| Utah One Of Many Teams To Not Improve This Summer Authored by Dennis Silva II - August 10, 2007 - 11:55 am
Along with the draft, opening day and postseason, nothing is more anticipated for NBA loyalists than the offseason.
Fans hawk websites everywhere – famous and obscure – in search of that one pivotal move(s) that may put their club over the top.
Already in the summer of ’07, a lot has occurred.
Kevin Garnett has a new home, as does Ray Allen.
Portland and Seattle have resurfaced the ocean of relevance, and Steve Francis discovered that it’s not too shabby to go back home.
Kobe wants a trade, Reggie Miller wants a return, and no one knows what to do about Jermaine O’Neal.
Mystery, action, intrigue, drama…the past three months have held it all.
But sometimes it’s the teams that stand pat – and yet are the ones who needed vast reconstruction – that speak volumes.
Cleveland. Miami. Detroit. Utah. The Los Angeles Clippers.
These are just the primary names that have refused to get anything done following the year.
To start with, last year’s Eastern Conference champs stood on the verge of outbreak.
With LeBron James heading a gritty, if not stale, ballclub, the Spurs exposed Cleveland for what many knew – a one-man unit.
The Cavs needed shooters. They needed depth. And a couple more reliable scorers wouldn’t have hurt either.
Not only that, but the urgency in re-signing their own key free agents – wing Sasha Pavlovic and forward Anderson Varejao – has been absent.
While Eastern brothers Boston, New Jersey, New York and Toronto continue to add bits and pieces, Cleveland appears relatively assured that it can make another fantastic run with the same club.
An aging, fragile Heat club joined Cleveland in the land of nothingness.
Miami has made moves, though those respective transactions have not been motions of progress.
It inked guard Penny Hardaway this past week, hoping that fans can indulge in what may have been – many, many years ago – and distract them from the fact that little has been done to inject enthusiasm and youth into a club just two years removed from an NBA title.
Here’s to hoping Sly Stallone and Jimmy Buffet have a grand time watching Smush Parker run their beloved team.
Both the Pistons and Jazz are a few moves away from being legitimate NBA title contenders.
Detroit has frontcourt power, backcourt poise and depth.
Utah has arguably the toughest 1-2 punch in Deron Williams and Carlos Boozer.
The Jazz could have used a more stable backup at point, and with all due respect to recently acquired Ronnie Price, he’s not the answer.
The ironic thing is that second-year guard Dee Brown, who likely will not be brought back by Utah, would have been the perfect complement to his former Illinois backcourt mate.
The Jazz did get the outside shooting it coveted; albeit through first-round draft pick Morris Almond.
But needs at the wing and center positions went unattended to, and those positions are critical in a conference that is blessed with tremendous talent at both spots.
The Clippers were the most disappointing team in the league last season. A club with the talent likes of Elton Brand, Sam Cassell, and Corey Maggette should have at least secured one of the last two playoff spots after a thrilling postseason run in 2006.
Apparently, management feels one playoff appearance every 20 years is enough? And with Brand having just suffered a ruptured left Achilles tendon within the past week, what now?
As it is, the lack of depth at point guard, power forward, and wing haunted the club even during 2006.
Now, it leads the train of uncertainty for a Clippers club that was said to easily dethrone the Lakers as LA’s finest for the time being.
The same train that has marred the railroad to prominence for some of the league’s newborn successes. |
