Josh Howard (photo. Monte Isom)Last night capped a nightmarish series for Josh Howard. His 12.6 ppg and 29.2 percent shooting for the series were disappointing for sure, but everyone has a bad string of games every now and then. It’s the off-court drama that has made it that much worse. First there was the infamous “marijuana” radio interview from last week and now this revelation in today’s Fort Worth Star-Telegram:
NEW ORLEANS — A late-night party to celebrate Josh Howard’s 28th birthday after Sunday’s Game 4 loss turned Dallas Mavericks coach Avery Johnson livid and led him to cancel Monday’s practice, two sources confirmed.
Johnson, who stressed no partying during the series, was informed before Monday’s scheduled practice that Howard handed out fliers to teammates in the locker room before Game 4, inviting them to his party at a Dallas nightclub.
The two sources differed on how many players attended, either three or four, including Howard. Which players attended is unclear, although the majority of the team did not.
Upon learning of the party, the sources said, Johnson entered the locker room and asked the players who attended to stand up. Infuriated, Johnson lit into his team and then called off practice. He told the team they’d meet on the flight to New Orleans.
After Johnson called off the practice, the team then chose to conduct a players-only practice, an odd occurrence, especially the day before an elimination playoff game. Players were unavailable for comment Monday, but at Tuesday’s shoot-around several players claimed nothing out of the ordinary about the circumstances that led to the coach-free practice session.
This whole past week paints a disappointing picture of a Josh Howard who just doesn’t care about his responsibilities to his team or his fans. That may sound a little judgmental and stodgy, but the evidence doesn’t lie.
April 30th, 2008 at 10:17 am
Bust Jlaze says:
Wow. I mean, the party couldn’t wait a week? Dang…
April 30th, 2008 at 10:20 am
Chuck says:
Josh, Josh, Josh!!
I mean, my man just got a new Contract and everything! I don’t know what to say.
What made Josh Howard so special was his heart for the game. Because in my opinion he really isn’t all that talented of a player. He’s not the most athletic, he’s also not the most fundamental, so if you can’t outjump others, or you don’t have a picture perfect jumper then what carries you? Heart. He lacked it in this series, and the off-court stuff just accentuates everything.
He hope he gets it together for the Mavs Sake, because they don’t stand a chance next year if he doens’t have his head together.
April 30th, 2008 at 10:29 am
rangerjohn says:
IMO howard is as weak in the head as dirk. he has no respect for his team or his coach and he needs a change of location.
the last 2 seasons (last season especially when he was the only player playing well against the warriors and he saw he could not get them the win) have really hurt his mind and his heart.
April 30th, 2008 at 10:39 am
bliz289 says:
if i’m cuban i fire Avery and trade Howard and Dirk…Avery just has to go even though he’s a good coach. and Howard and Dirk don’t have the fire to win.
April 30th, 2008 at 10:39 am
Logan Light says:
Cuban is going to BUST up this roster in the off season… I wouldn’t be surprised to see Howard as one of the first casualties…
Ha, maybe he could trade him to the Nets for Devin Harris…
April 30th, 2008 at 10:40 am
the_don_mega says:
@ rangerjohn…
after this series,i think dirk has more heart than josh…
remember…
dirk slugged it out with that injured leg during the last few weeks of the season…
dirk may have a lesser heart…
but he does try his best to make up for it…
i just dont see it in josh howard these days…
who knows?
the cat might have some personal things goin’ on and stuff…
April 30th, 2008 at 10:57 am
Brilliant Failure says:
HEY, I HAVE A GREAT IDEA!!!!!!!!!!! Let’s do a “read more” link for this:
After Johnson called off the practice, the team then chose to conduct a players-only practice, an odd occurrence, especially the day before an elimination playoff game. Players were unavailable for comment Monday, but at Tuesday’s shoot-around several players claimed nothing out of the ordinary about the circumstances that led to the coach-free practice session.
This whole past week paints a disappointing picture of a Josh Howard who just doesn’t care about his responsibilities to his team or his fans. That may sound a little judgmental and stodgy, but the evidence doesn’t lie.
Nice!!!!!!!!!!!! Damn that was sweet. We should do that more often!!!!!
FFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFF
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA
IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII
LLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL
April 30th, 2008 at 11:01 am
QQ says:
Man, why does Avery take all the blame for this flameout? Why doesn’t people talk about the fact that the Mavs have a lot of knuckleheads (yeah, you, weed man Howard) that doesn’t focus on playing at the highest level? Dude’s a good coach; he shouldn’t be taking all of the garbage for this turmoil.
April 30th, 2008 at 11:01 am
hahns says:
i cant help but root for dirk. league wide respect has just plummetted after last years golden state series…before then he was almost unstopable..(ie dime HOF discussion, larry bird comparisons, best euro player ever?) but now hes almost a joke. i do think dirk has heart..
regarding the post…does anyone remember jho turning down team usa’s invitation to play for them last summer?? i think the rejection is interesting in light of this news and his comments about weed…bc he said he rejected the offer bc he promised his son he would always coach his basketball team n the summers.
maybe its wrong for me to question this just bc of 2 incidents…but maybe something to think about? maybe the guy just wants to chill and light up in the summers.
April 30th, 2008 at 11:05 am
nate dogg says:
Smoke weed everday!
April 30th, 2008 at 11:05 am
Suciniac says:
If he has the mindset to celebrate his birthday when he’s had an awful series and the team faces elimination,then the dude doesn’t care about his team PERIOD.It’s really sad what a big guaranteed contract can do to people.
@post 6
I agree.Dirk looked determined to shake that choker label and avenge last years forgettable series.
That pic of Josh is just killing me.I don’t know what to call that expression.
April 30th, 2008 at 11:11 am
Brilliant Failure says:
Suciniac: No, that expression on Josh’s face really isn’t that bad at all.
Maybe you should go take a nap or something. I’ve seen much much worse expressions.
April 30th, 2008 at 11:11 am
GEE...While you was in diapers wettin your sheets, I was at the Ponderosa rappin to the beat says:
Never did care for Josh as I thought he was a bit overrated and didn’t care for his on court disposition.
Still I wish no ill on a player. I hate this for dude but seems like he wasn’t really taking the playoffs serious at all.
Hopefully he can come back to the supposed best player of the team and future great player he was suppose to become.
April 30th, 2008 at 11:13 am
Kobeef says:
I think Avery needs to get a life. Josh made a dumb move but going into a game that could be your last I would suggest that creating a rift with your players is the last thing you should do.
Second, I like how leading up to the playoffs everyone was saying how Howard was the key to the Mavs. When news broke that he smokes dope he became everyone’s whipping boy and the problem child of the team. If the Mavs are going to clean house there are a lot of other players who should go before Howard who does all that you would could ask for from your starting SF at an NBA level.
The MAVS were gutted for Jason Kidd and he laid a royal egg against CP. Whoever pulled the trigger on that trade deserves all the blame for the Mavs currently hopeless situation.
April 30th, 2008 at 11:19 am
Austin Burton says:
I think it’s a little early to trade Howard or write him off as a problem. Yes, he had a terrible series, but don’t forget in the regular season he averaged like 19 and 7. Don’t forget he was just a hair below Dirk last season. I’m looking at Utah and seeing Carlos Boozer hasn’t had a great first-round series. Should he get traded too? Maybe Josh is going through some things in his head. Maybe Skip Prosser’s death last year affected him more than we know. Maybe he just needs a long talk with someone in his life whose opinion he respects. I don’t know, but I’m not gonna write the guy off so soon.
April 30th, 2008 at 11:22 am
fallinup says:
I was gonna leave a comment, but then I got high.
April 30th, 2008 at 11:26 am
QQ says:
haha… lol@fallinup
April 30th, 2008 at 11:28 am
I don't get... says:
why people have to celebrate their birthday on the exact day. Especially when it falls on a weekday. If my birthday is during the week it makes sense to wait ’til Fri. or Sat. when more friends can come and people can more sloshed if they want..This guys making millions of dollars, is a role model to some (whether he wants to be or not), and doesn’t feel any responsibility to be at the top of his game during the most important part of his season?…Doesn’t make sense to me, but like the rest of life: To each his own.
April 30th, 2008 at 11:31 am
Three Stacks says:
I know plenty of folks who ball better on the playground after smoking a blunt. Hell, most of them ONLY ball after smoking a blunt. Maybe the problem w/ Josh was that he wasn’t high. *shrugs*
Oh, I gotta good story. One of my best friends, she was the equipment manager/watergirl for the basketball team in North Hollywood High School, and she and some of the guys from the team smoked a blunt w/ some members of the opposing team, from Grant High. Who was the star player of Grant High, you ask? None other than Agent Zero, Gilbert Arenas.
It was funny how she told me, too. I was watching the Cavs-Wizards game 1, and she happened to stop into the TV room right when Gil hit that 30 footer at the end of the 1st period. And right when the camera did a close-up to Gil’s face, she said, “Wait a minute. I think I smoked a blunt with that guy!”
April 30th, 2008 at 11:32 am
doc says:
Avery just mad he about to get fired.He went to a fucking party with a game 2 days away who gives a fuck besides Avery and dickheads making the I smoke weed statement look like hes a fiend who cant put a dutch down.He didnt play for USA team so he could smoke?seriously.U dudes are crazy.When Detroit was in Philly the fucking radio was talking about Sheed party he hosting for the hometown and the Sixers were there.When Jayz diss song at Deshawn came out who heard it first.The Wizards and Cavs who were in the club out DC including Lebron.I aint see nobody on here talking shit about Bron at a club.Stop hating.He played bad is one thing.This is absurd.
April 30th, 2008 at 11:33 am
Suciniac says:
@post 12
Maybe you should go fuck yourself.I don’t give a rat’s ass what you’ve seen.
April 30th, 2008 at 11:36 am
Three Stacks says:
doc:
No one’s saying shit about Lebron cause he’s still torching the Wizards. If Josh Howard played even remotely well, none of this would’ve been an issue. If he played well enough to get a couple more wins for his squad, he could’ve thrown everything back into the media’s face. He’s a pretty well-known athlete, this kinda criticism comes w/ the territory. Not sayin’ it’s fair. But it’s to be expected.
April 30th, 2008 at 11:38 am
Sactown J says:
I was stoked to see the Dirk face last night on the press conference when I got home from class. The Mavs simply don’t have what it takes, call it heart, D, organization, whatever. The door is closing! It’s becoming apparent that this team peaked when the Kings were still whooping them, and they haven’t made the right adjustments to stay competitive. I’m still trying to figure out how Dirk got that MVP last year…
War - the Dirk face!
April 30th, 2008 at 11:39 am
Austin Burton says:
@Doc — I completely agree. Guys go out and party during the season all the time, sometimes the day before a game. Think about it: If you don’t have a game until 7:30 p.m., what’s wrong with staying up until 2-3 a.m. the night before? As long as you didn’t get sloppy drunk or high, that’s more than enough time to get adequate sleep. People forget that NBA players don’t work 9-to-5. It’s not like if they get home at 3 a.m. they have to turn around and wake up at 7 a.m. Granted, shootarounds are usually around 11 a.m. or so, but that still leaves lots of time to take a long nap before the game.
April 30th, 2008 at 11:39 am
2 Easy says:
All I kno is that Josh pulled a Luol Deng and regressed some this year. When Dirk went down I thought that he would step up (and he did) and maintain that level even after Dirk came back because in many circles the mavs were seen as his team but I think that SP’s passing may be it or something that we dont kno about because for someone who is that talented to just struggle mightily and then take the blame for a franchise is ridiculous. O and for the last time, he was not the only one to show up last year, Harris did too and I think Jho showed up mainly due to his mental fart in the finals the year before
April 30th, 2008 at 11:45 am
Eric says:
He should have celebrated his birthday by busting his ass on the court at least extending the series one more game…It shows this guy not only has his priorities all wrong but also does not have the proper people advising him, what a shock in the NBA!
The Kidd deal will prove to be a disaster for Dallas in the long run. Devin Harris is the exact kind of point guard needed in the western conference to play against the likes of Paul, Parker and Williams. They mortgaged the future to make a run with a team that was clearly not elite and was still reeling from last years playoff loss to G-State.
Howard’s trade value has obviously plumeted after all of this so getting fair value right now is not an option. To me Howard is a very good #3 on a 55 win team and can not be relied upon to carry a consistent scoring role.
Dirk plain and simple can not be a number 1 on a championship team at this point. He was 2 years ago when they had their chance but that window is officially closed with Dallas right now. Dirk is a 7 foot player that posts up 12-18 feet from the basketball or plays pick and pop, he is not the easiest guy to put the right pieces around. He has become a good defensive rebounder but a non factor in the paint offensively. He either needs to play with a very strong versatile play making guard in or entering their prime or a true post up player that he can work off of…Lots to be done in Dallas, not many moveable pieces of value however…
April 30th, 2008 at 11:52 am
Suciniac says:
Interesting thing is only 3or4 teammates attended his party(after he had invited everyone),so obviously his teammates were in no mood to celebrate.Maybe Josh had just given up and thought there’s no way we are coming back to win this series,might as well celebrate my birthday.If the series was tied going for a game 7 then maybe he wouldn’t have partied.Bottom line heads are going to roll in Dallas.
April 30th, 2008 at 11:54 am
ash says:
dirk is averaging 28pts a game in the playoffs with 14 boards. who gives a f if he gets 28 a night on the low post or shooting. he is a offensive mismatch every night and he is much better defensively.
no nba player has come back as quick as him from a nasty high ankle sprain. thats heart. people questioning him at this point are idiots. dallas does not make it to the playoffs without dirk.
josh on the other hand…..
April 30th, 2008 at 12:13 pm
doc says:
Suciniac. They probaly didnt come because they knew Avery was gonna be on they ass.I know Austin everybody party.The bottomline is he played bad that dont have nothing to do with the party.Somebody on his team stayed in the house that whole night and stunk it up worse than him.
April 30th, 2008 at 12:19 pm
Ross says:
Michael Finley wouldn’t have thrown a party during playoffs.
April 30th, 2008 at 12:22 pm
Brilliant Failure says:
“Maybe you should go fuck yourself.I don’t give a rat’s ass what you’ve seen.”
Nice. Way to really prove me wrong. Way to address the fact that HIS LOOK IS PRETTY NORMAL. Just confident and aggressive. Whats wrong with that? Sorry you got so butt hurt.
April 30th, 2008 at 12:29 pm
Sam I Am says:
Suciniac has a foul expression
April 30th, 2008 at 12:35 pm
Bobby B says:
@ GEE:
The Rappin’ Duke! Thanks for bringing me way back. I remember rocking that tape back when I was in grade 4.
April 30th, 2008 at 12:41 pm
Suciniac says:
I wasn’t even trying to prove you wrong shithead.You actually think he looks pretty normal,confident and aggressive.Give some of what you’re smoking to Josh, he’ll really appreciate it.To me he looks something between scared to be on camera and “do I look good in this T”??Last thing for you anally politically correct dip shit.I just thought he looked funny, there’s nothing right or wrong about it.If you are so concerned about what’s right or wrong join a fucking human rights forum or something.
@Sam I am
Yeah, had a rough day at work.Been coming in contact with lots of stupid fucks lately.
April 30th, 2008 at 12:47 pm
Eric says:
I am not saying Dirk can’t get numbers, he definitely can but he is not leading Dallas out of the west as they are currently constructed…BTW, Brandon Bass is a real nice piece that they hopefully can hold onto…
April 30th, 2008 at 12:59 pm
GEE...While you was in diapers wettin your sheets, I was at the Ponderosa rappin to the beat says:
Bobby B you good. I took it back to “Self-Destruction” yesterday. I knew some heads wouldn’t or don’t get it.
Anyway yea the Rappin Duke used to crack me up! Especially when he goes into the spill about wanting to Rock Aretha Franklllliiiiin. LOL
Crazy.
April 30th, 2008 at 1:01 pm
GEE...While you was in diapers wettin your sheets, I was at the Ponderosa rappin to the beat says:
I don’t care for Josh but I woulndn’t trade him. Although I wonder what a him for Carmelo trade would be like.
I don’t know if he is really enjoying Dallas. I think Josh would get down in Denver real well.
April 30th, 2008 at 1:05 pm
james says:
this is not the JHo I know- this is not the real josh howard from the 336- he’ll get it together
April 30th, 2008 at 1:12 pm
doc says:
Nobody would throw a party in San Antonio.
April 30th, 2008 at 1:14 pm
Chuck says:
@Gee
Denver? I kinda agree for this reason. Howard doesn’t look primarily to score. He will get down and play some D, Carmelo, he wouldn’t play D, even if a bonus of 3 million was in his contract for averaging 1 block and 2 steals or some kind of incentive package. Carmelo Just doesn’t like D, so any team he goes to, automatically gets defensively handicapped. I actually think that would be an improvement in team chemistry if that kind of trade went through. Iverson likes to shoot. Camby ad Kenyon roam the lanes for weak side blocks. Howard could gaurd the opposing teams best scorer because of his length and adeqaute speed. And they wouldn’t have to deal with the star treatment expected from Carmelo. you have an instant scorer from J.R Smith off the bench. You may be on to something GEE. Dallas would get even softer though!! Jkidd is old, Dirk is frail, and Carmelo would just be unwilling. They would be a high scoring team that can’t play D, kinda like what they are now.
April 30th, 2008 at 1:15 pm
Suciniac says:
@Gee
Despite Carmelo’s flaw no way Denver goes for that deal especially after this series.If Defence is the main agenda why not Carmelo for Artest or even Marion??
April 30th, 2008 at 1:20 pm
Chuck says:
@Suciniac
Because Artest is a nutcase, and Marion is a big baby who wants offenses to run through him. Artest also takes wild shots ALL of the time. He’s not worth the headache for the money he wants and neither is Marion. Plus Marion can’t even shoot a descent jump shot, and he can barely handle the ball, he’s basically a rip hamilton without handles or an accurate jumper.
April 30th, 2008 at 1:21 pm
Sam I Am says:
I have a question…Do you get rid of a coach if he can coach and enforces the basics and fundamentals to becoming a disciplined team but has players who act a fool
OR
Do you trade away the players who act a fool b/c in the end players have a short life span or usefullness on a team ? i.e. Shaq , Marion, Kidd ?????
April 30th, 2008 at 1:30 pm
fallinup says:
Answer to 43…you fire the coach. Ask Mark Cuban, he just did.
April 30th, 2008 at 1:33 pm
Suciniac says:
@Chuck
Agreed.Artest is a nutcase but after this series I am not too sure about J-Ho either.Plus the main focus is defence so Marion and Artest wouldn’t be look to carry the offence,Denver has enough options on offence even without Carmelo.Marion = Rip????You’ve got to be serious.And no, Marion didn’t said he wants the offence to run through him he said he wants to be recognized as one of the bet SF to play the game.
Bottomline is would you trade a genuine all-star(not a superstar)for a player whose just had a worst possible playoff appearance possible????Especially when you have better defensive players who can fit in better like Battier,G-Wallace,Butler,Prince or even AI 2.
April 30th, 2008 at 1:40 pm
Chuck says:
@Suciniac
Would I trade Howard for Marion? At this point with the Marijauna statements. No! But when He was averaging 19 and 7, yes. I honestly think Marion is ovverated myself. I do like Artest though. I just think he has some nuerological problems that no team can handle. I mean Marion does the little things a team loves. Rebound, defend, run the floor. But that’s not worth 17 mil, Howard comes at a 10 mil price tag. I need someone who can hit open shots with regularity and free throws, someone who understands his limitations on the court, and improves what he considers limitations. Marion just like Shaq have been shooting the same way since they have been in the league. Remember Lebrons lean on his jumper. My man fixed that in one year while playing in the olympics. Now that’s the kind of player I pay 17 mil, (Lebron only makes 14). Marion cries too much and he is overrated. So yes I would trade him for last years howard, and I wasn’t comapring Rip and Marion, I was contrasting.
April 30th, 2008 at 1:56 pm
Suciniac says:
@Chuck
My point exactly Josh hurt his trade value big time after this series,so,there’s no way Denver gives Dallas Carmelo for him straight up.Artest is a big question mark because he will be a free agent after next year so there’s no guarantee he will be back even if Denver take a chance with him.Marion s contract come offs in two years,so,it’s not like he will be stuck with Denver forever.To each’s own but I think Marion and numerous other guys fit in better with Denver than what Josh brings to the table.Thanks for (un)clearing that about Mrion=Rip thing.Oh and Lebron fixed that this summer not in the Olympics which BTW happens once in 4 years.
April 30th, 2008 at 2:01 pm
Star Jones says:
My Dwayne would never smoke weed.
April 30th, 2008 at 2:15 pm
hahns says:
@ doc and austin
i dont think we can go killin jho as a jailblazer-esque problem child, but the partying is just a testament to where his head was at the night before a do-or-die game. i remember dime ran a story about selim stoudamire chuckin half court shots during shootaround compared to joe johnson being focused. dime was bustin selim for clownin around pregame… i think this goes along the same lines.
this is similar to the warriors flame out when nelson sat boomdizzle the second half of a must-win regular season game.
April 30th, 2008 at 2:35 pm
Brilliant Failure "Read More" says:
@Suc(whatever)
This was my first post:
No, that expression on Josh’s face really isn’t that bad at all.
Maybe you should go take a nap or something. I’ve seen much much worse expressions.
Does that really warrant you freaking out? Me saying you should take a nap? I know you said you’ve had to deal with a lot of stupid fucks recently but how does taking it out on me help you at all? You seem pretty worked up about it all.
April 30th, 2008 at 2:36 pm
NB says:
Its amazing that some people are willing to give Josh Howard a pass because his college coach died last year, when last year, all we heard was how terrible Dirk was during the GS series. In case anyone didn’t know, Dirk’s father was going through a life threatening operation during that series. This was published in the paper in Dallas, but everyone likes to overlook that fact and just call him a choker. Yet Josh Howard gets a pass for whatever reason. Its bullshit. I honestly believe that people shit on Dirk becuase he is white. Who wrote that he is frail? I never knew a frail person to play on a sprained knee and ankle to help their team make the playoffs. It took TO three weeks to recover, and he still didn’t help his team when he came back. Dirk was by far the best player this whole series and no one gave him credit for it. Oh, and by the way, Chris Paul was close to the same coach and his passing didn’t seem to affect his play at all.
April 30th, 2008 at 2:37 pm
GEE...While you was in diapers wettin your sheets, I was at the Ponderosa rappin to the beat says:
Chuck & Suciniac then perhaps some sort of three team trade is the answer.
Why do I keep seeing Heat players on the G4 or G2 (whatever the drink is called) commercials.
So far Wade and Mourning. Who is next Shawn?
Loving the Vitamin water commercials, they should make more. Stuff is tasty too.
April 30th, 2008 at 3:25 pm
Three Stacks says:
NB, what are you talking about? No one is giving Howard a free pass. The first thing most columnists pointed to is his dismal play during the Hornets series (not anymore, not since Johnson got fired).
And Dirk gets a hard time for being white, huh? Really? Cause it’s SO HARD being white in America, isn’t it?
I don’t think anyone ever said Dirk doesn’t play hard. It’s obvious he does. What people had a problem with is the fact that he seemed to shrink away in big moments, and that he didn’t like to bang underneath while being a 7 footer. Don’t get it twisted.
April 30th, 2008 at 4:19 pm
kb24! says:
J Howard is a 1 hit wonder…1 time all star and thats it.
May 1st, 2008 at 3:26 am
tealish says:
Wow. I def misjudged this dude JHo. I thought he was all grit and heart, playing hard-nosed ball, respecting the game and all that effort compensates for his limited basketball talent.
(Not ‘limited’ as in the majority of the people on this board who have never touched a ball, but relative to NBA players averaging his numbers or better)
Guess I was wrong. Go back to your reefer, Ho. You’ve got all the time in the world to throw a blazing party now. Enjoy, dumbas*.
May 1st, 2008 at 4:53 am
Suciniac says:
I was not close to freaking out you brain cells lacking retard.This is how I express my feelings even AFTER a good night’s “nap”.I know exactly what you wrote, you don’t have to quote yourself.It’s fine if you say J-Ho looks normal(to you) and you’ve seen worse.But you can shove your thoughts about what I should do up your ass,Got it?UP YOUR ASS.I don’t give a fuck if you’re J-Ho’s bitch,Bin laden’s brother or a Save the whale group member…I didn’t ask for your opinion of what I should do?If you had kept your oh so intellectual thoughts to yourself I wouldn’t have given you the time of the day.
For some odd reason, typing mild expletives and putting righteous liberals in their place, gave me a good night’s sleep last night.I think I should try it more.Next time save your thoughts to yourself and you will not have to endure my rants.BTW nice alias you got there….suits you fine Jackass.
May 1st, 2008 at 7:45 am
Jackie says:
DOES ANYONE REMOTELY THINK THAT KOBE OR DUNCAN WOULD HAVE PUT UP WITH THAT CRAP?
May 1st, 2008 at 11:11 am
Austin Burton says:
@NB — Everyone deals with tragedy differently. I wasn’t giving Howard a free pass due to Skip Prosser’s death, I’m just saying maybe that had a long-term effect on him. Or maybe someone in his family or one of his friends is going through a rough time back home, I don’t know. All I’m saying if that Howard had 2 bad weeks of basketball; I’m willing to cut him some slack given the 5 years prior to that where he’s been good. And about Dirk, this season he climbed out of the “choker/soft” realm for me. Although I didn’t know about his father last year.
May 1st, 2008 at 8:38 pm
Celts Fan says:
ya, Dirk is definitely in that Rasheed, “Wish his game was a little different (better rebounding and defensively in Dirk’s case, more down low in Rasheed’s) but he’s definitely not soft” group after this year. I’d noticed the effort on rebounding and defense all year, but playing through the sprained ankle shows the kind of heart I didn’t know he had. and people hated on Dirk because he didn’t play the 4 in the traditional way and didn’t rebound or defend well enough at his position in years past (which is true) I don’t think it had anything to do with being white, it had to do with him not rebounding hard enough. You can tell he’s worked hard on it and I was really impressed watching him this year. Seems like he’s become a much better leader too.
Josh Howard probably shouldn’t have had that party. I’m sure it didn’t affect his performance (again, assuming he stayed relatively sober) but if the coach says don’t party, you shouldn’t party. God knows if you’re down in a Playoff series and you’ve been playing like crap AND admitted to smoking in the off-season, why give the media even more ammo? Having said that, everything I’ve heard about him is that he’s a free spirit type that doesn’t care what anyone thinks of him. As long as that’s true (cuz he’s lost any right to bitch about blame being thrown on him, fairly or not) then I say good for him for having fun. It’s not like it was just for the hell of it, it was his birthday for fuck’s sake…