Empty the Bench

– We have a feeling that deep down, Detroit Pistons HC Flip Saunders would rather not play promising 21-year-old forward Amir Johnson much just yet, but Pistons’ brass has pretty much dictated that he will get relevant minutes this season, and soon. An ankle injury and sore Achilles tendon have slowed his development, but according to Tayshaun Prince Johnson looks to be near full strength, just in time for the team’s West Coast road trip next week. “Today was probably the first day you really couldn’t tell he was hurt or nothing,” Prince said. “In the other practices, you could tell he was hurt, limping up and down but trying to practice.”

At this point Johnson is still best known as a card-carrying member of The Great NBA Hype Machine, but we’re believers and would love to see him log a minimum of 10 – 12 minutes/per off the bench. He’s the exact kind of energetic, athletic leaper this team needs to supplement the starters, and if he can catch on and follow the lead of fellow big-man backup Jason Maxiell, they could both really cause problems for opposing teams. Maxiell, by the way, is looking good early: through three games, the third-year forward has averaged almost 24 minutes/per, and is putting up just about 10 points, 5 boards, 2.3 blocks, and 58% FG. Try and catch this guy when Detroit’s on national TV or on the League Pass; when he gets the ball around the rim, Maxiell gets nasty.

- Kevin Garnett is the Eastern Conference’s front-runner to lead in rebounding, but there’s a guy out there who could push for second that might surprise you: Wizards’ center Brendan Haywood. In three games, Haywood is averaging a whopping 13.7/per, which is good for third overall and puts him ahead of the likes of Dwight Howard and Emeka Okafor. With Etan Thomas out indefinitely after undergoing heart surgery, Haywood is one of the only viable options at center for the Wiz, and has responded to a career-high, per-game minutes average (just over 31) by averaging a double-double in the early going. The Wizards are going to miss a lot of shots, and as long as Haywood stays healthy and out of foul trouble, there’s no reason to think he won’t maintain that double-double all season.

- Early in his second professional season, Golden State Warriors G/F Kelenna Azubuike has made a strong impression on Nellie and benefitted from Stephen Jackson’s absence (suspension), averaging nearly 17 points, 4 boards, 1 steal, and 1 three-pointer in over 32 minutes of action a night. It looks like he’s dealing with a nagging ankle injury though, and could be in for a semi-significant downtick in playing time once SJax returns. The undrafted free agent from Kentucky perfectly fits the mold of this Warriors team and has quickly helped erase the sting of dealing Jason Richardson. Whether he can maintain his minutes and production remains to be seen, but we’re pulling for this kid and think he could end up being this year’s version of Matt Barnes (who’s really struggling in the early going).

- So, um, Mike Dunleavy: is he for real, or just hopped up on some kind of super drug that’s helped elevate him from underachieving afterthought to legitimate starting forward? The third-overall pick in ’02, the 6-9 swingman is off to an absolutely torrid start to the season with the Pacers, averaging career highs in points (20.5), boards (8.8), FG % (47.7), and minutes (38:30). I’ve never been a big fan and am almost positive he’ll slow down, but am more than happy to give him credit for playing a big role in his team’s positive showing in the first few games.

- Any skepticism about Utah Jazz PG Deron Williams and his ability to step up and make this team a serious contender in the West should be laughed off and forgotten. At the moment he’s putting up 9.8 assists/per (good for third in the NBA) to go with 22.6 points, 1 steal, 2 three-pointers, and an astounding 52% FG. This includes his 13-17, 30 points, and 11 assists game earlier this week against the Warriors. The third-overall pick three years ago has established himself as one of the league’s very-best pointmen, and it’s going to stay that way for at least another decade. The Jazz will be competing with Allen Iverson’s Nuggets for the honor of winning the Northwest Division.

- We’re not really fans–at all–but Spurs’ G/F Manu Ginobli is off to a hot start to his 07/08 campaign, one that’s seen him rise to third in Yahoo!’s overall fantasy basketball rankings. He’s currently 14th overall in total points scored despite playing about the same number of minutes he always has (right around 28 or 29/per), and has been especially active on defense, averaging 2.6 steals and almost 1 block a night so far.

- Favorite box score so far this season: Josh Smith on November 6 against the New Jersey Nets: 18 points, 7 rebounds, 5 steals, 4 blocks, 6 assists, 2 three-pointers. Sick.

- This is a topic that probably deserves a full column, and many have touched on it already, but it’s more obvious than ever this year that the NBA fails miserably at marketing its total package. It is and always has been a league that strictly focuses on promoting its marquee individual players, but perhaps it’s time to rethink that philosophy and take a different approach. Casual fans of teams that have been in the cellar for some time, but are coming around and have rosters filled with all kinds of young talent–the Hawks, Bucks, Bobcats, and Timberwolves come to mind–just aren’t showing up for the games, as any dedicated NBA League Pass watchers can attest to. And when these teams come to town, most people seem indifferent and write off a matchup with the Hawks or Bucks as a snoozer, another bad NBA team, because they don’t know any better.

The fact is that the Hawks are already competing, still improving, and field one of the league’s most athletic rosters top to bottom. Josh Smith is a fun player to watch (on most nights). So are Marvin Williams, Al Horford, and Joe Johnson. Emeka Okafor, Gerald Wallace, and Raymond Felton are worth the low ticket price in Charlotte. And though the T’Wolves are now unfortunately known as “the post-KG Timberwolves,” Al Jefferson, Corey Brewer, Randy Foye, Craig Smith… these are all young, up-and-coming players that basketball fans should be excited about. Why do fans of the NFL show up in droves, and sell out the stadium, to see their bad team almost definitely lose?

I want to see the NBA start marketing teams, not players. Those new ESPN commercials for the NBA are all fine and dandy and slickly done, but it’s just more of the same at the end of the day. Josh Smith, alone, might be a hard sell, but how about selling the Hawks as a team that enlists seven high first-round picks that can run any team out of the gym? Or the Bucks as an offense-first team that includes one of the league’s most elite scorers you’ve never heard of (Michael Redd) and a stable of talented big men on their way up (Bogut, Jianlian, Villanueva, etc)?

It’s not as hard as it seems, and judging by league attendance and the all-time low ratings for last season’s NBA Finals, one which the league surely was banking on Lebron’s celebrity to carry, perhaps it’s worth a shot. We all know about the Lebrons and McGradys and Garnetts of the world–it’s time to let everyone know about the Raptors, Trail Blazers, and Bucks, too. I love the NBA, and it’s painful to watch it sell itself short.

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