Moore may be willing to take the high road and not rub it in for the Hornets, but I’m in no such mood.  I’m ready to party OKC style, and if that means a few NOLA tears then so be it.  It’s a miserable situation, watching a team fall apart in the name of the luxury tax, but it’s part of life and we have to move on (that could become the broken record over the next few months, with more and more owners looking to cope in a struggling economy).

This trade is absolutely unbelievable for the Thunder.  Care to guess which position has been the most productive against the Thunder this year?  Center?  No way!  And here I thought Nick Collison, Chris Wilcox, and Robert Swift were the real deal, long-term starters destined for the Hall and bobble head nights aplenty.  Tyson is infinitely better defensively than any of those three, and adding Chandler to the starting lineup allows players like Collison and Nenad Krstic to thrive against the lesser second units of opposing teams.  In the meantime, Chandler can take his time with his recovery because the Thunder are comfortably outside of the playoff race.  It’s a beautiful thing, really.

Supposing the Thunder can find a reliable option at shooting guard through the likes of Sacramento’s John Salmons or even James Harden via draft, this team becomes that much more interesting.  Chandler complements the smooth games of Durant and Jeff Green with his rugged defense in the post and enough length to bother quicker players.  Combined with Westbrook’s prowess on that end and Durant’s defensive potential, this Thunder team could have some teeth.

Above all, Presti managed to swipe Tyson Chandler from the Hornets without sacrificing picks or concrete assets.  The Thunder still have their precious cap room, they still have at least one sizable expiring contract (the full details of the trade have yet to be disclosed), a full array of draft picks, and they still have Nick Collison and Earl Watson.  It’s hard to mess with a deal that nabs one of the best defensive centers in the game for two expendable pieces that weren’t in the team’s long-term plans.  Well done.

As happy as I am for the Thunder, I do understand just how tragic this is for the Hornets.  Chris Paul is too awesome, and on face I would never want to wish harm to him, his team, or the city.  But in the spirit of this trade, I don’t see it fit to mourn.  The Hornets’ funeral shouldn’t be a requiem, but a celebration of life.  The life the the Hornets had, short as it was, brought joy to all of us (even me, a Mavs fan, who saw his team slain by Paul’s blade in last year’s playoffs), and the new life that the Hornets have now created will live on.  Pay your respects to our dear friends the Hornets, but dance in catharsis to the new grooves of the Thunder.

Stein’s got word and I’m hearing this is legit.

I could wax poetic on how glorious it is for OKC, but that wouldn’t be right. The Hornets were one bad shooting night away from the Western Conference Finals last season, and now are likely headed for a first round exit thanks to either the economy of predictable thrift, depending on your view.  The Hornets are likely to have absolutely nothing inside as a result, unless Paul can will Joe Smith or Wilcox into genius which is kind of unlikely. They let Pargo go, now they trade Chandler. What misery the future has brought.

We’ll talk about OKC in a bit, and at least that is a glorious revolution in process.

For right now, though, we should get this out of the way. If it was almost certain before, now all hope is gone.

WESTERN CONFERENCE FINALS

SAN ANTONIO SPURS VS. LOS ANGELES LAKERS

This isn’t to say that Dwight Howard’s dunk contest performances aren’t amazing.  They certainly are.  But they’re gimmicky.

You want to say they aren’t, but they are.  Capes, tiny jerseys, raising the rim, a phonebooth, a little hoop attached to the big one, a sticker.  The dunks are fun, but they don’t do much for me in a basketball sense.  It’s American Idol.  (Dunks excepted: the tap off the backboard in ’08, the off the side of the glass this year)

Now, as Shoals first mentioned, this is what a big man in a dunk contest should look like:

And before you say that he’s way smaller than Dwight, remember that Amar’e was listed at 6’10, 245 in high school.

Morning Bell returns tomorrow.

• Durant was sublime in rooks-sophs. Sublime. A stream of threes, dunks, steals, more threes, jumpers, leaners, the grand palette of basketball. It was a terrific coming-out party for him, and well worth it. It’s a significant paragraph in his wikipedia article.
• That game was actually pretty rad/dross/boss/Road-Rash too.  Marc Gasol hustling like it was an actual game, Stuckey dishing, and Westbrook having the time of his life.
• Durant can have the stupid trophy. Mayo earned that game of HORSE. The shot of the whole game was the one from the stands. It’s bizarre, because OJ isn’t awkward on the mic, yet he’s not good with it, either. And yet, when they needed a shot to loosen things up, to make that thing a hit, Mayo said “I’m going to the stands.” Johnson would have eliminated Durant if he could have landed the finger spin just once, and Durant only won because OJ had burned himself out on actual HORSE shots as opposed to run-of-the-mill threes.
• I called DeQuan. He was the only one with no expectations, and the only one with no leadership role. He doesn’t need handle, motion, or control. He’s just plug and shoot. And in that situation, under the lights on national television? DeQuan’s who you want. Additionally? DeQuan was the one least likely to be hungover. Just saying.
• Derrick Rose is simply incredible. Say what you want about him not going full speed.  He was steady like a freight train, sharp like a razor . The exclamation mark, that was his coming out party.
• Yes, the dunk contest sucked. The 12 foot dunk was the best, and Howard pulled it out too early. The end was rigged, and obviously a set up. And JR deserved to advance over NateRob. (Don’t talk to me about Fernandez. Next time get a teammate with some level of coordination. I appreciate the Martin homage, but he should have pulled it off with 10 tries.)  And Robinson used Howard to elevate and essentially won because he’s small. But people have to chill with their expectations. Not every dunk contest is going to be amazing.  It’s just not. It takes the right set of circumstances and a lot of luck. Same with the HORSE contest. The contest isn’t “dead’ because it wasn’t brilliant. It was just an off-year.
• The Shaq through the legs dunk was awesome, but I have a feeling Howard collaborated. Howard’s got tooo much closing speed to have let that one go. Additionally, this pretty much sums it up. The tour’s over big-man. Quit pimping the reunion tour.

Here’s a question I never thought I’d ask.

You know what’s great about Pat Riley?

He makes deals that are good for him, but don’t seem good for him, and are unendingly interesting. So many times we only regard important trades as wins vs. losses, which is a deplorable approach in my opinion. You have to look at what the team has available, what the teams is trying to do, and what the team is reasonably able to get for those assets in pursuit of those goals. He traded longterm potential (Butler&Odom) for a single shot at a Championship. And it paid off. He made the horrendous Ricky Davis trade. Which was either highly delusional or a setup.

And now this.

This is one of those high-risk-high-reward deals. You may remember this paradigm from such hits as “Shaq to Phoenix” and “Carter to the Nets.” Possibly “Kidd to the Mavs.” Okay, this doesn’t look great, but let’s keep moving. The way this deal is different from those is that it has a safety net. The risk is that you only get one shot at moving Marion, and he’s still got enough value, particularly with the money involved, that you need to get good, if not great, return on export. The reward is that O’Neal can still put points on the board, and … you know, he’s not Jamal Magloire. Just putting a legit center on the floor takes pressure off the rest of the Heat, and that’s the best thing you can do for a young team.

The safety net is the length of the deal. And I have to admire Riley’s juevos on this one. Everyone expected him to swing for Boozer, which is shopping for the set-up double, or buying a Hyundai. Instead he bought a Bronco with some miles on it, and put themselves smack-dab in the hunt for the 2010 FREE AGENT SUMMER OF DOOM.

The objective at this point is to stockpile assets to throw at Wade, and with a solid foundation and the cap room for a max deal, they’ve done what they need to in order to provide the opportunity for Wade to stay. The Heat aren’t looking for the knockout punch, or the move to put them over the top. They’re building. When Riley feels it’s right, he’ll either chuck the thing for a win-now homerun, or push with the core for the hard-earened win.

Beasley needed this more than anyone. He can rebound, but can’t be counted on to rebound. He can score, but can’t be counted on to dominate. He can defend, but he needs a secondary level of support. This is how it is with guys who can’t drink yet. And there will be a time when he’ll need to do all those things. But for right now, make some noise in the playoffs with a legit center and hope his health holds up. Getting back Moon is a nice touch as well. It fills the hole and beside Wade, what’s the ceiling? Okay players get pretty good beside great ones.

And Toronto? Fascinating. The odds of Marion fitting in are about the same as in Miami, maybe slightly better given the personnel. With Bosh as a lynch pin, this creates a bridge between the guards and the bigs. Marion fills gaps on a team that needs gap fillers, plus it has the added cap relief this summer.

The commitment to Bargnani is promising, because they could have just ditched Bargs which would have ended any hope. He’s legitimately played well, and in a wide-open system, who knows what could happen. I’m not sold on Calderon being the guard to make it happen but then, I’m like that. It’s not that I don’t think he’s a good guard, I think he’s a great guard. I just don’t see him as the creator necessary to maximize the potential of the frontcourt that can do a little bit of everything but nothing exceptionally (except Bosh for stretches).

The Raptors aren’t looking for a championship, but they’re not shopping for the lottery either. They’re in a weird limbo, but there’s a freedom in it. And the one thing we know about Marion’s needs is this. He needs freedom. Maybe this is what he needs.

Hope abounds for the newly traded.

You’ll be getting more thoughts on this new Bucks team (and it is new, the injuries have changed everything… for the better, if not for wins) very soon. But watching the rewind of Pistons-Bucks, I had to share this.

There’s a revolution happening in Charlie Villanueva’s mind, and we’re all just the shop owner’s watching his brain revolt.

Coro’s got the official unofficial word. It’s particularly interesting as Friday the Suns pulled hard to refute the rumors.

So the questions abound. Let’s tackle them one at a time.

Did Porter deserve it?

Deserving to get fired is a tricky subject. I mean, really, in order to really “deserve” to get fired, you need to do something inexcusable. You can pile up reasons to go in “another direction” which is closer to what Porter did. He failed to manage egos and failed to bring the best out of the club.   He failed to manage rotations effectively. And he failed to provide the team with anything that could even remotely resemble an identity. This may surprise you, but I don’t blame the Suns’ in-game failures on Porter. When I look at the work he’s done, and the attitude he’s taken (the hard practices, the defensive minded coaching, the simplistic pathos), I can’t find fault with it intrinsically. Let me put it this way: If you gave Porter a young club like Portland, Minnesota, Charlotte (pre-trades), or even Miami, I think he might be able to do a pretty good job. He’d be an excellent stepping stone for a team at the very least.

The problem is that this club was made of veterans, who are ready to win now. They don’t need to be pushed, prodded, or bullied. Even Amare, who could use tough love, needs it within the context of a relationship he trusts, not a bully sent in to shove him around. This is an aspect of professional basketball that makes college basketball enthusiasts cry in agony, the concept of a player needing to be “babied.” But it’s a reality in this league, and if you want to get the most out of Amare, you need to let him do his thing, and then convince him that what you want is his idea. My wife pulls this with me all the time, which essentially means that I am the Amare Stoudemire of house chores. But I digress. It wasn’t Porter’s fault that he didn’t do what he needed to, or that he did it badly.  He was brought in to do something that wasn’t going to work regardless. Porter could have taught a young team to walk before they run, but the Suns were ready to fly. And in the confusion they crashed and burned.

So who’s fault was it?

You knew this was coming.

Look, Steve Kerr is probably a really great guy. Loves his family. Definitely has the respect of those in the league. Handles himself with class and professionalism. He’s got a great basketball mind and may even have a tremendous mind for basketball business.

None of this changes the fact that he has completely submarined the Phoenix Suns franchise and is now spreading the blame. That Porter was ill-equipped to lead this team isn’t his fault, it’s the fault of the person that chose a drill sergeant for a general’s job. Kerr not only sacrificed this team’s soul, he led it to the dungeon to chain it. Everything has been driven off of the Kerr Defensive Concept.

As a Chiefs fan, I’m uniquely aware of how this kind of thing goes. In 2005, Herm Edwards took over the Chiefs, who at the time held one of the most devastating offensive attacks in the NFL. He promised to keep the offense the same, but add a defensive presence, and said that hybrid would lead to a championship. Yet from the very beginning there were changes that showed that was not the case. And with every excuse for the failures of the club, there were signs that reflected the overall “good ol’ football” approach of Herm’s entire scheme. Similarly, Kerr’s defensive-approach and pro-2003 veterans influence was shown in all of the decisions: Pushing the offense through Shaq. Trading for Jason Richardson. Slowing the game down. Hiring a disciplinarian. It all reflected an overall policy set, one that was deeply, inherently flawed: trying to duplicate the Spurs.

I’m always stunned when Suns fans use this as justification for abandoning a style, system, and approach that netted them at least 55 wins each season. “Yeah, but we won no rings! The Spurs won championships!” This is not only flawed, it’s sad.

Why can’t the Suns be like the Spurs?

There’s only one Tim Duncan in this lifetime.

No, really, why can’t the Suns be like the Spurs?

Because you’re talking about a team that’s won four championships in a decade. A team that’s centered by a once in a lifetime player, who will go down as the best at his position of all time. A team with a GM that was willing to focus on little known foreign talent and work them into a system that was perfect for them, then fill the gaps with reliable veteran shooters. Do you know how tenuous that kind of formula is? And if you don’t believe me, take a look at what they’ve needed to get some of the rings they have. Even Spurs fans would tell you it takes some luck.

You can’t duplicate that kind of success on the fly. And just because you have someone who’s incredible at what they do, doesn’t mean they’re awesome at everything. Steve Nash is a terrible defender. You know, I know it, Steve knows it. He tries. He puts a lot of effort nowadays (at least) into trying to overcome his lack of horizontal quickness and strength with hustle. But he’s just not good at it. You know what? Tim Duncan can’t run the floor. And Duncan’s handle is pretty suspect, especially against the weak-side double. Are they equal players? No. But the point is that if Gregg Popovich decided to go be a coconut farmer in the tropics tomorrow, and you brought in Don Nelson, that team would underperform, be angry and lost. The talent is there in Phoenix. The vision is not.

How does this affect the Amare trade?

It’s unlikely that this signals a change of heart from Kerr that his plan was wrong. He can’t admit that, honestly, even if he thinks that. So the best move would be to appease his owners’ financial concerns and plan for the future. And you know what that means. Drew Gooden and Shaquille O’Neal on the block. But also Tyrus Thomas, a young power forward with tremendous potential that will make for some highlights with Nash. Gentry will have an impact on this, though, because I doubt Kerr’s foolish enough to not even consult him, and Gentry’s won with STAT before.

I’d say Amare’s quote from Friday about being 60-40 staying in Phoenix past Thursday are pretty accurate. Dropping a coach and trading an All-Star in a week is kind of an obvious panic move. After that it’ll come down to whether or not someone will get desperate and put a better deal on the table. This could actually end up helping the Suns down the road, as it puts the pressure back on the suitors to put a deal that convinces Kerr to pull the trigger. And whereas before it seemed that he had to do something he’s now done that. He’s made the obligatory “change in the best interests of the team” and now it just depends on what kind of trust Sarver has in Kerr over his pocketbook. Then again, when you put it that way, Amare’s jersey starts to look pretty red.

Could this plus an Amare trade actually put them back in the running?

This is the trouble I’ve had with Suns fan since this whole debacle started. It seems like I’m just a negative nellie, nay-saying the chances of this Suns team. That all comes back to the first significant move Kerr made, using their most valuable trade asset, Marion’s contract, to land the Shaqtus. I’ve covered that before in detail, so I’ll just leave it at this:It created an impossible problem to solve. His contract and ego demands his involvement, but his style and play devalue the rest of the team. Shaq’s been an All-Star to his team, and yet least valuable to his team at the same time. And the same kind of thinking that says that’s impossible also says that this team should do whatever it takes to be more like the Spurs.

We’re past that point. The question now, and really the only one left to answer, is what direction the Suns choose to head in now that plan A, B, and C have all proven themselves fatally flawed.

We like JR Smith. While everyone else has had time for gimmicks and promotions and help and to brainstorm, JR Smith just found out the other day. Which means his only option is his greatest strength.

Man-On-Rim Violence.

He’ll kill the rim and take it down.

I never embed Basketball Jones Videocasts. You should know you should be watching them on your own. But this one? This one is special. This is, quite simply, the most awesome piece of NBA All-Star Weekend coverage I’ve ever seen. Hats off, gents. Did you ever know that you’re our hero?

TBJ AZ 03: The People’s Dunk Contest from The Basketball Jones on Vimeo.

After taking an extended break from my HP duties, the hustle is back. During the summer time, I used this column as a space to explore some of my more esoteric beliefs regarding basketball: Questions regarding the body, aesthetics, radical politics, and other topics that seem surprisingly out of line with the tone and style of the Paroxysm. So, ladies and gentlemen, after countless conversations with the imitable Matt Moore, I have decided to get back to basics.

The original purpose of this column was to praise a certain style of basketball. As I mentioned in my very first post for HP, I was raised a Knicks fan. Under the tutelage of Charles Oakley and Larry Johnson, I came to believe basketball was not a game for the faint of heart. It required a special kind of grit. If a man came into your lane, he better be prepared to get mugged on his way to the hoop. If a loose ball was sliding across the floor, it would take a brick wall to keep you from snagging it. For those of us who love our hoops a tad bit rough and tumble, the mid-to-late nineties were heady times.

But those halcyon days have passed. We live in a land of flops and ticky-tack fouls. But on the periphery exists a class of player who remembers that basketball is supposed to be a man’s game: I call them “hustle junkies.” Embracing a style that is rugged and raw, they carry on the grand tradition of Dennis Rodman, Karl Malone, and Bill Laimbeer.

Once a week here at HP we will crown one of these men as “HustleJunkie Player of the Week.” I am proud to announce that our first ever HustleJunkie Player of the Week is Jeff Green of the Oklahoma City Thunder.

It’s becoming cliche to say the Thunder are a joy to watch this season but only because it is true. It’s not just that they play with reckless abandon because they have nothing to lose. It’s because their perfectly imperfect composition features such wonderfully different styles of ball. You have the wildly precocious grace of Kevin Durant, the unbridled athleticism of Russell Westbrook, and the piston-powered tenacity of Mr. Green.

So why Green this week? It’s not just because he has been averaging 8.3 rpg over the last 4 games. Or 21.5 ppg on 43% shooting. Or putting in a workman-like 39.4 minutes a night. It’s the manner in which he does so.

When Green plays basketball it is a celebration. His gruff, fearless style is not born of the cynicism or spite that seems to inspire other hustle junkies. His intensity is driven by respect and love: To work any less hard would be to not give the game the thanks it deserves. One day this joy may fade. As the grind of each season takes its toll, Green’s exuberance may lose a bit of its luster. But for the time being his unique combination of innocence and ruggedness have helped make him the first ever HustleJunkie Player of the Week.

Jeff Green: In the spirit of Kermit Washington, we salute you.