Good morning! Reminder: Tom’s off this week, so I’m filling in. Nobody’s sent me any hate mail, so I must be doing something right. Hope I didn’t jinx it!
The Lakers may give Peace a chance
That and more in Thursday’s newsletter.
RON-RON BACK? The Lakers are apparently serious about this Metta World Peace thing. Woj reports that they’re closing in on a one-year deal and it should be completed by the end of the month. They reportedly see him as a mentor figure to Julius Randle -- raise your hand if you thought to put “Ron Artest” and “mentor” in the same sentence a decade ago.
INDIANA’S SABOTAGE: The Pacers purchased the Fort Wayne Mad Ants, the only D-League team that didn’t already have a single-club affiliation. That means 11 NBA franchises have nowhere to send their players for D-League assignments. They’ll have to convince another team to accept their players, which is far from ideal. On the bright side, this should incentivize those 11 clubs to finally get their own affiliates and make the D-League a real minor league system sooner rather than later.
ACTUAL BASKETBALL! Italy moved to 3-1 at EuroBasket with an overtime win over Germany after Danilo Gallinaritied the game in the closing seconds of regulation. Elsewhere, Mexico got 38 points from Gustavo Ayon to beat Argentina and hand Canada the top seed at the FIBA Americas. Argentina and Mexico will square off again on Friday in the semifinals, while Canada will face Venezuela. Winners qualify for the 2016 Olympics.
SCOTTIE NO. 2? Tom checks in from vacation with his all-90s team and makes the argument that Scottie Pippen was the second-best player of the decade behind Michael Jordan. My vote is for Hakeem Olajuwon, but Pippen is a sensible choice too. (I’d also have Gary Payton on the second or even first team, but I’m a sucker for the 90s Sonics. BONUS: Here’s Paul Flannery’s essay on those Seattle teams.)
IMPORTANT THABO UPDATE: Thabo Sefolosha’s trial against the NYPD for last April’s incident outside a Manhattan nightclub will begin on Oct. 5, which is right when preseason begins. That’s not ideal, but Sefolosha doesn’t care. He reportedly turned down an offer for a conditional dismissal in order to fully clear his name. Police did drop all charges against Pero Antic, the other Hawks player out with Sefolosha that night. For what it’s worth, Sefolosha does expect his fractured ankle to be healed by the regular season opener.
THE TIMMY YOU DON’T KNOW: Bleacher Report’s Jared Zwerling hung out with Tim Duncan at his San Antonio auto shop and found a side of the normally stoic legend that you would never expect. He’s currently working on shoring up LaMarcus Aldridge’s 1968 Chevrolet Chevelle. There’s a metaphor in there somewhere.
HOW IMPORTANT ARE REBOUNDING GUARDS? Really interesting stuff from Nylon Calculus’ Seth Partnow showing that guard rebounds lead to more fast breaks.
#FREENIKO: Blog a Bull’s Tyler Pliess on how Fred Hoiberg’s offense will work wonders for Nikola Mirotic.
INTERNATIONAL UNICORNS: Jonathan Tjarks on how we’ve spent 15 years searching for the next Dirk and the next Pau. Maybe they just don’t exist.
LET’S JUST PLAY BASKETBALL ON PHUNKEEDUCKS: First: Wes Matthews. Now: Rajon Rondo.
LIFE ISN’T ALWAYS FAIR: Sporting News’ Sean Deveney on how the Celtics’ rebuild could still fail even though Danny Ainge has done everything right. As with all things in life, success comes through the combination of hard work and luck.
WAG YOUR FINGER at those who downplay Dikembe Mutombo’s significance to the Atlanta Hawks’ history.
TWO-DIMENSIONAL TONY: Grizzly Bear Blues explains how Tony Allen’s cutting and constant activity also helps the Grizzlies on offense. This is all true ... during the regular season. In the playoffs, teams have time to game plan and negate it. Just ask the Warriors.
SORRY THIS NEWSLETTER WAS LATE: I couldn’t stop watching this nine-minute video of John Wall shutting everyone down on defense. Forty-seven days!
Happy Thursday!
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