Poor Man's Commish » asianballers

Odds stacked against Jeremy Lin to make the NBA

poormanscommish — Fri, 25 Jun 2010 18:58:46 +0000

Now that the NBA Draft is done, what are the chances of actually making the NBA? Here are some interesting numbers as analyzed by a Utah Jazz blogger. The data was collected for a ten-year period up through the 2007 NBA Draft. With Jeremy Lin projected not getting drafted at all, you can see that his chances of merely making the NBA are now even more astronomical than merely getting drafted. Still, it isn’t impossible and has been done before, as Warrior fans well know with Anthony Morrow and the recent spattering of D-League players…

(click to enlarge)

Excerpted from: JAZZ: Locke’s Jazz Report, 2009-10

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Portsmouth prospecting: Jeremy Lin’s hidden numbers

poormanscommish — Sat, 22 May 2010 00:45:45 +0000

While ballyhooing the performances of Jerome Randle and Mikhail Torrance, I also reported the consensus that Jeremy Lin is a bonafide point guard prospect. I shall now present to you further evidence of his value to a team at the point position, perhaps more-so than even Randle or Torrance, backed by numbers.

Can you guess which of these stats correspond to which player?…

PER-40: 18.2 ppg, 11.6 apg, 2.7 spg, 5.3 tpg, assist-to-turnover: 2.2
PER-40: 15.7 ppg, 9.1 apg, 4.1 spg, 4.1 tpg, assist-to-turnover: 2.2
PER-40: 23.9 ppg, 8.3 apg, 0.5 spg, 6.4 tpg, assist-to-turnover: 1.3

These are the numbers from the three-game performances at Portsmouth, normalized to per-forty-minutes, and listed in order of assists-per-game (actually, per forty minutes). Which one would you take as your point guard? I’ll match the stats to the players at the end of this blogpost.

As you can see in the embedded YouTube clip above, Jeremy demonstrated his point guard acumen. His second and third games were even better. Before the third game, I even told him that Randle and Torrance had incredible games the night before, so if there was a UConn or Georgetown performance left in him, now would be a good time to bust that out.

Only he would be able to tell you if he took my suggestion to heart, but he almost did bust out. In his third and last Portsmouth game, he scored 13 points, but went 0-for-4 from the free throw line, so he easily could’ve finished with 17. He had a typical day at the office from the floor, going 6-for-7. He went 1-for-2 from beyond the arc. He collected 7 assists, had 4 steals, and blocked a shot. However, he committed 5 turnovers, 2 of them right before halftime after getting too deep under the basket, and after having a really strong stretch of play leading up to that. Those turnovers kind of took the wind out of the sails and he couldn’t muster up another stretch like that in the second half.

As I have maintained since the day I saw him first play in the Summer of 2008, he’s the ultra-unique type of guy you want on a talented team. Someone who will distribute and facilitate. Someone who doesn’t need to shoot, but makes the most of his shots.

The point guard I want on my team also can make steals to start fastbreaks, as well as block a shot or two every now and then on defense.

Here are the answers…

Randle: 18.2 ppg, 11.6 apg, 2.7 spg, 5.3 tpg, assist-to-turnover: 2.2
Jeremy: 15.7 ppg, 9.1 apg, 4.1 spg, 4.1 tpg, assist-to-turnover: 2.2
Torrance: 23.9 ppg, 8.3 apg, 0.5 spg, 6.4 tpg, assist-to-turnover: 1.3

With Randle, you’ll see that he’s got high points per game and high turnovers, which means he dominates the ball and can tend to take more gambles than you’d like. It’s even more acute for Torrance, who has an alarming rate of turnovers. The low steals-per-forty is also an indication that Torrance doesn’t necessarily turn defensive possessions into offensive ones, although he does play solid straight-up defense.

With the blocked shots, we had this by game…

Randle: 0, 0, 0.
Jeremy: 0, 1, 1.
Torrance: 0, 2, 0.

So, who’s making more things happen on the court, both on the offensive and defensive ends? Well, they all are (maybe not so much Randle on the defensive end), but if there’s a way to impact both ends of the floor without actually relying on scoring, albeit a huge facet of the game of basketball, Jeremy’s doing that.

That is the underlying thesis that I’ve been trying to get across for the past two years. Now there is hard evidence and relevant context.

Let’s take Goran Dragic, for example. He backs up Steve Nash on the Phoenix Suns. Occasionally, Dragic will have great stretches of play where you can actually envision him carrying the torch after Nash retires. Dragic is very unselfish and his approach to the game is just like Jeremy’s: a facilitator, a distributor.

Granted, if I were to choose between the two, right now I’d have to pick Dragic over Jeremy for the obvious reason that Dragic has already proven himself at the relevant level. Dragic is taller and has a nice three-point shot, while Jeremy is more explosive from point A to B and can make things happen on defense. But they have very similar approaches to the game.

Sometimes when people dismiss Jeremy’s chances for the NBA, what gets lost is the importance of role players, the reality of the job of being an NBA GM. It’s not all about the superstars. Remember, 20% of the rosters this past season were filled by D-Leaguers.You might also like:

Duggan: Jeremy Lin’s first NBA workout next week

poormanscommish — Wed, 12 May 2010 07:41:54 +0000

Not to steal the thunder, but Dan Duggan of the Boston Herald is about the only one outside of Jeremy Lin’s agent and family who has access to his progress. Jeremy’s currently in Las Vegas training at Impact/Abunassar. He trained there last summer (along with his two brothers). And Jeremy has his first workout with an NBA franchise lined up next week, presumably thanks to his agent Roger Montgomery.

Oh, how I wish I could see him go up against Sherron Collins on a daily basis. Jeremy says he’s “holding his own” and working on his 3-point shooting (better), dribbling (not going quite as rapidly as he’d like), and defense.

It’s good to know Jeremy’s in good hands, but the fact is, he still remains off all of the mock draft boards (e.g., far below Collins). On the other hand, IMHO I believe an NBA GM will pick him in the 2nd round primarily because he’s Asian-American. Hey, it is what it is. Remember, the NBA is a business.

While I’m sure purists would prefer he be picked based on merit, you have to remember that the 2nd round is a bit of a crapshoot. Don’t even try to get inside the minds of NBA executives who have a myriad of hidden variables and/or agendas at play.

I’ve said before that I believe Jeremy’s talent gives him 1st round plausibility, but unlike guys like Gordon Hayward (Final Four pedigree) or Daniel Orton (UK and hype by whom he’s training with), Jeremy doesn’t have enough behind-the-scenes, power-broking “he-said-she-said” going for him. Note: This is complete, unsubstantiated speculation on my part (a gut feel).

To let the floodgates open, I’m not sure that the 2nd round is based on merit at all because 2nd round draftees do not automatically get guaranteed contracts. Again, this is just my opinion. More on this in a future blogpost.

You can follow Duggan on Twitter at http://twitter.com/dduggan21. He has promised a follow-up report on Jeremy’s workouts.

Read the whole article:
http://news.bostonherald.com/blogs/sports/oncampus/?p=217&srvc=home&position=recentYou might also like:

The scientific reason for the Jeremy Lin love

poormanscommish — Tue, 04 May 2010 18:53:00 +0000

The reasons why Asian-Americans care and root for Jeremy Lin can now be explained scientifically. The study was actually based on African-Americans showing empathy for other African-Americans as a result of the plight with Hurricane Katrina. The following is an excerpt from a blog that reported the findings…

“The take home point, says the study’s author Joan Chiao, is that our ability to identify with another person dramatically changes how much we can feel the pain of another and how much we’re willing to help them. Details are reported in the journal NeuroImage.”

Read the whole article at: Strong racial identity intensifies empathy « Futurity.org

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Rafe Bartholomew on Filipino/Pinoy hoops

poormanscommish — Fri, 30 Apr 2010 21:57:05 +0000

Do you know how popular basketball is in the Philippines? We’ve had blogposts about three Dream League tournament MVPs ending up on the same roster in the PBA, but aside from references like that, do you really know how popular basketball is in “the PI”? Someone very qualified is here to give you the proper context.

His name is Rafe Bartholomew and he’s coming out with a book next month that talks about this very thing: “Pacific Rims: Beermen Ballin’ in Flip-Flops and the Philippines’ Unlikely Love Affair with Basketball”.

Through my homies at GSoM, I’m happy to say that I’m getting an advanced copy of the book to review. I’ll be in talks with the publicist on how to get the book pushed through the Dream League community (10,000 Asian-American rec ballers strong!).

Inspiration for this blogpost goes to HoopsHype, which tweeted they were shocked to find Manila ranking 5th in total number of hits in the world on their site, after mega-metros NY, LA, Chicago, and Toronto of North America.

Here’s a blogpost on Free Darko by Bartholomew, where you can find the awesome photo of a Filipino kid dunking on a wooden backboard in a rural area in the Philippines: http://freedarko.blogspot.com/2010/02/fd-guest-lecture-where-magaling-happens.html

Here’s a recent interview with Bartholomew: In the Bullpen

Here’s the full text of the press release, as forwarded to me by GSoM…

IN THE PHILIPPINES, AUTHOR RAFE BARTHOLOMEW WAS IN SEARCH OF
A CULTURAL PHENOMENON…
A NATION’S FIERCE DEVOTION TO THE GAME OF BASKETBALL.

HE FOUND THE SOUL OF THE GAME.

PACIFIC RIMS
BEERMEN BALLIN’ IN FLIP-FLOPS
AND THE PHILIPPINES’ UNLIKELY LOVE AFFAIR WITH BASKETBALL

They play on earthen courts. Hoops are nailed to coconut trees. Backboards are made out of the rusted hoods of old cars. Rims sport hand-woven nets. But on these often primitive courts there is an elevated level of skill and artistry. Here, body-twisting, triple-clutching hang-time is used for sublime “circus” shots that nearly every player seems capable of.

This is basketball in the Philippines.

The Philippines. A politically unhinged land with no international reputation for basketball. Somehow the sport is a cultural force. It’s not only a pastime, it’s a passion. Hoops are everywhere. The game is a part of everyday life and brings joy to almost everyone. There simply is no other game.

The ball doesn’t bounce high off the dirt, but the Filipino version of the sport is a fast-paced, brutal ballet in flip-flops. When Rafe Bartholomew read about the fierce Filipino infatuation with basketball he needed to witness it for himself. Bartholomew—a Fulbright scholar, full-court fanatic and self-proclaimed hoops savant—left for the Philippines as a trailblazing basketball anthropologist.

The result of his journey is an intriguing cross-cultural study of an improbable hoops nation, “PACIFIC RIMS: Beermen Ballin’ in Flip-Flops and the Philippines’ Unlikely Love Affair with Basketball” (New American Library). Stretching a Fulbright stipend meant for one year to three, Bartholomew blends into the culture as much as a relatively tall Caucasian man can in the Philippines. He splits his time between pick-up games and documenting the modest, but inspiring hoop dreams occurring around him.

Could forty million undeniably short men with an average height five-foot-five be so obsessed with the big man’s game that is basketball? Absolutely. Basketball has been the country’s dominant team game since the 1930s and somewhere along the line Filipinos developed a strong emotional bond. From day one, it was obvious to Bartholomew that the Filipino fanaticism for the sport was deeply ingrained.

In PACIFIC RIMS, Bartholomew also follows the nation’s exceedingly popular professional league. Playing from night to night in sweltering heat and in front of truly frothy fans, the players in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) are the icons of the country. In the old days, basketball in the Philippines was the equivalent of a street fight in shorts. But today, the pro game is an echo of the American game with imported superstars, contract negotiations, advertising revenue, playoff runs and a desire for good team chemistry. And with teams like the Talk-N-Text Phone Pals, the Purefoods Chunkee Giants, the San Miguel Beermen, Purefoods Tender Juicy Giants, and the Great Taste Coffeemakers, there is no denying the sport’s marketability. In the arenas, nuns share aisles with television starlets. At home, families end their evenings with PBA doubleheaders. Everyone watches.

PACIFIC RIMS also chronicles
* The ascent of basketball as Filipinos learned to play before the rest of the world.
* How basketball in the postwar years became a way for the Philippines’ to reassert their worthiness as a nation.
* Why basketball is more popular than soccer in the Philippines.
* How longtime dictator Ferdinand Marcos used his sponsorship of the game as a basketball-for-votes quid pro quo.
* The life and trials of expat international ball.
* The Filipino career of NBA washout Billy Ray Bates—one of the greatest doomed tragic heroes in the history of the sport.
* The ballplayers—homegrown and imported—who have become legends.
* The “circus” shots used in Filipino roundball (e.g. the yo-yo shot, armpit shot, etc.)
* The basketball court’s all-purpose role in rural life in the Philippines.
* The newest Filipino basketball sensation: midgets vs. transvestites. Colloquially called “skirts vs. squirts”. Seriously.
* How Rafe—a head taller than most Filipinos—immersed himself into Filipino culture.

With an odd and oddly appealing cast of characters, PACIFIC RIMS is a swashbuckling tale of ferocious fandom, fast-paced action, sprain-defying leaps in flip-flops, beloved rituals of mass humiliation, and transcendent moments with generous helpings of derring-do.

PACIFIC RIMS is basketball poetry and a chronicle of one of the sincerest expressions of the love of sport that you have ever read. In the Philippines, Rafe Bartholomew seems to have found the very soul of the game.

PACIFIC RIMS: Beermen Ballin’ in Flip-Flops and the Philippines’ Unlikely Love Affair with Basketball
Author: Rafe Bartholomew
Publisher: New American Library
Format: Hardcover; 352 pages; Retail Price: $24.95
ISBN-13: 978-0-4512-2999-1
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Asianballer Daniel Liu now a supermodel

poormanscommish — Tue, 27 Apr 2010 03:48:40 +0000

Years ago, as the Amar’e Stoudemire of his team in Asian-American basketball tournaments, standing 6′4″ he was the only player over six feet — or maybe even 5′10″ — on the fabled Alpine Striders club from Los Angeles. He helped anchor Coach Tony Wong’s team every year at the Las Vegas Invitational (“LVI”) tournament.

Then he was gone.

He got burnt out. Playing for Alpine can be like playing for Bobby Knight. Although there will be lots of winning, things can feel a little too business-like. Such is the life of competitive basketball, at any level.

So he took a break from basketball. And now he’s back, making a few cameos in tournaments on a new team, but mostly with a burgeoning career as a supermodel.

Here’s his recent ten-page spread in GQ China, shot in Manhattan several months ago…

http://asianmodelsblog.blogspot.com/2009/11/daniel-liu-hana-mayeda-editorial-for-gq.html

Read/listen to how he became a supermodel: Daniel Liu Redefines The Male Supermodel : NPR

Thanks to NEAATO for the Facebook post. I then asked Asian-American entertainment “human hub” Brian Yang how Daniel was doing and he replied:

D is killin it. In current campaigns for J Crew and Hilfiger. His GQ China spread was en fuego. A bona fide male supermodel!

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Ed Wang, a tad taller than Jeremy Lin

poormanscommish — Sat, 24 Apr 2010 17:54:07 +0000

The first ethnic Chinese player to be drafted in the NFL, in its 91-year history, and at pick number 140 by the Buffalo Bills, Ed Wang is a 6′5″ 314-lb. senior offensive tackle out of Virginia Tech. That means he’s 1-1/2 inches taller than Jeremy Lin, and a whole lot heavier. Wang is a big dude! A freak of nature.

Not to steal the thunder from Wang, but I think that just goes to show you how big Jeremy is, in “real-life” terms.

DraftExpress recently released its Portsmouth measurements, and I’ve heard people grumble about how Jeremy’s height and wingspan aren’t remarkable: 6′3″ and 6′5″, respectively…

http://www.draftexpress.com/nba-pre-draft-measurements/?year=2010&sort2=DESC&draft=&pos=&sort=2#

Incidentally, when I asked Jeremy’s older brother just how tall Jeremy is, he told me, “Six-three-and-a-half, six-four with shoes.”

Sure, that’s not as incredible as Dwight Howard being only 6′9″ but having a 7′4″ wingspan…

http://www.draftexpress.com/article/A-Historical-Look-at-the-NBA-Pre-Draft-Measurements-2912/

…but if you happen to play basketball recreationally on a regular basis such as in Dream League’s leagues or tournaments, a person 6′3″ 201 with a 6′5″ wingspan walking in the gym would definitely grab your attention. And he can dribble as good as the little 5′6″ guys.

Yes, I know we’re supposed to be comparing apples to apples. But I tell you what, “wingspan” is the most over-rated “stat” in basketball, especially when it comes to point guards (think Steve Nash, Chris Paul, Tony Parker — the list goes on). Wingspan is a great stat for big men, I’ll give you that, but then again Chris Webber’s 7′6″ wingspan isn’t going to be enough to get him into the Hall Of Fame.

You can read Ed Wang’s NFL Draft diary at: Draft-Diary-Debut-By-Ed-Wang / News – NFLPlayers.com

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Gunnin’ for that NBA pg spot: Vassilis Spanoulis

poormanscommish — Wed, 21 Apr 2010 22:03:11 +0000

This year’s point guard crop of draftees is not that deep and Jeremy Lin, Bay Area native and Asian baller, won’t have as much competition as last year’s 16 point guards selected, but available roster spots at pg on NBA teams are just that: available roster spots (read: not a whole lof of them left).

I found one more to add to the complications: Vassilis Spanoulis. And he’s been tagged as the best — as in, #1 — free agent prospect for this summer out of the Euroleague.

So here’s the dilemma with pg roster spots, assuming an NBA team has them: sign a more experienced, expensive free agent like Spanoulis (who apparently has the nickname “Kill Bill”), or draft an unproven rookie straight out of the NCAA, but save beaucoup bucks?

EXCERPT: “Kill Bill is as smart, tough, and competitive as any player in the world. He is a pure winner and a natural leader. He can lead a team as the primary option from either back court position on offense and he is an excellent defender.

He should not be judged on his lone NBA year with the Houston Rockets, as he obviously did not get a fair chance from Jeff Van Gundy. He is clearly a superior player to the likes of Rafer Alston, Luther Head, and John Lucas III, whom were ahead of him on Van Gundy’s depth chart, and pretty much every NBA scout you talk to will state as much. Potential NBA starting point guard or 6th man.

NBA Scout Assessment: An NBA scout said this of Spanoulis, ‘Spanoulis has no fear on the basketball court. He is as confident as any player there is. In my opinion he can start in any team in the NBA.’”

Read the full article at: talkbasket.net/blogs/top-10-euroleague-free-agent-nba-prospects-2954.html

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Chinese beatdowns

poormanscommish — Wed, 21 Apr 2010 18:04:28 +0000

Charles Gaines clocking Du Feng leads off this installment of 3pt Play, where things tend to happen in threes. Exhibit A: Gaines, who once played for the San Antonio Spurs, knocks out Du in the Chinese Basketball Association. Then we have Exhibits B and C (non-basketball-related): 59-year-old Tian-Sheng Yu and his 27-year-old son Cheng Yu getting beat up in broad daylight in downtown Oakland…

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2010/04/20/BA301D16JO.DTL

And if you think Exhibit B and C should be lumped into just Exhibit B, then consider the attacks on San Francisco’s Muni buses not too long ago…

http://abclocal.go.com/kgo/story?section=news/local/san_francisco&id=7364771

Yes, I’m sure there are Chinese or Asian people getting beat up all the time all over the world as we speak, but I’m just sayin’. All in a matter of days, all reaching headlines. Enough is enough.

For the hoopsters, here’s Exhibit A in more detail:

“The synopsis: in the closing moments of Game 2 of the Chinese Basketball Association finals on Sunday, Guangdong’s Du Feng gets tangled underneath the basket with Xinjiang’s Gaines, a Southern Mississippi standout in the early naughts who was briefly on the San Antonio Spurs’ roster. Du appears to butt heads with Gaines; Gaines responds by roundhousing Du. Ten-count, commence.”

Thanks for the heads-up on Gaines/Du from SlamOnline writer Daniel Edward Rosen.

Read the whole article at: Heart of Beijing: Charles Gaines KOs Chinese basketball playerYou might also like:

Jeremy Lin signs with agent Roger Montgomery

poormanscommish — Sat, 17 Apr 2010 05:16:02 +0000

Montgomery Sports Group, which lists Gary Payton (Bay Area product!) as Director of Business Operations, has signed Jeremy Lin as a client. Montgomery’s clientele includes Maurice Evans of the Atlanta Hawks, Sonny Weems of the Toronto Raptors, and Desmond Mason, who was most recently waived by the Sacramento Kings.

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