Larry Brown Sports

When Jeremy Lin caught wind that one of his new teammates had been traded from the Houston Rockets to the Oklahoma City Thunder, he wanted to do the right thing by calling the rookie and wishing him luck in a new city. The only problem is he called the wrong rookie.

According to the Houston Chronicle, Lin accidentally called rookie guard Scott Machado to wish him well with the Thunder. Obviously he should have called rookie Jeremy Lamb, and as a result he gave Machado quite a scare.

“I was like, ‘Hey, it’s Scott, it’s not Jeremy,’” Machado said when describing the conversation. “’Did you hear something about me?’ I was all nervous. He was like, “Oh, I apologize, I apologize.’ It all worked out.”

Machado was unsure if he would make the Rockets’ roster to begin with until Monday when veteran guard Shaun Livingston was waived, so you can understand why Lin’s phone call restarted an emotional roller coaster that he thought had come to a halt. A new team would have meant a new situation where Machado had to prove himself — something he had already spent an offseason doing in Houston on a non-guaranteed contract.

Crisis averted, Scott. You can go back to getting some shut-eye now.

H/T Game On!
Photo credit: Derick E. Hingle-US PRESSWIRE

The Oklahoma City Thunder have agreed to trade James Harden to the Houston Rockets for Kevin Martin, Jeremy Lamb, and several draft picks.

Yahoo! Sports’ Adrian Wojnarowski first reported the news and says the trade comes after the Thunder and Harden were unable to agree on a contract extension. The two sides were days away from Wednesday night’s deadline for 2009 draft picks to sign an extension. Talks reportedly broke down after Harden rejected a four-year extension offer for between $53-54 million.

Wojnarowski reports that the Rockets will give Harden a four or five-year deal for maximum money by the deadline.

Both Wojnarowski and The Oklahoman’s Darnell Mayberry report that Cole Aldrich, Lazar Haywood, and Daequan Cook are headed to Houston along with Harden in the deal. The Rockets are sending Martin and Lamb as well as several picks in return.

The Thunder are receiving two protected first-round picks (from Toronto and Dallas) in 2013, as well as a second-round pick in 2013.

Harden is the reigning Sixth Man of the Year and the No. 3 overall draft pick in 2009. He has improved in every statistical category each of his three years in the league and will likely develop into an All-Star in Houston.

The Thunder have had difficult decisions to make about their future. They signed Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook to maximum contracts, and gave Serge Ibaka a four-year, $50 million extension in August. Those who felt the Ibaka deal would make it tough for the team to sign Harden long-term were correct.

Not only will Harden get at least a half-dozen million more by signing with Houston, but he also is going to Houston where there is no state income tax, which will mean even more money. His priorities will be questioned because he’s going from a team that reached the NBA Finals last season to a middling franchise, but maybe he believes he can help Houston become a top team. He also will finally be able to start after coming off the bench in Oklahoma City his entire career.

The Thunder made the difficult decision to trade Harden once he wouldn’t agree to take less than market value. They got back good value in return: a scorer in Martin (whose contract expires after the season), a rookie with potential in Lamb, and three picks. The Rockets were dissatisfied with being a mediocre team and coveted an All-Star. They got one in Harden. I think this trade will work out well for both sides.

Here’s the reaction to the trade from some NBA players, including Thunder players Kevin Durant and Eric Maynor:

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Andre Drummond is one of the most interesting prospects in this year’s NBA draft. If a team was drafting strictly based on size, the 6-foot-10, 270-pound UConn center could be the number one pick in the draft. Obviously, there’s more to it than that. Drummond is an extremely raw talent, and apparently teams may also need to be concerned about his work ethic. Former teammate Jeremy Lamb — who is also expected to be a first-round pick — made an interesting comment about the big man on Monday.

“It depends on if he wants to work,” Lamb said according to Blazers Edge when asked if Drummond can be great. “He’s a great athlete. He can jump. He can block shots. He can rebound. I always say, it’s funny, we will have an early practice at like 8 AM, and everyone is trying to get warmed up and stuff. He’ll just come out and do a windmill to warm up. His bounce is amazing. I believe he’s going to work hard, develop post moves, I think he can be a great pro.”

That isn’t exactly the greatest endorsement you can get from someone who has been around you and seen you work. The important thing to remember is that Drummond is only 19 years old, so some team is going to take a chance on him and hope he matures. That being said, there’s nothing worse than a player who has all the physical tools but refuses to put the time in. Hopefully Drummond can avoid that reputation as he begins his NBA career.

Photo credit: David Butler II-US PRESSWIRE

The UConn Huskies may have lost Kemba Walker, but having Jeremy Lamb back will keep them in the championship hunt.  Lamb is a preseason All-American and one of the most athletic players in the country.  He can step up and knock down the three with ease or slash to the basket and finish near the rim.  Oh yeah, and he can also elevate, posterize people, and smash the rim.  Check out this Jeremy Lamb dunk against Columbia on Friday night:

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We’ve often said here at LBS that TV cameras go places they shouldn’t be during sporting events. We made this remark when Wayne Rooney dropped two f-bombs in front of TV cameras over the weekend for Manchester United, and we’ll say it again now: if you want to broadcast live without a delay, don’t put cameras and mics in bad areas. Looks like CBS will learn the hard way after Kemba Walker dropped a “what the f—” after he saw teammate Jeremy Lamb pushed by Shelvin Mack in the championship game. Here’s that video courtesy of Mock Session:

Once again, either throw in a delay or throw out your plans to have cameras where they shouldn’t be. It’s that simple. Sadly, it wasn’t the only poor choice of words for Walker during the game.

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Jeremy Lamb may not be the most media savvy player in college hoops, but the young freshman might just be the difference between UConn winning its third national championship and going home as just a Final Four participant.

The Huskies have won nine straight postseason games and will face Kentucky in the Final Four Saturday for a shot at the championship game. One of their most valuable players this tournament has been Jeremy Lamb, who’s supplemented the stellar play of Kemba Walker. But before we go further talking about Jeremy Lamb, we must flashback to 1984 to understand how this story has evolved.

Lamb is the son of Rolando Lamb, a former VCU guard from the 80s who hit a game-winning shot in the tournament to defeat Jim Calhoun’s Northeastern squad in 1984. When Calhoun, the UConn coach since 1986, first called Lamb as a recruit, he had no idea that his father was Rolando. Upon finding it out, he told the elder Lamb that he owed him something — his son as payback for the shot in ’84. Rolando delivered, and Jeremy attended UConn and has become more meaningful for the Huskies than anyone could have imagined.

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Viewers watching the Kentucky-North Carolina game on Sunday hoping to hear a good breakdown from the analysts at halftime came away disappointed. Actually, they probably had their senses assaulted by the uncomfortable three-minute interview CBS conducted with UConn stars Kemba Walker and Jeremy Lamb. Check it out if you didn’t already see it via Bubbaprog:

Walker’s a junior so he’s had three years of media experience, but Lamb made it painfully obvious he’s only a freshman and new to interviews on national TV. CBS should have known better than to put an inexperienced player on TV for a sit-down like that because not even Charles Barkley fudging his questions could lighten the mood. Next time CBS should ask for the coach and a media-savvy player for an interview. Then again, they’re kind of in a tough spot because only people in Massachusetts and Connecticut can understand whatever dialect of English Jim Calhoun speaks.