DH - Ay you make it this year?!AB - Nahhhhhhhhhhhhhh...
Well, I was wrong. Andrew Bynum won't be the starting Center for the West All Stars as he got about half or less than half of Amare Stoudemire's 1.8ish million votes, which was probably his best chance given that Yao was out for the season and Shaq had moved to the East again.
I cry bull shit.
In that earlier post I mentioned that the only way Bynum wouldn't get it would be if he got injured, or Tim Duncan or Amare Stoudemire were listed as Centers on the ballot. In which case, if they out performed Bynum (which they did), their vote in to the starting lineup would be justified. But to be listed as a Center, you better be playing Center for your team. Amare Stoudemire is a tall guy playing forward for the Suns. Not Center. Who's been starting at Center every game this season except the last two games? Channing Frye. Who started at Center for the last two games? No, they didn't move Amare up a position, they started Robin Lopez.
Well whatever Suns. You wanted a guaranteed Suns player in the biggest all star game in history at the 80,000 seat Dallas stadium (by the way, why would anyone go if they had anything but really good seats? Anything around the 300 section equivalent to an NBA arena is going to be watching tiny ants dunking a split atom. Yes they have that jumbo jumbo jumbo tron but who goes to a live basketball game to watch a large TV above the live game?) Anyway...
The Suns wanted that guaranteed spot. They knew Yao was out and Shaq was in the East. They knew Chris Paul could easily take the starting guard spot over Nash if his team was playing better (and TMAC of all people almost edged him out). They knew Amare probably wouldn't have been voted in over Tim Duncan (all star constant), Carmelo Anthony (after an all star like performance against the Lakers in the playoffs), Dirk Nowitzki (first team all NBA last season), and maybe Pau Gasol (huge part of the Laker championship last season). They knew he'd put up around 20 points and 10 rebounds with high flying dunks and alley-oops from Nash while Bynum would put up around 15 and 8 (2009 stats) on not so many fast break high flying dunks and hook shots and post moves and on a stacked Laker team that has 5 guys that can put up 30 if they wanted to and hey! He might injure his knee again!
And yet the suns LIED. They played Amare at Forward every game this season while Channing Frye brought out opposing Centers because he can hit the 3 pointer so Amare could cut and have the lane all to himself, not to mention taking the defensive responsibilities from the other league's centers so Amare didn't have to (although Amare having to guard the leagues PFs isn't that much easier).
Well, maybe in another lifetime Bynum. Amare's high fly act won the fans' affection and adoration which lead to your assassination in the voting polls. You increased your PPG by a point, shot over 55%, increased your FT% by 3%, stayed out of foul trouble, and played good defense against the league's top centers. You were the best Center in the west (Biedrins, Camby and Kaman [LAC record], Marc Gasol, Hawes, Jefferson, Nene, Oden, Okafor, and Okur) and you lost to a forward. That sucks.
Little sloppy, but thunderous no doubt.
Yes Amare's probably a better scorer than Bynum, but they are two different positions. If Amare played center for the Suns, this post would never have happened. Good day.
3 comments:
Excellent point. If they're going to put a non-center there, it should be Dirk, not Stat. Or Z-Bo (man, I hate writing that).
Not sure I agree that Bynum got shafted, though. I happen to think Chris Kaman is a complete imbecile but he's probably the most deserving true C in the West this season (not named Duncan, the so-called PF).
Yeah I agree, Kaman has been balling this year and it's not even a contract year. If LAC's record was just a tad bit better he'd be more deserving.
I mainly said he got shafted just cuz he was 2nd in votes when Amare shouldn't even had been there. Dirk and Duncan would have been more deserving and they played by the rules, being listed as forwards on the ballot and their respective teams.
Marc Gasol!? he's been doing some nice things for the surprise Grizz
Post a Comment