff Van Gundy swinging on someone's leg again...somehow.
You think this sounds crazy now, but the apocalypse is already upon us.

5 - There will be one series in the Eastern Conference playoffs that is less exciting to watch than Butler/UConn.
And it will be Magic/Hawks.

6 - We will see Wade's 6th gear again.
We saw it at Marquette in 2003, in Dallas in 2006 and we'll see it somewhere in the Conference Finals. (Yes, this means I'm picking the Heat into the Finals...but you already knew that)

7 - OKC is about to hit their ceiling.
However far the Thunder make it this year, will be about as far as they ever make it. I will probably eat my words on this one, but I kind of get the feeling that they will become some hybrid version of the Magic and the Hawks in the Western Conference. They've made their step forward and we keep thinking they will make another leap but it never happens.

8 - Pop vs The Zenmaster will be the most cerebral coaching matchup ever.
So cerebral that they will actually take over Duncan's and Kobe's bodies at some point in the 7th game and finish the series by proxy.

9 - Everybody is going to win this year.
I mean the fans. This is likely the best Playoffs we have had since the 90's.

10 - Spike will spend more time re-writing lyrics for his Star Wars themed The Band cover band than he will watching playoff basketball.
Thats what happens when you're nursing a broken basketball heart. Thanks, Deron. "Moisture Harvest (Has Surely Come)" about moisture farmers on Tatooine doesn't quite do it for me. But I can't help but think that "It Makes No Difference" was on a mixtape Anakin sent to Padme before he knew she had died.

Just a Jimmer Away

On the heels of Spike's Sloan/Williams post-mortem, a discussion of the future of the Jazz sparked. Its a little known fact the the Jazz will likely have two lottery picks in this summer's NBA draft. The jokes have been pouring in about which white stiff the Jazz will draft or if they'll take Jimmer just to put butts in the seats. I personally think they are going to build around Gordon Hayward, flanking him with both Jimmer and Kyle Singler Spike's rebuttal to all the jokes turned out to be a very interesting observation about team building approaches. Here is a running dialogue of our Basketball Reference navigating and amatuer analysis.

5:25:36 PM Spike: I don't want to get my hopes up about winning the lottery, besides the Jazz are better at late draft picks anyway.
Maynor at #20 in the first
Millsap at #47 in the second
Ronnie Brewer at #14 in the first
CJ at #34 in the second
Mo Williams at #47 in the second
Kris Humphries at #14 in the first
Jarron Collins (yeah, I know, but still in the league) at #48 in the second
AK at #24 in the first
Padgett at #28 in the first
Nazr Mohammad at #29 in the first
Jacque Vaughn at #27 in the first
Shandon Anderson at #54 in the second
Bryon Bussell at #45 in the second
Dell Curry at #15 in the first
Mark Eaton at # 72 the same year as Dominique
Bobby Hansen at #54
Wes Matthews undrafted
And lest we forget, Malone at #13 and Stockton at #16.

5:42:49 PM Charlie T: Very interesting to say the least. Maybe the Jazz need to trade down. I would like to say that Miami has had the same draft success as Utah, but thats not the case. At least during Riley's tenure.
Eddie House at #37 in the second
Caron Butler at #10 in the first
Wade at #5 in the first
Mike Beasley at #2 in the first
Glen Rice at #4 in the first
Sherman Douglas at #28 in the first
Steve Smith at #5 in the first
Harold Miner at #12 in the first (was good for a dunk contest and the first "next Jordan" torchbearer)
Matt Geiger at #42 the same year had a longer career
Kurt Thomas at #10 in the first

5:46:27 PM Spike: Seems like Miami is really pretty good (minus Beasley) of knowing which lottery type players to get, but their late round picks are iffier.

5:46:42 PM Charlie T: Yeah...high picks they do great at but with second rounders and late firsts, they find no value.

5:49:56 PM Spike: Talent evaluation has a lot of different approaches, I suppose.

5:50:05 PM Charlie T: Sure. Riley has always looked at picks as assets more than anything, assets to trade.

5:51:22 PM Spike: It would be interesting to see how LA drafted when he was there, same with the Knicks. In Miami, he seems to gravitate towards bringing in proven commoditites.
From 81 to 90 w/ the Lakers, the only real keepers from the draft were:
Nobody in 81
Worthy as the #1 in 82 (no brainer, he does well with high picks)
Nobody in 83
Nobody in 84
AC Green at #23 in 85
Nobody in 86-87
David Rivers at #35 in 88, but he was nothing
Divac in 89
Elden Campbell in 90

5:57:04 PM Charlie T: Riley from 91-95 with the Knicks:
Greg Anthony in 91
Hubert Davis in 92
Charlie Ward and Monty Williams in 94
And he only drafted 4 players over all during his time there. No picks in 93 or 95

5:58:02 PM Spike: Everybody else was added to those teams some other way.

6:00:01 PM Charlie T: So really, Riley's offseason this year was a microcosm of his history of putting teams together. Ship off anything that isn't proven and make room for the other pieces.

6:02:17 PM Spike: Exactly. 95-96 in Miami, he cleans house after losing to the Zenmaster in Chicago and brings in Zo, Hardaway, PJ Brown, and Majerle.

6:03:12 PM Charlie T: He had Juwon Howard signed the next year but the league vetoed the contract.

6:03:49 PM Spike: Then in 2004 he traded assets Butler, Grant, and Odom for Shaq. Then added Payton, Williams, and Walker.

6:04:40 PM Charlie T: With the Knicks it was a little different. He had Ewing to build around so some of the pieces were more complimentary, and also designed to beat MJ in Chicago.

6:05:56 PM Spike: 92-93: traded Mark Jackson for Doc Rivers, Charles Smith, Bo Kimble and picked up Rolando Blackman and Anthony Mason. Started turning Starks into a defensive stopper.
93-94: Acquired Derek Harper

6:07:15 PM Charlie T: Thats Riley. Always making big moves, with the summer of LeBron being no exception. We shouldn't have been surprised that he came away with a haul. Where as the Jazz are aquiring the assets they are used to using for rebuilding.

6:08:26 PM Spike: Fascinating. I'm sure this pattern exists with a lot of other franchises as well, but its interesting to see how it continues to manifest itself in Utah and Miami.

What A Short Strange Trip It's Been

PRELIMINARY NOTE:

This is not an edited post. It's not even thought out, at all. I will be vomiting thoughts, thoughts that I may deny before posting, thoughts that I may only half believe. But I've digested for long enough that I thought it might be nice– even just for my own mental health– to purge.

A lot has changed in the relatively short time since my last post about The Utah Jazz.

Back then, we had Hall of Famer Jerry Sloan and All-Star Deron Williams. Now we have Ty Corbin, Devin Harris, rookie Derrick Favors, and some off-year first round draft picks. Even after that notorious Bulls game, I was sticking with D-Will. I was loyal. Hearing later, from a very inside source (like, IN the locker room inside source), that Sloan leaving was "100% Williams" couldn't completely sour me on the guy. Even now, watching him dig in with the Nets (and improve his hair situation!) makes me pretty sad. But I guess he had to go. He wasn't staying.

Now what?

Injuries. Mehmet Okur played, what, a fittingly lucky 13 games for the Jazz this year and was finally relegated to Out For The Season status last week. Memo is no MVP, but he changes the lane and the opposing defense quite a bit. And this might seem way out in left field for those of you who think he's a slow white bomber, but I think he's an underrated, gutsy defender. There, I said it. He's no Bill Russell, but he's no matador either (ahem, Boozer...Amare...). And Memo is just one of many recurring, cursed injuries. Every team has them, but this year has seemed especially injurious to me.

Corbin. Give the guy some time. I don't love what's happening, but I don't know that it's his fault. I know there were some players who said that Corbin had plays that Sloan wasn't incorporating into the game plan, but it's hard for me to think that Sloan wouldn't have won more games with this lineup. That's the curse of following up a hard-working, blue collar, tenacious legend, Ty. Get used to it. Jazz fans will give you time and support, but the Statues are always there.

Sloan. There is absolutely nothing I can say about Jerry Sloan here. He coached the team for most of my life, ever since I cared about basketball. When kids were calling for his head and wanting "new basketball" to start in Utah, I defended him and called them idiots (still do). The guy deserved better. He is one of four people in the history of the Jazz that stand above the rest– two of the others are legendary players and the fourth is an owner who kept the Jazz in Utah. I'm rambling a lot for a guy who has nothing to say, but still, there's nothing I can say about Sloan that his history of old school grit and toughness and heart don't already show you.

The New Jazz. This is a new era, no doubt about it. We are rebuilding. The Nuggets left their trade with new life and playoff hopes. We left ours with a ton of question marks. But, while the trade made me mad (i have since come to peace with it) and I'll never really think that Sloan left like he should've and the initial games were hard to watch just from an emotional standpoint, I am still a Jazz fan. I love watching this team, even with the hard losses. I enjoy this team much like the early AK-47 years– getting to see rooks like Hayward, Favors, and even Jeremy Evans start to get the pro game, getting to see a PG like Harris start to find footing with this team and this crowd, still loving the heart that guys like Milsap show, the mutant martian that AK is, and the beast (and leader) that Al Jefferson has become. These storylines, yes, have to temporarily take the place of winning. Winning just isn't happening right now. But what is sportsfandom if you're only EVER winning? Then you're a Lakers fan. And we all know how douchey and bandwagony that is. Though, you do save a lot of time only having to watch 2 quarters of basketball per game.

I Can't Quit You

Spike has been trying to be angry at Deron Williams. His moratorium on all things NBA (including this blog) has been impressive and consistent, but it turns out that its all a rouse. He was outed Monday night in the highlights of the Nets/Celtics game celebrating a big 3-pointer by D-Will in the 4th quarter. (He's the one in the red and white striped polo)

I'll Go Along With The Charade, Until I Can Think My Way Out

Wednesday Spike and I had the following exchange:

Charlie T: The "W" word that ends in "inning" hasn't even been going around for a week and I'm already tired of it.

Spike: Is this a heat reference?

At the time it wasn't, but as the weekend went on I wasn't so sure.

I originally wrote it to declare my departure from the Crazy Train of Sound Bites and Video Clips coming from He Who Shall Not Be Named. (both to be referred to as CTOSBAVC and HWSNBN from here on out) Thanks to this deluge of pop culture fodder, certain words have instantly lost their meaning. One is a flavor of Sno-Cone and the other is a word used to descibe what happens when you have more points than the other team at the end of the game. The Sno-Cone reference is less relevant here. I'm more interested in the word that starts with "W" and ends with "inning".

During Weekend Update, Seth Meyers ran down the Winners and Losers of the whole CTOSBAVC coming from HWSNBN. The biggest loser was the "W" word. According to Seth, it just doesn't mean the same thing anymore. I thought it was a very valid point and it gave me a clue as to what was going on with the Heat.

Back in August, LeBron completely changed the way NBA players handle free agency. He collaborated with ESPN to have a one hour special to announce his intentions. You may have heard about it. This set off a chain reaction with Bosh and Wade both opting to join him in Miami, which set off another chain of events that led to Mike MIller and Udonis Haslem taking huge discounts to join as well as a bunch of other veterans and 3 pt specialists to join the Heat for the minimum. By themselves, these were not new ideas. But all together, now that was something new. The Heat became the first team to completely strip their roster down to the league minimum of one player. They also became the first team to have 3 of the top 5 draft picks of a single draft. The firsts continued for this trend setting team. They were ahead of the curve, transforming the way things are done in the NBA on the fly.

Now back to the "W" word. The Heat had to stay ahead of the curve. The word had lost all meaning and significance. They wanted nothing to do with this bandwagon. Almost instantly the world shifted its view from "W#%&ing is Everything" to "Everything is W#%&ing". So like all good trend setters, the Heat decided that they were done with the "W" word. Even if it was painful and might come with some sad eyes, there would be no more W#%&ing.

And so it was. They settled in trying out as many different methods of not W#%&ing as they could. Close games, blowouts, last second decisions, against good teams, against contenders, blowing big leads. It has proven to be a fairly difficult task, requiring creativity at the end of games and poker faces during press conferences. We know this is some of the best talent in the NBA, so I have faith that they will be able to keep this up as long as they need to. If I could be on how long the CTOSBAVC will last versus the Heat's counter-culture movement, I would be the farm on the Heat.

While I don't doubt the Heat's resolve in standing up to HWSNBN, for my sake I hope HWSNBN folds. And soon.