No Blood No Foul We breakdown NBA basketball players, coaches, teams, matchups, games, and all the headlines. We go after the news reports and find the stories that the media doesn’t give you. We show you the best posts from the best bloggers we know of. Statistics Unique Visitors: Total Unique Visitors: Outgoing: Total Outgoing: 0 0 0 3609

Articles from No Blood No Foul

Will Memphis Trade Mike Miller Away Next? 2008-02-01 20:01:12 Now that the Memphis Grizzlies have shipped out Pau Gasol for a rookie, an expiring contract, and two draft picks, it’s pretty clear that Memphis is all about dumping salary…which brings us to Mike Miller. Over-sized, over-paid and under-publicized, Mike Miller is a league-leading 3pt shooter that can pass a little and pull down a rebound or two. He’s got a goofy haircut, a personality made for a big market, and two and half years left on a $9+ million dollar contract. But he can shoot. Really well. I can think of a lot of teams that would value Miller quite highly - overpaid and all. Miami, for instance, had interest in Miller earlier this season. Even more interesting, consider this - Memphis now has multiple first-round draft picks, three young promising PGs, a big expiring contract (Brown), and a top-notch shooter with a livable contract (Miller). In other words, they’ve got enough pieces to make a trade for a big-time star.  It’s hard to imagine, bu ...

Please, Trade Kidd To The Knicks 2008-01-28 00:53:09 It’s been said that Jason Kidd recently requested a trade through his agent, adding to the wild trade rumors that get NBA fans so excited every winter. I’ve spent the last couple of hours trying to figure out where Kidd would, could, or should go, and I’ve drawn a big zero. Unless it’s a three team trade, I don’t see any way that Kidd leaves NJ before the trade deadline. Most contending teams would have to nuke their current rosters to make a deal for Kidd, and the resulting chaos might ruin the team. However, there is a possible trade partner, and they’re just up the street… Jason Kidd to the NY Knicks for Zach Randolph and Jamal Crawford. (more…) ...

Minnesota: Trade Jaric and Craig Smith To Denver 2008-01-18 13:47:04 Minnesota doesn’t need Marko Jaric (but Adriana Lima does). His contract is expensive ($25 million left including this season). By the time the rest of the T-wolves hit their stride, Jaric (currently 29) is going to be too old to be of any use. Finally, Jaric’s not really known as a locker-room leader. He just wants to show up, do his job, then go home to his hot girlfriend (my kind of guy). But that’s not to say Jaric’s a bad player. His skill set isn’t league leading, but he’s got good range (better than 37% 3pt shooting the last couple of years), he’s a decent passer, and he can play a little “D”. He’s also got good size for a point guard (listed at 6′7″). He provides size, shooting, and above average perimeter defense when he plays. In other words, Marko Jaric is exactly what the Nuggets need at point guard. (more…) ...

Does Shaq Make Sense In Dallas? 2008-01-08 15:27:38 If you watched Dallas in last year’s playoffs, you know they needed a post player - bad. Dampier (who wasn’t available when Dallas was upset last year by Golden State) is really the Mav’s best post option right now, but he’s still coming back from injury…and let’s face it, Dampier’s not exactly a dominating presence. While Dirk’s post play seems to have improved, he seems a little soft to really bang in the paint. In other words, Dallas still needs a post player. Dallas knows they don’t quite have enough to get over the hump right now, so they’ve been exploring a trade for Jason Kidd. While I’m a huge fan of Jason Kidd, I don’t think he makes Dallas a championship team because he doesn’t help them in the post. But what about Shaq? Riley has hinted that he might be available saying that a contending team would “value Shaq’s production” (then quickly denying a trade is possible - ya right). ...

What’s Wrong Phoenix? 2008-01-04 09:08:55 Phoenix keeps winning games, but something is different this year. Nash and Amare look great, and Grant Hill looks better than he has in 10 years, but something is still wrong. They’re not the team they were last year. Part of the problem might be the “been there, done that” feel the regular season must have for the Suns. They have demolished teams in the regular season for the past 3 years, but they kept coming up short in the playoffs. Maybe they’re thinking the regular season isn’t too important. (more…) ...

Celtics “Weak Schedule” Talk Is All Wrong 2008-01-02 08:48:29 Enough with the “weak schedule” talk. It’s just the easy way out for crap basketball analysts who haven’t taken the time to watch the Celtics and break down their strengths and weaknesses. The Celtics have absolutely crushed most every team they have faced. They have played every good team in the east including Orlando and Cleveland twice. They have demolished so-called contending west teams like Denver and L.A., and beat a damn good Jazz team in Utah’s building. Furthermore, they have embarrassed teams to the point that they have resorted to cheap shots to salvage their pride. (more…) ...

Celtics Naysayers VINDICATED! 2007-12-19 21:14:47 I hope everyone in Boston watched the fourth quarter of tonight’s Celtics-Pistons game, because it perfectly highlighted everything that’s wrong with the Celtics. 1) Rajon Rondo is the weakest link. Sure, he had a good game stats wise, but how badly was he abused by Chauncey Billups? Don’t get me wrong, in two or three years Rondo is going to be one helluva player, but it’s much too soon to expect so much from someone so young. 2) The Celtics bench is weak. I’m amazed that anyone ever thought any different, but amazingly some people seem to think Boston has a good bench. Tonight’s game showed quite the opposite — Boston’s bench only scored 5 points and shot 22%!! A terrible performance. (more…) ...

The Nuggets Are About To Get A Whole Lot Better 2007-12-19 16:07:42 The Nuggets, in the words of the Nugg Doctor, have a lot to look forward to. Nene is getting ready to return, Chucky Atkins is coming back, and with the return of these two players (along with Steven Hunter) the Nuggets will have a healthy squad once again. With Nene’s return, the Nuggets have a dominant scoring big man that will allow Camby and Kenyon Martin to play more like they’re accustomed — off the ball, flying all over the court for blocks and rebounds. With Atkins return, the Nuggets will have a reliable shooter that will punish teams for loading up on A.I. and Melo’. But will it be enough? (more…) ...

10 Most Likely NBA Stars To Be Traded (Starting Tomorrow) 2007-12-14 10:21:53 As we all know, December 15th is an important date as far as making an NBA trade is concerned. By rule, it’s the first day that free agents signed during the summer can be traded. Typically, this flexibility opens up a lot of trade possibilities and triggers some shuffling. So, without further delay, here’s my list of the ten NBA players most likely to be traded beginning Dec. 15th. (more…) ...

How Pat Riley Damaged Varejao’s Cavs Contract Negotiations 2007-12-10 12:50:51 OK — first, let me say this is a totally unsubstantiated conspiracy theory and that it has very little basis in fact. But considering how smart Riley is, and his predisposition to Machiavellian behavior, it seems likely that he would interfere in a conference rival’s free-agent negotiations if he thought it would help his team. Here’s how it happened (or at least how I would have done it if I were Riley): (more…) ...

The Celtics Big Three On Track To Fail 2007-11-25 17:18:03 Friday, November 2nd. The Celtics destroyed the Wizards 103 - 83. The game was over by halftime. Wednesday, November 7th. The Celtics wrecked the Nuggets 119 - 93. Nuggets coach George Karl and superstar Allen Iverson both said it was one of the worst beatings they suffered in their careers. Friday, November 9th. The Celtics blasted the Hawks 106 - 83. They had a 14pt lead at halftime and never looked back. Tuesday, November 13th. The Celtics powered by the Pacers 101 - 86, proving they can win big on the road. Wednesday, November 14th. The Celtics embarrassed the Nets 91 - 69 and hit 7-0. Wednesday, November 21st. The Celtics pounded the Warriors 105 - 82. The Celtics went up by 9 pts at the end of the first and stayed in control the rest of the way. So what’s the problem? Garnett, Pierce, and Ray Allen averaged 35 minutes in blowout games!! (more…) ...

Denver Should Trade Nene For Ron Artest 2007-11-08 23:07:42 With the Nuggets Nene out for at least the next 6 weeks, it might be time to consider making a trade. It’s no secret that Denver shopped Marcus Camby during the off-season, hoping to find a younger player that could replace Camby and also get Denver out of the luxury tax. Denver’s urge to avoid the luxury tax is so great that they traded Reggie Evans for the 76er’s Steven Hunter and a throw-in during the off-season - a lopsided trade in Philadelphia’s favor. Clearly, the Nuggets want to get out of luxury tax territory and they’re willing to trade a key big man to do it. So why not trade Nene for Ron Artest? (more…) ...

Enver Nuggets Need “D” - More Beatings To Come? 2007-11-08 13:13:06 Almost two months ago, I said that the Nuggets weren’t a championship squad. I said they’re biggest failings were terrible defense and a lack of three point shooting. Here we are five games into the season, and here’s what I can tell you about Denver: 1. This team needs a point guard. This isn’t really a defensive problem, but part of the reason the Nuggets got hammered in Boston last night was their lack of a point guard. AI is an excellent playmaker, but he should spend a lot of time working off the ball in order to spread the opposing team’s defense and bring some balance to the offense. Too often, AI’s ball pounding puts the rest of the Nuggets in the “stand and watch” mode, (more…) ...

The New Celtics: Who Are These Guys? 2007-11-08 11:51:30 It’s been weird watching the Celtics throughout the pre-season and the first couple games of the year. For those of us who have followed the Celtics the last few years, it almost doesn’t feel like we’re watching our own team. It is more than just the additions of Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen. The team has been remade from top to bottom into a legitimate force. When the second unit checks in, I am still expecting Ray Allen and Gerald Green to come in and toss up shot after shot while playing little to no defense. Instead, Eddie House has been coming in and tossing up shot after shot and playing little to no defense. (more…) ...

Nuggets Bucks Preseason Game Recap 2007-10-24 01:34:17 I was lucky enough to get my hands on a 10th row ticket for tonight’s Nuggets-Bucks preseason game, and I decided to bring along my camera and post a couple of photos along with my observations. (more…) ...