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LeBronsElbow LeBron is sleeping... He's gunna be super mad when he find's out I just ordered 20 shake weights of the TV...
Tony Kornheiser on lebron: "if i'm boston i hit him as hard you could the elbow 10 times in the first quarter"
thats how they used to do it in the old days
but bron is fine....dude is a warrior he'll gut it out and play another monster series
the bucks are impressive i didnt think theyd win in atl...wow skiles has done a great job...once bogut gets back they should be a top 4 team in the east
The deadline for entering the NBA draft has come and gone, and now every senior and eligible underclassman begins a journey that can be broken down into three distinct parts:
1. Pre-Chicago camp training
2. The Chicago predraft camp
3. Individual and group workouts with the NBA teams
The last two phases can end up looking vastly different depending on the player. But the first part, training their bodies and their game before the Chicago draft combine (May 19-23), looks about the same for everyone. Here's a look at what they are undertaking for the next three weeks, and how this hard work can help their draft fortunes, just as it did for Jonny Flynn, Courtney Lee, Kevin Love and DeJuan Blair.
It would be easy for the players to throw themselves into their predraft training if most of them were not students as well, but that is not the case. The seniors are close to either graduating or finishing another semester, so dropping out now is not the best play. And many of the underclassmen are attempting to keep their eligibility until they have to make a final decision on May 8, so they, too, must go to class.
So who gets the early edge in this process? Yep, the underclassmen who have decided to turn pro already. While their competitors in the draft are balancing training with school, they are totally devoted to improving their bodies and games.
Conditioning is a big part of the predraft process, partly because many of these players have been resting since their season ended. This "resting" phase is important, as it allows their bodies time to heal from the long season. I normally advise athletes to take two full weeks off, without concern for their diet or doing any strength or cardio sessions. Last year, Blair did just that and gained 15 pounds before he started his training. His body needed the rest after a grueling season, and he was able to drop those 15 pounds and another 25 or so before the Chicago camp. Then he dropped an additional 20 in June. Love could tell a similar tale from two years ago.
If every player started training April 19, that would give them a full month before the Chicago camp, which is ample time to get into terrific shape. The reality is that most guys start working in early April, so that they are ready to do an NBA workout or two before the predraft camp.
The players who train for three to four weeks will be going through a complex process, one designed to maximize a player's physique, both in looks and productivity, along with his overall game. The "eye test" is something each player hopes to pass -- while perhaps even surprising evaluators -- when they are first seen by team personnel. Remember, almost all of these players will have been invisible to NBA people since their last game in March, so the opportunity to impress them with bulging muscles and a lean physique is evident. NBA executives expect to see heavy guys look lighter and skinny guys look ripped, or at least bigger.
Just like the NFL draft, players can fool NBA teams with excellent marks in areas that have nothing to do with the actual playing of the game, as teams do want to see proof of effort in getting stronger and fitter. Keep in mind the college game is all about power, with stronger players taking advantage of younger and lighter ones, and referees who allow more pushing. The NBA game, while still featuring power matchups, is a speed and quickness game and is far more tightly officiated.
Many players will be training on improving their jumping (one leg and two) because they'll get tested for that in Chicago. They'll also be doing an assortment of short and medium sprints, and will do a shuttle-run test in Chicago. They'll mix in whole-body strength training and will have to do a bench-press test, though it seems that particular test may disappear, considering Kevin Durant could not bench 180 pounds even one time but still went No. 2 in the draft and has blossomed into one of the league's best players.
This overall performance training is no doubt important to the process, just as it is for NBA veterans. It's wrong to assume that a player is at his athletic peak when he leaves college. In fact, he should still be years away from that peak. But it's also wrong to assume that a three- or four-year college player will be fundamentally sound on the basketball court. Great college coaches can win games by recruiting talented players and molding them into a team, each guy focused on using his best strengths and avoiding his weaknesses. Consequently, most players entering the draft have serious fundamental deficiencies that need to be corrected to help them move up the draft board.
So in three weeks' time, a player should have a comprehensive training plan laid out, one that addresses his issues on a daily basis, more or less. At the same time, maintaining strengths is a must, so players keep the skills they have while adding new ones. This is why most players will be on a court for two to three hours a day, six days a week, in May. Factor in an additional two hours a day for performance and strength training, plus some extra cardio for 45 minutes or so, and it's easy to understand why many of them look and play so much better in May and June (and in July summer leagues) than they did in the season.
Courtney Lee is a great example of this phenomenon. In college, he looked to be an above-average athlete, but he performed as an elite one for NBA teams. I personally witnessed him make a layup on a breakaway in February of his senior season and watched six NBA scouts frown. But after training to play more athletically, he showed teams in private workouts what the world saw in the Eastern Conference finals last spring, dunking on two occasions over a challenging LeBron James. Without that extra gear as an athlete, he would have dropped into the second round, where he was initially projected to go.
Consider that all this work is being done by these prospects individually, as opposed to the hours they were spending each day in college working on team stuff. When players leave for Chicago, they should be able to genuinely feel like they have never been better at basketball in their lives.
The workouts are certainly the most important part of the draft process, as getting outplayed by a competitor can never be good. But there is another area that players can help separate themselves from their fellow draftees, and it is in the interview room.
In the NFL, they are calling this the "Ben Roethlisberger effect." The NBA has not named this phenomenon yet, but rest assured, teams are considering character and intelligence and "fit" more each year. The San Antonio Spurs and Oklahoma City Thunder have been the most outspoken about this, looking for "their kind of guy," and witnessing their success has only furthered the cause for others. Consequently, draftees will get coached up on this process as well, so that they will be better prepared to discuss things ranging from their favorite book to what they would do in hypothetical situations (perhaps involving drugs and teammates). Flynn was the unquestioned star of the interview process last year, showing intelligence and classic leadership traits in the Q&A sessions with teams. It's a big reason why he was drafted sixth overall.
There is no one formula that works above the others, other than "talent trumps all." So for guys like John Wall and Evan Turner, just looking and acting the part that's expected of them is all they need to assure they'll be picked at the top. But for most of the rest, with their talent being equal to at least one or two other guys, the little things can make all the difference. Being casual about those things, like not preparing properly for this process, is a red flag to teams.
That's why some players will push themselves like never before, hoping to impress teams and suggest that they will work tirelessly on their games in the coming years. The draft is always partly based on what a player has already accomplished, but it's even more about what they can do going forward. No player helps himself more than the one who has executives huddled in the draft room June 25 talking about how much better that player is than what they saw all season.
thats how they used to do it in the old daysOriginally Posted by westcoastsfinest
Tony Kornheiser on lebron: "if i'm boston i hit him as hard you could the elbow 10 times in the first quarter"
If they advance to the 2nd round, its only more of the reason why Skiles should've won COY. Its not like they playing one of the bottom feeders in the East. They're playing a team that most people considered to be top 3 in the East behind Cleveland and Orlando and could possibly compete in the East Finals. The scary thing is that they're doing it without their starting center.Originally Posted by bhzmafia14
thats how they used to do it in the old daysOriginally Posted by westcoastsfinest
Tony Kornheiser on lebron: "if i'm boston i hit him as hard you could the elbow 10 times in the first quarter"
but bron is fine....dude is a warrior he'll gut it out and play another monster series
the bucks are impressive i didnt think theyd win in atl...wow skiles has done a great job...once bogut gets back they should be a top 4 team in the east
Donagy Claims D. Crawford 'Proud' Of Record In Mavs Games
Apr 29, 2010 3:08 PM EST
Tim Donaghy, a former NBA referee and author of Personal Fouls, talked about Danny Crawford and his record officiating the Mavericks and how referees see Mavericks owner Mark Cuban.
Donaghy says Crawford's record officiating games with the Mavericks is suspect and that Cuban still makes the Mavericks a target.
“I write about this a lot in the book ‘Personal Foul’ that Danny was pretty much proud of the fact that what his record was while refereeing Dallas Mavericks playoff games so I don’t know that it is a streak that he wants to keep alive or what the story is with that, but I just think that it is almost humanly impossible a referee could have that record with one team during playoff games alone.
Actually it's 1-16.Originally Posted by CP1708
^
2-16, come on man.
It's random anyways, @#$% happens. Refs get weird stats too, has nothing to do with anything.
Originally Posted by JapanAir21
Actually it's 1-16.Originally Posted by CP1708
^
2-16, come on man.
It's random anyways, @#$% happens. Refs get weird stats too, has nothing to do with anything.
We're too good of a franchise to have that kind of odd-ball stat.
JapanAir21 wrote:
Donagy Claims D. Crawford 'Proud' Of Record In Mavs Games
Apr 29, 2010 3:08 PM EST
Tim Donaghy, a former NBA referee and author of Personal Fouls, talked about Danny Crawford and his record officiating the Mavericks and how referees see Mavericks owner Mark Cuban.
Donaghy says Crawford's record officiating games with the Mavericks is suspect and that Cuban still makes the Mavericks a target.
âI write about this a lot in the book âPersonal Foulâ that Danny was pretty much proud of the fact that what his record was while refereeing Dallas Mavericks playoff games so I donât know that it is a streak that he wants to keep alive or what the story is with that, but I just think that it is almost humanly impossible a referee could have that record with one team during playoff games alone.â
Game 6's referee crew will be Eddie F. Rush, Bill Spooner and Tom Washington.
Via Dallas Morning News
Read more: http://www.realgm.com/src...avs_games/#ixzz0mWUvw1co
Just saying.
Mavs fans ALWAYSwhen he officiates our Playoff games, I believe we're 1-11 or so when he is officiating.
Just stop...
You want proof ofa ref hating on a team/player..
yeah i have to agree. that's a large enough sample size to notice something fishy might be going on.Originally Posted by JapanAir21
Actually it's 1-16.Originally Posted by CP1708
^
2-16, come on man.
It's random anyways, @#$% happens. Refs get weird stats too, has nothing to do with anything.
We're too good of a franchise to have that kind of odd-ball stat.
CPOriginally Posted by CP1708
Originally Posted by JapanAir21
Actually it's 1-16.Originally Posted by CP1708
^
2-16, come on man.
It's random anyways, @#$% happens. Refs get weird stats too, has nothing to do with anything.
We're too good of a franchise to have that kind of odd-ball stat.
Don't.
Don't say stuff like "we're too good of a franchise"
Don't do that to me, I'm tryna turn over a new leaf and be a nice guy.