Wednesday Gameday Observations (2/22/12)

13 game nights all but guarantee an eventful night of hoops. You can bet HoopsGrind will be soaking up all the action possible.

– Watching the first quarter and half of the Celtics-Thunder game, it’s painfully obvious that the Thunder are just a level above the Celtics.  The Thunder are clearly better even when the Celtics are with Rondo and Jermaine O’Neal.  Without them?  No chance.

– Jimmer Fredette’s defensive liabilities have been well-documented and Jordan Crawford has taken full advantage of them in the first half.  He’s been abusing Fredette every which way; outmuscling him in the post, shooting over him, and burning him off the dribble.  Jimmer’s defense is already becoming a serious issue and something he’ll have to address quickly if he wants to remain a rotation player.   Being a poor defender and putting forth effort is one thing you can live with as a coach, but being a poor defender, displaying poor fundamentals and not seeming to care on that end of the floor is another.

– Jeremy Lin‘s ability to finish around the basket with floaters and awkward flip shots is very Tony Parker–esque.

– Is there a better standstill shooter in the league than Steve “sure shot” Novak?  I’m not so sure.

– Knicks fans love to get on Jared Jeffries case for his [lack of] offense, but does anyone take more charges than this guy?

– The Knicks new look second unit with Baron Davis, JR Smith, Steve Novak, and soon Iman Shumpert is and will be a lot of fun to watch.  These guys can get buckets in a hurry.  On cue, B-Diddy throws a sweet alley oop to JR Smith.

– I’d like to see Jeremy Lin and Baron Davis play together with Davis handling the playmaking duties and Lin playing off the ball the way he used to at Harvard.  It could help alleviate Lin’s turnover problems and allow him to look for his offense more.

– Knicks fans have to love what they’re seeing from Landry Fields since the emergence of his buddy Lin.  He doesn’t look to be giving up that starting spot anytime soon.

– John Wall can really fill up the stat sheet.  He’s on pace for a triple double (19 points, 9 assists, 7 rebounds,3 steals, and 2 blocks) with the fourth quarter left to play.

– I really didn’t think Isaiah Thomas would be able to score as well as he has in the NBA.  His mid range game is much better than I remember from his Washington days.  Thomas’ defense is better than you’d think for a guy his size.  The Kings really got a steal with the 60th pick in the draft.

– Atlanta is trapping Lin hard as soon as he crosses half court.  A good time to put another point guard on the floor perhaps?  D’Antoni should give Toney Douglas a chance at redemption.

– The number of Jeremy Lin doubters is decreasing by the minute.  He’s playing like and carrying himself like a bonafide star player.

– Avery Bradley has the potential to become the best defender at the point guard position in the league.  I truly believe that.  His combination of quickness and anticipation make him a nightmare to bring the ball up against.

– Shout out to Gustavo Ayon who had 17 rebotes today.  Definitely a creative, yet shrewd signing for the league owned Hornets.

– The Hawks cut into the lead and who does Mike D’Antoni choose to send into the game to close it out?  Jeremy Lin and Tyson Chandler – while Melo and Amar’e ride the pine.  That’s very telling of the Knicks recent success.

– Dominique Jones is a nice player to have at the end of your bench.  He’s athletic, intense, and is always in attack mode.  Even with the loss of several key role players, I think this Mavericks’ squad  is better than last year if everyone stays healthy.

– Another T-Wolves game coming down to the last shot.  What’s new?  Derrick Williams and JJ Barea were huge down the stretch to help the Wolves get back into it, let’s see if they can finish the job now.

– Finish they do! Luke Ridnour hits a floater at the buzzer to win it for the Wolves!  Huge win for Minnesota.

I’m loving the playoff atmosphere in Dallas.  I’ll never understand how Dirk consistently gets that off balance fadeaway to go in.

What a finish to the Mavs-Lakers game…

That’s it for today!  Until tomorrow, HoopsGrind signing out.