Lets’s cut straight to the top 5 topics that have the NBA on a buzz right now.

1. David Blatt Fired By Cavs 

For those of you who are unaware of the unfortunate circumstances that took place friday afternoon, the Cleveland Cavaliers fired Head Coach David Blatt, in what was reported as loss of locker room support, and ineffective use of player personnel (Kevin Love to be exact). Some reports even suggest LeBron had a hand in the decision making, and General Manager David Griffin quickly shot that down saying, “LeBron doesn’t run this organization.” I can believe that no one consulted James on whether Blatt should go, but myself along with many others can believe that he has had his hand up on promoting Ty Lue since the organization made it’s move. Rick Carlilse felt embarrassed for what happened, and others at the time of the decision felt a little confused for the most notable reasons:

-NBA Finals Run after Cavs missed playoffs 4 straight years in LeBrons’ absence.

-30-11 Record, best in the East, top 10 in rebounding, and 2nd in the league in overall defense.

With that being said, David Blatt has expressed he would like to stay in the NBA, and for the sake of experience as a bench boss in a league he’s only had a year and a half with, it would be wise not to give up. My prediction, with half the season gone already, I believe Blatt wont find work until the summer, but will be good enough to start fresh on any team given. Longtime assistant Ty Lue will get his first test against the Bulls on Saturday night, where national fans and spectators will get the chance to see first hand how this change will fair going forward. Oh yeah, and Steve Kerr is back….

2.  Josh Smith Back To Houston

Josh Smith was traded by the Clippers back to Houston in what seems like an ideal move for the Clippers, but strange for Smith who will end up on a team still looking to find an identity (at least as of now they are in 7th place in the West). However, Smith has a chance to thrive again, after being a helping factor on a team that upset the highly favored Clippers to make an unimaginable appearance in the Western Conference Finals. Smith has hit the lowest of the low averaging 5 ppg with LA, and shooting less than 40% from the field. Although he felt as if he never should have left Houston, maybe a midseason trade is exactly what he needs to get his game back on track. The Clippers on the other hand, receive Sergei Lishouk and Maarty Leunen. Both players who are currently no names to the NBA, but on a Doc Rivers ran team might be able to find minutes and hopefully a way to stay relevant in this league. They do have a lot of Euroleague experience if that helps any?

3. Atlanta Hawks Guard Battle

So the Hawks lost to Sacremento on Thursday night, and the most interesting thing about this instance was that 1 time All-Star Jeff Teague watched the 4th from the bench. With only 4 PTS, 4 AST and 3 TO’s on the night in 19 minutes of action, Coach Bud took a chance to find a different solution in what was surely a winnable game against a surging Kings team. Dennis Schroeder took the floor, and sure it’s fine that he finished with 12 PTS and 5 AST and of course 6 TO’s, but people are beginning to wonder how these 2 pair with each other given the fact there is only room for one starting PG, and their methods of competition. From this end, neither are neck in neck with each other.

Many suspect Dennis hasn’t truly found his niche on defense, and does not have a true shooting touch that he can consistently use to make other teams pay. With speed and wingspan for his size, he’s definitely not far off in his game. Although his new hairstyle has raised some eyebrows. Jeff however, has the claim on his head that he doesn’t have the mentality to takeover games when it’s needed. He has definitely flashed brilliance (at times) which won him All-Star honors last season, but in games like this one down the stretch he’s proved useless. Contract time is coming up, but before that the trade deadline. So here’s my question to you, do you trade either one and find another PG? Or just let both duke it out for the job?

4. All Star Starters East & West

East:

Dwayne Wade- Miami Heat

Kyle Lowry- Toronto Raptors

Carmelo Anthony- New York Knicks

LeBron James- Cleveland Cavaliers

Paul George- Indiana Pacers

West:

Kobe Bryant- LA Lakers

Stephen Curry- GS Warriors

Kevin Durant- OKC Thunder

Russell Westbrook- OKC Thunder

Kawhi Leornard- SA Spurs

Kind of interesting. No starting Centers. The Reserves will be named sometime this week.

5. OKC Rebranding

Some for years since the move to OKC from Seattle considered the Thunder to have had a logo that was plain, uninteresting, and amateur like. In that, the Thunder organization come together to unveil something new. Tell us what you think by leaving a comment below. The logo at the top of this section will be their primary logo while the logo at the side will be their secondary logo.

What did you think of Blatt, or The All-Star announcement?

 

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