LA Lakers – Denver Nuggets: Old School NBA In Effect
May 19, 2009 by dwil
Kenyon Martin will play a pivotal role for Denver against the Lakers.
It’s the Lake Show versus to Doug Moe Nuggets, right? Well, not quite, but almost.
We have Chauncey B-B-B-Biluups as Fat Lever; Not Yellow Melo as Alex English, and…..
Time for a commercial break.
I knew there was something much deeper happening in the aftermath of the Mark “I scored a three on the” Wunderlich Dallas-Denver Game 3 debacle. While most of the NBA playoffs watching sports world concentrated on Mavericks owner Mark Cuban telling Kenyon Martin’s mom a punk, I was looking at the entire incident and wondering exactly what it was Martin said that caused the reaction from Cubes. Cuban might appear flippant at times but nothing could be farther from the truth; emotional, yes; protective of people and things he loves, yes; loyal to a fault, yes. Calculating? Hmmm, he is a billionaire.
But flippant? No.
After the game, while most of the Nuggets were celebrating and then attempting to get off the court, one Denver player made the after-game AA Arena basketball court his personal space to show everyone what an asshole he truly is.
That would be Kenyon Martin, if you didn’t know already.
Yeah, yeah and I get “K-Mart” is “hood.” K-Mart is a real “nigga.” And if those thoughts, or variations on those themes, are quietly – albeit foolishly – creeping through your head, you’ll read this, lie about those thoughts and say, ‘hey K-Mart protects his mother.’
Whatever. Who has a loving mother and doesn’t protect her?
Martin was last seen at American Airlines Arena cursing at Josh Howard, other Dallas Mavericks, various and sundry fans and Mavericks staff on the sidelines, and finally Mark Cuban.
According to Chris Tomasson of Hoops Hype, Cuban explained the incident this way:
“I still intend to apologize to Ms. Moore,’’ Cuban wrote. “I made a mistake and will keep my commitment.’’
Later, Cuban wrote he believes Martin needs to address his actions.
“I would also like to know if Kenyon is going to take responsibility for his actions rather than hiding behind ‘no comment,’’’ Cuban wrote. “Will he apologize to the wife of our staff member that he called a ‘(expletive) fat pig’ immediately after Game 3? Will he apologize to fans that he threatened to, and I’m paraphrasing here, ‘(expletive) beat the (expletive) down’ during Game 4?
“Or to the fans he walked by after Game 4, (Martin) cursed and gave the finger to? Will he take responsibility for what he said and did? Is there some reason he has not?’’
I think those words and actions might elicit a hyper-emotional reaction from Cuban.
And if you think Martin is not beyond petty behavior, check out what Chauncy Billups said of Martin’s flagrant 1 and resultant $25K fine he received for that block from behind on Dirk Nowitzki, the, let’s punk the white boy” move that was Denver’s very obvious game plan early in Game 1:
“I think it set the tone (for the series) for sure,’’ said Nuggets guard Chauncey Billups. “Nowitzki had hit four or five shots in a row earlier in that game to start off the series, and think (Martin) took it a little personally and let him know, ‘OK, this is how it’s going to be. Yeah, you probably will play good because you’re a great player. But it’s not going to be easy. This is how it’s going to be.’’’
And Martin’s reaction to Billups’ statement?
“That wasn’t what I was trying to do, but that seemed to be the attitude it took on so I had no problem with it,’’ Martin when told about Billups saying his knockdown of Nowitzki set the tone for the series. “You do what you’re supposed to do. If we keep winning the playoffs, I’ll get that money back.’’
“I don’t back down from nobody,’’ Martin said. “There’s not a person that has laced their shoes up and stepped on this court (that Martin is) going to back down from. No matter who you are. Championships or not. MVPs or not. Sixteenth man on the team. I’m going to treat you the same way. No matter what it is. I’m going to get after you.
“You’re going to know you played against me when you get done. That’s all I strive to do. Whether you play one game against me or 20 or whatever the case might be, my name will always come up in the conversation of who’s the toughest guy you had to play against. And I want my name to be mentioned.’
Martin is right. He was not “setting the tone” for the series; he was pissed off that Nowitzki was punking him; busting his ass with jumpers dead in his face; rising up at will and blowing up Martin’s vision with “Js”; making Martin go deaf from the sound of the net going ‘swishup!’ as Dirk’s shots flashed through the twine.
K-Mart resorted to the type of playground move that starts fights and much, much worse on chain nets, concrete outdoor courts.
From what I’ve seen of Kenyon Martin since he was at Cincinnati he is a bully with a bully’s vindictive streak; when he’s outplayed he invariable fails to take the defeat like a man.
In my book that makes him a punk, period. Always was, always has been, always will be. And if you know him, you can show him what I wrote, tell him I wrote; hell, tell his mama that’s what I think of him. And should we ever meet and he’s less-than-man enough to get in my face – looking way down at me – then he’s a bigger punk than I could ever have guessed.
K-Mart is the perfect nickname for his cheap-shotting self.
Okay, back to the Western Conference finals. Where was I?… oh yeah, an old school, high-scoring matchup. You prolly caught my drif’ from this post’s beginning.
Denver likes to play up-tempo ball; the Lakes like to play up-tempo ball. Neither team is going to back down from that way of play. What will determine this series, though, is defense and matchups.
And defense and the matchups favor Los Angeles. On the surface that might seem like a crazy statement. However, I noticed that Denver has a defensive Achilles Heel; they can only play one way and that’s clutch-and grab; hack and smack; push and jersey pull. And the matchups? Well, I’ll get to that a bit later.
On April 9 the Lakers hosted Denver in a game that was a harbinger of playoff things to come. The Nuggets were used to Billups and he to them. The team was hotter than hot, having won 13 of their last 14 games. Only three of their wins in that stretch were by fewer than 10 points.
The game was tied 56-all at the half but Los Angeles won the game 116-102 (though Martin did not play). The primary reason for the Lakers’ win was that they converted 12 more free throws than did Denver. LA was 37-46 from the line, while Denver went 25-29 from the stripe. Seventy-five free throw attempts is far too many for almost any NBA game – except when the Nuggets play. Denver is the type of team that commits multiple fouls on every trip up the floor and dares the officials to make the calls; they bank on officials backing down and acquiescing to their style of play, knowing that if the game is called correctly, the 32 fouls called on Denver in that April 9 meeting are not close to an accurate representation of the number of actual fouls committed by the Nuggets.
In that game LA out-rebounded Denver 51-46 and pounded the offensive glass, ending with an 18 offensive boards to Denver’s 10. Assists were even at 21. both teams shot poorly from beyond the arc (Denver was 2-21 while LA shot 5-24). But the Lakers had nine steals to Denver’s three, though the Nuggets ended the game with only two mote turnovers than did LA (13 to 11).
Alleged “Kobe Stopper” Dahntay Jones was not. Never was and won’t be in this series – not alone, at least. Bryant went 11-19 from the floor and 9-10 from the line for 33 points. Jones, though a great finisher in the open court is an overall offensive liability. Advantage KB. Pau Gasol strafed Nene Hilario for 27 points to Hlario’s 17. Denver has no one to matchup with Andrew Bynum. Please do not utter Chris Anderson’s name; his lightweight self cannot deal with AB under the glass. Anderson is known as a shot blocker, but most of his swats come from weakside and backside defense, not direct man-to-man blocks.
More than likely Hilario will attempt to deal with Bynum while Martin beats on Pau Gasol. Though Hilario is faster end to end on the court, he is no match for Bynum’s size and long arms. Gasol will shoot over Martin with ease – at least until K-Mart pulls one of his dirt bag plays and slams Gasol to the court.
Carmelo Anthony appears to be a far better player than he was at any point during the season and will face both Trevor Ariza and Lamar Odom. Anthony, as a pure shooter, is difficult to stop. He has a quick first step but has only average speed of the dribble overall. Anthony is a quick but not explosive leaper. However, he is crafty and as as clutch as any player in the NBA. But in Odom he faces a unique opponent. Odom is a very good defender, can block the shot of every player on the court including Anthony, and poses problems in the post with his 6’11″ frame and long arms. anthony will not block Odom’s shots, nor is he strong enough to keep Odom from getting to any spot on the court. Though Anthony will score more through sheer volume of shots, he will not necessarily outplay Odom. Ariza is quicker than Anthony but is going to have a tough time in the post against Melo. Though Ariza can leap and has long arms, those assets will not aid him against the heavier Anthony. Though Phil Jackson might start Ariza, look for Odom to play a larger role against Anthony as the series progresses.
Denver’s bench will be predicated on the play of Chris Anderson, J.R. Smith, and Linas Kleiza. Smith can microwave his way through a game and light up the scoreboard when and if he gets in rhythm. Kleiza, though buried on the bench so far in the playoffs, should play more of a role against the Lakers. Kleiza can shoot the three, can score inside, and is a typical Denver defender. Anderson showed in the first two rounds of the playoffs that he can score a bit, which is a great addition to the energy, rebounding and off-ball shot blocking he brings to the Nuggs.
Conversely, every Lakers player who gets meaningful minutes off the bench can score in bunches. Jordan Farmar, Luke Walton Sasha Vujavic, Ariza or Odom, and Shannon Brown can all stroke the three, all of them can take the ball to the hole, and they defend well. If Denver’s bench is hot and the Lakers bench is hot, LA wins the battle through sheer number of players. However, if LA’s bench players are tentative at all, the Nuggets will burn them.
This series is far kinder to LA than was the Houston series where the Lakers were forced to drastically alter their game plan and deal with a smaller but far quicker overall Houston team when Yao Ming went down with a foot injury. Denver will attempt to prove its collective manhood against LA, which, after the Boston Finals beat down, is exactly what La has waited for.
If LA stand tall to the challenge they can win this series in as few as five games. But should they shrink at all Denver is perhaps better than any other team at exploiting an opposition’s weak collective psyche and using that weakness to fuel their strengths over a stretch of games. With that scenario, the Nuggets can pull off the upset.
Realistically, this series will come down to the officials – and I guarantee it will be officiated inconsistently. And that means two weeks from today we will be talking about who has the advantage in a Game 7.
Agree Dwil………….and I was saying also how the NBA the last 2 years has been old school match ups.
Bulls vs Celtics, Denver vs lakers, Hawks vs Celtics, Pistons vs Celtics and lakers vs Celtics.
All hail super pimp Stern.
Oh and Lakers over Denver in 7.
And since the teams are more evenly matched, their will still be in consistant calls and make up calls. But not as much as the lakers vs houston series. The league was trying to stretch games.
I hope you’re right about the calls in this series. I swear no matter how the games is called, Denver NEVER adjusts. I’m really surprised they aren’t called for 45-50 fouls a game.
I’d have to disagree with your point about Martin more or less “deserving” to get called out by Cuban – to his mama – for words Martin said prior to Cuban’s outburst.
It’s simple, really: if Cuban was upset about Martin mistreating his players or staff members after the game, then he should’ve approached Martin, not Martin’s mama. Or, more appropriately, he should’ve informed the police or security and had them safely escort Martin from the court.
The trouble with Cuban’s childish media retort to Martin, (which basically amounts to the playground tactic most preferred by 6 year olds, i.e. six-yr old #1 says your mama’s on welfare, and six-yr old #2 says, “I know I am but what are you?” Then six-yr old #1 says you got play-dough teeth, and six-yr old #2 says, “I know I am but what are you?” Next six-yr old #1 says your mama got glass titties filled with kool-aid for the kiddies, and six-yr old #2 says, “I know I am but what are you?” Anyway, you get the picture)…
Again, the trouble with Cuban’s retort is that, in fact, he was not upset about anything Martin said or did after the game that night, at least not directly. Rather he, along with the rest of the Maverick contingent that night, was upset at the officials for having blown an easy late game call. His emotional response was directed at the officials (and one “wrong place-wrong time” cameraman), and any verbal bile hurled at Martin’s mama was, quite literally, just gravy.
What he’s doing now is not based on “tactics,” or “calculations” or “loyalty” or “passion” or anything else. It’s childish. He’s a grown man running a billion dollar business. What the fuck is he doing? And why are you, sort of, defending it, D? Why are you telling Martin’s friends to show him this letter? Why not “tell” Cuban when all this is still his fault?
The simplest thing to do would be for Cuban to stop telling media members he is GOING to apologize and JUST DO IT.
I also do not understand why Martin has to be a “thug” or a “dirty player” for getting physical with Nowitski (yeah, Martin pushed him, but Nowitski also flopped on that play. And so what? It’s playoff basketball.) I know Martin has had his fair share of encounters with other players (the Tim Thomas “fugazy” incident comes to mind), but that does not make him a “thug” any more than it made Bill Lambier a thug. Again, the difference is perception. But I’m not willing to go to the mat on this latter point…
Dwil and I view basketball through an entirely different prism, it seems. I absoutely love KMart. and think that every great NBA team has a had a player or two like him on it. He seems to view basketball as a test of manliness…and why the hell not?
Now, I’ll be the first to admit that when you get two or three players like Martin on a team, you end up with those unwatchable 90s Heat-Knicks series. But pair him up with magnficent talents like Billups and Anthony, and you can win a championship and do it the right way.
The only time Jordan looked mortal in the 90s was when he didn’t have a Horace Grant or Dennis Rodman to police the court.
(I should point out that my favorite player on the Penguins as a teenager was not Lemieux or Jagr, but Ulf Samuelson who let it be known that if you if wanted to win, you had to be willing to risk a trip to the hospital to do it).
At some point in either Game 1 or Game 2, Martin is going to challenge Gasol’s manhood. If Gasol takes the challenge, the Lakers probably win easily. If Gasol backs down, this thing probably goes 7 and who knows what happens.
I agree with Myron here (which may cause Myron to change his mind lol!)
It is Martin’s job to challenge Gasol physically in this series. Gasol’s response will likely determine whether this series is easy or difficult for the Lakers. Notice that when Gasol asserted himself against the Rockets, the Lakers won easily every time. But when he didn’t, when he allowed lesser talents like Scola or (gasp!) Chuck Hayes to dictate tempo, then the Lakers struggled – and we saw Kobe Bryant slapping Gasol all upside his head on the bench during timeouts.
Well Bryant won’t be the one doing the slapping this series, Martin will – and Martin will likely have some smacks for Bryant as well.
Doesn’t make him a thug or a dirty player. Not to me, anyway.
I have to agree with Lovetron on this one D. Cuban’s anger was totally misdirected. I could understand him being mad about the call in Game 3. It was total bullsh-t. But, Kenyon Martin’s mom had nothing to do with it. I believe K-Mart probably did say those things. But, did those people say something to him first? If they did, then maybe he isn’t the bad guy here. Of course, we’ll probably never know the answer to this. Cuban needs to stop bullishting and just apologize to Martin’s mom face to face. Even the little dictator Stern said he thought that Cuban’s “apology” wasn’t good enough.
I’m cool with K-Mart being an enforcer. Every team that wants to win in the playoffs needs an enforcer. That’s been one of the Lakers problems. When Derek Fisher is the one that has done the best job of enforcing in the playoffs, you’re in trouble. I said it before. K-Mart is going to pick out whoever he thinks is weak on the Lakers (probably Gasol or Bynum), as he did in the previous series with David West and Dirk, and try to punk him sometime early in the first game. Also, with Vince McMahon threatening litigation for Game 3 being scheduled at the same time as WWE Raw, look for K-Mart to make it be a good hard foul so he can go there after his b-ball days are over.
All that being said, Lakers in six. Even though everyone has jumped on Denver’s bandwagon, I think that the last series was just a reflection of Houston being a terrible matchup for the Lakers.
I think Dwil and Lovetron are both right.
K-Mart tried to punk Dirk because he knew he couldn’t do anything with him if it was about pure skill. And honestly, he didn’t do anything with Dirk since I think the German averaged over 30 for the series. But, Martin’s actions filtered to the rest of this teammates and the other Mavericks failed to raise their level of play to match Denver’s. So, I can understand that point that what Martin did was a mind game that was played because he couldn’t matchup with straight skill.
However, 90 percent of sports is mind games. I mean, I know when I played football back in the day, I was constantly yapping at opponents to let them know I was kicking their butts and promising them more to come. It got my confidence up and made them angry and stupid. I also know that when I’ve played pickup ball I’ve resorted to a lot of grabbing, holding and pushing when the person I was guarding was too much for me physically. Gotta even the playing field some how. So, I it would be hypocritical of me to castigate Martin for something I’m guilty of doing myself.
I think Martin needs to watch how he treats fans, and I think fans need to watch how they treat athletes. George Karl reported that he heard the word nigger being thrown about by Dallas fans, so I’m not inclined to give them the benefit of the doubt. I think Martin goes too far sometimes in his attempts to intimidate, but you can say the same thing about Kevin Garnett and I love Kevin Garnett’s antics.
It’s all good fellas. We ain’t gotta agree all the time…. and Big Man I appreciate your holistic perspective.
I took a hard stance on this because the game ended so contentiously and was such a bitter loss for the Mavs that I cannot for the life of me understand why Martin wanted to add fuel to an already out-of-control blaze; why he wasn’t satisfied enough with the win and ran off the court with a huge grin on his face.
Oh, and I never read anything about nigger being tossed around, though I wouldn’t doubt it was tossed Martin’s way.
physical play makes the game of basketball great, but that’s my opinion and I’m a Detroit fan so… I’m used to it.
People hated the 2005 Finals where the Spurs played Detroit because it was “boring”, “grind it out”, “inept offense” basketball when really it was beautifully executed defense for 7 games.
People hated the Indiana v. Detroit series in ’04 because the games were 70-68 at the end and both teams shot in the low 30%…
Kenyon Martin reminds me of a pre-Detroit Piston, pre-rest on his 1 championship belt, Rasheed Wallace. Obviously Rasheed is more gifted offensively and has the length to contest any shots necessary, but the physicality is there. The verbal attack, is there. Kenyon Martin could’ve been a bad boy in the late 80s and early 90s with his limited offensive game, all pure muscle and hustle game.
It’s clear where this column is going, dwil enjoys finesse basketball until Derek Fisher cheapshots a screener and then it’s ok. Physical intimidation is what wins. LeBron is proving it, Shaq did it, Duncan and Robinson did it, etc. Not too many finesse basketball teams win rings.
I dont think Bynum and Gasol are man enough to man up and throw someone to the floor. Until they do, Denver will make them their bitch.
Let’s not the physical play of ’80s with the Force b-ball crap that Riley tried with the Knicks against the “finesse” Bulls. That didn’t work so well. 0 rings. Short off Chauncey, the Nuggets don’t have the basketball IQ to beat the LA in 7 games. They will go brain dead at some point and cost themselves a game.
Im sorry but Dwil your Lakers bias speaks volumes. Attacking Kenyon Martin before the Lakers-Nuggets series is disgusting especially when you seem to ignore Kobe Bryant’s dirty play (i.e. elbow to Artest, Knee and elbow to Battier). Maybe Kenyon Martin should just play Jackie Robinson while the fans in Dallas hurl beer and racial epithets at his MOTHER and girlfriend. You always seem to turn a blind eye to the favorable officiating that is given to the two guys (by extension teams) that the NBA wants in the finals LeBron and Kobe. Martin has the right to stand up for his MOTHER and girlfriend that’s just what any MAN would do. If Cuban had a problem with Martin he should have addressed Martin not his mother.
Dwil
Slam had something on it. Run a search on George Karl and racist Dallas fans. He claimed to have heard that word and of course Cuban said that couldn’t have happened.
Gotta defend Dwil on the officiating thing. He has complained about Lebron getting over a lot.
The officiating has been horrendous across the board this year. Saying that any team is getting over is pretty much missing the point.
Kenyon Martin is playing on the string he’s been dealt. Just like Phil Jackson who was ALWAYS down to throw an elbow or hip-check when he played for the Knicks. And NOW, he wants offense to flow and for offensive players to be allowed to saunter down the lane freely? Please.
To me, this series comes down to the Lakers’ supporting cast’s ability to defend and score effectively and consistently. If the Lakers take four games off in THIS series, Denver is going to the Finals, and it would probably take Kobe averaging, like, 40 ppg in the series just to force it to a seventh game. I’m serious.
Now, if Gasol and Bynum play like they did in Game 7? Lakers in six. If Gasol and Bynum bitch up in Game 1 and/or Game 2 in LA, that series won’t make it back to Staples. Believe that.
Mark Cuban may be right in calling Martin a punk.
It’s not Mark Cuban’s fault his superstar is soft.
It is Mark Cuban’s fault he’s a pussy and can’t call Martin a punk to his face, and instead has to glom on to the chants and yelling at Martin’s mother.
F Mark Cuban. He would get punked on the playground IF he called KMart out to KMart’s girl while sitting on the bleachers, which he did.
Dang Boney I have to agree with both your comments………..lord the word is coming to an end.
I didn’t catch the part in the article about martin. On that part I have to disagree…..yes Dirk was killing him offensively, but I have no problem with hard fouls. I just can’t stand the d@mn flopping.
Actually compared to the hard fouls that most superstars get……….Dirk rarely gets hard fouls…..the league isn’t gonna let you beat up on the great white hope.
Shoot look at the hard fouls that Kobe and Lebron get…..Dirk would be crying if he got some of those fouls.
Also Dwil Cuban and the media (especially) here helped to incite the fans and the crowd. During the whole series they started with the racial overtones. Then they went to attack Mello’s lady Lala and Trina.
From calling them ghetto to baby mommas.
Once Cuban showed it was cool to act ignorant the fans followed.
But this has been boiling over since the heat whipped on these bustas. In game 6 in the 2006 finals Cuban and the fans were acting like fools after that game.
Then as they were losing in the playoffs against the warriors the media began with the thug talk. Calling Baron Davis and Jackson thugs.
Same with the next year with NO……calling Chris paul, Tyson and David West the same.
The thing I have learned while living in Dallas is that these fans are the biggest bunch of sore losers I have ever seen. If it isn’t every ones fault except Dirk, its the coaches fault (see how they turned on Avery). Or the refs, or the players are thugs.
How about your team just isn’t good enough.
Realise when the rumors of Kobe being traded for Dirk were going around………these dumb @sses in Dallas were calling in saying that they didn’t want a thug like Kobe on the team. They would rather lose…………..WELL BIT@%ES YOU GOT YOUR WISH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Oh and I call fix……………..I got 5 dollars that the knicks, Warriors, Toranto or Suns get a top 2 pick.
That way the league can make sure that the next great white hope (Ricky Rubio) goes to the a team that he can fit in well.
Can you imagine the Ricky Rubio and the USC QB in NYC………..man the Knicks and Jets will have more latin fans then the democrates got black voters…LOL!!!
just wanted to acknowledge the Fat Lever reference…
he is very underrated and forgotten historically. Like Sidney moncrief he had a great all-around game but had a short stint at the high level…