Kerr: Mav's still top in West

[Usually Lurkin]

Nothing really new here, but:

http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/news;_yl...yhoo&type=lgns
Western wear
By Steve Kerr, Yahoo! Sports
September 28, 2006

More Kerr – Eastern Conference preseason rankings

The Mavericks are the defending Western Conference champions, and they have to feel good about finally dethroning their nemesis – San Antonio.

But after blowing a 2-0 Finals lead – and a 13-point, fourth-quarter lead over Miami in Game 3 – the Mavs have plenty to ponder as they enter this season. Did they blow their best chance at a ring? Because making it back to the Finals isn't going to be easy.

The Spurs will be as strong as ever, the Suns and Clippers are poised for a breakthrough, and a host of talented teams throughout the West figure to give Dallas all it can handle in the regular season. In fact, it's easy to make the case that 14 of the conference's 15 teams are good enough to make the playoffs. (Sorry Portland.)

With that in mind, the Mavericks may suffer from an early season hangover as they take on their daunting task. Still, Dallas won the West a year ago with a terrific playoff run and beat the Spurs in San Antonio in Game 7 of the conference semifinals. That alone earns the Mavs the No. 1 spot.

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1. Dallas Mavericks – Avery Johnson instilled a defensive mindset that his team desperately needed. The Mavs' depth and versatility and the brilliant play of Dirk Nowitzki gives them a great chance to get back to the Finals.

2. San Antonio Spurs – Tim Duncan should be much healthier than last season when he struggled with a foot injury. The Spurs usually bounce back strongly from playoff defeats, and this year should be no exception.

3. Phoenix Suns – Can Amare Stoudemire return to his once-dominant self? If not, Steve Nash will have a big load on his shoulders. Again.

4. Los Angeles Clippers – Elton Brand became a full-fledged star last season. He headlines one of the most talented teams in the league.

5. Los Angeles Lakers – Does Kobe Bryant have enough help? Vladimir Radmanovic will shoot the ball well, but he needs to rebound to help solve L.A.'s interior woes.

6. Minnesota Timberwolves – Randy Foye and Mike James will add some much needed fire to the Wolves. They could be just what Kevin Garnett needs to help turn around this team's fortunes.

7. Sacramento Kings – Eric Musselman replaces Rick Adelman, and he'll place more emphasis on defense. The Kings will have to replace Bonzi Wells' offense, though.

8. Houston Rockets – Will the Big Two stay healthy? Yao Ming and Tracy McGrady have more help, but it always comes down to their physical status.

9. New Orleans Hornets – An offseason spending spree has Hornets fans buzzing (sorry). Chris Paul will lead an explosive attack.

10. Utah Jazz – The Jazz are slowly building a nice foundation, but Carlos Boozer and Andrei Kirilenko must stay healthy.

11. Denver Nuggets – This team was a mess by the end of last season, and George Karl has some issues to deal with. But Carmelo Anthony's performance for Team USA at the world championships bodes well for the Nuggets.

12. Memphis Grizzlies – Pau Gasol's injury changes everything because the Grizzlies run everything through him. They'll have to survive the first few months of the season without him, but by then, it could be too late.

13. Golden State Warriors – Don Nelson is back and Bay Area fans are pumped. But Nellie will have to work some magic because the Warriors' roster hasn't changed from last season's 34-win team.

14. Seattle SuperSonics – The real question isn't whether the Sonics will make the playoffs. It's whether they'll stay in Seattle.

15. Portland Trail Blazers – Brandon Roy is a nice-looking rookie, but he's joining the worst team in the West. The Blazers are still in the dreaded "rebuilding" mode.

Steve Kerr is Yahoo! Sports' NBA analyst. Send Steve a question or comment for potential use in a future column or webcast.





some early poll results:

Question: Of Kerr's top 3, who is the West's best?
Thanks for voting! 1780 votes since Sep 27 2006
Mavs 40% 712 votes
Spurs 30% 542 votes
Suns 30% 526 votes

[mary]

He must've wrote this before the Wells announcement.

[Usually Lurkin]

yeah. With 2 out of those 3 players healthy, you'd expect Houston to be better than the lakers. With all 3, better than Clips and Suns?

If everything goes wrong for everyone else (Duncun's feet; Amare's knee) and everything goes right with the Rockets, they sit solidly at 2.

Also, I expect Denver to hit bottom due to the George Karl disease.
And I expect GS to move up from last year further than Minnesota. Sure, the Timberwolves moved Hoiberg as assistant GM, but I think Nelson will do more for Golden State than keep them at the same spot.

[HexNBA]

No way will the Timberwolves compete.

[Flacolaco]

He's right about that early season hangover possibility, I fear....

[fluid.forty.one]

Kerr is now officially my boy

[Usually Lurkin]

Originally Posted by fluid.forty.one

Kerr is now officially my boy

eh, after the mavs first loss, he'll start talking about "their old ways" and will go back to heavily promoting his Suns and Spurs.

[Underdog]

I'll agree with the first 4 teams on this list, but every other team is a huge question mark (especially if injuries plague teams that lack depth - for example, where do the Lakers rate without Kobe vs. the Suns without Amare?)

[Underdog]

Originally Posted by Usually Lurkin

eh, after the mavs first loss, he'll start talking about "their old ways" and will go back to heavily promoting his Suns and Spurs.

Kerr is the biggest Spurs homer I have ever heard - I hate sitting through Spurs-Mavs games played in San Antonio [JET only sank that game-killer on Duncan because TD's play was hindered by Steve Kerr's lips on his ass!]

[alby]

who cares about the regular season

i cant wait for the overreacts throughout the year

its all about the playoffs baby

[nashtymavsfan13]

Right, if we get the top seed we get the top seed, but the playoffs are when it all matters. If we are all healthy we have a very good chance at winning it all.

[G-Man]

I don't expect an off season hangover. I expect a fire born of anger and disappointment and a summer spent stewing over what did not get done last year.

Sure the Mavs realize they may have blown their best chance at a championship. But each player also knows how his own deficiencies contributed to that... specifically Howard and Harris. And everything I know about those individuals and their coach is that they burn with the desire to turn weakness into strength.

They also know how close they came to being eliminated by SA, how much harder PHX will be to beat with Amare back.

All this should serve as inspiraction to concentrate on getting better. Last year, training camp started with total doubt. The playoffs the year before show Dirk and coach to be very vunerable... they had a lot of work just to prove they were better than Houston. This year's camp begins with them knowing that the only thing that stands between them and a championship is the distance between playing like last year v playing up to their potential. I expect to see a team working its butt off to get there. Time for excuses is over. Its time to show the heart of a champion. I expect nothing less.

[fluid.forty.one]

It feels like it's been awhile since Dirk has had to play a game.. by Dirks standards at least. I feel he's going to be rested but still on his game since he played more recently than most players.

[Underdog]

Originally Posted by G-Man

I don't expect an off season hangover. I expect a fire born of anger and disappointment and a summer spent stewing over what did not get done last year.

Sure the Mavs realize they may have blown their best chance at a championship. But each player also knows how his own deficiencies contributed to that... specifically Howard and Harris. And everything I know about those individuals and their coach is that they burn with the desire to turn weakness into strength.

They also know how close they came to being eliminated by SA, how much harder PHX will be to beat with Amare back.

All this should serve as inspiraction to concentrate on getting better. Last year, training camp started with total doubt. The playoffs the year before show Dirk and coach to be very vunerable... they had a lot of work just to prove they were better than Houston. This year's camp begins with them knowing that the only thing that stands between them and a championship is the distance between playing like last year v playing up to their potential. I expect to see a team working its butt off to get there. Time for excuses is over. Its time to show the heart of a champion. I expect nothing less.

I hope you're right, because that's the way I see it too...

[nikeball]

double post

[nikeball]

My rankings:

---the best---playoff lock.
1. Mavericks - obviously..defending western conference champs, team got deeper this year, stronger, smarter, more experienced

2. Spurs - When healthy can hang with any team in the league

3. Phoenix - Nash leading Amare, Matrix is more than enough

4. LA Clippers - Very well rounded team, Cassell's age and injuries starting to become more of an issue, but a very good team...cassell/livingston, maggette, brand, kaman, tim thomas, mobley

5. Houston Rockets - Yao Tmac one of top duos in the league, rafer, bonzi, shane can play!! bench is a problem as is injuries



----the rest--- i believe any of these teams can make the playoffs.
6. Sactown - artest if he can keep his head cool, bibby, shareef, brad miller make this team very formidable.

7. NO/OKC Hornets - CP3 Leading any team is going to be great

8. LA Lakers - Kobe. enough said

9. Utah Jazz - if boozer and kirilenko can stay healthy...this team is good.

10. Minnesota Twolves - i do not think the twolves have good enough of a supporting cast for KG

11. Memphis Grizzlies - Pau's injury is devastating considering how potent the West is

12. Denver Nuggets - Melo was awesome in the worlds. Camby if can stay healthy is top 5 center in the league.

13. Golden State Warriors - I love Baron Davis. I do not like his injuries. Time for alot of offense with nellie! with Troy, Baron, J Rich...they'll put up numbers


---a class by themselves---

14. Seattle Supersonics - Do they miss nate mcmillan? I believe they had a terrible draft...RAYRAY and Rashard are awesome fantasy basketball palyers though

15. Portland Trailblazers - Had a very good draft. Rebuilding.

[fluid.forty.one]

Nike I like your list, but you have to put into consideration that someone from the northwest division will be a higher seed than the clips. Also I think the Warriors will do better than the Twolves and Grizz if Baron stays healthy.

I'd say:

1. Mavs
2. Spurs
3. Suns
4. Nuggets
5. Clipps
6. Rockets
7. Lakers
8. Kings
9. Jazz
10. Hornets
11. Warriors
12. T-Wolves
13. Grizzlies
14. Blazers
15. Sonics

[RoxFan]

Looks about right to me before the Wells aquisition.

[RoxFan]

Originally Posted by fluid.forty.one

Nike I like your list, but you have to put into consideration that someone from the northwest division will be a higher seed than the clips.

Actually, they changed the rules and the playoffs will be seeded according to record without regard to division leaders. The only thing the division winners are assured of is a playoff spot.

[fluid.forty.one]

Excuse my distaste for Wells, but I've lived in Portland all my life. I've seen his hissy fits and his underachieving a lot. He was in a contract year last year and he is LOADS of trouble. I've got to see a productive, positive Wells in houston before I believe it.

[fluid.forty.one]

Originally Posted by RoxFan

Actually, they changed the rules and the playoffs will be seeded according to record without regard to division leaders. The only thing the division winners are assured of is a playoff spot.

I thought the division winners were assured a top 4 spot, that way dallas would have been #2 last year and Denver #4? That's awesome, I was wonering why they didn't fix it all the way.

[nashtymavsfan13]

Originally Posted by RoxFan

Actually, they changed the rules and the playoffs will be seeded according to record without regard to division leaders. The only thing the division winners are assured of is a playoff spot.

Actually the 3 division winners and the team with the best record other that didn't win the division are guarenteed a top 4 seed. So for example, the Mavs can finish first seed and the Spurs can finish second seed, but for example the Suns and Nuggets are guarenteed the 3rd and 4th seeds because of winning their divisions.

[fluid.forty.one]

That's what I thought

[rakesh.s]

I think Seattle is really going to surprise some folks..they are just an afterthought for steve kerr. Wow.

They have all their guys returning from last season, including Chris Wilcox. They are two deep at every position, with a plethora of big men.

[Purple&Gold]

Good list, but the Wolves at 6th is kind've dumb i hope it was some sort of typo.

[Tokey41]

The Wolves ahead of the 4 teams below is ridiculous, the Lakers should be below them as well. But other than that good list... I might rank Utah a little higher assuming everyone will be healthy but I can see where hes coming from since Boozer and AK-47 are so injury prone.

[Stylistic]

Originally Posted by Tokey41

The Wolves ahead of the 4 teams below is ridiculous, the Lakers should be below them as well. But other than that good list... I might rank Utah a little higher assuming everyone will be healthy but I can see where hes coming from since Boozer and AK-47 are so injury prone.

The Lakers will be a good team anytime Kobe is on it and Phil is coaching it. I wouldn't be surprised if they cracked 50. They should have wentto the 2nd round last year. Don't dismiss them.

[nashtymavsfan13]

No way the Wolves do that well, even though they got Mike James who can turn a team around by himself......

[xmuzjb]

Originally Posted by mary

He must've wrote this before the Wells announcement.

absolutely!

[Tokey41]

Originally Posted by Stylistic

The Lakers will be a good team anytime Kobe is on it and Phil is coaching it. I wouldn't be surprised if they cracked 50. They should have wentto the 2nd round last year. Don't dismiss them.

I would be very surprised if they cracked 50, and although they could get a playoff spot I still think the Rockets should be ahead. Kings and Hornets I guess are debateable but in my opinion they will be better. But really... the wolves at 6? Mike James and Foye wont make that huge of an impact.

And whats with all the media saying Portlands is the only team not in the race? Does anyone think Seatle has a snowballs chance in hell?

[Nash13]

With the exception of center, the Wolves are two deep at every position. With that said, they still don't make the playoffs.

[bernardos70]

What good is it if they're two deep at every position if the 2nd best player in every position sucks?

[Nash13]

Trenton Hassell, Jaric, Griffin, Foye don't suck. It's just outside Garnett, they have one 2nd tier player in Davis, the rest are borderline 2nd tier or 3 tier players.

[nashtymavsfan13]

Makes and Misses: Grumbling in the ranks

By Steve Kerr, Yahoo! Sports
September 29, 2006


Training camp begins next week, but some of you are already in midseason form with your complaints about my preseason rankings.

I'll address the Western Conference first, beginning with a Houston Rockets team that made another major move this week toward making the playoffs after enduring an injury-marred 2005-06 season.

As always, thanks for taking the time to write in. As usual, my comments appear in italics.

WEST RANKINGS ("Western wear," Sept. 28, 2006)

I was just wondering if you would be inclined to reorganize your Western Conference rankings now that Bonzi Wells has signed with Houston, especially since he scorched the San Antonio Spurs in last season's playoffs? Also, how do you see Bonzi helping the Rockets? Do you see him fitting in as a starter or a sixth man?

Almir Dulic
Houston

Almir, the Bonzi Wells signing is a coup for the Rockets, no question. To be able to sign him to a two-year, $5 million deal is pretty amazing given Wells' talent. He's one of the strongest post-up wings in the league, he rebounds and he can take over games with his scoring. Of course, he's not without his faults. He likes the ball a lot, and you have to wonder if he'll get it enough to suit him since Yao Ming and Tracy McGrady will do most of the scoring. He's not the easiest guy to coach, either.

I think if Bonzi submits himself to the team and plays the role Jeff Van Gundy asks him to play, this could be a great fit. But since Wells signed such a short deal – he has an option after the first year – he's essentially playing for a contract next summer. Will he be a good soldier, or will he be frustrated about not getting the ball enough? That's the question. And with that in mind, I'll keep them right where I have them in the rankings.

Do you think the Sacramento Kings will miss the play of Bonzi Wells?

Bryan Walker
Sacramento, Calif.

Yes, the Kings will miss Bonzi Wells. He is a big-time scorer and a proven playoff performer, and that's why Sacramento gave him (as Terrell Owens' publicist would say) 35 million reasons to stay. I admire Geoff Petrie's discipline, though, in holding firm on that offer. Wells has proven to be a very good player, but he's not someone you build your team around. Offering more money would have compromised the Kings' salary cap, which simply isn't worth it for a player like him. Sacramento will miss him, but the team will survive just fine without him.

I think you have some interesting picks for your West rankings. I cannot agree with your rankings. The Dallas Mavericks should be below the San Antonio Spurs! The Memphis Grizzlies are not this bad even without Pau Gasol … and you ranked the Los Angeles Lakers way too high. I think you really missed it this time.

Darko Sedej
Arlington, Va.

Darko, Dallas deserves the No. 1 ranking in the West because it knocked off the Spurs in the playoffs last season, winning Game 7 on the road. Plus, the Mavs made San Antonio react to them by playing small and taking the Spurs out of their game. Now it's San Antonio's turn to adjust, which is why I have the Spurs at No. 2. As for the Lakers, I believe they're about where they should be. They had the sixth-best record in the West last season and I think they'll be a little better this year. But the reality is that, in the West, teams five through 11 are practically interchangeable. So much depends on health and luck, and we'll see how things play out.

Do you really believe that Mike James and Randy Foye will make the Minnesota Timberwolves the sixth-best team in the West and that the Denver Nuggets are going to be the 11th-best team? You can't be serious. Last I checked, Minnesota was miserably bad last season and Rashad McCants is still hurt and may not be back to his normal self this year. You can't be counting on shoot-first tweener James to be a savior. I am definitely scratching my head on your West rankings.

Chris Payne
Joppa, Md.

Chris, I think that Denver is in for a fall this year. I didn't like the way the Nuggets folded last season, losing eight of their last 12 and then getting bullied by the Los Angeles Clippers in the first round of the playoffs. I don't like Denver's chemistry, and its roster doesn't fit together. The Nuggets have no real post-up players among the bigs, and they have very poor three-point shooting.

As for Minnesota, I think James and Foye could do for Kevin Garnett what Latrell Sprewell and Sam Cassell did a couple of years ago. K.G. actually needs some shoot-first guys on his team to take some of the scoring pressure off of him. Call me crazy, but I have a hunch Minnesota will bounce back and have a good season.

What do you think of the Utah Jazz this year? They kept the core together with Andrei Kirilenko, Carlos Boozer, Mehmet Okur and Deron Williams. How much better do they possibly get with Ronnie Brewer and Derek Fisher?

Ethan
Roy, Utah

Ethan, I'm a big fan of the Jazz's roster. I liked them last year, too, but they had too many injuries. But I believe Utah can be very good. Fisher and Brewer will help, and I loved Williams' development last season. If Boozer and Kirilenko can stay healthy, the Jazz conceivably could win the Northwest.

Here's a new nickname for the Don Nelson-coached (again) Golden State Warriors – "Run-DNP," as a touching tribute to the hapless Baron Davis. John
Faribault, Minn.

John, good call. I like "Run-DNP" a lot! And it does sum up the Warriors' fortunes, doesn't it? If Davis is healthy and playing at a high level, Golden State could be tough to beat. But that's a big if.

EAST RANKINGS ("Still feeling the Heat," Sept. 26, 2006)

Finally, a little appreciation for the Miami Heat. But I think your ranking for the Detroit Pistons is a little bit too high. Ben is gone and I don't think Rasheed Wallace can play better D without him. And Chauncey Billups and Richard Hamilton won't be too comfortable shooting the ball when they know that the monster is gone to grab the rebound.

Jerrico Pangilinan
Philippines

Jerrico, Detroit is in for some changes, for sure. They'll have to figure out who they are as a team. But I think Flip Saunders will be more comfortable offensively knowing he doesn't have to worry about hiding Ben Wallace. Look for Flip to follow the league-wide trend of playing smaller, with perhaps Rasheed playing center and Tayshaun Prince playing some four. The Pistons will be better offensively, but if their defense suffers dramatically without Big Ben, they might take a fall.

I'm gonna try and make a case here about Ben Wallace. Looking at his stat lines last season, I broke it down into two parts: the first 56 games and the last 26 (before and after March 1). In Ben's first 56 games, he had double figures in rebounds 39 times. In his last 26, he had double-figure rebounds 12 times – 70 percent vs. 46 percent. Points: first 56 games he had 21 in double figures, but the last 26 games he had just three in double figures. Thirty-eight percent vs. 11.5 percent. And it's notable that the Pistons needed him those last 26 games while trying for the best record and 70 wins, so it's not like they babied him.

Now, there's no doubt Ben Wallace is a good basketball player. But consider that he'll be 33 early next year and that his production, as shown above, drops as the season goes on and that even in Detroit, where the Pistons had a deep 4½-man rotation up front, with him, you couldn't really justify the contract. I see a lot of people conceding the East to the Chicago Bulls now that they have Wallace. My bet is that the Bulls will be better, but not much better than a fourth seed – and at home eating brats while watching the Finals on TV.

Jim Hubert
Rapid City, S.D.

Jim, trust me. I have my reservations about the Ben Wallace signing, too. He's a terrific defensive player who happens to have some serious offensive limitations. The Bulls definitely overpaid, but they had to get him. The key will be if Chicago can maintain its up-tempo, attacking style on offense while basically playing four-on-five at times.

The reason why I think it will work is that Scott Skiles is a brilliant coach – one of the best in the game. I think he'll figure out how to put Wallace in a position to succeed without compromising the team's offense. Still, I'm not sold that the Bulls are ready to win a championship. They have a lot of work ahead of them.

Do the Cleveland Cavaliers have the pieces in place to contend (truly) for the title this year, or should Danny Ferry have tried to trade his glut of swingmen and maybe Eric Snow or Damon Jones to bring in someone like Jamaal Magloire (who was obviously being shopped around)? I want to get excited about this season, but I keep remembering when the Cavs couldn't grab a rebound against Detroit in the playoffs and it killed them.

David Johnson
Stow, Ohio

David, I think Cleveland is on the right track. Drew Gooden will certainly help on the rebounding side of things. In fact, despite the sequence where the Pistons grabbed all those offensive boards at the end of Game 6 against Detroit last May, the Cavs were one of the best rebounding teams in the NBA.

I don't believe Cleveland is a championship contender yet because I think winning a title is a process. The Cavs aren't ready. I also think they need better point guard play, which is something they'll have to address in the coming seasons. But LeBron James is so good that Cleveland will get better every year.

The Philadelphia 76ers below the New York Knicks, Boston Celtics and Orlando Magic? … Chris Webber, Allen Iverson and Andre Iguodala are still on this team. Other than Detroit and Miami, I challenge you to find three better players on any one team in the East. Don't get me wrong – the Sixers should get ripped by all sports analysts, but they are simply not the third-worst team in the East. They'll likely be a playoff team this year even though they don't deserve it.

Lee D.
Philadelphia

Lee, ask Billy King if he'd trade his team for Orlando's. I think he would in a heartbeat. New York and Boston? You can make a point that the Sixers could be better than both, but it's more a matter of being "less bad." Philly has a terrible mix. Iverson and Webber are both low-percentage shooters, and neither defends at all. When your two best players are merely stat guys, you're in trouble. I think the Sixers are going to have a rough year.

How in the world can you rate the Charlotte Bobcats so low? We are easily better than the Atlanta Hawks and Boston. And are you kidding me about the Knicks and Philly? The Bobcats are a hustling team with a solid starting group. Raymond Felton is a star in the making, Gerald Wallace is a fantasy stud and an all-around player who keeps this team in games. Then there's a healthy Emeka Okafor. Add some offense with Adam Morrison and we are close to a .500 team. I know it sounds ridiculous to argue over who's the least terrible team, but I think this Bobcats organization is one to watch. And I don't think I'm being a homer … at least not much.

Nic Watson
Salisbury, N.C.

Nic, I love your passion! There's nothing like a basketball fan exclaiming, "We're better than Atlanta and Boston!" I realize you have to be realistic with your goals, but it just sounds great rolling off the tongue.

Anyway, it would be great to see Adam Morrison light it up and to see Emeka Okafor have a big year and Raymond Felton continue his development. But at this point, how can I rate Charlotte anywhere but last? The Bobcats need to prove something before they can move up the rankings. But keep the faith!

MISC. MAIL

We've seem some teams in the past few years do worse than expected (like Minnesota and Houston) and some do better than expected (like the L.A. Clippers). Which teams this year do you think will be the surprise teams to do well and do poorly?

Rick King
Toronto

Rick, great question. That's one that is always difficult to figure, but I'll try.

In the West, I think Utah could sneak up on some teams, along with Minnesota and the New Orleans Hornets. And Houston is very talented. All four of those teams should challenge for a playoff spot. On the flip side, I think Denver and Memphis could be heading south. In the East, one of the surprise teams could be in your town – the Toronto Raptors. I like what Bryan Colangelo has done with the roster, and I think they have a shot at the playoffs. So do the Milwaukee Bucks and Orlando, for that matter. The teams that might disappoint? Chicago is a possibility just because of the high expectations and the offensive limitations of Ben Wallace. He's got a lot of pressure on him with the contract he signed, and there's no telling how he'll respond.

Toni Kukoc is the last remaining player of the 1998 three-peat with you. Shouldn't he be retired in Chicago as a Bull? He did contribute a lot, even off the bench, in his eight seasons with Chicago.

David Liu

David, I always loved the concept of a player signing with a team so that he can retire there. What is that all about? Jerry Rice signed with San Francisco last year and then promptly retired as "a 49er." Boy, all across the country tears were shed by those of us who picked up the paper the next day and read in the transactions, "Rice signs with Niners, then retires." Emotional stuff.

When I quit playing three years ago, I wanted to sign with Orlando, since I enjoyed an emotional stint there back in '93. Unfortunately, the Magic turned me down. They said they didn't remember me being there.

As far as Kukoc is concerned, hey, when it's time to retire, just retire. He was a great player and a good friend of mine, but sometimes it's just time to move on. And the fanfare is kind of ridiculous anyway. (Am I getting cynical in my old age?)

What do you think of the new basketball coming out? It appears to have gold on it. How does it feel in your hand?

Eddie

Eddie, when the league designed the new ball last year, I was invited – along with Reggie Miller and Mark Jackson – to shoot around and dribble with it at Madison Square Garden. All three of us really liked the ball. It's a new design and it is made of composite leather rather than true leather. The result is a much more consistent feel to each ball.

The old NBA ball was subject to a lot of variances because the leather was a little different on each one. Some balls broke in well, and others didn't. Some were a little lopsided. All of them took a week or so to get a feel for. The new ball is ready to play with right away because it has a broken-in feel to it. It is also more durable. In short, I think the ball will be great for the league and it's going to be a good seller in sporting goods stores, too – unlike the old ball.

ASK STEVE

I've been surprised and impressed at your writing style and ability. I find it informative, succinct, and entertaining often with wry humor. Do you have editors who help you write and edit your columns, or are they truly your words? Did you major in English in college and have you always had an interest in journalism? Keep up the good work and the fine writing.

Darian Patchin
San Francisco

Darian, I sware, my editters dont help me with one werd of my riting. Everything you reed comes straight from my cumputer. … Seriously, I really appreciate the compliment. I have always loved to write – in fact, I took a lot of English and creative writing courses in college – and this is something I really enjoy. I do have an editor, who does a great job by the way (I'm assuming he may read this), and we talk about issues and ideas for stories. But for the most part, he doesn't have to edit a whole lot of what I write. Believe it or not, these really are my words!