Kevin Garnett

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No Kidding; Jason just wanted out of Brooklyn…

Posted by fantasyfurnace on July 5, 2014
Posted in: NBA. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , . 15 Comments

The past week or so has created a plethora of theories as to what Jason Kidd did and why he did it. Was it for power? Was it the money? Was Kidd  just acting foolishly or was he being very shrewd and cunning? Here is our take. See what you think…

Was Jason Kidd 'outsmarted' by Nets management or was Kidd the 'smart' one.

Was Jason Kidd ‘outsmarted’ by Nets management or was Kidd the ‘smart’ one. Fantasy Furnace thinks that the reason for “JASONGATE” was simple-he just wanted out of his contract… Photo: USA Today

Plain and simple, it appears that Jason Kidd, at present  a rookie NBA coach, just wanted out of Brooklyn. One reason is that  the Nets, as presently constituted, have holes and question marks up and down their roster going into next season. More doubt has been cast as to whether Brook Lopez will be able to play an entire season without having any further surgeries. Clearly he will be put on time restriction at around 20 minutes per game next year. Deron Williams? Does anyone know if he will ever return to the all-star point guard status that he enjoyed in Utah? Paul Pierce? Does he return to Brooklyn? Will Garnett, if he’s back, also get put on a minute-watch? Point is perhaps Kidd felt that his sophomore season would have been hurt by some of these older players, their restrictions, and their future.

Another reason why Kidd wanted out could be the newly inked contracts recently given to two other neophyte NBA coaches; Steve Kerr and Derek Fisher. Their very lucrative contracts raised the bar for the salaries of rookie professional coaches and apparently Kidd found that appealing. Thing is, had he thought this through, he might have been better served to have stayed right where he was, worked hard, and then could have thought about seeking a better contract with Brooklyn, or another team, since the ceiling had already been raised so high by Kerr and Fisher.

Does anyone really think that Kidd thought that Nets billionaire owner Mikhail Prokhorov would allow Kidd to usurp Billy King and thus place him in charge of Nets operations? After just one season? (and a rocky one at that) and with a very flimsy resume at best? Let me put it to  you this way; you just started working at a company and after doing a fairly good job overall in your first year there, you go into the owner’s office and request to be promoted to CEO. What do you think your chances would be of securing that position?

Kidd knew that not only would Prokhorov turn him down, but that he would ultimately be shown the door which is exactly what he wanted the owner to do in the first place. And the reason why Kidd had no problem with this is because he knew that the Bucks new co-owner Marc Lasry, already had a coaching position just waiting for him in Milwaukee as he had been looking to replace Larry Drew. No, this move last week by Kidd was not about the power. Knowing the way Kidd operates that will probably come in time, especially if he can do an admirable job with some of the younger talent that he will inherit on his new club.

The biggest collateral damage to take place as a result of Kidd’s actions was the firing of a very classy Larry Drew, the Bucks coach who was let go in order to make room for Jason Kidd. Drew, curbing his anger, took the ‘High road’ by thanking the Bucks and the fans for a “memorable year.” The two men who gained the most from all of this is first, Lawrence Frank, former Nets coach who was lured into becoming Kidd’s chief assistant when he took over the reins of the club and who subsequently was ‘demoted’ by Kidd shortly thereafter. Kidd’s firing, we believe, did not upset Frank’s day in the least.

And secondly, Lionel Hollins, the newly appointed Nets coach who was not exactly saddened by Kidd’s firing either as it opened the door for his hiring. Hollins, a huge upgrade over Kidd, is an excellent coach who did an outstanding job in Memphis and who will work well with the club this season.

Former Memphis Grizzlies coach Lionel Hollins will be taking over as coach of the Brooklyn Nets this Fall. Photo: AP

Former Memphis Grizzlies coach Lionel Hollins will be taking over as coach of the Brooklyn Nets this Fall. Photo: AP

What will be the fallout on Kidd’s part? Time will tell. Clearly his legacy has been tarnished and his reputation sullied. Will he thrive in Milwaukee? Will he be booed in many cities during next season, will the Nets decide to remove his banner from Barclays Center? Point is, does anyone really think that Jason Kidd didn’t have this all planned in the first place? No Kidding!!

* For an excellent in-depth look at Kidd’s past including his personal & professional indiscretions over the years, be sure to check out this link http://wp.me/p26SiB-1Pe (our friends at smallthoughtsinasportsworld).

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NBA 2013: 6-Pack of Sleepers for Draft Day

Posted by fantasyfurnace on September 28, 2013
Posted in: NBA. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

With the NBA beginning its 67th season in just around three weeks from now, we thought we would start things off with our six-pack of Sleepers to consider when you draft. Hard to believe that the first NBA game was played between the Toronto Huskies and the N.Y. Knickerbockers at Maple Leaf Gardens on November 1, 1946. We’ve come along way since then and are looking forward to NBA Tip-Off 2013 which will take place on October 29th.

1. Jeff Green-F-Celtics- Well clearly if anyone has the opportunity to excel this season it would be one of the most talented players left on a team that has seen most of its players head for the door. Say goodbye to Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett, Jason Terry, Chris Wilcox, & Terrence Williams. Keep in mind that Green was drafted (by Seattle) just three spots after Kevin Durant. Although Green averaged only 12.8 points a game last season, in 17 starts his average climbed to 20.1. The 27 year old will give you 5-6 boards a night to go along with one three, a steal and a block. The talent is there and now so is the opportunity.

#8 Jeff Green will be one of the main offensive threats on a Celtic team that has lost most of its stars in Layne Murdoch/NBAE via Getty Images offseason. Photo:

#8 Jeff Green will be one of the main offensive threats on a Celtic team that has lost most of its superstars in the off-season. Photo: Layne Murdoch/NBAE via Getty Images

2. JaVale McGee-C-Nuggets- Finally getting the chance to start, McGee has the ability to become a top 3 roto center this season. This Nuggets team is uber-talented with eight players finishing with double-digits in points last year. McGee averaged 9.1/4.8/2.0 in 18.1 minutes per game last season and we project that getting starter’s minutes (26-28 mpg) those numbers could grow to 12.5/8/2.7. Although McGee’s biggest liabilities are both his foul trouble and FT shooting, 200+ blocks could place him among the leaders in that category alone.

3. Danny Green-G-Spurs-  Green, just 26 years old will be entering his 5th NBA season. He has watched his minutes rise every season he has been in the league. It’s no secret that Green had a solid regular season last year but his resume now includes a break-out post season. We like Green’s versatility as well since he can give you 70-75 blocks plus some steals in addition to his major asset, the three-pointer. With just the slightest increase in minutes this season, Green should have no problem garnering 200+ threes making him a top starter in all mixed leagues.

#4 Danny Green, fresh off of hhis breakout postseason, is poised to become amomg the 3-point leaders in the Andrew D. Bernstein/NBAE/Getty Images this season.

#4 Danny Green, fresh off of his breakout postseason, is poised to become among the 3-point leaders in the league this season. Andrew D. Bernstein/NBAE/Getty Images 

4. Bradley Beal-G-Wizards- We are very excited to see how this 20 year old bounces back from a stress fracture he suffered late in the season because this kid could be one of the premier rebounding guards in the league who will work well with fellow guard John Wall. Beal finished with just under 4 RPG  and should improve on that average. If Wall remains healthy for the full season, it can only enhance Beal’s chances of putting up more solid numbers which includes threes and steals in addition to the 15-17 ppg we are projecting. Don’t sleep on this mid-tier future riser.

5. Kevin Martin-G-Timberwolves- Destined for another year handling the starting duties in Minnesota (he has started the last five consecutive ones), Martin can help to fill holes in 3-4 categories and, in particular three-pointers. He could be among the league leaders from beyond the arc before the year is over. Martin has become more of a catch & shoot player as opposed to just attacking the basket and it has helped his numbers. We are projecting Martin to finish the season with 17-20 PPG and totaling just around 150 threes. He has been averaging just under 90% from the Free Throw line over the past three seasons and we see no reason why that trend shouldn’t continue. Throw in a steal per game and you have a taylor-made mid round addition to your roster on draft day.

6. Gordon Hayward-F/G-Jazz- Haywood will be a top 50 roto-choice this season as he will become Utah’s leading offensive threat and will therefore have the opportunity to put up some compelling numbers. Think along the same lines as a Kevin Martin in terms of skills but with a bigger upside. As the main target on the team, he will look to do a lot of creating off the dribble and put up a fair share of threes; somewhere around 125-140 on the season. Haywood will score just under 20 PPG and his FT shooting average, near .83%, will be an extra asset to your roster.

#20 Gordon Haywood will become the Jazz' main offensive threat in the upcoming season and thus has tremendous upside to be a huge sleeper candidate

#20 Gordon Haywood will become the Jazz’ main offensive threat in the upcoming season and thus has tremendous upside to be a huge sleeper candidate helping rosters in points, threes, & FT shooting. Photo: Cary Edmondson/US Presswire

Who was more of a quitter: Doc Rivers (2013) or Jeff Van Gundy (in 2002)?

Posted by fantasyfurnace on June 29, 2013
Posted in: NBA. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , . 13 Comments

The question is intriguing. The answer is complicated. This past week, Celtics coach Doc Rivers up and bolted to the L.A, Clippers for a No. 1 pick in 2015. His team, anchored by two veterans; Paul Pierce who turns 36 this October, and Kevin Garnett who just turned 37 last month were in the way of Boston entering into a re-building mode. The Nets were the only team that could accommodate and afford the two All-Stars and have something to give the CEltics in return, so Danny Ainge made the deal this past week, garnering three future first round picks plus four players.

So Rivers ends up with the Clippers, surely a contender in 2014, while leaving a Celtic team that will win 40 games, be competitive, but who will do no damage in next year’s playoffs. There are those who say that he quit on the team because they would not have been in contention, to go to a team already poised to go deep into the 2014 post season.

Ex-Celtic Coach Doc Rivers is taking his career 587-473 record as well as his talent to David Butler II, USA TODAY Sports Angeles. Photo:

Ex-Celtic Coach Doc Rivers is taking his career 587-473 record as well as his talent to Los Angeles. Photo: David Butler II, USA TODAY Sports

Jeff Van Gundy, who had been an assistant coach of the N.Y. Knicks for six years prior to landing the head coaching duties in 1995, was very successful, taking the team to the Conference Semi-Finals his first three years, the NBA Finals (in his 4th) and Conference Finals in his 5th season, and then lost in the first round of the playoffs in ’00-’01 season. In his seventh year as Knick coach, and after just 19 games, Van Gundy shocked everyone when he just decided to quit the team after having posted a 10-9 record at that point in the season.

Highly popular Ex-Knicks coach Jeff Van Gundy abruptly left the club after just 19 games in the beginning of the '01-'02 season. Photo AP

Highly popular Ex-Knicks coach Jeff Van Gundy abruptly left the club after just 19 games in the beginning of the ’01-’02 season. Photo AP

So which one of these two elite NBA coaches was more of a quitter?

I don’t think put in the same situation as Doc Rivers that you wouldn’t make the same decision that he did, although there are reports that Danny Ainge didn’t even want him back. We’ll just have to wait and see how that story shakes out. Regrets? Rivers has a few. He’ll always feel that he and the Celts should have won a couple more championsips but injuries to Rajon Rondo one season and Paul Pierce another, prevented that from happening. We’ll say this about Doc, what he did is similar to the move LeBron James made. Something better came along and with the “Win now mentality” ever so prevelant in most sports today, he chose the place where he felt the opportunity for winning now was more prevelant, and you can’t blame him for that.

Jeff Van Gundy’s departure, on the other hand was more bizarre and selfish given his previous success with the N.Y. Knick franchise. He had invested 13 years with the organization as assistant and head coach. To this day he ranks third in franchise history in wins. Red Holzman had 783 wins and a .595 winning percentage, Joe Lapchick 573 and a  .595 WP and Jeff Van Gundy 420 wins with a .590 WP. He certainly was in good company with those two legends in front of him. Van Gundy was one of the most popular coaches the Knicks ever had, one who was not afraid to run on the floor to prevent fights from getting out of hand and to protect his players.

Knick fans were shocked and upset upon hearing that Van Gundy had just decided to hang ’em up after just 19 games into the 2001-2002 season. What has helped endear him to the fans even more, was his admission recently that he, unlike Rivers, was the quitter between the two coaches. Van Gundy has said that he regrets the way he did it, without allowing more time to contemplate the decison. He actually regrets making it so hastily, much more than the actual decision.

That takes a certain kind of individual to come out with this revelation 11 years after it happened without prodding or going through a gruesome interview. He didn’t have to say a word. Or he could have just said that Rivers was the bigger quitter. But he didn’t. He is too classy & professional to do that. If you remember when Avery Johnson was let go by the Nets last season and P.J. Carleismo was made interim coach,Van Gundy, when asked if he would seek that job, said that…” there was nothing to discuss…the Nets already have a coach.”

The Knicks, over the next eight seasons after Van Gundy quit the team, never won 40 games. In fact they they didn’t win even 30 games in three of those seasons. The fans were left with a team that never had the same identity it did when Van Gundy was there, nor the personnel. The fans were also upset with his sudden departure, but after what he said this week, they would undoubtedly take him back in a heartbeat!