Oden, Durant are gonna be just fine
Portland's Greg Oden hasn't looked so good in the Las Vegas Summer League. He had 10 fouls in his first game. He hasn't shot or rebounded very well, and has struggled to even position himself near the basket. Seattle's Kevin Durant has looked soft. He made just nine of his first 36 shots. The rim saw Durant with the ball and screamed "Run for your life!" Like Oden, Durant had one shot swatted into another galaxy by Dallas center DeSagana Diop -- a nice player, but not exactly Bill Russell. And now Oden is expected to miss the rest of the summer with bad tonsils. There will be no Oden-vs.-Durant summer special on July 21, when the Trail Blazers and SuperSonics finally meet. With the way things were going, that may not be such a bad thing. Now, having written all of that, I have one thing to say: CALM DOWN EVERYONE! It's only the summer. As new Sonics coach P.J. Carlesimo told Chris Sheridan of ESPN, "(Durant) has played two games of summer league and only had a couple practices, so you've got to be out of your mind to try to make predictions on him." The same applies to Oden. Heck, even LeBron James looked average during his first pro summer. And as Carlesimo keeps reminding everyone, no less than Tim Duncan was abused by Greg Ostertag back in the summer of 1997. And just like Duncan and James, Oden and Durant will erase all memories of these summertime blues. That much has been evident even in their struggles. When Oden gets the ball, you had better get out of the way. He's likely to dunk anything that crosses his path through the hoop. On defense, he has already shown flashes of being able to block everything -- including what at first appears to be a wide-open layup. Durant is remarkably athletic and understands how to get open. Eventually, he's going to knock down those good looks at the basket, which he usually creates himself. Yes, his rebounding and passing need work, but he also possesses one of those rare Kobe Bryant-like winning mentalities. So don't read too much -- or anything, really -- into the performances of Oden and Durant during the past week. Five years from now, we'll all be saying, "Remember when BOTH Greg Oden and Kevin Durant had their shots blocked by DeSagana Diop?" Then we'll laugh and add, "Something like that would never happen today." And we'll be right. AROUND THE SUMMER Atlanta • First-round picks Al Horford and Acie Law are signed and ready to play in the Rocky Mountain Revue (July 13-20 in Salt Lake City). Horford will be splitting time at power forward with returnees Shelden Williams and Solomon Jones. • Undrafted free agent Derek Raivio (Gonzaga) will also be playing for the Hawks. Considering the team is still desperate for point guards (even after drafting Law), Raivio may have an outside shot to make the cut. Boston • Anyone wonder if the Celtics traded for Ray Allen just so they could have Ray Allen and Allan Ray on the same team? Allan Ray certainly hopes so, as he'll be fighting this year's second-rounder, Gabe Pruitt, for a spot on the roster. • I like Ray Allen, but trading for him was a bad move by Danny Ainge. Allen is the type of player whom you acquire when you're a good team in need of a player to put you over the top. This trade will do nothing for the Celtics, who will still be lucky to win 30 games and will miss the playoffs yet again. Chicago • The Bulls have been fairly impressed with second- round pick JamesOn Curry. Watch out for this kid. He's quick and a good shooter, and reminds some folks of Cleveland's Daniel Gibson. • Ex- West Virginia shot blocking machine D'Or Fischer is also a member of the Bulls' summer roster. Cleveland • Former Connecticut guard Denham Brown is playing for the Cavs summer team. Brown had a nice season in the D-League as a rookie, and should catch on somewhere. The Wizards are said to be interested. • Soft-shooting forward Darius Rice (Miami) has looked good for the Cavs. There's a chance he could replace 12th man Dwayne Jones on the regular roster -- although that's just me thinking out loud. Besides, after being stuck in the same lineup with Darius Miles early in his career, LeBron James may not be open to playing next to anyone named Darius ever again. • Another player whom I really like on the Cavs roster is swingman P.J. Tucker. He played next to Gibson at Texas, and wasn't too bad as a rookie in Toronto last year. Dallas • Undrafted forward Reyshawn Terry (North Carolina) has been solid. Basically, he looks like a guy who could spend a couple years in the
D-League, then get called up and become a regular contributor in the NBA. • Former New Orleans draft pick Brandon Bass (LSU) is also playing for the Mavericks. Denver • Will Blalock (Iowa State) was the final pick in last summer's draft, and spent most of this past season riding the bench in Detroit. He's a tough little point guard, and I like his chances to stick with the Nuggets. • The Nuggets' summer roster has become sort of a last-chance-saloon for pro basketball: Lamond Murray, Von Wafer and Bracey Wright are all trying to make the team. Murray is 34 and spent part of the spring playing for the Santa Barbara Breakers of the International Basketball League. Wafer is a former Laker who played well in the D-League last season. Wright was selected in the second round by Minnesota last year and is a strong shooter. Mostly, his claim to fame is being the best friend of Utah point guard Deron Williams. Detroit • I really like Joah Tucker, a 6-5 guard from Wisconsin-Milwaukee who went undrafted last summer. Unfortunately for Tucker, the Pistons drafted nothing BUT shooting guards with their three picks this year -- Rodney Stuckey (Eastern Washington), Arron Afflalo (UCLA), and Sammy Mejia (DePaul). • Stuckey hails from the Seattle suburbs, Afflalo from inner city Los Angeles. Chris McCoskey of the Detroit News wrote an excellent feature on the two of them. You can read it here: Pistons rookies bond quickly. Golden State • First-round pick Marco Belinelli (Italy) has been all the rage this summer, and if Vegas names an MVP, he's likely the guy. He has the potential to move right into the Warriors' starting lineup, replacing Jason Richardson (traded to Charlotte). Belinelli can drive, shoot and pass -- and shoot some more. He even made nine straight in a summer game. And sticking with the Warriors' philosophy, he rarely bothers to defend. • Also, free agent Pierre Pierce has been outstanding. Pierce is a 6-4 shooting guard who played his college ball at Iowa -- and has had major off-court issues since then. Namely, he's been convicted on sexual assault charges TWICE in three years, and is on probation until 2010. He also spent 11 months in prison. He told the San Francisco Chronicle, "I've had two opportunities -- there is no more room for a mistake for me. My margin for error is slim. Very slim. I know that." Let's keep pulling for this young man to finally get it together. Houston • Ex-Ohio State guard Ron Lewis is a member of the Rockets' summer team. Lewis was the lone departing Buckeye to not have gotten drafted. Still, he stands a decent chance of finding a spot on a team somewhere. • Australian sharpshooter Brad Newley is also on the roster. Anyone whose previous team was called the Townsville Crocodiles is OK by me. Indiana • Former Laker shooting guard Kareem Rush made 7 of 11 shots in his first summer game for the Pacers. He has a good chance of making the club as a free agent, and could provide the consistent perimeter shooting new coach Jim O'Brien seeks. L.A. Clippers • Veteran center Chris Kaman? Playing for the Los Angeles Clippers summer team? Yes, it's true, as Chris Kaman is hoping to enter the season healthier and in better shape than he did last year. The Los Angeles Clippers are hoping for that too. • Mike Gansey (West Virginia) is also playing for the Los Angeles Clippers after having been waived by Miami before the start of last season. It's actually a miracle he is playing at all, as Gansey suffered a staph infection that nearly killed him this past winter. He's OK now though, and a few teams are following his progress closely. • Second-year pros Brandon Bowman (Georgetown), Paul Davis (Michigan State, Los Angeles Clippers) and rookie Ivan Radenovic (Arizona) are three players of interest battling it out at power forward. Memphis • Mike Conley is averaging 10 points and 2.5 assists in two games, having split point guard duties with Kyle Lowry, last year's first-round pick. Lowry has looked great, averaging 18 points and 3 assists. • And I can't forget to mention one of my favorite players from last season -- Tarance Kinsey, an athletic swingman who is also playing summer ball. Kinsey went undrafted out of South Carolina last summer, then had a few huge scoring nights for the Griz during the regular season. He gives hope to every kid who is trying to make a team via the minors or free agency. In fact, it could be argued Kinsey had a better season than another former Gamecock, Renaldo Balkman of New York. And Balkman was a first- round pick. Miami • Former Celtics and Pacers guard Orien Greene may be able to get an invite to veterans camp from the Heat, especially if Gary Payton retires (likely) and Jason Williams is traded (somewhat likely). • Also keep an eye out for Trey Johnson, a talented guard who went undrafted out of Jackson State. Johnson reminds me a little of James Jones, a silky smooth shooter who played for Phoenix last season. New Orleans • Second-year forward Cedric Simmons is a member of the Hornets' summer team, and raise your hand if you remember this guy was even in the NBA. In fact, not only did he play in 43 games for the Hornets, he was a lottery pick last year. He averaged 2.9 points off the bench and really needs to prove himself this summer. He has a long way to go. • Meanwhile, I think Julian Wright (Kansas) was a steal for the Hornets this year. At 6-8, he's long and lean with the wingspan of a 7-footer. I'm predicting all-rookie team for this kid -- assuming he can get the minutes behind Peja Stojakovic and David West. Orlando • J.J. Redick erupted for 30 points in the first game of the summer. He went 4 of 6 on 3-points and was 12 of 12 from the free-throw line. With Grant Hill gone to Phoenix, Redick will get plenty of opportunity to move into the starting lineup at shooting guard. • Also keep an eye on free agent forward Steven Smith, who is two seasons removed from a stellar career at La Salle. Smith may not be a member of the Magic come October, but he should get a long look from somebody somewhere. • Former George Mason guard Tony Skinn is also on the Magic's roster. Skinn was a member of the Patriots' surprising Final Four team in 2006. Phoenix • Names you may know on the Suns' summer team: Guard Terrell Everett (Oklahoma), center Eric Williams (Wake Forest), and forward Michael Bradley (Villanova). • Also, rookies Alando Tucker (Wisconsin) and D.J. Strawberry (Maryland) are on the team. Tucker is a first-round pick who just signed, and Strawberry was taken in the second round. SUMMER LEAGUE DAILY For more summer stuff similar to what I've written above, be sure to check out my new blog. DEFENDING SUN Bryan Mu (Los Angeles) wrote: "A Chinese writer you quote often has said that (Lakers second-round pick) Sun Yue is not NBA material and has 'no chance' of making it in the NBA. But Sun had nine assists while playing limited minutes in his first summer league game against Memphis, and had two great blocks, including one on Mike Conley." Bryan added: "In another game against Cleveland, Sun played point guard the entire second half to help orchestrate a comeback win. He is not going to light up the scoreboard, but I know for a fact that several scouts have been impressed with what they've seen of him this summer -- particularly his athleticism, ballhandling, passing, and feel for the game." Dear Bryan, I have yet to see Sun Yue play, but the idea of a 6-9 point guard is definitely intriguing. Thanks for the update. I'm sure there will be no shortage of coverage of Sun's development in L.A. ROCKET WRONGS? Mike Avalos (San Antonio) wrote: "Perhaps you could explain the mystery that is Houston. As you know, the Rockets are in desperate need of a power forward who can ease Yao Ming's pain in the paint. So what do they do? They pick a very small, ultra-light point guard to join their growing herd -- Rafer Alston, Mike James, Vasilis Spanoulis, John Lucas III and Luther Head." Mike added: "The Rockets already have a pint-sized power forward in Chuck Hayes, but they chose to acquire another smallish power forward in Carl Landry with the No. 31 pick. They passed on Tiago Splitter once, and Josh McRoberts, Glen 'Big Baby' Davis and Nick Fazekas twice, all of whom are bigger, faster, and better scorers than Landry. "Do you have any insight into the madness that drives the Houston Rockets? The great majority of fans certainly do not, although there is a tendency to rationalize the choices. I fear Rockets fans are whistling in the dark." Dear Mike, astute observations. All I can guess is that new Rocket general manager Daryl Morey is trying to build the team in new coach Rick Adelman's image. I'm also guessing that some trades are in the works (with the emphasis on guessing). After trading for James and drafting Brooks, I'd be shocked if Alston returned. Other than that, we'll just have to wait and see. But isn't all of this what makes the off-season so much fun? FINAL NOTE I received more than 20 e-mails from readers who were wondering where their newsletter was last week. Well, believe it or not, I took a little break for the Fourth of July. But thankfully, no one cancelled their free subscription (that usually only happens when I SEND OUT the newsletter). Anyway, keep your e-mails coming to me at amico@probasketballnews.com. I'll need them to help me write newsletters in August and September, when everyone else is focused on football. And don't forget to include your full name and hometown with your letters. Until then, have a great week.
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