NBA News, Notes, and Observations: May 20, 2008

The NBA's version of the Final Four kicks off tonight with Game 1 of the Celtics/Pistons series. With that in mind, I couldn't think of a better time for a new round of News, Notes and Observations.

But first, this week's trivia question:

Who was the youngest coach in NBA history?

1) Are you happy now, Utah?

Derek Fisher provided the state of Utah with a parting gift on Friday night and yet the Jazz chose not to accept it.

Fisher, an 86% free-throw shooter during the regular season, missed what would have been a game-clinching basket in the final seconds of Game Six. The Jazz had two chances to tie the game with a three-pointer but Mehmet Okur and Deron Wiliams both missed wide-open looks.

Can the Beehive State finally move on now and let it go?

For those people who are still complaining about the free-throw discrepancy between the Jazz and Lakers over the course of the series, keep in mind that the Jazz led the NBA this season in personal fouls. The Lakers, on the other hand, finished 16th.

2) The return of Stone-Cold Stojakovic

Nobody can be surprised about Peja Stojakovic's horrible Game Seven against the Spurs last night. Stojakovic was 3-for-11 from the field for 7 points, including an abysmal 1-for-5 from 3-point land.

This wouldn't be the first time Peja laid an egg when his team needed him most. One need only look back to Game Seven of the 2004 Western Conference Semi-Finals when he scored just 8 points on 3-of-12 shooting against the Timberwolves and in Game Seven of the 2002 between the Kings and Lakers in 2002 to see a pattern. In that game, Stojakovic was 3-for-12 for just 8 points.

In fairness to him, he did have one decent Game Seven in his career. He had 17 points and 9 rebounds against the Mavericks in 2003 but the Kings lost the game.

If Stojakovic wasn't making so much money ($12 million) I wouldn't give him such a hard time. But he was brought to New Orleans for these types of games and he should be criticized accordingly.

3) What's at stake for the Final Four.

Each of the four teams remaining has different stakes heading down the stretch of these playoffs.

For the Spurs, this is their fourth opportunity to do something they've failed to do three previous times in the playoffs—repeat as champions. Another title would solidify their standing as the team of the milennium's first decade.

For the Celtics, they need to prove that their regular season wasn't a fluke and that it was worth it to mortgage the team's future for a chance to return to glory.

For the Pistons, this is their chance to prove they're not the NBA's Atlanta Braves and that they haven't just benefited from being in a lesser conference.

For the Lakers, it's all about proving the Shaq trade worked out alright and that Kobe Bryant can win a ring without the Big Yesterday.

I can't help but think that this Laker team would almost have to repeat next year in order to legitimize this year's title.

You could definitely make the case that this team could compete with the 2006 Miami Heat. But it would be hard to argue that there's another champion from the past twenty years that they could beat.

Sure they're stacked one to three. But once you get past Lamar Odom, this team isn't very impressive on paper.

4) Home cooking sure sounds nice.

There are very few things that ESPN's J.A. Adande and I agree on. But last week on The Steve Mason Show on 710 ESPN Radio in L.A., Adande mentioned that the dominance of home team's throughout this year's playoffs has proved that the NBA's regular season actually does mean something.

For years, critics and players have argued that the regular season was
meaningless. If anything, the lesson learned this season is that you might not want to coast through that regular season game against the Grizzlies in February.

Trivia Hint Number 1: He was elected to the Hall of Fame as a player in 1983.

5) I was kidding.

Back in March, BR's Chad Ridgeway asked a few of us what the Sonics' new nickname should be when they move the team to Oklahoma City? I jokingly mentioned the Robber Barons as a swipe at how the team was stolen from Seattle despite the public outcry.

Well, according to a poll in The Oklahoman, the people of Oklahoma City actually voted for the Barons as their top-choice of nickname over the Thunderbirds, the Outlaws and the Thunder.

I'm not gonna try to take the credit but if the Nets change their name to the Notorious N.E.T.s when they move to Brooklyn, I may have to file a lawsuit.

6) Where have all the good coaches gone?

Did you know that only six different coaches have won NBA titles in the past 20 years? Pat Riley, Chuck Daly, Phil Jackson, Rudy Tomjanovich, Greg Popovich and Larry Brown. That's it.

Riley, Daly and Tomjanovich are out of coaching. That means that only three active coaches have won championships. It's no coincidence that the two who had jobs when the season began are both coaching teams still alive.

There are so many bad coaches in the NBA I'm surprised David Stern hasn't implemented an age-minimum.

Mike Brown is near the top of the list of guys who are in way over their heads. His substitutions and timeouts in Sunday's game were horrendous.

When Damon Jones missed that wide-open three-pointer he should have pulled him from the game immediately. Nobody expected Jones to play any defense but when he misses a shot a like that with nobody around him then he can't do anything but hurt the team.

Phil Jackson gets a lot of heat for his unwillingness to call timeouts when the opponent is in the middle of a 12-2 run. But the way he calls timeouts varies between home and away games.

Pay attention to the Zen Master's usage of timeouts during the San Antonio series, especially in the games in San Antonio.

Jackson has a tendency to call timeouts when it's least beneficial to his opponent. He'll do it after the other team turns the ball over or in-between free-throws. Why give the fans an opportunity to explode by calling it in the middle of a run? Why give the team any more momentum?

Mike Brown called timeouts after every back-breaking shot the Celtics made. Take a look at the game's play-by-play. Here's a list of just a few of Brown's timeouts:

1. After Paul Pierce makes a 25-foot 3-pointer.
2. After Eddie House makes a 21-foot jumper.
3. After Paul Pierce makes a 21-foot shot.
4. After P.J. Brown makes a 21-foot jumper.

Why give your opponent a chance to celebrate a shot for three minutes?

Brown's not the only one guilty of not knowing when to call a TO. He just might be the worst one at it.

7) Are the Suns serious?

So the Suns allowed Mike D'Antoni to leave for New York and the best names they can come up with to replace him are Terry Porter, Elston Turner and Tyrone Corbin?

Do Robert Sarver and Steve Kerr really believe that Shaq and Steve Nash are going to win a championship with any of those three guys at the helm?

Even though I think the Suns' window has closed, the addition of the right coach and the right player or two could keep that window from closing for another year.

But if the Suns were to hire one of those three guys, then they are better off trading Nash and Grant Hill and rebuilding in preparation for the free agent class of 2010.

I would strongly encourage all three prospective coaches to rent and not own. Chances are that they'd just be keeping the seat warm until the Suns could come up with a better candidate next season.

If I was Kerr or Sarver, I'd try to get the Grizzlies to allow Marc Iavaroni to take the job. Iavaroni didn't do a great job in Memphis this year but he knows D'Antoni's system so the transition would at least be smooth. I'm sure the Grizzlies would love to get out from under that contract.

They could probably get a number one pick as compensation. It wouldn't be the first time the Suns gave away a first-round pick for nothing. In fact, it's becoming an annual tradition.

If not Iavaroni, how about Alvin Gentry? It's not like Gentry would mind reverting back to being an assistant next season after the team finishes 44-38 under him.

The bottom line is that the Suns should not have pushed D'Antoni out the door if they didn't have a plan to replace him. Judging by the coaching search, they clearly didn't have one.

Trivia Hint #2: He coached the Detroit Pistons

8) Minimum, Shminimum...

It's time for the NBA to adopt the same rules that Major League Baseball has concerning teenagers. I don't know why this hasn't been proposed but it makes the most sense.

In MLB, every high school kid is eligible to be drafted. If the kid is either undrafted or he decides to go to college then he must remain in school for three years before he can be eligible for the draft again.

The beauty of this is that because the NBA only has two rounds in it's draft, the majority of those kids would have to play three years of college ball.

Kids like O.J. Mayo, Michael Beasley and DeAndre Jordan would definitely get drafted out of high school. But kids like Russell Westbrook and Kosta Koufos would have to go to school for three years.

The NBA game would benefit because there would be less gambling on unproven players, especially by those horrible teams that benefit most from the draft.

The college game would benefit because they would get the majority of high school players for at least three years.

The kids would benefit because most of them would only be a year away from graduating if they prove to be busts in the NBA.

It makes too much sense. That's probably why it hasn't happened yet.

9) His actions definitely spoke louder than his words.

The way LeBron James walked off the court after losing to the Celtics in Game Seven said a lot about his frustrations with the current Cavs' roster.

He didn't take the time to congratulate any of the Celtics like his teammates did. He just walked right off the court as fast as he could

Take a look at the box score from Sunday's game. Only one other Cavs' player managed to score in double figures.

The good news for the Cavs is that they have about $25 million in contracts that expire after next season.

The bad news is that they're extremely limited in options because not a lot of teams want to help the Cavs in their hopes of retaining LeBron when he becomes a free agent.

The same team the Cavs might help in giving those expiring contracts to might use that cap space to pursue LeBron.

Is there a 2008-9 Pau Gasol out there? By that I mean a great player on a team that's looking to start over?

You can eliminate most Eastern Conference teams from the discussion because I doubt the Bulls would send either Ben Gordon or Luol Deng to the Cavs. I also doubt the Cavs would help the Knicks' cap situation by trading for David Lee or Jamal Crawford.

Charlotte might be willing to trade Jason Richardson or Gerald Wallace but I don't think either of those guys make LeBron any happier.

Jermaine O'Neal could be had but there are still too many questions about his durability.

Miami could send Shawn Marion to the Cavs if he demands an extension and they don't want to give it to him. The Cavs would be able to give Marion the extension and still have cap space to add more talent in 2010.

But would the Heat trade Marion for Wally Szczerbiak and Eric Snow? Probably not.

Michael Redd sounds possible but, like the Bulls, would the Bucks help another team in their division?

Out west, there are a few more options. Andrei Kirilenko seems to be the most obvious name out there. With Deron Williams eligible for an extension, the Jazz payroll will only increase when it goes into effect in 2010.

Carlos Boozer and Mehmet Okur both have opt-outs after next season. Williams' extension plus new contracts for Boozer and Okur could give a small-market team like the Jazz a big-market payroll that the team can't afford with the luxury-tax.

Would Kirilenko make a huge difference in Cleveland? I'm not sure. I do know that he's only 27 and would relish a change of scenery. It would also make the loss of Boozer seem more like a trade.

The only other big names that I could see changing teams are Carmelo Anthony, Baron Davis, Elton Brand and Boris Diaw and I think all of those teams, with the exception of Phoenix, could do better than what the Cavs have to offer. The Suns might welcome the chance to get an expiring contract for Diaw.

10) Predictions

The Boston Celtics lost 16 of their 82 games but have lost 6 of their last 14. The Detroit Pistons have looked better than any team in the Eastern Conference but they played the 76ers and Magic.

The questions in the east are 1) Did the Celtics peak too early in the season or did they just play to the level of their competition? and 2) Are the Pistons that good or did they just get lucky with two weak opponents?

I'm going to pick the Pistons to win the series in six games. I think their experience and their current level of confidence will be the difference in the series. The Celtics' inability to handle their first two opponents with ease makes me wonder if the team is burnt out.

The West is a little bit tougher to pick. As much as I'd love to see the Lakers win the series, I don't feel confident enough to predict it. This Lakers team hasn't played together nearly as long as this Spurs team has.

The Lakers have to win the first two games in the series or it's over. The Spurs might just have enough left in the tank to steal one of them and return to L.A. up 3-1 for Game 5. The Lakers might be able to force a Game 6 but I can't see them winning three in a row if they go down 3-1. Spurs in six.

Trivia Answer: Dave DeBusschere (Player-Coach, Age 24).