Bill Simmons...That Is Common Sense?
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by user RipcitySJ
Mr. VP of Common Sense Bill Simmons took a break from the podcasts and making out with Ronald Jenkees to chime in on the draft. The Sports Guy himself tackled the tough decisions of the draft. Now, keep in mind I am reading this article as I type so I can get a more genuine reaction. Sometimes this works out (like on almost every Jemele Hill article) but other times it backfires because there is only one dumb thing in the whole piece. Only time will tell.
Simmons goes through the lottery, starting with the Blazers. Simmons is already on red alert with me when it comes to Blazer talk ever since his Karma piece but we will see what he has to say.
"We know who they're taking because it's the No Balls Association and nobody would ever dare pass up a franchise center with a ceiling (Greg Oden) for a franchise forward with no ceiling (Kevin Durant). That lack of originality explains why the league is so screwed up and a limited team like the Cavs could become the worst Finals team since the '59 Lakers."
Whoa there. Let's rewind for a second all the way back to say...um...April 3rd 2007. That was the day when Bill Simmons said the following quote on his own blog
"1. Greg Oden is the No. 1 pick in the draft. The debate is over. He pulled a Private Ryan and earned that spot."
Need I say more? Bill, Bill, Bill...you gotta remember what ya said man. How can you say Greg Oden is the #1 pick in the draft but then call it the No Balls Association for taking him #1? And what was the frustrating thing about Oden all year? Is that we never knew how good he could be and that he never showed his true dominance. Until the national championship game when you yourself Bill Simmons said he had his "Oden Game". How can you say Oden has a ceiling when we haven't seen 100 percent of his game? If anything, Kevin Durant has a ceiling. There are precedents for Kevin Durant in the NBA...Tracy McGrady? There will be another Kevin Durant in the next 5-10 years, he may not garner all the accolades and have as great of a season but there will be another guy who can play like that. Freak of nature seven footers do not walk through the door every day. Why do you think a guy like Spencer Hawes (my candidate for 'staying in the Green Room too long') can leave after having a mediocre freshman year? Because he is big. Why do you think that of the International prospects in this draft over half of them are in between 6-11 and 7 foot something. Because if you're big you will almost always get a chance. Why do you think Josh McRoberts is being considered in the first round after an ok year in college. Because he is big...and white. You yourself said Oden is the #1 pick, don't go back on your own words. You know you can't pass up on a guy like Oden...if Pritchard takes Durant he loses his job and the trust of the Blazer Nation. Or maybe Vince McMahon is behind all of this and Pritchard is going to show up at Oden's press conference in Seattle wearing Sonics gear. Oh wait he's dead nevermind.
Simmons then continues attempting to use his "common sense" to say that we already have two good post players in LaMarcus and Zach Randolph so why draft Oden? This is his word on Zach:
"Yeah, he's a loon, but he's a superb low-post scorer who would thrive with Durant spacing the floor for him."
This is proof that Simmons has watched maybe two Blazer games over the last two years. Zach Randolph doesn't post in the low-post anymore. This is what he does...he stops in between the post and the three point line, dangles his left hand out asking for the ball, turns and faces and everyone watches. He either jabs and takes a bad mid-range shot or he attacks the basket. The key is...EVERYONE STANDS AND WATCHES. He's not making anyone better and Kevin Durant would be standing there just like everyone else has. Plus we already have a pretty good forward by the name of Brandon Roy. Why Mr. Common Sense would we have Durant and Roy?
Note: This article was originally published at the Rip City Project, run by Coup and SJ.
A few other things. Roy is a guard not a forward. Simmons proclaims that the Blazers should trade down to #2 giving up the #1 and Darius Miles and getting Rashard Lewis in return. Wouldn't that mean having Durant and Lewis on the same team? Two of the same guys that do EXACTLY the same thing? That makes sense... :- Like you mention, he says they shouldn't draft Oden because they have big guys on the team already. The Blazers centers include Jamaal Magloire, who will be 30 (too old compared to the nucleus of the team) and some guy named Joel Przybilla. That looks like a huge hole to fill. He wants them to draft Oden which would mean Randolph starting and LaMarcus Aldridge on the bench. Really? Aldridge on the bench? Is that a genius idea? A guy you drafted second last year and you're gonna use him as a bench player? Aldridge hould be totally fine with that... That organization will turn into the 2007 Lakers if the Blazers played that card. You trade Randolph while his value is high and stick the much deserving Aldridge in the starting spot.
Like I said, Simmons is very funny which is why I read him. It's just that I never take any of his ideas seriously. I recommend you don't either because you will want to fly out to LA and punch him in his face.