Know Your NBA D-League: The Canton Charge(!)

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By Mike Hanus:

Averaging 41 points, nine rebounds, six assists and 3.5 steals in his last two games, Manny Harris of the Canton Charge was named NBA D-League Performer of the Week. Having starred for the Michigan Wolverines, Harris went undrafted before being signed by the Cleveland Cavaliers last year. He spent most of his time on the bench before being waived this year, where he was signed by the D-League Canton Charge, to recover from his freezer burn (!?!?) injury. He promptly helped the Charge, who went 7-3 in their last ten games…and then Harris was called up by the Cavs on a 10-day contract, and the Charge are back to start.

Such is the life of a team in the NBA D-League, which sits in the back seat and works with the injured stars, developing talent and seasonal journeymen the NBA hopes to develop or doesn’t want in the first place. This is the first of a regular series of articles that helps you get to know your local NBA D-League team. We’ll cover some of their notable stories, give a breakdown of the roster and the upcoming calendar, and what you ought to expect when it comes to the D-League.

I Have Doubt! John Wall, Please Forgive Me

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By: Mike Hanus
I am insane for Linsanity. I am rootin’ for Rubio. I am crazy about Kyrie and kooky for Kemba. Each time I watch one of these guys play, I go nuts. I’ve supported rookie point guards from day one. Watching them is so much fun! That’s my thing; that’s what makes me love basketball. I am the number one fan for cheering these rookies on – guys who waltz into the NBA and make it look like they’ve been dishing the rock and dropping dimes for decades.  I even love their adorable bonehead turnovers. I mean, there’s bound to be growing pains; it’s their first year in the NBA! But look at that pass – it’s only their first year in the NBA! I can’t look at any of these guys and not think wow, in five years, these guys are going to be All-Stars.

I am not jumpin’ for John. I am not wacky for Wall (and these are the last alliterations), and it scares me.

Re: Chris Paul is the Best Basketball Player in the NBA (No, Really) - Really?

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[Ed: This is in response to This post]

By Bobby Lull:

Chris Paul is an excellent basketball player. One of the best. But “the best”? I (and most, if not all sensible NBA fans) beg to differ. He’s an excellent player who can control a game and is certainly leading the Clippers to new heights. His presence on the Clippers will be an absolute boon to the development of Blake Griffin, and the potential for a truly captivating Lakers/Clippers rivalry is definitely exciting. 

He is the best point guard in the NBA, despite Derrick Rose’s immense skill set. But there’s another player in the league, one whom you are slightly too hasty to dismiss, who deserves the crown of “best.” “LeBron can’t control a game the way Paul does”? Come on, man! Let me steer your attention to something that happened before you began diligently watching the NBA, before this alleged era of Chris Paul and “Lob City” (a phrase whose sudden and violent death I fully support, by the way) came upon us:

Why Chris Paul is the Best Basketball Player in the NBA (No, Really)

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by Mike Hanus:

There is no one better at the game of basketball than Chris Paul. There are better scorers, better athletes, and better players at other positions, but no one understands and flows within the game like CP3. The guy is a master; there is no one I’ve ever seen who exerts his will on the game like this.

Including LeBron. He exerts his will on other players and other teams, but he can’t control the game like Paul does. If basketball is a flowing stream, Chris Paul is a minnow. He flows within the game. LeBron is a bear who sort of crashes into things and makes a lot of splashes. Yes, he diverts the stream, yes, his sheer brawny power exerts his will on it, but I’m much more impressed with someone whose very DNA is composed of the game and understands it at its highest level.

Why the New York Knicks Wish They Had a Time Machine

Anthony Gruppuso - US PRESSWIRE*

by Carlos Cruz:

The New York Knicks have been a franchise plagued by mediocrity for more than 15 years. This does not certainly constitute a groundbreaking revelation as the New York Knickerbockers became a laughingstock immediately after the retirement of Patrick Ewing. Patrick Ewing’s retirement did not signal the end of playoff appearances for the Knicks as they made the playoffs in 2001 and 2004, but those playoff “runs” fizzled out in the first round.

The purpose of this trip down memory lane is not to rub salt in the wounds of New York fans (admittedly one of my favorite pastimes) but to question the sanity of New York basketball culture as a whole. Knicks management and fans have become so out of touch with reality that they managed to convince themselves of the arrival of a basketball savior in 2011. The alleged savior was not Amare Stoudemire, as he was regarded as a bronze medal after missing out on LeBron and Dwyane Wade. Rather, the savior coming down from the mountaintop (Denver, as it is affectionately known) was Carmelo Kiyan Anthony.