Bleacher Report - Articles by Alex Tang

A Look Into the Cleveland Cavalier's 2009 Season Thus Far

Alex Tang — Mon, 23 Feb 2009 20:10:15 -0500

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The Cleveland Cavaliers have had an PHENOMENAL season so far. They are the No. 1 defensive team, and are ranked #2 overall in the NBA. The Los Angeles Lakers hold the No. 1 spot, and there has been talk of a Cavaliers-Lakers NBA Finals. Back to Cleveland.

So you know they have LeBron James, one of the best players in the league now. With the addition of point guard Maurice Williams (also called Mo Williams), they have turned the league around. In the 2007-2008 NBA Season, the west reigned superior.

This year, with new additions (and also subtractions), Boston, Cleveland, and the Magic reign superior.

The West has greatly disappointed, other than the Los Angeles Lakers, who have swept both Boston and Cleveland, but have lost twice to Orlando and lost four of the last last games with the Charlotte Bobcats. Cleveland also has Wally Szcherbiak, who is an amazing three point shooter.

Anderson Varejao, Zydrunas Ilgauskas, and recently-healed Delonte West, along with Daniel Gibson. LeBron himself is having an amazing season, having put up two 50 point games.

Mo Williams has proved himself a worthy addition. Just look at their record, and nothing need be said. Offensively, Cleveland is set.

They are also ready defensively, being the No. 1 defensive team in the NBA, holding their opponents to under 90 points. There are still 28 games left for Cleveland. Let's see if we can have an amazing showdown with the Los Angeles Lakers. LeBron for MVP?!?!

Thanks to www.daylife.com for the picture.

Lakers-Nuggets: Kobe Booed in Denver as L.A. Rolls in Game Three

Alex Tang — Sat, 26 Apr 2008 13:58:49 -0400

Once again, The Los Angeles Lakers have defeated the Denver Nuggets even with Kobe booed and not playing his best. The end score was 102-84.

This is the games scoring comparison:

Team	1	2	3	4	T
Lakers	23	30	30	19	102
Nuggets	20	26	18	20	84

As you can see, the Lakers outscored the Denver Nuggets every single quarter, the Nuggets slowly fading away as the game progressed.

Surprisingly, Denver shot 43% and the Lakers shot 46% from field goals. From beyond the arch, Lakers shot 26% and the Denver Nuggets shot a respectable 50%. The Lakers were 60% from the stripe, and the Denver Nuggets were 100% from the stripe. You might be wondering, if so much of the percentages for the Nuggets were better than the Lakers, why did they lose? Well, the Los Angeles Lakers' stifling defense and offense took Denver off guard, while Kobe Bryant distributed the ball.

The Largest lead for the Los Angeles Lakers was 19, while the largest lead for the Nuggets was 2. The Lakers kept well throughout the entire game, only exerting 7 turnovers, while the Nuggets had 13.

Los Angeles Lakers team statistics:

Top Performers
LOS ANGELES		DENVER
	K. Bryant Points: 22 Reb: 7 Ast: 8 Stl: 1 Blk: 1		L. Kleiza Points: 15 Reb: 9 Ast: 1 Stl: 0 Blk: 0

Game Leaders
	LOS ANGELES	DENVER
Points	K. Bryant 22	C. Anthony 16
Rebounds	K. Bryant 7	M. Camby 12
Assists	K. Bryant 8	M. Camby 4
Steals	L. Odom 2	M. Camby 1
Blocks	P. Gasol 3	M. Camby 2

Game 4 of the Lakers-Nuggets battle will once again be in the mile-high city, Monday, April 28, 10:30 PM ET. NBA Coverage will be on TNT.

Comments or questions about this article? Write'em down below using the comment box.

Got a question you want answered? E-mail it to alextangent@gmail.com and I'll have it answered as soon as possible. If you liked this article, please comment! I really need your support!

thanks espn.

Pau Gasol, Kobe Bryant Lead As Lakers Blow Past Nuggets in Round 1

Alex Tang — Sun, 20 Apr 2008 11:24:14 -0400

Kobe Bryant and Pau Gasol lead the Lakers as they blew past the Denver Nuggets Sunday.

Kobe Bryant, who had a horrendous first half with just 4 points on 2-10 shooting , came back in the 3rd quarter with 10 points, later being fouled out in the 4th quarter, ending the game with 32 points, 3 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 steal and 2 blocks on 9-26 shooting, 13 of his points coming from the stripe(free-throw line), out of 14 attempts. Gasol, who neared a triple-double, had 36 points, 16 rebounds, and 8 assists on 14-20 shooting. Lamar Odom and Luke Walton also posted up respectable numbers. Odom had 17 points on 8-14 shooting, along with 14 rebounds and 6 assists. Luke Walton had 16 points on 6-8 shooting, alongside 4 rebounds and 5 assists. Overall, the Lakers shot 84.4% from the freethrow line, 50 % field goals, and shooting 45% from beyond the arch.

On the Denver side, Allen Iverson tried to rally his Nuggets back into the game, but failed to do so, as he was ejected with minutes to play due to a technical foul, then continuing to talk, in which the referee gave him a 2nd technical foul. During Inbounds, Iverson ran up the court and put the shot up in seconds as he tried to get back in the game. He ended his game with 30 points on 11-24 shooting, along with 5 rebounds and 7 assists. Carmelo Anthony lended a stable hand with 30 points on 11-26 shooting, alongside 12 rebounds and 3 assists. J.R. Smith and Linas Kleiza removed some of the stress from their star players' shoulders. Kleiza had 23 points on an excellent 9-13 shooting, along with 4 rebounds and 1 assist. Smith fouled out in the fourth quarter, but had an excellent game with 15 points on 6-8 shooting, along with 3 rebounds and no assists. Overall, the Denver Nuggets were 23-37 from the stripe (free-throw line), shot a 44% field goal percentage, along with a 41% from beyond the arch.

Total Rebounds for Lakers: 45

Total Rebounds for Nuggets: 47

The final score was 128-114, Lakers.

Overall, the defensive end for the Nuggets was excellent as they pressured the Lakers.

Game 2 of the Nuggets-Lakers matchup will again be decided in L.A., on Wednesday, April 23rd at 10:30 ET.

Got a question you want answered? E-mail it to alextangent@gmail.com and I'll have it answered as soon as possible. If you liked this article, please comment! I really need your support!

Lakers-Nuggets: First Round Breakdown and Analysis

Alex Tang — Thu, 17 Apr 2008 14:41:37 -0400

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The Team I'll be covering during the NBA Beat Challenge is the Los Angeles Lakers, the only other team besides the Boston Celtics that I believe have a shot at the Championship. LeBron probably won't carry the weight this year because of his back spasms, his last games haven't been his best. The Detroit Pistons are one possibility in the NBA Finals.

Now getting to the point, the first round match-up of the Los Angeles Lakers Versus the Denver Nuggets, playing at Los Angeles' Staples' Center.

So here's my breakdown.

Why will the Lakers advance?

The Lakers, in my opinion of course, are going to advance because of their excellent offense. Locking up the #1 spot in a VERY CROWDED Western Conference is definitely not easy. New Orleans Hornets' held it for a while, but lost the top spot. Now, the Denver Nuggets is an offense team, because of their big men. Kenyon Martin, Marcus Camby, who was the defensive player of the year 2006-2007. The Nuggets also have 2 of the top scorers in the NBA, Carmelo Anthony and Allen Iverson. The Nuggets also have, who I believe deserves the Sixth Man award, J.R.Smith and also Eduardo Najera. Anthony Carter, Chucky Atkins, and all the stars on the Nuggets are sure to step up their game during this incredible first-round matchup. On the other side, the Lakers have, the #1 player in the league now, so fast and lethal, Kobe Bryant, who is also the 2nd in the NBA in the category (points per game). Andrew Bynum may be returning during the first round, that is not yet confirmed. The Lakers mid-season acquired Pau Gasol will be a new gun for Kobe. Derek Fisher will once again provide that stable hand and leadership that every team needs. Sasha Vujacic will whip out the three-pointers and disappoint them, and Jordan Farmar too. Lamar Odom will become aggressive (as if he already isn't) and grab 20 boards a game during the Playoffs. Hahaha. Radmonavic may even be a key player.

If you watch NBA and watch it closely, The Lakers are not a defense team until, say 4:00 left in the fourth quarter, whether they are down or up, because they know that that's when their opponent will try to start making a run. Denver on the other hand is a defense team, armed with a defense player of the year, along with a few all-stars, Denver will be one contender.

Stats for Both Team:All Key Players:

Los Angeles Lakers

Kobe Bryant: 28.3 point per game, 6.3 rebounds per game & 5.4 assists per game

Pau Gasol: 18.9 points per game, 8.4 rebounds per game along with 3.4 assists per game

Trevor Ariza :5.5 points per game, 3.1 rebounds per game & 1.3 assists per game

Sasha Vujacic: 8.8 points per game, 2.10 rebounds per game & 1.0 assists per game

Jordan Farmar: 9.2 points per game, 2.2 rebounds per game & 2.7 assists per game

Luke Walton: 7.2 points per game, 3.9 rebounds per game & 2.9 assists per game

Didier Ilunga-Mbenga: 2.0 points per game, 1.7 rebounds per game, 0.2 assists per game

Lamar Odom: 14.2 points per game, 10.6 rebounds per game along with 3.5 assists per game

Ronny Turiaf: 6.6 points per game, 3.9 rebounds per game, 1.6 assists per game

Derek Fisher: 11.7 points per game, 2.1 rebounds per game, 2.9 assists per game

Denver Nuggets

Marcus Camby: 9.1 points per game, 13.1 rebounds per game, 3.3 assists per game

Carmelo Anthony: 25.7 points per game, 7.4 rebounds per game, 3.4 assists per game

Allen Iverson: 26.4 points per game, 3 rebounds per game, 7.1 assists per game

Eduardo Najera: 5.9 points per game, 4.3 rebounds per game, 1.2 assists per game

J.R.Smith: 12.3 points per game, 2.1 rebounds per game, 1.7 assists per game

Kenyon Martin: 12.4 points per game, 6.5 rebounds per game, 1.3 assists per game

Chucky Atkins: 4.7 points per game, 1.3 rebounds per game, 2 assists per game

Anthony Carter: 7.8 points per game, 2.9 rebounds per game, 5.5 assists per game

Linas Kleiza: 11.1 points per game, 4.2 rebounds per game, 1.2 assists per game

The Denver Nuggets are the 2nd in the NBA for Most Point Scored In a Game, behind the Golden State Warriors. The Lakers and the Nuggets are also two very different types of teams, one is a defense/offense, and one is a offense team, Nuggets being the defense/offense. The inevitable thing that is bound to happen is that they will both clash. In an interview, George Karl explained he likes to put up a shot fast, by telling his players,” Inbound the ball and get up the court within 2 seconds, and try to get a shot up within 10 seconds of that.” I have provided you all the stats of players on both teams (took a while), but that’s what I love to do, provide this community with great sports coverage. Now it's up to you to decide who YOU think will get out of the first round, but I know that my troops, the Lakers will come out on top with the Championship.

A Look into the 2007-2008 NBA Basketball Regular Season

Alex Tang — Wed, 16 Apr 2008 17:23:13 -0400

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Another great year of the wondrous sport of Basketball has came and gone. This great sport was invented by James Naismith in 1891. Since then, basketball has changed. Short-shorts have come and gone. Wood backboards have come and gone, and the many legends we are never to forget have come and gone. To the days of Michael Jordan & Scottie Pippen, to the current days of Kobe Bryant and his Lakers.

Many different trades have occurred this year, at the beginning of the year and at midseason. For one, Kevin Garnett was traded from the Minnesota Timberwolves along with Ray Allen from the Seattle Supersonics to the Boston Celtics, along with Paul Pierce being nicknamed "The Big 3", or "Triple Threat". Jason Kid was traded to the Dallas Mavericks, where he hasn't been playing his best, but he reached his 100th triple double of his career TONIGHT (4.net/16/08) against the New Orleans Hornets', Dallas being at home. Perhaps the biggest trade that caused so much controversy was the Shaquille O'Neal trade, being traded from the Miami Heat to the Phoenix Suns, Shawn Marion from the Suns' going to the Heat. Pau Gasol of the Memphis Grizzlies was traded to Lakers at Mid-season. Gasol has been doing grade with the Lakers' crew, alongside Kobe Bryant. One of the Lakers' hopes is th at their center, Andrew Bynum will return soon (hopefully the first round in the playoffs). Bynum, who is training under Kareem Abdul Jabar, was doing amazing and really broke out of his shy shell before getting injured, which cost him 46 games this season. The Celtics have been the biggest turnaround team in the NBA this 2007-2008 season, because they've won [37] more games this season than last, because of the big three. Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen's stats have all dropped substantially, but that's what happens when you have so many stars on a single team.

A couple players that had stellar seasons are Yao Ming, the Houston Rockets' center, who was injured, averaging 22 ppg and 11.3 rpg. Antawn Jamison and DeShawn Stevenson, even the (rookie) Nick Young stepped up their game with the absence of all-star Gilbert Arenas only 8 games into the season. Jamison has been a double-double machine, while DeShawn Stevenson has been a reliable 3 pt shooter, with a game winner. I remember, while I was watching the draft, how much I was looking foward to Al Thornton of the Los Angeles Clippers play. With his career high, 39 points, 8 rebounds, 9 assist, it must've been one of the greatest rookie performances of all time. Thornton, normally averaging 13.4 ppg, 4.3 rpg, and also providing the team an able 3 pt shooter. Kevin Durant surely showed everyone who's boss, but I don't believe he should be rookie of the year. I think that it goes to Al Horford of the Atlanta Hawks, for his astounding hard work on both sides of the court. I'm really looking foward to Greg Oden, the #1 draft pick of the 2007-2008 season play next year, and hoping for many NCAA players to be drafted, Kevin Love, Hansborough, Lawson, O.J. Mayo. As far as fights go, I think I've seen a slightly less number of brawls. From the Jerry Stackhouse-almost-kicked-Ginobili's-ass fight, to the Hi-I'm-Lamar-odom-iI'm-gonna-tackle-ray-allen-for-no-reason-almost fight, there have also been many sad things more than action-packed fighting. Chris Webber announced his retirement, and Alonzo Mourning is planning on retiring the end of this season. Overall, I think this season was great because of the new predictions and what actually became of those trades. I'm looking foward to the 16 great teams from East and West that made the playoffs to battle. Good luck to all the teams, may the best win. Leave comments below to tell me what you thought of this article. Thanks.

Kevin Love: Looking Ahead to a Bright Future in the NBA

Alex Tang — Wed, 16 Apr 2008 15:14:55 -0400

Got a question you want answered? E-mail it to alextangent@gmail.com and I'll have it answered as soon as possible. If you liked this article, please comment! I really need your support

As I was watching ESPN just minutes ago, UCLA announced Kevin Love's entry for the 2008-2009 NBA Draft. The Star Freshman that led UCLA to its semi-final before being eliminated by Memphis had an amazing first season with the Bruins, averaging 17.5 ppg, 10.6 rpg, and a 35% 3 pt shooter as a 6'10 center. This young, talented freshman looks on with a bright future with the NBA. Hopefully, he doesn't turn out like J.J. Redick, who was one of the NBA's top prospects coming out of Duke. Kevin Love, not shy at all, has dominated in every game he has played this season, and you can tell that he loves every second, every tick on the court If he is successfully drafted, by which Lakers is his dream team, he would be indeed lucky. A 6'10 center, K.Love has good body mass with strong hands. But, averaging 2 turnovers per game while playing for the Bruins, he would have to transition. By transition I mean changing his game-play style, because I've watched K.Love closely and he likes to play among half-court. Fast game-play is not his habit, and definitely not his liking, so if he was matched up with the Denver Nuggets or the Golden State Warriors, he would be in trouble. The Denver Nuggets head coach George Karl likes EXTREMELY fast game-play. He says in a magazine," Inbound the ball up the court, and try to get a shot up within 10 seconds." This is why the Nuggets are number 2 in points? I believe? Kevin Love would work hard like any other NBA Draft, Greg Oden returning next season for the Portland Trailblazers, being the number 1 pick of the 2007-2008, thought he missed the whole season due to injury.

A question to now ask you is, what number do you predict he'll get? North Carolina's Hansborough, being the CHEVY Player of the Year as center might be a higher draft # than Kevin Love. I believe that K.Love will be drafted in the first round, first 10. What do you guys think? Comment below with your thoughts.

NBA Sixth Man Contenders: J.R. Smith or Manu Ginobili?

Alex Tang — Wed, 16 Apr 2008 12:21:03 -0400

Now before you leave me a comment saying, "You're biased" because of this article's picture, let me explain to you why J.R. Smith of the Denver Nuggets should be the NBA's Sixth Man.

The only other contender I consider is the San Antonio Spurs' Manu Ginobili.

Now we can compare stats, or we can compare attitudes of the players. Ginobili has always been looking out for his teammates during games in case he gets double-teamed and has nowhere to go.

J.R. Smith has changed this year—even George Karl said it himself. In Smith's previous three years, he was considered by some as a ball hog, and on top of that, people didn't like him even more because he gave himself an outrageous nickname, "Young Rich."

Ginobili, who has averaged 19.6 PPG, 4.5 APG, and 40 percent shooting outside of the arch, has played in 73 games and started 23 for the Spurs the 2007-2008 season. His field goal percentage is 45 percent—fairly average—and he's also an 85 percent free throw shooter. Ginobili also plays an average of 31.1 minutes per game.

Smith, who has averaged 12.2 PPG, 2.1 RPG, 1.7 APG and a 40 percent shooting from beyond the arch, has played in 73 games and started none, also having a 46 percent field-goal percentage.

Smith has undoubtedly been an outstanding contribution to the Nuggets success in reaching the playoffs. He plays an average of 19.2 minutes per game.

You can compare side-by-side stats that I have just provided you, but you can see how much less minutes Smith plays than Ginobili. Almost 12 minutes less playing time on the game-floor, you might easily be able to see how much Smith really could score if he played as much as Ginobili.

Another thing to take into mind is consistency.

I don't know about you, but I've seen a few bad games from Ginobili this season, also a couple from Smith. But in the bad games that both have played, has Ginobili had 15-plus? Not in all of them.

The point trying to be made here is that Smith has consistency. He plays with style and even though it doesn't seem like it, he enjoys and cherishes every minute on the game-floor, entertaining the thousands of fans.

Ginobili has that consistency, but something about Smith makes him stand out to me.

What about you? What do you think of this article, and who do you think should be the NBA's Sixth Man for the 2007-2008 season? Comment and we'll talk.

Got a question you want answered? E-mail it to alextangent@gmail.com and I'll have it answered as soon as possible. If you liked this article, please comment! I really need your support!

NBA Rookie of the Year

Alex Tang — Tue, 15 Apr 2008 18:14:57 -0400

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Who should be rookie of the year?

Wow, this is a good one, similar to the question of who should be the NBA's MVP (Read my other article on MVP: Kobe Or Chris Paul).

So, who should be MVP?

It brings up a heated debate.

The biggest rivals are Al Horford of the Atlanta Hawks and Kevin Durant (No. 1 scorer as a rookie) of the Seattle Supersonics.

Al Horford is a 6'10 C/F and weighs in at 245 lbs. His 2007-2008 stats stand at 10.2 PPG, 9.6 RPG, 1.5 APG.

Kevin Durant is a 6'9 guard and weighs in at 215 lbs. His 2007-2008 stats stand at 20 PPG, 4.2 RPG, 2.4 APG.

Kevin Durant is a more balanced player, while Horford is excellent at his position.

Almost averaging double-doubles as a rookie, Horford immediately emerged and proved himself as one of the 2007-2008 season's top NBA rookies, while Kevin Durant also emerged as one of the top.

There is much conflict going on saying that Kevin Durant should undoubtedly be R.O.Y. (Rookie of the Year). But one factor to take in is that Kevin Durant has taken 1,341 FGs in one year—as a rookie! Also, he's shooting at 42 percent, which is a fairly low/OK percentage.

As for Horford, we already know he averages 10.2 PPG and 9.6 RPG. But did you know he shoots at 50 percent and has only taken 649 FGs for the 2007-2008 season. Horford has already proven himself and has made some amazing plays throughout the season, also with Kevin Durant.

Undoubtedly, Al Horford deserves R.O.Y.

Before you read this article, did you think Kevin Durant would get R.O.Y.? Have I influenced you, analyzing their stats?

Hopefully I have, as we will soon find out who is to be the NBA's R.O.Y.

Got a question? E-mail alextangent@gmail.com and I'll have it answered as soon as possible.

Houston Rockets: Looking Back at the 22-Game Winning Streak

Alex Tang — Tue, 15 Apr 2008 16:50:56 -0400

Got a question you want answered? E-mail it to alextangent@gmail.com and I'll have it answered as soon as possible. If you liked this article, please comment! I really need your support!

Houston Rockets' 22 game win-streak recently ended, the NBA best Boston Celtics snapping their streak. Houston lost by 21, as it was a tough game. Houston Rockets' PG Rafer Alston had a bad shooting night, the week before shooting 8/11 3 pt fg's. Tracy McGrady also had a bad night.

Since the streak began, the Rockets have won 12 with Yao Ming, the Houston Rockets' All Star center, and won 10 without him. The absense of arguably the best center in the NBA has brought out the real spirit in many players of the Rockets. Rookie Carl Landry has been an undoubtedly AMAZING contribution to their success. Rafer Alston has been another contribution, even Shane Battier, the Houston Rockets' primary lockdown defender has been a great contribution.

Since the work stress has been lifted off Houston Rockets' All-Star Tracy McGrady's shoulders, it has been easier for him. Tracy had been scoring 25, 33 pts in a game against the New Orleans Hornets. Tracy played all 48 minutes.

Though this amazing piece of history made in our time has ended, we saw history in the making. The longest was with Wilt Chamberlain's Lakers, who put together a 33 game win streak. But comeon, 22 wins in a row? That's amazing.