[Clippers 09, 38-17] LA rebounds Vs. Roy....

[Skills]

Whoa. The face off with Maggette, you had to get that win.
And you did. So props man! I can't wait to see you face the Hawks..

EDIT: When Brand is in LA

[homicide1550]

The comments by Pop on TP was priceless... He is always angry, he is always mad at his players, but gotta give him props coz that kind of coaching has given them Championships.

Great win by the way!

[Miniseys]

Nice win. Every player is doing what he has to do. Keep it up.

[Chaser7]

Season Standings, and Around the League News Coming up later today!

[Lamrock]

Ouch, tough loss. Still, you were in Utah, and the Jazz are a good team.

Good luck in your next game. Bring your defense next time.

[Miniseys]

Tough loss. Beat them the next game!!

[L10]

OMG! Lloyd 44 points!
this rookie is still improving man!
yeah tough loss but at least your team is getting better and better

[homicide1550]

Whoah! What a great showdown between Lloyd And Deron.. 85 points between them.. Your rookie is definitely playing great...

[Chaser7]

NOVEMBER HEADLINES '08

FAST STARTS

- The Denver Nuggets have gotten off to one of their best starts in their franchise history. With the addition of Kevin Martin, Denver now boasts one of most dangerous offensive-minded lineups. Allen Iverson is having as good of year as ever scoring 29.4 point per game (2nd in the league) and dishing out 8.5 assists, while shifting to point guard. Carmelo Anthony is continuing to grow as a player, averaging 27.6 points (T-5th in the league), 5.2 rebounds, and 4.1 assists. Although K-Mart V2 is only averaging 11.7 points, this can attributed to the limited amount of shots he is taking. The swingman is shooting 60% from the field and 42.4% from 3-point range, but there just aren't enough shots with Melo and A.I. in the lineup.

The Nuggets have raced out to a 13-2 record with their only losses coming to the 10-5 New Jersey Nets and Martin's former team, the Sacramento Kings. Some impressive results include their road win over the Phoenix Suns, Handing the Memphis Grizzlies 3 of their 5 losses, and starting the season 6-0. Critics have been silenced and backed off their claims of the Nuggets' alleged "lack of chemistry" and now many are jumping onto the Nuggets bandwagon. However, this team hasn't faced many challenges besides the Suns and Grizzlies, so their record may be due to a relative soft schedule. We'll see how they do the rest of the year.
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- Probably the hottest team in the league right now. The Houston Rockets right are on a 12-game winning streak and haven't lost since their 92-64 thrashing at the hands of the Chicago Bulls on November 6th. Tracy McGrady held a player's only meeting and since then they have been on a tear. T-Mac is averaging 23.8 points, 3.7 rebounds, and 6.6 assists, but the real spark has been 8th year center, Yao Ming. Yao is averaging a career high 27.6 points (T-5th in the league), while grabbing 10.4 rebounds (T-1st in league), handing out 4.1 assists, and still blocking 1.9 shots per game. McGrady has said that "Yao is hands down the best player on this team" and that he expects Yao to "carry the team" whenever needed.

Still, if the team can't get by the 1st round, the blame will mainly placed on the Rockets' swingman. After falling to the Phoenix Suns 4-1 last season, McGrady once again was heavily critized despite his team being clearly overmatched. Come playoffs this season, there will be no excuses, as Houston seems to be one of the top teams in the league right now. Whether this can last is another question, but for now McGrady is all smiles.
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- Elton Brand sure is fitting in. With the East's 3rd best record (10-6), the Atlanta Hawks are building off last season's success. Gone are Josh Smith and Marvin Williams, but Brand is proving to be more of commodity for the once-struggling franchise than those two ever were. He is averaging a career best and tied for 5th in the league, 27.6 points per game, and 10.4 rebounds per game (T-1st in league). Meanwhile, Joe Johnson is averaging 26.7 points, 3.1 rebounds and a team-high 8.8 assists. The duo has clicked well, and sources say they have become best friends on the team.

The team's key weakness is its lack of depth. Al Horford and Josh Childress are nice complimentary role players, but there isn't much else besides them. Other issues include their on-going point guard dilemma. For now, Speedy Claxton will keep his starting position, but don't be surprised if the Hawks manage to work out a trade or something. Last year, Atlanta was the #2 seed, and advanced to the conference semi-finals before being upset by the #4 Toronto Raptors. Is Brand going to help them defend the post better? Yes. Will he help provide some much needed tough, low-post offense? Yes. Will he make the Hawks a Championship team? No- but don't tell that to the Hawks. If they can somehow acquire a better point guard and get more depth then maybe they just might be.
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PAU GASOL'S BENCHING

- Already one month into the 2008-2009 NBA season, Pau Gasol hasn't been granted his trade request- nor has he even cracked the starting lineup. Despite starting the season 12-5, Gasol has been very public with his displeasure with his role. He has been reduced to coming off the bench, playing only 22.6 minutes a game. He has been very productive in those minutes, scoring 16.6 points, and grabbing 6.1 rebounds. Meanwhile, his replacement, Hakim Warrick is only averaging 4.1 points and 3.4 rebounds. Will Memphis trade him? Will he eventually start? Only time will tell.

BEN GORDON- STILL NOT SIGNED

- Despite averaging 24.4 points, and 5.0 assists the previous season, Ben Gordon remains unsigned. The former #3 draft pick, is asking for a $40.81 million deal for 5 years, but so far the Chicago Bulls hasn't matched it. It will be interesting to see who folds first, be it John Paxson or Gordon. Chicago is doing much better than last year, having started out 9-6 (33-49 last year), so maybe this was addition by subtraction. Still you have to believe that the former UCONN star could have some value somewhere, so hopefully the young guard will be signed soon.

SEASON STANDINGS

PLAYER AWARDS

Western Conference Rookie of the Month: Ruslan Kolesnikov
Eastern Conference Rookie of the Month: Rik MacKenna

Western Conference Player of the Month: Yao Ming
Eastern Conference Player of the Month: Ray Allen

MVP Candidates

[Clutch]

solid freakin' writeups man!

as well as they're doing, i just don't like DEN; i never liked AI leaving Philly and probably never will; JJ/Brand combo for ATL however, I like that a lot! Gasol off bench to Warrick? what's really goin' on... and of course, gotta love what Rockets are doing

too bad you've no room to snag Gordon; but hte rook seems to be soaring - are Lloyd's game ratings listed somewhere?

[jonthefon]

Those screenshots are absolutely gorgeous. Live must be look amazing on next-gen. T-Mac looks a bit...old in that one against Wade though.

You've started off pretty well too: just pipping Dallas for the number eight spot.

[homicide1550]

Great November Recap Dude! You really know how to write.. Nuggets are stacked, they have three potent scorers. They need not worry if one of the big three goes down with an injury..

[Andrew]

Fantastic presentation! The shot of Pau Gasol on the bench accompanying his article is a nice touch, and a nice story to fit the odd CPU logic being used there.

[Martti.]

Staggering article!

That picture with Gasol on the bench is so real. Not like on the Pc verison, where it looks like players have a stick up their ... .

The Next Gen Dynasty mode looks great and focuses on realism.. A problem the Bulls will probably have - resigning Gordon.

Good luck! Your Rookie has been tearing it up.

By the way, who was Kevin Martin traded for? Kenyon Martin?

[Skills]

That's a sick recap dog!
Kevin Martin on Denver?!?!
Damn. they should be tough now.

[Miniseys]

Nice recap!

[Andrew]

The Next Gen Dynasty mode looks great and focuses on realism.. A problem the Bulls will probably have - resigning Gordon.

Mind you, in real life if the relationship between Gordon and the Bulls breaks down completely he'd sign a qualifying offer or be signed and traded, so Dynasty Mode still lacks that depth.

[L10]

Wonderful recap!!
please post your players stats!

[Chaser7]

solid freakin' writeups man!

as well as they're doing, i just don't like DEN; i never liked AI leaving Philly and probably never will; JJ/Brand combo for ATL however, I like that a lot! Gasol off bench to Warrick? what's really goin' on... and of course, gotta love what Rockets are doing

too bad you've no room to snag Gordon; but hte rook seems to be soaring - are Lloyd's game ratings listed somewhere?

Thanks, and I'd figured you would like how your Rockets are #1 in the league right now. They're somewhat mirroring the current Rockets since they're on a 12-game win streak (Rockets bout to win #19 as we speak). As for Lloyd's ratings, haven't got them posted yet. I can if you'd like though .

Those screenshots are absolutely gorgeous. Live must be look amazing on next-gen. T-Mac looks a bit...old in that one against Wade though.

You've started off pretty well too: just pipping Dallas for the number eight spot.

Thanks for checking back in! The graphics are pretty good, but they're still many frustrating things about game behind the graphics. I try to cover most of it in this story though

Great November Recap Dude! You really know how to write.. Nuggets are stacked, they have three potent scorers. They need not worry if one of the big three goes down with an injury..

Yup, when I first checked out the lineups before the season, I was like WTF? K-Mart V2 on the Nugs! Damn!

Fantastic presentation! The shot of Pau Gasol on the bench accompanying his article is a nice touch, and a nice story to fit the odd CPU logic being used there.

Thanks Andrew, glad to see you enjoyed it.

Staggering article!

That picture with Gasol on the bench is so real. Not like on the Pc verison, where it looks like players have a stick up their ... .

The Next Gen Dynasty mode looks great and focuses on realism.. A problem the Bulls will probably have - resigning Gordon.

Good luck! Your Rookie has been tearing it up.

By the way, who was Kevin Martin traded for? Kenyon Martin?

Thanks man; actually he wasn't traded though. Live didn't put Martin's extension (or Devin Harris' either, who signed with Philly) so Denver signed him as a free agent. I didn't really follow the offseason to closely for the other teams (a huge mistake I realize), but I'm guessing he signed for just the mid-level exception since Denver is way over the cap. A steal on their part for sure.

That's a sick recap dog!
Kevin Martin on Denver?!?!
Damn. they should be tough now.

Nice recap!

Thanks Guys;

Wonderful recap!!
please post your players stats!

Thanks- and good idea. I'll post them within the next few updates..

New Behind the Scenes up... right now!

[Chaser7]

November, 2008:

Jim Fayer sat down in his desk and pulled out his blackberry out of his pocket. It has just vibrated after all. He flipped it on to see one "Urgent" email from Sterling. It had been an exhausting, but rewarding month. The team had struggled initially, but really got it together over the last couple weeks. Currently the team was 9-7, good for 8th in the Western Conference. Finally, Fayer sorted through his other message, before opening Sterling's. Fayer's stomach tightened as he read the message.



Fayer could not understand how the owner could possibly blame his lack of effort for the team's early struggle. He had worked his ass off all summer, constantly on the phone with other GM's and going over contract details and such. He had had to scout players and follow the rest of the league. True, during November he hadn't been working quite as hard, but that's because he didn't want to keep shuffling the roster up. He had thought about possibly trading away either Brevin Knight of Dan Dickau, but hadn't really had any serious discussions with any other teams. Still, either way, Fayer believed you could point the finger at at least 10 other people besides him for the team's 1-4 start. What about Coach Dunleavy for not properly implementing the new players? What about Josh Smith and his inconsistent productivity? Monta still wasn't the same player as he was the year before, even he had improved since the preseason. He signed again. "Nothing is ever my fault" a mantra that his mom always believed that he lived by. Jim was beginning to think that she was right though. Maybe it was time for him to accept more responsibility.

"Uh... Mr. Fayer? Donald wants to see," Jane, his secretary said through the intercom.
"Thanks Jane," Fayer replied as he collected his phone, and some papers before getting up.

Jim walked down the hallway and opened both of Sterling's 2 doors and stepped into the massive room. Sterling was hitting golf balls into an office putting green that he had installed.

"Christ Donald, I told you I'm not good at putting.. I'm not going to bed with you for the last time" Jim joked.
"Jim......" Sterling said firmly.
"Yeah boss," Jim said in a more serious tone.
"Do you realize how much money I'm spending this year?"
"Yeah..." Jim as he began to grimace.
"70.52 million dollars Jim! 70.52!"
Jim didn't say anything, and just stared off into the distance.
"I've never spent this much, Never! You'd think we'd be better than 9-7."
"I did too, what do you think I'm happy with how we're doing?"
"Look, I know I've been a bit easy on since you got here, you're a likeable person, Jim."
"Uh.. Thanks."
"But that doesn't mean I'll keep you here even if we struggle. Remember I did fire Baylor and he had worked here a helluva longer time than you have."
"Right boss, I'll try harder."
"You better, I can't say whether Baylor's ideas would have been better, but so far your moves haven't produced optimal results."
"Oh yeah- What would have Baylor done?"
"Well for one, I learned from Ben Weaver, you know Baylor's old kiss-up, that Elgin only began shopping Brand because he overheard that you were."
"Do you remember the trade he agreed to?"
"Yeah, I know Kenyon Martin plus a 1st rounder. He panicked, I fired him."
"Ok..you're losing me. What's your point?"
"Just say hypothetically I had never hired you. Elgin would have kept Brand, and drafted Derrick Ferguson. His lineup would have been Kaman-Brand-Ferguson-Mobley-Livingston. Ferguson is averaging like 20 points this year, no?"
"Yeah... but so is Dylan! Plus you really don't think what I have is working? We're winning now!"
"We better continue winning then! I'm not say Baylor is better or that his moves would have been better, but I'm little worried with your decisions..."
"Its out of my control right now. I've been concentrating on the draft right now..."
"Look- its ok, I'm not going to fire you. You haven't been Jerry West, but you certainly aren't Isiah."
"Thanks?"
"I'm just telling you that we all have got to work harder. The team, the fans, the city needs us to. Its time to put Clipper basketball back on the map!"
"Ok well I'll try.."
"Good get back to work then," Sterling said as Fayer walked out of the office and closed the door.

_______________________________

[Skills]

Nice job using the PDA email.
Damn though. That Sterling dude sure is strict.
You almost have more wins than the Heat, and it's only the first month!

[Miniseys]

Great behind the scenes. The owner should give it some time, it's allways difficult when you add new players. Keep it up!

[Andrew]

Quite realistic, given Sterling's comments about Mike Dunleavy earlier this season. Keep up the good work.

[Chaser7]

[Andrew]

Lloyd looks to be quite a player. 33, 6 and 5 in just 21 minutes is a great effort.