Posts tagged JoeSmith at FanHouse - AOL Sports Blog

1. It Starts And Ends With The King: LeBron James finally had the game. 32 points, 12 rebounds, 6 assists, 2 steals, including monster points down the stretch. He had 8 turnovers, but that's okay, because ... okay, that's not okay. James has woken up more and more as this series has gone on, and managed to put together the complete game in Game 6. He's playing with confidence, desire, passion and focus. He's going to need all of that and his God-given obscene talent if he wants to walk out of Boston with the first win by a visitor in the playoffs. The Cavaliers actually ran James at point for long extended periods in the second half of Game 6, which attributed to James' turnovers. There are advantages and disadvantages to this. The advantage is that it ensures that LBJ has the ball and lets him dictate the offense as he sees fit. The disadvantages are the turnovers and the ability for the Cavs to bring the perimeter double. The Celtics brought the low post defender (Leon Powe, usually) to the perimeter to cover LeBron, trap him if he goes to the wing, and force the ball out of his hands. With any other team, this would mean a pretty simple 1-2-3 touch passing to an open low post player for a lay-in. Unfortunately the Cavs have a bazillion dollars in low post players, none of which can actually score consistently down low. Regardless, I would expect more of the same from Game 6 in terms of James strategy on both sides. The question is whether those shots will fall. And if it'll be enough.

You may recall Ben Wallace leaving Game 2 of the Celtics-Cavs series because of allergies. It was thought at the time that the Celtics' ridiculous pyrotechnic display during the announcement of the starting lineups was to blame (and for all we know, it might have been), but whatever it was that caused the flare up is probably going to keep Big Ben out of Game 3.

Wallace started but played less than 4 minutes in Thursday night's game before he became dizzy and asked to come out. He staggered to the bench and had to be assisted by his teammates before the Cavs' training staff stepped in.

Wallace underwent a series of tests at the Cleveland Clinic on Friday. The team said the defensive stopper could be upgraded but it was "best case, 50-50" that Wallace would play Saturday in Game 3.

If Wallace can't go, Mike Brown is expected to start Anderson Varejao in his place. But with Big Ben out of the lineup, that will in all likelihood lead to more minutes for Joe Smith. That could be a welcome boost to the Cavaliers' anemic offense in this series, just as long as his teammates are aware that he's not exactly capable of handling Kevin Garnett by himself defensively.

There's no question that Game 1 of the Cavaliers-Celtics series was painful to watch. I mean, how many times will you see LeBron James, Paul Pierce, and Ray Allen combine for just 16 points in an entire game? The only one that was on last night was Kevin Garnett (28 points), but that was mainly due to Cleveland's bad defense, especially on the last couple of possessions. Take a look at the last two times KG scored -- first to tie the game then to give his team the lead -- and then we'll discuss.

On the first play, that was definitely a nice, clutch 20-footer from Garnett. But why in the world did Joe Smith stay and double Ray Allen off of the pick and roll, when Ray hadn't scored a single point all night? Wouldn't it have made more sense to let Allen go, and get back on KG? Now LeBron started to rotate over, but decided he didn't want to leave Pierce alone at the three-point line, which is understandable. I just don't get the decision to leave the one guy who has been scoring consistently all night, just to double someone who's gone scoreless to that point in the game.

You knew it was coming. There are only so many freaking ridiculous incidents with fans heckling players and/or acting like obnoxious buffoons before one hot-headed player having a bad day strikes back. That player is named Joe Smith, and he pitches for the New York Mets. (Video probably considered NSFW.)


Here's what I've got, interpretation-wise, that I'm positive I can audibly make out:

You ain't s---. You ain't got nothin' ...

I'm in the big leagues, you idiot, that's what I'm here.

We cannot, at this time, confirm nor deny any relation of Mr. Smith to Marty Brenneman, who also loves Cubbie fans.

H/T: Home Run Derby

So, among all the bodies to switch places in the big threesome today, guess which three Bulls all got shipped out of Chicago? Ben Wallace, Adrian Griffin and Joe Smith -- the entire Veteran Discipline Committee which has (in multiple ways) held young Joakim Noah and Tyrus Thomas down.

You may remember this episode:

Chicago's elder statesmen didn't believe being benched for one game was enough punishment after rookie Joakim Noah lashed out at assistant coach Ron Banks during practice last week. Noah was benched for Friday's game at coach Jim Boylan's behest; his Sunday benching came from the mighty hammer of... Adrian Griffin and Ben Wallace.

First, Scott Skiles gets canned. Then, the Discipline Committee gets traded. Honestly, who will be there to keep Noah in check? This troubles me greatly. There is a madman loose!

The initial word that it was a straight up Ben Wallace for Larry Hughes swap. And that would have sent me ton a little bit of a tangent. (Or straight to GoDaddy to buy FireDannyFerry.com) Instead, what eventually shook down makes a little bit more sense. Kind of.

The Cavaliers will get Wallace, Joe Smith and a future second round pick from the Bulls. They will also receive Wally Szczerbiak and Delonte West from the Seattle Supersonics. The Bulls get Hughes, Drew Gooden, Cedric Simmons and Shannon Brown. Meanwhile, for their "troubles" (read: dumping West and shedding Wally's contract), the Sonics get Ira Newble (expiring) and Donyell Marshall from the Cavs as well as Adrian Griffin from the Bulls.

So, your biggest question is ... w-t-f, Ferry? Why on good green Urf would Ferry cave and take on the monster salary of Wallace, even if he got to dump the 1.5 dimensional second option for LeBron James that never panned out in Hughes?

Every night there are some stupendous, silly, stupid, or downright outlandish individual lines from around the L. Doing Lines lets you know which one tops the list.

Thursday was Turn Back the Clock night at ORACLE Arena, featuring a former Warrior and first overall pick making a triumphant return to the Bay Area. Unfortunately, instead of Chris Webber basking in glory, it was Joe Smith, leading the Bulls to victory.

The Bulls eeked-out a 114-108 win, thanks in part to Smith's 27 points and eight boards. He got his points the easy way, all alone at the free-throw line where he shot 13-14 for the night. C-Webb, on the other hand, had a rather inauspicious debut with just four points and one rebound in 13 minutes. Things will get better, Warriors fans -- but not by much.

Also Receiving Votes:
Chris Duhon: 41 minutes, 34 points (11-16 FG, 4-6 3P, 8-9 FT), nine assists and three steals. How surprising was Duhon's night? Not only were his 34 points a career high but also the same number he's scored in the last 10 games combined.

Aaron Brooks: I don't know why, but I got a kick out of the fact he shot 1-for-8 in just 16 minutes -- with all of his attempts coming from beyond the arc. Talk about a gunner without a conscious (or a shooter's touch).

That's a slight exaggeration, but they're getting close. Luol Deng is sidelined for several weeks with an ailing Achilles, Chris Duhon is nursing a knee injury and Ben Gordon is sidelined with a sprained right wrist. Toss in the fact that Joe Smith (right knee) and the recently-recalled JamesOn Curry (thumb) were also unable to practice yesterday and the Bulls had just 10 players on the court, barely enough to scrimmage.

Smith's injury is the least serious -- he's expected to play tonight. And will Duhon will most likely sit tonight, he should be back on the court by Sunday. Gordon's situation is still murky, though. He underwent an MRI yesterday, and while the results were negative, he's still scheduled to visit a specialist today. That would suggest he's going to miss at least a few games, especially since it's already been some time since he originally suffered the injury on Monday.

Fortunately, the timing is right for Gordon to miss a few games if needed: the Bulls host the Bobcats tonight, a team they've already beat three times this year (get this: the Bobcats account for 17.6% of Chicago's win total this year) , and after hosting the Suns (a loss with or without Gordon) they have a home and home with the T'Wolves. Even short-handed, the Bulls should expect to go 3-1 over the next week. If he's sidelined much longer though (and at this point that's very premature), Chicago can forget about closing the half-game gap between them and the No. 8 seed in the East.

B-Ball, B-Fast is a week daily look at last night's NBA action from a fantasy perspective. Bookmark it and visit often.

Cup of Coffee
Joe Smith simply won't go away. Not that we necessarily want him to ... it's just that he doesn't seem to every become totally irrelevant. 12 years in the L after being a first overall pick and once the single handed destruction of the Minnesota T-wolve franchise, Smith has been getting kinda warm again. For December he had 10 double digit scoring games and averaged over 10 points a game and in 2008 he's over 20 per game. Granted it's only two outings, but hey, it does not make it untrue. Don't think it's going to last that long -- regardless of who is running the Bulls rotation and offensive schemes you can expect Tyrus Thomas to emerge sooner than later as the starting power forward -- so Smith is a prime sell high right now. Just make sure the commissioner knows about it.

Hot Cakes
"Kid Delicious" Kevin Durant returned from a one game finger injury absence on Thursday and scored 28 points with seven boards against the Suns. Everybody breathe. Durant appears to be fine (11 of 24 certainly isn't horrible) and remains a nice buy if his owner is struggling in the field goal percentage cat and you have some room to spare.

Travis Outlaw scored 21 on a disappointing 19 shots but there's nothing boring about 38 minutes of playing time, especially when the Blazers win. Outlaw outplayed (again) Martell Webster, but it looks like Webster might continue starting, although Outlaw will continue to get the majority of the PT, with the Blazers deferring to the classic "hot hand" occasionally. Outlaw's the guy you want.

Speaking of older doods, Michael Finley kept up his recent hot streak as the Spurs toppled the Nuggets, scoring 18 points with eight boards in 38 minutes of court time. That's nine straight games in double digits and his scoring has obviously boosted with Manu Ginobili out. Ginobili's missed four games and is nearing a return, making Finley an obvious sell high. He's going to see a drop in time and scoring clearly, but he should still start, which is a crucial point to use when trying to package him as part of a deal.

Tyrus Thomas was in and out of Chicago's rotation last year, and it seems he still hasn't found himself in Scott Skiles' good graces. When asked about the second-year forward's progress this summer, Skiles turned to a familiar friend, sarcasm. From yesterday's Chicago Sun-Times:

''You mean the supposed 700 to 800 shots he was taking a day?'' Skiles said of Thomas, whose conditioning remains an issue. ''It would be nice if he can make perimeter shots, but he's got to be able to sustain effort first through a quarter, a game or even a practice, for that matter.

''He's in better shape than he was in camp at this point last year. He had a better summer than he had leading up to his rookie year, but not at the level of the other guys. He's still learning what it takes to be a great player.''

Even with Skiles' criticism, it's a bit surprising that Thomas isn't listed as one of the contenders for the vacant starting power forward job in today's Sun-Times. According to reporter Brian Hanley, the competition is apparently limited to Joe Smith, Andres Nocioni and Joakim Noah. Did Hanley simply forget about Thomas or did he have a reason to omit him? It's unclear since Thomas' name doesn't appear anywhere in the article. I don't know if Hanley is going off of inside info or what, but it's worth pointing out that his opinion is different than that of Mike McGraw of the Daily Herald, who indicated Thomas was actually the favorite for the job (hat-tip: Blog-a-Bull)

Thomas got a lot of people excited with his athleticism last year (it stands out on a team of jump-shooters), but his actual play leaves a little something to be desired, at least from my (potentially biased) view from Detroit. Things he does well: jump really high. Things he struggles with: shooting, catching the ball, maintaining focus. Plus, aside from blocking a few shots, he's not really a plus defender. Toss is apparent conditioning problems (which surprises me, given what an athlete he is) and it won't be a surprise if he remains in Skiles' dog house for the foreseeable future.