Andy Natalie's Philadelphia 76ers friend's fan blogs

1.  Kareem Abdul-Jabbar:  6 titles.  The NBA's all time leading scorer.

2.  Wilt Chamberlain:  2 titles.  Once scored 100 points in a game.  The league changed rules because he was so dominant.

3.  Bill Russell:  11 titles.  Best defensive center ever. 

4.  Shaquille O'Neal:  Most physically dominating basketball player ever.  4 titles.

5.  Hakeem Olajuwon:  Back to back titles.  Dozens of post moves.  Great defender.

6.  Moses Malone:  1 title.  The best offensive rebounder of all time.  Great scorer.

7.  David Robinson:  2 titles.  Great all around player.  Very athletic.  Won a scoring title.  

8.  Bill Walton:  The best passing big man ever.  2 titles.  Selfless.

Continue reading "The 10 Greatest Centers Ever"

1.  Tim Duncan:  4 titles.  "The Big Fundamental".   Some of the best low post moves ever, and outstanding defender.

2.  Karl Malone:  2nd all time leading scorer in NBA history.  Lethal in the pick & roll.  Great scorer.

3.  Kevin McHale:  3 titles.  Unlimited diversity in his low post game.  

4.  Kevin Garnett:  1 title.  Very versatile and athletic.  Great defender and rebounder.  Brings it every night.

5.  Charles Barkley:  Unbelievable work ethic and will to rebound, especially at his height.  Fierce competitor.

6.  Bob Pettit:  The first power forward.  Won 1 title, actually beating Bill Rusell and Bob Cousy. 

Continue reading "The 10 Greatest Power Forwards Ever"

Pat Burrell had hit 251 home runs up to this year, and obviously hadn't hit any against a team with "Philadelphia" tagged in front of its team name, since drafted 1st overall by the team in 1998. Up until now.

Burrell blasted a 2-run homer in the 2nd inning of the Phillies-Rays World Series rematch from last year, at Tropicana Field, scoring Carlos Pena and giving the Rays (not to be confused with the "Devil Rays" of extinction, formerly) an early lead that would bulster.  The wheels came off in the bottom of the 8th when middle reliever JC Romero gave up 4 hits, a walk & a hit batter in his outing.  

Jimmy Rollins continued to struggle with the bat. He went 0-4 tonight, lowering his average, to .211- barely over the mendoza line.  He'll look for another chance to pick his game up, tomorrow night vs. Andy Sonnanstine. 

Continue reading "Mistakes Made and Pitching Counts; Phillies falter to Rays, giving up 5 in the 8th"

1.  Larry Bird:  3 titles, 3 straight MVP awards, and countless clutch shooting moments.  

2.  Scottie Pippen:  6 titles.  The best sidekick ever.  One of the best perimeter defenders ever.  

3.  Elgin Baylor:  Averaged 27.4 pp and 13.5 rpg, and a truly dominant scorer, but could never beat the Celtics.  

4.  Julius Erving:  One of the best finishers and dunkers ever.  Extremely athletic.  His ABA career was dominant too.  1 title.

5.  John Havlicek:  8 titles.  Coming off the bench or starting, he could score from anywhere.  

6.  LeBron James (still rising):  Career averages of 27.5 ppg, 7.0 rpg, and 6.7 apg, youngest player to 10,000 points.  

Continue reading "The 10 Greatest Small Forwards Ever"

1.  Michael Jordan:  6 titles.  3rd on the all time scoring list.  The greatest ever.  Easy choice.  

2.  Kobe Bryant:  4 titles, and counting.  Once scored 81 in a game.  Unlimited shooting range. 

3.  Jerry West:  "The Logo"  "Mr. Clutch" Outstanding shooter.  Won 1 title.

4.  Allen Iverson:  Scored in bunches.  Unbelievable what he did at his size.  Couldn't be stopped from getting to the rim.

5.  George Gervin:  His "Finger Roll" was deadly.  Once scored a record 33 points in a single quarter. 

6.  Clyde Drexler:  One of the best finishers on a fast break ever.  Won 1 title.  

7.  Reggie Miller:  Currently the 3 point king.  Amazing at running off screens and catching and shooting.  Clutch.  

Continue reading "The 10 Greatest Shooting Guards Ever"

1.  Magic Johnson:  Won 5 titles, is 4th all time in assists with over 10,000, and was the best ever at running the fast break.  

2.  John Stockton:  The NBA's all time leader in assists (almost 16,000) and steals (over 3,000).  Ultra durable & consistent.  Destroyed teams with the pick and roll.  

3.  Bob Cousy:  Won 6 titles with the NBA's best dynasty, and led the league in assists 8 straight years.  Revolutionized passing.

4.  Oscar Robertson:   Once averaged a triple-double in a single season, and over his first 5 years, averaged 30.3 ppg, 10.6 apg, and 10.4 rpg as well.  5th all time in assists with almost 10,000.  A great post up point guard, and won 1 title.

5.  Isiah Thomas:  Won back to back titles in 1989 and 1990, and could score from anywhere on the court.  Extremely tough and great defender.  6th all time in assists with over 9,000. 

Continue reading "The 10 Greatest Point Guards Ever"

All these are guys getting paid too much for their current value.  Obviously, some are getting paid on the back end of contracts from their younger days. 

08-09 money

Ray Allen 18 mil

Larry Hughes 13 mil

Edddy Curry 10 mil

Sam Dalembert 11 mil

Shawn Marion 17 mil

Brad Miller 11 mil

Ben Wallace 14.5 mil

Wally Szczerbiak 13 mil

Zydrunas Ilgauskus 11 mil

Allen Iverson 22 mil

Rasheed Wallace 13.5 mil

Michael Redd 16 mil

Jermaine O'Neal 21 mil

Rashard Lewis 17 mil

Jason Kidd 21 mil

Erick Dampier 9.5 mil

Tracy McGrady 21 mil

Darko Milicic 7 mil

Peja Stojakovic 13 mil

Kenyon Martin 14 mil

Raef Lafrentz 13 mil

Andrei Kirilenko 15 mil

Zach Randolph 14.5 mil

Continue reading "Bad 08-09 NBA contracts"

1.  Julius Erving:  Dr. J

2.  Dominique Wilkins:  The Human Highlight Reel

3.  George Gervin:  The Iceman

4.  Ervin Johnson:  Magic

5.  Michael Jordan:  Air Jordan

6.  Pete Maravich:  Pistol Pete

7.  Larry Bird:  Larry Legend

8.  Karl Malone:  The Mailman

9.  Vinny Johnson:  The Microwave

10.  Earl Monroe:  The Pearl 

11.  Stacey Augmon:  Plastic Man

12.  Oscar Robertson:  The Big O

13.  Lloyd Bernard Free:  World B. Free

14.  Hakeem Olajuwon:  The Dream

15.  Charles Barkley:  The Round Mound of Rebound/Sir Charles

16.  Darryl Dawkins:  Chocolate Thunder

Continue reading "The 50 Best NBA Nicknames Ever"

From about 2000-2005, Steve Francis was one of the most electrifying players in the NBA.  Awesome in the dunk contest.  He was Yao Ming's sidekick and good friend. Today?  Who knows.  On the brink of retirement?  I'm not sure.  I dont think anybody is.  We dont even know if he'll ever get another contract.  So what happened?  In 2005 he was traded to Orlando for Tracy McGrady.  That season, he averaged a still solid 16.2 points per game with Orlando, and was traded the next year again to New York.  Right around this time, the wheels started to come off for Francis.  His point totals dropped to 10.8 per game. He seemed very unhappy with where he was at in his career, and then injuries struck.  His injuries have been kind of se

Continue reading "What Happened To Steve Francis???"

One thing I love to do is compare current players with former players.  Yeah, I know "its not fair", but I dont care.  Its' fun.  I think Pau Gasol is like Kevin Mchale in so many ways, it's crazy.  First of all, the physical similarities are there.  They're both tall, thin, white power forwards with long arms and a wide variety of post moves, left or right handed.  Gasol can play center, but he prefers playing power forward. They're career stats mirror each other too.  Here are Kevin McHale's per game career stats:  17.9 points, 7.3 rebounds, 1.7 blocks, 55 fg%, 79.8 ft%, 7.0 fg made.  Now look how similar Pau Gasol's per game career stats are to McHales:  18.8 points, 8.7 rebounds, 1.7 blocks, 52 fg%, 73.8 ft%, 7.0 fg made.  Yep, they both average the

Continue reading "Pau Gasol=Kevin McHale"