Tuesday, February 6, 2018

TWD's Player of the Week (Week 17 2018)

James Harden, Hou

SG, PG .483 FG%, .868 FT%, 32.8 PTS, 3.5 3PM, 7.0 REB, 9.8 AST, 2.3 STL, 1.0 BLK, 4.5 TO, 1.5 PF
James Harden averaged 34.7 points, 10.3 assists, 6.0 rebounds, and 2.33 steals - all top ten stats for the week. 

The Houston guard helped lead the Rockets to a 3-0 mark for the week against the Orlando Magic, San Antonio Spurs, and Cleveland Cavaliers. 


The highlight of the week was clearly Harden’s efforts against the Magic when he recorded the first 60-point triple-double in NBA history. Harden also tacked on 11 assists in 10 rebounds as he received the single-game franchise record for points in a game after Hall of Famer Calvin Murphy held the record for four decades.


Harden now has nine 50-point games as a Rocket. All the other players to wear the uniform now have eight.

Thursday, December 29, 2016

TWD's Player of the Week (Week 5 2016)

Kyle Lowry, Tor

PG .674 FG%, .895 FT%, 23.5 PTS, 4.8 3PM, 4.8 REB, 7.8 AST, 1.0 STL, 0.3 BLK, 2.5T TO, 2.3 PF

After pouring in 24 points against the Lakers on 8-for-12 shooting, including 6-for-9 from deep, Lowry had this to say about his game mindset ", I think every shot I take, period, is going in." 

Lowry's rejuvenation shooting the ball as given the Raptors a huge boost as they now boast the league’s second-best offensive rating, behind only the Golden State Warriors. 


Lowry continued to shoot well in the route over the Hawks. The Raptors were up by 15 at the half and led 86-70 after three quarters before turning it into a blowout early in the fourth quarter. The 44-point win was the largest margin of victory in franchise history. Lowry put up 17 points with eight assists and eight rebounds in the win.


Wednesday, December 28, 2016

TWD's Player of the Week (Week 3 2016)

Kevin Durant, GS SF, PF

.608 FG%, .714 FT%, 28.7 PTS, 3.0 3PM, 8.3 REB, 6.0 AST, 2.0 STL, 0.7 BLK, 2.0 TO, 3.0 PF

After the summer drama of Durant's departure from Oklahoma City many questioned the Warrior's ability to integrate the former Texas Tech Longhorn into their offense. Steve Kerr responded by seamlessly incorporating Durant into his system without infringing on what makes Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson and Draymond Green special.

The Warriors make 30-assist games - which were once a pretty rare thing, and still are for most teams - look downright easy with the way they move and shoot the ball. With 30 assists Saturday night, the Warriors tied the 1985 Los Angeles Lakers for the second-most consecutive games (9) with 30 or more dimes. The 1989 Charlotte Hornets, featuring Stephen Curry's father Dell, have the record with 13. 

Durant has been Golden State’s focal point of that offense as the most consistent scorer. Through Saturday, he ranked sixth in the league in scoring (27.9 points per game) and eighth in shooting percentage (57.2). Durant has shot at least 50 percent from the field in 10 games, including at least 60 percent in seven.


Durant doing Durant things as efficient as ever. It's not glamourous. It's not going to get you on any posters but it will win you TWD's Player of the Week!


TWD's Player of the Week (Week 2 2016)

Stephen Curry, GS PG

.618 FG%, .917 FT%, 34.3 PTS, 8 3PM, 4.3 REB, 6.0 AST, 1.3 STL, 0.0 BLK, 4.3 TO, 1.3 PF

Stephen Curry got his mojo back and made history on Monday, and the Golden State Warriors earned a 116-106 victory against the New Orleans Pelicans. 

Curry, who stunningly went 0 for 10 from 3-point range on Friday in a loss to the Los Angeles Lakers, scored 46 points and shot 13 for 17 from deep. Somewhere, Kobe Bryant and Donyell Marshall are surely commiserating over no longer sharing the single-game 3-point record with Curry, and they're acknowledging that it was only a matter of time. 

Since the 3-point line was established in 1979-80, there are two teams -- the 1980-81 Atlanta Hawks and the 1982-83 Los Angeles Lakers -- that made fewer than 13 3s in an entire season! Both of those teams made 10. That Lakers team did it while ranking second in the NBA in scoring at 115 points per game. 

Curry is out producing current teams as well. Over the last three games, the Golden State PG has scored 103 points and made 24 three-pointers. There are 26 teams who have made fewer threes this week. 

Bishkek Pick-Up Basketball



Soccer is king in Kyrgyzstan. Finding a soccer game to join is a piece of cake.

Basketball is probably a top-5 team sport in the country but much less accessible than soccer. Any open field can be used as a soccer pitch. Basketball courts are more expensive. Kyrgyzstan actually had a professional league for several years but is now defunct.

I went to play at an open court near my apartment. I organized the kids into a three-on-three game. After about 30 minutes the kids asked if we could play soccer instead with my basketball...

After having trouble finding a place to play with other enthusiasts I decided to organize a weekly pick-up game at new gym. Quality School International (QSI) was a well known place with expats with a brand new HEATED(!) gym. The principle agree to let me use the gym Wednesday nights.

The gym was not regulation. The backboard was unforgiving and the rims tilted forward. The roof beams were low. The lights were mounted on the wall, blinding people trying to shoot from the baseline. Still, it was one of the best places to play b-ball in Bishkek.

At first we only had 3-5 people show up. Word quickly spread and we had over 35 people showing up to play some weeks. There was a variety of skill levels and abilities. Men and women from 20 different nations came out to play. The games weren't always competitive but it was always fun and friendly.


Thursday, July 9, 2015

Driving in Kyrgyzstan


Typical Intersection in Bishkek


Driving in Kyrgyzstan is not for the faint of heart. There is a kind of organised chaos to it. Drivers generally seem unaware of their surroundings.

The organized chaos consists of three main actors:
1) overly aggressive taxi drivers ignoring virtually all rules of the road
2) brazen pedestrians darting in front of cars where there is no pedestrian crossing
3) lumbering minibuses impeding traffic in general

Taxi drivers are unpredictable, and aggressive. For instance, sudden lane changes without using turn signals, driving on the wrong side of the road and ignoring taffic lights are common occurences.

Pedestrians, often wearing dark colors at night, stand in the middle of the right hand lane, and attempt to cross streets. Pedestrian crossings are not clearly marked.

Minibuses serve as obstacles that make the flow of traffic difficult for others on the road. They will block one or more lanes to let passengers off or on, make unsafe lane and drive with little to no regard of other vehicles. I've seen more collisions with minibuses than any other kind of vehicle.

Winter plowing and sanding of city streets is rare, resulting in ice accumulation that makes driving even more hazardous. Winter tires are essential

Kyrgyz drivers in general are often undisciplined. Traveling at unsafe speeds, driving at night without lights, and drunk driving are seemingly normal.

In 2011 1,164 people died in road traffic accidents in the republic. source 

I believe that poor enforcement is the cause. There are fines for breaking the traffic laws but they are only partially effective. My Kyrgyz friends have told me that the only purpose of the traffic police is to collect bribes. They never pay fines because it's cheaper and saves time to bribe traffic police at the scene.

This kind of enforcement creates three categories of drivers:
1)  'untouchable caste.' 1/3 of drivers that are judges, prosecutors, police, intelligence officials, high-ranked bureaucrats, deputies and so on. They are unreachable by law and the police.
2) 'penalty payers' 1/3 of drivers that have money and are able to bribe traffic police.
3) 'reluctant compliant' 1/3 of drivers that are afraid to be punished and try to follow the rules

Until there is real traffic law enforcement the problems will continue.

Thursday, January 15, 2015

TWD's Player of the Week (Week 11 2014)

Stephen Curry, GS PG, SG 

.500 FG%, 1.000 FT%, 21.0 PTS, 2.7 3PM, 4.3 REB, 10.3 AST, 3.3 STL, 0.0 BLK, 2.7 TO, 2.7 PF 

Curry is now in the rare air with the likes of LeBron James, which is probably why Curry’s jersey sales have risen to second in the NBA behind James. 

The renown shooter has found new ways to terrorize defenses and carry the Warriors. The multiplicity of ways in which he affects games is making him an MVP favorite despite not being quite as money as he normally is with his outside shot. 

Curry’s 3-point percentage may be down. But his game is up. 

The San Francisco Guard was on the verge of a 50/40/100 line last week with 53 percent of his looks from the fiel, drilling 39.7 percent of his deep tries and connected on 100 percent of his shots at the stripe. He tied his season-high of 15 dimes against the Pacers on Wednesday, adding his sixth 20-10 game of the season. Curry's in complete control of the NBA's highest-scoring offense and the Warriors have the best record in the league. 

The Charlotte native once deemed to be an overhyped shooter has become a well-rounded star. Most analysts and fans would have been fine if Curry just cut down his turnovers. 

He’s done that, getting his average down to 3.2 per game from 3.8 last season. It would be nice if Curry could eventually work into the twos, but his style of offensive production requires him to take risks, and the Golden State Warriors will surely take the bad with the overwhelming amount of good. 

But his growth isn’t just offensively. The strides Curry has made on defense are just unreal. 

He not just is holding his own. He has become a game changer. He has morphed from a defensive liability last season to one of the most impactful guards on that end of the court. He leads the NBA in steals largely because of his success sneaking up on big men and reading passing lanes. 

It’s been a long road to this point, but Curry’s name belongs among the elite. Others are better than him in specific areas. But when you’re naming the total packages in the league, you can’t do so without naming Curry.