It’s not so much the numbers. Even though he was averaging a career- high 21.8 points on better than 50 percent shooting through early January, what really makes Richard “Rip” Hamilton a key piston in the Pistons’ drive for a third-straight NBA Finals appearance is how he goes about compiling those figures. His relentless running and picture perfect jumper makes him Detroit’s most consistent midrange and perimeter threat.
"He's poetry in motion. He moves more without the ball then anybody in this league since Reggie Miller." – New Orleans Hornets coach Byron Scott on Pistons shooting guard Richard Hamilton
SLAM: You’re having the best season of your career statistically. What did you work on over the summer?
RIP: I do a lot of conditioning in the offseason. I don’t really take any time off. A lot of guys in the summertime say, “Oh, I can finally eat whatever I want to eat and relax.” I hire a chef in the summertime and work on my weaknesses. I focus on a lot of specific parts of my game— my handle, my midrange game, my three-point shot, and my post-up.
SLAM: People always talk about your conditioning. In the NBA, is that more important than speed?
RIP: I think conditioning is very important. If you are in great shape you separate yourself from a lot of people that might be quicker or more athletic because they will wear out. I get myself in such good condition that when it comes to the game, the game is easy for me. If you take care of your body and think of your body as an investment it will come through for you. I treat my body just like a car. If you put in great fuel and take care of it, good things are going to happen. I eat all the right foods and things like that
SLAM: Do you consider yourself fast, or is it more about just being able to keep going when everyone else is wearing down?
RIP: I consider myself fast, and I consider myself able to keep going. I’m a lot faster than a whole lot of people in the League, but that speed gets better and better as the game goes on. Sometimes guys start off fast, but then they wear down. I always think that when I’m moving fast, I’m able to maintain that same high level throughout the whole game.
SLAM: You mentioned working on your midrange game. When did you realize that could be your bread and butter?
RIP: When I was in the 11th grade I went to ABCD Camp and it seemed like everybody there could dunk and everybody there could shoot threes. I looked at everybody and I couldn’t understand why everybody there couldn’t go to the NBA. So I had to figure out a way to do something different than they were doing, and for me that became working on my medium-range game.
SLAM: How did playing in college help you develop your game?
RIP: Oh, a lot. I wouldn’t be the player I am today if I hadn’t played in college. When I went to Connecticut, Coach Calhoun showed me how to use my teammates. He showed me how to use my screens. I mean, I never knew how to use a screen until I went to Connecticut. That’s why I always tell people, if you’re a guard, you should go to Connecticut.
SLAM: I know you were a Bulls fan growing up. Were you picking up things from watching Jordan back then, too?
RIP: Yeah. I was always a student of the game, and my favorite players were Michael Jordan and Magic Johnson. I never grew to be 6-9 and I never could jump as high as MJ, so I just studied the way they attacked the game, how they won at every level. I tried to take the one-two dribble pull-up from MJ.
SLAM: You have a little Reggie Miller in there, too.
RIP: Yeah, I watched him, too. I watched Reggie so much, him and Allen Iverson. I love the way Allen attacked on the break, and I always wondered how he was able to get to the basket and come off screens and use his teammates. Because, you know, he isn’t a heavy guy, either. I just loved his heart for the game. The same thing with Reggie—the way he would come off screens, the way he would get fouls, the way he was able to get his shot off regardless of who was on him. I studied those guys a lot.
9.27.2009
J.J. Redick
1.He is the NCAA’s career leader in free throw percentage at 92.1%.
2.He’s not perfect – Redick wasn’t always so committed to extraordinary conditioning. He once was more committed to his social life. “I think a lot of college students, when they go through those first two years, they’re trying to figure out who they are and who they’re going to be, and I struggled with that for a while.”
Raised in what he calls “a conservative family,” he says he got to college and saw things he’d never seen. He did not avert his eyes. “Maybe if you’ve never partied before and you go to a party on Saturday night and have fun – in your eyes – well there’s another party on Sunday night. Should I go to that, too? You just kind of get caught up in what everybody else is doing.”
Eventually Redick figured everything out for himself. “It was kind of like, Man what are you doing? We’ve got a game tomorrow,” says forward Lee Melchionni “it’s sort of hard being in that place, but I needed to say that for the good of our team.”
“At some point, you wake up one day and think, ‘I’m not really headed down the road I want to head down.’ And I had that day. In mid-May 2004 he went to see Krzyzewski and spoke with him about redirecting his life. Ten months later, Redick was ACC Player of the Year.
3.Conditioning - “I was impressed with his physical conditioning,” says Texas coach Rick Barnes, whose team allowed Redick a career-high 41 points. “He’s like a mountain stream of running water. It goes up against one rock and turns another way – it never stops flowing.”
With help from assistant coach Chris Collins, Redick studied players such as Reggie Miller and Richard Hamilton, guys known for running defenders through an armada of screens. “Those guys never wear down as the game goes on,” Collins says. Redick averaged 36.8 minutes per game over the past two seasons.
2.He’s not perfect – Redick wasn’t always so committed to extraordinary conditioning. He once was more committed to his social life. “I think a lot of college students, when they go through those first two years, they’re trying to figure out who they are and who they’re going to be, and I struggled with that for a while.”
Raised in what he calls “a conservative family,” he says he got to college and saw things he’d never seen. He did not avert his eyes. “Maybe if you’ve never partied before and you go to a party on Saturday night and have fun – in your eyes – well there’s another party on Sunday night. Should I go to that, too? You just kind of get caught up in what everybody else is doing.”
Eventually Redick figured everything out for himself. “It was kind of like, Man what are you doing? We’ve got a game tomorrow,” says forward Lee Melchionni “it’s sort of hard being in that place, but I needed to say that for the good of our team.”
“At some point, you wake up one day and think, ‘I’m not really headed down the road I want to head down.’ And I had that day. In mid-May 2004 he went to see Krzyzewski and spoke with him about redirecting his life. Ten months later, Redick was ACC Player of the Year.
3.Conditioning - “I was impressed with his physical conditioning,” says Texas coach Rick Barnes, whose team allowed Redick a career-high 41 points. “He’s like a mountain stream of running water. It goes up against one rock and turns another way – it never stops flowing.”
With help from assistant coach Chris Collins, Redick studied players such as Reggie Miller and Richard Hamilton, guys known for running defenders through an armada of screens. “Those guys never wear down as the game goes on,” Collins says. Redick averaged 36.8 minutes per game over the past two seasons.
Chris Paul - Competitive
“He’s a great kid. He’s lovable,” Scott says. “But when the whistle blows, he wants to kill you. He’s a lot like Isiah. When the game starts he wants to beat you as bad as he can.”
History says the odds are stacked against him, yet Paul expects nothing less than success from himself. But what does the rest of the world expect?
“I’m not sure,” Paul says. “I always think some people think you can do it, and some think you can’t. But you need both of them. You need people who are gonna support you, and then you need people who make you want to go out and prove something.”
History says the odds are stacked against him, yet Paul expects nothing less than success from himself. But what does the rest of the world expect?
“I’m not sure,” Paul says. “I always think some people think you can do it, and some think you can’t. But you need both of them. You need people who are gonna support you, and then you need people who make you want to go out and prove something.”
LEBRON JAMES - CLUTCH?
Charles Barkley does not want to hear any more excuses when it comes to LeBron James and his lack of game-winning shots and a perceived deficiency in clutch play, especially during the fourth quarter of games.
James is only 21, but Barkley said three years in the NBA is enough seasoning to step up his game and become more of a threat during prime time.
"LeBron's not a rookie anymore," said Barkley, one of the 50 greatest NBA players of all time and an analyst for TNT. "He's got to have an imprint on the game in the last minute, by making a big rebound, getting a stop, taking a big shot, any way he can get it done.
"They shouldn't lose five or six games in a row unless they're playing the Spurs or the Pistons during that span. He shouldn't let that happen."
The Cavs have certainly had their fair share of losing streaks this season, and it isn't fair to put all the blame on one player just like it isn't fair to give one player all the credit.
Questions have surfaced about some of James' decisions late in games and his inability to make winning shots in the final seconds.
The ball of criticism began to roll in January when James missed a potential winning shot against the Los Angeles Lakers and then passed up open shots against the Denver Nuggets and Portland Trail Blazers.
Barkley jumped on James' play following the Cavs' loss to the Washington Wizards. In the loss, James was 0-for-8 from the field in the second half and 4-of-12 from the free-throw line, including four straight misses from the line in the final minutes.
"LeBron's got to be more selfish," Barkley said. "His team is going to expect him to finish these games. He can't have three or five points in the second half. He's got to decide and say to himself that 'we're not going to lose tonight.' He's got to find away where the outcome of the game is in his hands. If he wants to be great, he's got to make it happen."
James is only 21, but Barkley said three years in the NBA is enough seasoning to step up his game and become more of a threat during prime time.
"LeBron's not a rookie anymore," said Barkley, one of the 50 greatest NBA players of all time and an analyst for TNT. "He's got to have an imprint on the game in the last minute, by making a big rebound, getting a stop, taking a big shot, any way he can get it done.
"They shouldn't lose five or six games in a row unless they're playing the Spurs or the Pistons during that span. He shouldn't let that happen."
The Cavs have certainly had their fair share of losing streaks this season, and it isn't fair to put all the blame on one player just like it isn't fair to give one player all the credit.
Questions have surfaced about some of James' decisions late in games and his inability to make winning shots in the final seconds.
The ball of criticism began to roll in January when James missed a potential winning shot against the Los Angeles Lakers and then passed up open shots against the Denver Nuggets and Portland Trail Blazers.
Barkley jumped on James' play following the Cavs' loss to the Washington Wizards. In the loss, James was 0-for-8 from the field in the second half and 4-of-12 from the free-throw line, including four straight misses from the line in the final minutes.
"LeBron's got to be more selfish," Barkley said. "His team is going to expect him to finish these games. He can't have three or five points in the second half. He's got to decide and say to himself that 'we're not going to lose tonight.' He's got to find away where the outcome of the game is in his hands. If he wants to be great, he's got to make it happen."
NFL QUATERBACKS
QUESTION AND ANSWER SESSION WITH THE TOP QUARTERBACKS IN THE NFL
PETER KING: If you're a general manager scouting passers, what is the one trait that today's NFL quarterback has to have?
BEN ROETHLISBERGER: Toughness. I don't think toughness is when a quarterback says, "I'm going to run somebody over." Toughness is playing the worst game of your life but not backing down. You don't want to sit on the sideline. You want to stay in there and win. You know, down 21 points and the defense is getting through in every single way, and you throw three interceptions. Staying in that game, keeping your head up, trying to drive your team down the field when everything's going wrong—that's the kind of toughness I want in my quarterback.
PETER KING: Is there ever a feeling of fear inside you?
CARSON PALMER: Fear of failure always drives me. I don't want to let my guys down. After we lose and I see my linemen, it's like I let them down. That's the feeling a quarterback has to have.
BEN ROETHLISBERGER: Even if I do ever feel anything like that, and I'm not saying I ever feel scared or nervous, but I'll never show it. We can't. Not at our position. Everyone's looking at us.
PETER KING: Let me put it this way—think back to big moments or big games. How does your stomach feel?
AARON RODGERS: When I was a point guard, I wanted the ball in the last two minutes. When I was a pitcher, I wanted the ball in the last inning. That's why in the big moments in games, I'm not tight. Those moments are why you play.
BEN ROETHLISBERGER: I want the ball. Our defense does some amazing things, but I want to have the ball, and that's the way I've always been playing sports.
PETER KING: Like on the last drive of the Super Bowl?
BEN ROETHLISBERGER: On that drive I ran out and thought, This is going to be really hard. Because we had kind of struggled late in that game. Not saying I definitely couldn't do it. I just knew it would be tough. When I got in the huddle, I told the guys, "I don't have any speech. Just think of all the extra work we put in, all the extra film study we did together. It'll all be for nothing if we don't do this." Then we get a holding call on the first play, and it's going bad. But here's the thing about playing quarterback in this league: Even if you don't feel confident, you have to show you feel it, so when your teammates are looking at you, they believe it.
MATT RYAN: You don't want to let the guys down. As for nerves, I always find myself more nervous before the game, before the kickoff, before the first snap. Then when you're in it and you take a couple of hits, you get into the flow of the game. Honestly, when the game's on the line, I feel calmer than on the first series because I'm into the game. I'm not thinking about how big the moment is.
PETER KING: If you're a general manager scouting passers, what is the one trait that today's NFL quarterback has to have?
BEN ROETHLISBERGER: Toughness. I don't think toughness is when a quarterback says, "I'm going to run somebody over." Toughness is playing the worst game of your life but not backing down. You don't want to sit on the sideline. You want to stay in there and win. You know, down 21 points and the defense is getting through in every single way, and you throw three interceptions. Staying in that game, keeping your head up, trying to drive your team down the field when everything's going wrong—that's the kind of toughness I want in my quarterback.
PETER KING: Is there ever a feeling of fear inside you?
CARSON PALMER: Fear of failure always drives me. I don't want to let my guys down. After we lose and I see my linemen, it's like I let them down. That's the feeling a quarterback has to have.
BEN ROETHLISBERGER: Even if I do ever feel anything like that, and I'm not saying I ever feel scared or nervous, but I'll never show it. We can't. Not at our position. Everyone's looking at us.
PETER KING: Let me put it this way—think back to big moments or big games. How does your stomach feel?
AARON RODGERS: When I was a point guard, I wanted the ball in the last two minutes. When I was a pitcher, I wanted the ball in the last inning. That's why in the big moments in games, I'm not tight. Those moments are why you play.
BEN ROETHLISBERGER: I want the ball. Our defense does some amazing things, but I want to have the ball, and that's the way I've always been playing sports.
PETER KING: Like on the last drive of the Super Bowl?
BEN ROETHLISBERGER: On that drive I ran out and thought, This is going to be really hard. Because we had kind of struggled late in that game. Not saying I definitely couldn't do it. I just knew it would be tough. When I got in the huddle, I told the guys, "I don't have any speech. Just think of all the extra work we put in, all the extra film study we did together. It'll all be for nothing if we don't do this." Then we get a holding call on the first play, and it's going bad. But here's the thing about playing quarterback in this league: Even if you don't feel confident, you have to show you feel it, so when your teammates are looking at you, they believe it.
MATT RYAN: You don't want to let the guys down. As for nerves, I always find myself more nervous before the game, before the kickoff, before the first snap. Then when you're in it and you take a couple of hits, you get into the flow of the game. Honestly, when the game's on the line, I feel calmer than on the first series because I'm into the game. I'm not thinking about how big the moment is.
9.26.2009
TONY PARKER
Parker's improved jumper could score him the Finals MVP award.
Two years ago, the San Antonio Spurs won an NBA title. But Tony Parker wasn't necessarily happy.
Then 23 years old, the point guard had been a bit player in the deciding seventh game, as Parker's inability to connect from outside against the Pistons' mighty defense limited him to a 3-for-11, eight-point performance. The Spurs periodically sat Parker and used a combo of Brent Barry and Manu Ginobili to play the point in that series, and after Game 7, writers debated whether the Spurs would even bring Parker back the next year.
The 2007 Finals couldn't be more different. The French flash is likely to be named series MVP if the Spurs close things out in Thursday's Game 4, after Parker again made a couple of big shots down the stretch to win Game 3 -- including a rare 3-pointer with a minute left to hold the Cavs at bay.
That's no accident. It's the culmination of a two-year process that saw him completely rebuild his jump shot and then torment Cleveland with the new weapon in this year's Finals.
Right after the 2005 Finals, Parker made the decision that he wanted to improve. He didn't care that he was a world champion point guard making near-max money and dating a hugely popular TV star; he was frustrated that his shaky jump shot was having such a negative impact on his game.
Enter Chip Engelland. Hired that offseason as a shooting coach by the Spurs after he'd previously plied his trade in Denver, Engelland helped rebuild Parker's jump shot piece by piece. The slingshot-like set shot that Parker entered the league with -- now gone forever -- was replaced by a smoother jumper that has repeatedly made the Cavaliers pay for going under the screen to take away his driving lanes.
For Parker, it was the right coach at the right time.
"Timing is important," Engelland said, "because when you play in the NBA, you always think you're just going to keep getting better. [But] the NBA is hard, and then you plateau, and that timing is good [for fixing a shot]."
And there was definitely some fixing to do.
"In the first few years [of Parker's career], whenever he'd shoot it, I just figured it was going to be a turnover, same as a turnover -- there's no way that's going in," Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said. "But in the last year and a half when he shoots it, I actually think it's going to go in, so he's changed me quite a bit. But that's due to his work and Chip Engelland, who's really worked hard on him."
"Tony, even though he won a championship that year, wanted to get better," Engelland said. "That's where I give him a ton of credit. His summer time, he wanted to work at something he's not good at. That's uncomfortable."
They had to start from the bottom up, and that required Engelland to establish trust with Parker before he could start working on his jumper. Former Spurs GM and current Cavs GM Danny Ferry said Engelland's patience with players is one of his greatest assets -- that he'd focus on developing the relationship so that players would trust his advice on fixing the shot.
"We got to know each other first," Engelland said. "We did a lot of talking with him, where he wanted to go. Tony wants to be great. So [I said] what it takes -- he has to have a consistent jump shot and his free throw has to improve.
"I think the most important thing, and this is true for every player, their shot is personal. Whether it's a 12-year-old girl or an [NBA player], it's their own shot. It's theirs, it's personal. When I talk to a player at any level ... I don't come in and disrespect their shot."
That helps him establish a rapport with his pupils, and from there he can start tweaking. One of the key examples Engelland used to help Parker come to grips with rebuilding his jumper was Tiger Woods. Parker is a huge Tiger fan, and once he learned Tiger redid his whole swing after crushing the field in the Masters for his first major victory, that made Parker far more receptive to the idea of working on his own game.
"It takes a lot of trust," Engelland said. "It's hard to want to get better at something."
Focusing on short jumpers, Engelland went to work on Parker: "We started with the basics, the very basics: balance, hand placement on the ball, follow through, what he watches, his target. He's done it great. He did a good job listening, practicing. It's not easy to do."
One of the keys was changing Parker's thumb position on the ball. Engelland said when Parker shoots a floater -- something he does as well as anyone in the league -- his thumb is in the correct position, at nearly a right angle to the rest of his hand, so that he can keep control over the ball. But on his jumper, the thumb often was close by his fingers, and as a result the ball would frequently come off the side of his hand.
Thanks to that fix and others like it, the results have been obvious, and not just in the last three games. Parker had never shot better than 33.3 percent on 3-pointers, or 75.5 percent on free throws before this season. This year those two numbers were way up -- 39.5 percent from downtown, albeit on fewer attempts, and an impressive 78.3 percent from the stripe.
Parker's newfound consistency is turning the scouting report against him upside down. Previously, teams would dare him to shoot from outside and focus on taking away his drives to the basket. But his rebuilt shooting stroke has left opponents in a quandary.
"Against Phoenix, they tried to do the same strategy," Parker said. "They put Shawn Marion on me and he was going under, and I start knocking down shots and then they have to come out. And that's when you penetrate again, and that's when you try to get back to the basket and get some stuff going for my teammates or for myself. The whole key is to make sure I shoot with confidence."
So with Parker burning the Cavs from outside -- even throwing in a rare triple in crunch time to help hold off Cleveland -- Engelland was feeling like a proud parent after Game 3. "I'm happy for him," Engelland said. "I just like his consistency. ... He's just been solid in the playoffs. ... I think that's what coach Popovich wants -- he's so talented that he just wants for him to be consistent."
Parker isn't Engelland's only client. Engelland got his start in the business working with ex-Spurs guard Steve Kerr -- "like being the Maytag repairman," Engelland joked -- and worked with Grant Hill and several Nuggets before coming to San Antonio. Since joining the Spurs, he's also helped rebuild the jumpers of two other historically wayward shooters who have had strong playoffs -- Fabricio Oberto and Jacque Vaughn.
But his most famous client at this point is Parker, because he's shining on the league's biggest stage and brimming with confidence.
"I feel a lot more comfortable," Parker said. "I think that's what one of my limits was, you know, early in my career. I always had, like, great games and then they'd adapt, and I don't think I was shooting well enough from the outside to be consistent in a series. I think the last two years, you know, all the work I put in with Chip, I feel very comfortable and I've got a lot more confidence to knock down that shot."
He'd better get comfortable being an NBA Finals MVP, too. Because despite Parker's series-long protestations that this is Tim Duncan's team, his rebuilt jumper is about to put him in the history books alongside some of the game's greatest stars.
Two years ago, the San Antonio Spurs won an NBA title. But Tony Parker wasn't necessarily happy.
Then 23 years old, the point guard had been a bit player in the deciding seventh game, as Parker's inability to connect from outside against the Pistons' mighty defense limited him to a 3-for-11, eight-point performance. The Spurs periodically sat Parker and used a combo of Brent Barry and Manu Ginobili to play the point in that series, and after Game 7, writers debated whether the Spurs would even bring Parker back the next year.
The 2007 Finals couldn't be more different. The French flash is likely to be named series MVP if the Spurs close things out in Thursday's Game 4, after Parker again made a couple of big shots down the stretch to win Game 3 -- including a rare 3-pointer with a minute left to hold the Cavs at bay.
That's no accident. It's the culmination of a two-year process that saw him completely rebuild his jump shot and then torment Cleveland with the new weapon in this year's Finals.
Right after the 2005 Finals, Parker made the decision that he wanted to improve. He didn't care that he was a world champion point guard making near-max money and dating a hugely popular TV star; he was frustrated that his shaky jump shot was having such a negative impact on his game.
Enter Chip Engelland. Hired that offseason as a shooting coach by the Spurs after he'd previously plied his trade in Denver, Engelland helped rebuild Parker's jump shot piece by piece. The slingshot-like set shot that Parker entered the league with -- now gone forever -- was replaced by a smoother jumper that has repeatedly made the Cavaliers pay for going under the screen to take away his driving lanes.
For Parker, it was the right coach at the right time.
"Timing is important," Engelland said, "because when you play in the NBA, you always think you're just going to keep getting better. [But] the NBA is hard, and then you plateau, and that timing is good [for fixing a shot]."
And there was definitely some fixing to do.
"In the first few years [of Parker's career], whenever he'd shoot it, I just figured it was going to be a turnover, same as a turnover -- there's no way that's going in," Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said. "But in the last year and a half when he shoots it, I actually think it's going to go in, so he's changed me quite a bit. But that's due to his work and Chip Engelland, who's really worked hard on him."
"Tony, even though he won a championship that year, wanted to get better," Engelland said. "That's where I give him a ton of credit. His summer time, he wanted to work at something he's not good at. That's uncomfortable."
They had to start from the bottom up, and that required Engelland to establish trust with Parker before he could start working on his jumper. Former Spurs GM and current Cavs GM Danny Ferry said Engelland's patience with players is one of his greatest assets -- that he'd focus on developing the relationship so that players would trust his advice on fixing the shot.
"We got to know each other first," Engelland said. "We did a lot of talking with him, where he wanted to go. Tony wants to be great. So [I said] what it takes -- he has to have a consistent jump shot and his free throw has to improve.
"I think the most important thing, and this is true for every player, their shot is personal. Whether it's a 12-year-old girl or an [NBA player], it's their own shot. It's theirs, it's personal. When I talk to a player at any level ... I don't come in and disrespect their shot."
That helps him establish a rapport with his pupils, and from there he can start tweaking. One of the key examples Engelland used to help Parker come to grips with rebuilding his jumper was Tiger Woods. Parker is a huge Tiger fan, and once he learned Tiger redid his whole swing after crushing the field in the Masters for his first major victory, that made Parker far more receptive to the idea of working on his own game.
"It takes a lot of trust," Engelland said. "It's hard to want to get better at something."
Focusing on short jumpers, Engelland went to work on Parker: "We started with the basics, the very basics: balance, hand placement on the ball, follow through, what he watches, his target. He's done it great. He did a good job listening, practicing. It's not easy to do."
One of the keys was changing Parker's thumb position on the ball. Engelland said when Parker shoots a floater -- something he does as well as anyone in the league -- his thumb is in the correct position, at nearly a right angle to the rest of his hand, so that he can keep control over the ball. But on his jumper, the thumb often was close by his fingers, and as a result the ball would frequently come off the side of his hand.
Thanks to that fix and others like it, the results have been obvious, and not just in the last three games. Parker had never shot better than 33.3 percent on 3-pointers, or 75.5 percent on free throws before this season. This year those two numbers were way up -- 39.5 percent from downtown, albeit on fewer attempts, and an impressive 78.3 percent from the stripe.
Parker's newfound consistency is turning the scouting report against him upside down. Previously, teams would dare him to shoot from outside and focus on taking away his drives to the basket. But his rebuilt shooting stroke has left opponents in a quandary.
"Against Phoenix, they tried to do the same strategy," Parker said. "They put Shawn Marion on me and he was going under, and I start knocking down shots and then they have to come out. And that's when you penetrate again, and that's when you try to get back to the basket and get some stuff going for my teammates or for myself. The whole key is to make sure I shoot with confidence."
So with Parker burning the Cavs from outside -- even throwing in a rare triple in crunch time to help hold off Cleveland -- Engelland was feeling like a proud parent after Game 3. "I'm happy for him," Engelland said. "I just like his consistency. ... He's just been solid in the playoffs. ... I think that's what coach Popovich wants -- he's so talented that he just wants for him to be consistent."
Parker isn't Engelland's only client. Engelland got his start in the business working with ex-Spurs guard Steve Kerr -- "like being the Maytag repairman," Engelland joked -- and worked with Grant Hill and several Nuggets before coming to San Antonio. Since joining the Spurs, he's also helped rebuild the jumpers of two other historically wayward shooters who have had strong playoffs -- Fabricio Oberto and Jacque Vaughn.
But his most famous client at this point is Parker, because he's shining on the league's biggest stage and brimming with confidence.
"I feel a lot more comfortable," Parker said. "I think that's what one of my limits was, you know, early in my career. I always had, like, great games and then they'd adapt, and I don't think I was shooting well enough from the outside to be consistent in a series. I think the last two years, you know, all the work I put in with Chip, I feel very comfortable and I've got a lot more confidence to knock down that shot."
He'd better get comfortable being an NBA Finals MVP, too. Because despite Parker's series-long protestations that this is Tim Duncan's team, his rebuilt jumper is about to put him in the history books alongside some of the game's greatest stars.
CHRIS JACKSON
CHRIS JACKSON - 6’0 160lbs
FRESHMAN LSU – 30Pts 4Asst
SOPHMORE LSU – 28Pts 3Asst
• All-Time NCAA Freshman Leading Scorer
• Had 55pts in his 5th college game against Florida
• The last person to average 30Pts a game was Glen Robinson in 1994
• Make 20 3’s in a row before he could leave the gym
• Make 10 swishes in a row before he could leave the gym
FRESHMAN LSU – 30Pts 4Asst
SOPHMORE LSU – 28Pts 3Asst
• All-Time NCAA Freshman Leading Scorer
• Had 55pts in his 5th college game against Florida
• The last person to average 30Pts a game was Glen Robinson in 1994
• Make 20 3’s in a row before he could leave the gym
• Make 10 swishes in a row before he could leave the gym
9.23.2009
WHAT'S YOUR LEGACY?
The impact of your life will be determined by your dash.
When you die they'll indicate on your tomb the year of your birth and the year of your death separated by a dash (1989 — 2070). The dash is your life. What you did. How you lived. Whose life you touched. The legacy you left behind.
Aristotle said: "Excellence is not an art. It's a habit."
You can't be excellent half of the time and be in a comfort zone the other half. Your either excellent or your not.
None of us can start out inventing our legacy. Rather, we are who we are and we do what we do. The world notices and assigns to us the definition of our legacy. The best legacies are innocent by-products of a life lived well and a heart overflowing with tender love. Seek not fans, fame, or fortune.
Everybody wants it to matter that they lived. When God breathed in our nostrils and gave us life, He intended for us to use it well.
Your legacy is not something that you can wish for. Its built day, by day, by day throughout your life. It's getting up early every morning and putting in a HARD days work.
When it comes to basketball coaches will remember each and every one of their players. How are your coaches going to remember and talk about you? Will they refer to you as one of their warriors? Will they think of you as a lazy player or will they remember you as a leader and a winner? Will they think about what kind of player you could of been if you would of worked harder? These are the questions you will answer throughout your career.
When it comes to life everybody will leave a legacy, some will be good and some will be bad, but only a few will be great. Leaving a special legacy is HARD. It means going about your life in a different way than everybody else. The road you take will be less traveled. There will be those days when you don't want to work but you will dig deep and still bring it because thats the only way you do things.
Your going to leave a legacy, what kind of legacy is it going to be?
When you die they'll indicate on your tomb the year of your birth and the year of your death separated by a dash (1989 — 2070). The dash is your life. What you did. How you lived. Whose life you touched. The legacy you left behind.
Aristotle said: "Excellence is not an art. It's a habit."
You can't be excellent half of the time and be in a comfort zone the other half. Your either excellent or your not.
None of us can start out inventing our legacy. Rather, we are who we are and we do what we do. The world notices and assigns to us the definition of our legacy. The best legacies are innocent by-products of a life lived well and a heart overflowing with tender love. Seek not fans, fame, or fortune.
Everybody wants it to matter that they lived. When God breathed in our nostrils and gave us life, He intended for us to use it well.
Your legacy is not something that you can wish for. Its built day, by day, by day throughout your life. It's getting up early every morning and putting in a HARD days work.
When it comes to basketball coaches will remember each and every one of their players. How are your coaches going to remember and talk about you? Will they refer to you as one of their warriors? Will they think of you as a lazy player or will they remember you as a leader and a winner? Will they think about what kind of player you could of been if you would of worked harder? These are the questions you will answer throughout your career.
When it comes to life everybody will leave a legacy, some will be good and some will be bad, but only a few will be great. Leaving a special legacy is HARD. It means going about your life in a different way than everybody else. The road you take will be less traveled. There will be those days when you don't want to work but you will dig deep and still bring it because thats the only way you do things.
Your going to leave a legacy, what kind of legacy is it going to be?
CHRIS PAUL VIDEO
Chris Paul preparing for the 2009-2010 season...
http://www.nba.com/video/channels/nba_tv/2009/09/13/nba_20090913_cp3_workout.nba/
http://www.nba.com/video/channels/nba_tv/2009/09/13/nba_20090913_cp3_workout.nba/
"Coach always says..."
It's a simple reminder of what messages players retain and recall, sometimes years after they've left the field or the gym. Here's a selection of them.
Coach always said...
"If you are not doing it the right way, why are you doing it. Learn how to do it the right way and practice it the right way."
"You'll be remembered by your last performance."
"Toughness is a skill."
"If you do the little things right you’ll win."
"The more things you can do, the longer you'll be around here."
"What you put in is what you get out."
"You don’t improve during the playoffs. You improve at practice."
"The season is a marathon not a sprint. What matters is that our team gets better with each game."
"Offense sells tickets; defense wins championships."
"You have to go hard on every play because it could be the difference in the game."
"In every crisis lies opportunity."
"The mental is to the physical as 4 is to 1."
"Good things happen to good people who work hard."
"If you get a five-point lead, push it up to 10. If you have a 10-point lead, push it to 20."
"Turn the page. Good stuff, bad stuff, just turn the page."
"We're not playing our opponent. We're trying to beat the game. The opponent is just another hurdle."
"Forget about the last play. Think about the next play."
"Finish."
"Mismatches don't beat you, uncontested shots beat you."
"Make the easy play."
"The pain of regret is worse than the pain of disappointment."
"How do you want to be remembered?"
"Not to be afraid to win."
"The first one on the floor gets the ball."
Click on the link to Coach Musselman's story for the complete list of nearly 200:
http://emuss.blogspot.com/2009/03/coach-always-said.html
Coach always said...
"If you are not doing it the right way, why are you doing it. Learn how to do it the right way and practice it the right way."
"You'll be remembered by your last performance."
"Toughness is a skill."
"If you do the little things right you’ll win."
"The more things you can do, the longer you'll be around here."
"What you put in is what you get out."
"You don’t improve during the playoffs. You improve at practice."
"The season is a marathon not a sprint. What matters is that our team gets better with each game."
"Offense sells tickets; defense wins championships."
"You have to go hard on every play because it could be the difference in the game."
"In every crisis lies opportunity."
"The mental is to the physical as 4 is to 1."
"Good things happen to good people who work hard."
"If you get a five-point lead, push it up to 10. If you have a 10-point lead, push it to 20."
"Turn the page. Good stuff, bad stuff, just turn the page."
"We're not playing our opponent. We're trying to beat the game. The opponent is just another hurdle."
"Forget about the last play. Think about the next play."
"Finish."
"Mismatches don't beat you, uncontested shots beat you."
"Make the easy play."
"The pain of regret is worse than the pain of disappointment."
"How do you want to be remembered?"
"Not to be afraid to win."
"The first one on the floor gets the ball."
Click on the link to Coach Musselman's story for the complete list of nearly 200:
http://emuss.blogspot.com/2009/03/coach-always-said.html
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