Thread: NBA 2008-09 Season

With the regular season a little over a month away let's talk some hoops!

Here's a major story right out of the shute:


Arenas to Miss Camp, Season's First Month (Updated)

Gilbert Arenas confirmed Wednesday that he underwent a surgical procedure this morning that "cleaned out some debris" in his left knee and won't be ready to play for the Wizards until early December. Arenas, who has undergone two surgeries to repair the left knee in the last two seasons, has been limited during the rehab process all summer and said he has planned all along on not participating in training camp or the preseason.
Arenas, who signed a six-year, $111 million contract this summer, will miss training camp, the preseason and at least the first month of the regular season. The Wizards open the regular season Oct. 29 at home against New Jersey and play a total of 14 games in October and November.

"I just had some floating debris in there that was slowing me down," said Arenas, who seemed to be in good spirits. "It was irritating the knee so we decided to go in there and clean it out. This should actually allow me to come back faster."
Team president Ernie Grunfeld said later Wednesday that the Wizards were aware of the surgery. He said the decision was made to clean the knee out when Arenas experienced some pain and swelling after "ramping up" the intensity of his rehab workouts in recent weeks.
Grunfeld also made it clear that the team signed Arenas to his long-term deal this summer with the understanding that he was going through the rehab process and might not be ready for the upcoming season.

"We thought the possibility was there but we're looking at the big picture with Gilbert," Grunfeld said. "He's 26 years old and we're confident that he will be able to return and resume his career."
Arenas was limited to 13 regular season games last season and missed the final eight regular season games and the playoffs the previous season after tearing the left meniscus in the knee during a game against Charlotte on April 4, 2007.
The Wizards have two point guards on the current roster -- Antonio Daniels and Dee Brown -- and has precious little space underneath the luxury tax threshold. It would appear, as of right now, that the Wizards will go into the season with this group and wait for Arenas to get healthy.
The team has set no timetable for Arenas' return.
Other notes:
- Grunfeld repeatedly made it clear that the team has set no timetable and that Arenas will return only when he's ready.
- I asked Grunfeld about going into the season with Antonio Daniels and Dee Brown as his two point guards entering the season. Remember, a key piece to last season's team -- Roger Mason Jr. -- is now a Spur.
"Yes we do (feel comfortable)," Grunfeld said. "We went through the same thing last year and we had success. We have other guys who can handle the ball. We have a two-guard offense anyway and we don't primarily rely on just a point guard, so I feel good about where we are right and now and think that we'll be a very competitive team."

- For those of you wondering whether the Wizards would consider a move for Jamaal Tinsley of the Indiana Pacers, forget about that. Larry Bird has made it clear that he wants Tinsley out of Indy, but the guy has three years and $21 million remaining on his deal and I'm told that the Wiz have no interest.
- A few hours after I posted my report, the Wizards released a statement detailing the specifics of the procedure Arenas underwent today. It was called an athroscopic lavage, otherwise known as a "washout," and was performed by Dr. Marc Connell, who also performed the first two surgeries on the knee.
"After Gilbert's normal course of rehabilitation was ramped up, he experienced some swelling and discomfort in the knee," Connell said in the statement. "A subsequent MRI showed that the knee was surgically sound. The decision was made to perform an arthroscopic lavage procedure, during which a moderate amount of debris was removed after saline solution was washed through the knee. The presence of the debris is common with the nature of his previous injury. This was a proactive procedure that will enhance his rehabilitation process."

Oops sorry, the thread title should obviously read 2008-09 Season.

Cavaliers, suddenly rich in point guards, re-sign West
Sep. 12, 2008
CBSSports.com wire reports

CLEVELAND -- Two prolonged contract holdouts early last season hurt the
Cleveland Cavaliers

, damaging their chances of getting back to the NBA Finals.
They made sure it wouldn't happen again.
The club signed restricted free agent guard
Delonte West

to a two-year contract Friday, a deal that includes a third-year club option for 2011-12.
Financial terms were not immediately known. West and his representatives had been seeking a deal worth $5 millon per season.
West was acquired last season from Seattle as part of the three-team, 11-player megatrade before the Feb. 21 deadline. Filling a major void at point guard, the 6-foot-3 West averaged 10.3 points, 3.7 rebounds and 4.5 assists in 26 starts for the Cavaliers.
He was one of Cleveland's best players during the postseason, averaging 10.8 points, 3.3 rebounds and 4.2 assists in 13 games for the Cavs, who pushed the NBA champion Boston Celtics to seven games before losing in the Eastern Conference semifinals.
The Cavs didn't want a repeat of last year when forwards
Anderson Varejao


and
Sasha Pavlovic


, both restricted free agents, held out of training camp. They eventually signed deals, but when they came back both players struggled getting into shape, got injured and the Cavaliers' chemistry was affected by their absences.
The 25-year-old West can play either position in the backcourt. He will likely back up point guard
Mo Williams


, who was acquired in a trade this summer from Milwaukee. West could also get time at shooting guard along with
Daniel Gibson


, another restricted free agent signed by the Cavaliers during the offseason.
"He's a tremendous defender and he's about what we want to be about on that end of the floor," Cavaliers general manager
Danny Ferry


said.
Ferry said West's decision to work out at the Cavaliers' training facility this summer assured both sides that he wanted to stay in Cleveland.
"It was a very healthy thing for the process. It kept the relationship on a good, positive level," Ferry said. "He wanted to be part of what we're working toward. We've said all along that we want Delonte on this team. He's a good player and can make us a better team."
Ferry is excited about Cleveland's potential this season. Williams will give the Cavaliers a second, bona fide perimeter scoring threat to complement superstar
LeBron James


.
"We have guys who really love to play and love to compete," Ferry said. "We have really good depth everywhere and we have a solid balance of youth and experience."
**********************************************************

As I've been saying to HD MM all summer, the Cavs are loading up for a championship run. They were already loaded in the frontcourt (both quantity and size-wise), and now they have a very strong backcourt with the acquisition of Mo Williams and the re-signings of Delonte West and Daniel Gibson.

IMO, the Cavs are the best bet to end Cleveland's championship drought!

Cleveland Cavaliers get top draft pick under contract
Posted by the Plain Dealer on July 10, 2008

The Cavaliers announced this afternoon that forward J.J. Hickson, the team's top draft pick out of North Carolina State, has agreed to terms.
The Cavaliers selected Hickson with the 19th overall pick.

Hickson, 19, was named to the Atlantic Coast Conference All-Freshman Team and was named Honorable Mention All-Conference after averaging 14.8 points on a conference-best .591 shooting and 8.5 rebounds per game. He led all ACC freshmen in scoring, rebounding and double-doubles (10) and also earned ACC Rookie of the Week honors on three occasions.


Cavs sign draft pick Darnell Jackson
Posted by Brian Windhorst from Ohio.com on Sunday, Sep 07, 2008

The Cavaliers announced the signing of Darnell Jackson, their second-round draft pick out of Kansas, on Saturday. Terms were not disclosed, but it is believed Jackson will make the rookie league minimum, $440,000, if he makes the team in training camp.

He was picked 52nd overall by the Miami Heat and then traded to the Cavs on draft night for a future second-round pick. The 6-foot-8, 250-pound forward averaged 11.2 points and 6.7 rebounds for the JayHawks last season. He averaged 5.8 points and 5.4 rebounds in summer league.

Originally Posted by BillD1984

As I've been saying to HD MM all summer, the Cavs are loading up for a championship run. They were already loaded in the frontcourt (both quantity and size-wise), and now they have a very strong backcourt with the acquisition of Mo Williams and the re-signings of Delonte West and Daniel Gibson.

IMO, the Cavs are the best bet to end Cleveland's championship drought!

Bill, I love the addition of Mo Williams. We were thin at he point guard and power forward position going into the offseason. But more than anything, we needed a player that could create his own shot. Ie: Another offensive weapon for when LeBron is triple/quadruple teamed.

From what I hear, Mo will now take over as the starting PG, thus relegating Delonte West to come from the bench, which I personally think is better for him. With this addition, we now have much needed depth at the position and a guy in Williams who can score.

As for the power forward position, we traded veteran Joe Smith as part of the Mo Williams deal, so others will have to step up including Ben Wallace and Anderson Varejao. I expect Andy to improve from last year as he will be in camp on time this year with no contract hold out. The other interesting key to this position will be our 1st round draft pick: JJ Hickson. I didn't like this pick on draft day because he is still yound (20) and has a few years of development ahead of him. Reports are that he's looking rather promising in the Summer Leagues. If he can make our regular season rotation and have an impact, I would be thrilled.

Originally Posted by BillD1984

Oops sorry, the thread title should obviously read 2008-09 Season.

I fixed it and stuck the thread. I was about to create one myself.

Originally Posted by ramy

I fixed it and stuck the thread. I was about to create one myself.

Thanks a bunch, Ramy!

Despite sprained knee, T-Wolves' Jefferson will be ready for season

MINNEAPOLIS --
Minnesota Timberwolves

forward
Al Jefferson

has a sprained right knee and will be sidelined for two to three weeks.
The team said Thursday that Jefferson is expected to be ready by the start of the regular season.
An MRI exam Wednesday confirmed a mild sprain to the medial collateral ligament.
In Jefferson's first season with the Timberwolves last year he averaged 21.0 points per game and 11.1 rebounds.
***********************************************************************************

Hopefully, Big Al is ready when the season starts. He's one of the rising stars in the NBA.

Got a couple of questions for you guys:

1. After all the hubbub over Seattle moving, will the new OKC team win at least 30 games in their first season in Oklahoma City?

2. Are the Spurs a team that, slowly but surely, decline? Ginobili has a bad ankle and Duncan could wear down. They had some weaknesses last year- lived and died by the three-point shot and their home record (as we saw in the Lakers series)

3. Will Mike D'Antoni regret leaving Phoenix and quintessential team-player Steve Nash for the Knicks and Stephon Marbury, the epitome of a malcontent?

4.Will Portland breakthrough with all that young talent?

5. Elton Brand, Baron Davis, and Corey Maggette- Who will have the better first-year in their new cities?