Links: Unsung Team, Blogger MVP/ROY Rankings, Iavaroni Rumors

We picked Jason Collins as our Unsung Player. Hardwood Paroxysm picked our entire team. Ok, I concede -- they win.

Queen City Hoops has the honor of hosting Round 10 of the Blogger MVP/ROY Rankings.

411mania.com picks up on the "Marc Iavaroni is in trouble" vibes.

Hoops Addict lists Javaris Crittenton among their Players with Upside.

Jeff Wong (The Score) wants to know: Have you ever CDR? (Too bad I didn't get this up before the blasted game. I hate referees and poor free-throw shooting!!! *sigh*)

Enjoy our ongoing series of posts this week about our interview with Grizzlies owner Michael Heisley.

Links: Blogger MVP/ROY Rankings, Rebuilding, Going Green?

TWolves Blog has the 8th edition of the Blogger MVP/ROY Rankings up. The fight between LeBron/Kobe and Durant/Horford for top honors in each category is almost too close to call as they battle down to the wire.

Hoopsworld's Ed Kacik has an outstanding article titled "Grizzlies struggle through rebuilding". Although I'm sure that isn't news to any of you Grizzlies fans out there, he did manage to put enough interesting quotes from Grizzlies' players in there to raise an eyebrow or two.

In a rather astute observation, Marc J. Spears (Boston Globe) notes that GM Chris Wallace would not have been able to follow the Celtics' blueprint in building a contender overnight. Wallace obviously agrees.

Bleacher Report has apparently never heard the axiom "If you don't have anything nice to say, don't say anything at all". Because of that, they had no problem in naming the Grizzlies the "Worst in the West". Actually, that's a lot nicer than some of the things I've heard said about them recently. The analysis is accurate, even if it is brutally honest in many parts.

The Free Throw Line jumps on the analysis bandwagon with their own review of the Boys from Beale Street.

Things to do in Memphis while waiting for the NBA Draft (do I really need to say any more?)

The NBA Season of Drew is a blog that follows one man's quest to visit all 30 NBA arenas. Last week, he witnessed the Grizzlies taking on the Utah Jazz. He had some very complimentary things to say about his visit and has a ton of pictures for your viewing pleasure.

There is some talk on the Grizzlies Message Boards about acquiring the recently waived Gerald Green, but Chris Vernon was quick to put the kibosh on that, correctly noting that "Taking a flyer on Gerald Green would cost money, so it will not happen." My thoughts exactly. Well, that and I think Green sucks out loud.

Blog of the Day: The Dream Shake

Links: Cleaning Out the Inbox (Quick Hit Edition)

Washington Post: Rudy Gay is On the Cusp.

Chance Harper (SBR Forum) on small market realities in Memphis and Milwaukee.

Round 7 of the MVP/ROY Blogger Rankings is up on CelticsBlog for your viewing pleasure. LeBron still has a stranglehold on the top spot, but there has been a shakeup after that. On a related note, the guys at Hardwood Paroxysm have been having a little back-and-forth with CelticsBlog and David Friedman (20 Second Timeout) about MVP voting practices today. Very entertaining.

Pete Pranica's latest blog post.

The Play in California and The Free Throw Line review the trades. Some interesting thoughts, even if I think a few are off-base.

Neil and Vicky took in a Grizzlies game on their travels. You can read about it on Travel Pod.

Ted Sevransky says the Grizzlies are the worst team in the NBA. Guess he doesn't get Miami Heat games in Canada.

Think Chris Wallace is the worst GM in the league after the Gasol trade? At least he's not the Sports Guy. Go read BrewHoop's take on having Bill Simmons offer to be Milwaukee's GM. (via Hardwood Paroxysm)

Blog/Website of the Day: 20 Greatest TV Show Intros

Links: MVP/ROY Rankings, Rudy, New Coach, Rankings Report, Pranica, More Trade Fallout

Hardwood Paroxysm has Round 6 of the Blogger MVP/ROY Rankings up for your viewing pleasure. There are plenty of great comments, so be sure to head on over there.

USA Today's Oscar Dixon has a great column up about Rudy Gay with some great quotes from Rudy, Pau Gasol and Marc Iavaroni. They also provide this little nugget of information:

The 21-year-old leads the Grizzlies in scoring (19.9) and steals (1.5); he and Kobe Bryant are the only players in the NBA in the top 40 in dunks and three-pointers, according to Elias Sports Bureau.

That's an interesting stat, considering that many believe that Rudy's mid-range game is, in fact, his biggest strength right now. It appears that Rudy is developing into a very well-rounded player.

In a rare case of good news, Ron Tillery reports in today's Commercial Appeal that recent acquisition Aaron McKie is a player-coach in the truest sense.

McKie instantly gives the Griz someone who can instruct and relate to this generation of players, much like Damon Stoudamire did before he left for San Antonio. It's no coincidence that McKie took up residence in Stoudamire's old locker between second-year swingman Rudy Gay and rookie point guard Mike Conley.

That's something to consider a positive, as this team obviously needs some veteran leadership. Having McKie stick close to the two cornerstones of the franchise should benefit them in the long run.

Dime Magazine has followed suit with many recent power rankings in dropping the Grizzlies to the bottom of the barrel. Hard to blame them, given the current talent level of the team and the upcoming schedule.

Pete Pranica finds a silver lining that many others are looking to in the wake of the Gasol trade -- the resurrection of the New Orleans Hornets.

Tom Ziller (NBA Fanhouse) is tallying up the people that think Chris Wallace made a less-than-wise move in trading Pau Gasol to the Lakers......and the numbers keep piling up:

4. Chris Wallace's Christmas card list. First Gregg Popovich reamed Memphis for gift wrapping Pau Gasol for the Lakers. Next? Mark Cuban, of course, followed by Gilbert Arenas. I even heard John Salmons (John Salmons!) on radio ripping the deal.

Blog/Website of the Day: Rudy Gay All-Star Dunk Blog

Links: MVP/ROY Rankings, Rebuilding, Pau Trade Talk, Conley for R.O.Y

Round 5 of the Blogger MVP/ROY Rankings are up on Pickaxe and Roll, a great Denver Nuggets blog. LeBron James is still #1, but there has been a shakeup from #2 on down, so be sure to drop by and check it out.

Hardwood Paroxysm foolishly asked me some questions looking for an "expert opinion" on the topic of rebuilding. Even more foolishly, I answered them and they posted them along with the thoughts of a few other bloggers -- most of them far more respected in the blogoshpere than your's truly. It is a great look at what people consider rebuilding to be and the best way to go about achieving success through that process.

The Washington Post thinks that Pau Gasol is completely miserable in Memphis after not getting traded last season. While Pau admits that it is tough suffering through consecutive losing seasons after making the playoffs three straight years, I don't really get the impression that he's nearly as eager for a trade now as he was when he had that closed-door meeting with owner Michael Heisley last season.

Sports Illustrated.com also thinks that Gasol is in need of a change of scenery. The information their scout gave them is a little suspect in my opinion though:

"He was most successful under former coach Mike Fratello because he ran a lot of plays where Pau received two screens to get the ball, so he didn't have to go run to the block and fight to create position. Now they have young guards, and he gets frustrated easily when they call a play for him and the ball doesn't get to him."

Hmmm...Pau actually posted his best all-around numbers last season...after Fratello was fired and the Grizzlies had no discernible offensive system under Tony Barone. Oops -- guess they thought I wasn't going to bring that up though.

ProBasketballNews.com has some amazing writers. I read Sam Amico's newsletter every time it pops up in my inbox and from it I saw the article I linked to, where Justin Powell says that Mike Conley is more deserving of the Rookie of the Year award than Kevin Durant.

Powerless Rankings: East and West

Hoopsworld: Grizzlies Midseason Report and Southwest Division Midseason Report

Oh yeah....the Grizzlies waived somebody too.

Blog/Website of the Day: Knicker Blogger

Blogger MVP/ROY Rankings - Episode 3

Welcome to the third installment of the Blogger MVP/ROY Rankings. You can find the tipoff voting at BrewHoop.com and Version 2.0 over at Clips Nation. Just in case this is new to you, here's a brief explanation of what we're doing. We've assembled the best minds in the basketball blogosphere -- well, at least the ones that are still returning our emails at this point -- and having them vote on who they think should be the Most Valuable Player and the Rookie of the Year for the 2007/08 NBA season. These rankings will appear every two weeks on corresponding Mondays, and you can check back here for a link to the next installment and then the next one after that all season long. Our motley crew of fellow voters:

• Tom of Sactown Royalty
• David of 20 Second Timeout
• Matt of Blog A Bull
• Seth of Posting and Toasting
• Matt/Corndogg of Hardwood Paroxysm
• NetIncome of NetsDaily
• Mike of Bullets Forever
• College Wolf of TWolvesBlog
• Ricky of Sixers 4 Guidos
• Alex of Brew Hoop
• The Crew of We Rite Goode
• James of Green Bandwagon
• Tom of Indy Cornrows
• Ben of Third Quarter Collapse
• Steve of Clips Nation

Our comments from the 3SoB staff will come first, followed by selected comments from the rest of the voting contingency that were judged with the utmost scrutiny. They either had to make us laugh or nod our heads in thoughtful agreement. We're tough critics, after all.

Most Valuable Player

1. Dwight Howard
When you average 23.1 ppg, 15.3 rpg and 2.7 bpg, both questions and hyperbole are sure to surround you. Is there another player in the league that appears to be able to post 40/20.....every single night he steps on the floor? Forget testing him for steroids or performance enhancers -- I want him tested to make sure that he's actually human! He actually frightens me -- and I root for a team that employs a player who threatened to murder referees and rape their wives and children over the summer. Now if only he could shoot better from the free throw line than he is from the floor, he might stop drawing the unfavorable comparisons to Shaq.

(Matt/Corndogg, Hardwood Paroxysm -- Best overall play. There's nothing that Howard's not doing right now, his numbers are great, his team would be wretched without him and he rules. Also, we call him Big Baby Jesus for a reason - he will save us all.)

2. Kevin Garnett
Are his numbers down? Yes. Does the league still already have part of his name engraved on the trophy? You better believe it. While I believe that there are at least 4 other players who probably deserve it more than he does, KG will continue to get support as long as the Celtics keep rolling along. Besides, you don't want to piss off anybody who plays with that level of intensity each and every night.

(College Wolf, TWolves Blog -- Amongst the elite of the league, slight differences in individual statistics should not carry as much weight when trying to determine something such as MVP rankings. When it comes down to it, KG is the emotional leader and the best defender on the team that happens to have the best record in the league. It's not like averaging 19 and 11 is too shabby either.)

(Ricky, Sixers4Guidos -- I hate to use cliches, but...he's the best player on the best team.)

3. LeBron James
If there is something he cannot do with a basketball, we haven't seen it yet. He's even playing defense this year! If you ignore the team records, he probably wins the award going away. However, if you're like us, then you look at a guy who watched his team lose 5 straight while he sat out with an injury.....on his non-shooting hand. *shakes head in silent disappointment*

(College Wolf, TWolves Blog -- Doing everything in his power to prevent a career parallel to that of KG, prior to arriving in Beantown.)

(We Rite Goode -- Why punish LeBron in the MVP vote too? Surrounded by mediocrity, dude is suffering enough.)

4. Kobe Bryant
He just might be the best all-around player in the NBA right now. Here's what we want to know though: If the Black Mamba wins the MVP, will Andrew Bynum get partial credit? Because we know that Kobe's already taking bows for Bynum's run at Most Improved Player.

(David, 20 Second Timeout -- Widely acknowledged as the "best" player in the NBA, supposedly the only reason that he has not won the MVP award the past two years is his team's record. The Lakers have beaten Phoenix twice and are on pace for more than 50 wins, so if the Lakers keep this up, then that excuse will no longer be valid. Even LeBron insists that Kobe is the league's best player, so who are we to argue?)

5. Chris Paul
We're probably biased after being witness to two 40+ point whuppin's, but great googly-moogly, is there any way to stop this kid from doing whatever he pleases? "Finally...a point guard worthy of being considered for the MVP award" is how my co-blogger MemphisX phrased it.

(James, Green Bandwagon -- I would like someone to send me a detailed plan of how to effectively guard him. If someone has such a plan, I would like said person to immediately become a coach in the NBA.)

(We Rite Goode -- We don't want to be on the wrong side of John Hollinger.)

6. Steve Nash
The two-time MVP has been put on the back burner when MVP talks take place, but he still leads the entire universe in "assists that you have to replay three times on the DVR to figure out how he saw that angle", as well as giving perhaps the greatest postgame interview of all time. Besides, his Canadian accent reminds us to flip through all 836 channels to find a hockey game once a week.

(Matt/Corndogg, Hardwood Paroxysm -- While the Suns have been "so-so" by their standards, they'd be sunk without Nash. And that whole "leading the league in assists" thing -- well, that goes a long way with us.)

7. Tim Duncan
Do you get the feeling that Timmy is getting bored with the regular season? He hasn't turned into a complete slacker, like say, Shaq over the last decade, but you can sense that he wouldn't balk at only having to play against teams over .500 that he might face in the postseason. I wonder if Pop has him on a 35 mpg/15 incredulous looks max this season?

(David, 20 Second Timeout -- Like Kevin Garnett, he is putting up lower numbers than usual, but the Spurs were just 2-2 during the four games that he missed due to injury. His performance has been up and down since returning to action.

8. Carlos Boozer
Boozer is having a career year, putting up numbers to rival Dwight Howard's (24 and 11), but his team's .500 record is surely costing him votes. If not that, then it is probably the ascension of teammate Deron Williams that is keeping people from mentioning him in the Top 5. If it's not that....well, we hate to point out flaws, but you'd think with the cash he's pulling in, he could afford to see a dermatologist. We're sure that his skin condition isn't doing him any favors with the voting public.

(College Wolf, TWolves Blog - He's a beast, but the fact that the Utah Jazz are currently not in the playoff picture hurts his chances at the MVP.

9. Chauncey Billups
Mr. Big Shot is quietly having a solid season as the Pistons currently enjoy an 8 game winning streak that includes victories over Boston, Houston and Golden State. While it is difficult to ascertain just who the MVP of the Pistons truly is, we have no problem giving that title to the floor general who has been the catalyst of their success over the past few years.

(NetsDaily -- The Pistons are the best team in the league right now, and Chauncey deserves some love .)

10. Brandon Roy
Once Portland reported that #1 overall pick Greg Oden would miss the season, everyone penciled the Blazers in to compete with the T'Wolves for worst record in the league. Brandon Roy said: Hold up -- wait a minute. He's averaging 19.1 ppg, 5.6 apg and 4.6 rpg while shooting nearly 45% from the floor. In short, he's doing what an MVP candidate does to lead his team to wins.

(James, Green Bandwagon -- You have to respect the Blazers' ridiculous win streak. You just have to.)

Also receiving votes: Caron Butler, Tony Parker, Manu Ginobili, Stephen Jackson, Paul Pierce, Chris Bosh, Joe Johnson, Michael Redd, Deron Williams, Allen Iverson, Baron Davis, Dirk Nowitzki, Amare Stoudemire, Tracy McGrady, Chris Kaman, Al Jefferson

Rookie of the Year

1. Kevin Durant
KD has had this ranking wrapped up since being drafted by Seattle (or is it ok to start calling them OKC yet?) and is only now facing a challenge to his place atop the pedestal. He'll need to improve his shooting percentages and lead his team to a few more victories to assure himself of the award though.

(Matt/Corndogg, Hardwood Paroxysm -- We don't necessarily WANT to reward the chucking madness going on in Seattle, but we can't really do otherwise until one of the others steps up.)

2. Al Horford
The most consistent threat to Durant's stranglehold, Horford is nearly averaging a double-double (9.2 and 9.5) and is a big part of why the Hawks are suddenly, well, respectable. If he avoids crashing after hitting the inevitable rookie wall, he could move into the top spot next month.

(College Wolf, TWolves Blog -- Too bad he can't play point guard for the Hawks, too.)

(Matt/Corndogg, Hardwood Paroxysm -- Playing great all-around basketball. In Atlanta. We're perplexed.)

3. Yi Jianlian
He has settled in to some form of consistency, although you still have to prepare for both the 20+ point scoring outbursts and the 5 point "stinkers" as you would with any young player. Yi might not have a lot of fellow countrymen to keep him company in the land of beer and bratwurst, but he seems to be adapting to the NBA quite well.

(David, 20 Second Timeout -- Like all of these rookies, he has had some ups and downs, but he has been more consistent than most of the first year players.)

(Matt/Corndogg, Hardwood Paroxysm -- Ancient Proverb says: You Can Go No Wrong Path, With 7 Foot Chinese Dude.)

4. Juan Carlos Navarro
"Instant Grits" hasn't been given consistent minutes the last two weeks, so it is really no surprise that he hasn't performed consistently. He is still the Grizzlies' fourth-leading scorer, even with PT ranging from 12 minutes to 23 to 44, depending on the injury situation of the perpetually plagued Memphis roster. The fact that he is a seasoned international veteran has undoubtedly helped with his adjustment to the grind of the NBA.

(Matt/Corndogg, Hardwood Paroxysm -- Hello. My name is Juan Carlos Navarro. You traded my rights. Prepare to die.)

5. Sean Williams
Sean Williams? I thought we were going to be talking about Jamario Moon here? No...well how about Luis Scola then? Fine, fine. Williams has been a tough, physical presence that has put up 10 rebounds in each of the last two games and is averaging 8.5 ppg, 6.8 rpg and 3.0 bpg in 6 games as a starter. In short, he's the kind of guy that other teams will regret passing on sooner, rather than later.

(NetIncome, NetsDaily -- His presence in the starting lineup has reinvigorated the Nets to the tune of 4-2 over their last six games.)

Also receiving votes: Jamario Moon, Luis Scola, Jeff Green, Daequan Cook, Al Thornton

Be sure to let us know your thoughts in the Comments.

Links: New Logo, Radio Goodness, In Good Hands, MVP/ROY, Changing of the Guard, Holiday Packs

As you may have noticed, we have a new banner and logo for 3 Shades of Blue. That is thanks to Timothy D., who was the winner of our Ticket Contest Giveaway. He won two lower level Plaza tickets to tonight's game against the Golden State Warriors for his efforts. Congrats Timothy!


I'm sure most of you already know about The Marc Iavaroni Show on Sports 56 WHBQ. Well, if you happen to miss it, they have made it even easier to catch up by installing a flash-based application right on the home page that will allow you to listen to the show without having to download it. Good job guys.

Mike Moreau of Hoopsworld.com posted a column yesterday titled The Grizzlies Are In Good Hands, which details why he feels that Marc Iavaroni is the right coach for this young, talented team.

Anyone who has any concern about Marc Iavaroni's ability to turn the Memphis Grizzlies into winners need only arrive at game 90 minutes prior to tip off. Upon entering the arena, they will see the Grizzlies head coach right in the thick of pre-game drills and shooting, working with players on their individual games.
This is a task normally reserved for assistant coaches, who run the players through offensive move progressions and put them through a series of individual drills or position-oriented drill sequences. But here was the Memphis Grizzlies head coach working with his players - after a loss the previous night and in the midst of a six game losing streak.
That extra work and attention paid off Saturday night, as the Grizzlies beat the Magic in Orlando.

Looks like some of the knee-jerk reactionaries who have been recently suggesting that we try and see if Larry Brown is available should just cool their jets for the time being.

The 2nd Edition of our Blogger MVP/ROY Rankings is up now on Clips Nation, so be sure to check that out as we submit them every two weeks throughout the season. There is at least one Memphis player represented in the rankings.

Marlon Morgan (Commercial Appeal) had an interesting post over on The Memphis Edge this weekend titled Changing of the guard. It seems that Morgan feels the same way that many Grizzlies fans do in regard to the emergence of Rudy Gay as the new face of the franchise.

Through the first two months of the season, Gay not only has made dramatic strides over last season with his on the court play, but he continues to become more of a leader. By the end of the season, look for him to be the unquestioned leader of this team. That’s not to de-emphasize Gasol’s importance to the Grizzlies. But Gay is not far off from being the superstar former team president Jerry West envisioned when he traded Shane Battier for his draft rights.

Perhaps fans can look at what Rudy is becoming, rather than focusing on what other players will never be.

What a deal! Over on Grizzlies.com, you can see the latest ticket promotion, which is 5 Days, 5 Deals on 5-Game Holiday Packs. You can meet Michael Conley (12/17), get a free hat (12/18), receive $10 in Grizz Bucks (12/19), take 50% off Club Level Holiday Packs (12/20) and receive a free pair of tickets (12/21). The Memphis Grizzlies are doing everything in their power to draw more fans out through the busy holiday season, so go over there to the site, check out the details, buy some tickets and support the home team.

Links: Point Guard Evaluation, MVP/ROY Rankings, Sam Smith is still Sam Smith

Our old pal David Berri took a look at the Memphis point guards today from his usual statistical perspective on the Wages of Wins Journal. When it was all said and done, Dave arrived at the same conclusion I did in the preseason:

Still, if the numbers for Lowry and Conley hold, Memphis will eventually have to make a decision about who to start and who ultimately to keep. At this point only one thing is certain. The team is not going to keep starting Stoudamire.

It's nice to see confirmation of my evaluation of the PG position from someone who has a lot more clout in academic circles. Another fine post that I recommend reading in its entirety.

We here at 3 Shades of Blue are participating in a season-long ranking of Most Valuable Player and Rookie of the Year candidates that was organized by Alex of BrewHoop. The other blogs participating are as follows:

BrewHoop
Sactown Royalty
Third Quarter Collapse
20 Second Timeout
Posting and Toasting
Queen City Hoops
TWolvesBlog
Sixers 4 Guidos
Bullets Forever
Green Bandwagon
The Bratwurst
Indy Cornrows
Blog A Bull
Clips Nation

You can view our first rankings of the season with commentary on BrewHoop now.

Yet another far-fetched Pau Gasol to the Chicago Bulls rumor/fantasy out of the Windy City -- this time from delusional old man Sam Smith who is no stranger to making up his own trade proposals involving Memphis Grizzlies. I'm sure everyone remembers his obsession with Shane Battier a few years ago. Really, this one is more like a plea for the Bulls' management to make an offer for the Spaniard than it is a trade rumor. That makes it even worse. What's really funny is how he proclaims how much the Bulls need him while downplaying his abilities at the same time. Reminds me of a certain group of posters on the Grizzlies message boards. Here's an example of Smith's continual contradictions:

Now with a new general manager, a new coach in Marc Iavaroni and a new style,
it's clear that Gasol is lost and likely expendable. At least that's the belief around the NBA, and teams expect a shot at Gasol by the trading deadline. The question is how much you really can give up for a seventh-year player who never has been a good rebounder or defender and hasn't been on the winning side in a playoff game.

If Gasol is such a poor rebounder/defender and is labeled a "loser" then why would Chicago benefit from his presence? Of course, if he had bothered to read Ron Tillery's fine article in yesterday's Commercial Appeal, he'd know that Gasol is working very hard to adjust to Iavaroni's new system, and isn't pleased at all with his current level of production. Of course, that wouldn't get Bulls fans excited about Gasol's "availability", would it? Don't worry Grizz fans -- just another bogus rumor that shouldn't receive any attention beyond this blogger taking the time to shoot it full of holes. If the Grizzlies do decide to trade Gasol, it will take more than Tyrus Thomas and Andres Nocioni to acquire him.

Update: Over on AOL's NBA Fanhouse, Bethlehem Shoals called out Sam Smith for being a doddering old fool for many of the same reasons I did regarding the Pau Gasol wishlist piece. Once again, it is nice to see that I am in agreement with people held in higher respect than myself in the blogosphere.