FOX Sports recently ranked the top 10 players most likely to improve in 2008-09. Rodney Stuckey didn’t only make the cut, he got top honors.
Speaking of lists, my FanHouse colleague Tom Ziller is ranking the NBA’s Top 50, revealing two a day. Given the dearth of NBA news these days, you can do a lot worse than making TZ’s wit and wisdom part of your daily routine, so bookmark that link and check back often.
And speaking of FanHouse colleagues, kudos to Will Brinson, Eamonn Brennan, Jon Bois and (former colleague) Ryan Corazza for launching the new MOUTHPIECE blog.
This is only tangentially Pistons-related (Zeke makes an appearance at the 7:35 mark), but after putting it on FanHouse, I had to post it here, too. Harry Connick, Jr. and Branford Marsalis did a bang-up job during player introductions last year, but they didn’t even come close to this.
Like many of you, one of the first things I did after hearing that the Pistons drafted Walter Sharpe was hit up YouTube. There was barely anything there, but earlier this week the University of Alabama-Birmingham’s athletic department uploaded a bona fide highlight reel. Considering Sharpe played only 12 games for UAB, I’m impressed. (Hat-tip: LanierFan)
All in all, Sharpe doesn’t hold a candle to Deron Washington when it comes to pure jump-out-the-gym-ness, but it’s easy to see why the Pistons were intrigued: he’s got a hell of a wingspan and a big body that looks like it can create space.
He admits that his defense needs work and his offensive game is a work in progress, but the tools are there. If he can bring that reckless energy at the three that Jason Maxiell and Amir Johnson do at the four, I think Sharpe could surprise this year, especially considering Michael Curry is expected to place more trust in the team’s younger players than the previous regime.
… because if he were, there’s not a person alive who could say they’re cocky, arrogant, complacent, or any other negative adjective commonly affixed to this team. Witness his post-game press conference:
Not relevant, just funny. On a side note, Barkley has had a rough week, but he’s handled it like a champ. Hat-tip to Awful Announcing for the vid, of course. (Update: bummer, video has been removed)
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