NBA Talking Points: Where Posey Is The Prototype

Watching the end of the Hornets-Grizzlies game last night, there were a number of things that stuck out—Chris Paul is unbelievable, Memphis is somehow resilient now, Rudy Gay finally realizing his potential, etc—but more than anything else, I noticed Marcus Thornton, the rookie guard for New Orleans. He’s surprisingly solid, and has been playing well all season long. Last night in the fourth quarter, in a close game, he didn’t look out of place on the floor. Between Chris Paul and James Posey, there was Thornton in the backcourt, more than holding his own.

For a rookie drafted in the second round, that’s a pretty serious endorsement. And while it may not happen in New Orleans, there’s a good chance that Marcus Thornton will wind up making serious contributions to a contender down the line. He’s that good.

As Mike Prada noted yesterday, H.O.R.S.E. is returning to All-Star Weekend this year. The NBA’s release is redundant, but included just because PR People never fail to be a caricature of themselves:

Thrilling moves! Creative shot-making skills! Will there be a fundamentals montage?!

This past week, Bethlehem Shoals wrote a great article at Fanhouse examining a potentially new model of franchise building that’s taking place in Oklahoma City and Atlanta. Shoals:

Last night against the Hornets, there were about four different points when the Grizzlies could have given up on the game. The Memphis team we expected this season would have quit on the game. When Chris Paul led the Hornets back in the fourth quarter, and New Orleans took a 3 point lead with under a minute left, a less disciplined, determined team would have said, “screw it, let’s go party in New Orleans.”

You may not have heard, but the internet was buzzing on Wednesday over the proposed whites-only basketball league down in Augusta, Georgia. For me, it actually didn’t sound that racist at first. Nothing different than what my friends would do back in high school, at least (and now I just sound like a full-fledged bigot).

So that was my first reaction. It’d be like that Filipino basketball league with a height limit. Kind of cute, really.

And yet… Modern Family always makes me feel good, and this year, the Wizards do the opposite. Seriously, watching Modern Family makes me feel better about life, in general. It’s hilarious, but it also makes me think that one day it’d be nice to have a family, myself. This occurred to me after last night’s episode, and then I realized that I should probably qualify that statement: If I were married to Julie Bowen, having a family would be awesome.

Julie Bowen Julie Bowen Julie Bowen Julie Bowen Julie Bowen Julie Bowen Julie Bowen.

via The Sports Hernia

All of which is to say that, tonight when they play the Cavs, I’ll be pretty shocked if they don’t win in demonstrative fashion. I hate the Lakers, but at least until someone proves they can beat them in crunch time, and as long as they’ve got one of the best records, they’re the best team in whole league.

To be fair, that was before we could really call Memphis a legitimate threat to anyone. But still. With Monday’s loss to the Grizzlies, the Suns have now lost 18 STRAIGHT GAMES on TNT. Is the universe unfair? Maybe not to everyone, but in Phoenix, there’s really no debating it anymore. Somewhere out there, forces have conspired to make the Suns look bad on national TV.

And while I’d originially planned to use Led Zeppelin’s “The Song Remains The Same” to commemorate Phoenix’s consistent failure here, I think Radiohead would be more appropriate. I don’t begrude anyone for liking Radiohead or thinking they’re the most groundbreaking band of the century or whatever it is that makes people obsessed with these people. It’s just that, their lead singer sounds like someone who is slowly dying, and that seems appropriate here: