Joe Flacco Needs to Put Up or Shut Up

“Well yeah, for sure, he plays my position so I’m definitely looking forward to helping him just like some of the other guys,” Gordon said. “We got a lot of young guys and I’ve never been on a young team like this, but it’s good to progress with them.”

“[Davis] handles the situations with wisdom that’s beyond his years,” Williams said. “He listens, he’s humble and yet he still has an edge. I saw him get on a few guys a couple games ago, and it kind of took me back.”

However, in the NBA it is often said that one team’s trash is another team’s treasure. Two days after he was released by the Spurs, New York Knicks general manager Glen Grunwald signed Novak off the waiver wire. It was Novak’s fifth NBA team since being selected in the second round of the 2006 NBA Draft.;980p89

From out of the league, to a stint in the D-League, to waiver-wire fodder, to a key contributor on a playoff team, to a lucrative long-term contract… all within eight short months.

Despite his success last season, and his freshly inked multimillion dollar contract, Novak was adamant in declaring his belief that continued success would only result if he approached each practice and each game as if his NBA livelihood was still on the line./'op9090

In addition, Novak also acknowledged that he’d have to continue to improve and expand his game if he wanted to be effective in the future.

“I think defenses are going to know my strengths and run me off the three-point line and do that kind of thing,” Novak explained. “This summer, I definitely put an emphasis on being able to put the ball on the floor. One or two dribbles, using my shot fake more; just understanding how defenses are going to play me.;uklyui78

“I thought (Varejao) was probably a little uncomfortable because he has played at five for the last three years for me, so switching to the four spot, there were certain plays where he was just a little lost. That is why we are down there right now working with him on the four spot, so he can get that. Andy is a fast learner, so I don’t think he will have any problem learning the four spot because when he is in there with Tyler that is the position he will be playing. I love the energy and how physical they were out there together and that was something I wanted to see.”