March 26, 2007 4:33 pm  |  41 Comments

Links: Ron Ron, Randolph, Mike James

Why Ron Artest is like Michael Corleone.

by Lang Whitaker

Monday! And we’ve got game notes coming out of our nose. Check out the front of the site for field reports from Kobe’s visit to New Orleans, the Mavericks in the ATL, and Melo and AI in Toronto. All great stuff. And I know we don’t say this nearly enough, but thanks again to all our writers who help keep SLAMonline.com on top.

Watched a lot of the NCAA Tournament this weekend, and guess which Final Four team I like? Georgetown. I’m not saying I like them to win it all, but I like the way they play. They set picks, they dive to the rim, they switch up their defenses, they make backdoor bounce passes — a fun team that seems to at least have a cursory understanding of basketball. And Roy Hibbert is hilarious to me. He’s out there playing hard, laboring up and down the floor, but he’s still just a bit shy of being coordinated. Can’t count how many times yesterday he accidentally crashed into guys. I still think Florida is the team to beat, mainly because of their experience.

Meanwhile, I’m totally into Kobe; he’s just not that into me. I wrote about it today for SI.com. You watch enough games where Kobe’s out there firing away, and before long you get sucked into it. You start to believe Kobe can make any shot he takes, and you start rooting for him to shoot over double-teams. It’s really addictive. Can’t wait for tomorrow night’s game against the defense-less Grizzlies.

A few things worth reading…

• Quotes of the Day:
“Everything I do, everything I say, I keep everything in perspective. The way I think, I think logically. One thing I’ve learned in life is that you cannot deny logic.” — Mike James, on his SLAM advice column.

“As of right now, I’m a Net, I will always be a Net. We’ll just go from there when it’s time.” — Vince Carter, on the possibility of leaving New Jersey via free agency. So he’s a Net, always but not always. Got it.

• This whole Ron Artest story really is amazing. One day last week, Ron Ron decided he was going to retire after the season. So he sent a text message to all his teammates informing them of his plan. This is next level stuff here. There’s also talk of Ron going overseas to play for two years until things settle down here in the States, then returning to the NBA. Like Michael Corleone.

• Mike James on his SLAM advice column. Some of his answers in that link should explain why we wanted Mike to do this column.

• A man with $38 billion cash in the bank sat courtside at the Cavs/Nuggets game. LeBron is his Anna Nicole Smith. Or something.

• Fun police alert! The NBA has asked Gilbert Arenas to stop having so being entertaining and making the NBA interesting.

• The Grizzlies are starting a campaign to help Rudy Gay win Rookie Of The Year. Probably a wise idea to use his first name and call the campaign “Rudy Air,” instead of, well…

• Kenyon Martin is changing numbers next season, going from number 6 to number 4, which he wore in college. He said 4 was taken when he joined the Nets out of Cincinnati back in the day. I just looked it up, and the Nets actually have retired number 4 in honor of…Wendell Ladner! Never heard of him either. Sounds like quite a character.

• When Josh McRoberts was thinking about leaving Duke early and going pro, did he call Carlos Boozer or Elton Brand, former Blue Devil big men? No, he got advice from JJ Redick! Who was probably all like, “It’s free money man! You don’t even have to do anything! Come on in!”

• Tracy McGrady’s back is fine, but now he’s got the flu. Someone get this man some Airborne, please.

• And finally, the Knicks have signed Randolph Morris to a two-year deal. I hear that Josh Smith is always raving about Morris (they played AAU ball together), but if this is the same Randolph Morris who didn’t do much at Kentucky the last year or so, seems like a superfluous signing to me. Don’t they already have Jerome James?

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This story is filed under: Blogs, NBA, The Links

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  • Derms Posted: Mar.26 at 4:38 pm
    Couldn’t agree more with you on G’Town. I love watching them play, and they play like I want my teams to play (I’m a coach). I hope they win, or UCLA. I can’t stand OSU or UF. Go Dawgs! FYI, today marks the 15th anniversary of Iron Mike being found guilty of rape. “stabbing women like the phantom.”

  • Russ Bengtson Posted: Mar.26 at 4:40 pm
    Wait, Kenyon Martin has a number?

  • Ben Couch Posted: Mar.26 at 4:42 pm
    Lang — that shot at JJ was brutal. But well deserved. Go Heels (Next year)! Oh yeah, and, uhmm … first.

  • Ben Couch Posted: Mar.26 at 4:42 pm
    And by first, I meant third. Stupid time delays.

  • jbn74sb Posted: Mar.26 at 4:57 pm
    So, Lang writes a column for SI, in which he pretends to compliment Kobe, all the while complaining that he jacks up shots from all over the floor (question to Lang - how is it then that Kobe leads all SG’s in assists?), does not dish like Nash (who does?), and does not play D like Bowen (aren’t we asking for a little much here?). And then he concludes the article by saying we haven’t seen this much dominance in LA since Shaq. Just pay the man a compliment Lang.

  • Nadav Mor Posted: Mar.26 at 5:00 pm
    one hope for the sake of everyone that Ron Ron doesnt become EXACTLY like Mike Corleone… (i.e. reason for leaving for Europe) though, who knows…

  • Russ Bengtson Posted: Mar.26 at 5:25 pm
    Note to Ron-Ron’s wife: LET SOMEONE ELSE START THE CAR.

  • whooo! Posted: Mar.26 at 5:37 pm
    lang’s si column says “I can’t recall the last time I saw a player with such a free reign to shoot whenever he feels like it.” so exactly what has allen iverson been doing since he came into the league? maybe i’m jumping to conclusions based on having read the previous stuff on kobe, but it seems so difficult to say something nice about the guy w/out throwing in a negative jab.

  • AP Posted: Mar.26 at 5:46 pm
    The ABA was full of characters like Wendall…Lang I am surprised that you havent read the great Loose Balls by Terry Pluto!!…that is a must read

  • Nadav Mor Posted: Mar.26 at 5:59 pm
    Russ,
    I wish Kay was in that car. Damn you, Kay.

  • Yer mama Posted: Mar.26 at 6:04 pm
    Hey Ben, hope your Heels win the championsh… Oh wait, they choked. Never mind. Go Duke!

  • Blue Posted: Mar.26 at 6:23 pm
    You’d think the higher ups in the NBA would stop signing players based on the endorsements of other players that they consider friends. You’d think they’d learned their lesson when Penny somehow got David Vaughn onto an NBA roster…or Steve Francis’ endorsement of Terrence Morris…just to name a few. Both of these players are terrific examples of loyalty and stupidity on the part of players and management (didn’t specify which was which…each fits either category)

  • Nathalie Posted: Mar.26 at 6:27 pm
    funny russ, i forgot what it was too….hum?

  • Reggie Evans Posted: Mar.26 at 6:29 pm
    Can’t believe Lang finally sees how addictive is it to watch Kobe. I find myself yelling at the screen, “Just shoot it!” whenever Kobe gets the ball. It’s awesome. It’s almost more entertaining than watching winning basketball. And sometimes, the entertaining and winning coincide.

  • dpak Posted: Mar.26 at 7:03 pm
    will ferrell’s gonna play ladner.

  • Phil B Posted: Mar.26 at 7:16 pm
    Morris didn’t do anything this year? He carried the Wildcats. I don’t even want to imagine how horrible UK would have been without Morris.

  • AP Posted: Mar.26 at 7:18 pm
    in response to Dpak…he might play ladner as he is makin a movie called Semipro
    plot: Jackie Moon (Ferrell), the owner-coach-player of the American Baketball Association’s Flint Michigan Tropics, rallies his teammates to make their NBA dreams come true http://imdb.com/title/tt0839980/
    its written by the same guy who made Old Skool…

  • MagicChicken Posted: Mar.26 at 7:20 pm
    How awesome would it be to see a player “dive to the rim” instead of drive. Sounds like a typical Kwame Brown shot-attempt

  • Hersey Posted: Mar.26 at 7:26 pm
    There’s an ABA documentary on NBATV a lot that has some good stuff on Ladner. I’m surprised too that Lang had never heard of him. He was Dr. J’s enforcer and quite the ladies man. Maybe Martin can be the same for Carmelo. I might be wrong, but isn’t Denver going to have the highest paid starting five when Martin returns next year.

  • Cheryl Posted: Mar.26 at 8:13 pm
    Okay Lang, I’ve been letting stuff slide cuz I’m not the editor (like “cause” for because–I am a professsor after all)but what the heck is “stop having so being entertaining”??? That was a doozy! :-)

  • Cheryl Posted: Mar.26 at 8:15 pm
    You know I love ya tho’, boo! Right? ;-)

  • Chris O'Leary Posted: Mar.26 at 8:47 pm
    UNC’s my team, but if they had to lose, I’m glad it was to G-Town. HIbbert’s dope, and I think he was born with four fouls.

  • AP Posted: Mar.26 at 9:02 pm
    in response to Dpak…he might play ladner as he is makin a movie called Semipro
    plot: Jackie Moon (Ferrell), the owner-coach-player of the American Baketball Association’s Flint Michigan Tropics, rallies his teammates to make their NBA dreams come true http://imdb.com/title/tt0839980/
    its written by the same guy who made Old Skool

  • Tom Jackson Posted: Mar.26 at 9:56 pm
    Wait, Kenyon Martin is still playing?

  • dj Posted: Mar.26 at 11:45 pm
    All this Kobe chatter. So the man wants to steal the spotlight from the NCAAs, Big deal. He’s been known to do this before. And i love how he didnt shoot when Odom AND walton were out, and then when they come back he decides its the right time to save his team by jacking up as many shots as possible. yeah right. I’m still not sold on Kobe scoring massive amounts of points on crappy teams in March. Call me a classic Kobe-hater, but until he goes into the SBC center in May and drops 55 on the Spurs with bowen draped all over him, or 60 against Dallas and josh howard in front of mark cuban, then we can talk.

  • Lang Whitaker Posted: Mar.27 at 12:39 am
    I know Cheryl. Busy day. Which is why I’m still up now working on another post.

  • Drolfe Posted: Mar.27 at 1:18 am
    Question to ravenous Kobe fans: If Lang were to write an 100% positive article about Kobe, wouldn’t you all be complaining about bandwagoning? I’ve noticed Lang doesnt respond to Kobe related comments on here much anymore, which I’m kinda bummed about because i love reading other people arguing, so i’ll throw my totally neutral two cents in: seems like Lang can’t win.
    For me, my favourite part of going to SI.com to read that article was finding out there’s a dude writing there with the same last name as me! John Rolfe! Get at me.

  • niQ Posted: Mar.27 at 2:16 am
    if kenyon was as good as he was in new jersey.. the nuggets would be quite the frightening team.. but honestly.. he’s disappeared in the basketball world

  • Drolfe Posted: Mar.27 at 2:24 am
    Some call it disappeared, i prefer to call to being injured.

  • Patrick Posted: Mar.27 at 2:58 am
    http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/boxscore?gid=2007032609 R. Horry DNP - Old Age! finally something better than DNP - Jason Richardson

  • Mike Posted: Mar.27 at 11:37 am
    Kenyon Martin is currently attempting to be the only NBA player (maybe the only athelete in any sport) to come back from microfracture surgery on BOTH knees. If Kenyon can even dunk when he comes back, much less play like he did in Jersey, he immediately becomes the microfracture success story and relegates Amare to second fiddle status.

  • Mike Posted: Mar.27 at 11:39 am
    Hersey: If having Martin back gives the Nuggets the league’s highest paid starting lineup, Isiah will immediately trade for as many max contracts as mathematically possible, use his entire mid-level on a new 12th man, and re-write every knicks’ player’s contracts so that they’re maxed out. He will even do a Joe Smith “wink wink” deal with a free agent, which will cost the Knicks multiple first round draft picks and large fines. Take that Nuggets.

  • Mike Posted: Mar.27 at 11:41 am
    Too bad for the rest of the league, that scenario would also result in Isiah the GM being suspended. McHale set the precedent.

  • Mike Posted: Mar.27 at 11:43 am
    Sidebar: How has Kevin Garnet not killed McHale yet? McHale totally wasted Garnet’s prime with that horrendous Joe Smith “wink wink” debacle, not to mention some dubious free agent signings, draft picks and botched trades. Isiah looks like a genious next to McHale. That puts McHale into perspective.

  • Mike Posted: Mar.27 at 11:44 am
    Think how good the Wolves could have been had they not lost 5 first round picks from the Smith ordeal. KG dragged that team into the playoffs for a few successive years with very little help. Had he had some first round picks helping him, he might have won a ring by now, or at least been out of the first round more than once.

  • Troy Posted: Mar.27 at 12:36 pm
    And what have the Wolves done with their first round picks since then? With Garnett getting them into the playoffs each year, the picks would not have been particularly high, and I’ve seen no evidence that McHale (or anyone else in the Wolves organization) have the ability to find the diamonds at the tail end of the draft.

  • Mike Posted: Mar.27 at 12:55 pm
    Troy: that is true. One positive thing I can say about Isiah is that he drafts well. McHale has done a poor job in the draft. I’m not saying McHale wouldn’t have drafted someone useless, or traded the picks for someone useless, but at least it would have given a glimmer of hope. Things look bleak in Minnesota now. Top free agents have no interest in playing there because KG’s contract takes up most of the salary cap, so they can’t get paid, and I lived on the Canadian side of the Minnesota border for 5 years. It’s cold as a mutha there in the winter. The whole organization just has a cruddy feel to it (other than KG of course).
    Wally Scdsgfdslihlhlihsdfdg may not have been a great NBA player, but at least he has a funny name. Credit McHale for bringing him into the league.

  • havoc33 Posted: Mar.27 at 1:19 pm
    Why is it that Lang is so mad cause he don’t get to see the “real” Kobe? What does that have to do with what Kob does on the basketball court? Just because you don’t get to be Kobe’s friend you hate on the guy? Pathetic.These shots, even as you try to praise him, are getting real old.

  • Dblizzy! Posted: Mar.28 at 10:02 am
    Yeah, it’s similiar to what Mutoni said about Lebron and his CEO facade. These guys are paid to play basketball, yeah its cool when you see huys like Gilbert clown around and shit like that, but NBA players are not required to provide us with that kind of entertainment. If you can’t just like them for what they do on the court, then you don’t really like basketball. I never heard you guys says those kind of things about MJ. Did we really know him, did we really see him clown around and other irrelevant shit???

  • maio Posted: Mar.28 at 10:29 am
    If I worked for SLAM without knowing who Wendell Ladner is I at least wouldn’t admit it.
    That’s a big “if” though.

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