Posts Tagged ‘Shawn Marion’

The Nine Worst Shooting Motions In The NBA

May 24, 2013  ·  3:30PM


ALL BALL NERVE CENTER — One of my favorite descriptions of all time came a few years ago, back when NBA TV’s Steve Smith was calling Hawks games on Atlanta-area TV. The Hawks were playing the Chicago Bulls, and Bulls center Joakim Noah got fouled and sent to the free throw line.

Noah stepped to the stripe, took a deep breath and then … well, he didn’t shoot the ball so much as he kind of launched it, with both hands, with sideways spin, toward the rim. The Hawks’ announcers were taken aback, and then Smitty said Noah shot like he had a charley horse in his chest.

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The thing is, Smitty was correct. Noah shoots the ball in such a way that if you displayed similar form at basketball camp, they would promptly refund your money and send you home. But it works for Noah, and he’s managed to be effective enough with it that no coach has seen the need to fundamentally change it.

Noah, however, is not the only NBA player with nontraditional form. Shawn Marion immediately comes to mind — I once asked Marion where he developed his strange release, and he said it was because he jumped so high that he was basically shooting down at the rim.

My main man Kevin Lincoln over at Buzzfeed.com compiled a list of the 9 Ugliest Shooting Motions in the NBA, and he makes a compelling argument for a lot of these guys. Check it out, and let us know who gets your vote for the worst shooting motion.

(gif via BuzzFeed)

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Another Stinger In Valley Of Sun

November 12, 2012  ·  2:55PM

By Jeff Case

 

No one will confuse the 2012-13 Phoenix Suns with a legit title contender, but they haven’t been as awful as some thought they’d be this season. At 3-4, they’ve beaten the teams they probably should (Cleveland, Detroit and Charlotte) and lost to the ones they probably should have (Utah, Miami) and taken losses in two others that were a toss-up (Orlando and Golden State).

Still, the memories of Steve Nash directing coach Mike D’Antoni‘s Seven Seconds Or Less offense are still somewhat fresh. Don’t forget about that great small forward they had too … what was his name … oh yeah! Shawn Marion. In remembering those days, though, Suns fans also recall the way those peak D’Antoni-Nash-Marion-Amar’e Stoudemire teams used to routinely falter against the Spurs, Mavs and Lakers in the West playoffs.

Since those glory days, D’Antoni has been hired (and fired) by New York, Marion was traded to Miami, Stoudemire bolted as a free agent for New York and Nash skipped town, too.

All that to say: is there any fan base that’s seen more of their icons tied to different successful eras leave more often than Phoenix has?

Consider these Suns icons who left town:

  • Paul Wesphal, a three-time All-Star in Phoenix and the leading scorer on the Suns’ 1976 Finals runner-up team, was dealt to rival Seattle in the summer of 1980. The Sonics, at the time, were easily one of the most dominant teams in the West and had won it all in 1979. Westphal, who coached Phoenix to the ’93 Finals, also coached Seattle in the late 1990s. Double-ouch.
  • Charles Barkley won the MVP in 1993, led Phoenix to The Finals that season and is, perhaps, the most well-known Sun ever. He forced a trade to Houston in 1996 so he could chase a ring with Clyde Drexler and Hakeem Olajuwon, who were key pieces to the Rockets’ last title team in 1994-95. That ’94-95 squad ousted a 59-win Phoenix team in the West semis.
  • Marion, he of the great nickname (“The Matrix”), was a four-time All-Star in Phoenix before the O’Neal trade. That opened the door for his trade to Toronto, which led to his eventual signing as a free agent with the rival Mavs in 2009. Dallas won the whole thing in 2011.
  • You name it, Nash did it for Phoenix. Yet in the summer, the chance to be closer to his children and have a good shot at a ring made the Lakers the easy pick. Need we explain the Suns-Lakers rivalry?
  • D’Antoni’s Suns exploits are many, but is there any worse place he could have landed for Suns watchers than the L.A. Lakers? Sorry to break the news …

Look around the NBA’s history and every so often you’ll see an MVP (Karl Malone to the Lakers) or a Finals MVP (Chauncey Billups to Denver) or an overall franchise face (Chris Paul to the Clippers) get moved or sign elsewhere. But it’s hard to think of a team outside of Phoenix that has seen more iconic players either move on or be moved on to chase a ring elsewhere.

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All Ball Fave Five: Players Who Should Host Saturday Night Live

August 28, 2012  ·  10:22AM

by Micah Hart

You may have noticed it’s the offseason, which means we have plenty of time to sit around and think about many of the things that make it fun to be an NBA fan. Here at All Ball, we’ll be passing the time until the start of the season with a new series, the Fave Five. Each week will count down a list of the five best, or worst … somethings. We’ll try to get creative with it. Plus we’re taking requests! If you have a suggestion for a Fave Five post, give us a shout and you may see it appear in this space over the next several weeks.

You may not know this about me, but if you have read enough posts on All Ball you’ve probably seen enough links to surmise that I am a big fan of Saturday Night Live.

And with the start of the new season just around the corner, it got me to thinking: When will the next NBA player get a chance to host of the show?

Historically speaking, SNL invites a “sports figure” on average about once a year (this includes broadcasters, professional wrestlers, etc). Last year our own Charles Barkley became the first athlete to host for the third time, but overall basketball representation on the show has been sparse. Aside from the Chuckster, only Michael Jordan and LeBron James have ever hosted. Clearly, Lorne Michaels does not think much of the NBA’s collective comedic talents. But is that deserved, this allegation I’m making up on the spot?

It seems to me in this day and age there are more NBA players being funny than ever, and it’s just a matter of time before someone else gets a crack at being not ready for primetime.

But who? In this week’s Fave Five, we rank the top candidates to take to the stage in Studio 8H:

5. Roy Hibbert

The bonafides: A rising star on the NBA’s comedy scene, Hibbert has aligned himself with some very funny people in his burgeoning career. He’s guested on Parks and Recreation (the funniest show on TV for my money), hung out at Roscoe’s Chicken N Waffles with comedian Chelsea Peretti, and topped it off with Ben Schwartz‘s hilarious audition video for Hibbert’s cheering section. He seems pretty comfortable on camera — here he is from last year’s playoffs on Jimmy Kimmel:

Has he been featured on Funny or Die or Taiwanese animation? Not yet, but given who he hangs out with, it can’t be too long.

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Shawn Marion poses how we all would pose at the White House

January 9, 2012  ·  5:03PM

by Micah Hart

From ‘Trix’s twitter feed, taken at the White House this afternoon during the Mavericks’ visit with President Obama:

Yeah, I’d take the same picture too.

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Last night in a … short poem

June 3, 2011  ·  10:45AM

by Micah Hart

What’s that expression? A thing of beauty is a joy forever? Well that’s what Dallas’ comeback was last night — a 22-5 run of sheer bliss that deserves to be remembered in prose for posterity.

The Mavs comeback, as told in rhyming couplets:

Jason Terry strokes the J,
Flies down court and makes them pay.

A couple of freebies, Mavs moving fast,
Marion drives and puts it off glass.

Kidd is open, he drains a three!
A pull-up jumper from Mr. J.T.

It’s Dirk time now, making shots a’plenty,
A rattling jumper, a finish lefty,

A trey from deep, the Heat feeling blue…
The winner past Bosh. Take dat wit chew.

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The shot made in the lab

June 3, 2011  ·  3:04AM

by Zettler Clay

Being that this is the NBA Finals and one of its shining participants, Shawn Marion, has one of the most unorthodox shots you’ll ever see, Howard Beck of the New York Times dedicated over 1,200 words to figuring out the art — loosely speaking — of how a man has been able to not only survive, but thrive on the top basketball stage in the world with what appears to be an underdeveloped (to put it nicely) jump shot.

Marion isn’t the only NBA player who has managed to make a career with such glaring shortcomings, but he is arguably the most successful (four-time All-Star, over 15,000 points). I’m willing to cut him some slack though, because not too long ago, there was another ultimate shooting eye-sore, on a championship team nonetheless. None other than Mr. Bill Cartwright:

Granted, Cartwright wasn’t launching 20-foot shots with regularity like Marion was in his Phoenix days. But still, it’s pretty hard to top that heave.

What sayeth you, hoop heads? What NBA player in recent memory gives Mr. Marion a run for his money?

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Conventional wisdom: June 1

June 1, 2011  ·  9:29AM

by Micah Hart

After each game day until the end of the NBA Finals, we’ll be taking a look at the conventional wisdom of the moment — which team is the current favorite to win it all, and which team should be ashamed to still be putting on its jerseys.

Here’s how it looks on the morning of Wednesday, June 1.

Start planning the parade:

Miami Heat

Yeah, LeBron James is amazing. If we didn’t hate him so much, we’d really have to be in awe of how well he’s playing in these playoffs. However, the real star of the show for Miami is its defense. As much praise as we heaped on Chicago for its defensive presence all season, it has been the Heat who have played the best “D” when the stakes got raised. It is their ability to choke out any attack that has them rumbling towards a champagne bath.

Give it up already:

Dallas Mavericks

The Mavericks’ bench was supposed to be a big advantage in this series, but man, did they look bad last night. Jason Terry was the only player who made anything that can be called a positive contribution, while Peja Stojakovic, J.J. Barea, and Brendan Haywood each should petition for part of Miami’s playoff share for their contributions to the Heat win in Game 1.

When Shawn Marion and Jason Kidd become your second and third best offensive options, your team is in trouble.

Dirk can’t do this by himself, but it looks like he’s going to have to try.

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Don’t know about a thousand, but this picture talks, part XVII

May 24, 2011  ·  2:02AM

by Zettler Clay

Being up 15 points with less than five minutes from tying the series 2-2 brings about a certain confidence…until it doesn’t.

Dirk happens. Marion happens. Kidd happens. And before you know it, you’re down 3-1 heading into enemy territory. To say the thunderbolt struck Oklahoma City would be a bit cliche, but realizing that the team in question has a leader who is two-and-a-half years away from being able to legally rent a car in his name brings another reality front and center.

Kevin Durant is a kid. Being extremely gifted at a young age doesn’t insulate you from, well, looking like this after perhaps the most disappointing loss of your life.

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Conventional wisdom: May 22nd

May 22, 2011  ·  11:09AM

by Micah Hart

Each day until the end of the NBA Finals, we’ll be taking a look at the conventional wisdom of the moment — which team is currently the favorite to win it all, and which team should be ashamed to still be putting on its jerseys.

Here’s how it looks on the morning of Sunday, May 22.

Start planning the parade:

Dallas Mavericks

The Mavs have two things every championship team needs — the ability to win on the road (last night’s win in Game 3 was the team’s fourth in six games this postseason), and an unstoppable clutch-time scorer.

For most of the game last night, Dirk Nowitzki couldn’t hit a shot. But when the stakes were raised towards the end, with Dallas’ lead trimmed from 23 to six, there was the Diggler, hitting three big shots to stem the tide and carry his team to a 2-1 series lead over the Thunder.

Derrick Rose and Dwyane Wade are amazing players, and I’d be happy to have either in late-game situations, but neither are what Nowitzki is — namely, a seven-footer who can get a clean look at the basket from anywhere on the offensive half of the court.

Add in the continued excellence of a rotating band of Mavs (last night it was Shawn Marion, Tyson Chandler, and Jason Kidd), and Dallas is back on track for their first NBA title.

Give it up already:

Oklahoma City Thunder

Kevin Durant is my boy. He is perhaps the most gifted offensive player in basketball, and by all accounts he is one of the nicest, most decent fellows in the game. And he is a few games from proving once again that old Leo Durocher axiom, that “nice guys finish last.”

When you are having as bad a shooting night as Durant was in Game 3, it’s understandable to not want to force things. But when your teammates are similarly struggling from the field (a frostbitten 1-17 from 3-point range), and you are KEVIN FREAKIN’ DURANT, you gotta keep hoisting.

One thing I think we can say with relative certainty about the Thunder right now is, they are not a very good half-court team. When Durant’s shots are falling, this fact can be masked. But when they aren’t, man, it gets ugly out there.

With Dallas back to playing the terrific defense that helped them sweep the Lakers in the conference semis, the Thunder’s lack of execution, and Durant’s inability so far to DEMAND the ball when his team needs points, OKC is not long for this postseason.

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Arron Afflalo, how do you rate on the Horry Scale?

February 11, 2011  ·  11:16AM

by Micah Hart

Give it up to TNT’s schedulers.  Two straight weeks with GWBBs on a Thursday night game — one more and people are going to start thinking we’re the WWE or something.

When I woke up this morning and heard the Nuggets had won on a last-second shot, I assumed Carmelo Anthony had the honors. Or Chauncey Billups. Or J.R. Smith. But no, the Nuggets snapped the Mavericks’ 10-game winning streak courtesy of Arron Afflalo, which may seem surprising. But given that he scored 19 of his 24 points in the fourth quarter last night, it makes sense that Denver would consider feeding the hot hand. Afflalo’s quietly become quite an impact player in Denver this season, hasn’t he?

Before we get to the breakdown, it gives me great pleasure to introduce a new addition the Horry Scale breakdown — a comment from Big Shot Bob himself, as he was nice enough to give his take on Afflalo’s game-winner.

Horry’s take: “First and foremost I have to give it up to Afflalo for having the guts to take the shot. Chauncey was covered pretty well on the play so he had to give it up, and Arron made himself available. The shot itself wasn’t that difficult, I give it like a 3 — he makes a nice move on the defender and goes left, which is the way most shooters like to go if you’re right-handed.

It’s the first game-winner of Afflalo’s career, so I give him credit for that.”

* * *

How awesome is that? We hope to get Horry’s thoughts on each GWBB from here on out. Now let’s get onto the breakdown.

Once again, the Horry scale examines a shot  in the categories of difficulty, game situation (was the team tied or behind at the time), importance (playoff game or garden-variety Clippers-Nets game), and celebration, and give it an overall grade on a scale of 1-5 Robert Horrys.

The full investigation after the jump:

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Posted in Hey man nice shot, The Horry scale / Comments (8) /