Bleacher Report - Articles by Dwight Palmer

Saints-Patriots: Shootout In the Super Dome

Dwight Palmer — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 00:30:05 -0500

Many New Orleans fans still remember the 'Aints. This was the popular name for a team whose fans wore paper bags over their heads when attending games. The Saints were the most lovable inept football team in the USA. From their inception, in 1967, until Jim Mora brought nine if his USFL defensive players to the Crescent City they were failures. Mora and his leadership resulted in the Saints first winning season and their first playoff appearance in their 21st year of existence. From those humble beginnings, who would have thought that we would ever see an 11-0 New Orleans team?

Using the current vernacular, these Saints " blew up" the New England Patriots on Monday night. Drew Brees threw for 229 yards in the first half. The Saints defenders played as if the whole Patriots team had insulted their mommas. The Saints turned people upside down on tackles. On one kickoff, the Patriot kick returner looked as if he ran into a clothes line with his feet flying up in front of his face before his backside hit the ground.

For Tom Brady, the defense brought to my mind a video of a pack of wolves chasing down a caribou with Brady as the target. He was sacked, harassed and pulled down while in the process of throwing. There was virtually no protection for him. This game was so one sided that the Pat's pulled the plug with 5 minutes left in the game by pulling their major starters, (Brady and Randy Moss).

The game began with both teams scoring once in the first quarter, the Saints a field goal and the Pat's a touchdown. In the second quarter, the Saints outscored the Pat's 21 to 3. This left the Saints ahead with a half time score of 24 -10. Both teams exchanged touchdowns in the third and the Saints added another score in the fourth. The final score of 38-17 looks better than the actual play of the game.

Drew Brees completed 18 passes of 23 attempts for 371 yards and 5 touchdowns and no interceptions. Tom Brady threw 36 passes to complete 21 with no touchdown passes and 2 interceptions. The quarterback ratings were more indicative of the dominance of the Saints. Drew Brees had a rating of 158.3, Tom Brady ended with a rating of 55.0.

We, meaning those of us who watched the game, were treated to a vision of what the best team in the NFL looks like. There is no doubt that the Saints are presently the most dominating team in the league. A football has a funny shape and bounces erratically which is a great metaphor for a football season as well. This simply means that things can happen that don't make sense, but barring any funny bounces, the Saints should be in the Super Bowl this year.

Should they make it that far, I hope that they invite Archie Manning back. As one of the most talented quarterbacks of his generation, it had to be frustrating to play for the "Aints". Yet he stuck it out and did not leave the team until the twilight of his career.

I hear faint strains of Louis Armstrong's song, "When the Saints go Marching In", and cheers of who 'dat? Prediction Saints 16-0 in the regular season

Lebron James Fires A "Brick" On Retiring No. 23

Dwight Palmer — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 21:35:32 -0500

It has just come to my attention that Lebron James is lobbying for a league wide retiring of Michael Jordan’s No. 23. This was pretty funny to me until I realized that this guy James was serious.

I cannot think of one good reason to carry that honor past the Chicago Bulls team alone.

What a slap in the face to Bill Russell, Wilt Chamberlain, and Oscar Robertson. These guys were true pioneers that actually played when racial segregation was still legal.

Let us contemplate this naïve idea. Jordan was not:

(1) The most prolific scorer, that goes to Kareem. (2) He did not win the most titles, that title goes to Bill Russell with 11. (3) He was not the first player to “fly”, that goes to Dr. “J”. (4) Did Jordan do anything that Dr “J” didn’t do first? (5) I cannot think of one good reason to give this honor to Jordan or anyone else.

The NBA would be well advised to avoid creating a new paradigm that most certainly will cause divisiveness within its own ranks and with fans, some of whom have never bought into the Jordan myth.

Lebron, in my opinion, needs to focus on improving as a player because his nemesis, Kobe Bryant, is still eating Lebron’s lunch in the skills department. Maybe while Kobe is still learning new playing moves, Lebron is boning up for the political arena.

My conclusion and advice on this subject to Lebron: “Get a Life, please!"

New York Knicks: Still Dysfunctional

Dwight Palmer — Mon, 01 Dec 2008 17:13:11 -0500

The jig is up! The motivations are made public and the methods are medieval.

Let’s review the facts. The New York Knicks have been badly mismanaged and under coached for the term of the previous coach’s tenure. The new management and coach, Donnie Walsh and Mike D’Antoni respectively, are attempting to bring order to the chaos.

Players have been traded in an attempt to get a group of individuals that can perform within the new coach’s system. There is one exception, Stephon Marbury.

Marbury’s contract is too large to trade away—I suspect, because they would have to take a near-equal contract or contracts in return. This is like shopping at the Goodwill store±you have to take what is there, and you cannot request a particular designer label.

The other method is to buy out the contract. This means that the Knicks pay the player the amount that is due on the remainder of the contract, or maybe negotiate a lesser sum, and the two parties go their separate ways. This is the Knicks' problem.

GM Donnie Walsh has stated that he does not believe in buyouts. So he and D’Antoni have resorted to draconian measures to coerce Marbury into relenting and accepting a “short sale” on the value of his remaining contract.

The methods used to subdue Marbury were: (a) The denial of playing time to damage his future marketability, (b) The lack of any public statements adequately explaining his status which gives the impression that he is damaged goods, (c) The fine and suspension on the pretext that he refused to follow directions.

This strategy is almost at the critical point where it becomes damaging to the Knicks organization instead of Marbury. Why? The more Marbury is damaged and denied fair handling, the less likely it is that he will accept a discount on his buyout. If his future is in doubt and his value declining, it would make more sense to take the "bird in the hand" than to take a low buyout and look forward to maybe a mid-level exception with another team. As this proceeds, his ability to attract a decent contract is declining.

Anther consideration is the Knicks are giving Marbury an outstanding lawsuit. Please consult your own attorney, but I see breach of ethics, intentional infliction of emotional distress, and violation of league policy with their fine and suspension and slander. They don’t want to give up $21 million, so they risk a much greater amount through underhanded measures.

Yet another consideration is that this team is short on players, and they need Marbury's roster spot. Who would want to play for this demented duo of Walsh and D’Antoni after this? Were I a player, NY would suddenly be on the do-not-consider list.

D’Antoni used to have my respect as a coach—but after this fiasco, I have to question just who this man is and the nature of his ethics.

From Marbury’s point of view, he is innocent. He worked out this summer with a vengeance, and was prepared to not only honor his contract, but had expectations of performing at his peak. D’Antoni knew that he was not going to use Marbury before the first game of the season.

They could have pursued a buyout during the summer, gotten a better deal than they will now, and Marbury could be playing somewhere else. The fact that they waited and pursued this policy of emotional and professional terrorism suggests that this is personal between D’Antoni and Marbury, with Walsh a willing co-conspirator.

If they truly expect to attract Mr. LeBron James in two years, they must solve this problem within the week—and do so in a fair manner toward Marbury. Anything less will not only tarnish, but taint this NY organization as long as one of the two protagonists is employed there.

If this persists, the owner will eventually come to the realization that the only way to clean the reputation of his investment will be to hire another GM, one that could command players respect and public goodwill. As this situation continues, it is the New York Knickerbockers who will lose value. The American public likes and expects fair play even if they don’t like the person being abused.

This organization would do well to take heed of the public perception they are creating, and the long-term effect it will have on this organization.

NY Knick's: Self Inflicted Wounds

Dwight Palmer — Sun, 30 Nov 2008 12:31:42 -0500

Some decades ago when I was in grade school, we students were obligated to read a designated editorial in the local newspaper. After reading the assignment, we were then to proceed to make two lists, one of all facts and the other of all opinions in the article. The whole class became quite proficient in this exercise.

Recently, I have found myself unconsciously applying these long ago learned skills to the New York Knicks present personnel problem. There is something about this situation that strikes me like the crash of a garbage can top during a New York Philharmonic performance. Something here just does not ring true.

The motivations in this saga, and most professional sports, are: Ego, money, winning, and future money. These are listed in order of importance, though these values differ with the age of the participant and number of titles previously won.

The beginning: Coach D’Antoni comes to New York with a chip on his shoulder from the way his stay in Phoenix ended. I can assume that he harbors a desire to succeed at least to the level of perennial conference contender.

He needs to find the guys that will play the way he desires. There is also the need to get rid of some salary for future development (money).

This is where the general manager makes his appearance. It would be inconceivable that the GM would not consult the coach concerning future team development.

Ideally, they would work hand in hand especially since D’Antoni presumably left Phoenix in part because of disagreements on personnel decisions. Donnie Walsh, the New York GM, would know this and endeavor to keep communications open with the coach he had recently hired.

The Process: After viewing the players during the preseason, coach D’Antoni makes his decisions based on present ability and future needs. There were players that were subsequently traded to other teams shortly, but for reasons as yet to be discerned the coach tells his star guard that “the team will be going in another direction.”

This is interpreted by most people as, “you will not be playing because we are going to trade you or release you.”

The Ulterior Motive: Trading or releasing a player happens; very few on either side of management get upset with this process.

However, with Stephon Marbury there is no movement. The Knicks did finally trade Zach Randolph and Mardy Collins. Why not Marbury for somebody somewhere?

My speculation based on known motivation of, money and future money, is that the size of his remaining contract was a problem. If he sits for a while the value of the product (Marbury himself) becomes questionable because new contracts rely heavily on recent performance.

This in turn would facilitate a lower buy out because of the pressure on Marbury to salvage some monetary value rather than sit all season.

Result: We have a well respected player sitting in full view of the nation in street clothes because the coach has deemed him redundant. Most people, who have worked as hard as he is acknowledged to have worked in the offseason, would expect a little more respect.

This does not mean playing time. The way the Lakers treated former starter Luke Walton is a good example. While he gets almost no playing time now, it was made public that this development was a direct result of too many good players at the same position.

The Knicks decided to leave Marbury and everyone else in the dark about his present and future. The result of this, lack of communication, is that he looks like a fool on national television, simply by the disrespect he has been shown by his own organization.

In other words, they make him look like “Willie Phoo Phoo” of no consequence as a person or a player plus he is rapidly jeopardizing “future money."

Unforeseen Consequences: Injuries always happen, but last week it was critical. Two guards are injured and new players were not yet cleared to play. This left the Knicks short handed.

Now the coach has already committed to a strategy of driving down the value of his unwanted guard and has taken a public stance. How does he save face and ask this man, whom he has been attempting to undercut financially, to play for him?

Solution, he doesn’t ask. He tells his player that if he chooses to play he would be allowed to do so. This makes it the players decision and D’Antoni does not have to eat “crow” in front of his team. The player declines to make a decision, but is given the same opportunity a few days later, when he again declines to make a decision.

Here is why I believe this above scenario to be the correct version. Insubordination is an actionable offense in any corporation or organization. I am positive that if this (insubordination) was the case we would be looking at more than a one day suspension.

This type of infraction would also partially achieve the goal of lowering Marbury’s value for buyout. Because of the tepid reaction by the Knicks front office, I am sure that he (Marbury) violated no policy.

We also have Walsh, saying that he had no idea of the past or present problems between D’Antoni and Marbury. Is it possible to imagine a coach at any level of sports that would not be asked by someone of a higher authority why his star player has not played all season. Especially one to whom we have a $20-plus million commitment. This would make Walsh either incompetent or less than candid, take your pick.

Conclusion: All this preparation for management; education, whether practical or formal, working with several teams as asst. coach, coach, then GM or some combination thereof and they still do something this stupid? How do I apply for this job? This is not rocket science, its people skills, something every normal child understands by the age of six months.

I do believe Marbury never refused a directive to play. It was obvious by the third game of the season that he was never intended to play and only hardship caused the need for him to do so.

But the coach, unable to save face any other way, did not tell him to play, but asked him if he desired to do so. This allowed the coach to avoid embarrassment as a consequence of his earlier decisions. Marbury, feeling publicly humiliated and angry, pretty much said to himself, “If you want me to play, you are going to have to direct me or publicly apologize, otherwise stew in your own mess," (a manifestation of ego by both player and coach).

How difficult is that to understand? Walsh and D’Antoni, need to “Man Up” and accept responsibility for their purposeful creation of a situation that backfired. I could respect that, passing the buck to a subordinate is reprehensible to me, but I acknowledge acceptability by corporate mores.

Kerry Collins, Titans' Success Will Benefit Vince Young in the Long Run

Dwight Palmer — Thu, 27 Nov 2008 05:01:07 -0500

The Tennessee Titans are on a roll this season. Kerry Collins is the best thing since... Wait a minute. Isn’t this the same Collins that could not win a game in six attempts during the 2006 season? This is the guy that lost his job to Vince Young.

As Adrian Monk would say, from the popular detective series, ”Here’s what happened.” Tennessee had some of the worst receivers in the league for the past two seasons. They dropped passes as routinely as it rains in Seattle. The reason Vince Young won games was because he had the ability to run successfully.

A running quarterback is a defensive nightmare because it pressures the defense to commit to either a pass or a run. The problem is that the quarterback does not have to decide until he reaches the line of scrimmage.

If the defense comes up, he can pass to the abandoned receivers. If the defense maintains coverage, a quick and agile QB can gain dozens of yards on the run.

This season, the Tennessee difference is the receivers. Somewhere, somehow they learned to catch passes. If they had done this in 2006, they would have made the playoffs. If they had caught passes last season, they would have gotten out of the first round of the playoffs.

One could argue that the Titans had more drops per game last season that they have had all of this season.

Vince Young is the future of the Titans, so it is a luxury to get to watch and learn from the sidelines. It takes from two to five years for a QB to develop in the NFL. There are a few exceptions, but I see no reason to frustrate a neophyte QB.

When Vince does return (Collins can’t play forever), he should be better than ever with receivers that can actually catch a ball. This would open up his running lanes again should he need them.

This season, I see Tennessee in the AFC title game.

Has Kobe Bryant Reached the Jordan Level?

Dwight Palmer — Mon, 02 Jun 2008 21:45:27 -0400

There have been several articles by various authors recently either acknowledging or denying that Kobe Bryant has become the equal of Michael Jordan.

I cannot understand why it would matter or why people care.

Why is it that some people think M.J. was the best ball player ever and others think differently? What difference does it make to my enjoyment of the games? How can any opinion be definitively answered? Please allow one writer's opinion to go on record.

Trent Dilfer won a Super Bowl as quarterback for the 2000-2001 Baltimore Ravens. Does this make him a better quarterback than such championship-challenged quarterbacks as Dan Marino, Archie Manning, or Jim Kelly? Is Derek Fisher, a winner of three rings, a better point guard than Steve Nash?

A team sport is just that, a team effort. If we were looking at tennis, boxing, bowling, or golf, I would agree with the titles theory. These examples show just how silly it is to look at league titles in a team sport as a measure of individual talent.

The general wisdom of some gives little credit to M.J.’s surrounding cast of characters (Dennis Rodman was a character). It has been implied that other than Michael, the Bulls had little talent. However, the Scottie Pippen-led Bulls came within one blown officiating call from making the Eastern Conference finals in the first year of M.J.’s “retirement”.

The mere fact that they made the playoffs makes a mockery of the poor teammate’s theory. The added fact that they were legitimate title contenders without Michael shows this line of thought is a justification for an opinion instead of a conclusion based on analytical thinking.

So, what does the best really mean? As a former coach, my belief is that it is a combination of traits: Athletic ability, mental focus, desire, work ethic, confidence, and skills.

At a quick glance there are several players with exceptional athletic ability that never produced at a level commensurate with their ability: David "Skywalker" Thompson, Darryl Dawkins, and Kwame Brown.

Athletic Ability is what makes the games exciting. David “Skywalker” Thompson was a player with the same ability as Julius Erving, and they were contemporaries.

“Skywalker” slammed from the free throw line, had leaping ability like he had wings on his feet, and displayed gymnastic-like moves while he was in the air.

Thompson apparently had drug issues and was never consistent. He was thrown out of the league for failing yet another drug test.

Darryl Dawkins was the second player ever taken out of high school, (the first being Moses Malone), and was by far the most athletic big man of his day. Think Dwight Howard with better jumping ability.

Dawkins single-handedly brought about the hinged basket, after consistently ripping the rims off the backboard with his dunks. That guy could leap and he could be absolutely terrifying.

His talent promised a 30 and 20 guy, but "Chocolate Thunder" never displayed the desire to be the best and only displayed his ability when he wanted to make a point. He didn’t “bring it” every game or even every other game.

Kwame Brown is the least athletic of the three but still has more than quite a few successful centers. Mark Eaton and Bill Laimbeer come to mind as a comparison.

Brown has, at times, played very good defense and occasionally showed promise on offense. His case is a prime example of how not to treat high school athletes going directly to the NBA.

Kwame needed nurturing, in my opinion—he was still in that phase where teenagers get their self worth from peers and authority figures. Washington’s executives did not hide their contempt when he did not perform as expected. He was never allowed to develop his skill and confidence in the professional ranks. It is his "I don't believe in myself" mentality that causes him to look inept.

Desire will turn a mouse into a lion, metaphorically. A prime example of this is "Rudy" Ruettiger of Notre Dame fame.

Too small and too slow, no scholarship, and without the necessary GPA to enter Notre Dame. When desire is defined, it should be accompanied with his photograph.

For those who never heard the story or did not see the movie, Rudy succeeded in playing with the Notre Dame Football team after years of single-minded effort. Taking all six of the indices noted, desire has the greatest effect on success.

Mental Focus is the ability to shut out all distractions and only allow one to envision success. Sometimes a person in this frame of mind will appear to be short tempered before and during games. This is because anyone without his mindset is an irritation.

This player will not accept a distraction with open arms and will allow nothing to come between him and his vision. Watch the Olympics and you will be guaranteed to see high jumpers, pole vaulters, and long jumpers trying to envision success before each attempt. Did you think that they were just getting their timing down before moving?

Work Ethic means the athlete will hone his body for strength, speed, and endurance, and work to improve his skills when others are taking a vacation.

As a youth I was impressed by Jim Brown and Wilt Chamberlain, who both kept themselves in peak condition. For Brown, it added to his natural ability and athleticism to be in better condition than his opponents (and teammates). Chamberlain's retirement from basketball was not a result of eroding physical ability. He still looked like an athlete 20-plus years after retirement.

Confidence is the absolute knowledge in one’s own ability to achieve a desired goal. In some cases, this may be construed as arrogance.

Muhammad Ali, Aaron Pryor, Mike Tyson (early), and Joe Namath all had that “swagger” of confidence.

It is more apparent in boxing and football, because these are very macho sports. The physical beating, pain and injury are real, the courage to not only endure but to excel is liberating to the male ego.

Anyone reaching the top in these fields is an alpha male displaying a body language that reflects their status.

However, “top dog” display is not limited to football and boxing. My belief is that Kobe Bryant is one of these alpha males. This display of confidence could infuriate other males because we all harbor some desire to be the best.

This may account for Bryant's “love him or hate him” public image. If he were a boxer, I believe that his personality would not allow him to be less than a champion.

Skills are an essential element to any sport. In basketball the important skills would be ball handling, shooting (scoring), defense, ability to create a shot, leaping, rebounding, and leadership. We now have a criterion. Without a standard, any conversation is just that—only talk.

Let us acknowledge that comparing eras is very difficult. Rule changes, such as the three-point line in basketball, put Jerry West, Elgin Baylor, Wilt Chamberlain, and others at a disadvantage.

Having 30 teams instead of eight put the present players and teams at a disadvantage. This eight-team format is one reason Boston and L.A. played for the title so many times in the 50’s and 60’s.

Using points scored or championships is not comparing “apples to apples”. There is also the disadvantage of the players from the ABA whose statistics and championships are ignored by the NBA.

This latter is purposeful myopia by the NBA on some outstanding basketball history. I would not like to forget that the best ball players in the '70s were mostly in the ABA.

This also turns Dr. J’s championship total from three to one, because his two ABA titles don’t count anymore.

As an aside, I feel that the NBA is missing a golden opportunity to capitalize on the excitement the memories of ABA games engender. After all, they did merge, as did the NFL and AFL ,where both league's championships and statistics count.

We also have a problem with a generation gap. Every 10 years or so, the 20-somethings think that the current players are so much better than the ones who came earlier.

This means that many fans do not remember the ABA and NBA merger. This merger took place for many reasons, but one of the prominent reasons was to get Julius Erving into the NBA.

His face was the face of basketball at the time, and his play redefined the game and the position he played. When he retired, the question was who would be the next Dr. “J”? We now know that it was MJ who copied his moves and his signature slam dunk. I think that the Doctor was the better athlete of the two.

Also, the younger generation either was not old enough or have forgotten that Michael was a ball hog early in his career. He did not want to give up the ball for any reason and had no confidence in his supporting cast.

At one point he was installed at the point guard position so he would have to give up the ball. The same things people skewer Kobe for were also applicable to MJ.

Was the Doctor the best ever, or was it Kareem Adbul-Jabbar or Larry Bird? I enjoy watching Kobe play, and he is my favorite active player. Jordan has public acclaim for his personality and because of short memories or the youth of today’s fans.

As Michael eclipsed Dr. “J”, someone will eventually eclipse Michael.

Is Kobe equal to Michael? Use the criterion listed, substitute numbers one (worst) – 10 (best) for each, and add the numbers. Multiply the sum of the indices by the score for desire.

If the scores are done objectively, the answer will follow. As for me, I appreciate M.J. for what he did and I appreciate Kobe for what he is doing.