Kidd Shouldn't have been Rewarded for Charging into Hawks' Coach

(AP photo by Gregory Smith)

An excellent game between the Atlanta Hawks & Dallas Mavericks was marred by an awful play by Jason Kidd last night. With less than two minutes left in the fourth quarter, the Hawks were up 97-95 when Kidd dribbled into Hawks' Coach Mike Woodson. The collision forced an official to call a technical foul on Woodson. Following a brief argument, the Mav's made the technical and eventually won the game in overtime.

Here's what happened-

Yes, Woodson should not have been on the court and as you can see he was trying to get off of it. If his presence on the court impacts the play on the court, then he should certainly be given a technical.

If you watch the video you see that Kidd goes out of his way to run into Woodson. This is not a basketball move since you try to avoid the sideline in case you step, or dribble, out of bounds. That Woodson interfered with the game is not even an issue if you read Kidd's comments where he admits with pride that he dribbled into Woodson.

Unfortunately, coaches, announcers, and internet pundits are now complementing Kidd on making a smart move because it resulted in a point. But what if Woodson avoided the contact and Kidd then stepped out of bounds and lost possession?

And where do you draw the line? What if a fan/coach/player was out of bounds and a player pretended to lose the ball simply to run into them in order to draw a technical foul. Sure, the odds of this are very low, but nevertheless, the official would have to call a technical based on the precedent established last night. Or better yet, a team could have players/coaches stand near the court to entice players to try to run into them.

These questions shouldn't even be considered since they have nothing to do with basketball! The NBA must stop rewarding players for running into people. It's bad basketball and pushes the game a step closer to WWF as players continue to believe that non-basketball actions can influence the outcome.

Sadly, there will be more coverage of Kidd's decision to dribble into Woodson than on Kidd's great effort last night (19 points, 17 assists, and 16 rebounds) .

Camby Traded to Portland- The Donald Strikes Again!

Donald, it's good to have you back! The thought of you building a winning franchise was nice but we all new it was too good to be true.

A day after their head coach signaled that the Clippers wouldn't make the playoffs, the team traded Marcus Camby (#2 in rebounds & #7 in blocks in the NBA) for guard Steve Blake & forward Travis Outlaw.

It would have been one thing if the Clippers got back significant talent or draft picks. Instead both Outlaw & Blake will probably leave this summer if they don't get moved before Thursday's trade deadline. Also, both players do not fill a gaping hole on the Clipper roster.

Blake is a decent backup PG- but do they envision him taking minutes away from Telfair or recently-signed Bobby Brown? Outlaw is recovering from another major injury- is he going to take minutes away from Thornton, Butler, or Gordon?

This move only makes sense from a cap perspective since it clears an extra $1.3M off of their salary cap (Camby makes $7.65M & Outlaw/Blake make $8.9M) this summer. In addition, the Clips save $2M in incentives owed to Camby. So let's be clear, this move was about saving $2M this year and shaving $1.3M off of their cap.

With this move, & Coach Hughes' comments about the team not making the playoffs, their season is effectively over. It's never a good move to tell competitive athletes that they're not going to make the playoffs. Furthermore, you're sending the wrong signal to Gordon & Blake, who will be deciding in a few years if they want to continue with the Clippers. And where does this leave Kaman & Davis, who are in the prime of their careers and are now facing 20 pointless games. How do you think the team felt on Monday when Camby left the team dinner after his agent called to tell him that he had been traded? These indirect financial consequences are probably worth more than the $1.3M the Clippers will shave off of their salary cap.

A culture of failure, coupled with the Camby trade, won't entice free agents to sign with the Clippers this summer.

No Skills at NBA Skills Challenge

After watching Deron Williams at the All-Star Skills Challenge, i have to learn how to carry the ball around defenders. Apparently this is an NBA Live skill that has crossed over from the video game world to the basketball court. Check it out-

Coach Mike Fratello actually points out the carrying-over; but dribbling-expert Reggie Miller refutes his claim by noting that the two referees would blow the whistle on such violations.

A little carrying might be okay, but he's completely carrying the ball around those cones. This is terrible.

My Top 10 Dunkers: Relief from Last Night's Dunk Contest

So last night's dunk contest didn't go too well. The fans declared that Nate Robinson beat Demar DeRozan when really there were no winners. Sadly, the best dunker on the court- Dominique Wilkins- was sitting at the judges' table.

To quench your dunking thirst, here are my Top 10 Dunkers with clips to justify:

My 3 Fav Thoughts from Day 1 of All-Star Weekend

I caught parts of the first night in Dallas, a typical all-star Friday. Here are my 3 Fav thoughts-

#3- I hope the association made lots of $$ for the steer roping contest they kept pushing since it didn't go that well. This was highlighted when Carmelo commented "I run whenever I see a rope like that."

#2- The look on Dejuan Blair, Tyreke Evans, & Russell Westbrooks' faces when Evans was awarded the MVP to the Rookie/Sophmore game.

Tyreke Evans hoists his hardware after winning MVP honors.

Ronald Martinez/NBAE/Getty Images

Apparently the fans voted during the game so that neither Blair or Westbrook received a share of the MVP trophy. Russell finished with 40 points & Blair had 22 points & 23 rebounds with the crowd chanting "MVP! MVP!" as Tyreke received the award. Nice job NBA, i hope the promotion justified rendering the MVP somewhat meaningless. Then again, it is all-star weekend.

#1- The Dwight Howard/Shaq feud heating up during the dunk-off between Eric Gordon & Demar DeRozan. I didn't know that this feud was more than a joke until Charles kept bringing the situation up. Howard tried to downplay the feud but Charles wouldn't let it go.

Without Kobe & Bynum, Pau & Lamar Dominate

Have you seen the Lakers lately? Over the last three games they've beaten Western conference rivals- @Portland, San Antonio, & @Utah- easily. Okay, maybe those first two victories aren't as significant as they could be but the Lakers had lost something like 8+ in Portland & San Antonio is always tough. Nevertheless, if you've watched any of these games they're clearly a refreshing welcome from their lethargic efforts that we've become accustom to.

Pau Gasol, left, had 22 points and 19 rebounds, and Lamar Odom finished with a season-high 25 points and 11 rebounds in the Lakers' 96-81 victory over Utah. (Steve C. Wilson / Associated Press)

Obviously the main difference in these games has been the absence of Kobe & Bynum. With these two players the Lakers' ball movement slows down so that zone defenses can collapse and rotate in systematic manner. More importantly, everyone stands around and just watches as these guys make aggressive scoring plays. In the last three games, the Lakers' ball movement has been much better as even guys like Walton and Sasha (yes, i said it) are making valuable contributions.

Basketball is best when you don't have to do a lot of thinking & there is little one-on-one play. Right now they're making simple plays (cuts, screens, give-and-goes, etc.) because they trust their teammates will make the right decision whether it be pass, shoot, or create. This is primarily because Pau & Lamar are unselfish in nature and are looking to take advantage of mismatches. Bynum & Kobe are more naturally inclined to score rather than create.

The Lakers have the most talent in the NBA and this is clearly evident without Kobe & Bynum. I'm not saying the Lakers are a better team without Kobe & Bynum, but it would be nice if Kobe & Bynum could take advantage of the existing talent on this roster. Even if you're Kobe's biggest fan, you have to admit that these last three games have been both fun to watch and surprisingly successful. Think about it, none of these games have even been close.