A flawed Hall process and what's good and bad about the weekend

Okay, this whole weekend is going to be pretty much HOTH-free, if that’s okay.

They’ve all headed for the hills, there’s nothing really percolating trade-wise, I’m told so we’ll focus on the stuff that’s going on out here, okay?

(Well, actually, it has to be okay; you don’t get to say. And I have no idea about time each day, this time-zone thing always screws me up)

Anyway …

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What do the kids call it these days?

Epic fail?

If you believe the reports out there a couple of places (and this New York Times piece is one of them) the anonymous people who decide who gets to be in the Hall of Fame have somehow, incredibly, shunned Reggie Miller as a finalist for induction on his first chance.

Now, there are serious issues with the Hall of Fame and its selection process that we’ve been trying to get changed for a while and they truly diminish what the hall does.

No one knows who’s on the committee that determines finalists; no one knows who’s on the committee that does the final voting or what those final vote totals are and unless there’s some kind of transparent policy, the Hall loses some of its luster.

Now, Reggie Miller, I think we can all agree, should be a Hall of Famer and I presume eventually he will. But the issue with the selection process are so great, and so significant, that the place that should celebrate the true greats of the game, becomes a bit of a running joke for its process of enshrinement.

Too bad, really. Too, too bad and unless the folks who run the show over there – and as you read in the Times piece Jerry Colangelo said a year ago he’d get the thing fixed up but hasn’t yet – smarten up, it’s going to be hard to take the process seriously.

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I’m a pretty good guy, right? Easy going, polite, say hi to people who say hello, don’t really demand much, take things as they come.

Why, then, are the Travel Gods treating me like the most despicable man in the world and screwing with me every single time I go somewhere lately.

Air Canada got me again Thursday – that’s twice in two freaking days – when the noon flight out here was delayed until 2 p.m. for no state reason. Really. All of a sudden the board at Pearson changed from a 12:10 p.m. departure to 14:00 departure and I never actually heard why and then there are terribly strong headwinds that made it six hours, 15 minutes gate-to-gate instead of the usual five hours or so.

Of course, that gets us to L.A. just after 5 p.m. and the drive downtown from LAX was about an hour of stop and go and I was so, so, so, so happy my friend Stella was in the lounge you can’t believe it.

I’m almost afraid to go to the airport Monday to see what shenanigans await.

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Sometimes the best laid plans don’t quite work out.

The lobby of our hotel here is adorned by murals of NBA players that cover the walls with the LA11 logo on them to celebrate the all-stars.

I’m guessing whoever ordered them up had more than he or she should had in the Western Conference coaches or voters.

It’s nice to see the one of Tony Parker; it’d be nicer if, you know, he was here.

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So who’s here from the Raptors? Well, we know about DeRozan, who’ll have his big Sophomore-Rookie Waste Of Time Game tonight and the dunk contest tomorrow and Amir’s here to be DeMar’s helper on Saturday.

Oh, and The Chicken!

Yep, bringing his/her/its delightful brand of fun and frivolity to the world, he/she/it will do stuff at the Jam Session, some of the D League stuff I think and wherever they ask.

Just thought you might like to know.

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Ranking time:

There are a handful of things this weekend that we all have to take in and some people have asked what’s the best.

So, to answer them – and to give me another item to fill this out and perhaps stir some conversation – here’s how I’d rank them:

The Game

It usually follows a typical script with a lot of goofing off for three quarters before it gets serious and when it does, it can be really good. I remember the one in Washington being very good a few years ago (I think Iverson dominated the end) and I’m hoping this one’s as good.

Three-point shooting

I love watching great shooters shoot and if you get a tight final, it can be quite dramatic.

Skills challenge

Yes, it’s Pass, Punt and Kick for pro basketballers but it does combine different skills and is fun to watch.

Dunk contest

Not much creativity any more, I got the feeling it was pre-ordained the last couple of years and it lost its allure for me the year they spun a wheel to pick out dunks to do and a lot of the guys simply didn’t have the athletic ability to do.

Team shooting

Believe me, if I never, ever see Bill Laimbeer out on the court in a tight jersey shooting with a current NBAer and someone from the WNBA again, I'll be quite happy.

Rookie-Sophomore Game

Yawn. Double yawn. All the fun of the real game except by guys not as good who play with even less enthusiasm. If not for the presence of DeRozan I’d be off somewhere else tonight for sure.

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Okay, I have no idea when the mail’s going to get done, now that I think of it. I figure we’ll have the usual stuff here tomorrow morning, Sunday morning off the Saturday night events and Monday off the end of the weekend so it might be Tuesday or it might just show up as an added bonus some day.

But I do know I need more questions and I put on you to fill up the file.

Write. Click. Send.

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I’m sitting with a couple of NBA big whigs (well, not the biggest of big but pretty darn close) and the subject of all-star weekend comes up.

We’re talking about different cities it’s been in lately – unanimous disapproval of Las Vegas, Dallas sucked because of the snow and was rescued by the stadium, New Orleans was emotional – and someone says, ‘hey, how about Toronto?’

I gasp because it’s an awful lot of work for the home writer and the general consensus is too cold, the arena back of house is too small, the convention centre’s booked at the same time the next two years and I don’t know if it’ll ever come.

Whew!

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Oh yeah, if the dude who was sitting in 16B on the flight from Toronto to Los Angeles yesterday is reading this:

The next time you remove both your shoes – AND SOCKS – in a crowded airplane for a six-hour flight, I would hope the people sitting next to you and breathing in the fumes will let you know it’s not a very bright thing to do.

I was too tired. Or polite. Or something.

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Hey, did Carmelo get traded in the few hours I slept?

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Comments

[sam]

Oh yeah, if the dude who was sitting in 16B on the flight from Toronto to Los Angeles yesterday is reading this:

On a trip to France acouple of years back -
We had the pleasure to sit next to a guy who flossed his teeth for the better part of 15 minutes - He had the window seat and a rather active bladder as I recall.

[John]

SOCKS! hahahahaha, pretty bad, but not comparable with a guy sitting next to me who took out his dentures and picked out the encrusted peanuts with a pencil!

[Mike D.]

The dunk contest pre-ordained??? Are you suggesting that Blake Griffin is already a shoo-in?? Why, that's no more likely than Blake Griffin getting superstar treatment ON the court and getting away with half a dozen uncalled loose ball fouls against the Raptors last Sunday! Oh wait.....

[Thane]

And Scott McCullough...

[Andre]

"Hey, did Carmelo get traded in the few hours I slept?" Nope, not yet, Denver wants the whole knick team and net team for melo. yes, i mean both teams...

[doug]

I agree with you on the HOF and this one point you made...there has to be transparency, it's simple...and further more why isn't there?...why have these secretive committee that decides all, what are they sequestered in a dark room all wearing hoods so as not to even know their fellow members, are they a secret sect, the templars of the NBA...come on it's ridiculous, and they need to get real....this week the CFL HOF excluded Damon Allen (are you kidding me), and now the NBA with (Miller) and they both operate with committees and secretive...the best model for any HOF is baseball's, people vote, a certain % needs to be reached to be inducted, plain and simple and furthermore there is total transparency as you can see who did or didn't vote for whom.....pretty cut and dried.....HOF's have taken on this life of their own during my lifetime they are taken far to seriously, and maybe the worse offenders of this are present members...I tire when I hear HOF members passing judgement on present candidates...for the most part these players have huge egos to begin with, then to be in the Hall only inflates their sense of self-worth...give the vote to let's say a 120 writers, keep the league and players, execs out of it and let the chips fall where they may....

[Stavros]

Obviously, there are enough Knicks fans on the HOF committee who hold grudges.

[Kent]

For those interested, Bill Simmons @ espn.com has released his annual list of the top 50 trade assets in the NBA. Bargnani was omitted and Simmons says it wasn't even that tough of a call. I AM NOT SAYING THAT THIS LIST IS RIGHT OR WRONG (so relax) but the perception is out there that Bargnani is not worth a lot on the trade market. I guess we shouldn't be surprised that teams aren't kicking down BC's door for a big that is afraid of physical contact and won't rebound/defend. It's like having a point guard that can't pass, or a shooting guard that can't shoot. There are just some skills that is so fundamentally tied to a player's height/size/position, you really just have to have them. I must say though, Greg Monroe and DeMarcus Cousins do not belong in the top 50. I have a feeling that Cousins is as likely to go to prison as he is to make an all-star team.

[Zow]

Is there going to be any ingame blog thingy or ingame sideshow thingy from ,the Snarky Beat Grunt ?

Blogger's note: The plan is for one on Sunday night for sure. Need to see lay of the land at Staples to make sure it works, though

[doug]

@Kent i read that Bill Simmons article, you have to take anything Bill says with a grain of salt as although a very talented writer he does things for affect, not controversial affect but for comedic affect...plus I have a problem with these all encompassing lists coming from one writer, most of these players he hasn't even seen play, or in small snippets, the best all encompassing lists are ones that have input from writers or scouts covering specific teams..I don't think any GM worth his salt puts any credence in a Bill Simmons article on players worth....

some of us were talking on here yesterday about whether players want to win all on the same level...here is a excellent article on Blake Griffin and to me it shows the different levels of commitment in the truly special ones, they have athletic talent, but also just have something else and that something else is not only infectious to their teammates but leaves them in awe....

http://sports.espn.go.com/los-angeles/nba/news/story?id=6126474

[Kent]

since GMs don't tend to write articles for espn, you kind of have to settle for the people who have talked to them. I already acknowledged that his list is flawed but, in defense of Simmons, I am 100% sure that he has seen all of these players play extensively. If a fan like myself have seen all of these players repeatedly, I am sure a professional NBA writer working for espn has.

[Lorie]

Hi Doug!
How's the weather in LA? It's positively balmy here in SW Ontario - and the piles of snow at the end of the driveway are only shoulder-high this morning! Disappointing news, for me personally, that Reggie will have to wait for his HOF induction. Good luck with the lobbying by your professional writers association to try to lend some sort of oversight, if not respectability, to the process. Have you ever been in the position of electing someone to a Hall of Fame? Can you tell us without having to shoot us afterwards??? And your tale of smelly socks/shoes/feet on the plane reminded me of something I've neglected to do for far too long. So, if I may: To the teenage girl and her beau who were seated beside my 18-month old daughter and I on that flight back in '95. I'm sorry she cried the entire time. I'm sorry I forgot her pacifier. And her blankie. Thanks, Doug, and please wish DeMar, Amir and The Chicken good-luck!

[Chris]

Doug, in regards to the HOF selection process, you mention "its selection process that we’ve been trying to get changed for a while "...I was curious to know who the "we've" refers to...writer's association? you and super son? fans?

I'm assuming it has to do with the writer's association or a similar type group...again, out of curiuosity, what type of weight can a group like that carry in lobbying for change...not trying to be sarcastic at all, just genuine curiousity of how a process like that would happen.

Thanks - C

Blogger's note: Sorry, it was the writer's association. And I'm not sure what we can do, but we'd like to be more involved as representatives on the committees that screen and select inductees, I think

[sam]

Kent continues to point out the short comings of Andrea Bargnani. I realize there are things he doesn't do terribly well, but I tend to look at things he excells at and live with the other - For goodness sakes he dropped 38 points or so in a game against the Heat this week. theres not many who can do that -
The Raptors like the majority of the teams in the league are looking for a Big that cloggs the lane, deflects shots,defends and shoots well enough to earn his keep. Unfortunately there aren't many guys like that kicking around.
Aside from a few there are very few players that do everything well - defensively Andrea is not the stalwart Kent wants him to be - offensively he's gifted....and can flat out score.

[GM]

I have no opinion on the transparency, or lackthereof, of the HOF process. But I'm glad they're making Reggie sweat a bit. Never liked that guy.

[Mike kovacs]

Perhaps AB is not likely a tradeable commodity because he is not on the market? Are Kobe or Dwight on the list?

[Steve]

Flawed or not, the HOF committee got it right with Reggie. He does not deserve to be in the Hall. Take a closer look, Doug. He was a very good player for a lot of years. But only great players make the Hall.

Only 5 All-Star games. That means in 13 of his 18 seasons the fans and coaches thought he wasn't worthy of playing with the best of his peers. He averaged a pedestrian 18.2ppg for his career. No championships, no MVP's. The only stats that really stick out are his career points and his 3-point shooting.

He was a very good player, no doubt. He was fun to watch. He gets points for being a nice guy. But, let's not water down the Hall by including a guy just because he was above average for a long time.

The Hall of Fame is for giants only.

[Everlovin PJD]

Hey Doug. Enjoy your time in LaLa Land after that epic struggle to get out there!

I know that your pal Stella will probably be calling you once more by the end of the Rookie/Sophomore tangle tonight, but stick around if you can and see how Ajax's own Justin "Jus Fly" Darlington fares in the Amateur Dunk Contest. He's got some mad skills.

[The J]

Reggie Miller not in the HOF list? Doug having more Air Canada problems? My guess is the HOF is secretly run by Spike Lee, and Air Canada is secretly run by Pipit.

Looking forward to Derozan in the Dunk Contest. I am really hoping he can steal this thing from the champ Blake Griffin. Saw something about Derozan getting two dunk ideas from Dwight Howard, and something about a Chicken on a Ladder. Not sure what that means, but it should be fun.

Did anyone know Bosh was on Conan last night? I didn't see the show, but I guess this is part of CB1's dream to get more attention by being on a cable TV show.

[Mike D.]

@Doug, that article is excellent.....not just for the "character profile" of Griffin but for its insight into the 24/7 scrutiny on these guys and the demands on their time that would, if they weren't regulated, eventually cut into their practice, training and recovery time. Thanks very much.

[D-Mac Ottawa]

Further to the discussion about the mentality, effort, will and sheer desire to win, I offer the following name: Dan Gable. There are lots of videos/documentaries on his accomplishments, but I'd highly recommend the six-part ESPN Sports Century series. Hell of a story. Hell of a legacy.
Cheers. Go Raps! Enjoy your La-La weekend, Doug!

[Phil A]

Hahahaha! That's too funny. I've never heard of anyone taking off their socks on any bus or plane.

[Matt M]

Ah Bill Simmons. Another reason I would like the Raptors to lie about Bargnani's height (7'0"? Ummm, I don't know what you're talking about, he's only 6'9") and play him at small forward. Maybe then we could all get past the rebounding thing.

[Lorie]

Ooops...just saw this: the migraine inducing flight was in '85, not '95...typo fuelled by wishful thinking. Gawd I'm old.

[doug]

I am watching Connected and it ticks me off, when non-basketball media types try to talk b-ball....don't....they were talking about Vancouver getting another team and the pros and cons which is fine...but then McCowan and Cox start disparaging Big Country and saying how he was a bum blah,blah,blah...well I saw him play and he could play, he was no draft bust and he was loved there, it was injuries that did him in, but in terms of being a fine NBA caliber player he was....his back just wouldn't allow him to work out or play....the problem there was simple a GM in Stu jackson who never had a clue, and how he became the head disciplinarian in the NBA is baffling...and ownership, it was a disaster, first the Griffiths had fine intentions just not the cash, then McCaw same boat,so he sold to Heisley who was cut out of the same cloth as the slime ball who bought the Expos (Jeffrey Loria)and ran them into the ground just so he could move them to Florida and pulled the same act with the Marlins......Heisley was the same, his only intention was to get that team out Vancouver and went to Memphis where he had a public funded arena and rights to concessions etc...Stern realizes it now, and maybe then but he couldn't stop it...the market, the fans are strong , stronger then Seattle even, they should get another franchise with a dedicated owner, which they would have now...opinions are fine but people need to get their facts straight...