Sunday Notes: The number one Brandon, Ray v. Redd, an early look East, what's in a name
Greetings, earthlings. It's good to be here, it's so good to be here. So, when you type "Brandon" in Google Search, the top recommended entry is the star in the above Under Armour video: Brandon Jennings. He's already rather ubiquitous, particularly for a 19 year-old who didn't play college ball and has yet to play pro ball stateside. A good fit for a team with both visibility and profitability issues, it would seem. How high can this apparent budding star take Milwaukee? Well, the Bucks made an international splash in the draft a couple years ago. That recent bit of history shows this much is equally obvious and true: for the Jennings Effect to truly take hold, it must happen on the court. Regardless, nice vid. And for the record, all of these thousands of years later, I'm still playing a hopeless game of catch-up to Alexander the Great in the Google Search for "Alex."
- Dime: Who's better: Ray Allen or Michael Redd?
Judging by the comments at Dime, Jesus walks over Mike. The perspective over there tilts nationally, but I doubt you would get much of an argument from either observant Boston or Milwaukee fans, and that's the clincher. Unfortunately, this is the same comparison Redd has dealt with for a long while now, and it's a difficult one to win in the hearts and minds of Milwaukeeans. I recall plenty of love for Ray in the stands when I reported at the Celtics/Bucks game last spring, even as the Bucks won and Allen scored just nine points on 2-11 shooting. What will it take to alter perception? Redd might be good enough to win a championship as a number three guy, and doing so for the Bucks rather than a different team would change everything in a hurry. For that to happen, he/we should hope Andrew Bogut and Brandon Jennings progress into the elite quickly, since Mike turns 30 in just over a week. Or the Bucks could go the Boston route and use an offseason to surround Redd with a pair of Hall-of-Fame types. From 24 wins to 66 and a title, in a year. And Milwaukee is working off 34 victories. Just like that. - SLAM: Early look at the East
After tying for 11th (and thus also 12th) in the East last season, and after all of the offseason changes, Lang Whitaker has the Bucks pretty much staying put in the 12-spot. That's a realistic place. Just as last season, challenging for a final playoff spot appears to be a best-case scenario. He has the Bucks ahead of the Pacers, which is sort of a big deal because if that came true it would snap Milwaukee's five-year run finishing last in the Central. Not so good: In an 11-expert panel published by the Orlando Sentinel, the Bucks finished 14th out of 15 in the conference. - SLAM: Chatting with Meeks
Scroll down just a bit to read Tzvi Twersky's interview with Jodie Meeks. - Hoops World: What's in a name?
An interesting rundown of Eastern Conference team nickname origins, put together by Joel Brigham. The birth of the "Bucks" is a good, if not somewhat typical, story. The Orlando Juice? So close, yet so far away. - Fan House: The Tip-Off Timer and '74 Bucks
Counting days until the regular season, Tim Povtak picked Milwaukee's 1974 title team as reason to celebrate that we were a mere 74 days from regular season basketball as of Friday; the first NBA regular season game is Cavaliers v. Celtics on October 27. The Bucks start three days later in the country's former capital, Philadelphia. - ESPN Milwaukee: Charlie Bell on the D-List
Charlie relays to the good people at 540 ESPN some of his experiences doing work around the state this summer. Oh, and there is some dialogue about Bell's other job. - Fox Sports: Putting some D in the NBA
First Shoals and now Rosen. Included among Charley Rosen's alphabetical list of the league's top defensive performers is just one Buck. Who? None other than current internet sensation Kurt Thomas. Also, one way or another, three players who played for Milwaukee last season made the cut: Keith Bogans, Royal Ivey, and Richard Jefferson.
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Oh, Royal...
The best thing you can say about Rosen is that his views are…interesting.
Nothing amuses me more than the myth of Royal Ivey’s defense. The dude gets in a nice stance, and he fouls a lot, so….yeah, great defender. It’s a given that a team will be worse offensively with Ivey on the court, but what’s really amazing is how he made Philly’s defense worse, too.
08/09 Sixers with Ivey: 114.5 pts/100 possessions
08/09 Sixers w/o Ivey: 106.7 pts/100 possessions
With the Bucks he would let guys blow right by him, maybe because he was always overplaying, so the fact that Chaz Rosen finds that to be a strength is just precious.
A Welcome Back
It’s about time Alexander the Good.
Look Who's Back on the Blog
Good to have you back. Here’s what you missed with the Sessions situation: nothing. Nothing has happened with Sessions this entire summer. It’s Charlie Bell all over again.
Some co-blogger huh? He takes the summer off while I chase my tail writing about Sessions. YEESH!
by Frank Madden on Aug 16, 2009 7:28 PM CDT via mobile up reply actions
Obligatory Daily Sessions News-Non News Update
Duhon: Sessions Will Make Knicks Better
Aug 16, 2009 6:35 PM EST
Chris Duhon is unbothered by the fact that the Knicks have spent a majority of summer courting free agent guards.
New York has openly coveted Jason Kidd, Andre Miller, Jason Williams, Jamaal Tinsley and Ramon Sessions.
“I’m confident with my situation, where I am, my place with the team,” Duhon told Newsday. “I understand this is a business. That’s what it all is. The only thing I can do is prepare myself to lead this team and get to our goal, which is to make the playoffs.”
Duhon is simply concerned with the team improving.
“If we get a guy like Sessions in, it’s only going to make our team better,” said Duhon.
Via Newsday
Even Duhon Wants Sessions in New York
NBA Sunday: Duhon Wants Sessions
By: Joel Brigham Last Updated: 8/16/09 10:16 AM ET | 2105 times read
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Even Duhon Wants Sessions in New York
Chris Duhon is a good dude, and last season as the starter for Mike D’Antoni in New York resulted in career numbers for the point guard. For most guys a situation like that would mean great job security and a solid payday down the road, and most guys don’t loosen their grip on a perfect situation very easily. If I were Duhon and the my team spent the entire summer wooing the likes of Jason Kidd, Jason Williams, and most recently Ramon Sessions, I’d be throwing a fit. I’d say things like, “What I’m not good enough for you?” not because I’m a jerk, but because it’s natural to hold onto posh work environments.
Here’s the thing about Duhon, though; he’s used to winning, and “posh” to him means victories, not individual accolades. Which is why he’s actually more than okay with the possibility of Sessions coming to New York.
“If we get a guy like Sessions in, it’s only going to make our team better,” Duhon recently told Kimberly Martin of Newsday. “That was my thought process throughout the whole time. If we get a guy like Jason Kidd, we’re going to get better. If we get a guy like Grant Hill, we’re going to be better. Andre Miller, we’re going to be better.”
Should New York finally land a free agent they really want—in this case, Sessions—Duhon could very likely get relegated to the bench in favor of the younger kid with much more promise and a potentially much brighter future than the 27-year-old Duhon. Even that doesn’t necessarily bug him.
“I’ve always been a team player,” he continued. “It’s never been about me as a player. It’s always been about the team. Whoever we bring here, that makes us better, gives us a chance to win, bring ’em.”
If Donnie Walsh was prepared to pay for Kidd, who only has so many good years left, he should also have no problem paying for a gifted kid like Sessions who has many, many good years left ahead of him. If your own starting point guard is endorsing the move, then why not?
re: Walsh, Kidd and Sessions
the offer made to Kidd was before the NBA announced the 09/10 salary cap AND provided the nasty memo concerning next year’s salary cap. I’ve read a few times that Walsh had to be glad Kidd didn’t accept the offer before the memo came out. Once the memo came out, that changed a lot for Walsh and the Knicks. They have to make sure they have enough money to make a max offer to Lebron next season…whether or not he takes it is another story…but they at least have to be able to make the offer. As a result, Walsh has to look at next year’s cap as pessimistically as possible. This is the reason he hasn’t offered the full MLE to Sessions…and its the reason there is a stalemate right now. If somehow Walsh can move Jeffries (or, more unlikely, Curry) for a bigger contract that expires this year, he’d probably increase the offer to Sessions.
In other news, I also read something recently that Baron Davis is in favor of adding Sessions to the Clippers….calling Sessions another scorer, another playmaker, another unselfish player.
Sessions And The Clippers:
By: Steve Kyler Last Updated: 8/17/09 8:46 AM ET
Sessions And The Clippers: The LA Clippers seem to be the front runners for Ramon Sessions this week, although that could change. It does seem that Sessions is trapped in restricted free agent hell as both the Knicks and Clippers would do a deal, however there is still a belief that Milwaukee will match a deal less than $4 million and neither teams seems ready to do a four or five year deal with Sessions over $4 million.
Bucks’ sources said last week that Sessions was an asset with considerable value both to the Bucks and around the league and unless a team made it prohibitive, the plan was to seriously consider matching his deal regardless of its dollar amount or length.
The Knicks were reportedly close to a deal roughly 10 days ago, but were haggling over ways to avoid dipping into their 2010 cap space. The Knicks have also been trying to move a contract – assumed to be Jared Jefferies according to league sources.
The Washington Wizards have more than a passing interest in Jefferies, but would want additional compensation for taking on his additional contract year. It’s believed the Wizards would want cash as well as Jefferies and the Knicks don’t seem overly interested in that deal yet. Sources in New York describe the situation this way – if they can move a contract they’d meet Sessions asking price. If they cannot, they may pass on Sessions all together.
Hello Amir Johnson and Goodbye Amir Johnson
Must have been his summer league play?
Raptors Close To Deal For Amir Johnson
Aug 17, 2009 12:03 PM EST
The Raptors are close to finalizing a deal to send Carlos Delfino and point guard Roko Ukic in a two-for-two deal with the Milwaukee Bucks involving Amir Johnson, according to sources.
The second player coming back to Toronto is unknown.
The deal is expected to be completed later on Monday or Tuesday.
Via Toronto Star
Corollary question to those Google searches:
Whose ego would be larger: Alexander the Great’s, or Brandon Jennings’s?
Granted, Alexander attempted to syncretically assume the status of God king in order to take in his vast new eastern empire. Brandon Jennings, though, appears to be about as cocky as anyone in the NBA, which is saying rather a lot….

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