daJudge:
Z, with respect to religion, if true, then perhaps he should not accept a contract to play professional basketball. You can’t have it both ways.

I think this is a pretty interesting debate, even if it doesn’t have anything to do with Balkman.

Sandy Koufax didn’t play in a world series game because it fell on Yom Kippur. Should he have not have accepted a major league contract because his religion was going to trump his commitment to his team?

What if an orthodox Jew pulls a Jeremy Lin and proves he can play NBA level basketball. BUT he can’t play on the Sabbath. Can he have it both ways? Would it even be okay for a GM to tell him that he has to work? Would it even be legal?

In 1994 Ramadan fell in February/March. The Rockets were jockeying for playoff position, but Hakeem kept to his religion and fasted. It didn’t hurt his game, but it certainly could have. Should he have apologized to fans if he’d bonked down the stretch in winnable games because he refused to eat?

Balkman, if marijuana is in fact a major part of his religious belief and cultural identity, should be as entitled to putting religion above sports as anyone. And, even if he is, it really isn’t hurting his game. He’s been a good player, when given playing time. (And, of course, he’s not the only person in the NBA to partake in the sacrament. Our own Charles Oakley himself claimed that 90% of NBA players toke up. And I am certain that it is not limited to after games. As we’ve learned from the Ron Artest and Chris Mullin, players don’t always do what is best for their on court performance when choosing whether to partake in the use of controlled substances).

daJudge:
I’ve said it before and certainly have no evidence to support my opinion, but I think Balkman (who I really like a lot) has a problem that transcends his game. If he doesn’t, I apologize.If he does, shame on him for not getting help. I think he has quite a bit of potential if he focuses.That’s what it looks like to me.

Are you referring to a certain leafy weed that may or may not have some medicinal qualities?

I have joked a lot over the years about Balkman’s drug use. I have to say that I have based it on nothing other than the fact that I thought he was a Rastafarian– a culture that uses marijuana as a religious sacrament. Asking a Rastafarian to forego the weed is akin to asking a Muslim to forgo fasting at Ramadan– something I remember Hakeem Olajuwon having to explain during day games. A players religion does transcend the game he plays, as well it should.

HOWEVER, I am not so sure Renaldo is, in fact, a Rastafarian. I think he may just be a dude with cool hair. Rastafarians aren’t allowed to descartes their own bodies. No piercings, no tattoos. That includes tattoos on one’s eyelids.

So, yeah. To make a long baseless analysis short, there’s something holding Balkman back because he is a physical freak who has shown he can play great basketball. I have no idea what it is, though.

Z: Except that one can catch the ball, dribble the ball, and score the ball.

which one is that ? :-) :-)

:
Jeffries and Balkman are very similar players…

Except that one can catch the ball, dribble the ball, and score the ball.

bobneptune: brian,

with all due respect, before the past 3 gameslin has seen about 300 minutes on the floor in his career. balkman has seen over 3,000!

those hidden talents of balkman’s must be pretty hidden as 30 gm’s and 30 coaches haven’t been able to ferret them out in 3,000 minutes of floor time.

and d’antoni gave him a couple of sniffs of non garbage time lately and he looked like a deer in the bloody headlights.

Yeah despite his athleticism I’ve seen him take some weird angles at the rim this year, like he hasn’t been working on his game. I think Balkman gave up on himself some time ago.

Frank O.:
The Knicks are Linfinitly capable of beating the Lakers tonight.
Chandler needs to play smart and avoid foul trouble

this! and good luck to jefferies vs gasol. if one of them gets in foul trouble, who defends gasol/bynum?

Brian Cronin:
Exactly, Owen. The argument against Balkman seems to be “if he was good, Karl and D’Antoni would play him,” but this just goes to show you that that is not always the case. And doesn’t that quote from the league executive sound exactly like Balkman?

brian,

with all due respect, before the past 3 games lin has seen about 300 minutes on the floor in his career. balkman has seen over 3,000!

those hidden talents of balkman’s must be pretty hidden as 30 gm’s and 30 coaches haven’t been able to ferret them out in 3,000 minutes of floor time.

and d’antoni gave him a couple of sniffs of non garbage time lately and he looked like a deer in the bloody headlights.