Comments on: Checking nationalism at the door

By: Pride

Pride — Thu, 24 Aug 2006 16:00:01 +0000

Any experience LeBron gets with defensive-minded coaches can’t hurt. In the end, it will probably be pride that determines if he’ll be a great defensive player. How long will he be satisfied with letting Paul Pierce or Wade or Melo torch him without just trying to outscore them? It’s good to see him taking on (or being assigned) the tougher defensive tasks.

By: Marc

Marc — Thu, 24 Aug 2006 14:07:22 +0000

I’ve watch 3 of the 5 games thus far (I will watch the US v. Senegal game when I get home today). For the most part, the US has stayed in man to man coverage and LeBron has been guarding the opponent’s first or second offensive option. For much of yesterday’s game against Italy, he guarded #4, Belinelli. Nelinelli put up 20-something points, mostly off jumpers. Yesterday and for the whole tourney, LeBron has done a nice job of shutting off scoring guards from the lane and cutting off passing lanes. He still is having trouble defending the jump shot, but that will come with time.

Coach K isn’t going to turn LeBron into deefnsive player of the year in 4 weeks. Keep in mind that for the first 18 years of LeBron’s life, he didn’t have to play defense. He’s had one year under Mike Brown and four weeks under Coach K learning to be a defensive presence. If anything, i’m impressed with his defensive performance in Japan. Either he’s asking for the tough defensive assignments or Coach K is giving them to LeBron. Either way, he’s learning.

I also want to say that I can’t believe that ESPN sent Chris Sheridan to Japan to cover the worlds. Just last week, the fired one of their 7 PGA beat writers and I have a sneaking suspicion that it was a direct result of the $2.50 Park Golf bill that Sheridan charged to his ESPN expense account. When will journalists learn to stay holed up in their cubicles where they belong?

By: HearHear

HearHear — Thu, 24 Aug 2006 05:18:03 +0000

hear hear - tucker = freakin’ moron.

has anyone actually watched any of these games? can lebron play defense yet? was av’s elbow shot as nasty it sounded? glad he’s on the cavs, and that brazil won’t face the u.s.

By: thank the beacon

thank the beacon — Thu, 24 Aug 2006 05:14:17 +0000

We should thank the Beacon Journal for sending BW to Japan to file these reports. If their accounting staff was smart, they would have booked the plane tickets long in advance, and tagging along on the James express (whereever it goes) makes great business sense. I can’t get the Beacon Journal where I live, so I look at the sports columns on the Web. I wouldn’t be doing that so often if BW didn’t post his articles there (interesting piece on James and his international aspirations the other day) and the Beacon’s advertising revenue would drop further. The Beacon Journal is the Cleveland sports paper of choice in part because of BW’s columns, and bits and pieces of interest show up in this blog, too. I’m not sure how any readers of the paper or the blog can complain. BW does not regurgitate the same stuff we already knew about weeks earlier, like some other Cleveland papers… We’ll see if the Beacon can figure out how to survive in long run, but blaming their top basketball columnist for the paper’s recent layoffs in a city now known best for one basketball player is entirely idiotic.

I have learned one extra thing from this blog that I wish I didn’t have to waste my time finding out: Alan Tucker is a buffoon who has nothing to contribute — he is the Roger Brown of blogdom who can only figure out how to say 1 thing: “BW is wrong but I can’t explain why.” And then repeat it whenever it strikes his dull and moronic fancy.

Brian: please ask Ohio.com to give us an ignore feature on this blog. If I could ignore Tucker’s posts, I would check in more often. Whenever I see multiple comments on a blog, I know what trash and argument lies in store, and try to turn the other way.

By: Ryan (Akron)

Ryan (Akron) — Thu, 24 Aug 2006 01:49:25 +0000

Becaue no one likes reading Alan’s comments…. I say that we make a bet about wins this year. If the Cavs win X amount of games or advance to X rounds of the playoffs… then Alan is suspended from this message board for a year. If the Cavs don’t win 55 games… then we can let Alan run his his mouth for another year (without arguing back).

I say the Cavs will win 55 games this year… even though LeBron is going to Brookyln…. even though Danny Ferry and Mike Brown don’t know anything… and even though Brian doesn’t know anything (although Alan seems to keep reading him).

If everyone was as incompetent as Alan believes… there is no way the Cavs could win 55 games. So what say you Alan? Do you accept this challenge?

Cheers.

By: Douglar

Douglar — Thu, 24 Aug 2006 01:25:02 +0000

Well it’s clear at this point that ABJ should have Brian come home…b/c clearly LeBron never showed up in Japan. Melo is becoming a star right before our eyes, and is the indisputable star on this basketball team right now. He is the leader of Team USA, and w/o him, Team-USA would have a couple losses. What a waste LeBron…you’re just as bad on defense as you were all season. Coach K is really paying off.

By: ZB

ZB — Wed, 23 Aug 2006 22:55:33 +0000

I heard several ESPN shows this week spend time talking about a Brian Windhorst story from Japan and siting the ABJ as the source. How much is that free publicity and credibility worth? Maybe the PD knows. Haven’t heard them mentioned in the national media for a while, though. I know it’s got to be more than 300 yen.

To get a good story, a reporter has to have good rapport with the players. Isn’t traveling 10,000 miles to a foreign country a better way to build that then critiquing from the other side of the pond? The value for the trip extends beyond a couple of weeks.

By: jimmy

jimmy — Wed, 23 Aug 2006 22:52:40 +0000

i think the games have been pretty fun to watch. lots of contrast of styles. teams like argentina and spain have been very fun to watch, and the u.s. has too, finally playing some good hoop on the int’l stage.

the quality of play beats the hell of college kids with no fundamentals running around clanking threes.

By: Ace Park

Ace Park — Wed, 23 Aug 2006 21:39:13 +0000

Park Golf costs 300 yen in Hokkaido. That’s about $2.45. Don;t think it’ll show up on BW’s expense report.

By: MG

MG — Wed, 23 Aug 2006 21:01:00 +0000

Tucker - you are the biggest idiot I have ever come across. If there weren’t someone writing for the Beacon journal on L.James (who, as dpl pointed out, is “the local star”) then there would be many fewer readers buying the ABJ and visiting their website…likely to the point of decreased circulation –> decreased advertisement sales –> decreased capital for the ABJ to pay for employees. I am no expert, but I believe many would blame the advent of the internet and internet news distribution for the decrease in print media and –> –> the layoffs of many print media employees because it takes less money and work power to produce “Ohio.com.”

Beyond that, I would wager major mullah that Brian is not the type of person who would enjoy spending an extended period of time away from American food, culture, and women. BF, Japan??? I wouldn’t go there.

I never put much thought into this idea, but I think dpl hits the nail on the head when he says “That’s what you would have done, right Tucker? But we’ll never know, will we? And that’s your whole problem. Isn’t it, Tucker? You just can’t understand the fact Brian has the job he has, and you don’t.” From your blathering, it should be obvious why you are not Brian Windhorst of the Akron Beacon Journal.

So just SHUTUP, Tucker. You make reading this blog not enjoyable.