Chris Paul Sets New NBA Record

New Orleans Hornets’ standout Chris Paul set a new record for most consecutive times having a double-double garnering at least 20 points and 10 assists to start a season. He raised the bar to six consecutive games, a record previously held by NBA Hall of Famer Oscar Robertson.

Chris Paul claims that he was only able to do this amazing feat because of his teammates who converted his passes and validated them as assists. From this, we see that he isn’t a player who takes all credit for his achievements. He shows us that basketball is truly a team sport. His incredible talent and unselfishness has helped him achieve great things.

CP3 was the fourth overall pick of the New Orleans Hornets in 2005. He eventually won the Rookie of the Year Award. By just watching Chris Paul, you could anticipate that he will eventually beat an NBA record set by NBA Hall of Famers.

The record-breaking stat-line happened during a win over Dwyane Wade and the Miami Heat. Chris Paul recorded 21 points and 13 assists. He led his team in bouncing back from two consecutive losses after winning their first three games of the season.

Tyson Chandler recorded 13 points and hauled down 13 rebounds to help Chris Paul lead his team over the Heat. David West also scored 21 points. Dwyane Wade led the Heat with 30 points.

The Hornets defeated the Heat with a final score of 100-89.

(photo taken from http://www.nba.com)

Brandon Roy Strikes Again

Just a few days after I wrote about the excellence of Brandon Roy, he has proven me right when I said that he is a player to watch out for. Brandon Roy showed that he is a player who can hit crucial and clutch baskets for his team. His most recent victim was the Houston Rockets.

With his team tied with the Rockets in the overtime period, Brandon Roy hit a turnaround jumper to give his team a two point lead in the dying seconds. After that, Yao Ming hit a foul-counted basket and converted the free throw leaving 0.8 seconds on the clock. Portland called timeout and drew up a play. Brandon was very disappointed at himself because it was he who committed the foul and allowed the Rockets to take the lead. He wanted to redeem himself so badly. How did he do it? He hit a 30-foot jumper to give his team the win.

Although Brandon Roy only made 6 out of his 18 attempts going 33% from the field, he proved to everyone that he can take and make the shot when it matters. Brandon showed no fear and displayed confidence in himself as he knew that was his shot to take. No one else wanted that shot more than Brandon Roy.

The Blazers beat the Rockets 101-99.

(photo taken from http://www.nba.com)

Allen Iverson Traded to the Pistons

Allen Iverson is now the newest member of the Detroit Pistons. He was sent to Detroit in exchange for Chauncey Billups and Antonio McDyess.

There is only one problem in this transaction. Reports say that it seems like Antonio McDyess is not willing to play for the Nuggets. Allen Iverson on the other hand has spoken about this trade. He said that no matter where he plays, he’ll be giving it his all.

This trade will give both teams a different look compared to before. Other teams will have to re-adjust their style of play when they play Detroit and Denver. Detroit will be a faster and more explosive team. They will have Allen Iverson, Rodney Stuckey and Richard Hamilton manning the guard positions. On the other hand, Denver will now have a better half court offense because of the acquisition of the forever-composed Chauncey Billups. If Antonio McDyess decides to suit up as a Denver Nugget, it will really help the Nuggets’ frontline. A huge void will have to be filled due to Marcus Camby’s departure in the offseason.

Development by the younger guards of both teams convinced them that their superstars could be moved. Rodney Stuckey for the Pistons and J.R. Smith for the Nuggets are quickly developing into the voids that are left by the departing stars.

Allen Iverson is averaging 18.7 points and is dishing out 6.7 assists in the first three games for the Nuggets. On the other hand, Chauncey Billups is averaging 12.5 points, 5 boards and 7.5 dimes per game. Antonio McDyess is averaging 7 points and 4 rebounds in the team’s first two games.

Let's talk about Dwyane Wade

Dwyane Wade has been quieted by injuries in the past seasons. It seemed like his hype died down after he led his team achieve every NBA players dream, an NBA championship. Along with winning an NBA championship, he also won that year's MVP award in the finals.

As this season begins, Dwyane shows us his true capabilities once again as he seems perfectly healthy. He gave us a taste of how well he really plays in the Beijing Olympics where he led his team in scoring amidst NBA Superstars like Kobe Bryant and Lebron James on his team.

What makes Dwyane Wade a great player is his unselfishness and desire to win. He is a tremendous competitor and great leader on and off the court even at a young age. He was one of the NBA’s elite before he was injured. Now that he’s healthy, he will surely return to that state once again. Dwyane is also one of the best slashers in the league complemented by his accurate mid-range jump shot. He developed into one of the NBA’s best a few seasons ago but was slowed down by unfortunate injuries. In the first two games of this season, Dwyane Wade is averaging 23 points, 8.5 assists, 5.5 rebounds, 2 steals and 2 blocks per game.

The real question now is whether Dwyane Wade could lead his team back into the postseason and show that they are championship contenders. I believe that with the Heat’s current roster, they can’t win it all. They could get to the postseason but they lack that dominating inside presence they had to win the championship when they won in the finals a few years ago.

Dwyane just needs more help and I’m sure he’ll be capable of bringing the glory days back to Miami as before.

Brandon Roy Leads his team past the Spurs

Brandon Roy bounced back from a terrible season-opener by scoring 26 points, making 10 of his 18 field goals attempted. He also had seven assists, grabbed five rebounds and stole the ball three times. Brandon led his team, along with Lamarcus Aldridge, over the San Antonio Spurs, 100-99, escaping with a needle-hole-like margin.

Brandon Roy scored only 14 points in the first game of the season against the Lakers who slaughtered his team. Brandon went 5 of 15 for the night. It seemed like he couldn’t get his rhythm going.

In his second game of the season, he showed everyone why he was one of the best players on his team and in the league. He shrugged off a terrible performance and led his team to a victory. Brandon Roy scored 15 of his 26 points in the second half.

The Spurs almost pulled their amazing comeback off with a barrage of three point baskets due to their unselfishness and ball movement. The Spurs hit 5 three pointers in the 4th quarter alone. In the dying seconds, Michael Finley missed a 12-footer on the break that would have given the Spurs the win. Tim Duncan led the Spurs with 27 points and grabbed 10 boards.