Portland GM Kevin Pritchard has been talking publicly, saying doctors told him that Darius Miles' knee is in very bad shape. Portland -- enjoying insurance and salary cap relief from Miles' medical retirement -- has a lot to gain by Miles' never playing in the NBA again. But sharing this kind of medical information publicly, according to an expert quoted by Dwight Jaynes in the Portland Tribune, would almost certainly require permission from the player or the agent, or else it would risk violating the privacy provisions of the Health Insurance Portability and Availability Act of 1996.
Can someone as wealthy as Howard Schultz, the head honcho of Starbucks, be bullied with threats of big legal fees? Who knows? But David Stern is reportedly trying.
Basketbawful: "After scoring a season-high 21 points against the Kings, [Jason] Kidd tried to explain why he doesn't score 20 every night: "My brain is wired differently I guess. Scorer's have more of a tunnel vision. Maybe I should get blinders like horses wear and be more of an 'I' guy, in a good way." However, Basketbawful reader flohtingpoint was quick to dispell the myth of Kidd's selfless non-shooting: 'Riiiightt...as it stands right now, Jason 'Jumpshot' Kidd has more career three-point attempts (3962) than Mad Max (3931), Glen Rice (3896), The Rifleman (3370) and Dan Majerle (3798). If anything Jason needs to shoot alot LESS. The only person who launched more ill-advised shots over his career than Jason was 'Toine Walker.'"
A discussion of who is to blame for Josh Childress' departure. It's hard to blame Rick Sund. ("No one expects the Spanish Inquisition!") However, the one exception is that Childress said time and again that he was not impressed with the pace of the negotiations. The way Hawks hand handled things this summer -- lowish offer, then waiting to see what Childress and his agents came up with -- made him feel unloved. Lesson learned: Next time you ought to make that guy feel loved, huh? If Sund had been on Childress' doorstep with his final offer at the stroke of midnight on the first day of free agency, Childress never would have been able to get the feeling that he wasn't wanted.
Yesterday, we mused about an NBA owner also having an overseas team. Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress (who also has some must-read thoughts on the would-be Childress trend) follows up with an e-mail: "It already happens ... check out Ra'anan Katz, who is a part owner in both Maccabi Tel Aviv and the Miami Heat." More on Katz, a former player who reportedly once was invited to the Celtics' training camp.
Oh, hats off to Ira Winderman for this headline. (For those who are too young, or too old, to know what he's talking about.)
David Berri's look at Summer League numbers tells him that Jerryd Bayless, Kevin Love, D.J. Augustin, James Gist, and Maarty Leunen were among those who played well. O.J. Mayo, Anthony Randolph, and Joe Alexander did not look so good in this analysis. Many will say this is where Berri's model picks on certain players -- his numbers don't much like Kevin Durant either. If I was a basketball talent evaluator, though, I'd at least investigate a little further with video and other kinds of numbers.
What's going on with Kyrylo Fesenko? Not playing much, not as funny as he used to be. It's time for him to start blossoming, not retreating.
Doomsday scenarios (PG-13ish) involving discounts at the Cheesecake Factory and the NBA.
Eric Musselman writes about getting fired: "Many young executives, even ones who've worked their way up, have never been fired. They've never gone through that in their career, so their perspective isn't always realistic. Now I'd never wish 'getting fired' on anyone. What I'm saying is that it's enlightening. After growing up with a coach and going through it twice myself, I can vouch for just how illuminative it can be. It's interesting, when you're fired and out of work, those who typically reach out are guys who've been fired. They've been through it. They understand what it's like, the intense and overwhelming disappointment. The sense of failure, of letting yourself and others down. That first conversation with your kids is gut-wrenching."
Comments that include profanity, or personal attacks, or antisocial behavior such as "spamming" or "trolling," or other inappropriate comments or material will be removed from the site. We will take steps to block users who violate any of our terms of use. You are fully responsible for the content that you post.
H
